Elx Sis All Hpproliant 8gb Vmware

Deployment Guide
VMware vSphere 5.0: 8Gb/s Fibre

Channel SANs with HP ProLiant
DL380 G7 servers and HP 3PAR
Utility Storage
Create robust, highly available

vSphere 5.0 Fibre Channel
environments with best-of-breed HP
3PAR Utility Storage and HP ProLiant
DL servers
Table of contents
Emulex Solution Implementers Series .................................................................................................................. 3
Executive summary ................................................................................................................................................. 3
Introduction ..............................................................................................................................................................4
About this guide .................................................................................................................................................. 5
Solution components...............................................................................................................................................6
ESXi 5.0 ............................................................................................................................................................... 7
HP ProLiant servers ............................................................................................................................................8
Deploying the solution components ...................................................................................................................9
Pre-installation .........................................................................................................................................................9
Updating firmware ...............................................................................................................................................9
Configuring network connectivity.......................................................................................................................... 10
Configuring storage ............................................................................................................................................... 11
Using the VMFS-5 filesystem for additional functionality................................................................................ 11
Support for RDM LUNs in ESXi 5.0 ................................................................................................................. 12
Configuring Fibre Channel connectivity ........................................................................................................... 12
Deploying ESXi 5.0 ............................................................................................................................................... 17
Post-installation ..................................................................................................................................................... 17
Planning the network environment for the host ............................................................................................... 19
Configuring the HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA ................................................................................................................ 20
Using NPIV to identify HBA ports ..................................................................................................................... 20
Configuring the storage array ........................................................................................................................... 21
Using the OneCommand Manager plug-in for VMware vCenter ........................................................................ 22
Performance comparison ...................................................................................................................................... 26
Test environment .............................................................................................................................................. 26
Test methodology.............................................................................................................................................. 28
Summary ............................................................................................................................................................... 33
Appendix A Installing the CIM provider and vCenter plug-in ........................................................................... 34
Installing the CIM provider ................................................................................................................................ 34
Installing the vCenter plug-in ............................................................................................................................ 36
Appendix B Sample configurations for ESXi 5.0 host and VMs ...................................................................... 37
Appendix C Configuring BfS .............................................................................................................................. 38
For more information ............................................................................................................................................. 39
Solution Implementers Series
Emulex Solution Implementers Series

This document is part of the Emulex Solution Implementers Series, providing Implementers (IT
administrators and system architects) with solution and deployment information on popular
server and software platforms. As a leader in I/O adapters Fibre Channel (FC), Ethernet,
iSCSI and Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) the Emulex technology team is taking a lead
in providing guidelines for implementing I/O for these solutions.
Executive summary
With ESXi 5.0, VMware continues to raise the bar for hypervisor products, introducing many
new features along with support for more and larger virtual machines (VMs). ESXi 5.0 does not
utilize a service console OS; VMware agents and Common Information Model (CIM) providers
run directly on the hypervisor layer (VMkernel). As a result, there will be no further releases of
ESX.
There are three options for communicating with VMkernel: VMware vSpheres enhanced
command-line interface (vCLI), vSphere PowerCLI or the vSphere Management Assistant
(vMA) virtual appliance.
ESXi 5.0 provides many new features and enhancements in areas such as storage and
networking. Indeed, VMware has indicated1 that there are over 100 new features, claiming, for
example, that ESXi 5.0 can run VMs that are four-times as powerful as those supported by
earlier versions. However, as shown in Table 1, the new, larger VM will place heavy demands
on data center infrastructure.
Table 1. Resources supported by various VMware hypervisors
Resource
Requirements
for 95% of
applications
ESX 1
ESX 2
VMware
Infrastructure
3.0/3.5
vSphere 4
vSphere 5
CPU
1 2 CPUs
1 vCPU
2 vCPUs
4 vCPUs
8 vCPUs
32 vCPUs
Memory
<4GB (peak)
2GB/VM
3.6GB/VM
16 64GB/VM
256GB/VM
1,000GB/VM
Network
<2.4Mb/s
<0.5Gb/s
0.9Gb/s
9Gb/s
30Gb/s
>36Gb/s
Storage
<10,000IOPS
<5,000IOPS
7,000IOPS
100,000IOPS
300,00IOPS
1,000,000IOPS
http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/press-kit/vmw-vsphere-cloud-infrastructure.pdf
Deploying 8Gb/s Fibre Channel SANs with HP ProLiant DL380 G7 servers and HP storage
To help you transition to an infrastructure that can support the storage needed by this new
generation of VMs, Emulex has validated the functionality and performance of ESXi 5.0 in
conjunction with 8Gb/s Fibre Channel connectivity. The tested environment included the best-ofbreed HP ProLiant DL380 G7 server equipped with a dual-channel 8Gb/s Fibre Channel
adapter produced for HP by Emulex. Storage was provided byHP 3PAR Utility Storage.
In addition to suggesting that 8Gb/s SANs are better suited for the new release of vSphere, this
implementers guide outlines the process for deploying ESXi 5.0 with 8Gb/s Fibre Channel
connectivity and outlines the results of performance tests carried out in such an environment.
The testing demonstrated that an 8Gb/s Fibre Channel implementation based on the latest
Emulex Fibre Channel adapter technology was able to support more VMs than a 4Gb/s
implementation, while also reducing CPU utilization on the ESXi 5.0 host. Thus, as VM density
increases, the additional burden placed on storage can be mitigated by migrating from 4Gb/s
Fibre Channel to 8Gb/s.
Intended audience: This document is intended for engineers, system administrators and
VMware administrators interested in deploying ESXi 5.0 on an HP ProLiant server featuring an
8Gb/s Fiber Channel adapter.
Testing performed in September-October 2011 is described.
Introduction
ESXi 5.0 supports an unprecedented number of VMs on a single host; moreover, these VMs
can reach unprecedented size. As a result, Emulex expects to see more and more workloads
being virtualized, as well as additional resources being assigned to existing VMs in order to
meet the needs of particular workloads. As noted by VMware2, the VM will only get bigger and
faster.
http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/press-kit/vmw-vsphere-cloud-infrastructure.pdf
Figure 1 shows the progress that has been made in virtualizing business-critical applications.
Alex: Figure 1: the

source is a bit blurred.
Figure 1. Comparing the percentages of business-critical application instances virtualized using VMware hypervisors
VMware expects3 more VMs to be deployed than ever before, with ESXi 5.0 allowing these VMs
to grow as much as four times larger. With this increased density, virtualized environments must
be able to provide additional network and storage resources in order to support the workloads.
About this guide

This implementers guide describes how to configure an 8Gb/s Fibre Channel storage array
network (SAN) with a ProLiant DL380 G7 server in a vSphere 5.0 environment. Guidelines and
instructions are provided for configuring servers, adapters and storage using technical
documentation provided by VMware and HP.
While the key objective was to describe the configuration and validation of this end-to-end
solution, this guide also outlines the following:
Implementing boot from SAN (BfS)
Using the Emulex OneCommand Manager plug-in for VMware vCenter Server
Based on interim results of VMware customer surveys performed in January 2010 and April 2011
Solution components
Emulex built the end-to-end test environment shown in Figure 2 in order to validate 8GB/s Fibre
Channel connectivity with ESXi 5.0.
Table 2 outlines the key components deployed in this environment.
Table 2. Test environment
Component
Device
Comments
Tested server
HP ProLiant DL380 G7
Virtualization host running ESXi 5.0;

10 identically-configured VMs
Management server
HP ProLiant DL160
Two VMs:
vMA (Linux appliance)
vSphere Client and Emulex OneCommand
Manager or the Emulex OneCommand
Manager plug-in for VMware vCenter
AD & DNS server
Generic Microsoft Windows Server

2008 system
Support for Microsoft Active Directory (AD) and

Domain Name System (DNS)
Storage
HP 3PAR Utility Storage
F200 Storage System (QL226B)
Fibre Channel
connectivity
8GB/s host bus adapter (HBA)
HP 82E 8Gb Dual Port Fibre Channel HBA
8Gb/s fabric switch
Brocade 24-port SAN switch
Figure 2. Lab Test environment
If this is your first time installing VMware products on a ProLiant server, it is important for you to
have a basic understanding of each of the solution components so that the terminology used in
this guide is clear.
ESXi 5.0
VMwares latest hypervisor, ESXi 5.0, extends the core capabilities of vSphere 4.1 and provides
the foundation for a cloud infrastructure, whether public or private. Areas where you can expect
to see improvements after deploying ESXi 5.0 include server consolidation, performance,
management, provisioning, and troubleshooting.
For more information on vSphere 5.0, refer to Whats New in VMware vSphere 5.0 Platform,
available at http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/techpaper/Whats-New-VMware-vSphere-50Platform-Technical-Whitepaper.pdf.
HP ProLiant servers
HP ProLiant DL380 G7 continue to be the server of choice for many HP shops in the VMware
space. These servers are used widely from small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) to
large data centers due to their high availability, scalability, CPU horsepower and memory
capacity. In addition, these 2U rack-mount servers save space and power, making them ideal
for large data centers moving to a cloud infrastructure.
Using Fibre Channel for shared storage

When deploying vSphere on ProLiant servers, you should always consider using a SAN so that
you can take full advantage of the many hypervisor features and enhancements that require
shared storage.
While VMware supports most of the more common protocols, Fibre Channel is the predominant
choice for shared SAN storage. Storage protocols continue to evolve, introducing options such
as iSCSI and NFS storage arrays; however, this guide focuses on Fibre Channel connectivity.
Server sizing
HP has developed an automated tool HP Sizing Tool for VMware vSphere that can help you
size and scope a server for a particular vSphere deployment. Based on your responses to a
questionnaire, this tool provides a quick, consistent method for identifying the best server for
your environment. It also creates a bill of material.
For more information on this sizer and other HP solutions for VMware, visit
www.hp.com/go/vmware.
HP Storage
HP 3PAR Utility Storage is a highly virtualized storage system built from the ground up to
enhance the benefits of a VMware vSphere virtualization platform. This is accomplished by
exceeding the storage demands of a server virtualization environment through architectural
advantages that include wide-striping and a custom ASIC for true mixed workload support.
HP 3PAR Utility Storage combines highly virtualized, autonomically managed and dynamically
tiered storage with advanced internal virtualization capabilities to increase administrative
efficiency, system utilization, and storage performance. As a result, HP 3PAR Storage boosts
VMware vSphere ROI by enabling you to optimize your data center infrastructure, simplify
storage administration and maximize virtualization savings.
Deploying the solution components

Having introduced the key solution component, this implementers guide now describes how to
configure 8Gb/s Fibre Channel connectivity. Guidelines are provided for the following areas:
Pre-installation
Configuring network connectivity
Configuring storage
Deploying ESXi 5.0
Post-installation
Pre-installation
There are several steps to consider before applying power or installing an operating system on
any system. First, you need to ensure rack space and appropriate power and cooling are
available. Another key step is to ensure all hardware and software are at the latest firmware
levels and download any necessary patches and drivers. The pre-installation section provides
links to verify the latest firmware levels for both HP and VMware. The pre-installation process
provides suggestions in pre-configuring the network for an ESX host, followed by suggestions
for storage systems and storage area networking.
As a best practice, HP recommends verifying with HP technical support that you are running the
very latest HP firmware and drivers on components such as LAN on motherboard (LOM) and
PCI adapters.
Updating firmware
You can review the latest HP and VMware recommended firmware levels at the following
locations:
HP: Visit www.hp.com/go/vmware and refer to the Certified ProLiants and Certified HP
Storage links under Tools/Resources.
VMware: Refer to the VMware Compatibility Guides at
http://www.vmware.com/resources/guides.html.
Before deploying ESXi 5.0 on a ProLiant server, you should determine the latest versions of the
following firmware and, if necessary, update:
ESXi host:
o System BIOS
o LOMs and PCI adapters
Storage array and controllers
SAN switches
9
Note
Always contact HP support to verify the latest firmware
updates and drivers.
As always plan your deployment or upgrade before installing software. Read all the
documentation provided by VMware and HP before starting. Planning will speed up the process
particularly if you intend to deploy multiple servers.
With pre-installation activities complete, you can now configure your networking.
Configuring network connectivity

Before installing ESXi 5.0, you need to understand the network requirements for the particular
ESXi host and the connectivity supported by the physical server. For example, while many
physical servers feature LOM or integrated network interfaces, ports are typically 1Gb/s, though
newer models may provide 10Gb/s Ethernet (10GbE) ports.
The ProLiant DL 380 G7 used in the test environment was equipped with two HP NC382i
Integrated Dual Port PCI Express Gigabit Server Adapters (that is, four 1Gb/s ports). Thus,
Emulex was able to configure the ESXi host with four network interface cards (NICs), as shown
in Table 3.
Table 3. Four-NIC configuration for ESXi 5.0
Physical NIC
Virtual switch
Port group(s)
vmnic0
vSwitch0
Management port and vMotion
vmnic1
vSwitch0
Management port and vMotion
vmnic2
vSwitch1
VM network
vmnic3
vSwitch1
VM network
Combining management port traffic, which is relatively light, with vMotion traffic is acceptable in
many four-NIC deployments. Since vMotion traffic is heavier, it is not a good practice to
combine this with VM traffic; in practice, you should consider separating vMotion and VM
network traffic on different subnets.
Since management port and vMotion traffic is placed on the same virtual switch in the test
environment, it is a good practice to use a virtual LAN (VLAN) to enhance security and isolate
management port and vMotion traffic.
After configuring network connectivity, you can now configure storage.
10
Configuring storage
This section provides information on the following topics:
Using the new VMFS-5 filesystem to support additional storage functionality
Support for RDM LUNs in ESXi 5.0
Configuring Fibre Channel connectivity
o Implementing fabric zoning
o Configuring the storage array
o Configuring BfS
Using the VMFS-5 filesystem for additional functionality

Introduced with ESXi 5.0, the VMFS-5 filesystem provides support for VMFS volumes up to
64TB in a single extent. With VMFS-3, 32 extents would have been required to achieve 64TB.
Note
The volume creation wizard for VMFS-5 uses GUID
Partition Table (GPT) format rather than Master Boot
Record (MBR), which allows you to create VMFS
volumes that are larger than 2TB.
GUID refers to a globally-unique identifier.
With the ability to create large VMFS volumes, you must now manage storage array queue
depth as well as host queue depth. For example, the queue depth of the HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA is
set by default to 30 and may be adjusted via Emulex OneCommand Manager, the
OneCommand Manager plug-in for vCenter Server or vMA.
Other benefits delivered by the VMFS-5 filesystem include:
Support for up to 130,000 files rather than 30,000 as before
Support for 64TB physical-mode Raw Device Mapping (RDM) LUNs
Virtual mode allows you to create snapshots, which is beneficial when a file exceeds 2TB
For space efficiency, there can now be up to 30,000 8KB sub-blocks
There is small-file support for files of 1KB or less; in the past, such files would have occupied
entire sub-blocks
As you plan the deployment of shared storage, take into consideration the benefits of VMFS-5.
For example, if you are migrating from ESXi 4.x to ESXi 5.0, you may also wish to migrate to
VMFS-5 to take advantage of the new features and enhancements.
11
Support for RDM LUNs in ESXi 5.0

While RDM LUNs are still supported in ESXi 5.0, Emulex suggests using them sparingly due to
manageability issues.
VMware testing (as shown in Figure 3) has demonstrated that RDMs deliver a negligible
performance advantage.
Figure 3. Comparing IOPS performance with different LUNs
Configuring Fibre Channel connectivity

The Emulex Fibre Channel driver is in-box, making it is easy to transition 8Gb/s Fibre Channel
connectivity from an earlier platform. There is no need to install the driver during the deployment
of ESXi 5.0.
Thus, the configuration of 8Gb/s Fibre Channel connectivity via HP 82E 8Gb/s HBAs is a simple
process in an ESXi 5.0 environment, with just the following stages:
Implementing fabric zoning
Configuring the storage array
Configuring BfS
Before you begin the configuration, it is a best practice to review the appropriate VMware
Compatibility Guide to ensure firmware on the storage array is at the latest level, as shown in
12
Figure 4.
Figure 4. Showing firmware levels specified in the VMware Compatibility Guide for HP 3PAR Storage
IMPORTANT
Whenever there is a need to update code or firmware,
Emulex recommends backing up your data and
configuration.
13
Implementing fabric zoning

Zoning has become a standard component of VMware deployments; indeed, most if not all
storage array vendors recommend zoning LUNs that are presented to ESXi hosts. Fabric zones
can enhance manageability while providing support for advanced features such as vMotion and
Fault Tolerance that require multiple hosts to access the same LUN.
Zones can also enhance security. For example, consider what might happen if you were to
connect a new server to the same SAN switch as an existing ESXi host. Without zoning or some
other security measure, the new server would be able to access the same storage as the
existing host and could potentially overwrite the filesystem, obliterating VM data and files. Thus,
since the test environment features two 8Gb/s HBA ports, there should ideally be two or more
fabric switches, each configured with a zone that includes the particular HBA port.
Figure 5 shows the zoning used in the test environment.
Figure 5. Zoning in the test environment, with four paths to the LUN
14
The test environment utilizes two Brocade 8Gb/s SAN switches and a total of four zones, as
shown in Table 4. The zones were added to an alias zone configuration, which was then
activated.
Table 4. Zone configuration for HBA
HBA
Storage
controller
Alias
Zone
Zone
configuration
Switch
Port 0
Port A1
Zone 1
ZoneSet 1
ZoneConfig_1
Port B2
Zone 2
ZoneSet 1
ZoneConfig_1
Port A2
Zone 3
ZoneSet 2
ZoneConfig_1
Port B1
Zone 4
ZoneSet 2
ZoneConfig_1
Port 1
This zone configuration will give the ESXi host four paths to a single LUN. At this stage of the
deployment, no LUNs have been created; thus, LUNs cannot yet be bound to WWN ports on
the HP 82E 8GB/s HBA.
Setting the storage array

HP 3PAR Utility Storage is very popular in VMware environments due to their extensive
virtualization capabilities and ease of management. HP has documented deployment and tuning
best practices for this simple-to-use yet robust and highly available array; for more information,
refer to HP 3PAR Utility Storage with VMware vSphere
Emulex followed HPs best practices when configuring the HP 3PAR Storage system for the test
environment. The process included the following stages:
Update storage array controller firmware and management software as needed
Configure Virtual Domains
Configure Virtual LUNs
Assign host mode
Create hosts
Present LUNs to the hosts
15
Figure 6. Assigning the appropriate host mode as part of the storage array set-up
If the correct zoning and host mode have been applied, LUNs will be visible to the assigned
hosts. There should be four paths to each LUN for optimal performance and redundancy.
Configuring BfS
Enterprise server manufacturers such as HP continue to offer local disk storage; however, with
the growth of virtualization and the increased use of BfS4, server configurations are evolving.
For example, HP offers a diskless server, which would allow you to deploy ESXi via a USB flash
drive.
BfS capability is often configured in an ESXi environment, where its benefits include:
Enhanced manageability
Faster deployment
Easier backup5
Enhanced disaster recovery capabilities
The process for configuring BfS via an HP 82E 8GB/s HBA is simple and can be achieved in the
following stages:
Load the latest boot code to the HP 82E 8GB/s HBA
Configure the ESXi host
Specify the desired boot volume
Place the HP 82E 8GB/s HBA first in the boot order
This vendor-specific process is described in more detail in Appendix C Configuring BfS.
Note
If you plan to install ESXi 5.0 with local storage, Emulex
recommends disconnecting the Fibre Channel cables
from the SAN to prevent the OS from being accidentally
installed on the SAN.
Once storage has been configured and you have verified that the hardware has been certified
by VMware6 you can deploy ESXi 5.0.
Whereby the storage array owns the operating system LUN

Since the array owns the LUN, array-based copies can be made without server intervention.
6
Refer to the VMware Compatibility Guides at http://www.vmware.com/resources/guides.html.
5
16
Deploying ESXi 5.0

This section on deployment will cover the options for installing ESXi 5.0 to an HP ProLiant
server. Since ESXi 5.0 has been designed for flexibility, you have a range of new deployment
options, including the following:
Interactive installation: Suggested for fewer than five hosts
Scripted installation: Unattended deployment for multiple hosts
vSphere Auto Deploy installation: Suggested for a large number of ESXi hosts with vCenter
Server
Custom installation: vSphere 5 Image Builder command-line interfaces (CLIs) provide custom
updates, patches and drivers
Emulex elected to use the interactive method, downloading an ESXi 5.0 image from the
VMware website to local storage. The deployment process is fairly straightforward and, in many
ways, identical to the deployment of earlier versions of ESXi. Since this process is detailed in
VMwares technical documentation, it is not described in this guide.
The main points to remember before beginning the deployment are as follows:
Check all firmware on host and adapters and make updates as needed
Check HBA drivers
Plan the networking configuration
Plan the Fibre Channel storage configuration and LUNs
Decide on local or BfS storage
Select the most suitable deployment option for your environment
It should not take more than a few minutes to install ESXi 5.0.
After you have configured the management network and, if appropriate, enabled lockdown
mode, you can proceed with the post-installation process, which includes configuring the ESXi
5.0 host for 8 Gb/s Fibre Channel SAN connectivity.
Post-installation
After ESXi 5.0 has been deployed on the ESXi 5.0 host, you should review the installation and
perform any necessary updates. Consider the following examples:
A vendor may have recently released new firmware or drivers.
Since it is not configured automatically unless you are using a scripted installation you
should configure NIC teaming.
17
If you are using local storage, remember to reconnect the Fibre Channel cables to the SAN
and then verify that the host can login to the fabric and view any LUNs that have been
assigned
You can now configure the ESXi 5.0 host and storage array for 8 Gb/s Fibre Channel SAN
connectivity, which may involve the following activities:
Planning the network environment for the host
Configuring the HBA
Using NPIV to identify HBA ports
Configuring the storage array with features such as multipathing
Note
For host and VM configurations used in the Emulex test
environment, refer to Appendix B Sample
configurations for ESXi 5.0 host and VMs.
18
Planning the network environment for the host

You should plan the network environment for the host in conjunction with your network
administrator.
Figure 7 shows the four-NIC configuration planned for the Emulex test environment, with ports
for the VMkernel, management network and VM network.
Figure 7. Four-NIC network configuration for the ESXi host
This configuration is commonly used with 8Gb/s Fibre Channel SANs. The following connectivity
is provided:
vmnic0 vmnic1: Redundant network adapters for the management port and vMotion
vmnic2 vmnic 3: VM network traffic
19
Configuring the HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA

If you are migrating to ESXi 5.0 or are installing ESXi 5.0 for the first time and have installed the
HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA in an appropriate, full-length PCI slot, with the correct small form-factor
pluggable (SFP) transceivers, configuration is simple.
Since ESXi 5.0 already provides an in-box VMware driver for Fibre Channel, there is no need to
install a driver. After the installation of ESXi 5.0, review the Configuration tab of vCenter
Server; you will see your HBAs listed under Storage Adapters, as shown in Figure 8.
Figure 8. In this example, ESXi has automatically recognized an 8Gb/s Fibre Channel HBA
If necessary, you can use vMA to remotely send commands to the ESXi host to verify that the
driver has been installed.
Using NPIV to identify HBA ports

N-Port ID Virtualization (NPIV)7 is supported in ESXi 5.0. This facility allows a single Fibre
Channel HBA port to register with a fabric using multiple worldwide port names (WWNs), each
having a unique entity. To learn more, refer to the VMware technical note, Configuring and
Trouble-shooting N-Port ID Virtualization, which provides specific information on Emulex
adapters. The technical note is available at
http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/techpaper/vsp_4_vsp4_41_npivconfig.pdf.
Maintained by American National Standards Institute (ANSI), Technical Committee T11
20
Configuring the storage array

In addition to the VMFS-5 filesystem, new storage-related features introduced in ESXi 5.0
include:
vSphere Storage APIs for Array Integration (VAAI)
vSphere Storage APIs for Storage Awareness (VASA)
Profile-driven storage
Storage Distributed Resource Scheduler (SDRS)
Storage vMotion
Software Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE)
vSphere Storage Appliance (VSA)
While these valuable new features are beyond the scope of this guide, be aware that you may
be facing storage-related issues after you install ESXi 5.0. For example, after mounting a LUN
and formatting it with VMFS-5, you may need to determine if additional, array-specific agents
are required to support features such as VAAI or VASA.
Note
For more information on ESXi 5.0 features that are
supported by a particular HP array, you are advised to
consult HP technical support.
In the test environment, Emulex mounted a LUN and formatted it with VMFS-5. The next
concern was multipathing.
Configuring multipathing
By default with ESXi 5.0, HP 3PAR Storage uses Fixed path policy for active/active storage
arrays. This policy maximizes bandwidth utilization by designating the preferred path to each
LUN through the appropriate storage controller.
According to HP documentation, HP 3PAR Storage also supports Round Robin path policy,
which can improve storage performance by load-balancing I/O requests between active paths,
sending a fixed number of requests through each in turn.
Note
The fixed number of I/Os is user-configurable. You are
advised to consult HP technical support for their
recommendations.
21
You might consider enabling the arrays Asymmetric Logical Unit Access (ALUA) feature,
which can improve storage performance in some environments.
Using the OneCommand Manager plug-in for VMware

vCenter
Emulex OneCommand Manager for VMware vCenter integrates the in-depth management of
HP 82E 8Gb Dual Port Fibre Channel HBAs into the vCenter management console.
Note
In order for the OneCommand Manager plug-in for
VMware vCenter Server to function, you must also install
the appropriate Emulex Common Information Model
(CIM) provider on your ESXi 5.0 hosts.
For more information on installing the CIM provider and
plug-in, refer to Appendix A Installing the CIM provider
and vCenter plug-in.
Using vCenter to update Emulex adapters on multiple ESXi 5.0 hosts can be a daunting
prospect for the VMware administrator. To ease this burden, Emulex has developed a plug-in
for vCenter Emulex OneCommand Manager for VMware vCenter plug-in v1.1 that provides
single-pane-of-glass manageability from within vCenter.
22
Figure 9 presents a view of an HP adapter provided by the plug-in.
Figure 9. In this example, the OneCommand Manager plug-in is providing information about an HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA.
The OneCommand Manager plug-in can manage a mix of Emulex-branded and Emulex OEM
adapters (such as the HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA).
While OneCommand Manager delivers a range of capabilities, this guide focuses on the plugins ability to perform firmware updates on a per-port basis while adapters are online, without
needing to reboot the host. In addition, new logging capabilities added in version 1.1 are
outlined.
Note
To activate the new firmware, you must schedule
downtime in order to re-boot the host.
23
Using the plug-in to perform firmware updates

OneCommand Manager allows you to update the firmware on the HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA without
you having to migrate VMs from the host and reboot the server. You can continue working as
normal while OneCommand Manager updates the firmware on the host. At some point in the
future the host will need to be rebooted so as to activate the firmware; however, you will able to
schedule this reboot with the system and vCenter Server administrators.
Some environments include not only Fibre Channel adapters but also adapters created by
Emulex to support other connectivity. In this case, you could, for example, select the desired
protocol to only update UCNAs on each host.
Figure 10 shows firmware being updated on a particular host.
Figure 10. Firmware being updated on localhost
Best practice
When using OneCommand Manager, Emulex suggests updating hosts in groups of five.
24
Using the plug-in to log events

OneCommand Manager also provides the ability to create log files for activities associated with
the HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA. After this feature is enabled, events are automatically logged; the
associated files can be viewed via vCenters Task & Events tab.
Figure 11 shows event logging being enabled.
Figure 11. Utilizing User Preferences to enable event logging for the HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA
One application for event logging is to troubleshoot the status of a particular link a capability
that was missing in earlier versions of OneCommand Manager; however, version 1.1 of the
plug-in introduced tighter integration between the plug-in and vCenter.
25
In the example shown in Figure 12, the Task & Events tab lists event messages indicating that
both HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA links (that is, both ports) are up. The WWNs of these ports are also
provided.
Figure 12. vCenter Server showing the results of enabling event logging for the HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA
Performance comparison
As VM density increases, the burden placed on storage by applications running on these VMs
will also increase. As a result, Emulex has carried out a series of performance tests to
demonstrate the ability of 8Gb/s Fibre Channel storage to sustain a significantly higher workload
than 4Gb/s Fibre Channel without increasing CPU utilization on the host.
Test environment
The test environment used by Emulex included the following components:
Tested server: ProLiant DL380 G7, configured as follows:
o HBA: Either 8Gb/s (HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA) or 4Gb/s (HP PCIe 4Gb Host Bus Adapter8)
o RAM: 16 GB
SAN
o HP 3PAR Utility Storage
o Memory Systems RamSan solid-state drives (SSDs), models 320 and 400
Each VM was configured with two 2GB RDM volumes on the SSDs; the HP 3PAR Storage was
used to host datastores for the VMs.
Emulex LPe 11002
26
Figure 13 shows how storage was configured in the test environment.
Figure 13. Showing two RDM volumes configured on the RamSan SSDs for each of up to 10 VMs
27
Test methodology
The Iometer tool was used to stress 4KB/s or 8KB/s Fibre Channel storage with the workloads
generated by one or more VMs. Two scenarios were used: application testing and a backup
reader test.
Application testing
The following block sizes were used in the application testing:
512B: To create a baseline for the testing
4KB and 8KB: To simulate typical workloads such as a mail server or online transactional
processing (OLTP) database
64KB: To simulate a richer multimedia application such as video streaming
Note
This testing was designed to compare the capabilities of
4KB/s and 8KB/s Fibre Channel storage in a specific
environment. Results in your environment may differ.
Emulex initiated the testing with 512B blocks to establish a baseline, determining the number of
I/Os needed to saturate the Fibre Channel connection between HBA and RDM volume. For
subsequent block sizes, Emulex used Iometer to reduce the number of I/Os until, in most cases,
the baseline was reached.
28
Figure 14 presents IOPS capacities for workloads generated by one, two or four VMs.
180,000.00
1 VM 4GB/s
2VMs 4Gb/s
4 VMs 4Gb/s
20,000.00
4VMs 8Gb/s
2 VMs 8Gb/s
4 VMs 4Gb/s
40,000.00
2VMs 4Gb/s
1 VM 4GB/s
4 VMs 4Gb/s
1 VM 8Gb/s
4VMs 8Gb/s
2 VMs 8Gb/s
1 VM 8Gb/s
2VMs 4Gb/s
60,000.00
1 VM 4GB/s
80,000.00
2VMs 4Gb/s
100,000.00
1 VM 4GB/s
120,000.00
4VMs 8Gb/s
140,000.00
4 VMs 4Gb/s
1 VM 8Gb/s
2 VMs 8Gb/s
160,000.00
0.00
512B
4K
8K
Figure 14. Comparing the IOPS delivered by 4Gb/s and 8Gb/s Fibre Channel configurations
Significantly more IOPS capacity was available with 8Gb/s Fibre Channel. For example, with the
commonly-used 8KB block size and a single VM, IOPS capacity was 100,000 with 8Gb/s Fibre
Channel, compared to 50,000 with 4Gb/s Fibre Channel.
29
Emulex also considered I/Os per percent of CPU utilization which is IOMeters CPU
effectiveness result. This chart illustrates how efficient the I/O subsystem is in CPU utilization.
For example, the HP 82E 8Gb/s Fibre Channel adapter using an 8KB block size test shows
128% improvement over HPs 4Gb/s Fibre Channel adapter.
8,000.00
7,000.00
6,000.00
1 VM 4GB/s
1 VM 8Gb/s
2VMs 4Gb/s
2 VMs 8Gb/s
4 VMs 4Gb/s
4VMs 8Gb/s
5,000.00
4,000.00
3,000.00
2,000.00
1,000.00
0.00
Figure 15. The chart demonstrates CPU effectiveness with 8Gb/s Fibre Channel vs. 4Gb/s Fibre Channel adapters.
Video streaming and backup reader testing

Emulex also compared the impact of a video streaming and backup on 4Gb/s and 8Gb/s Fibre
Channel, again using Iometer to generate the workload. The following configurations were
tested:
Video streaming:
30
Four VMs with 4Gb/s Fibre Channel

Back up reader:
Eight VMs with 8Gb/s Fibre Channel
Both 64KB for video and 256KB blocks for backup were read from the SSDs.
As shown in Figure 16, throughput capacity was significantly higher with 8Gb/s Fibre Channel.
Throughput
6000
5000
4000
4Gb 64K
3000
8Gb 64K
2000
4Gb 256K
1000
8Gb 256K
0
64K
64K
256K
256K
4Gb
8Gb
4Gb
8Gb
Figure 16. When comparing 8Gb/s Fibre Channel to 4Gb/s Fibre Channel, the 64KB throughput improved 126%
and the 256KB throughput improved 205%.
The HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA supports message signaled interrupts (MSI) and extensions (MSI-X),
which are designed to improve host processor utilization and interrupt-handling efficiency. Thus,
this HBA can reduce overhead in an MSI-enabled system such as the ProLiant DL380 G7
server. The latency recorded for average response time was 5 milliseconds (ms) when we
tested both 64KB and 256KB block size for 8Gb/s Fibre Channel adapter compared to 20 ms on
the 4Gb/s Fibre Channel adapter for the same block sizes. For more information, refer to
http://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux-2.6.git;a=blob;f=Documentation/PCI/MSIHOWTO.txt;hb=HEAD.
31
As a result, the HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA helps to reduce backup times, as well as increasing
throughput and reducing CPU utilization (as shown in Figure 17).
CPU/e
6000
5000
4000
4Gb 64K
3000
8Gb 64K
2000
4Gb 256K
1000
8Gb 256K
0
64K
64K
256K
256K
4Gb
8Gb
4Gb
8Gb
Figure 17. With MSI-X and 8Gb/s Fibre Channel, CPU utilization on the host was approximately 30% lower, even
though twice as many VMs were being supported
32
Summary
ESXi 5.0 clearly adds a broad range of features to the hypervisor; however, taking full
advantage of these features requires an 8Gb/s SAN in your virtualization environment.
Testing carried out be Emulex indicated that an 8Gb/s Fibre Channel implementation based on
the HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA was able to support more VMs than a 4Gb/s implementation, while also
reducing CPU utilization on the ESXi 5.0 host.
Planning the deployment of an ESXi 5.0 host or the migration of an existing host to ESXi 5.0
is a simple process. Using 8Gb/s storage, the resulting infrastructure will be able to meet the
demands of the larger VMs you can now create and will allow you to introduce additional
business-critical applications.
33
Appendix A Installing the CIM provider and vCenter plug-in

In order for the OneCommand Manager plug-in for VMware vCenter to function, you must also
install the appropriate Emulex Common Information Model (CIM) provider on your ESXi 5.0
hosts.
Note
The VMware Knowledge Base provides an Emulex CIM
provider overview for ESXi 5.0. Visit
http://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?la
nguage=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=2001548.
The process is as follows:

Note
Ideally, the CIM provider should be installed before
deploying any VMs on the particular host. The plug-in
can be installed before or after deploying VMs.
1. Download the CIM provider package for ESXi 5.0 to any system that can communicate with
the particular host via Secure Shell (SSH). The package is available from the Emulex
Downloads site at http://www.emulex.com/downloads/emulex/vmware/vsphere50/management.html.
2. Install the CIM provider on the ESXi 5.0 host (see Installing the CIM provider).
3. Reboot the host.
4. Install the vCenter plug-in on a remote system (see Installing the vCenter plug-in).
5. Register the host.
6. Use vSphere Client to login to vCenter.
Installing the CIM provider

1. Open the secure shell (SSH) port on the ESXi 5.0 host.
2. Use an FTP client (such as WinSCP) to move the CIM package to directory
/var/log/vmware/ on the ESXi 5.0 host.
3. Use an SSH client (such as PuTTY) to login to the vMA.
4. Login to the ESXi host.
34
5. As shown in Figure A-1, install the CIM provider by typing the following:
vi-admin@localhost-> esxcli -s ipaddress software vib install -d
/var/log/vmware/name-of-file.zip
Figure A-1. Installing the CIM provider on the ESXi 5.0 host
6. After the CIM provider (VIB files) has been installed, reboot the host.
7. As shown in Figure A-2, verify that the CIM provider has been installed by typing the
following:
vi-admin@localhost-> esxcli -s ipaddress software vib list
Figure A-2. Verifying that the CIM provider has been installed
35
Installing the vCenter plug-in

After successfully installing the CIM provider on the desired ESXi 5.0 hosts, you should now
install the vCenter plug-in on a remote system. Next, use vSphere Client to login to vCenter to
verify that the Emulex OneCommand tab has been added, as shown in Figure A-3.
Figure A-3. The Emulex OneCommand tab has been added to vCenter
Note
There may be additional tabs if you have installed CIM
providers for other management applications, such as
storage.
36
Appendix B Sample configurations for ESXi 5.0 host and

VMs
This appendix presents the configurations used by Emulex in conjunction to compare the
performance of 4Gb/s and 8Gb/s Fibre Channel adapters.
Note
Emulex used the Iometer I/O subsystem measurement
and characterization tool as part of the performance
testing.
Configurations are provided for the following:

ESXi 5.0 host see Table B-1
Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 VMs (VM1 VM10) see Table B-2
Table B-1. ESXi 5.0 host configuration
Component
Description
Hypervisor
ESXi 5.0 Build 456551
Host server
HP ProLiant DL380 G7 server
HBA
HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA
Local datastore
Storage 1
Storage array
HP 3PAR Utility Storage
SAN fabric switch
Brocade 8Gb/s Fibre Channel switch
Table B-2. Typical VM configuration

Hardware
Summary
Memory
2048 MB
CPUs
Video card
Video card
SCSI controller 0
LSI Logic SAS
Hard disk 1, 2
Mapped Raw LUN
CD/DVD drive 1
ide1:0
Network adapter 1
VM Network 2
Floppy drive 1
Floppy0
SCSI controller 1, 2
Paravirtual
37
Appendix C Configuring BfS

This appendix outlines the process for configuring BfS:
1. Collaborate with your SAN administrator on provisioning a boot LUN and presenting it to the
ESXi 5.0 host.
2. Download the Universal Boot Code firmware for your adapter, available at
http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/ProductList.jsp?lang=en&cc=us&prodT
ypeId=12169&prodSeriesId=3662826&taskId=135. For example, select HP 82E 8Gb Dual
Port PCIe Fibre Channel Host Bus AdapterCross operating system (BIOS, Firmware,
Diagnostics, etc.).
3. Power on the server and, at the prompt, select Ctrl-E.
4. Install the boot code firmware.
5. Reboot the host and, at the prompt, select Ctrl-E.
6. Specify the adapter port from which the system will be booting.
7. Scan the array and select the boot LUN.
8. Save the settings and reboot the host.
9. Insert the ESXi 5.0 CD into the CD drive.
10. Initiate the install.
11. Select the appropriate disk on the SAN when asked where to install the media.
38
For more information

Migrating to VMware ESXi
http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/VMwareESXi-41-Migration-Guide-TWP.pdf
Performance best practices for VMware

vSphere 5.0
http://www.vmware.com/pdf/Perf_Best_Practic
es_vSphere5.0.pdf
HP virtualization with VMware, including a

section on ProLiant servers
www.hp.com/go/vmware
HP storage solutions for VMware
http://h71028.www7.hp.com/enterprise/w1/en/
solutions/storage-vmware.html
HP offline bundle for ESXi 5.0
http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechS
upport/SoftwareDescription.jsp?lang=en&cc=u
s&prodTypeId=15351&prodSeriesId=4091412
&swItem=MTXdd492ace50c6427389678df8be&prodNameId
=4091432&swEnvOID=4115&swLang=8&taskI
d=135&mode=4&idx=1
HP 3PAR Utility Storage with VMware

vSphere
http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/techpaper/vm
w-vsphere-3par-utility-storage.pdf
To help us improve our documents, please provide feedback at implementerslab@emulex.com.
Copyright 2012 Emulex Corporation. The information contained herein is subject to change without notice. The only warranties for
Emulex products and services are set forth in the express warranty statements accompanying such products and services. Emulex
shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein.
LightPulse and OneCommand are registered trademarks of Emulex Corporation. HP is a registered trademark in the U.S. and other
countries.
VMware is a registered trademark of VMware Corporation.
12-0667, February 2012
39
World Headquarters 3333 Susan Street, Costa Mesa, California 92626 +1 714 662 5600
Bangalore, India +91 80 40156789 | Beijing, China +86 10 68499547
Dublin, Ireland+35 3 (0)1 652 1700 | Munich, Germany +49 (0) 89 97007 177
Paris, France +33 (0) 158 580 022 | Tokyo, Japan +81 3 5322 1348
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Deployment Guide

VMware vSphere 5.0: 8Gb/s Fibre

Create robust, highly available

Solution Implementers Series

Emulex Solution Implementers Series

Solution Implementers Series

Solution Implementers Series

Alex: Figure 1: the

About this guide

Solution Implementers Series

Virtualization host running ESXi 5.0;

AD & DNS server

Generic Microsoft Windows Server

Support for Microsoft Active Directory (AD) and

HP 3PAR Utility Storage

F200 Storage System (QL226B)

8GB/s host bus adapter (HBA)

HP 82E 8Gb Dual Port Fibre Channel HBA

8Gb/s fabric switch

Brocade 24-port SAN switch

Solution Implementers Series

Figure 2. Lab Test environment

Solution Implementers Series

Using Fibre Channel for shared storage

Solution Implementers Series

Deploying the solution components

Solution Implementers Series

Configuring network connectivity

Management port and vMotion

Management port and vMotion

Solution Implementers Series

Using the VMFS-5 filesystem for additional functionality

Solution Implementers Series

Support for RDM LUNs in ESXi 5.0

Figure 3. Comparing IOPS performance with different LUNs

Configuring Fibre Channel connectivity

Solution Implementers Series

Solution Implementers Series

Implementing fabric zoning

Solution Implementers Series

Setting the storage array

Solution Implementers Series

Whereby the storage array owns the operating system LUN

Solution Implementers Series

Deploying ESXi 5.0

Solution Implementers Series

Solution Implementers Series

Planning the network environment for the host

Figure 7. Four-NIC network configuration for the ESXi host

Solution Implementers Series

Configuring the HP 82E 8Gb/s HBA

Using NPIV to identify HBA ports

Maintained by American National Standards Institute (ANSI), Technical Committee T11

Solution Implementers Series

Configuring the storage array

Solution Implementers Series

Using the OneCommand Manager plug-in for VMware

Solution Implementers Series

Figure 9 presents a view of an HP adapter provided by the plug-in.

Solution Implementers Series

Using the plug-in to perform firmware updates

Figure 10. Firmware being updated on localhost

Solution Implementers Series

Using the plug-in to log events