vsphere-esxi-vcenter-server-55-storage-guide

Chapter 11 Configuring iSCSI Adapters and StoragePrerequisitesRequired privilege: Host.Configuration.Storage Partition ConfigurationProcedure1 Browse to the host in the vSphere Web Client navigator.2 Click the Manage tab, and click Storage.3 Click Storage Adapters, and select the adapter (vmhba#) to configure.4 Configure advanced parameters.• To configure advanced parameters at the adapter level, under Adapter Details, click the AdvancedOptions tab and click Edit.• Configure advanced parameters at the target level.abClick the Targets tab and click either Dynamic Discovery or Static Discovery.From the list of available targets, select a target to configure and click Advanced Options.5 Enter any required values for the advanced parameters you want to modify.iSCSI Session ManagementTo communicate with each other, iSCSI initiators and targets establish iSCSI sessions. You can review andmanage iSCSI sessions using vSphere CLI.By default, software iSCSI and dependent hardware iSCSI initiators start one iSCSI session between eachinitiator port and each target port. If your iSCSI initiator or target have more than one port, your host canhave multiple sessions established. The default number of sessions for each target equals the number ofports on the iSCSI adapter times the number of target ports.Using vSphere CLI, you can display all current sessions to analyze and debug them. To create more paths tostorage systems, you can increase the default number of sessions by duplicating existing sessions betweenthe iSCSI adapter and target ports.You can also establish a session to a specific target port. This can be useful if your host connects to a singleportstorage system that, by default, presents only one target port to your initiator, but can redirectadditional sessions to a different target port. Establishing a new session between your iSCSI initiator andanother target port creates an additional path to the storage system.The following considerations apply to iSCSI session management:• Some storage systems do not support multiple sessions from the same initiator name or endpoint.Attempts to create multiple sessions to such targets can result in unpredictable behavior of your iSCSIenvironment.• Storage vendors can provide automatic session managers. Using the automatic session manages to addor delete sessions, does not guarantee lasting results and can interfere with the storage performance.Review iSCSI SessionsUse the vCLI command to display iSCSI sessions between an iSCSI adapter and a storage system.In the procedure, --server=server_name specifies the target server. The specified target server prompts youfor a user name and password. Other connection options, such as a configuration file or session file, aresupported. For a list of connection options, see Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces.PrerequisitesInstall vCLI or deploy the vSphere Management Assistant (vMA) virtual machine. See Getting Started withvSphere Command-Line Interfaces. For troubleshooting, run esxcli commands in the ESXi Shell.VMware, Inc. 97