Skip to main content
ONTAP tools for VMware vSphere 10.2

Install the NFS VAAI plug-in

Contributors netapp-jani
PDFs

You can install the NetApp NFS Plug-in for vSphere APIs for Array Integration (VAAI) using ONTAP tools for VMware vSphere.

What you will need

  • You should have downloaded the installation package for the NFS Plug-in for VAAI (.vib) from the NetApp Support Site. NetApp NFS Plug-in for VMware VAAI

  • You should have installed ESXi host 7.0U3 latest patch as minimum version and ONTAP 9.12.1Px (latest P release) 9.13.1Px, 9.14.1Px, or later.

  • You should have powered on the ESXi host and mounted an NFS datastore.

  • You should have set the values of the DataMover.HardwareAcceleratedMove, DataMover.HardwareAcceleratedInit, and VMFS3.HardwareAcceleratedLocking host settings to “1”.

    These values are set automatically on the ESXi host when the Recommended Settings dialog box is updated.

  • You should have enabled the vstorage option on the storage virtual machine (SVM) by using the vserver nfs modify -vserver vserver_name -vstorage enabled command.

  • You should have ESXi 7.0U3 or later if you are using NetApp NFS VAAI plug-in 2.0.

  • You should have the vSphere 7.0U3 latest patch releases as vSphere 6.5 has been deprecated.

  • vSphere 8.x is supported with the NetApp NFS VAAI plug-in 2.0.1(build 16).

Steps

  1. Click Settings from the ONTAP tools for VMware vSphere home page.

  2. Click NFS VAAI Tools tab.

  3. When the VAAI plug-in is uploaded to vCenter Server, select Change in the Existing version section. If a VAAI plug-in is not uploaded to the vCenter Server, select Upload button.

  4. Browse and select the .vib file and click Upload to upload the file to ONTAP tools.

  5. Click Install on ESXI host, select the ESXi host on which you want to install the NFS VAAI plug-in, and then click Install.

    Only the ESXi hosts that are eligible for the plug-in installation are displayed. You should follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation. You can monitor the installation progress in the Recent Tasks section of vSphere Web Client.

  6. You should manually reboot the ESXi host after the installation finishes.

    When the VMware admin reboots the ESXi host, ONTAP tools for VMware vSphere automatically detect the NFS VAAI plug-in. You do not have to perform additional steps to enable the plug-in.

Configure the correct NFS export policies for VAAI copy offload

When configuring VAAI in a NFS environment, export policy rules should be configured with the following requirements in mind:

  • The relevant volume needs to allow the NFSv4 calls.

  • The root user should remain as root and NFSv4 should be allowed in all junction parent volumes.

  • The option for VAAI support needs to be set on the relevant NFS server.

For more information on the procedure, refer to Configure the correct NFS export policies for VAAI copy offload KB article.