Convenient SAN design: MSA Gen6 and preloaded OCA kits

[StorageExperts]

Skip the repetitive research when building an MSA SAN. Use pre-loaded SAN Kits in One Config Advanced Reference Build. Like grabbing a sandwich, you can grab a preloaded kit and connect your HPE ProLiant Server and/or MSA Gen6 Array in OCA.

What do sandwiches and OCA (One Config Advanced – HPE’s product and solution configuration software) have in common? On the surface, not a lot. But OCA is a like an IT sandwich with different ingredients put together for consumption. The ordering and configuring processes are kind of the same – you can customize your sandwich like CTO (Configure to Order/customized). Or maybe you have a common need and simply want a grab-and-go configuration like BTO (Build to Order/bundled). 

Using that sandwich-making thinking, OCA is the way to Configure To Order any HPE solution with extra memory, higher or lower capacity drives, GPU, etc. Similarly, you could have preferences for a ready-made configuration. That’s often the ideal choice when the ready-made configuration and specs are good enough – and you could potentially get the configuration faster because it might already be stocked.

Order up ready-made connectivity

Up until now, we’ve had no ready-made connectivity kits. I wondered if there was a method to build-to-order some  mundane components for MSA connectivity. In talking to the MSA team and a few Master ASEs in the channel, we collectively believed there would be some value for grab-n-go kits for MSA. The kits took shape to simply the ordering process.

Without kits, configuring a Fibre Channel connection for two HPE ProLiant Servers and HPE MSA SAN Storage requires 22 connectivity SKUs. Ethernet with DAC (Direct Attach Copper) cables requires 16 SKUs. My goal was to create bundled kits for these connectivity configurations – like a grab-n-go sandwich – to use with your HPE ProLiant and HPE MSA OCA builds. You’ll find the added value in taking a lot of the SKU research, guesswork, and busywork out of your Fibre Channel or Ethernet configurations.

Inside OCA, there is a Reference Build section that is a Best Practice configuration for a variety of workloads and configurations. Some Reference Builds are pretested configurations, while others are bundled for ease or commonality. I used the Reference Build section as the place in OCA to host the MSA connection kits.

We recently announced three grab-n-go SAN Networking kits in the OCA Reference Build Section for MSA Gen6 Arrays:

• SAN Networking Kit for MSA Gen6 16Gb FC Array
• SAN Networking Kit for MSA Gen6 10GbE iSCSI Array
• SAN Networking Kit for MSA Gen6 10GBASE-T iSCSI Array

Each kit is designed to match the equivalent type of MSA Gen 6 Array. For example, if you’re configuring an MSA2060 with Fibre Channel, you would marry the SAN Networking Kit for MSA Gen6 16Gb FC Array to that MSA Gen 6 Fibre Channel Array. This kit works with all MSA Gen6 models – MSA1060 Fibre Channel, MSA2060 Fibre Channel, and MSA2062 Fibre Channel. The kit is designed to configure two new HPEProLiant or HPE Apollo servers. This approach provides the lowest price per connection port and, most importantly, redundant data paths, always a best practice for maximum uptime.

Similarly, kits for Ethernet connections use the same design criteria (each works with the MSA1060, MSA2060, and MSA2062) but with Ethernet components. There are two kits because Ethernet is a bit more flexible in its cable design. Choose from standard iSCSI and BASE-T iSCSI with simply cabling differences.

One Ethernet kit is based on a cable type called RJ-45 or commonly called “BASE-T”. Again, you need to marry the proper kit to the proper MSA configuration. The SAN Networking Kit for MSA Gen6 10GBASE-T iSCSI Array works with the MSA Gen6 10GBASE-T iSCSI Array. It’s simple but very important.

The other Ethernet kit is based on DAC (Direct Attach Copper) cables function similarly to BASE-T but are not interchangeable with BASE-T. It’s very important to match the correct kit with the correct array. Too many times, I’ve seen people in the field request eight or more of the $1,000 SFP+ to BASE-T transceiver converters to resolve mismatched products. Ordering mismatched products defeats the “lowest price per port” design criteria stated above and creates a bunch of nervous recovery to get things corrected.

Another important thing to know: The kits are NOT locked – which is a good thing and means the kit components can be added to or changed as desired by the person configuring the solution in OCA. There are no restrictions on the kits. For example, each kit has connectivity for two servers. If you have six servers, you would add four more adapters and eight more cables. (Back to the sandwich analogy: You can intentionally open the sandwich and add extra cheese or mayo if you want. It’s like BTO with a few CTO options.)

Keeping it simple

In the spirit of simplicity for our partners and customers, you can now build something customized and configured. Or you can grab-n-go to complete HPE connectivity for MSA arrays in OCA. One is a bit more complex and customizable. One is fairly simple and straightforward. Yet any of those configurations can be moved through the channel for promotions, pricing, and traditional Capex purchases – or converted into an HPE GreenLake purchase with value services added on by HPE or the HPE partner. The choice is yours.

Watch these short videos to learn more

How to find the SAN Networking Kits in OCA

How to add the SAN Networking Kit to an HPE ProLiant server OCA configuration

How to add the SAN Networking Kit to an HPE MSA Gen6 array OCA configuration

Ordering information:

• SAN Networking Kit for MSA Gen6 16Gb FC Array – UCID: 5126595158-01
• SAN Networking Kit for MSA Gen6 10GbE iSCSI Array – UCID: 5126631173-01
• SAN Networking Kit for MSA Gen6 10GBase-T iSCSI Array – UCID: 5126595174-01

---

Meet around the Storage Block blogger Rich Bruklis

Rich has been working in the Compaq/HP/HPE storage group since 1997 and introduced the industry’s first Fibre Channel SAN backup called the Enterprise Backup Solution. After a successful launch, Rich was recruited to launch the original MSA1000. Later, he managed a software replication product called “Storage Mirroring” – a replication and Disaster Recovery product designed to sell additional MSAs. Today, Rich manages the Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapters from Marvell.

Storage Experts
Hewlett Packard Enterprise

twitter.com/HPE_Storage
linkedin.com/showcase/hpestorage/
hpe.com/storage