vSphere Plugin: Creating Host Groups

Using the vSphere plugin to create host groups can significantly reduce the amount of time required to provision hosts and host groups on the FlashArray.

1. Navigate to each ESXi host you wish to connect to the FlashArray and locate the initiator port identifiers (WWPNs, IQN(s), or NQN).
2. Login to the FlashArray and create a new host object for each ESXi host followed by setting the applicable port identifiers for each of the hosts.
3. Once the host objects have been created a new host group is created and each host object is manually moved to the applicable host group.

   Not only is the process above slow but it also leaves room for human error during the configuration process. In many instances, Everpure has found that port identifiers have been applied to the wrong host objects, misspelled, or missing entirely if the end-user was not paying close attention. Additionally, this process often requires coordination between vSphere and Storage administrators which leaves room for additional errors and delays in completing this critical task.

   By utilizing the vSphere plugin, this process becomes entirely automated and allows for the creation of dozens of hosts in a matter of seconds. It can also be completed by the vSphere administrator directly from the vSphere Client which frees up the storage administrator to focus on other more pressing issues.

   Due to the reasons outlined above, Everpure recommends using the plugin for the creation of new host and host group objects.

   New hosts created during host group creation will also be configured with the ESXi host personality.

   Note:

   Due to a slight difference between creating a Fibre Channel (FC) and iSCSI host group from the plugin, each process is outlined separately below.

   All hosts must be in a VMware cluster- the plugin does not support creating host groups for ESXi hosts that are not in a cluster. If for some reason the host cannot be put in a VMware cluster, manual creation of the host object on FlashArray is required. For the host-side configuration in the case of iSCSI, this can be done via the plugin. Skip to the last section of this page for information.