Category Archive: ha

May 23

vSphere Metro Storage Cluster white paper released!

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May 23, 2012

I wanted to point you guys to a white paper that I have worked on for the last months. This white paper was written in collaboration with Lee Dilworth, Ken Werneburg, Frank Denneman and Stuart Hardman. Thanks guys for taking time out of your busy schedule to work with me on this project! This white paper is about vSphere Metro Storage Cluster solutions (aka stretched clusters) and specifically looks at things from a VMware perspective. Enjoy!

  • VMware vSphere Metro Storage Cluster (VMware vMSC) is a new configuration within the VMware Hardware Compatibility List. This type of configuration is commonly referred to as a stretched storage cluster or metro storage cluster. It is implemented in environments where disaster/downtime avoidance is a key requirement. This case study was developed to provide additional insight and information regarding operation of a VMware vMSC infrastructure in conjunction with VMware vSphere. This paper will explain how vSphere handles specific failure scenarios and will discuss various design considerations and operational procedures.
    http://www.vmware.com/resources/techresources/10284

“vSphere Metro Storage Cluster white paper released!” originally appeared on Yellow-Bricks.com. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
Available now: vSphere 5 Clustering Deepdive. (paper | e-book)

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Permanent link to this article: http://www.startswithv.com/2012/05/23/vsphere-metro-storage-cluster-white-paper-released/

May 16

KB article about SvMotion / VDS / HA problem republished with script to mitigate!

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May 16, 2012

Just a second ago the GSS/KB team republished the KB article that explain the vSphere 5.0 problem around SvMotion / vDS / HA. I wrote about this problem various times and would like to refer to that for more details. What I want to point out here though is that the KB article now has a script attached which will help preventing problems until a full fixed is released. This script is basically the script that William Lam wrote, but it has been fully tested and vetted by VMware. For those running vSphere 5.0 and using SvMotion on VMs attached to distributed switches I urge you to use the script. I expect that the PowerCLI version will also be attached soon.

http://kb.vmware.com/kb/2013639

“KB article about SvMotion / VDS / HA problem republished with script to mitigate!” originally appeared on Yellow-Bricks.com. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
Available now: vSphere 5 Clustering Deepdive. (paper | e-book)

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Permanent link to this article: http://www.startswithv.com/2012/05/16/kb-article-about-svmotion-vds-ha-problem-republished-with-script-to-mitigate/

Apr 30

With vSphere 5.0 and HA can I share datastores across clusters?

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April 30, 2012

I have had this question multiple times by now so I figured I would write a short blog post about it. The question is if you can share datastores across clusters with vSphere 5.0 and HA enabled. This question comes from the fact that HA has a new feature called “datastore heartbeating” and uses the datastore as a communication mechanism.

The answer is short and sweet: Yes.

For each cluster a folder is created. The folder structure is as follows:

/<root of datastore>/.vSphere-HA/<cluster-specific-directory>/

 

The “cluster specific directory” is based on the uuid of the vCenter Server, the MoID of the cluster, a random 8 char string and the name of the host running vCenter Server. So even if you use dozens of vCenter Servers there is no need to worry.

Each folder contains the files HA needs/uses as shown in the screenshot below. So no need to worry around sharing of datastores across clusters. Frank also wrote an article about this from a Storage DRS perspective. Make sure you read it!

PS: all these details can be found in our Clustering Deepdive book… find it on Amazon.

“With vSphere 5.0 and HA can I share datastores across clusters?” originally appeared on Yellow-Bricks.com. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
Available now: vSphere 5 Clustering Deepdive. (paper | e-book)

Tags: , ,

Permanent link to this article: http://www.startswithv.com/2012/04/30/with-vsphere-5-0-and-ha-can-i-share-datastores-across-clusters/

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