NETAPP UNIVERSITY

Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

Module 1: Data ONTAP Basics
Date: 08Aug2013

Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

2013 NetApp, Inc. This material is intended only for training. Reproduction is not authorized.

ATTENTION
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Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

2013 NetApp, Inc. This material is intended only for training. Reproduction is not authorized.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
MODULE 1:
DATA ONTAP BASICS ............................................................................................................................. 4
MODULE OBJECTIVES ............................................................................................................................ 4
SCENARIO: JAF CORPORATION ........................................................................................................... 4
NETAPP STORAGE ENVIRONMENT ...................................................................................................... 5
ADVANTAGES OF THE DATA ONTAP OPERATING SYSTEM............................................................. 6
DATA ONTAP FEATURES ....................................................................................................................... 7
DATA ONTAP 8.2 FEATURES ................................................................................................................. 8
DATA ONTAP ARCHITECTURE .............................................................................................................. 9
DATA ONTAP WRITE PROCESS .......................................................................................................... 10
SCENARIO: ACCESS ONCOMMAND SYSTEM MANAGER ................................................................ 10
ACCESSING STORAGE SYSTEMS ....................................................................................................... 11
FEATURES OF ONCOMMAND SYSTEM MANAGER .......................................................................... 11
INSTALLING ONCOMMAND SYSTEM MANAGER .............................................................................. 12
ADDING AND DISCOVERING STORAGE SYSTEMS IN ONCOMMAND

SYSTEM MANAGER12

ONCOMMAND SYSTEM MANAGER: HELP ......................................................................................... 12

ONCOMMAND UNIFIED MANAGER ..................................................................................................... 13
SCENARIO: ACCESS THE SUPPORT SITE ......................................................................................... 13
LEARNING ACTIVITY INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................ 13
MODULE SUMMARY .............................................................................................................................. 14

Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

2013 NetApp, Inc. This material is intended only for training. Reproduction is not authorized.

MODULE 1 DATA ONTAP BASICS

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DATA ONTAP BASICS

TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to the Data ONTAP Basics module. This module covers the fundamentals of
managing and protecting data using the Data ONTAP operating system.
This module should take approximately 45 minutes.

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MODULE OBJECTIVES
By the end of this module, you should be able to:

TRANSCRIPT

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Describe the features and functions of the Data ONTAP 7-Mode operating
system

Describe the Data ONTAP architecture and its advantages

Describe the WAFL (Write Anywhere File Layout) file system and consistency
points

Describe how Data ONTAP processes write and read requests from clients and
hosts

Access the support site

SCENARIO: JAF CORPORATION

JAF Corporation has just received a NetApp FAS6280 system and FAS3270 system.
JAF will use the systems as primary and secondary storage. Both storage systems run
the Data ONTAP operating system. Roger, the director of IT, has assigned you the role
of lead storage system administrator for these new systems.
Although you are excited about this opportunity, you are concerned about adding to your
workload.
Roger assures you that a key feature of each NetApp storage system is the Data
ONTAP operating system. With Data ONTAP, you can manage the storage system while
investing a minimal amount of time.
Roger introduces you to Bob, an experienced NetApp storage system administrator.
Bob will guide you through the process of becoming more comfortable with Data
ONTAP.
Click the PDA to see the first task that Roger has assigned to you.

Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

2013 NetApp, Inc. This material is intended only for training. Reproduction is not authorized.

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NETAPP STORAGE ENVIRONMENT

Bob gives you a brief overview of NetApp storage environments, so you can see how
NetApp simplifies storage management for JAF corporation.
NetApp offers different series of storage systems to suit a broad range of business
needs, including the FAS6200 series, FAS3200 series, and FAS2200 series.
Bob says JAF also uses NetApp V-Series storage solutions. Because you have not
heard of the V-Series before, you ask him to explain what it is.
V-Series open-storage controllers let you manage disk arrays from EMC, IBM,
Hewlett-Packard Company, Hitachi Data Systems, and other storage vendors as
easily as you manage NetApp storage.
NetApp storage systems support three different types of disks:

Solid-state drives (SSDs)

Serial Attached SCSI (SAS)

Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA)

The DS4343 shelf supports SSD, SAS, and SATA drives. The DS4243 shelf supports 24
SSDs, 15,000 rpm SAS drives, or 7200 rpm SATA drives. The DS2246 shelf supports
only SAS drives. The DS2246 supports 24 disks with 10,000 rpm.
SSDs are best suited for read-intensive application workloads that demand persistently
fast read response times. The performance needs of most applications that have random
workloadssuch as email and database applicationscan be met with 15,000 rpm or
10,000 rpm SAS drives. High-capacity SATA drives are the best fit for workloads for
which performance requirements are balanced against the need for lower storage costs.
Because you have heard a little about Flash Cache, you know it works with disks to
optimize workloads, so you ask Bob for more information.
Flash Cache is used to optimize the performance of random-read-intensive workloads
such as file services, messaging, virtual infrastructure, and OLTP databaseswithout
using additional high-performance disk drives. This intelligent read cache speeds access
to data, reducing latency by a factor of 10 or more compared to disk drives. Faster
response times can translate into higher throughput for random I/O workloads. Flash
Cache can often be combined with SATA drives in place of faster but more expensive
SAS drives.
Click the hyperlinks to learn more.

Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

2013 NetApp, Inc. This material is intended only for training. Reproduction is not authorized.

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ADVANTAGES OF THE DATA ONTAP OPERATING SYSTEM

Bob is eager to talk about the Data ONTAP operating system. He tells you that NetApp
storage systems run the Data ONTAP operating system. Starting with Data ONTAP 8,
the two operating systems are Data ONTAP 7-Mode operating system and Clustered
Data ONTAP operating system. JAF Corporation uses 7-Mode. This mode retains the
feature set of Data ONTAP 7G releases and includes new capabilities as well. Data
ONTAP supports a multiprotocol environment that simplifies data sharing and
consolidation for both SAN and NAS environments.
Data ONTAP also features integrated RAID technology and contains built-in data
protection using Snapshot technology, which enables online backups and access to
previous versions of data without requiring complete and separate copies.
Bob is confident that Data ONTAP will help make your deployment easier, as well as
make management and maintenance of your data easier.
Click the hyperlinks to learn more.

Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

2013 NetApp, Inc. This material is intended only for training. Reproduction is not authorized.

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DATA ONTAP FEATURES

Bob explains the key features of Data ONTAP software that deliver flexible and efficient
management of storage infrastructure.
Click each feature to learn more.
Storage efficiency
NetApp storage systems use a variety of technologies to provide efficient data storage.
Snapshot technology
Snapshot technology provides online backups and immediate access to previous
versions of data.
Thin provisioning
The technical foundation for thin provisioning with NetApp technology is provided by
FlexVol volumes.
FlexVol volumes
FlexVol flexible volumes are volumes that you can expand or shrink. By combining
FlexVol volumes with Data ONTAP thin-provisioning functionality, you can flexibly
oversubscribe disk space.
FlexClone technology
FlexClone technology relies heavily on the same principle as Snapshot technology.
FlexClone technology enables users to quickly create dataset clones that consume
almost no additional disk space, even if a user creates multiple FlexClone copies.
Deduplication
Deduplication is the process of improving storage space efficiency by eliminating
redundant data objects and referencing just the original object.
RAID-DP technology
RAID-DP stands for redundant array of independent disks, double-parity. RAID-DP
technology protects against disk failure by computing parity information based on the
contents of all of the disks in an array. RAID-DP stores all parity information on two
disks.
The NetApp technologies shown here can each improve storage efficiency when used
alone or greatly improve efficiency when used together.
NetApp also increases storage flexibility by providing secure multi-tenancy for IT
Infrastructures with MultiStore software.
MultiStore software
MultiStore software increases the value of shared infrastructure by enabling secure
partitioning of storage and network resources.

Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

2013 NetApp, Inc. This material is intended only for training. Reproduction is not authorized.

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DATA ONTAP 8.2 FEATURES

Bob was excited about the new version of the Data ONTAP operating system that came
with the storage systems and explained the key new features included in the new Data
ONTAP 7-Mode operating system.
Compression
With NetApp software, data on a disk is compressed and decompressed using standard
compression algorithms.
NetApp storage encryption
Storage encryption is an optional feature that you can enable for additional data
protection. It is available on certain supported storage controllers and disk shelves that
contain disks with built-in encryption functionality.
Non-disruptive upgrading to 64-bit aggregates
Starting with the Data ONTAP 8.1 7-Mode operating system, you can upgrade a 32-bit
aggregate to a 64-bit aggregate non-disruptively, so that the aggregate can increase its
storage limit to 160 TB.
IPv6
Data ONTAP 8.1 7-Mode supports IPv6. Administrators can now easily plug the Data
ONTAP 8.1 7-Mode operating system in to an existing 128-bit addressing in a network.
In Data ONTAP 8.1.1 7-Mode operating system, Flash pools introduce a high-speed
solid-state-drive tier into a standard aggregate. The solid-state-drive tier acts as cache
for data and metadata within the aggregate.
The BranchCache feature is introduced from Server Message Block 2.1 in the Windows
7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 operating systems. It can increase the network
responsiveness of centralized applications that are accessed from remote offices, which
gives users in remote offices an experience like that of working on a LAN. The
BranchCache feature also reduces WAN use.

Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

2013 NetApp, Inc. This material is intended only for training. Reproduction is not authorized.

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DATA ONTAP ARCHITECTURE

After describing the new features of the Data ONTAP operating system, Bob describes
the underlying Data ONTAP architecture.
Data ONTAP, the operating system that NetApp storage systems use, is comprised of
modules. These modules pass data to and from the disks for writes and reads. Although
FreeBSD is familiar to Data ONTAP GX users, it is a departure from the monolithic Data
ONTAP 7G, which was an operating system and tightly coupled file system. The use of
FreeBSD as the operating system for Data ONTAP 7-Mode provides some significant
benefits. In addition to benefits to the Data ONTAP operating system from third-party
work taking place within the FreeBSD community, the clean separation of the operating
system from the file system allows for focused innovation within the file system itself.
This diagram shows the software stack that comprises Data ONTAP 7-Mode. Although
7-Mode runs in FreeBSD with a new data component called the D-blade (for data blade)
and a new management component called the M-host, it acts very much like Data
ONTAP 7G. Notice specifically that the NAS and SAN protocols are handled by the Dblade. In addition, there continues to be one logical interface for both client and
administrative access to the node.
The D-blade manages the storage attached to a node and provides the WAFL file
system that is used to map data containers and their associated metadata and attributes
to disk blocks. In 7-Mode, the D-blade services NAS and SAN protocol requests. It also
provides a UI that is compatible with the Data ONTAP 7G operating system.
Click the highlighted area to learn more.

Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

2013 NetApp, Inc. This material is intended only for training. Reproduction is not authorized.

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10

DATA ONTAP WRITE PROCESS

Bob explains how the Data ONTAP write process delivers higher performance.
When you save a file, your operating system sends the write request to the Data ONTAP
operating system. The write request is processed in this order:
Step 1: When a client sends a write request to Data ONTAP, the request goes to the
network module. The network module sends the data to physical RAM.
Step 2: The protocol module separates the data and the protocol according to the
protocol's rules. Because JAF has a Microsoft Windows environment, the protocol is
CIFS.
Step 3: The WAFL file system receives the raw data and saves a copy of the data in
NVRAM. Then the WAFL file system sends an acknowledgement that it received the
data back to the client. The primary job of the WAFL file system is to determine how the
data will be written when the write is performed.
Meanwhile, copies of all write requests are stored in NVRAM as a backup that is used for
emergencies. Because NVRAM is backed by a battery, the write request will survive
even if power is lost.
Step 4: The WAFL file system continues to take incoming data and decides how to write
data on disk until a consistency point, or CP, occurs. This typically happens either every
10 seconds, or when NVRAM is half full. During a CP, the half of NVRAM that contains a
backup of write requests that are in the process of being written is locked. The other half
of NVRAM is used for incoming requests. When the CP is completed, the locked portion
of NVRAM is flushed and made ready for use.
Step 5: When the CP occurs, The WAFL file system passes data to the RAID module.
The RAID module calculates parity and adds parity information to the data that will be
sent to disk. RAID then notifies the storage module that the data is ready.
Step 6: The storage module physically performs the write request.
The optional Performance Acceleration Module allows customers to extend memory for
system reads. It allows to readily access data in memory for read requests by extending
system RAM.

10

SCENARIO: ACCESS ONCOMMAND SYSTEM MANAGER

You are doing a great job so far. You have learned the basic features and functions of
the Data ONTAP operating system, and you have also explored the Data ONTAP
technology.
The first part of this module presented an overview of how Data ONTAP operates. Next
you will learn how to use Data ONTAP features to manage your storage systems.
First, you will learn how to access OnCommand System Manager.
Click the PDA to see the second task.

Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

2013 NetApp, Inc. This material is intended only for training. Reproduction is not authorized.

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11

ACCESSING STORAGE SYSTEMS

There are two ways to access a storage system: either using a command-line interface
or using a graphical user interface like OnCommand System Manager or Operations
Manager.
The OnCommand System Manager graphical user interface enables you to configure
and manage storage in a Windows or Linux environment.
Operations Manager provides a central console of comprehensive monitoring and
management dashboards. The console allows administrators of large storage
installations to ensure that their installations remain aligned with business requirements.
For now, you should focus on the fundamentals of system administration, which means
focusing on OnCommand System Manager.

12

FEATURES OF ONCOMMAND SYSTEM MANAGER

OnCommand System Manager includes the following features:

TRANSCRIPT

Seamless Windows and Linux integration

Discovery and setup

iSCSI and FC

SAN provisioning

NAS provisioning

Monitoring and management of storage systems

High-availability (or HA) configuration

Protection

Click each feature for more information.

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Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

2013 NetApp, Inc. This material is intended only for training. Reproduction is not authorized.

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INSTALLING ONCOMMAND SYSTEM MANAGER

Bob guides you through the steps to download and install OnCommand System Manger.
System Manager is free software that can be downloaded directly from the NetApp
Support site.
Use the intuitive installer to install OnCommand System Manager in a few simple clicks.
To learn more about System Manager, review the web-based course Technical
Overview of OnCommand System Manager.

14
ADDING AND DISCOVERING STORAGE SYSTEMS IN ONCOMMAND
SYSTEM MANAGER
After installing OnCommand System Manager, administrators can either discover or
manually assign storage systems to manage. When you know the host name or IP
address of a storage system, you can use the Add a System dialog box to add a storage
system or an active/active pair to the list of managed storage systems.
The Discover Storage Systems dialog box lists all of the storage systems that have been
discovered by System Manager. You can use this dialog box to discover storage
systems or HA pairs on a network subnet and add the systems to the list of managed
systems. When you add one of the systems in an HA pair, the partner system is
automatically added to the list of managed systems.

15

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ONCOMMAND SYSTEM MANAGER: HELP

TRANSCRIPT

From the Help table of contents and index, you can find information about features of
OnCommand System Manager and how to use them.

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Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

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16

ONCOMMAND UNIFIED MANAGER

OnCommand Unified Manager includes three major products: Operations Manager,
Protection Manager, and Provisioning Manager.
Operations Manager delivers comprehensive monitoring and management for NetApp
enterprise storage. From a central point of control, Operations Manager provides alerts,
reports, and configuration tools to help administrators keep their storage infrastructure in
alignment with business requirements.
Protection Manager enables storage administrators to simplify management and
increase the success of backup and recovery operations by providing easy-to-use
policies and global monitoring of data protection operations.
Finally, Provisioning Manager automates policy-based provisioning for NetApp NAS and
SAN environments. This solution automates the manual and repetitive provisioning
process, increasing the productivity of administrators and improving the availability of
data.

17

SCENARIO: ACCESS THE SUPPORT SITE

The NetApp Support site is another valuable tool, because it contains up-to-date support
and product information for your storage systems. This site is full of valuable information.
You can search the NetApp Support site by keyword or product name.
On the Support site, click Documentation > Product Documentation to access the
documentation available for NetApp products. You can also access the best practice
guides associated with every NetApp product.

18

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LEARNING ACTIVITY INTRODUCTION

TRANSCRIPT

This learning activity reinforces the concepts that you learned in this module.
This learning activity requires approximately three minutes.

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Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

2013 NetApp, Inc. This material is intended only for training. Reproduction is not authorized.

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24

MODULE SUMMARY
In this module, you learned to:

TRANSCRIPT

14

Describe the features and functions of the Data ONTAP 7-Mode operating
system

Describe the Data ONTAP architecture and its advantages

Describe the WAFL file system and consistency points

Describe how the Data ONTAP operating system processes write and read
requests from clients

Access the support site

Data ONTAP 7-Mode Fundamentals

2013 NetApp, Inc. This material is intended only for training. Reproduction is not authorized.