2017 Apr 07 Student Guide VxRail Deployment and Implementation v1.3

Welcome to VxRail Appliance Deployment and Implementation.
Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. All Rights Reserved. Dell, EMC, and other trademarks are trademarks
of Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. Other trademarks may be the property of their respective owners. Published in the
USA.
THE INFORMATION IN THIS PUBLICATION IS PROVIDED “AS IS.” DELL EMC MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND WITH RESPECT TO
THE INFORMATION IN THIS PUBLICATION, AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIMS IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
PURPOSE.
Use, copying, and distribution of any DELL EMC software described in this publication requires an applicable software license. The trademarks, logos, and service marks
(collectively "Trademarks") appearing in this publication are the property of DELL EMC Corporation and other parties. Nothing contained in this publication should be construed
as granting any license or right to use any Trademark without the prior written permission of the party that owns the Trademark.
AccessAnywhere Access Logix, AdvantEdge, AlphaStor, AppSync ApplicationXtender, ArchiveXtender, Atmos, Authentica, Authentic Problems, Automated Resource Manager,
AutoStart, AutoSwap, AVALONidm, Avamar, Aveksa, Bus-Tech, Captiva, Catalog Solution, C-Clip, Celerra, Celerra Replicator, Centera, CenterStage, CentraStar, EMC
CertTracker. CIO Connect, ClaimPack, ClaimsEditor, Claralert ,CLARiiON, ClientPak, CloudArray, Codebook Correlation Technology, Common Information Model, Compuset,
Compute Anywhere, Configuration Intelligence, Configuresoft, Connectrix, Constellation Computing, CoprHD, EMC ControlCenter, CopyCross, CopyPoint, CX, DataBridge ,
Data Protection Suite. Data Protection Advisor, DBClassify, DD Boost, Dantz, DatabaseXtender, Data Domain, Direct Matrix Architecture, DiskXtender, DiskXtender 2000, DLS
ECO, Document Sciences, Documentum, DR Anywhere, DSSD, ECS, elnput, E-Lab, Elastic Cloud Storage, EmailXaminer, EmailXtender , EMC Centera, EMC ControlCenter,
EMC LifeLine, EMCTV, Enginuity, EPFM. eRoom, Event Explorer, FAST, FarPoint, FirstPass, FLARE, FormWare, Geosynchrony, Global File Virtualization, Graphic
Visualization, Greenplum, HighRoad, HomeBase, Illuminator , InfoArchive, InfoMover, Infoscape, Infra, InputAccel, InputAccel Express, Invista, Ionix, Isilon, ISIS,Kazeon, EMC
LifeLine, Mainframe Appliance for Storage, Mainframe Data Library, Max Retriever, MCx, MediaStor , Metro, MetroPoint, MirrorView, Mozy, Multi-Band
Deduplication,Navisphere, Netstorage, NetWitness, NetWorker, EMC OnCourse, OnRack, OpenScale, Petrocloud, PixTools, Powerlink, PowerPath, PowerSnap, ProSphere,
ProtectEverywhere, ProtectPoint, EMC Proven, EMC Proven Professional, QuickScan, RAPIDPath, EMC RecoverPoint, Rainfinity, RepliCare, RepliStor, ResourcePak,
Retrospect, RSA, the RSA logo, SafeLine, SAN Advisor, SAN Copy, SAN Manager, ScaleIO Smarts, Silver Trail, EMC Snap, SnapImage, SnapSure, SnapView, SourceOne,
SRDF, EMC Storage Administrator, StorageScope, SupportMate, SymmAPI, SymmEnabler, Symmetrix, Symmetrix DMX, Symmetrix VMAX, TimeFinder, TwinStrata, UltraFlex,
UltraPoint, UltraScale, Unisphere, Universal Data Consistency, Vblock, VCE. Velocity, Viewlets, ViPR, Virtual Matrix, Virtual Matrix Architecture, Virtual Provisioning, Virtualize
Everything, Compromise Nothing, Virtuent, VMAX, VMAXe, VNX, VNXe, Voyence, VPLEX, VSAM-Assist, VSAM I/O PLUS, VSET, VSPEX, Watch4net, WebXtender, xPression,
xPresso, Xtrem, XtremCache, XtremSF, XtremSW, XtremIO, YottaYotta, Zero-Friction Enterprise Storage.
Revision Date: 04/2017
Revision Number: VCE-7LN-VXRAILDI.4.0-1.3
Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 0 1

This course covers VxRail deployment and implementation procedures.

The course assumes the student has base knowledge and has met the prerequisites detailed on this slide.

The course is a packed two days, with half of the modules on day 1 and half on day 2. Module 4 on
Appliance Initialization may span from day 1 to day 2.

This slide lists information and training resources for more information on the VxRail Appliance helpful for
delivering the D&I Service.
Best location for guides and documents to support product positioning and sales/pre-sales guidance is the
sales playbook: https://www.emc.com/auth/rpage/ec-for-vce-vxrail.htm

This module provides an introduction to the VxRail appliance components and node types, and reviews
the available deployment services.

Before deploying a VxRail Appliance it is important to understand the environment it will be installed in.
The deployment team needs to know if the systems will fit in the datacenter and if there is appropriate
power and cooling. This should be documented in the pre-site checklist. Each VxRail Appliance is shipped
in advance and customers may take it upon themselves to rack, stack and supply power.

Dell EMC combines hardware and software to create a hyper-converged architecture designed to be
extremely agile, simple to manage, highly reliable, offer predictable performance while being cost
effective. The VxRail Appliance achieves all of this by using Dell EMC branded nodes, a Dell EMC or
customer provided network switch and VxRail Manager automated provisioning software. An enclosure
may be made up of a chassis with up to four-nodes or a single node. Nodes can be clustered together to
scale up to 32 nodes or up to 64 nodes via an RPQ.

Network switches are a customer-provided component of the VxRail Appliance.

VxRail Appliance 4.0 model series description and use cases for each node type
• G Series
– Generation (Gen) 2 Quanta models for general purpose and VDI use cases
– QCT is Quanta Cloud Technology
• E Series
– Low cost 1U single node utilizing Dell PowerEdge R630 which is available with 10GbE or
1GbE network NICs. This model is also ideal for the low-entry 3-node cluster configuration
• P Series
– Performance optimized with Dell PowerEdge R730 nodes offering extra networking NIC for
high-end use cases such as business critical workloads
• V Series
– Dell PowerEdge R730 node optimized for VDI environments with optional GPU cards along
with extra networking NICs
• S Series
– Dell PowerEdge R730XD nodes with storage dense capabilities for use cases such as
collaboration, data, and analytics use cases

G Series enclosures are Quanta enclosures with 1-4 nodes. It requires a minimum of three nodes but
must be fully expanded before adding an additional chassis. All other VxRail enclosures are single node
enclosures.
Quanta enclosures with a single chassis populated with 4 nodes may be referenced as an “appliance”
• This type of reference is valid when a VxRail cluster is made up of a single G Series node
• When the G series enclosure/chassis populated with 1-4 nodes is part of a larger cluster this
reference is confusing, because only the entire cluster should be referenced as the VxRail
Appliance

Dell nodes come in three enclosure types:
• R630 1U single node enclosure (E Series)
• R730 2U single node enclosure (V Series and P Series)
• R730xd 2U single node enclosure with extended disk drives (S Series)

Dell EMC provides documentation for all phases of a VxRail deployment. There are documents for site
planning and configuring the appliance to customer power specifications, as well as network integration
guides and procedures for performing component replacements.
Pre-Installation Site Checklist can be downloaded from SolVe (Solution for Validating your engagement)
tool.
Dell EMC VxRail Network Guide is available at the VxRail Enablement Center.

PS-BAS-HCIAG2IMP Implementation for VxRail G410X Cluster
• Cluster configurations with greater than 4 nodes per cluster
• Deliver remote configuration
• Core/base service for each target cluster (ex: 1 cluster = Qty 1)
• Covers planning, checklist, validation of switch/network, ext. vCenter
• Covers cluster configuration, add nodes to cluster, ESRS setup, and KT
PS-BAS-HCIAG2INS Installation for VxRail G410X
• Installations with greater than 4 nodes per cluster
• Delivered onsite at single location
• Per chassis basis for up to 4 nodes per chassis (ex: 10 nodes = Qty of 3)
• Covers onsite rack, stack, cabling of up to 4 Nodes in chassis
PS-BAS-VXVDX Implementation for Connectrix for VxRail
• Implementation of up to two switches at single site
• Delivered onsite (rack + cabling) single location with remote configuration
• Covers planning, checklist, validation of network
• Covers physical installation and configuration of the switch
Professional Services Documentation
• To access accompany Professional Services documentation, please refer to the Services Offering
Index (SOI). The SOI contains customer-facing documents such as the Service Brief as well as
delivery documentation specific to the services. These documents can help with understand which
services to position based on customer requirements. To access the Services Offering Index go to:
• https://www.emc.com/auth/service-offering-index.htm
NOTE: The PS-BAS-HCIAG2IMP and PS-BAS-HCIAG2INS PS offers are selected by default for every
order. If the quantity of PS offers is changed from the defaulted “1” to “0”, then the following messages will
appear below the Professional Services table and also in the information section on the top right corner:
• Professional Services is required for all Implementations. PS can only be removed if a trained
qualified Partner will implement. If a qualified partner is not involved, please add Professional
Services back to the quote

PS-BAS-HCIACIMP Implementation for VxRail Cluster
• Cluster configurations with greater than 4 nodes per cluster
• Deliver remote configuration
• Core/base service for each target cluster (ex: 1 cluster = Qty 1)
• Covers planning, checklist, validation of switch/network, ext. vCenter
• Covers cluster configuration, add nodes to cluster, ESRS setup, and KT
PS-BAS-HCIANINS Installation for VxRail Nodes

• Installations with greater than 4 nodes per cluster
• Delivered onsite at single location
• Per node basis (ex: 10 nodes = Qty of 10)
• Covers onsite rack, stack, cabling of nodes
PS-BAS-VXVDX Implementation for Connectrix for VxRail

• Implementation of up to two switches at single site
• Delivered onsite (rack+cabling) single location with remote configuration
• Covers planning, checklist, validation of network
• Covers physical installation and configuration of the switch
NOTE: The PS-BAS-HCIAIMP and PS-BAS-HCIAINS PS offers are selected by default for every order.

One of the biggest benefits of the VxRail hyper-converged platform is how quickly the system can be
installed and configured within a customer’s environment. Dell EMC offers the industry’s best time to value
from purchase to production. This requires a well defined and efficient deployment process. This timeline
provides the sequence of events as well as what happens at each phase and where it is performed.

The SolVe Desktop (Solution for Validating your engagement) is used to interactively generate procedures
and download documentation for the VxRail Appliance including: installation, node expansion, node reset,
and the Pre-Installation Checklist

Make sure all tasks are completed once the deployment is finished. Ensure all documentation is finalized
and shared. Submit all project closure forms. Participate in any post-implementation reviews to not only
validate the current deployment went as planned, but to ensure future deployments improve.

This module introduced the VxRail Appliance components and node types, and an overview of the various
services and collateral used during an appliance deployment.

This module covers an overview of the hardware installation process. Always follow the procedures to
rack and cable the VxRail Appliance from the installation procedure generated from the SolVe desktop.

The VxRail Site Survey will help confirm all the physical requirements. Prior to installation, you will need
to confirm available rack space and that the rack has sufficient power source.

Prior to onsite installation always obtain the latest installation documentation from the SolVe Desktop
utility. Also review any installation bulletins or briefs as well that might impact your installation and
initialization of the VxRail Appliance at the customer site.

When unpacking the enclosure/node(s), preserve all the packaging materials in case you need to ship the
node/enclosure back in the future. Next inspect all components for damage.
Verify that your package includes the following items:

• VxRail enclosure/node(s)
• Rack mount kit
• Power cords
• Front bezel and bezel key
• Four red CAT6 Ethernet cables
Also verify that the customer has the following items:

• Eight blue CAT6 Ethernet cables (for nodes with RJ45 NICs only)
• Eight SFP TwinAx cables (for nodes with SFP/SFP+ NICs only)
– For SFP+ models, customers provide media converters for switch and VxRail nodes. Best to
order media converters for VxRail nodes from Dell EMC.
When installing the server in the cabinet, do not pick the server up by its power/control modules and do
not push on its power/control modules.
• The enclosure is heavy and should be installed into or removed from a rack by two people. To avoid
personal injury and/or damage to the equipment, do not attempt to lift and install the enclosure into a
rack without a mechanical lift and/or help from another person.

Once the VxRail has been racked the next step is to connect each node port to 2-4 configured ToR ports.
• For VxRail node 10Gb network ports, each node uses two network ports
• For 1 Gb ports, each node uses four network ports
Work with the customer and refer to the VxRail Pre-Installation Site Checklist as needed for the port
assignments on the ToR switch(es). Plugging into any available port does not guarantee network
connectivity.

The RJ45 cables come with the VxRail nodes while the SFP+ cables are not included and must be
purchased separately. A total of two cables (RJ45 or SFP+) are required per node except nodes with the
1Gb network ports option which requires four RJ45 cables per node.

Here is an example of the Quanta model network ports backplane. Note that nodes with 1 Gb network
ports option requires four RJ45 network cable per node, five including the BMC port.

Here is an example of the Dell PowerEdge RJ45 model network ports backplane. Always refer to the
Installation guide for the specific Dell PowerEdge model for network cabling.
The rear of the Dell models shown have 4 network ports

• In the case of 1GbE models, all 4 ports are configured for VxRail system traffic
• In the case of 10GbE models
– The 2 ports on the left are 10GbE and configured for VxRail system traffic
– The 2 ports on the right are 1GbE and cannot be used for VxRail system traffic

With the single ToR switch deployment best practice, each NIC on a node should be connected to a
different switch packet buffer bank. It is best practice to balance the use of ports across two packet buffer
banks as each packet buffer bank has its own dedicated memory. Balancing the ESXi ports across
different packet buffer banks will result in better buffering capabilities. With a Single ToR switch, VxRail
can provide high availability (HA) at the ESXi NIC level, the uplink level (given two uplinks are used), but
not at the ToR switch level.

In a dual ToR switch deployment best practice, HA is provided at the ESXi node level, the ToR switch
uplink level and the ToR switch level. With the dual ToR switch deployment, each NIC on a node should
be connected to a different ToR switch and spread the nodes to different buffer banks on each ToR switch.
This is the recommended ToR switch topology deployment for high availability.

Turn the enclosure on by selecting the power button for each node in the order node four, three, two, then
one.
After powering on a node wait at least 30 seconds before powering up the next node.
• This avoids conflicts between the nodes during power up and ensures that all nodes can be
discovered.
Verify the fans are operational and no amber fault lights appear. The table on the slide describes the
meaning of the LED indicator lights.
Configure the BMCs, you will need to install the IPMI tool to the nodes. There is a .zip file attached to the
KB with the tool and instructions on how to install it:
• VxRail: How to configure the BMC ports using IPMI (Quanta hardware): KB-477130

There is some more information on the election service and how to force election in VxRail: How to force a
Dell node as primary node: KB-493136
For each node setup iDRAC, for more information see:

• iDRAC User’s Guide http://topics-cdn.dell.com/pdf/idrac7-8-with-lc-
v2.10.10.10_user's%20guide_en-us.pdf
• Dell Lifecycle Controller GUI User's Guide http://topics-cdn.dell.com/pdf/idrac7-8-lifecycle-controller-
2.40.40.40_User%27s%20Guide2_en-us.pdf

Setting the Management VLAN on each node is only required if the Management network is not set as the
native VLAN and requires tagging.
The commands needed are listed on the slide and in the VLAN Information worksheet of the Pre-
Installation Site Checklist
Acronym definitions
• BMC: Baseboard Management Controller
• iDRAC: Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller
• VNC: Virtual Network Computing server
• DCUI: Direct Console User Interface

This lab will focus on setting the Management VLAN on each of the nodes to be configured.

This module covered the hardware installation for the VxRail Appliance and how to set the Management
VLAN on each VxRail node.

This Module thoroughly reviews the Pre-Installation Confirmation Site Checklist excel spreadsheet and
each of the spreadsheets tabs.

This lesson reviews the steps to validate the customer network environment including starting to fill out the
Pre-Installation Site Checklist.

The Pre-Installation Site Checklist is a macro-enabled workbook that helps ensure a smooth deployment.
The next slide briefly reviews the component worksheets.

All customer actuals should be reviewed in the Pre-Installation Site Checklist. A completed and accurate
checklist is necessary to perform VxRail initial configuration.
Follow and complete the checklist to ensure that the network, top-of-rack (ToR) switching, and VxRail
Appliance are ready for installation or single node is ready to add.
Begin Here worksheet lists customer pre-requisites. These should be covered first before performing data
collection in the Network Basics worksheet.
The VLAN Information worksheet is auto-populated by information from other worksheets.

You can use JSON files (config.json) to automate and customize the build out of VxRail without the need
to manually type IP configurations (although it doesn’t require much time). Configuration files define the
networking setup for your VxRail Appliance. The JSON file can be automatically generated from the
VxRail Pre-Installation Site Checklist workbook.
JSON, or JavaScript Object Notation, is an open standard format that uses human-readable text to
transmit data objects consisting of attribute–value pairs. It is used primarily to transmit data between a
server and web application, as an alternative to XML.

A test and acceptance plan should accompany every Proof of Concept (PoC) implementation.
• Note that a POC uses temporary vSphere licenses
– However, even a POC needs to supply a license for an External vCenter
Review of the Release Notes is crucial to take required actions that fit the deployment actuals
• For example, patching VxRail Software was an required post deployment task for the VxRail
4.01.001 release, soon after 4.0 came out

Project Management will request a remote session for validation of these settings in next phase of
delivery. Be sure customer reviews and understands the requirements.
For ESXi hostnames, forward and reverse DNS entries must exist for all ESXi hostnames assigned to
VxRail nodes.
• Command examples for completing these steps will be covered in the next lesson

The customer is responsible for switch configuration (unless the customer has engaged Professional
Services for the additional Brocade 6740VDX switch service).
Be sure customer understands each of these requirements. VxRail initial configuration will fail if these
conditions are not met.
Command examples to complete verification steps are covered in the following lessons

Verify customer acknowledges data center power requirements for VxRail appliance. All of the Dell
PowerEdge models auto-select AC power from 100-240V. The Quanta G Series models require 220V AC
power.
Correct cabling
• Verify correct matching of switch ports and node ports. Cannot mix SFP+ and RJ45.
• Customer is responsible for network cables if SFP+
– Customer is also responsible for providing media converters for both the switch and VxRail
nodes
Spreadsheet has many rows that refer to (VxRail) “appliance(s)” which would usually be better referred to
as enclosures if there are any G Series nodes with a 1-4 node chassis and simply as nodes for all other
Dell nodes.

If the number of ToR switches is set to 2, additional rows will not be hidden to collect the extra information
(rows are hidden on the slide as a single ToR switch example)
Uplink ports carry traffic up to customer core network.

• For uplinks ports, any VLANs defined here are ‘non-isolated’
• “Uplink port” must contain the ports being configured on the switch as uplinks
• “Uplink VLAN” must contain the VLANs allowed passage to the core network
• “Appliance-connected switch ports” must contain all of the switch ports that will provide connectivity
to VxRail nodes
• Management VLAN and at least one guest network VLAN must be able to pass through uplinks
Management Settings In-Band and Out-of-Band

• ToR switch needs to be configured with one method for outside console access

Since using native VLAN for the management VLAN is a best practice, it is important to know what the
native VLAN is for the ToR switch. The native VLAN setting can be changed on the switch for the VxRail
appliance switch ports.
Example default native VLAN is

• 0 for Cisco switches
• 1 for Brocade switches
If tagging will be used instead of a native VLAN for the Management VLAN, steps must be taken on each
ESXi host to set the VLAN for the Management network (covered in the previous module).

The Network Configuration worksheet is where the customers actuals are entered into the spreadsheet.
• Entries are then auto-filled in other worksheets
• This is also the place where you can generate the JSON file to be used for the initialization wizard
ESXi hostnames are assigned to VxRail nodes in sequential order.
ESXi IP addresses must also be in sequential order for the initial 3-4 nodes of the VxRail system.
• This rule is not applicable for node expansion, since only a single node is added at a time
For ESXi hostnames, forward & reverse DNS entries must exist for all ESXi hostnames assigned to VxRail
nodes.

Additional configuration rules:
• ESXi IP addresses must also be in sequential order for vMotion and vSAN networks for the initial 3-
4 nodes of the VxRail system
• VLANs must be listed for vMotion and vSAN networks unless a ‘flat’ network
– A VLAN entry of zero is entered for a flat network
– A private IP address range can be used for vMotion and vSAN
• At least one guest network must be defined, you can create up to five
• If ‘LOGINSIGHT’ selected, DNS entries must exist for hostname and IP address
• If ‘SYSLOG’ selected, IP address must be accessible to VxRail Management network
• If an external vCenter is selected instead of an embedded vCenter, then Log Insight cannot be
deployed on the VxRail cluster

The Switch Config Actuals is auto-filled from other worksheets.
Can also generate a switch configuration JSON file here that can be used as input to the Brocade switch
configurator tool.

This lab will focus on completing the Pre-Installation Site Checklist noting the customer network validation
needed and the ability to generate the configuration JSON files covered in later lessons.
This file will later be used as input to the Installation wizard, so take time to ensure that you enter all of the
correct information as instructed.
• For example do NOT select the External vCenter option

This module focuses on two important items for a successful VxRail Appliance installation: Validation of
the customer’s network environment and their network ToR switch configuration.

This lesson reviews the steps to validate the customer network environment and the customer ToR switch
configuration.

The most important part prior to initialization is to validate the customer’s network environment and their
network ToR switch configuration. The Pre-Installation Site Checklist is used to review and validate the
customer’s actuals against their network environment.

The ping command is a utility used to test the reachability of a host on the network and to measure the
round-trip time for messages.
• At this point the IP addresses reserved for the VxRail Manager, vCenter, ESXi hosts, Log Insight
and ESRS-VE should fail the ping test
– If using an existing External vCenter, the ping test should succeed for the vCenter IP
• A ping that succeeds indicates that another device is using that IP address and the conflict will need
to be corrected before proceeding
Validation work must be performed on the subnet planned for VxRail management.

The nslookup command is used for querying the Domain Name System (DNS) to obtain domain name or
IP address mapping.
The nslookup should be verified for both

• hostname (Forward DNS check)
• IP address (Reverse DNS check)
Validation work must be performed on the subnet planned for VxRail management.

With this source server test the ping command should find the servers listed. If any ping test times out,
the issue will need to be resolved before continuing.
Can also verify NTP with the following command

w32tm /stripchart /computer:<NTP_Server_IP_address>

Every major network switch manufacturer includes a command line interface to make modifications to the
environment. Some include a graphical interface but all will include a way to monitor, configure and
troubleshoot the physical switch from a CLI. For support to be able to investigate an issue with the network
the switch must be configured on the network with access via a terminal emulation tool. The PuTTY tool is
a preferred tool from support and is required on the jump server so support can provide assistance in
validating a switch configuration for a customer provided switch or troubleshoot a Dell EMC provided
switch.

The intent is to validate the customers ToR switch settings, not to configure switch or perform any switch
troubleshooting.
Compare Pre-Installation Site Checklist values against actual switch reported values. Record completion of
verification in the checklist.
Commands may differ for different network switch vendors.
Typical switch show reporting commands

• show running-config
– Switch command to display running configuration:
– Full output of this command may provide all of the information needed for validation
• show interface status
– Displays mode, speed and connectivity status of all switch ports
• show vlan brief
– Displays all VLANs configured on switch
• show interface trunk
– Displays all ports configured as trunks. Trunks are required to support VLANs.
• show fabric isl
– Display switch ports configured as ISLs
• show spanning-tree
– Displays whether spanning tree is enabled on switch
• show port-channel summary
– Displays current ports configured for link aggregation
• show ip igmp interface
– Displays VLANs with IGMP enabled

Reference ‘Appliance-connected switch ports’ and uplink ports from Pre-Install Checklist.
Example taken using Dell switch, other switch commands, and output will be similar, but will vary.
The Trunk and Access port modes define how tagged and untagged packets are handled. A tagged
Ethernet packet has extra data in the packet that defines the VLAN it is a member of. Ingress means
packets entering a port. Egress means traffic exiting a port.
Access mode VLAN, also referred to as untagged:

• By default sets egress to untagged
• Supports single VLAN configuration only
• Automatically sets Port VLAN ID (PVID, or native VLAN, ingress untagged) to the configured VLAN
• Will accept untagged packets or tagged packets with VLAN ID to which the port is a member - in
this case the port is a member of only one VLAN
Trunk mode VLAN, also referred to as tagged:

• By default sets egress to tagged
• Supports multiple VLANs
• User must configure the PVID (native VLAN, ingress untagged),
• Setting the PVID removes the default vlan (for example VID=1 or 0) for that port
• Native VLAN cannot be a configured Trunk VLAN or 4095 (discard VLAN)

In this example:
• Ports 1-10 are the appliance-connected ports
• Port 47 is the uplink port
• Mgmt VLAN (60) is active on ports 1-10 and 47 as required
• vMotion VLAN (10) and vSAN VLAN (20) are active on ports 1-10 as required
If ISLs (Inter-Switch Links) are configured to pass network traffic between switches, verify there are no
restrictions placed on VLANs required for VxRail networks
This example shows a tagged Mgmt VLAN of 60. However, it is a recommended best practice to use the
Default (or native) VLAN for the Management VLAN. For this example, that would be VLAN 1. The user
can set the Port VLAN ID (PVID) on each of the appliance-connected ports to the Management VLAN so it
can be different than the default VLAN for the switch.

If STP (Spanning Tree Protocol) is enabled on the ToR switch, then confirm that the ‘portfast’ or equivalent
configuration option is set for ports supporting VxRail nodes so that STP does not cause VxRail problems.
STP is a network protocol that builds a logical loop-free topology for Ethernet networks. The basic function
of STP is to prevent bridge loops and the broadcast radiation that results from them. During the execution
of the Spanning-Tree Algorithm, STP will force the ports to go into five different states: Blocked, Listen,
Learn, Forward and Disabled. All ports start in the blocked mode to prevent the switch from creating a
loop.
STP is running by default on all ports of the switch. STP makes each port wait up to 50 seconds before
data is allowed to be sent on the port. This Delay in turn can cause problems with some
applications/protocols including VxRail nodes.
Cisco devices implemented Portfast to alleviate problems related to this delay. The terminology might
differ between different vendor devices. Portfast causes a port to enter the forwarding state almost
immediately by dramatically decreasing the time of the listening and learning states. Portfast minimizes
the time it takes for the server or workstation to come online, thus preventing problems with applications
such as DHCP, DNS, etc. The use of Portfast should only be implemented when the port on the switch is
directly connected to a server/workstation and never to another hub/switch.
The example on the slide shows a switch without STP configured.

Confirm no link aggregation on VxRail node ports on the customer ToR switch.
Example shows no port-channel interfaces on the switch at all.
If port channels are configured, you would then need to verify this property is not applied to any of the
VxRail node ports.

Confirm the IPv6 Multicast for the Management VLAN.
VxRail Manager uses VMware Loudmouth auto-discovery capabilities, based on the RFC recognized
"Zero Network Configuration" protocol, to automatically discover and configure appliances on your
network. Loudmouth runs on each ESXi host and in the VxRail Manager virtual machine. Loudmouth
allows VxRail Manager to discover all the nodes and automate the configuration. Loudmouth requires IPv6
multicast. The IPv6 multicast communication is strictly limited to the management VLAN that the nodes
use for communication.
The example displayed is from a switch that does not support MLD snooping, but does pass-through IPv6
multicast traffic.
• Disabling MLD Snooping is an alternative method to permit IPv6 multicast
• It is less preferred than enabling both MLD Snooping and MLD Querier because it can lead to more
multicast traffic on the network
• However VxRail auto-configuration/management uses an extremely low volume of IPv6 multicast,
so this is an acceptable option

Confirm the multicast for the vSAN VLANs.
Example shows both IGMP and Querier enabled (preferred method) for the vSAN VLAN (20)
• There are no ISLs in this example
Virtual SAN uses a clustered metadata database and monitoring service (CMMDS) to make particular
metadata available to each host in the cluster. The CMMDS is designed to be a highly available,
performant and network efficient service that shares information regarding host, network, disks, objects,
components, etc. among all of the hosts within the Virtual SAN cluster. Virtual SAN leverages layer 2
multicast forwarding for the discovery of hosts and to optimize network bandwidth consumption for the
metadata updates from the CMMDS service (storage traffic is always unicast). This eliminates the
computing resource and network bandwidth penalties that unicast imposes in order to send identical data
to multiple recipients.

This lab will focus on how to validate a customers network environment

This lab will focus on completing the Pre-Installation Site Checklist and generating JSON files

This module focused on the Pre-Installation Site Checklist and its importance in the deployment and
implementation of a VxRail Appliance and steps to validate the customers network environment and their
network ToR switch configuration.

This module focuses on the VxRail initialization or Configuring VxRail for the First Time.

This lesson covers preparing for local or remote connectivity and off-site requirements. We also discuss
how to utilize the JSON file generated from the Pre-Installation Site Checklist.

The process starts by configuring the service laptop to connect to an address on the same subnet as the
VxRail appliance and connecting it to a port on the ToR switch.
Next a web browser is opened to initialize the VxRail Appliance using a setup wizard. Once the system
has completed the setup, a user will log in to the VxRail Manager to perform post installation tasks.

To prepare for the VxRail initialization process remotely, remote access requires a customer provided
jump host. The jump host must be on the same VxRail management subnet network. Cooperation from
the customer needs to be available to assist during this configuration stage.
BMC, if configured, can be used for remote node power-on/power-off. Removes need for on-site presence
in data center.
• There is not a remote access method to individually power on the 4 nodes sharing a Quanta
chassis. An on-site presence to assist with inserting each compute node into the chassis may be
needed.
If on-site to perform the initialization process, a service laptop or jump host in the customer data center
connected to same subnet as the VxRail management subnet is required.

In both remote or on-site, the host must be able to connect to the pre-configuration IP address
(192.168.10.200) and post-configuration IP address assigned to VxRail Manager.
This process may need to have a port (VLAN set to the VxRail management VLAN) on the customer ToR
switch to access the post configuration IP address.
The customer must set dual IP address for the provided jump host or your service laptop to have
connectivity to perform the VxRail initialization.
After these settings have been configured, make sure you can ping the IP address 192.168.10.200.

Selections made while choosing the SolVe procedure result in a customized procedure to fit the customer
environment. The slide illustrates the choice of single or dual ToR switch configuration which changes
some of the steps that will be included in the installation procedure.
Screen shows selection of a v4.0 procedure for Gen 2 hardware. You will review multiple SolVe Desktop
VxRail Installation Procedures in the installation lab exercises. Not shown in the graphic, but would be
visible if you scrolled lower on the screen, are the Gen 3 Hardware v4.0 Procedures.

This lesson covers steps associated with configuring a VxRail system with an External vCenter.

Your VxRail Appliance can join an existing External vCenter server during its initial configuration. This
allows you to use a remote central vCenter server to manage multiple VxRail Appliances from a single
pane of glass.
The External vCenter server can be:

• Physical or virtual
• Windows or VCSA
• Embedded, or non-embedded deployed with an external PSC
The VxRail bundled vCenter license cannot be used for the External vCenter.
The slide lists the minimum vCenter version at the time of the last course materials update and
referencing checking the Release Notes for current information.
• Although not stated explicitly on the slide, the minimum release does not imply that all later releases
are valid. For example at the time of adding this note vCenter 6.5 was not supported.
To join an existing External vCenter server, provide an existing datacenter and a non-conflicting cluster
name during the initial configuration of the appliance.
Once customers have completed initial installation, they cannot change the configured vCenter without a
reset of the system. A reset will result in data loss of all VxRail Appliance data not transferred and saved
before the reconfiguration.

Starting with release 3.5, a VxRail Appliance can optionally join an existing external vCenter Server 6.0
environment during the initial configuration. This allows for a central vCenter Server to manage multiple
VxRail Appliances from a single pane of glass.
Each VxRail Appliance environment appears as a separate cluster within vCenter, with its own set of host
and disk drives configured as separate Virtual SANs. In addition to centralized management, being part of
the same vCenter environment allows VMs to be easily migrated into and between Virtual SAN
environments for optimal workload balance and simplified VxRail appliance upgrades and expansion.

These items are required for External vCenter deployment. Always follow the Installation procedure for
utilizing an External vCenter.
Either specify a ‘syslog’ or no logging option when using an External vCenter. Log Insight is not
supported.
Exclusive user for VxRail must be part of the tenant SSO domain (e.g. ‘vsphere.local’) and have no
assigned roles or privileges.

Following the Installation procedure, enter the required information from the Pre-Installation Site Checklist
from the customers provided actuals.

These are the steps required prior to initial configuration for an External vCenter. Follow the Installation
procedure to complete these tasks.
PuTTY tool recommended for the SSH session

Validate the required settings for connecting to an External vCenter.

These are the modified configuration steps with External vCenter:
• Initial configuration skips these steps
• Node add configuration adds these steps
• Software Upgrade
vCenter 6.5 is not supported

This lesson covers VxRail Appliance initialization

You will review a number of SolVe Generated VxRail installation procedures in the lab to emphasize steps
and differences for varied configurations.
The main sections in the procedure documents include:

• Topic base procedure has selected revision, hardware and task, e.g. v4.0, Gen 2 hardware, initial
installation
• Selections: summary of key questions you answered that affected procedure step content
• Preliminary activity tasks are not necessarily presented under that heading, but fit the content that
was covered in this course prior to this module where the VxRail Installation Wizard is invoked and
include:
– Call outs to review potential issues and steps to avoid or work-arounds if they occur
– Presentation of information provided in generating the procedure
– Reminder of pre-installation tasks including use of the Pre-Installation Checklist
– Hardware installation instructions
– Power-on instructions
– Independently connected management interface connection, steps and examples
For Quanta nodes, a baseboard management controller (BMC) interface
For Dell nodes, Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller (iDRAC) interface
• Configuring VxRail for the First Time is the steps of conducting the Installation Wizard procedure
• Post-deployment steps may not have that header and may include:
– Configuring ESRS
– Installing the bezel
– Support account connection

This page summarizes the content and main user click points for the installation wizard:
• Setup wizard launched from default IP address unless permanent IP address configured
• In the lab exercise you will compare 3 similar installation procedures. The one that includes steps for an
External vCenter, has steps parallel to the previous lesson slides, to ensure that the External vCenter
connection will work before invoking the installation wizard.
• The user needs to click GET STARTED on the welcome screen
• The user needs to click ACCEPT on the EULA screen
• There is a short waiting period while the powered on nodes are detected and the list is presented for review
– Check the confirm box
– Click NEXT
• Information can be entered into the wizard manually or using the JSON-formatted file
– The information needed matches what was entered into the Pre-Installation Checklist
– Information is not listed and reviewed here in the slides, because it will be reviewed by you and
conducted in lab exercises
– The procedure includes screenshots of where the information is entered or reviewed
– Information entered manually can be saved into a JSON-formatted file for future reference and re-use
• After all the information is entered, you click VALIDATE to have the wizard perform validation checks on the
entered information
• Once basic and network validation is passed, you proceed to the build by clicking BUILD VXRAIL
• The first build screen
– Displays the IP address specified for VxRail Manager that you will use going forward to manage the
VxRail Appliance
– You then click START CONFIGURATION to proceed
• You then monitor the build process until it reaches 100% completion
– This process should take about 25 minutes
– The Hooray screen is displayed when the process completes successfully
• Click MANAGE VXRAIL to continue with the VxRail Manager (post-deployment steps from the course
perspective are covered in the next module)

VxRail configuration Pre-Check validates these items.

Click on the Start Configuration to continue. You must select it within 20 minutes otherwise it will convert
back to 192.168.10.200.

VxRail automates over 200+ configuration tasks and workflows during the initialization process. This is a
summary of those tasks.

Initialization completed. Click on Manage VxRail to continue.

This lab has you walk through SolVe VxRail initialization procedures to understand the sequence and
steps that will be conducted

This lab will be conducted as a team and conducts the first time configuration using the procedure
reviewed in the previous lab and the JSON file with the configuration settings made in the previous module
lab exercise.

This module covered Configuring VxRail for the First Time.

This module focuses on VxRail initialization post-deployment tasks

This lesson covers ESRS configuration, deployment and activation.

The process starts with setting the EMC Support Account in the VxRail manager console. Next users will
deploy and configure ESRS/VE and lastly users will verify the VxRail cluster.

A fairly typical post-deployment task will be to patch/update the software.
For example, information about the upgrade current at the time of publication can be found in the master
knowledge base page under:
• Announcements
ETA 496692: VxRail: Upgrade VxRail systems running version 3.5 or 4.0.x to VxRail version 4.0.131
to incorporate VMware ESXi 6.0, Patch U3 ESXi 600-201702201, which addresses potential data
unavailability or performance issues.: KB-496692

For convenience, you can link your Online Support account with VxRail Manager and access support
resources without having to log in separately. Before onsite installation, an EMC Support Account should
have been obtained from www.emc.com/vxrailsupport if the customer has not already obtained one.
This account is used to register the system, obtain product license files, update system software,
download the VxRail documentation and browse VxRail Community and support resources.
To set the EMC Support Account Click on Configuration Tab and then the General Tab from the VxRail
Manager console.
For more information about how to register in the Install Base see:
• VxRail: How to Submit an Install Base Request to Change the Install Base status
https://support.emc.com/kb/481597

ESRS is the key to advanced online support of your VxRail appliance.

ESRS/VE is EMC Secure Remote Gateway Virtual Edition
The SolVe VxRail Installation procedures include a complete section for ESRS configuration
Before you perform the install and configure ESRS procedure, you must make certain the following things are in place
(copied from the SolVe procedure)
• The appliance status must have been set to ‘Installed’ in the EMC Install Base (IB) database.
• The appliance must be installed with the correct SiteID/PartyID that the customer eService account being used
to deploy and configure ESRS is associated with.
• The VxRail Appliance must have already been installed and initialized.
• You must have an available IP address for the ESRS VE Gateway that is on the same subnet as the VxRail
Manager.
• You will also need to make sure that you have an EMC Online Support account that is active, web support
enabled, and you can log into that account.
• Reference
– 303728 : VxRail: Employee - How to validate prerequisites for ESRS/VE deployment and
activation https://support.emc.com/kb/303728
VxRail provides a two-step, simplified setup for ESRS Virtual Edition (ESRS/VE) that has been made possible by two
key modifications
• First, ESRS/VE can be deployed and enabled using the customer’s support account for authentication.
Previously, an account from a Dell EMC employee or a partner account was required.
• Second, because all of the information required to deploy ESRS/VE has already been entered into one or
more locations, the setup process now pulls this information and pre-fills the configuration fields. This
information is gathered from Account Linking, Support Zone, and purchase order information.
ESRS/VE can be enabled from the General tab of the CONFIG page within VxRail Manager.
• Prior to configuration, the ESRS status should be listed as Disabled, if not do not continue the configure ESRS
procedure

This lesson covers VxRail initial configuration including steps you will take to initially configure your vSAN
cluster.

Hardware vendors regularly update their drivers and send them for VMware certification. Older drivers
may even get removed from the VCG to reflect issues found. Therefore, it is critically important to keep the
local copy up-to-date.
Acknowledge the alarm. Reset to green. Reboot the vCenter VM. This is not disruptive. You can maintain
a window to vCenter while the vCenter VM reboots via the “fat/ thick client if desired.
KB references VxRail and VMware

• VxRail: Virtual SAN Health Service - VSAN HCL Health ? VSAN HCL DB up-to-date: KB-482997
• Refer to VMW KB 2109870 for details

When you create a Virtual SAN cluster, the performance service is disabled. Turn on Virtual SAN
performance service to monitor the performance of Virtual SAN clusters, hosts, disks, and VMs. When you
turn on the performance service, Virtual SAN places a Stats database object in the datastore to collect
statistical data. The Stats database is a namespace object in the cluster's Virtual SAN datastore.
Before you enable the Virtual SAN performance service, make sure that the cluster is properly configured
and has no unresolved health problems.

RAID 5 or RAID 6 erasure coding is a policy attribute that you can apply to virtual machine components.

While enabling deduplication and compression, vSAN changes disk format on each disk group of the
cluster. To accomplish this change, vSAN evacuates data from the disk group, removes the disk group,
and recreates it with a new format that supports deduplication and compression.
The enablement operation does not require virtual machine migration or DRS. The time required for this
operation depends on the number of hosts in the cluster and amount of data. You can monitor the
progress on the Tasks and Events tab.
Reducing VM Redundancy
• Enabling deduplication and compression requires a format change for disk groups. To accomplish
this change, vSAN evacuates data from the disk group, removes the disk group, and recreates it
with a new format that supports deduplication and compression.
• In certain environments, your Virtual SAN cluster might not have enough resources for the disk
group to be fully evacuated. Examples for such deployments include a three-node cluster with no
resources to evacuate the replica or witness while maintaining full protection. Or a four-node cluster
with RAID-5 objects already deployed. In the latter case, you have no place to move part of the
RAID-5 stripe, since RAID-5 objects require a minimum of four nodes.
• You can still enable deduplication and compression and use the Allow Reduced Redundancy option.
This option keeps the VMs running, but the VMs might be unable to tolerate the full number of
failures defined in the VM storage policy. As a result, temporarily during the format change for
deduplication and compression, your virtual machines might be at risk of experiencing data loss.
vSAN restores full compliance and redundancy after the format conversion is completed.

This lesson covers VxRail appliance health status verification post installation.

There are many steps that can be performed to validate a successful installation of the VxRail Appliance.
• From the VxRail Manager console Configuration General tab select Run System Diagnostic
– This will report a healthy status or will display System faults
• From the VxRail Manager Events Tab you can look at any System Events that may have occurred
• The Health tab will display both Logical and Physical views of the VxRail Appliance
• Lastly use the vCenter Web Client to expand the MARVIN-Datacenter and MARVIN-Virtual-SAN-
Cluster to show the VxRail Appliance is composed of 3 or 4 hosts
– MARVIN is acronym for Modular Automated Rackable Virtual Infrastructure Node

From the VxRail Manager users can run a system-wide diagnostic analysis of the VxRail cluster. The
System Diagnostic window is displayed.

The VxRail Manager Events tab displays a list of current system events.
System Events: The System Events list displays all of the VxRail Appliance events.
Event Details: Displays information for the selected event in the System Events list.
If there are critical events detected, the EVENTS icon displays the number of unread events, in red, in the
navigation bar.

You can view the health of the nodes in your VxRail Appliance using the VxRail ManagerHealth
• Logical View
– Click HEALTH and then Logical to navigate to the VxRail ManagerHealth > Logical tab
– This screen displays CPU, memory, and storage usage for your entire cluster, individual
enclosures/chassis, and individual nodes
– The color-coded status for storage IOPS, CPU usage, and memory usage indicates the
following:
Red: Over 85% used
Yellow: 75% to 85% used
Green: Less than 75% used
– Click an enclosure name to view information about that enclosure
– Scroll to view information about the main health timeline, storage use, and nodes
– Click the components of a node to view more information about the Capacity (HDD), Cache
(SSD), ESXi disk, or NIC
• Physical View
– The Physical tab of the VxRail ManagerHealth window displays information about the hardware
components of your appliance. A graphical representation of the enclosures in your cluster
makes it easy to navigate for event and status information.
– Use the Health window Physical tab to view the following:
Enclosures in the cluster: View status and information such as ID, serial number, and so
on.
Individual components: Drill down to see status and information for components such as
disks, compute nodes, and power supplies.

Log Collection: Displays the most recent collected logs and allows you to generate a new log bundle.

vCenter provides health and performance monitoring for the VxRail Appliance MARVIN-Virtual-SAN
cluster.
This slide shows an example of the Settings options for Health and Performance.

This slide shows an example of the Monitor -> Virtual SAN -> Health information.
Common error, refer to KB: VxRail: VSAN health alarm 'Component metadata health' on all nodes

This slide shows an example of the Monitor -> Virtual SAN -> Capacity information.

This lab has you use the VxRail Manager and vCenter console to review and perform system diagnostic
on the health of the VxRail Appliance cluster and individual components.

This lesson covers VxRail vSphere licensing. It is the PS responsibility to discuss with the customer the
highlights and overview of the VxRail license requirements and options in the PS hand-off meeting.

Use temporary licenses for all evals/POCs of VxRail
• Renew if test period exceeds grace period for temporary licenses
Note: External vCenter cannot use the included vCenter Server license

Choose the type of vSphere license that will offer you the best experience with VxRail Appliance. In an
effort to be more cost effective, VxRail Appliance supports a Bring Your Own (BYO) vSphere License.
This allows current VMware customers to use existing licenses or utilize existing VMware relationships
through the VMware Loyalty Program (VLP). Customers can also acquire licensing from VMware direct,
Dell EMC direct OEM, Dell EMC Brokerage Services or partner (solution providers only). Support must be
with Dell EMC or VMware.
These are the two types of vSphere licenses that can be used with VxRail.
• Standard license functionality
– vSphere Standard (Edition)
– ROBO Advanced (Edition)
– ROBO Standard (Edition)
• Enterprise license functionality
– vSphere Enterprise Plus (Edition)
– vSphere Desktop (Edition)
– Horizon (Package)
– vCloud Suite (Package)
– VSOM (Package) [vSphere with Operations Manager]
The Enterprise Plus license offers significantly more functionality.

• For example, a vSphere license of Enterprise or better is required to enable DRS (Dynamic
Resource Scheduling) on the VxRail cluster, DRS enables:
– Automatic VM migration in a vSphere cluster used for load-balancing purposes on a healthy
cluster
– A node outage (planned ‘Maintenance Mode’ or unplanned) will not automatically migrate VMs
without an Enterprise license or higher

This lesson covers required settings in vCenter for VxRail Appliance cluster. These topics should be
discussed to ensure that the customer does not unsafely change the settings which could adversely affect
the cluster.

The slides in this lesson should be reviewed with the customer to warn them about changing any of the
items listed. They need to know the issues that may occur if changes are made incorrectly. The initial
VxRail configuration will embed specifically named objects and items into vCenter that must not be altered
by the customer except when permitted by exactly following SolVe procedures.

SolVe procedures for changing these values were first introduced with version v4.0.100.
As part of generating the procedures in SolVe you must select the applicable VxRail Software Version.
Always check for the most recent SolVe procedures both to follow current best practices and to find more
“How To” procedures introduced at later releases.

These objects created by the VxRail configurator should not be modified post deployment unless
permitted by strictly following a SolVe procedure.
For example, if the data center name is changed improperly

• The vxrail VM spikes to 100% as it checks for instance cluster shutdown, node up, etc., all checks
fail
• Can rename the data center back and it will then work

These objects created by the VxRail configurator should not be modified post deployment unless
permitted by strictly following a SolVe procedure.
EVC stands for Enhanced vMotion Compatibility which is a vCenter Server cluster-centric feature allowing
virtual machines to vMotion or migrate across ESXi hosts equipped with dissimilar processors in the same
cluster.

These settings are configured in order to provide sufficient reserve capacity to provide uninterrupted
service to the customer for planned and unplanned outages.
Alert customers to the risk involved with modifying the HA and DRS settings set by VxRail.
The default setting of 25% reserve capacity protects against a single node failure in a 4-node cluster.
• This value can be adjusted for larger cluster configurations.

This module covered VxRail initialization post-deployment tasks including setting the EMC Support
account, deploying and configuring ESRS and verifying the cluster health. We next discussed the VxRail
vSphere license requirements and the reserved settings that must be conveyed to the customer in the
hand-off meeting.

This module focuses on expanding a cluster by adding an additional node to the cluster and briefly
describes VxRail Stretched Cluster deployments.

This lesson covers VxRail expansion adding a compute node.

You must submit a request for product qualification (RPQ) to Dell EMC for clusters over 32 nodes.

The VxRail Series provides automated scale-out functionality by detecting a new VxRail node on the
network.
When a new VxRail node is powered on you can add it to your existing cluster.
This slide describes the automated background tasks performed during a scale-out of the cluster.
To view the Scale-Out log file during the install process open up another tab in your browser to:
• https://<VxRail Manager>/stats/log

The following cluster rules must be followed when scaling out a VxRail Appliance 4.0 cluster.
With the release of VxRail 4.0 the first four nodes in a cluster still must have identical hardware
configurations, even when starting with a 3-node cluster and later adding a 4th node.
All other combinations should be supported in a single cluster, as long as all nodes are running the same
version of VxRail 4.0 software.
Note: Maximum of 64 nodes per cluster is supported but does require a RPQ when scaling greater than 32
nodes.
A maximum of 8 nodes is supported on all 1GbE network clusters

With Gen 2 (Quanta) based systems, there is a chassis that can contain up to 4 independent nodes.
Eeach node contains a set of compute, memory, storage, and network ports.
In Gen 3 (Dell) based systems, each server is an independent node containing a set of compute, memory,
storage, and network ports.
To form a VxRail Appliance cluster, a minimum of 3 Dell-based nodes must be configured.For Quanta-
based hardware, a chassis populated with 3 nodes can be configured in a cluster. If the cluster needs to
be expanded, you can add an additional node to the chassis.

For scale-out, VxRail Manager uses VMware Loudmouth auto-discovery capabilities, based on the RFC
recognized "Zero Network Configuration" protocol. It automatically discovers and configures nodes on
your network. Loudmouth runs on each ESXi host and in the VxRail Manager virtual machine. Loudmouth
allows VxRail Manager to discover all the nodes and automate the configuration. Loudmouth requires IPv6
multicast. The IPv6 multicast communication is strictly limited to the management VLAN that the nodes
use for communication.

Along with storage you can add one node at time to an existing cluster.
If you start with 3 nodes, you must make sure the 4th node is the same as the first 3.
SolVe desktop procedures exist for variations to add different type nodes to initial base cluster types.
• Similar but simpler Pre-Installation Checklist requirements as for the First Time configuration
– All nodes being added to a VxRail Cluster must have DNS host name and IP address lookup
records.
• As was earlier specified for the initial nodes as part of hardware setup, before adding the new node
– If using native VLAN for the Management VLAN, the switch ports used for the new node(s)
may need a non-default native VLAN to be set
– If using tagging for the Management VLAN, the Management VLAN must be set on the new
ESXI node(s) before each node can be recognized by the VxRail Manager. It may be
necessary to restart loudmouth after setting the VLAN as well.
For Quanta nodes, if you expand to another chassis you can put the node in any slot in the chassis.
• Adding the node to hardware slots in the order one, two, three, four is recommended

Depending on the configuration of the existing VxRail Manager appliance, you may or may not be
prompted to input additional IP addresses for ESXi Hosts, vMotion, and vSAN. This is dependent on
whether this information was pre-populated before physically adding compute nodes to the VxRail
Appliance.

This lab covers how to add a node to an existing VxRail Cluster.

This lesson introduces key VxRail Stretched Cluster deployment information.

In a VxRail Appliance environment, stretched clusters with witness host refers to a deployment where a
Virtual SAN cluster consists of two active/active sites with an identical number of ESXi hosts distributed
evenly between them. The sites are connected via a high bandwidth/low latency link. Due to network
requirements no models using 1GbE network are supported in an active-active stretched cluster.
Virtual SAN stretched clustering keeps the second copy of data in a remote site ensuring that even if a site
fails, users’ critical data is never lost and business can still run as before. This is accomplished by
stretched storage deployment and synchronously mirroring data across two sites. The failover will be
initiated by a witness VM that resides in a central place accessible by both sites. A Virtual SAN Stretched
Cluster reduces the infrastructure failure risk of business operations by configuring the sites in two
separate geographic locations. If a natural or human-induced disaster occurs, business critical
applications still can run from a second site.

The Virtual SAN Stretched Cluster feature creates a stretched cluster between two geographically
separate sites, synchronously replicating data between sites, and enabling enterprise-level availability.
The Stretched Cluster features allow for an entire site failure to be tolerated, with no data loss and near
zero downtime.
Each site is configured as a Virtual SAN Fault Domain. Virtual machines running business critical
application data is written across both sites. One copy of data will reside on primary site and second copy
will reside on remote site. A witness is required on a third site. In the event either completely fails, a
complete copy of data is available in the surviving site. With data being available on either site,
applications are enhanced by providing active-active availability.
A third site, hosting the witness virtual appliance, could be in “the cloud” or other data center. The witness
virtual appliance coordinates data placement between sites and assists in the failover process in the event
of site failure or inaccessibility.

These are the physical network requirements for stretched cluster support. Refer to the EMC RPQ
document for VxRail specific Virtual SAN Stretched Cluster implementation.
Customer validation similar to configuring a cluster at one location with additional steps including:
• Verify vSAN witness IP address is not in use
• Verify network connectivity:
– Primary <-> Secondary
– Primary<-> Witness
– Secondary <-> Witness
• Check connectivity after switches and routers are configured

Using embedded vCenter instance on VxRail stretched cluster is not supported.
External vCenter instance can run on a VxRail instance that is not part of the stretched cluster.

vSAN Stretched Cluster offers disaster/downtime avoidance for site failure, however the current inability to
tolerate a second failure may be inadequate to meet downtime avoidance goals.

This module covered expanding a cluster by adding an additional node to the cluster and introduced
VxRail Stretched Clusters.

This module focuses on VxRail installation troubleshooting. It also discusses the factory reset procedures
and mobile build process.

This lesson covers VxRail troubleshooting procedures.

The goal of troubleshooting a VxRail Appliance is to find an effective fix to resolve a problem. Even the
best built product or most reliable appliance can have issues. The goal is to be able to quickly do problem
determination and root cause analysis to mitigate the impact to production.
When the VxRail Appliance was first introduced, it was a partner/customer installable virtual appliance
solution. Ease of deployment was an early advantage and might have been overstated as most
deployments seemed to fail due to configuration issues. These were primarily network switch related as
customers would supply a switch that met the requirements but was not properly configured for the VxRail
Appliance. To address the issues with installation, professional services was enlisted to perform the
installations. This reduced many the basic configuration issues, it did not eliminate all of them.

It is important to understand what the error is and where in the configuration process it occurred. There
are some installation issues that simply require a retry to resolve the issue
The first indication that there is an installation issue will be on the VxRail Manager GUI interface. The GUI
will display an error if there is a problem. This error message indicates that there is a problem configuring
one of the steps. The percentage shown will also help determine at what point in the installation it failed.
An error message will also indicate what the problem could potentially be.
The Master KB includes installation failures sections. Many of which reference messages displayed on the
VxRail Manager GUI during a build failure.

Log collection is covered in detail in the next lesson.
Earlier module information available for installation troubleshooting

• BMC or iDRAC monitoring
• Post installation health checks covered in earlier module are methods to be applied if there is an
installation failure
Note: A reset does not necessarily solve a given problem. A reset is not needed unless it is identified as a
problem resolution for the particular case.

VxRail Appliance includes knowledge base (KB) articles that provide both structured and unstructured information
used to size, deploy and support the system.
Over 20 Information groupings, almost all have one or more KBs related to VxRail D&I and troubleshooting:
• 20 most viewed KBAs (Listed by most to less viewed)
• List of useful or common commands
– Platform independent (ESXi servers or service VMs)
– ESXi
– VxRail Manager
– vCenter
• List of useful log files
– VxRail log bundle
• KBs related to logs and logs collection
• KBs related to validation
• KBs related to installation (generic)
• KBs related to installation (by install %)
• KBs and documentation related to networking
• KBs and documentation related to ESRS
• KBs related to VxRail Manager / VRM
• KBs related to licensing
• KBs related to appliance reset
• KBs related to "How To" configurations after build
• KBs related to the graceful shutdown procedure
• KBs related to upgrade
• KBs related to vCenter
• KBs related to vSAN
• KBs related to Value Added software
• KBs related to scale out / node replacement
• KBs related to generic troubleshooting / miscellaneous
• KBs related to dial homes
Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail 4.0 Deployment and Implementation - Moule 7 6
Troubleshooting a VxRail Appliance is problem-solving across physical, logical, and virtual resources. It is
not only applied to repair failed components but also the issues that arise from misconfiguration of
software that make up the solution. The goal is to quickly identify the issue and solve it to return the
system to production.

Check that the Loudmouth Service can communicate
• The VxRail Appliance requires IPv6 with multicast support for the Management port groups VLAN to
allow Loudmouth communication
• Test Loudmouth connectivity from the VxRail Manager or ESXi hosts using
/usr/lib/vmware/loudmouth/loudmouthc query
• loudmouthc query reports a long JSON output showing the servers discovered by loudmouth
• Two commands in the main VxRail article (KB 479126) show how to reduce it to a more readable
format
Network breaks between groups of nodes

• ping addresses to check connectivity as covered earlier in the Customer Environment Validation
module
Problem with communicating across multiple network switches

• The vSAN network requires IPv4 with multicast support for the vSAN port group VLAN. The
Multicast requirements for Snooping and Querier are recommended for optimal performance, but in
some cases during troubleshooting you may want to disable them.
• In multi-switch configurations, the multicast group needs to be configured to traverse all switches
connected to all hosts in the same cluster
• If there are two switches in the VxRail configuration, they have to pass multicast packets for the
Management (IPv6) and vSAN (IPv4) VLANs across the ISL links
– The Connectrix network configuration guide (SolVe Desktop) describes the handling of the
ISLs. For other switches, discuss the situation with the customer’s network expert.
BMC/iDRAC must be manually configured at first power-up.

The first indication that there is an installation issue will be on the VxRail GUI interface. The GUI will
display an error if there is a problem. The percentage shown will help determine at what point in the
installation it failed. The lower right hand side of the screen will also indicate what the problem could
potentially be.
VxRail Installation Wizard hangs

• The re-try button will resume the installation at the failed task. Re-try, or fix the fault and then re-try.
Installation Wizard fails

• Verify your inputs
Unable to run Installation Wizard

• KB 466650 discusses deleting a faulty VxRail Manager VM and deploying a new one from the OVA
archived on every VxRail node’s local datastore.
Be aware of an extra space in password cells of the Pre-installation checklist. Visual inspection of the
checklist file will most likely not reveal this error. However a JSON file created from the checklist will have
quoted password values including the space. The extra space will cause a build failure at 9%. See the KB
article for more information:
• VxRail: Build fails at 9%: KB-490175

Name resolution
• Top issues preventing successful deployment of ESRS on VxRail include name resolution where
DNS is not properly resolving hostnames on either the ESRS VE Virtual Machine or on the VxRail
Manager
• Use nslookup to verify name resolution of ESRS and all VMware VMs
Customer support account

• Issues with the Customer EMC support account can be problematic if the support account being
used to deploy ESRS is not present in the site id where the VxRail serial number resides or is not
web support enabled.
• PSNT is Product Serial Number Tag
• VxRail: Employee - How to validate prerequisites for ESRS/VE deployment and activation: KB-
303728 includes tasks for validating the customer’s support account, there are several linked KBs
External vCenter
• ESRS deployment may fail with “Invalid target datastore specified” or similar during the OVF
deployment phase of ESRS deployment. VxRail Manager may not properly identify the external
vCenter components to deploy the ESRS OVF properly. Manual ESRS deployment would be
required in this instance.
• VxRail: How to manually deploy ESRS/VE, configure proxy and register via hidden page: KB-
478546 details how to manually deploy an ESRS from the OVA archived on every VxRail node’s
local datastore, and how to use a hidden page to register VxRail Manager with it. This was originally
intended to manually recreate the VxRail Manager-dedicated ESRS. With version 4.0+, you can use
this procedure to connect to an existing customer-supplied ESRS. Connecting to an existing ESRS
is also described in the SolVe Desktop installation guide.
External vCenter –Blocked ports – Customer firewall may be blocking ports required for successful ESRS
deployment.

Host will not enter Maintenance Mode
• An ESX host that has been instructed to enter maintenance mode may show "in progress" for an
indefinite amount of time under Tasks in vCenter. When this happens, no virtual machines are
migrated and the task cannot be canceled. Before a host can enter maintenance mode, all virtual
machines need to be powered off or migrated to another host. If a host is unable to be placed in
maintenance mode in VxRail, there may be a problem with inaccessible/unhealthy vSAN objects or
resource availability.
• VxRail: How to safely put nodes in maintenance mode: KB-483375 describes the three possible
vSAN options for protecting data when a host goes into maintenance mode.
• If you use the “No Data Migration” option (not recommended) and VMs become inaccessible, see
VxRail: VMs are not accessible after the nodes are restarted without going on maintenance mode
correctly: KB-485560. This could also be an HA issue. VxRail Manager sets the HA admission
policy to 25% of the cluster’s CPU and Memory capacity.
Unable to add capacity to just installed nodes

• VxRail: Create disk group fails with "Host doesn’t support allFlash" error: KB-493388 has tips for
reassigning the VSAN license on a node.
Different hosts report different information

• Detecting a vSAN network partition is extensively discussed in KB 303788.

Component metadata health errors
• If the vSAN health check reports “component metadata health” errors that may be related to “Ops
backlog”. This is usually temporary, run the health check again in a few minutes. If it reports an error
related to an “invalid state”, do not worry, this is a known issue and is believed to be resolved in the
release running on the VxRail Appliance.
– For more information, see VxRail: VSAN health alarm 'Component metadata health' on all
nodes: KB-484507
This issue is fixed in vSphere ESXi 6.0 P03 or above, but customers are not allowed to
apply this patch on their own.
Steps to fix the issue:
– Make sure there are no hardware issues with the disks in use by vSAN
– If the appliance was just built, this message is expected and you should click on the
"Retest" button again after 24 hours.
– If the appliance was not built recently, and confirmed that no hardware issues are
present, follow the VMware KB: Component metadata health check fails with invalid
state error (2145347)
• If the health check reports physical disks have failed, this may be a logical problem that a host
reboot may resolve. If that does clear the error, it could be an actual drive failure.
Physical disks reporting failed

• Use KB 480913 to manually remove disks and re-add them to vSAN.
Reports errors about “stats.db.”

• KB 488596 shows how to turn on the performance service.

See VxRail: How to troubleshoot the vSAN network: KB-212043
vSAN network partitions

• Network partitions can be the result of logical configuration on the hosts or physical configuration on
the physical network especially with Multicast and IGMP settings. Most network partitions will not
impact vSAN health long-term, as long as the misconfiguration is identified, and corrected.
Standard networking tests should be used for basic connectivity

• When troubleshooting a vSAN network, verify that all vSAN hosts can ping each other over the
vSAN-enabled vmkernel ports and logical configuration of addresses, subnets, VLANs, and physical
connectivity.
vSAN Multicast connectivity

• VxRail: VMs become inaccessible due to wrong multicast configuration for VSAN network: KB-
483292

This lesson covers VxRail log collection, a key tool in installation troubleshooting and monitoring.

Field resources and customers have been told that they should expect to provide these resources to
enable support to quickly provide assistance.
Formulate a short, concise problem description.
Characterize the problem

• Is it an isolated component or systemic?
• Is the problem intermittent or consistent?
• Is the problem performance related?
– Has something changed?
– What is the expected performance?
• What is the impact of issue?

The VxRail has logging enabled on multiple layers of the software stack from both VMware and EMC
sides. The VxRail Manager interface has a simple button to automatically collect and download all the
VxRail Manager logs.
The CLI Log collection script available from VxRail Manager is more complete and will collect logs from
each of the ESXi hosts as well.
• Run /mystic/generateFullLogBundle
Three most important logs to check for install and add node errors:
• vxrail-upgrade log
• marvin.log
• /var/log/mystic/web.log
The BMC event log includes hardware fault status at startup

The marvin.log file can provide additional details about anything that has been done in the VxRail system
including installation issues. The marvin.log file is located in the vCenter Server at the path described
here. During installation, it is useful to connect via SSH and tail the log file. The CLI window will be
automatically updated as the installation progresses.

To troubleshoot the virtual environment, you need to access the VMware support log bundle. For a
detailed look at what the bundle offers, refer to the VMware KB articles for more information on:
• Collecting diagnostic information for ESX/ESXi hosts and vCenter Server using the vSphere Web
Client (2032892)
• Collecting Virtual SAN (vSAN) support logs and uploading to VMware (2072796)
• Collecting diagnostic information for VMware vCenter Server and ESX/ESXi using the vSphere
PowerCLI (1027932)

To access log files on either vCenter or on an ESXi node requires access to the systems from a
Command Line Interface (CLI). All VMware systems by default are secured with no secure shell (ssh)
access. Secure shell must be enabled for CLI access.

The vc-support.sh script can be run to collect the vCenter log bundle. It records all logs and the
information from the vCSA until the time of the collection. This script creates a vcsupport.zip file in the
/root directory of the vCSA that can be downloaded to the service laptop or local machine for
troubleshooting purposes.
Either use scp to export the generated support bundle off to another location or download from
https://<VCSAIP>:443/appliance/<support-bundle>.tgz using root credentials.

The vm-support command can be run on ESXi nodes to generate the vSphere log bundle. The vSphere
bundle is the standard vmsupport bundle collected in typical ESXi troubleshooting. The bundle contains all
log files for a specific node. It takes a few minutes to generate this log bundle. This command creates a
.tgz file which contains many log files related to the ESXi node. This file should be copied from the ESXi
node to a service laptop or local machine using SCP.
Enabled via vCenter under manage->settings->security
Another important script for debugging or recreating the system with the collected data is the
reconstruct.sh file script file created in the root directory of the support bundle.
• Certain commands in vm-support generate a large file that consumes more resources and is likely
to result in a timeout error or takes a considerable amount of time to execute. To control the creation
of larger files, the reconstruct.sh file breaks down the larger file into fragments when added into the
vm-support bundle. Upon completion of the support tool, users can recreate the larger file by
executing the reconstruct.sh file above the extracted bundle directory.

vRealize Log Insight is included in the VxRail Appliance. It delivers highly scalable log management with
intuitive, actionable dashboards, sophisticated analytics and extensibility, providing deep operational
visibility and faster troubleshooting for issues across the components within the appliance. For the most up
to date information on capturing Log Insight logs reference:
• Collecting diagnostic information for VMware vRealize Log Insight (2056760)
Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail 4.0 Deployment and Implementation - Module 7 22
This lesson covers VxRail appliance factory reset and mobile build
Reset and build are last resort fixes.
• The factory reset for re-deployment should only be used when no other measures have worked to
fix a faulted installation
• If the reset for a node fails, try cleaning up all the existing VMs, any leftover vSAN objects, remove
the node from maintenance mode before trying to reset it again
• The build reimaging process should only be used if reset failed, or failed to resolve issues
preventing a new VxRail installation
Reset should also be used between demonstrations or moves between customer sites for evaluation.
Reset restores an appliance to factory settings.
The VxRail reset script is a tool used by EMC personnel and authorized partners to reset the VxRail
appliance to factory defaults with the loaded software untouched. The script wipes all data and defined
user VMs from the appliance, and should NOT be used on production environments. It is available from
the SolVe Desktop Utility. The reset script takes approximately 30 minutes to complete, however if there
are environmental problems (i.e. network connectivity) it can fail.

Always use the latest version of all SolVe procedures.
Prerequisites:
• The workstation/laptop must be able to access both the pre-reset and post-reset VLANs and IP
Addresses
• Location of the original software images and the factory-created backup file to restore your
appliance
– /vmfs/volumes/<service_datastore>/images
– /vmfs/volumes/<service_datastore>/reset/configBundle.tgz
Config bundles are created on each node by the Mobile Build server and used during the
reset. The reset for a node is only as good as the existing config bundle. If the config
bundle is corrupted, any corrupted settings will be applied upon reset
Preparing for reset:

• If previous versions of Python are installed on the management workstation, those versions should
be uninstalled first and Python v2.7 installed
• If the IPv4 ping test fails, try power-cycling the node, then retry the ping
Running reset:
• Reset Command Options are documented in the SolVe procedure
• Best Practices and Troubleshooting section in the SolVe procedure should be read and applied
After reset:
• Manually remove the cluster/VDS/management accounts in the External vCenter if one is in use
• Start the VxRail initial configuration

Dell’s Rapid Appliance Self Recovery (RASR) provides a method to return the system’s operating system
and VxRail software back to the state it was in when it left the Dell factory. This bare-metal recovery tool
is beneficial in the event of a hardware or software failure that requires the reinstallation of the system’s
software. Restoration back to initial factory state can also be beneficial in cases where the system is being
used for demonstration, training, or evaluation purposes and must be reset before to placing the system
into production.
The factory software is retained on a Dell Internal Dual SD Module (IDSDM) on all VxRail models. This
allows RASR to restore the system back to factory state even if the primary operating system disk suffers
a catastrophic failure.
RASR is installed to the IDSDM during the factory process and available for use on all VxRail platforms,
provided the IDSDM and SD card are in a healthy state.
RASR may be installed to a USB disk (Create RASRUSB is menu item 2 on the slide)
To run RASR from the USB disk, reboot the system gracefully or power it on, and during the Power On
Self Test (POST), press F11 to enter the BIOS Boot Manager. Select "Disk connected to USB" as the
boot device. RASR will boot to the RASR Main Menu.
In both procedures you boot the Dell node to the SD card after you finish the factory install. The SD card
has the required software to perform the factory reset.
This procedure is ideal to use if a Dell node arrives at a customers site DOA.
Warning: This is a total data destruction operation.
The first step in preparing the appliance (after selecting the node type and specification options) is to
connect to a build server that will copy the gold image to each node. A test network is used to connect the
VxRail appliance and build system to automatically install system software.
Mobile Build software is available to be downloaded to a service laptop to perform a re-image of a system
on-site.
With the Mobile Build server and appliance network together the build server will pull down the Gold
images to its local directory and apply it to each individual node in the appliance.
Appliance factory imaging preparation:

• The configuration must separate the ToR Switch ports to VLAN groups and connect the appliance’s
Ethernet ports to the Switch in a precise order to successfully deploy the gold image to each node
• All nodes must be properly configured and connectivity established for the build to complete
successfully
• Separate the ToR switch ports to VLAN groups and connect the appliance’s Ethernet ports to the
switch
– Port 1−8: VLAN 100. Enclosure 1’s 4 BMC ports and 4 NIC 1G ports are connected to port1−8
– Port 9−16: VLAN 200. Enclosure 2’s 4 BMC ports and 4 NIC 1G ports are connected to port
9−16
– Port 41: trunk mode. Allow access to VLAN 1, 100,200
• Connect to the standalone server:
– eth0 to outside network for golden image access
– eth1 to ToR Switch port 41 for internal software provisioning
• Power on all the hardware:
– ToR switch
– Four nodes in the enclosure

You will probably most often use reset to prepare for permanent node removal at the end of a Proof of
Concept.
This module covered VxRail installation troubleshooting and factory reset procedures.
This course covered VxRail physical installation, remote initialization and configuration, and
troubleshooting.
This concludes the training.

2017 Apr 07 Student Guide VxRail Deployment and Implementation v1.3

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

2017 Apr 07 Student Guide VxRail Deployment and Implementation v1.3

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Welcome to VxRail Appliance Deployment and Implementation.

Revision Date: 04/2017

Revision Number: VCE-7LN-VXRAILDI.4.0-1.3

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 0 1

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 0 2

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 0 3

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 0 4

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 0 5

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 1

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 2

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 3

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 4

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 5

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 6

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 7

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 8

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 9

PS-BAS-HCIANINS Installation for VxRail Nodes

PS-BAS-VXVDX Implementation for Connectrix for VxRail

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 10

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 11

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 12

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 13

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 1 14

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 1

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 2

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 3

Verify that your package includes the following items:

Also verify that the customer has the following items:

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 4

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 5

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 6

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 7

The rear of the Dell models shown have 4 network ports

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 8

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 9

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 10

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 11

For each node setup iDRAC, for more information see:

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 12

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 13

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 14

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 2 15

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 1

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 2

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 3

The VLAN Information worksheet is auto-populated by information from other worksheets.

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 4

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 5

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 6

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 7

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 8

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 9

Uplink ports carry traffic up to customer core network.

Management Settings In-Band and Out-of-Band

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 10

Example default native VLAN is

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 11

ESXi hostnames are assigned to VxRail nodes in sequential order.

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 12

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 13

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 14

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 15

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc.. VxRail Deployment and Implementation - Module 3 16