Hitachi Storage Management Software that Achieves the Best Operation

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1 Management Software that Achieves the Best Operation 90 Management Software that Achieves the Best Operation Takuma Kamiyoshi Atsuhiro Yamauchi OVERVIEW: In recent years, while the of data locked up in storage has been increasing non stop, a serious situation regarding a lack of human resources with the skill to operate and maintain this stored data has continued to worsen. With addressing this situation in mind, is providing storage-management software that can simplify operation of storage while making it more efficient. Operation and management of storage involves a cycle of building, operation and monitoring, and response where optimizing each step is the ideal. By assembling all the necessary products for each step of this cycle while simplifying storage management and effectively selecting the optimum storage in response to operational requirements in terms of performance and cost, s storagemanagement software reduces the total cost of ownership (i.e. the sum total of installation cost, maintenance cost, management cost, etc.) incurred by customers. Added value is increased by providing software that can not only handle the building required in the initial step of the cycle but also functions form operation and monitoring up to quick response. s storage-management software is a family of products based on the concept of Services Oriented Solutions for simply managing s diverse range of powerful disk array subsystems in a common manner from the viewpoint of solutions in tune with the storage operation cycle of customers. Being highly appraised as a unified product with excellent handleability in terms of ease of use in winning the Good Design Award is a feature of s storage-management software based on the above concept. INTRODUCTION WITH the aims of utilizing technology of integrated system management JP1 (Job Management Partner 1) and optimizing operational management of all resources in a (storage area network)/nas (network attached storage) environment (such as s disk array subsystems, which are the worldleaders in the enterprise field), s storagemanagement software was launched in Since then, aimed at providing integrated storage solutions tailored to the service systems of individual customers, eight products are currently offered (see Fig. 1). s storage management software for accomplishing optimum operation is described in the rest of this paper. FEATURES OF HITACHI S STORAGE- MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE Device Manager To simplify various operations for setting up storage hardware when establishing or expanding systems, unified management of several kinds of storage hardware (i.e. understanding of configuration information and setting up), disk management from the viewpoints of servers and services, and notification functions for fault occurrence and configuration changes are provided (see Fig. 2). Logic groups can be hierarchically defined in response to applications of particular users, and logic units of each storage domain can be allocated to group units.

2 Review Vol. 57 (2008), No Tiered Manager On-line data transition is achieved, and efficient utilization of storage resources is supported. Handling Operation/monitoring Device Manager Multiple kinds of disparate storage devices are managed in a unified manner, and storage operation is simplified. Provisioning Manager Volume allocation for the server and creation/operation of file system are simplified. Building Dynamic Link Manager Multiplexed data-input/output paths are utilized to the utmost extent, and availability of storage access is improved. Protection Manager Advanced backup and restore operation of disk array subsystems are simplified, and secure data protection is supported. Replication Monitor Configuration and activation condition of replication distributed in environment is centrally monitored. Global Link Availability Manager Path-activation condition of all servers multiplexed by Dynamic Link Manager is centrally controlled. Tuning Manager Total performance and capacity in /NAS environment is centrally monitored, and stable running of storage systems is supported. : storage area network NAS: network attached storage Fig. 1 Cycle for Optimum Operation and Management. s storage-management software provides eight products for optimizing operation management of all resources in a /NAS environment. Common manager view (separate groups) Disk-resource status of business groups Status of disk resource of each server Failure Common manager view (separate server) Unified management with common manager view makes it possible to understand information about hardware configurations of several different kinds of storage, thereby simplifying setting up of storage. By means of a notification function, non-configurational changes and sudden failures can be noticed, and quick response is possible. Fig. 2 Overview of Device By allocating logic units of each storage domain to group units and supervising them, every kind of setup operation can be simplified. Configuration change disk array subsystem Status of disk resources Common manager view (separate storage devices) Utilization status Configuration change Failure notification Disk-utilization statuses of all storage, servers, and services are ed, and setup and management operation of disk resources in a environment made easier. Provisioning Manager To simplify the operations for allocation to servers and allocation during expansion, distributed available is understood and managed as a storage pool. By understanding from a unified viewpoint of performance and cost, it is possible to efficiently use storage resources (see Fig. 3). Dynamic Link Manager By automatically performing load sharing (i.e. load ) of input/output paths to storage and switchover during failures (i.e. fail-over ), it is possible to improve access performance, availability, and operability in regard to disk array subsystems.

3 Management Software that Achieves the Best Operation 92 Volume allocation to server and expandability are simplified, and setup is made easier. Setting up of storage Selection of optimum storage Creation of LU Allocation to LU server Creation of a device file pool for operation A pool for operation B Setting up of server Generation of file system Mounting in file system Volume allocation straddling multiple servers and storage devices is accomplished from one place, and allocation to a server can be done by storage on demand. LU: logic unit Wizard screen disk array subsystems Availability is okay, but understanding it is difficult because storage is dispersed. Resources are efficiently utilized since is located instantaneously. Fig. 3 Overview of Efficient Use of Resources. Usable distributed here and there is managed as a storage pool, so storage resources are utilized efficiently. Information on operational access path Centralized monitoring of path-activation status from multiple servers Server on which paths are multiplexed by Dynamic Link Manager Monitoring separated into arbitrary groups is possible. Group A Service server Path failure Degeneracy Path-failure number is ed in summary on dashboard-like panel Real-time notification of path failure Relevant business server is specified on screen listing of alerts. Paths of multiple servers related to failure solution are controlled on block. disk array subsystems Fig. 4 Overview of Global Link Availability Activation status of multiplexed paths can be centrally monitored by Dynamic Link Manager, so eliminating the impact of path failures and handling paths by on-block operation become easy. Global Link Availability Manager Multiplexed path-activation status can be centrally monitored by Dynamic Link Path faults can be ed in real time, and the activation status of paths can be understood at a glance. Management in terms of hierarchical units of arbitrarily formed groups, as well as in terms of server units and storage units, is possible, and systematic elimination of the extent of impact by path faults and handling by on-block operation become easy (see Fig. 4). Protection Manager On-line backup and restore procedures performed during backup operations are simplified by automatically detecting system-configuration information targeting backup control and eliminating complex operations. Various ways of handling disk array subsystems, database (Microsoft SQL Server*, Microsoft Exchange Server*), and backup * Microsoft and SQL Server are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries. Microsoft Exchange Server is a product name of Microsoft Corporation.

4 Review Vol. 57 (2008), No Building a dataprotection system by automatic detection of system configuration is easy. (Administration target) Database application Business server Backup LANfree backup of replication database Backup server Tape device (Administration target) Backup administration products Fig. 5 Overview of Protection System-configuration information targeting backup control is automatically detected, and on-line backup and restore operations are simplified. Various operations of databases and high-speed copying functions are automatically controlled, so a data-protection system robust against human errors can be established. LAN: local area network Database Replication database Restore (Administration target) disk array subsystems High-speed backup/restore of disk array subsystems can cut influence on on-line operations to the minimum. Disk-to-disk backup Evolution of data-protection system Expansion of Dispersion to backup operation disaster-recovery system Fig. 6 Overview of Replication Monitor. Not only can activation status be monitored in an integrated fashion and stable operation of backup and disaster-recovery systems be strengthened but also configuration and activation status of replication can be understood visually. Activation status of replication for expanding and dispersing can be grasped instantaneously. Topology- screen TC P 01 SI UR P 03 Tokyo Yokohama Osaka Osaka P: Primary Volume TC: TrueCopy Tokyo Replication between data centers Errors in replication and performance degradation (due to line faults, etc.) can be quickly comprehended. Multiple related replications can be linked together and ed. UR: Universal Replicator SI: ShadowImage management products are performed automatically in an integrated manner (see Fig. 5). Replication Monitor Complex replication functions are monitored in an integrated fashion, and stable operation of backup and disaster-recovery systems is strengthened. A topology for visually understanding configuration and activation status of replication is provided (see Fig. 6). Replication status can be monitored hierarchically from the viewpoints of servers, storage, and structuraldefinition information. Tuning Manager To simplify monitoring operations of system performance and capacity during operation of storage system, performance and capacity information regarding storage, switches, servers, and applications are managed in a unified fashion (in regard to acquisition, processing, and ), and functions for activation monitoring (by means of alert notifications of threshold overruns) and long-term-trend forecasting are provided (see Fig. 7). In the case that performance of a server deteriorates, and the primary cause of that degradation is on the storage side, it is possible to analyze the impact on other severs using the same storage.

5 Management Software that Achieves the Best Operation 94 Display of all systemrelated resources Application-centered Server-centered Switch-centered -centered Archive/ operation information Performance and capacity information (covering storage and switches up to servers) can be monitored in an integrated manner, so the difficult task of detecting bottlenecks passing through whole systems is possible. Sever Switch Application Drill down I/O: input-output Capacity planning for the future by trend analysis and forecasting and service-level maintenance of system are supported. I/O response degradation Server Capacity shortage disk array subsystems Bottlenecks can be bypassed beforehand by monitoring set thresholds. Fig. 7 Overview of Tuning Performance and capacity information on storage etc. can be administered in a unified manner, so operations for monitoring system performance and capacity while a storage system is running are simplified. Migration without stopping operations is made possible by an on-line migration function. Host server Long-term-storage operation function (from setup of tampering prevention to data erasure) is supported. On-block migration of plural s is possible, so migration of work units and hardware units is easy. tier Original migration Next migration High speed/ high reliability Low cost/ large capacity By detecting under various conditions and grouping it into virtual groups, migration according to a user s target is made easy. Built-in By erasing data of after migration, even more stable migration is possible. Former equipment Virtual Mid-range Nearline Universal Platform V/VM Fig. 8 Overview of Tiered By grouping virtualized s according to operation requirements, s can be migrated to the appropriate tier. Tiered Manager By creating groups of virtualized by disk array subsystems by means of a concept known as tiers (each of which corresponds to certain operational requirements like performance and cost), transition to appropriate tiers is simplified. Long-term storage and practical use of important data (such as falsification prevention, setting up warranty terms, and erasure of unwanted data) are supported (see Fig. 8). In a hierarchical storage environment realized by the powerful virtualization technology of s disk array subsystems, data migration can be performed on-line without the need to stop services. EXAMPLES OF CYCLE FOR OPTIMUM STORAGE-OPERATION MANAGEMENT The manner in which the capacity virtualization function Dynamic Provisioning (with the special features of s disk array subsystems for enterprise systems and utilizing storage-

6 Review Vol. 57 (2008), No Business server Monitoring of response time Alert issuance by setting up threshold Graphical of trends and real-time changes Fig. 9 Example Operation of Tuning Trends in response time of virtual etc. are monitored by Tuning Universal Platform V/VM External storage Virtual Dynamic Provisioning pool Actual Response time is long. Business server Since response performance is poor, on-line migration to high-performance storage takes place. Low-cost High-performance Fig. 10 Example Operation of Tiered For example, during periods under loading, handling, etc. with highperformance is performed, and storage can be effectively utilized. Universal Platform V/VM Dynamic Provisioning pool External storage Virtual External storage can also be virtualized. Actual Tier 1 enterprise Tier 3 near line/ low end High Low High Access performance costs Low Migration to optimum takes place on-line in response to performance/cost requirements. management software) can be used is explained in the following. First, the environment for Dynamic Provisioning is built by the Device Backup is acquired by the Protection Manager during periodic operation, and continuity of business is supported. Next, the content of the Dynamic Provisioning pool is monitored by the Tuning Since there is a forecasting function, it is possible, for example, to determine whether capacity will be insufficient in a month s time, and handling of this insufficiency is possible by enlarging the Dynamic Provisioning pool beforehand. Moreover, at the same time, the trend regarding response time of the virtual is monitored by the Tuning Manager (see Fig. 9). For example, at the end of a period under loading, on-line migration to high-performance is handled beforehand by the Tiered On the other hand, during a period under no loading, low-cost is returned to, and storage is efficiently utilized (see Fig. 10). In this way, by means of not only building but also monitoring and handling, the optimum operation of storage is supported. EFFORTS TOWARDS IMPROVED USABILITY s storage-management software won the Good Design Award of the Japan Industrial Design Promotion Organization in It was highly evaluated in terms of not only its visual features but

7 Management Software that Achieves the Best Operation 96 Sorting is possible in ascending or descending order. GUI: graphical user interface In consideration of capability, it is possible to adjust the number of s. Display contents are controlled under various conditions (filter). Fig. 11 Example GUI of s -management Software. Having been highly appraised in terms of visual characteristics and ease of operation, s storage-management software received the Good Design Award in Manager, a wide range of performance information can be monitored, and the response times of the server and storage can be ed together on the main screen. In this way, if there is a problem with either the server or the storage, the GUI is set up in such a manner to make clear best practice; that is, which problem should be eliminated first. CONCLUSIONS s storage-management software for realizing optimum storage operation was described. We consider that in addition to offering products with high added value, s storage-management software will continue to provide optimum integrated storage solutions based on the concept of Services Oriented Solutions announced in May 2007 for hardware and services as well as for customers operation systems. also its ease of handleability. Moreover, not only can many advanced features be used intuitively but also what is the best way to use different products can be considered by looking at a GUI (graphical user interface) (see Fig. 11). For example, with the Tuning REFERENCES (1) A. Yamauchi, s Highly Value-added Management Software JP1/HiCommand, Hyoron 87, pp (Mar. 2005) in Japanese. (2) Solutions, in Japanese. ABOUT THE AUTHORS Takuma Kamiyoshi Joined, Ltd. in 1991, and now works at the Product Planning Department, the Software Division, the Information & Telecommunication Systems. He is currently engaged in product design concerning s storage-management software. Atsuhiro Yamauchi Joined, Ltd. in 1986, and now works at the Product Planning Department, the Software Division, the Information & Telecommunication Systems. He is currently engaged in product design concerning s storage-management software.