General |
| Q1. |
What is HP Virtual Connect? |
| A1. |
Virtual Connect is a set of interconnect modules and embedded software for HP BladeSystem c-Class enclosures that simplifies the setup and administration of server connections. HP Virtual Connect includes the HP 1Gb VC Fibre Channel Module, and the HP Virtual Connect Manager. |
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| Q2. |
How does Virtual Connect work? What are the key technologies involved? |
| A2. |
While Virtual Connect uses the standard HBAs within the server, it uses a new class of NPIV based Fibre Channel interconnect modules to simplify connection of those server HBAs to the datacenter environment. VC also extends the capability of the standard server HBAs by providing support for securely administering their Fibre Channel WWN address.
The HP Virtual Connect Fibre Channel Module will allow the c-Class administrator to define uplinks to their datacenter Fibre Channel switches, and then allow the administrator to select which server HBA ports will be connected to each external network. Looking in to the enclosure from each external Fibre Channel network, only the selected Fibre Channel HBA ports will be visible on what appears to be an isolated, private, loop-free network.
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| Q3. |
What is the Virtual Connect Architecture? |
| A3. |
The c-Class infrastructure was designed with Virtual Connect in mind. The OnBoard Administrator, PCI-Express mezzanine cards, NICs & drivers, and iLo communication channel are all incorporated in and necessary to the operation of Virtual Connect and together with the VC modules constitute the Virtual Connect Architecture. The fact that Virtual Connect is so tightly and completely integrated into the c-Class infrastructure helps make its functionality so powerful and seamless to c-Class BladeSystem users.
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| Q4. |
Are any special server mezzanine cards required? |
| A4. |
No special mezzanine cards are required. HP Virtual Connect works with the standard server Fibre Channel Network Interface Controllers (NICs) that are available with c-Class server blades.
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| Q5. |
How many VC modules do I need? What is the minimum supported configuration?
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| A5. |
The c-Class enclosure requires one interconnect module for each Fibre Channel port used on the half-height server bays. There are a minimum of two Fibre Channel ports embedded on each server, so a minimum of two VC-Enet modules are recommended. At least one 1/10G Virtual Connect Ethernet Module is required to manage the Fibre Channel modules. Up to six VC-Enet modules may be used with two FC=FC Modules in a single enclosure. An environment with a single VC-Enet module per enclosure is supported, but not recommended as it doesn't provide a high-availability configuration for the Virtual Connect Manager or allow for resilient server network connections.
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| Technology |
| Q1. |
Isn't Virtual Connect just shifting the workload from network admins to server admins? |
| A1. |
No, the network administration responsibility remains in the hands of the networking specialist. A few simple networking setup steps at initial deployment is all that is required. The server specialist then has the flexibility to adjust which servers and NICs are connected to the specific networks provided and he/she can do it on his/her own without needing to schedule help from the network admin.
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| Q2. |
Isn't the network admin losing control of his networks? |
| A2. |
Not at all. The networking admin still decides which networks will be made available* to the servers in a Virtual Connect Domain; but he/she just treats all of those servers as a pool instead of as individual servers. Once Virtual Connect is configured, the networking admin doesn't have to help with server changes. The server admin will have the flexibility to decide, and change as needed, which NICs are connected to which of the networks provided by the network administrator.
* In datacenters using SANs, a fairly typical method of deployment would be for the networking administrator to drop two (primary & backup) Fibre Channel cables to the rack and then to set up the datacenter switches so that multiple NPIV enabled connections via the Fibre Channel networks will be carried over those cables. This allows the network administrator to have complete control over the networks made available to the server administrator. Then either the networking or server administrator would input the list of available networks into the Virtual Connect manager (takes just a few minutes to do).
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| Q3. |
Are we making Virtual NICs and Virtual MAC addresses? |
| A3. |
No - Virtual Connect works with the NICs that reside on the servers. We are not creating virtual ones. The MAC addresses are also "real". They are the only MAC addresses seen by the system, the OS, the networks, and everything else.
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| Q4. |
How does Virtual Connect administer MAC address? |
| A4. |
Virtual Connect has the unique ability to administer the MAC addresses presented by the hardware as their MAC addresses. While the hardware ships with default MAC addresses, the Virtual Connect-administered values will override these values as long as the server remains in that Virtual Connect enclosure. Virtual Connect securely manages the MACs by accessing the physical NICs via the enclosure's OnBoard Administer and the iLO interfaces on the individual blade servers.
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| Q5. |
What happens if a server with VC administered addresses is moved to a non-VC enclosure? What if it is moved to a different VC domain?
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| A5. |
If a server is moved from a Virtual Connect managed enclosure to a non-VC enclosure, the local MAC addresses are automatically returned to the original factory defaults.
If a server is removed from a server bay within a VC domain and is plugged into another bay in the same VC domain or into a bay in a different domain, it will be assigned the new set of addresses appropriate for that server location.
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| Connectivity |
| Q1. |
Why would a customer say he doesn't have enough Fibre Channel domains to be able to use non-VC BladeSystem FC switches? |
| A1. |
In the most common way that FC SAN fabrics are designed, the SAN is limited to a specific number of switches that it can incorporate. That number changes depending on brand: McData allows 24 switches, Cisco FC allows 40, and Brocade allows 56. In the dense server environment typical of blade usage, the natural limit of one switch per 16 HBAs requires a lot of BladeSystem FC switches. When they add up the director-class and other switches in the SAN, frequently there isn't enough capacity left to allow blade server FC switches.
The Virtual Connect Fibre Channel Module is not a switch and so doesn't count against these limits. So, a SAN fabric can include as many VC FC modules as needed! The fact that a user can reduce the number of cables without overcrowding his SAN will be enough for many customers to buy Virtual Connect. On top of that are all of the advantages of extra flexibility in moving and adding servers without the SAN admin needing to be involved.
The specific technology that allows Virtual Connect FC to operate in this way is an ANSI T11 Fibre Channel standard called NPIV (N_Port Identifier Virtualization) and is supported by all of the major FC switch and HBA manufacturers.
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| Q2. |
How do you get the FC cable reduction without adding switches? |
| A2. |
Virtual Connect FC provides HBA aggregation using an ANSI T11 Fibre Channel standard called NPIV (N_Port Identifier Virtualization) that is supported by all of the major FC switch and HBA manufacturers. It allows one FC switch port to talk with multiple HBAs. Originally developed to support some zoning and security needs of virtual machines, it also nicely solves the problem of reducing FC cable count without adding switches.
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| Q3. |
Are there a lot of extra steps added for a FC SAN to comprehend Virtual Connect? |
| A3. |
No, many existing FC switches already support N-port logins using N_port_ID virtualization. There is usually no special configuration or set up on the Fibre Channel switch. When the server blade HBAs login to the fabric (through the VC-FC module), the HBA WWN is visible to the FC switch name server and is managed (fabric zoning) the same as it was if it was directly connected.
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| Q4. |
If a user has qualified his FC SAN with a brand of HBAs (e.g. McData with Emulex), will he need to qualify his SAN and HBA with VC FC? |
| A4. |
Once the initial HBA login sequence is completed, the VC-FC device is transparent and does not alter the FC frames sent/received to/from the server HBA. This transparency helps ensure that existing configurations with specific models of HBAs, FC switches, and SAN targets will continue to work reliably.
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| Q5. |
Does VC-FC look truly transparent to all FC elements? |
| A5. |
Yes - During the fabric login sequence, the VC-FC module will convert regular N-port fabric login (FLOGI) frames to comply to the NPIV standard. Once that is complete, the frames are passed through the VC-FC module without change. At that point, the VC-FC operates as a transparent, buffered multiplexer.
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| General |
| Q1. |
Does my FC SAN zoning still work? How? |
| A1. |
Yes - Since each server HBA port still logs into the SAN fabric with its port WWN and receives back a port ID from the switch name server, all of the switch WWN-based SAN zoning still works! The only limitation is that customers that use switch port-based zoning would need to restrict movement of VC server profiles among servers that map to the same SAN uplink. Since WWN-based zoning is more frequently used, this restriction is usually not a problem.
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| Q2. |
Will I be able to buy NPIV devices from other vendors? |
| A2. |
Yes. NPIV is an industry standard capability. But, other solutions will not have full Virtual Connect functionality. They may reduce cables but they won't support addition or movement of servers without affecting the SAN.
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| Q3. |
What switch firmware versions support NPIV logins? |
| A3. |
Every major Fiber Channel Switch vendor has either announced support or has included support for NPIV in their latest version of switch firmware.
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| Q4. |
How do you access the VC manager? |
| A4. |
The Virtual Connect Manager runs embedded on the VC Ethernet module in bay 1 or 2 of the base enclosure and is accessible via the Onboard Administrator's management Ethernet interface. To access the VC manager for the first time, you can either login via your web browser to the OA and then select the VC manager link, or use the dynamic DNS name printed on the tear-off tag for the VC-Enet module in Bay 1 (enter the DNS name in your browser address text field). You can optionally set up a static IP address for the VC manager, which will allow you to maintain access to the VC manager in the event that it fails over to the VC-Enet module in Bay 2.
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| Q5. |
How does the Virtual Connect Manager communicate to other modules in the VC domain? |
| A5. |
The VC manager uses the management Ethernet network connections to the enclosure's Onboard Administrators. The VC manager uses this network to communicate to the Onboard Administrators, VC modules, and server blades (via iLO interfaces).
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| Health & Management |
| Q1. |
Where is the VC manager? |
| A1. |
The VC manager runs embedded on the Ethernet module. This greatly simplifies installation and deployment as a separate management server is not required.
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| Q2. |
Does VC depend on HP SIM or other management tools? |
| A2. |
HP Virtual Connect can be used independently from other HP server management tools and is not dependent on external management software. HP Virtual Connect is dependent on features built into the HP Onboard Administrator (OA), integrated Lights Out controller (iLO), and HP server BIOS.
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| Q3. |
How does VC work with other HP management tools? |
| A3. |
All of the Virtual Connect capabilities will be accessible via programmatic APIs to other HP management tools (HP SIM, HP Insight Control, HP automation tools), so future versions of these tools will provide integrated views that include VC-specific information.
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| Q4. |
How does VC impact deployment via RDP and management via SIM? |
| A4. |
A server made available on a network appears completely like a standard server, so it is completely manageable and deployable using the existing HP management tools.
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| Q5. |
Does it support role-based administration? |
| A5. |
Yes, the VC manager identifies four unique roles (VC domain admin, server, storage, and networking). Each user account can have any combination of privileges (none, one, some, or all). Not selecting any of the user roles when creating a user account will provide read-only access in the web user interface.
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