Converged block storage solution with HP StorageWorks MPX200 Multifunction Router and EVA Business white paper MO E V to the storage infrastructure of the future.
Table of contents Executive summary...3 Overview of data centre challenges and solutions...3 Using multiple isolated networks complicates operations...4 Deploying a converged network simplifies operations...4 Converged block storage solution with MPX200 and EVA using FCoE...5 Overview of FCoE...5 Overview of MPX200...7 Using 10 GbE FCoE/iSCSI storage direct connect...8 Unified block storage with MPX200 and EVA...8 iscsi versus FCoE... 10 Start your journey towards Converged Infrastructure... 11
Executive summary Are you using multiple Ethernet and Fibre Channel connections and wires to manage the network and storage traffic in your operating environment? Then you are likely concerned about Ethernet and Fibre Channel sprawl and associated management and maintenance costs. Having diverse networks adds to the workload of day-to-day operations. As market dynamics change, the way you operate your business also needs to change. It may be time for you to consider lossless 10 GbE Ethernet 1 and Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) technology as building blocks towards a converged network. Convergence is the fundamental way to operate technology and business today at a lower total cost of operation (TCO), and with a higher return on investment (ROI). It allows you to simplify your infrastructure by pooling your compute, storage and server resources through virtualisation technologies. HP delivers market-leading Converged Infrastructure products and solutions. Our proven blade servers and enclosures can help you reduce 77 per cent of your data centre footprint 2 by moving from rack mount to blade server platforms. With Converged Enhanced Ethernet (CEE)/FCoE networking technology, you reduce the number of host bust adapters, switches and cabling in the data centre enabling greater savings. FCoE is a new protocol that enables Fibre Channel traffic to be run in an Ethernet network. FCoE combines two leading technologies: the Fibre Channel protocol, which is the predominant storage area network (SAN) technology; and Ethernet, which is supported in all servers and data centres to provide more options to users for FC SAN connectivity and networking. Many data centres have adopted the framework of SANs supported by Fibre Channel. Technology changes such as multi-core processors, high-density servers, server I/O performance and server consolidation and virtualisation are demanding a significant increase in I/O bandwidth, further necessitating a high-performance and flexible converged network that can run both storage and network traffic. Lossless converged networking and FCoE are now ready to deliver these benefits in the data centre. Take the journey to Converged Infrastructure With HP solutions, it is simple and easy to shift from a disconnected environment to a converged network with CEE/FCoE technology. HP StorageWorks MPX200 Multifunction Router and HP StorageWorks Enterprise Virtual Array (EVA) storage solutions deliver converged block storage with simultaneous FC, iscsi (1 GbE and 10 GbE) and FCoE. You get a single storage platform that meets your different business application requirements and results in reduced capital expenditure, lower operational expenses and a flexible infrastructure. This white paper focuses on describing the main challenges faced by data centres that have not integrated their storage network infrastructure. It then describes how new flexible solutions such as the MPX200 and EVA can be deployed to accelerate the power of convergence. Overview of data centre challenges and solutions For 40 years, infrastructures have been built the same way different systems to support different applications, connected with lots of wires in different ways and managed manually by different teams, tools and processes. Data centres now want to go from one of everything IT to an open, common IT infrastructure that does everything. Data centres today want to: Do away with complex systems and applications that inhibit flexibility, innovation and uptime Meet more demanding service level agreements (SLAs) with fewer resources Deploy new solutions to remedy today s inflexible and hard-wired systems and complex processes that require too many people to grow or adapt Manage underutilised and non-optimised resources Look for new ways to free untapped capacity to react faster to new opportunities A Converged Infrastructure enables you to meet all these challenges by simplifying, consolidating and automating everything in the IT infrastructure. 1 Lossless Ethernet is a pre-requisite for consolidation of Fibre Channel SAN traffic over a Unified Fabric. A set of network technologies, including IEEE Data Center Bridging, enables Ethernet fabrics to support lossless transmission, making them suitable for carrying all types of SAN traffic. This set of emerging standards enables better traffic prioritisation over a single Ethernet interface and provides an advanced means for shaping traffic on the network to decrease congestion. 2 http://h18004.www1.hp.com/products/blades/whats-new.html 3
Using multiple isolated networks complicates operations As data volume grows, midsize and enterprise businesses deploy physical/virtual servers and storage arrays to manage a growing volume of information. I/O requirements increase dramatically as more operating systems/applications are deployed on new multi-core platforms in these businesses. In many cases, for example, a 1 rack unit (RU) or 2 RU server may require as many as six or eight network ports, or even more, to support the following requirements: Two ports of 4 Gbps Fibre Channel for SAN attachment Two ports of 1 Gbps Ethernet for LAN attachment One port of 1 Gbps Ethernet for VMotion One port of 1 Gbps Ethernet for out-of-band management One port of 1 Gbps Ethernet for backup This demands additional PCIe slots and leads to significant power and cooling requirements, just to support additional connection ports (as much as 10 per cent increase in total server power). Additionally, cable management for a rack containing 20 or more servers becomes complex increasing cost, and reducing reliability due to manual error. Such situations are driving many businesses to consider I/O consolidation and virtualisation strategies that replace discrete Ethernet and FC (and sometimes InfiniBand [IB]) adapters with a pair of high-performance converged I/O adapters. Fewer pieces of hardware mean fewer entities to maintain and lower support costs. Isolated multiple networks A majority of today s data centres maintain multiple networks and use both Ethernet for TCP/IP networks and Fibre Channel for SANs, each dedicated to specific purposes: Data centres use Ethernet for their LANs to transfer a small amount of information across short or long distances or in clustered computing environments. Ethernet provides a cost-effective and efficient way to support a variety of data types, including corporate LANs, Voice-over-IP telephony and storage with NFS, CIFS and iscsi. Fibre Channel for SANs is used by data centres to provide access to block I/O for applications such as booting over SANs, mail servers and large data-intensive databases. FC SANs make an excellent solution for storage consolidation, centralised storage management, high performance, reliability and business continuity. These two networks Ethernet and FC SANs perform an essential role in the data centre, but they are very different in design and functionality. They have their own security constraints and traffic patterns and utilise separate management tools. As a result, each network is isolated, requiring separate cabling and network interfaces on each server. Some of the challenges that arise while managing the current storage environment with isolated multiple networks include: Complex configuration due to multiple Ethernet and Fibre Channel cables Inability to handle increased demand for I/O bandwidth, which may result in experiencing bottlenecks/downtime Decentralised management by using multiple protocols and interconnections to meet your business needs Increased cost of operations due to growing complexity in configuration and management of resources Considering all the challenges, the reality is that managing two separate networks for data and storage adds complexity and costs to the data centre. With this in mind, businesses are looking for new ways to converge their LAN and SAN networks, enabling the data centre to run more efficiently and cost-effectively while preserving their investments in the Fibre Channel infrastructure. Deploying a converged network simplifies operations Businesses are turning to a Converged Infrastructure using virtualisation technologies to simplify operations, improve utilisation of assets and enable their IT infrastructure to be more flexible and responsive to changing business needs. With the onset of virtualisation, the I/O requirements for servers (both rackmount and blades) have increased by orders of magnitude. This increase in I/O demand and flexibility has necessitated the need for a common, high-performance network that can serve both storage and networking demands in the data centre. 4
Server virtualisation The ubiquitousness of virtualisation is driving a number of technologies in the data centre including, Fibre Channel over Ethernet. With virtualisation, a standard rack full of HP ProLiant servers or C-class blade servers can demand up to 10x increase in resources for both network and storage. FCoE enables the consolidation of both SANs and Ethernet traffic onto one common network adapter, reducing the ever-growing number of adapters required. FCoE combined with the advent of 10 GbE fabrics will help businesses converge their infrastructure by consolidating their I/O, cables and adapters while, at the same time increasing the utilisation of their servers. With a converged network, storage and Ethernet traffic share a single wire. By converging storage to a 10 GbE lossless Ethernet wire, your business has an opportunity to save power and cooling costs, PCIe slots, space and cabling while reducing operational costs. And with 10 GbE, there is an opportunity to change the way you operate. By reducing the hardware, cabling and support contracts, CEE/FCoE delivers a high-performance converged network with lower costs, which can help you invest the savings in innovation to better compete in your business. The next section talks about the solution in detail. Converged block storage solution with MPX200 and EVA using FCoE The MPX200 and EVA storage solution delivers converged block storage connectivity to servers with simultaneous Fibre Channel, iscsi (1 GbE and 10 GbE) and FCoE. Now you can deploy a converged block storage solution with Fibre Channel, FCoE and iscsi support all in one. The solution comes from a single vendor, HP, and is easy to manage. Overview of FCoE FCoE is an approved standard that is a major breakthrough for the storage and storage networking market. Fibre Channel over Ethernet extends rather than replaces Fibre Channel, allowing businesses to seamlessly integrate their Ethernet and Fibre Channel networks the way that works best for them. Combined with enhancements to Ethernet, FCoE gives data centres the ability to consolidate their I/O and network infrastructure, saving both capital and operational expenses and increasing flexibility and control. The HP FCoE solution deploys FCoE technology in existing Ethernet and Fibre Channel environments with the benefit of convergence at the server and fabric edge using Converged Network Adapters (CNAs) and Converged Network (CN) switches. The solution provides this benefit in addition to investment protection by allowing FCoE to be integrated with existing HP Fibre Channel SANs. 5
Figure 1: Using Ethernet with FCoE requires fewer switches Ethernet and FC Ethernet with FCoE Benefits of FCoE The convergence of Ethernet and Fibre Channel provides the same level of connectivity as previous technologies, but requires: 50 per cent fewer switches in each server rack only two CN top-of-rack (ToR) switches, compared with four (two network and two Fibre Channel) switches per rack with separate Ethernet and Fibre Channel switches 50 per cent fewer adapters per server 75 per cent fewer cable connections (see Table 1) Figure 1 illustrates a rack with 16 servers using FCoE technology compared to a rack using separate Fibre Channel and Ethernet with the same level of connectivity. Similarly, Table 1 provides a comparison of cable requirements for these same racks. Table 1: Rack cable requirements comparison Separate Fibre Channel and Ethernet networks (4) 4 Gb Fibre Channel cables (4) 1 GbE NIC cables (8) cables at 20 Gb per server Total of 128 cables for 320 Gb of connectivity Converged FCoE network 3 (2) 10 GbE cables (2) cables at 20 Gb per server Total of 32 cables for 320 Gb of connectivity The FCoE solution consists of the following: HP B-series and C-series CN switches Provide a bridge function from the CN to separate Ethernet and Fibre Channel fabrics, and a station function to FCoE attached EVA storage through the MPX200 HP CN1000E CNAs, and QLogic 8100 Series CNAs Converge Ethernet and Fibre Channel technologies in the server over 10 GbE links to converged network switches FCoE CN switches and HP CN1000E CNAs are available from HP QLogic 8100 Series CNAs are available through the HP 3PO program or authorised resellers and distributors as reference-sell products HP StorageWorks MPX200 Multifunction Router HP StorageWorks EVA 4400, 6400 and 8400 3 Using copper cables for FCoE connections further reduces the per-port connection cost versus the cost of optical SFP+ transceivers. FCoE converged network switches The first generation of FCoE CN switches enable Ethernet and Fibre Channel to coexist in a fabric and are designed as edge switches or ToR switches. Edge/ToR switches are typically deployed in redundant pairs installed at the top of a server rack (see Figure 1). By using FCoE CN switches, you reduce the number of required switches by replacing separate Ethernet and Fibre Channel switches with a converged edge/tor switch. From the edge/tor switch, ISL connections to the end-of-row (EoR) Fibre Channel and EoR Ethernet/IP switches provide access to the separate core layers of the Fibre Channel fabric and Ethernet/IP network. An FCoE blade that resides in a DC or DC04 SAN Director can also be used to integrate FCoE solutions with existing or new Fibre Channel fabrics. The following HP FCoE CN switches and blades are available: HP StorageWorks 2408 FCoE Converged Network Switch HP StorageWorks DC SAN Director Switch 10/24 FCoE Blade HP C-series Nexus 5010 Converged Network Switch HP C-series Nexus 5020 Converged Network Switch HP StorageWorks MPX200 Multifunction Router 6
FCoE converged network switch ports HP FCoE CN switches have two types of physical ports: 10 GbE ports 4 Gb or 8 Gb Fibre Channel ports Fibre Channel ports can be used for either ISL connections to an existing Fibre Channel fabric, or for a connection directly to an HP storage array. Table 2 lists the number of ports for each HP FCoE CN switch. HP switch Number of 10 GbE ports 2408 FCoE Converged Network Switch DC SAN Director Switch 10/24 FCoE Blade C-series Nexus 5010 Converged Network Switch C-series Nexus 5020 Converged Network Switch Number of Fibre Channel ports 24 8 (8 Gb/s) 24 0 external ports 32 (8 Gb/s) backplane ports 20 to 26 0 to 8 (4 Gb/s) 0 to 6 (8 Gb/s) 40 to 52 0 to 16 (4 Gb/s) 0 to 12 (8 Gb/s) FCoE converged network adapters Servers with CNAs require fewer adapters per server and, therefore, 75 per cent fewer cable connections for network and Fibre Channel attachments. HP offers the HP CN1000E CNA (Figure 2) and also supports QLogic 8100 Series CNAs in certain ProLiant servers. Figure 2: HP CN1000E CNA Table 3 lists the supported HP CNA available from HP. HP part number HP model number Description AW520A CN1000E Dual-port converged network adapter (no cable or transceiver is included) Overview of MPX200 The MPX200 provides unified block storage on EVA: 10 GbE, 1 GbE iscsi, Fibre Channel and Fibre Channel over Ethernet along with Fibre Channel over IP (FCIP) and online/offline data migration support across heterogeneous storage arrays. FCoE is enabled on the MPX200 at no charge with just a firmware download. The MPX200 extends HP EVA and XP investments by adding multi-protocol support without requiring separate storage arrays or additional management costs. It enables modular multi-protocol SAN designs with increased scalability, stability, ROI and simpler-to-manage storage solutions for virtualised server environments. Its enterprise-class high-availability design provides dual hot-pluggable power supplies and router blades for no single point of failure. The MPX200 enables: Fibre Channel over Ethernet: Enable end-to-end Converged Infrastructure with EVA storage arrays with single-pane-of-glass management using EVA Command View. Data migration capabilities: Enables you to migrate data online/offline at a very high speed between heterogeneous storage arrays using a user-friendly data migration graphical user interface (GUI). Fibre Channel over IP: Includes FCIP functionality, allowing you to do low cost remote data replication over IP networks using HP StorageWorks Continuous Access EVA/XP software. Unified block storage with the MPX200 The MPX200 allows easy deployment of virtual machines (VMs) by supporting 300 600 iscsi initiator connections to an HP EVA. Each VM can secure and manage its own LUNs, thus making sure that existing storage management software and policies can be seamlessly maintained throughout the VM deployment. The MPX200 enables simultaneous iscsi, Fibre Channel and FCoE connectivity to the EVA resulting in increased storage consolidation and utilisation. Up to four EVA arrays can be connected through a single MPX200 router. Servers can then connect to the EVA arrays using freely available iscsi initiators, thus leveraging existing Ethernet networks to deliver SAN-like benefits and to attach servers to an EVA SAN for less than US$37 per server. Or connect using reliable FC drivers over FCoE connectivity. MPX200 is fully integrated with HP StorageWorks Command View EVA Software to manage iscsi, Fibre Channel and Fibre Channel over Ethernet EVA connectivity. For more details on MPX200, please visit www.hp.com/go/mpx200 7
Figure 3: MPX200 bird s eye view Hot-plug power/cooling modules 10 GbE/FCoE/1 GbE ports Hot-plug router blade modules 2 x 8 Gb FC Ports 2 x 1 GbE Ports MPX200 Bird s eye view With MPX200 you get: 1 GbE iscsi, 10 GbE (iscsi, FCoE) and 8 Gb/s Fibre Channel support High availability with hot-plug redundant blades and dual power supplies Flexible architecture that supports future protocols Using 10 GbE FCoE/iSCSI storage direct connect With 10 GbE you can simplify your server, network and storage infrastructure. Using a single wire for network and storage, you can reduce: The number of cables and server adapters Capital expenses and cost of operations Server power and cooling costs Unified block storage with MPX200 and EVA Your enterprise is looking for converged storage solutions. To successfully control and manage the converged network, you need a unified solution that seamlessly works across a diverse network infrastructure and mix of applications. A unified solution brings many benefits because it provides visibility into all traffic, including voice and data. Such complete visibility is essential for your network managers because they need to set application traffic priorities so that communications receive the real-time quality they require. In addition, they need to be able to troubleshoot the impact of data on voice and vice versa. HP has released the FCoE target solution for the EVA using MPX200. The solution: Offers a single-pane-of-glass management for Fibre Channel, iscsi and FCoE using EVA Command View v9.3 or higher Enables EVA controllers to be presented as FCoE targets Allows iscsi and FCoE to share ports on MPX200 Supports copper cables at lower costs Supports 10 GbE connectivity to both B- and C-series Converged Network Switches 8
Figure 4: Unified Block Storage Solution Hot-plug power/cooling modules Servers w/cnas iscsi & FCoE servers 10 Gb iscsi & FCoE MPX200 LAN 1 GbE/10 GbE iscsi servers FC SAN EMC CX4 WAN MPX200 FCIP (SAN over WAN) Migrate Data Note: Maximum two simultaneous functions supported at a time (iscsi-fcoe are considered as one function) EVA 4x/6x/8x00 The MPX200 and EVA storage solution delivers converged block storage to businesses with simultaneous Fibre Channel, iscsi (1 GbE and 10 GbE) and Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE). The MPX200 and EVA solution is one of the first midrange storage platforms in the industry to support: Fibre Channel iscsi (1 GbE and 10 GbE) FCIP FCoE Data migration Essentially, businesses want flexibility in their storage arrays. With converged block storage, you can decide how to connect your application servers to storage at the time of deployment, and not during the time of purchase. Also, these arrays can very easily move/switch between protocols even after their initial deployment. The arrays can tier, based on performance needs, and in some ways, experiment with newer interconnect technologies such as FCoE and 1 GbE/10 GbE iscsi. With this solution you get: Increased flexibility move LUNs from Fibre Channel to iscsi to FCoE based on performance/cost characteristics Reduced CAPEX as you do not have to buy a Fibre Channel array, iscsi array and FCoE array and they also do not have to commit to fixed number of Fibre Channel/iSCSI ports 9
Benefits of the solution The business benefits of this solution include reduced cost of operations and complexity, higher performance and increased flexibility all while providing seamless connectivity with existing Ethernet and storage networks. The solution supports: FCoE: Converged block storage simplifies and adds flexibility to your operating environment. By using Multiprotocol, you can lower TCO, which leads to both CAPEX and OPEX savings. With 10 GbE network adapters, FCoE deployment is simple, allowing FCoE to be incorporated without disrupting current data centre management practices, software or the roles of network and storage administrators. This technology helps in making the converged network transparent to the operating system and applications, allowing both storage and network administrators to manage their respective domains just as they do today. Consistent management helps ease FCoE deployment while reducing operating expenses. Command View management: Using Command View v9.3 EVA management software, you can manage the MPX200 as a single product. Command View EVA integrates MPX200 and EVA as one, thereby making it simple and easy to manage providing benefits such as: Lower OPEX by purchasing only one set of software licences and spending less time and manpower in maintaining and managing software. Change server access to the LUNs from the Fibre Channel initiators and present them to iscsi initiators or vice versa. Obviously, the applications will have to have quiesced when you do this. Choose a protocol when you are ready, not at the time of purchase. With MPX200 you have the flexibility to choose and scale as business demands. Both B- and C-series fabrics: Flexible and vendor-agnostic. Enables potential future savings as this standard and technology are new. Copper direct-attach cables: The MPX200 uses copper cables that are available at lower costs. Using copper cables reduces the cost of a converged storage platform. Using fewer cables directly reduces the cost of cabling and subsequently, cabling errors. With simpler cabling, new server racks can be configured and deployed more rapidly, and there is less restriction in front-to-back airflow, increasing cooling efficiency. iscsi versus FCoE Every storage administrator is facing this question. Which is the right storage solution? There are many reasons organisations may choose one protocol over another, and the answer lies in the requirements of the applications being implemented. In general, Fibre Channel was designed specifically for performance, reliability and data availability. It is the most costly option and generally reserved, due to its distance limitations, for Tier 1 applications with data residing within the same data centre. Fibre Channel is a high performance, highly reliable, low latency, Tier 1 protocol for storage access in the data centre. It remains the interconnect of choice for large data centres where risk tolerance is very low. Fibre Channel over Ethernet is essentially Fibre Channel running over a lossless Ethernet physical transport. In theory, it is Fibre Channel. From an application perspective, it should see no difference in performance, reliability or latency by moving to FCoE vs. FC. The value proposition of FCoE is enormous as it delivers a converged network on ubiquitous Ethernet without the TCP/IP protocol overhead that iscsi has. From the server view, the same host HBA driver is used for both FC and FCoE. But, when running on Windows, the name of the driver has been changed due to certification issues. Benefits of FCoE include: Reduced network sprawl and connectivity requirements Lesser dependency on multiple instances of the TCP/IP stack Better predictability due to the reduction of packet drop/discard-based flow control and PAUSE congestion Lower power, reduced connectivity and higher performance The only issue with full-scale FCoE deployment is that the routing standards are still under development/review by a standards committee. Full-scale, multi-hop, multipath end-to-end FCOE networks cannot be effectively deployed. 10
Currently 80 per cent of the benefit of FCoE can be enjoyed through I/O convergence at the server edge. This is done by employing new CNA-based technology within the servers, connecting to a CEE/FCoE TOR switch. By doing so, required components can be reduced by 75 to 95 per cent at the server, where all the complexity lies, and connections to existing Ethernet and Fibre Channel infrastructures are retained. If lower-cost connection to data is required and lower speed access to data is acceptable, iscsi is a great option. iscsi leverages installed IP networks and offers the ability to reduce cost and complexity in the storage infrastructure while also spanning unlimited distances. Fibre Channel is the preferred option for mission-critical Tier 1 or Tier 2 applications. However, iscsi is a very interesting protocol. There are some very compelling use cases (such as storage consolidation, remote offices, testing/development and so forth) with iscsi. In some cases, iscsi can be deployed even for Tier 1 applications if the right network interface cards (with TCP/IP offload) and networks are utilised. Start your journey towards Converged Infrastructure Like many data centres, yours is probably focussed on how to reduce the IT infrastructure complexity by consolidating the server, network and storage domains. Recent trends show that many IT organisations are turning to a virtual server infrastructure to help address the challenges of improving manageability, availability and resource utilisation. With a server virtualisation solution in place, are you currently finding it difficult to manage a large and complex SAN infrastructure? It may be time to consider HP storage solutions. With MPX200 and EVA using FCoE, you can consolidate your data centre and deploy converged block storage to reduce costs and increase efficiencies. To accelerate your business outcomes by converging multiple networks into one with the MPX200 and EVA an all-in-one integrated solution that meets your storage network needs visit www.hp.com/go/mpx200 11
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