EMC® VPLEX™

Guarantee EMC VPLEX Enabled Infrastructures with VirtualWisdom4

VirtualWisdom4 drives the value and benefits of storage virtualization

VPLEX Architecture

EMC VPLEX is a virtual storage solution for data mobility and access within, across and between data centers. VPLEX combines scale out clustering, data caching and distributed cache coherence. This allows data on distributed federated storage resources to be accessed and shared by multiple applications and systems. The EMC VPLEX family consists of VPLEX local, VPLEX Metro and VPLEX Geo delivering local and distributed federation with non-disruptive data mobility across heterogeneous arrays.

VPLEX implements a distributed “virtualization” layer within and across geographically disparate Storage Area Networks and Data Centers. VPLEX uses an in-band architecture which means that data flowing between a host and a storage controller flows through one or more VPLEX directors. On the front-end, VPLEX presents an interface to a host which emulates a storage array (target). On the VPLEX back-end, it provides a host (initiator) interface to a storage array.

VirtualWisdom4’s Value Add

EMC VPLEX deployments use the VirtualWisdom4 platform to get full visibility into the environment, deriving benefits which include:

• Measuring system-wide latency in real-time and recommending corrective action before issues arise

• Accelerated cycle-times for application and infrastructure deployments

• Better adherence to and monitoring of SLAs and external regulations

Benefits

• Enable more aggressive use of tiered storage with the ability to prove performance SLAs

• Gain OPEX savings through improved visibility and faster troubleshooting

• Realize CAPEX savings by eliminating over-provisioning and over-tiering

• Achieve better adherence and monitoring of SLAs and regulations

• Drive higher revenues through accelerated application and infrastructure deployments

• Eliminate unplanned downtime

TECH BRIEF

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• OPEX savings through improved and faster troubleshooting

• CAPEX savings by eliminating over-provisioning and over-tiering

• Stronger vendor management and improved vendor relationships

VirtualWisdom4 Interoperability and Support for VPLEX

VPLEX does not modify the Fibre Channel protocol, although VPLEX does have proprietary communications with other VPLEX clusters. Hosts initiator I/O requests are sent to their virtual storage target on the VPLEX cluster. Similarly all requests to the storage array targets come from its virtual host initiators again on the VPLEX. Using Traffic Access Points, or TAPs, one can look at all Fibre Channel traffic, both into and out of the VPLEX and get full visibility into the environment. VirtualWisdom SAN Performance ProbeFC8s working completely out-of-band, capture and analyze every frame at full line rate in continuous real time. Over 200+ metrics per second are reported and stored on the VirtualWisdom server to provide comprehensive and accurate insight into the VPLEX managed traffic.

VirtualWisdom4 IPM platform reports on application response times and latency in getting data from the VPLEX on the front-end; and also reports on how quickly each storage array provides its data to the VPLEX on the backend. So the storage administrator can now tell how the VPLEX is improving performance.

Tapping Best Practice

In the accompanying simplified diagram, TAPs are placed between the storage switch and the front-end of the VPLEX and also between the back-end of the VPLEX and switch. The ProbeFC8 collects and examines both ingoing and outgoing VPLEX Fibre Channel metrics.

With the VPLEX Tapped, VirtualWisdom can see both sides of the conversation. It sees the host requests to the virtual storage as well as VPLEX requests to the storage arrays. A port on the VPLEX can act either as a virtual storage array to host, or as a virtual host to the storage arrays but not both. VirtualWisdom4’s entity-centric views can map this relationship and interdependencies between virtual and physical storage.

Summary

Many customers are successfully using the VirtualWisdom4 IPM platform to instrument, measure, monitor and optimize EMC VPLEX enabled environments. VirtualWisdom increases the value of VPLEX by validating adherence to performance SLAs in a virtualized server and storage environment. Additionally, more aggressive use of lower tier storage and fan in/out ratios behind VPLEX helps to directly lower storage costs. Finally, VirtualWisdom quantitatively shows how VPLEX improves infrastructure response times.

PWRSYS

NETUSE

Dedicated Platform Appliance 4210

Entity Centric: Responsive User Interface

VirtualWisdom® Management Software

SAN Performance ProbeFC8

Servers & VMs

FC Switch Fabric

Storage Arrays

SAN Performance ProbeFC8-HD

SAN Performance ProbeFC8-HD48

NetworkSwitchProbe

StorageProbe

VirtualServerProbe

SANInsight® TAP Patch Panel

SANInsight® TAP Patch Panel

VPLEX