vSphere Plugin: Adding/Removing a VMFS Datastore to/from a Cluster

User Guides for VMware Solutions

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User Guides
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Host Connection Screen

All host connectivity management for a datastore (besides provisioning an entirely new datastore) has been moved to its own screen which is accessible by selecting a datastore in the left-hand inventory panel and then choosing the corresponding Configure Tab > Everpure > Host Connections.

Alternatively, there is a link on the summary tab of a selected datastore that redirects to the Host Connections screen:

The Host Connection screen will show the hosts/clusters that the datastore is currently connected to.

There are five columns:

Column

Description

Filter

Cluster/Host

This is the name of the ESXi host or Cluster and in the case of a host the cluster is belongs to if it is in one. A host could be listed twice if it has two objects on the FlashArray (for instance one FlashArray host for iSCSI and one for Fibre Channel).

You can filter by the name of the host or cluster

Status

Information about the host connection in general or the datastore connection status to that host. Possible values are:

  • Mounted (properly and fully connected to this object)
  • Warnings (there is some issue on this host or cluster or a host in the cluster).
  • Not Connected (the host is configured on the FlashArray but the connection is not online)
  • Not Configured (the host is not configured on the FlashArray)
  • Not Mounted (the host is configured and online with the FlashArray but the volume is not connected to it)

You can filter by the status of the hosts or cluster connection with the datastore.

Array

The name of the array(s) that host that volume. In the case of ActiveCluster this will be two arrays.

You can filter by array name.

Array Host Group or Host

The name of the host or host group object that corresponds to that host or cluster.

You can filter by the host or host group name.

Protocol

The in-use protocol (iSCSI, Fibre Channel, or NVMe-oF) for that host.

You can filter by iSCSI or Fibre Channel. NVMe filtering is forthcoming.

Understanding Status Warnings

If certain configuration problems are identified, the plugin will warn on the Host Connection screen:

To filter by objects with issues click on the Show Me link in the yellow warning box. To remove the filter, click RESET FILTERS in the same box. A summary of common identified issues:

Direct mounts found. This means that one or more hosts in the cluster have the datastore directly connected to one or more hosts instead of the host group.

Mounted Directly to the host. This means that the datastore is connected directly to the host and not to the host group the host is in. While this is not specifically a dangerous situation, it is recommended to connect storage via the host group for a cluster to ensure uniform access. You may ignore this warning if direct connection is intended.

Multiple Host Groups found. This means that more than one host group has been found for the cluster. This can cause provisioning to be non-uniform/irregular and should be investigated to ensure the configuration is intended.

Add Datastore to Host or Cluster

To add a datastore to a host or cluster, click on desired cluster or host in the Host Connection panel and click the Mount Datastore button.

If the host or cluster is not configured, the window will surface a link to the Host Connections management panel to configure the host or cluster connectivity.

If the host or host group is configured properly, the window will ask for confirmation to mount. The process will connect the volume to the host or host group, rescan, then mount the datastore.

If you have selected a host in a cluster and it is in the host group, the plugin will by default prompt to add it to the host group instead of directly to the host. If you do want to add it just to that host, deselect the Mount via Host Group option.

Mount Datastore is Grayed Out

If the Mount Datastore is Grayed out, it means one of the following things:

  • The datastore is presented to another host through a different protocol. VMware does not support datastores being used via more than one protocol at a time.
  • The datastore is already mounted to that host.
  • You have selected a cluster and the datastore is already mounted to a host directly in that cluster. To resolve this either remove the direct mount and re-add to the whole cluster (preferred), or mount it individually to each host.

Remove Datastore from Host or Cluster

If a datastore is connected at the host group (cluster) level (meaning it does not have a direct mount warning) select the cluster or a host in that cluster and click the UNMOUNT DATASTORE... button.

Once the window pop-up you must confirm the operation.

If you selected a cluster you can just click UNMOUNT to start the operation.

If you selected a host in a cluster, the window will ask you to confirm that you do mean to proceed as this operation will remove access to the datastore for ALL hosts in the cluster. A datastore can not be removed from a single host if it is provisioned at the host level on the FlashArray--so the plugin will iterate this operation through all hosts in the host group.

This will unmount the volume from all hosts in the cluster, detach the device from each host, disconnect the volume on the FlashArray from the host group, then rescan the hosts in the cluster storage subsystems to remove the datastore listing safely. To remove the datastore from a single host, the connection must be a direct mount. In this case the host will be noted as below:

If so, the datastore can be removed from that single host. Select the host and click the Unmount Datastore button. Confirm the operation.

This will unmount the volume, detach the device from the host, disconnect the volume on the FlashArray from the host object, and then rescan the host storage subsystem to remove the datastore object safely.