Storage appliances prerequisites

Dell PowerScale

Enable API

https://developer.dell.com/apis/4088/versions/9.9.0/docs/Getting%20Started/3make_your_first_call.md

For MetalSoft to connect to PowerScale, you must enable the API. Do this by running the following command on the PowerScale cluster via CLI:

isi_gconfig -t web-config auth_basic=true

Dell PowerFlex

Preparing networking

For connecting Servers/SDC, you will need to pre-create two Logical Networks inside the appropriate Fabric, to be used when deploying and attaching drives. The respective Logical Networks must have the following Annotation:

metalcloud/is-storage-network: true

Automating SDC installation on the servers

MetalSoft provides an example template for Ubuntu that you can use to automate the installation of SDC on a server. You can find the template here.

Huawei

To determine the array ID for a Huawei storage array in MetalSoft:

• Go to the Huawei storage management UI → navigate to the storage array you intend to use → the array ID is the identifier of that specific array.

Huawei arrays can contain multiple sub-arrays; you must specify which one MetalSoft should use when creating LUNs, file shares, and buckets.

For the full setup guide, see Using Huawei Storage.

Determining the storage array ID

Currently, MetalSoft uses a single storage array (which is typically a partition within the bigger storage appliance) per storage pool. To determine the ID that the driver will use, follow these instructions:

• Dell PowerStore: go to storage UI -> Hardware -> Appliances -> arrayId is the name of the appliance you will use. Example: CSCORKEEPTN321
• Dell PowerFlex: go to storage UI -> Block -> Storage Pool -> Enter the details page of the storage pool you will use -> arrayId will be in the URL. Example: 355f71441119820f pfblock/configuration/storage-pool/355f71441119820f/b238357300000000/performance
• Dell ECS: UI unknown, API id of vdc/data-services/varrays
• Dell PowerScale: go to storage UI -> File System -> Storage pools -> arrayId is the name of the storage pool of type nodepool that you will use.
• NetApp ONTAP: go to storage UI -> on the left side menu Storage -> Tiers -> arrayId is the name of the tier you will use. Example: netapp01_01_FC_1
• Pure FlashArray: go to storage UI -> bottom left you will see Array example: slc6-x90r3-n3-a27-31 OR go to Settings -> at the top you will have Array slc6-x90r3-n3-a27-31
• Hitachi Weka: go to storage UI -> Configure -> Cluster -> arrayId is the name of the cluster you will use. Example: iqhcsf02
• Hitachi VSP: go to storage UI -> Storage -> Pools -> arrayId is the name of the pool you will use.

Storages with both IP and FC connectivity

MetalSoft supports storage appliances that can serve drives over both IP-based protocols (iSCSI, NVMe-oF over TCP) and Fibre Channel (FC) simultaneously. The connectivity mode is determined by the fabric type and the Fibre Channel Enabled flag on the storage.

IP (Ethernet) fabric with Fibre Channel enabled

When a storage appliance is connected to a standard Ethernet fabric, drives are provisioned using IP-based networking (IP addresses, VLANs, etc.). The MetalSoft UI displays the connection details required for normal operation, including the target IP address and the target IQN or NQN.

If the Fibre Channel Enabled flag is set on the storage, the UI will additionally display FC connection details, allowing FC-capable servers to mount the drive over Fibre Channel. In this dual-connectivity mode:

• Standard servers connect to drives using the IP-based method (iSCSI or NVMe-oF over TCP).
• FC-capable servers connect to drives using Fibre Channel. During the server-to-drive attach operation, MetalSoft automatically registers the server’s WWPN in the storage appliance’s host list, enabling FC access.

This allows a single storage appliance on an Ethernet fabric to serve both standard and FC-capable servers simultaneously, each using the appropriate protocol.

FC fabric (Fibre Channel only)

When a storage appliance is connected to a dedicated FC fabric, only Fibre Channel connectivity is available. In this mode, drives can only be attached to FC-capable servers, and all connections are established exclusively over Fibre Channel.