Add second MSA2040 unit to existing VMWare array...

[mbwmn]

I need to add more drivespace.
We have a MSA2040 connected to (2) Netgear XS724EM switches via fiber, then (3) VMWare esxi 6.5 hosts (DL380 Gen9, booting to MicroSD cards) via multiple 10GB ISCi controllers.

What is the best way to add (connect) another MSA2040? There are no more fiber ports avaialble on the existing switches. Would SAS connection between the 4 controllers suffice?

[Shawn_K]

Hello,

You cannot use a SAS connection to connect controllers from two seperate arrays. This is unsuported and will not provide the correct connectivity to allow failover and redundancy.

You will need to consider another option at the switch layer to give you the additional storage your SAN needs.

Cheers,
Shawn

I work for Hewlett Packard Enterprise. The comments in this post are my own and do not represent an official reply from HPE. No warranty or guarantees of any kind are expressed in my reply.

[mbwmn]

Thank you for your response.

If I connected the units via SAS would'nt VMWare allow me to expand the virtual storage? 

[Shawn_K]

Hello,

Your original information indicated the arrays had 10G iSCSI controllers. If this is true then you do not have the ability to add SAS connections between the two arrays. Connecting the two arrays via the backend SAS cables is not supported. This would be similar to connecting two Smart HBAs or Smart Array cards - chaos and not supported.

If you are changing the SAN fabric to SAS, then yes you can connect the two MSA 2040 SAS arrays via a switch. However, we do not have a SAS switch for DL380 G9 servers. We do have SAS switches for c7000 blade enclosures.

Hopefully this clears up any confusion.

Cheers,
Shawn

I work for Hewlett Packard Enterprise. The comments in this post are my own and do not represent an official reply from HPE. No warranty or guarantees of any kind are expressed in my reply.

[mbwmn]

No, unfortunately I've gotten different answers from the 2 resellers I checked with, but they of course want to sell a unit and drives so...here I am completely confused and ready to scrap $25k worth of existing <2yr old storage and move to another manufacturer...or spend another $25k for additional HPE drivespace that I may not be able to use....

>We have a MSA2040 connected to (2) Netgear XS724EM switches via fiber<
The switches are running Large Frame iSCI over ethernet back to the (3) DL380P Gen9 servers, but the exisating MSA 2040 uses fiber.

I suppose if the existing MSA 2040 is NOT using SAS back to the servers it makes no difference? It would seem you're indicating only 1 connection type can be used, and SAS between controllers (as pictured in both MSA 2040 and MSA 2050 manuals) is not supported because there is an existing fiber connection??

Very dissapointing and frustrating to learn this now, as our purchase decision was based on HPE telling me how easy it was to expand.