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SANtricity 11.8

How Remote Storage works

Contributors netapp-jolieg
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The Remote Storage feature allows you to import data from a remote storage system to a local E-Series storage system. This feature is helpful when you want to streamline data migration with minimal downtime, such as during equipment upgrades.

To configure the Remote Storage feature, you must set up the hardware and then use System Manager to create a remote storage object. Once this configuration is complete, the import process begins.

Hardware setup

Use the following workflow to prepare the hardware connections.

These steps are described further in the user guide for the Remote Storage feature, which is available from the E-Series and SANtricity documentation center at Remote Storage Volumes overview, and in the Remote Storage Technical Report.

On the local E-Series storage system:

  1. Ensure that each controller has an iSCSI connection to the remote storage system. With this connection, the local E-Series system acts as an iSCSI initiator that can be set up as a host on the remote system.

  2. Create a destination volume for the import operation. Ensure that the volume has a capacity that is equal to or greater than the source volume on the remote storage system, has a matching block size, and is not mapped. See Create volumes.

  3. Gather the iSCSI Qualified Name (IQN) for the local E-Series system from its System Manager interface. The IQN will be used later for setting up the local E-Series system as a host on the remote storage system. In System Manager, go to: Settings › System › iSCSI settings › Target IQN.

On the remote storage system:

  1. Set up the local E-Series system as a host on the remote system, using its IQN. Be sure to set the appropriate host type, as follows:

    • If the remote system is an E-Series model, see Hosts and host clusters overview. Use a host type of "Factory Default."

    • If the remote system is from another vendor, select an appropriate host type based on the options available.

  2. Stop all I/Os, unmount any file systems, and remove any assignments to hosts or applications for the source volume.

  3. Assign the volume to the newly created local E-Series storage system host.

  4. For the selected source volume, gather the following information from the remote storage system so that the import can be created:

    • iSCSI Qualified Name (IQN)

    • iSCSI IP address

    • LUN number of the source volume

System Manager setup

Use the following workflow to create a remote storage object for the import:

  1. Using the Remote Storage wizard in the System Manager interface, map a remote storage device (the source for the data import) to a target volume on the E-Series system. When you select Finish, the import process begins.

  2. Monitor the import from the View Operations dialog or the Operations in Progress panel. If necessary, you can also pause and resume the process.

  3. Optionally, break the connection between the source and target volumes when the import completes, or keep the connection for future imports.