FusionCompute V100R005C00 Storage Virtualization PDF

FusionCompute
V100R005C00
Storage Virtualization
www.huawei.com
Copyright © 2010 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. All rights reserved.

Objectives
 Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:
 Understand the storage models and concepts.
 Understand the principles and features of storage virtualization.
Copyright © 2010 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. All rights reserved. Page 2
Contents
 Storage Models
 Storage Models
 Storage Concepts
 Storage Virtualization Principles
 Storage Virtualization Features
Storage Models (1)
 Storage resources
 Storage resources are physical storage devices, such as Internet Protocol storage area
network (IP SAN), Advanced SAN, and network attached storage (NAS) devices.
 Storage devices
 Storage devices are the management units of storage resources, for example, the logical
unit number (LUN), storage pool of Advanced SAN devices, and shared directory of NAS
devices.
 A storage resource can contain multiple storage devices.
 Data stores
 Data stores are the manageable and operable logical storage units.
 A data store corresponds to one storage device.
 Data stores are used to provide VM-related services, for example, creating virtual disks.
Storage Models (2)
Logical objects Physical objects
Volume Volume
Data store Data store
Storage
Storage Storage Shared
resource LUN Local disk
device device directory
pool
Fusion
Storage resources SAN NAS
Storage
Storage Resources
 Storage resources provided by FusionCompute include IP SAN, FC SAN, Advanced SAN,
FusionStorage, and NAS resources.
 IP SAN devices communicate with hosts using Internet Small Computer Systems Interface (iSCSI). Fiber
channel (FC) SAN devices communicate with hosts using the fiber channel. After SAN devices are
connected to hosts, storage devices (LUNs) can be used.
 If the advanced SAN storage is used, the management node scans and manages disks through Storage
Management Initiative – Specification (SMI-S) ports.
 FusionStorage resources are managed by FusionStorage Manager nodes.
 If the NAS storage is used, hosts scan and attach shared directories over the NFS protocol.
 To access storage resources from a host:

 Add storage resources.
 Associate storage resources with target hosts.
Storage Resource Comparison
Connected Storage Device Virtualization Storage Offload
Using... Type
IP SAN storage TCP/IP LUN Yes No
FC SAN storage Optical fiber LUN Yes No
NAS storage TCP/IP Shared directory Yes No
Local disk Local Local disk Yes No

connection
Advanced SAN TCP/IP Storage pool No Yes
FusionStorage TCP/IP Storage pool No Yes
Storage offload: Some storage operations, such as VM deployment from templates and disk
data deletion zero-out, are performed on the storage devices, which not only saves host
resources but also improves operation efficiency.
Virtualization: LUNs and local disks that do not support virtualization do not support advanced
features, such as snapshots and linked cloning. However, the volumes created based on these
LUNs and local disks possess high performance. The virtualized data stores, although support
various advanced features and diverse volume formats, have inferior performance to non-
virtualized storage devices.
Storage Devices
 Storage devices provided by FusionCompute include LUNs, local disks,
Advanced SAN storage resource pools, FusionStorage resource pools,
and NAS shared directories.
 LUNs must be configured on the storage device or switch before being used.
This configuration may vary depending on vendors and the specific storage
device or switch in use.
 A host automatically scans and discovers storage devices.

 Storage devices can be discovered only after their storage resources are
associated with hosts.
 Each host can discover its associated storage devices and the shared storage
devices.
Data Stores
 A data store is the logical storage management unit created on a storage
device.
 Data stores must be created on the specified storage devices. Only one data store can be
created on each storage device.
 Data stores are associated with hosts to provide storage resources for hosts. A data store
can be associated with multiple hosts, and a host can use multiple data stores.
 Usage of a data store

 A storage device can be used only after a data store is created on the device.
 A data store can be used to store VM disks and snapshots.
 The size of a data store depends on that of its storage device.
Contents
 Storage Models

 Storage Virtualization Stacks and File Systems
 Virtual Disk Files
Virtualized Storage Stack
The storage virtualization technology can format different storage devices, thereby hiding their differences, such
as their capacities and interface protocols, and transforming these storage devices into uniformly managed data
storage resources. These resources can be used to store VM disks, VM configuration, and snapshots,
facilitating unified management over storage devices.
User VM Front-end Front-end User VM

drive drive
Host kernel space Host user space
Back-end volume mounting drive User state

mounting drive
Virtual disk file
File system
Generic block layer
Drive layer
NAS device Local disk SAN storage
File Systems
File systems are used to provide interfaces for performing operations on files,
hide the specifics of storage devices, and store virtual volume files.
Currently, VIMS, EXT4, and NFS file systems are used by FusionCompute.
File Storage Requiring Support for Support for

System Device Creation Sharing Thick
Provisioning
Lazy Zeroed
Disks
VIMS LUN Yes Yes Yes
EXT4 Local disk Yes No Yes
NFS Shared No Yes No

directory
Contents
 Storage Models

 Storage Virtualization Stacks and File Systems
 Virtual Disk Files
VHDs
 Types of VHDs
 Only logical volumes are supported in versions earlier than V100R003C00.
 VHDs are supported in V100R003C00. A virtual disk is a VHD.
 Format of VHDs
 Fixed VHD
 Dynamic VHD
 Differencing VHD
VHD Application Write Write Read Read Creation

Scenario Performance Performance Performance Performance Speed
(First Write) (Later Write) (Not Written) (Written)
Fixed VHD Common volumes Close to the Close to the Close to the Close to the Low, requiring
storage device storage device storage device storage device a zero-out of
performance performance performance performance the entire disk
Dynamic VHD Thin provisioned Low, requiring a Close to the High, returning Close to the High
volumes and thick zero-out before storage device data read storage device Only metadata
provisioning lazy data writes performance results performance needs to be
zeroed volumes immediately written.
Differencing Nonpersistent Low, requiring a Close to the Depending on Close to the High
VHD volumes, zero-out before storage device the parent storage device Only metadata
snapshots, and data writes performance mirror performance needs to be
linked clones written.
Fixed VHDs
 Data remaining on the physical device is zeroed out when a fixed VHD is created. It might take
much longer time to create fixed VHDs than to create disks of other formats. However, the
fixed VHD offers best performance among all types of VHDs.
 Space required for the fixed VHD is allocated at the creation time. After a fixed VHD is created,
the space on the disk does not change.
 When a fixed VHD has available space, the space is filled with zeros, which results in high data
redundancy.
 A fixed VHD is used as a common volume in the system.
Sector 0... Last sector
Data block Disk attributes
Dynamic VHDs
 Space required only for storing the header and footer of the disk is allocated when a dynamic
VHD is created. The creation takes less time than that of other disks, but the I/O performance
is also poor.
 If data is written to the VHD, required space is dynamically allocated to the VHD for storing the
data. However, if the stored data is deleted, the space storing the data can only be manually
reclaimed.
 Conversion between dynamic VHDs and fixed VHDs can be implemented using tools. For
example, you can use a template containing a thin provisioned disk to deploy a VM with a thick
provisioned disk.
Sector Sector
1 2 ... n0 ... n1 ... ... Last sector
0 m
Data Data
Attributes BAT 0 BAT 0
block 1
... Attributes
block 0
Differencing VHDs
 The structure of a differencing VHD is the same as that of a dynamic VHD. Only
the header of the differencing VHD records the pathname of the parent VHD.
 A differencing VHD is dependent on a parent VHD to be fully functional.
 A differencing VHD can also be the parent VHD of another differencing VHD.
 A differencing VHD is similar to a dynamic VHD. However, differencing VHD has a
lot of application limitations.
 The differencing VHD stores only the differences compared to the parent VHD in
the form of data blocks.
Sector Sector Sector

0 1 2 ...
m 1 2 ...
k
n0 ... n1 ... ... Last sector
Parent VHD Data Data

Attributes BAT 0 BAT 0
block 1
... Attributes
information block 0
Contents
 Storage Models

 Thin Provisioning and Space Reclamation
 Snapshot
 Linked Cloning
 Nonpersistent Disk
 Storage Migration
 Disk Capacity Expansion
 Raw Device Mapping
 I/O Upper Limit Setting for a Disk
 Data Store Capacity Expansion
 Data Store Restoration
Thin Provisioning and Space Reclamation
 Functions
 Thin provisioning of virtual disks allows disk space to be allocated on demand
with data written to the disk.
 Space reclamation can be used to release the space that stores deleted data
to data stores.
 Application
 Thin provisioning can be used in the initial phase of a system when disk
utilization is low to reduce investment on storage devices and the maintenance
costs. Only data is stored on storage devices, and no additional space is
reserved. Thin provisioning improves storage utilization.
 Space reclamation increases the ratio of used and allocated thin-provisioned

disks to improve storage utilization.
Thin Provisioning Principles
 Principles
 A data store functions as a storage resource pool. Each time when a
user writes data into a virtual disk, space in the resource pool is
allocated to the disk.
 If data on a VM disk is deleted, the disk size does not decrease. The
next time when data is written into the disk, the idle space is used to
store the data.
Thin provisioning enabled

Thin provisioning disabled
Allocated but Unallocated

2 TB 2 TB 2 TB not used
Allocated
4 TB Allocated 6 TB 4 TB 5 TB
6 TB 5 TB and used and used
Space used on the host: 15 TB

Space used on the host: 21 TB
Contents
 Storage Models

 Snapshot
 Linked Cloning
Snapshot
 Functions
 A snapshot records the VM status and content at a specific time point.
 A snapshot can be used to revert a VM to the state when the snapshot was created for
multiple times.
 A snapshot consists of the disk content, VM configuration information, and memory data.
 Only incremental data is stored for snapshots created for the same VM, thereby saving
storage space.
 Application
 Before performing critical operations, such as system patch installation, upgrade, and
destructive tests, VM users are advised to take snapshots for quick restoration.
 Users can create snapshots as required and restore VMs using snapshots.
Snapshots in Storage Virtualization
 When a snapshot is created, a delta volume is generated and attached to the VM.
Read requests for the VM are redirected to the parent volume.
 The redirect-on-write (ROW) technology is used for creating snapshots. After a
snapshot is created, all data writes are redirected to the delta volume. Only the
legacy data is stored on the read-only parent volume.
Snapshots Snapshots
not used used
VM VM
Reads and Reads Writes

writes
Snapshots VHD
VHD
Snapshot Chain
 A snapshot chain is generated after multiple snapshots are created for the
disk.
 The VM volume is always attached to the end of the snapshot chain.
Before snapshot First snapshot Second snapshot

creation creation creation
VOL SNAP1 SNAP1
VOL SNAP2
VOL
Contents
 Storage Models

 Snapshot
 Linked Cloning
Linked Cloning
 Functions
 Linked cloning is a technology that mirrors the parent volume and delta volume
to a cloned volume for VMs to use.
 A cloned template can be used to create multiple delta volumes for creating
multiple linked clones.
 A newly created delta volume occupies small space. The size of the volume
increases with the use of VMs.
 Application
 Create VMs quickly in batches.
 Store data shared by multiple VMs in the template to improve storage

utilization.
Linked Cloning Principles
Contents
 Storage Models

 Snapshot
 Linked Cloning
Nonpersistent Disks
 Functions
 A differencing disk is created for the VM disks during the VM startup. All
changes to the VM disks are redirected to the differencing disk.
 After the VM stops, the differencing disk is deleted, and all data stored in the
differencing disk is discarded.
 If a user starts the VM again, the disk content is restored to the state before the
differencing disk is created.
 Application
 Nonpersistent disks can be used for public VMs to implement content
protection and quick restoration.
 The disk content can be updated and the restoration point can be set by
configuring parameters related to a nonpersistent disk.
Contents
 Storage Models

 Snapshot
 Linked Cloning
Storage Migration
 Functions
 Storage virtualization allows VM disks to be
migrated from one data store to another.
VM VM VM
 Disks belonging to a VM can be migrated as
CNA a whole or one by one.
 VM snapshot can be migrated together with

VM disks.
 VM disks can be migrated no matter the VM
is in the running or stopped state.
 Application
Data store 1
 Reduce data store capacity after all disks in
Data store 2
the data store are migrated.
 Implement load balancing among data
stores.
Storage Live Migration
Source Storage Type (Source Destination Storage Type Configuration Configuration Mode After Migration
Configuration Mode) Mode
Changed
Block storage Virtualized storage Yes Select thick provisioning lazy zeroed
(not supported by NAS storage) or thin
provisioning during migration
Virtualized storage Virtualized storage Yes Select thick provisioning lazy zeroed
(common disk) (not supported by NAS storage) or thin
provisioning during migration
Virtualized storage Virtualized storage No Unchanged
(thick provisioning lazy zeroed disk) (non-NAS)
Virtualized storage Virtualized storage Yes Thin provisioning
(thick provisioning lazy zeroed disk) (NAS)
Virtualized storage Virtualized storage No Unchanged
(thin provisioned disk)
Storage live migration does not support snapshot migration. You can set either of the live migration rate on the portal:
Medium: The maximum migration rate is 20 Mbit/s. This migration rate applies to the scenarios with heavy storage I/O pressure and
reduces the adverse impacts on user VMs.
High: The maximum migration rate is 30 Mbit/s. This migration rate applies to the scenarios with acceptable storage I/O pressure and
reduces the adverse impacts on user VMs to a certain extent while ensuring proper migration.
Unlimited: The maximum migration rate is 1024 Mbit/s. This migration rate applies to the scenarios in which the user VM services have
low priorities.
Storage Cold Migration
Source Storage Type (Source Destination Configuration Configuration Snapshot
Configuration Mode) Storage Type Mode Changed Mode After Migration
Migration
Virtualized storage Virtualized storage No Unchanged Yes
(common, thick provisioning lazy (non-NAS)
zeroed, and thin provisioning)
Virtualized storage Virtualized storage Yes Thin provisioning Yes
(thick provisioning lazy zeroed (NAS)
disk)
Virtualized storage Block storage Yes Common No
(thick provisioning lazy zeroed
and thin provisioning)
Virtualized storage Block storage No Common No
(common)
Block storage Virtualized storage No Unchanged No
Block storage Block storage No Unchanged No
The rate of storage cold migration can be set only in the

configuration file.
Contents
 Storage Models

 Snapshot
 Linked Cloning
Disk Capacity Expansion
 Functions
 The VM disk capacity can be expanded without any impact on existing data on the disk.
 Capacity expansion of both system and user disks are supported. However, to merge
partitions, ensure that the operating system supports partition merging or a third-party tool
is required. The Windows XP and Windows 7 operating systems support partition merging
for user disks.
 Some operating systems support disk capacity expansion when the VM is running.
 Application
Allocate disk space on demand during initial disk allocation. If the disk space is
insufficient, the disk capacity can be expanded. This helps improve storage
device utilization.
 Differences
 If virtual storage is used, you can expand the disk capacity to increase the VM storage
space.
 If non-virtual storage is used, you can only add separate disks.
Contents
 Storage Models

 Snapshot
 Linked Cloning
Raw Device Mapping
Functions
 The physical raw device is mapped directly to VMs.
 The passthrough VM disks can process SCSI commands.
Application
This feature ensures the proper running of Oracle RAC cluster services on VMs.
Raw Device Mapping Configuration
Step 1: Add the target LUN as the raw device mapping (RDM) data stores.
Step 2: Create disks on the

RDM data stores.
Step 3: Mount the disks to VMs in SCSI mode.
Contents
 Storage Models

 Snapshot
 Linked Cloning
I/O Upper Limit Setting for a Disk
 Functions
 You can query the real-time I/O data of
each disk on the VM.
 You can set the maximum bytes per second

(BPS) and input/output operations per
second (IOPS) for each disk.
 The I/O upper limit can be set for the VMs

with any storage type. This setting takes
effect when the PV driver starts running.
 Application
Set the I/O upper limit for the disks of unimportant VMs to ensure that these VMs do
not compete resources with important VMs in service peak hours.
I/O Upper Limit Setting Principles
Block fronted driver:
Guest 1 (VM) Guest 2 (VM) Guest 3 (VM) Indicates the front-end driver of a block device.
Service I/O Service I/O Service I/O

Each disk of the VM has a front-end driver for
Guest OS Guest OS Guest OS processing disk I/O requests.
Block back driver:

Block fronted Block fronted Block fronted Indicates the back-end driver of a block device.
driver driver driver
The CNA node provides a back-end driver for the
front-end driver of each VM to receive front-end
Host (CNA)
I/O requests and convert the I/O requests into
Host OS
I/Os on physical devices.
Block back Block back Block back
driver driver driver Task Control:
The cgroup mechanism of the kernel is used to
Task control Task control Task control
control back-end drivers to specify the number of
Virtualization layer (logical block/file system) I/O requests that back-end drivers can process
per second, thereby controlling each disk of the
VM.
SAN Local storage NAS FusionStorage
Contents
 Storage Models

 Snapshot
 Linked Cloning
Data Store Capacity Expansion
 Functions
 The system automatically identifies whether a data store supports capacity expansion.
 The system automatically searches for the storage devices that can be expanded under a
site.
 The system automatically updates the real capacity of storage devices.
 Application
 Add several physical storage devices providing the same functions into one data store,
which significantly facilitates storage management.
 Add more physical storage devices if the storage space of a data store becomes
insufficient, thereby expanding the capacity of the data store.
Contents
 Storage Models

 Snapshot
 Linked Cloning
Data Store Restoration
 Functions
 The system automatically detects data store faults and generates alarms to protect
resources.
 The system supports in-service data store restoration, significantly shortening the
restoration duration.
 The system provides multiple restoration measures to protect user data.
 Application
 If a data store is faulty, administrators can easily restore the data store on the portal.
 If a data store is faulty, the system denies new services, thereby preventing damages on
normal data.
Thank you
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FusionCompute

Copyright © 2010 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. All rights reserved.

 Understand the principles and features of storage virtualization.

 Storage Virtualization Principles

 Storage Virtualization Features

 A storage resource can contain multiple storage devices.

 A data store corresponds to one storage device.

Data store Data store

 FusionStorage resources are managed by FusionStorage Manager nodes.

 To access storage resources from a host:

FC SAN storage Optical fiber LUN Yes No

NAS storage TCP/IP Shared directory Yes No

Local disk Local Local disk Yes No

FusionStorage TCP/IP Storage pool No Yes

 A host automatically scans and discovers storage devices.

 Usage of a data store

 A data store can be used to store VM disks and snapshots.

 The size of a data store depends on that of its storage device.

 Storage Virtualization Principles

 Virtual Disk Files

 Storage Virtualization Features

User VM Front-end Front-end User VM

Host kernel space Host user space

Back-end volume mounting drive User state

Virtual disk file

Generic block layer

NAS device Local disk SAN storage

File Storage Requiring Support for Support for

EXT4 Local disk Yes No Yes

NFS Shared No Yes No

 Storage Virtualization Principles

 Virtual Disk Files

 Storage Virtualization Features

 VHDs are supported in V100R003C00. A virtual disk is a VHD.

VHD Application Write Write Read Read Creation

 A fixed VHD is used as a common volume in the system.

Sector 0... Last sector

Data block Disk attributes

Sector Sector Sector

Parent VHD Data Data

 Storage Virtualization Principles

 Storage Virtualization Features

 Disk Capacity Expansion

 Raw Device Mapping

 I/O Upper Limit Setting for a Disk

 Data Store Capacity Expansion

 Data Store Restoration

 Space reclamation increases the ratio of used and allocated thin-provisioned

Thin provisioning enabled

Allocated but Unallocated

Space used on the host: 15 TB

 Storage Virtualization Principles

 Storage Virtualization Features

 Disk Capacity Expansion

 Raw Device Mapping

 I/O Upper Limit Setting for a Disk

 Data Store Capacity Expansion

 Data Store Restoration

Reads and Reads Writes

Before snapshot First snapshot Second snapshot

VOL SNAP1 SNAP1

 Storage Virtualization Principles

 Storage Virtualization Features