SONAS Concepts, Architecture, and Planning Guide

This IBM® Redbooks® publication provides an overview of the IBM Scale Out Network Attached Storage (IBM SONAS) features and function at the 1.3 level. It is the companion to the IBM Redbooks publication SONAS Implementation and Best Practices Guide, SG24-7962. In this IBM Redbooks publication, we discuss the marketplace requirements that led to the SONAS stand-alone storage system. We introduce storage architectures and file systems. We then introduce the reader to SONAS and describe the hardware and software architecture that make up the SONAS appliance. Active Cloud Engine concepts, SONAS supported authentication methods and networking considerations are described.

This book provides configuration and sizing information for the SONAS appliance and Gateway solutions (XIV®, SVC and Storwize® V7000) that will enable you to plan for a SONAS solution based on your enterprise requirements.

This IBM Redbooks publication is intended for a variety of readers. Those who want to learn the basic concepts of SONAS, as well as storage administrators who are responsible for sizing the SONAS and Gateway solutions and placing the SONAS order.

Here are two common statement I often hear from clients:

1. I don’t just want SAS drives, I also want SATA drives.  SATA drives are cheaper than SAS drives.
2. Nearline SAS drives are just SATA drives with some sort of converter on them.

So is this right?  Is this the actual situation?

First up, if your storage uses a SAS based controller with a SAS backplane, then normally you can plug SAS drives into that enclosure, or you can plug SATA drives into that enclosure.    This is great because when you plug SATA drives into a SAS backplane, you can actually send SCSI commands to the drive plus you can send native SATA commands t00 (which is  handy when you are writing software for RAID array drivers).

But (and this is a big but) what we do know is that equivalent (size and RPM) SAS drives perform better than SATA drives.  This is because:

• SAS is full-duplex, SATA is simplex.
• SAS uses the native SCSI command set which has more functionality (which leads to the next point).
• A SAS drive uses SCSI error checking and reporting which is much more robust than the SATA error reporting.  This allows your storage system to collect richer information from the drive if errors are occurring (such as a failing or marginal disk).
• SAS drives are dual ported which is vital in dual controller enclosures.

So given a choice (and a very small price differential), why choose SATA over SAS?  SAS is the clear winner.     What we should instead differentiate on is speed (7.2K RPM vs 10K RPM vs 15K RPM vs SSD) and size (2.5″ vs 3.5″ form factor).

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Data Migration to IBM Disk Storage Systems

Data migration has become a mandatory and regular activity for most data centers. Companies need to migrate data not only when technology needs to be replaced, but also for consolidation, load balancing, and disaster recovery.

This IBM Redbooks® publication addresses the aspects of data migration efforts while focusing on the IBM System Storage® as the target system. Data migration is a critical and complex operation, and this book provides the phases and steps to ensure a smooth migration. Topics range from planning and preparation to execution and validation.

The book also reviews products and describes available IBM data migration services offerings. It explains, from a generic standpoint, the appliance-based, storage-based, and host-based techniques that can be used to accomplish the migration. Each method is explained including the use of the various products and techniques with different migration scenarios and various operating system platforms.

This document targets storage administrators, storage network administrators, system designers, architects, and IT professionals who design, administer or plan data migrations in large data Centers. The aim is to ensure that you are aware of the current thinking, methods, tools, and products that IBM can make available to you. These items are provided to ensure a data migration process that is as efficient and problem-free as possible.

The material presented in this book was developed with versions of the referenced products as of June 2011.

IBM Edge2012 is the premier storage event that brings together innovative IBM technologies, world class training, leading industry experts, and compelling client success stories and best practices. Edge2012 is dedicated to helping you design, build and implement efficient storage infrastructure solutions.

Multiple events under one roof. IBM Edge2012 is a 4.5-day event where you can choose from over 250 unique sessions, product demonstrations, hands-on labs, and exhibitions geared to roles spanning from business leaders to IT practitioners. At Edge2012, you can connect and collaborate with thousands of your peers, clients, IBM senior leaders, industry experts and IBM business partners at exciting networking events. Edge2012 will feature three separate events:

• Executive Edge: 2 day exclusive event for business and IT executives and leaders, focusing on how leading companies are transforming their storage infrastructures to conquer big data challenges while achieving superior business outcomes.
• Technical Edge: 4.5 day technical event for IT professionals and practitioners, featuring cutting edge education, hands on labs and on-site certification geared for all levels and taught by IBM distinguished engineers, leading product experts, clients and partners.
• Business Partner Forum: An opportunity for IBM business partners to be briefed on the IBM Storage strategy and roadmap; network with peers and gain valuable insights, contacts and resources geared toward helping build your business.

Remember Hitachi GST’s 500GB single-platter Travelstar? Well, now it spins faster and jets out data quicker, possibly having been accelerated for the Ultrabook market.

In December 2010 the Z5K500 2.5-incher rotated at 5,400 RPM and had a measly 4MB cache and 3Gbit/s SATA interface. Behold the Z7K500 marvel: 7,200 RPM, 32MB cache and a 6Gbit/SATA interface. There are encryption and enhanced availability options; the drive uses Advanced Format with 4K blocks, and volume ships start next month.

Hitachi GST is tapping into Intel’s Ultrabook specification, which combines a 7mm disk drive with a solid-state drive cache. The biz quotes Ryan Chien, research associate for memory and storage at IHS: “Shipments of cache SSD units in 2012 are projected to reach 25.7 million units – a 2,817 per cent increase compared to 2011 – and will reach approximately 121 million units by 2015. This growth is extremely significant for HDD manufacturers, as combining slim magnetic storage with caching SSDs gives customers high-speed access to massive amounts of storage at an affordable price.”

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IPv6 Introduction and Configuration

Anyone that follows information technology has heard about the Internet running out of IP addresses. These statements are referring to allocation of the last block of Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) addresses being allocated in 2011. Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) is the replacement for IPv4 designed to address the limitation of addresses and change the way traffic is managed.

This IBM Redpaper™ discusses the concepts and architecture of IP version 6 (IPv6) with focus on:
-An overview of IPv6 new features
-An examination of the IPv6 packet format
-An explanation of additional IPv6 functions
-A review of IPv6 mobility applications
-We then provide an introduction to Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) and discuss the functions of ICMP in an IPv6 network.

We then provide the IPv6 configuration steps for the the following clients:
-Microsoft Windows
-Red Hat Enterprise Linux
-IBM® AIX®
-VMware vSphere ESXi 5.0

Slowdowns in a SAN infrastructure are sometimes (usually) a combination of circumstances. This is a complex system, with many moving parts, all interacting with each other. Troubleshooting requires that you reproduce the problem, something which can seem nearly impossible given the number of subsystems and the number of variables (including time) which must be controlled.

Recreating the problem requires recreating the same workload, the same conditions, the same time base and the same sequence of events. For IT admins and network teams, trying to document the entire situation with multiple events occurring within multiple subsystems, at the same time, can be a real challenge. Like trying to record a live event with a still camera you’re left wondering where to position the camera to capture the right ‘scene’ and when to take the picture. It’s a multi-dimensional problem that requires more than a one-dimensional solution.

Performance problems are caused by a combination of many factors. Trying to monitor all of them with the tools most companies have at their disposal can be next to impossible and determining which storage systems or network elements to monitor, a frustrating experience. Like the carnival game “Whack-a-Mole”, where participants try to hit figures as they pop up through a matrix of holes, administrators can’t figure out which ports or systems to watch and are left trying to react fast enough to catch the problem.

Troubleshooting

When a performance issue occurs, most companies invoke a troubleshooting process that looks something like this:

An intermittent slowdown is reported with an application. After some basic investigation the server or application team discovers that a metric, like IOPS or throughput, has been degraded. The first assumption is often that the problem lies with the I/O subsystem, the SAN. So the SAN team turns on some monitoring and waits for the problem to reoccur (this assumes they’re watching the right I/O path, with the right tools). But when the problem does reoccur, since it’s usually picked up by the same tools the first group used, it only reconfirms what’s already known – IOPS or MB/s are down.

Next, the component vendors (disk arrays, fabric switches, HBAs) are called and immediately ask for a detailed description of the problem and when it occurred, plus diagrams of the infrastructure. They also ask for a lot of information, with everything time-stamped, including (but not limited to): log dumps from each monitoring tool in use, a GetConfig from the affected servers, iostat and sar output for UNIX hosts and for Windows, PerfMon data of all physical disk objects.

If the problem occurs frequently or is predictable (a big “if”), it may be relatively easy to generate these data. When the logs capture the event with enough granularity, and with an accurate time base, the vendor(s) may be able to provide some insight into the root cause.

Troubleshooting complex systems like this is a difficult task if you’re on-site full time and are familiar with the environment. But it can be nearly impossible to do part time, especially long distance by technicians who have never seen the data center and are also working several other customers’ issues.

More than likely, they’ll ask you for more metrics, with more care taken to provide the time differences of the various component clocks, because the time variable is critical to differentiate between cause and effect. As an example, one major storage vendor’s best practices document for troubleshooting includes the following: “Detail the exact timeline of all events before, during and after the event – be as specific as possible”.

After a time, without resolution, pressure builds to ‘throw hardware at the problem’ (something that the component vendors don’t object to). If this course it taken, with luck and often a lot of money spent, some degree of resolution is achieved, usually temporary, and the problem goes away for a while. But to really fix the problem, it has to be recreated, along with detailed information about what was going on with the other systems in the environment. You have to capture everything that’s pertinent to the problem, and you have to control the time dimension. Otherwise you’re just waiting for the mole to pop back up.

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What: Accelerate with ATS: ProtecTIER Update

This 90 minute session will provide a veritable smorgasbord of ProtecTIER topics to bring you up to date. Topics will include new functions in recent releases; HW/SW upgrade information; an explanation of parsers; an explanation of the delete/defrag process; etc. If you’re looking to catch up with ProtecTier, then this session is for you.

When:
Feb. 29th 12:00 Eastern

DURATION: 1.5 hours

Who: Space is limited.
Reserve your Webinar seat here
We recommend that you register at least two days in advance.

Gartner has published their latest iteration of the Data Warehousing DBMS Magic Quadrant (MQ) – a report in which IBM has been in the Leader quadrant since the very first MQ issued in June 2001.

I have been blogging for most of past year about our business being in an evolution. It’s becoming increasingly difficult to separate out the different analytical structures of the entire ecosystem. This makes things even more difficult for the analysts to evaluate vendors in specific areas such as data warehousing without taking other offerings such as Big Data into consideration

n fact Gartner was faced with that challenge in this year’s Magic Quadrant. This year, Gartner has represented this evolution to make room for Big Data – therefore resetting all the vendors down and to the left from the previous year.

At IBM we also believe that the data warehouse world is evolving due to the high demand for more advanced analytics and the velocity, volume and variety of data from numerous devices. This year’s MQ demonstrates that Gartner is also looking at this movement and we hope further for changes to the overall MQ process going forward to better reflect big shifts in our industry such as Big Data

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Download Description
Updated document on November 16, 2009
Added information for code bundle 64.21.24.0
=====================================================
Two options for getting versions of DS8000 DSCLI software:

1. Ask your Service Representative for a copy of the CDROM version,
2. FTP download. See instructions below.
Only Current versions of DS8000 DSCLI software will be available for down loading.

Prerequisites
Refer to the README file any prerequisites. This is part of the ISO CD-ROM Image.

Get the download here