topic Re: esx and eva 4000 in Operating System - VMware

esx and eva 4000

taouw — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 10:06:07 GMT

Can anyone help me to solve this issue:
-I have ESX version 3 server host with 2 virtual machines Windows
-An eva4000 storage
My target is to install a cluster between the 2 windows VMs.
I'm doing the following steps:
-create a one LUN on EVA
-configure this LUN from ESX server and rescan the storage adapter.
-create scsi controller for each machine
-create a virtual disk for the first VM and one other Vdisk for the second VM by using "existing disk" option
-configure disk from device management

-> the problem is all files created on VM1 is invisible to VM2 and all files created on VM2 is invisible to VM1.

how to install cluster on this 2 machines and how to access to the same disks and see the content of Vdisk.

thank y for yr help.

Re: esx and eva 4000

Uwe Zessin — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 12:34:58 GMT

A plain Windows server, even if you set up MSCS, does not know how to share filesystems.
Even worse: when you let 2 Windows servers without MSCS have access to one volume you are CORRUPTING DATA! DON'T DO THAT!

You need to buy additional third-party software.

Re: esx and eva 4000

UK-Blr — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 23:25:56 GMT

always better to install on a rdm disk.

follow these steps.

1. present one big LUN to vmware for base os VM creation. rescan the LUNs in ESX and format.
2. create/deploy the base vms.
3. create and present a new LUN to esx servers to store the cluster data.
4. create and present present a new LUN to esx servers for quorum disk.
5. add a second NIC on both vms.
6. map the data LUN and quorum LUN in each vm a shared disk. use virtual option for all.
7. format the drives insdie the vms on both vms
8. install the mscs cluster on each vms

Re: esx and eva 4000

taouw — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 10:24:05 GMT

Hello
if i do this procedure, the LUN used by the first machine is blocked and it is not available for the second VM, according to ESX infrastructure.
and if i presented the LUN to the first VM and I'm choosing the option "using existing raw device" to present it for the second VM, the blocked is disappeared, but all files created on this LUN is not visible for both VMs.

Re: esx and eva 4000

Uwe Zessin — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 14:55:00 GMT

That is why I wrote:
> even if you set up MSCS...

MSCS does not provide shared file-systems. Only one server has read-write access to a disk and all others are 'locked out', because plain Windows does not know how to do it.

Again, you need 3rd-party software, e.g.:
http://h18006.www1.hp.com/products/storage/software/polyserve/support/hp_polyserve.html

Re: esx and eva 4000

Rob Buxton — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:14:43 GMT

It is possible to present a LUN to two Windows Servers and they will each be able to see the files on that disk as they are at the time the disk became available.
As Uwe has said, after that if both Windows servers write to that disk then it stands a very good chance of becoming corrupted.

There are some operating systems that can concurrently mount and write to a file system, Windows isn't one of them.