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Using external volumes larger than 4 TB

The data direct mapping attribute allows you to use an external volume larger than 4 TB without having to change its capacity.

About DP-VOLs with the data direct mapping attribute

By using a DP-VOL for which the data direct mapping attribute is enabled, you can create a mapping of an external volume larger than 4 TB without having to change its capacity as a DP-VOL of the local storage system.

A DP-VOL with the data direct mapping attribute enabled is associated with the following pool-VOLs: an external volume for which the data direct mapping attribute is enabled, and a pool-VOL with System Area.

To use DP-VOLs with the data direct mapping attribute enabled, you must enable the data direct mapping attribute for pool-VOLs, pools, and DP-VOLs.

Procedure

  1. In the Add External Volumes window, add a volume of an external storage system to an external volume group, and create an external volume for which the data direct mapping attribute is enabled.

  2. In the Create Pools window, create a Dynamic Provisioning pool for which the data direct mapping attribute is enabled. Specify the following volumes as pool-VOLs:

    • The external volume with the data direct mapping attribute enabled.
    • One or more normal volumes or external volumes.
  3. In the Create LDEVs window, create a DP-VOL with the data direct mapping attribute enabled.

  4. In the Add LUN Paths window, configure a LU path to the DP-VOL with the data direct mapping attribute enabled. GUID-17539262-9932-4511-B6F7-F00446238B9C-low.png

    The following table shows what kind of external volumes can be added as pool-VOLs.

    Operation

    Data direct mapping attribute of external volumes

    Disabled

    Enabled

    Add volumes to a pool with the data direct mapping attribute enabled

    The volumes can be added.

    The volumes can be added.

    Add volumes to the following pools:

    • Dynamic Provisioning pools
    • Dynamic Tiering pools (including active flash)

    The volumes can be added.

    The volumes cannot be added.

    The following table shows what kind of operations can be performed when the data direct mapping attribute of a Dynamic Provisioning pool is enabled or disabled.

    Operation

    Data direct mapping attribute of the pool

    Disabled

    Enabled

    Add an LDEV for which the data direct mapping attribute is disabled to the pool

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation can be performed.

    Add an external volume for which the data direct mapping attribute is enabled to the pool

    The operation cannot be performed.

    The operation can be performed.

    Set the depletion threshold and the warning threshold

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation cannot be performed.

    Protect V-VOLs when I/O fails to Blocked Pool VOL

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation can be performed.

    Protect V-VOLs when I/O fails to Full Pool

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation can be performed.

    Performing rebalancing

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation can be performed.

    Define the used capacity of the pool

    The sum of the reserved pages capacity and the mapped capacity

    The sum of the reserved pages capacity and the mapped capacity

    Define the licensed capacity

    The sum of the pool-VOLs

    The sum of pool-VOLs for which the data direct mapping attribute is disabled.

    However, the license capacity does not include the capacity of pool-VOLs for which the data direct mapping attribute is enabled.

    Expand pool

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation can be performed.

    However, the capacity of pool-VOLs with System Area must be reserved in advance.

    Shrink pool

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation can be performed.

    However, if a pool-VOL for which the data direct mapping attribute is enabled is associated with a DP-VOL, you cannot shrink the pool.

    Delete pool

    The operation can be performed.

    Note: You can delete a pool only when there are no DP-VOLs associated with the pool.

    The operation can be performed.

    Note: You can delete a pool only when there are no DP-VOLs associated with the pool.

    Create DP-VOL

    You can only create DP-VOLs for which the data direct mapping attribute is disabled.

    You can only create DP-VOLs for which the data direct mapping attribute is enabled.

    Implement a change to Dynamic Tiering (including active flash pool)

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation can be performed.

    The following table shows what kind of operations can be performed when the data direct mapping attribute of a DP-VOL is enabled or disabled.

    Operation

    Data direct mapping attribute of the DP-VOL

    Disabled

    Enabled

    Configure LU paths

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation can be performed.

    Format LDEVs

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation can be performed.

    Delete LDEVs

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation can be performed.

    Expand V-VOLs

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation cannot be performed.

    Reclaim zero pages

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation cannot be performed.

    Execute the V-VOL full allocation function

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation cannot be performed.

    Protect V-VOLs when I/O fails to Blocked Pool VOL

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation can be performed.

    Protect V-VOLs when I/O fails to Full Pool

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation can be performed.

    Apply to LDEVs of SLU attribution

    The operation can be performed.

    The operation cannot be performed.

Creating external volumes with data direct mapping enabled

Before you begin

The Storage Administrator (Provisioning) role is required to perform this task.

Procedure

  1. Click Storage Systems, and then expand the Storage Systems tree.

  2. Click Logical Devices.

  3. In the LDEVs pane of the Logical Devices window, click Create LDEVs.

  4. In the Create LDEVs window, from the Provisioning Type list, select External as a provisioning type for the LDEV to be created.

  5. In Data Direct Mapping, select Enable.

  6. Click Select Free Spaces.

  7. In the Select Free Spaces window, in the Available Free Spaces table, select the free space to be assigned to the volumes. Do the following, if necessary:

    • To specify the conditions and show the free space, click Filter, specify the conditions, and then click Apply.
    • To specify the unit for capacity and the number of rows to view, click Options.
  8. Click View Physical Location.

  9. In the View Physical Location window, confirm where the selected free space is physically located, and then click Close.

  10. In the Select Free Spaces window, if the selected free spaces have no issues, click OK.

  11. In the Number of LDEVs per External Volume, confirm that 1 is displayed.

  12. In LDEV Name, specify a name for this LDEV.

    1. In Prefix, type the characters that will become the fixed characters for the beginning of the LDEV name. The characters are case-sensitive.

    2. In Initial Number, type the initial number that will follow the prefix name.

  13. In Format Type, select the format type for the LDEV from the list.

    For an external volume, if you create the LDEV whose emulation type is the open system, select Normal Format or No Format. If the external volume can be used as it is, select No Format. The created LDEV can be used without formatting. If the external volume needs to be formatted, select No Format and then format the volume with the external storage system, or select Normal Format.
  14. Click Options to show more options.

  15. In Initial LDEV ID, make sure that an LDEV ID is set. To confirm the used number and unavailable number, click View LDEV IDs to open the View LDEV IDs window.

    1. In Initial LDEV ID in the Create LDEVs window, click View LDEV IDs. In the View LDEV IDs window, the matrix vertical scale represents the second-to-last digit of the LDEV number, and the horizontal scale represents the last digit of the LDEV number. The LDEV IDs table shows the available, used, and disabled LDEV IDs. In the table, used LDEV numbers appear in blue, unavailable numbers appear in gray, and unused numbers appear in white. LDEV numbers that are unavailable may be already in use, or already assigned to another emulation group (group by 32 LDEV numbers).

    2. Click Close.

  16. In the Create LDEVs window, from the MP Unit ID list, select a MP unit to be used by the LDEVs.

    • If you assign a specific MP unit, select the ID of the MP unit.
    • If you can assign any MP unit, click Auto.
  17. Click Add.

    The created LDEVs are added to the Selected LDEVs table.

    If these required items are not registered, you cannot click Add.

  18. If necessary, change the following LDEV settings:

    1. Click Change LDEV Settings to open the Change LDEV Settings window.

  19. If necessary, delete an LDEV from the Selected LDEVs table. Select an LDEV to delete, and then click Remove.

  20. Click Finish. The Confirm window appears.

    To continue the operation for setting the LU path and defining a logical unit, click Next.
  21. In the Task Name text box, type a unique name for the task or accept the default.

    You can enter up to 32 ASCII characters and symbols, with the exception of: \ / : , ; * ? " < > |. The value "date-window name" is entered by default.

  22. Click Apply.

    If the Go to tasks window for status check box is selected, the Tasks window appears.

Creating pools with data direct mapping enabled

Before you begin

The Storage Administrator (Provisioning) role is required to perform this task.

Procedure

  1. Click Storage Systems, and then expand the Storage Systems tree.

  2. Click Pools.

  3. Click Create Pools.

  4. From the Pool Type list, select Dynamic Provisioning.

  5. From the Multi-Tier Pool field, select Disable.

  6. From the Data Direct Mapping field, select Enable.

  7. Follow the steps below to select pool-VOLs.

    1. From the Drive Type/RPM list, select a data drive type and RPM.

    2. From the RAID Level list, select RAID level.

      If you select External Storage from the Drive Type/RPM list, a hyphen (-) appears and you cannot select the RAID level.
    3. Click Select Pool VOLs.

      The Select Pool VOLs window appears.
    4. In the Available Pool Volumes table, select the pool-VOL row to be associated with a pool, then click Add.

      Select one or more volumes to use as pool-VOLs with system area. For the attribute of the volume, which can be used as the pool-VOLs with system area, a hyphen(-) appears in the Attribute column. In addition, the external volume of the data direct mapping attribute can be selected as an option. For the attribute of the external volume of the data direct mapping attribute, Data Direct Mapping appears in the Attribute column. After creating the pool, you can also add the external volume of the data direct mapping attribute.

      You can select a value other than Middle from External LDEV Tier Rank and click Add to set another tier rank for an external volume. The selected pool-VOL is registered in the Selected Pool Volumes table. Up to 1,024 volumes can be added to a pool. If LDEVs in an accelerated compression enabled parity group are used as pool-VOLs, these LDEVs can be assigned to only one pool. LDEVs in an accelerated compression enabled parity group cannot be assigned to multiple pools as pool-VOLs.
      Tip Perform the following steps if necessary:
      • Click Filter to open the menu, specify the filtering conditions, and click Apply.
      • Click Select All Pages to select all pool-VOLs in the table. To cancel the selection, click Select All Pages again.
    5. Click OK.

      The information in the Selected Pool Volumes table is applied to Total Selected Pool Volumes and Total Selected Capacity.
  8. Enter the name in the Pool Name text box.

  9. Click Options.

  10. In the Initial Pool ID text box, type the number of the initial pool ID, from 0 to 127. When you specify a pool ID that was previously registered, the smallest available ID is displayed by default instead of the value you entered. If a pool ID unavailable, no number is displayed.

  11. In Protect V-VOLs when I/O fails to Blocked Pool VOL, select Yes or No. If Yes is selected, when the pool-VOL is blocked, DP-VOL is protected from reading and writing requests. And at the same instant, the access attribute of the DP-VOL is changed to the Protect attribute.

  12. In Protect V-VOLs when I/O fails to Full Pool, select Yes or No. If Yes is selected, when the pool usage reaches the full size, DP-VOL is protected from reading and writing requests. And at the same instant, the access attribute of the DP-VOL is changed to the Protect attribute.

  13. Click Add.

    The created pool is added to the Selected Pools table. If invalid values are set, an error message appears.

    The Pool Type, Pool Volume Selection, and Pool Name must be set. If the required items are not entered or selected, you cannot click Add.

    If you select a row and click Detail, the Pool Properties window appears. If you select a row and click Remove, the message appears asking whether you want to remove the selected row or rows. If you want to remove the row, click OK.

  14. Click Next.

    The Create LDEVs window appears.
  15. Click Finish and the Confirmation window appears.

  16. Check the settings in the Confirmation window, and then enter the task name in Task Name. Select the pool radio button and then click Details. The Pool Properties window appears.

  17. Click Apply

    The tasks are registered. If the Go to tasks window for status check box is selected, the Tasks window appears.

Creating DP-VOLs with data direct mapping enabled

Before you begin

The Storage Administrator (Provisioning) role is required to perform this task.

Procedure

  1. Click Storage Systems, and then expand the Storage Systems tree.

  2. Click Logical Devices.

  3. In the LDEVs pane of the Logical Devices window, click Create LDEVs.

  4. In the Create LDEVs window, from the Provisioning Type list, select Dynamic Provisioning.

  5. From the Data Direct Mapping field, select Enable.

  6. From the Multi-Tier Pool field, select Disable.

  7. From the Available Volumes table, select LDEV.

  8. In the LDEV Name text box, enter the DP-VOL name.

    In the Prefix text box, enter the alphanumeric characters, which are fixed characters of the head of the DP-VOL name. The characters are case-sensitive. In the Initial Number text box, type the initial number following the prefix name, which can be up to 9 digits. You can enter up to the 32 characters including the initial number.
  9. Click Option.

  10. In the Initial LDEV ID field, make sure that LDEV ID is set.

    To confirm the used number and unavailable number, click View LDEV IDs to display the View LDEV IDs window. In the table, used LDEV numbers appear in blue, unavailable numbers appear in gray, and unused numbers appear in white. LDEV numbers that are unavailable may be already in use, or already assigned to another emulation group (group by 32 LDEV numbers).
  11. From the Cache Partition list, select CLPR.

  12. From the MP Unit list, select an MP unit.

    Select an MP unit to be used by the LDEVs. If you assign a specific MP unit, select the ID of the MP unit. If you can assign any MP unit, click Auto.
  13. If necessary, change the settings of the V-VOLs.

    • Click Change LDEV Settings to open the Change LDEV Settings window.
  14. If necessary, delete a row from the Selected LDEVs table.

    Select a row to be deleted, then click Remove.
  15. Click Add.

    The created V-VOLs are added to the correct Selected LDEVs table. If invalid values are set, an error message appears: The Provisioning Type, Pool Selection, Drive Type/RPM, RAID Level, LDEV Capacity, and Number of LDEVs fields must be set. If these required items are not registered, you cannot click Add.
  16. Click Finish.

    The Confirm window appears. To continue the operation for setting the LU path and define LUN, click Next.
  17. In the Task Name in the text box, enter the task name.

    You can enter up to 32 ASCII characters and symbols in all, except for \ / : , ; * ? " < > |. "yymmdd-window name" is entered as a default.

  18. Click Apply.

    If the Go to tasks window for status check box is selected, the Tasks window appears.

Enabling and disabling the data direct mapping attribute for a pool

Use this procedure to enable or disable data direct mapping on an existing pool.

Before you begin

The Storage Administrator (Provisioning) role is required to perform this task.

Procedure

  1. Click Storage Systems, and then expand the Storage Systems tree.

  2. Click Pools.

  3. If you are enabling data direct mapping on a Dynamic Tiering or active flash pool, first enable the Multi-Tier Pool option on the pool and apply the setting to the storage system, and then continue with this procedure.

  4. From the Pools table, select the pool for which you want to change the data direct mapping attribute.

  5. Click More Actions, and then select Edit Pools.

  6. Select Data Direct Mapping, and then select Enable or Disable.

  7. Click Finish.

    The Confirm window opens.
  8. In the Task Name text box, type a unique name for the task or accept the default.

    You can enter up to 32 ASCII characters and symbols, with the exception of: \ / : , ; * ? " < > |. The value "date-window name" is entered by default.