IBM XIV Storage System Architecture and Implementation


Book Description

Not a new version - included warning for self signed X509 certificates - see section 5.2 This IBM® Redbooks® publication describes the concepts, architecture, and implementation of the IBM XIV® Storage System. The XIV Storage System is a scalable enterprise storage system that is based on a grid array of hardware components. It can attach to both Fibre Channel Protocol (FCP) and IP network Small Computer System Interface (iSCSI) capable hosts. This system is a good fit for clients who want to be able to grow capacity without managing multiple tiers of storage. The XIV Storage System is suited for mixed or random access workloads, including online transaction processing, video streamings, images, email, and emerging workload areas, such as Web 2.0 and cloud storage. The focus of this edition is on the XIV Gen3 running Version 11.5.x of the XIV system software, which brings enhanced value for the XIV Storage System in cloud environments. It offers multitenancy support, VMware vCloud Suite integration, more discrete performance classes, and RESTful API enhancements that expand cloud automation integration. Version 11.5 introduces support for three-site mirroring to provide high availability and disaster recovery. It also enables capacity planning through the Hyper-Scale Manager, mobile push notifications for real-time alerts, and enhanced security. Version 11.5.1 supports 6TB drives and VMware vSphere Virtual Volumes (VVOL). In the first few chapters of this book, we describe many of the unique and powerful concepts that form the basis of the XIV Storage System logical and physical architecture. We explain how the system eliminates direct dependencies between the hardware elements and the software that governs the system. In subsequent chapters, we explain the planning and preparation tasks that are required to deploy the system in your environment by using the intuitive yet powerful XIV Storage Manager GUI or the XIV command-line interface. We also describe the performance characteristics of the XIV Storage System and present options for alerting and monitoring, including enhanced secure remote support. This book is for IT professionals who want an understanding of the XIV Storage System. It is also for readers who need detailed advice on how to configure and use the system.




IBM XIV Storage System: Host Attachment and Interoperability


Book Description

This IBM® Redbooks® publication provides information for attaching the IBM XIV® Storage System to various host operating system platforms, including IBM i. The book provides information and references for combining the XIV Storage System with other storage platforms, host servers, or gateways, including IBM N Series, and IBM ProtecTIER®. It is intended for administrators and architects of enterprise storage systems. The book also addresses using the XIV storage with databases and other storage-oriented application software that include: IBM DB2® VMware ESX Microsoft HyperV SAP The goal is to give an overview of the versatility and compatibility of the XIV Storage System with various platforms and environments. The information that is presented here is not meant as a replacement or substitute for the Host Attachment kit publications. It is meant as a complement and to provide readers with usage guidance and practical illustrations.




IBM XIV Storage System: IBM Hyper-Scale Mobility Overview and Usage


Book Description

IBM® Hyper-Scale introduces two major new technologies, both implemented in the IBM XIV® Storage System (Gen3 models): The first is IBM Hyper-Scale Manager, a flexible, consolidated multi-system management application that was originally released in October 2012 as "Multi-System Manager". IBM Hyper-Scale Manager is based on and seamlessly integrated with the XIV GUI and spans multiple XIV systems. The second new technology, IBM Hyper-Scale Mobility, is the topic of this publication. It is a powerful function for moving volumes between storage containers transparently, with no disruption to host applications. IBM Hyper-Scale helps you easily overcome provisioning scenarios that normally challenge traditional systems. IBM Hyper-Scale can accommodate several critical customer scenarios for data mobility, load balancing, over-provisioning, and storage system repurposing. This IBM RedpaperTM publication provides a broad understanding of the IBM Hyper-Scale Mobility feature. The paper describes the IBM Hyper-Scale architecture and includes detailed step by step scenarios that illustrate the online volume migration process, both from the XIV GUI and the XIV Command-Line Interface (XCLI). This publication is intended for XIV customers and users who want a practical understanding of IBM Hyper-Scale Mobility concepts and usage.




IBM XIV Storage System Business Continuity Functions


Book Description

The IBM XIV® Storage System has a rich set of copy functions suited for various data protection scenarios that enable you to enhance your business continuance, disaster recovery, data migration, and online backup solutions. These functions allow point-in-time copies, known as snapshots and full volume copies, and also include remote copy capabilities in either synchronous or asynchronous mode. A three-site mirroring function is now available to further improve availability and disaster recovery capabilities. These functions are included in the XIV software and all their features are available at no extra charge. The various copy functions are reviewed in separate chapters, which include detailed information about usage and practical illustrations. The book also illustrates the use of IBM® Tivoli® Storage Productivity Center for Replication to manage XIV Copy Services. This IBM Redbooks® publication is intended for anyone who needs a detailed and practical understanding of the XIV copy functions.




IBM XIV Storage System Thin Provisioning and Space Reclamation


Book Description

Thin provisioning is the practice of passing logical unit number (LUN) sizes up to application servers without actually reserving the total physical capacity of those LUNs for data storage. Thin provisioning is a popular feature of IBM® XIV® Storage System. Data space reclamation helps you enjoy the benefits of thin provisioning. Space reclamation is a storage system function to reclaim a specific amount of disk space for general purpose use after being notified by the file system that the disk space was deleted at the host level. Because XIV thin provisioning and support for space reclamation are so tightly related, this IBM® RedpaperTM publication explores both concepts in detail. This publication is intended for system and storage administrators who want to take advantage of the XIV functionality in thin-provisioned environments, coupled with the latest space reclamation enhancements.




Implementing IBM Real-time Compression on the IBM XIV Storage System


Book Description

IBM® Real-time CompressionTM is fully integrated in the IBM XIV® Storage System Gen3 with software version 11.6. Real-time Compression provides the possibility to store 2 - 5 times more data per XIV system, without additional hardware. This technology also expands the storage-replication-related bandwidth, and can significantly decrease the total cost of ownership (TCO). Using compression for replication and for volume migration with IBM Hyper-Scale Mobility is faster, and requires less bandwidth for the interlink connections between the IBM XIV storage systems, because the data that is transferred through these links is already compressed. IBM Real-time Compression uses patented IBM Random Access Compression Engine (RACE) technology, achieving field-proven compression ratios and performance with compressible data. This IBM RedpaperTM publication helps administrators understand and implement IBM Real-time Compression on the IBM XIV Gen3 storage system.




IBM FlashSystem A9000, IBM FlashSystem A9000R, and IBM XIV Storage System: Host Attachment and Interoperability


Book Description

This IBM® Redbooks® publication provides information for attaching the IBM FlashSystem® A9000, IBM FlashSystem A9000R, and IBM XIV® Storage System to various host operating system platforms, such as IBM AIX® and Microsoft Windows. This publication was last updated in May 2019 to cover the VLAN tagging and port trunking support available with software version 12.3.2 (see in particular section 2.4, "VLAN tagging" on page 67. The goal is to give an overview of the versatility and compatibility of the IBM SpectrumTM Accelerate family of storage systems with various platforms and environments. The information that is presented here is not meant as a replacement or substitute for the IBM Storage Host Attachment Kit publications or other product publications. It is meant as a complement and to provide usage guidance and practical illustrations. This publication does not address attachments to a secondary system used for Remote Mirroring or data migration. These topics are covered in IBM FlashSystem A9000 and IBM FlashSystem A9000 and A9000R Business Continuity Solutions, REDP-5401.




IBM XIV Storage System with the Virtual I/O Server and IBM i


Book Description

This IBM® RedpaperTM publication explains how you can connect the IBM XIV® Storage System server to the IBM i operating system through the Virtual I/O Server (VIOS). A connection through the VIOS is especially of interest to IT centers that have many small IBM i partitions. When using the VIOS, the Fibre Channel host adapters can be installed in the VIOS and shared by many IBM i clients by using virtual connectivity to the VIOS. This paper also includes guidance for sizing XIV logical unit numbers (LUNs) when attached to the IBM i client.




IBM Hyper-Scale in XIV Storage


Book Description

Organizations are struggling with an unprecedented surge in data, both user-created and machine-created. With an increasing reliance on this rapidly growing data, effective scaling of data storage represents a key challenge for all enterprises. IBM® Hyper-Scale helps you easily overcome provisioning scenarios that normally challenge traditional systems. IBM Hyper-Scale can accommodate several critical client scenarios for centralized administration, data mobility, load balancing, over-provisioning, and storage system repurposing. IBM Hyper-Scale introduces the following major concepts and technologies, with the IBM XIV® Storage System (Gen3 models): IBM Hyper-Scale Manager is a flexible, consolidated multi-system management application that builds upon the originally released Multi-System Manager with XIV Storage Software V11.2. IBM Hyper-Scale Manager is based on, and seamlessly integrated with, the XIV graphical user interface (GUI) and spans multiple XIV systems. It virtually transforms multiple systems into a single system, allowing customers to centrally manage up to 144 XIV systems. IBM Hyper-Scale Mobility was released with XIV Storage System V11.3. It is a powerful function for moving volumes between storage containers transparently, with no disruption to host applications. IBM Hyper-Scale Consistency was released with the IBM XIV Storage Software Version 11.4. It offers cross-system consistency, enabling coordinated snapshots across independent XIV systems. It helps to ensure data protection across multiple XIV systems. This IBM RedpaperTM publication provides a broad understanding of the IBM Hyper-Scale feature. This publication is intended for XIV clients and users who want a practical understanding of IBM Hyper-Scale concepts and usage. For information about the IBM Hyper-Scale concepts, refer to the IBM white paper, IBM Hyper-Scale and Its Implementation in XIV Storage: A powerful new approach to scaling storage management.




Solid-State Drive Caching in the IBM XIV Storage System


Book Description

This IBM® RedpaperTM publication provides information about the implementation and use of solid-state drives (SSDs) in IBM XIV® Storage System XIV Generation 3 (Gen3), running XIV software version 11.1.0 or later. In the XIV system, SSDs are used to increase the read cache capacity of the existing DRAM memory cache, and are not used for persistent storage. This paper begins with a high-level overview of the SSD implementation in XIV and a brief review of the SSD technology, with focus on the XIV system. It explains the SSD Caching design and implementation in XIV. Then it examines typical workloads that can benefit from the SSD Caching extension and introduces the tools and utilities to help you analyze and understand the workload. In particular, it highlights the block tracing facility that was designed and developed by IBM Research. Then this paper explains the process that authorized IBM services representatives use to install SSD Caching. It reviews the changes made to the XIV GUI and the XCLI to support SSD Caching. Finally this paper provides a listing of the new alert-generating events and monitoring options that are provided for SSD support. This paper is intended for users who want an insight into the XIV SSD Caching implementation and architecture, its capabilities, and usage. For more information about the IBM XIV Storage System, see the IBM Redbooks® publication, "IBM XIV Storage System: Architecture, Implementation, and Usage," SG24-7659.