VMware vSphere

Hi all,

I have a san disk 4 TB for the user storage data.

I would like to connect a 4 TB disk storage on one of my virtual machine. Is it possible to connect a drive on a virtual server without create a datastore (datastore is limited to 2 TB)?

Thanks.

You could split the LUNs and create extents. Here are some links the might be of interest:

http://pubs.vmware.com/vi3/serverconfig/wwhelp/wwhimpl/common/html/wwhelp.htm?context=serverconfig&file=sc_storage_manage.11.8.html

http://virtualgeek.typepad.com/virtual_geek/2009/03/vmfs-best-practices-and-counter-fud.html

If have iSCSI SAN you can connect LUN with software initiator from inside the guest OS. If you have FC SAN and NPIV-capable HBA, you can connect LUN directly to VM.

Otherwise you have to split 4TB to 2 LUNs 2TB minus 512B each.

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VMware vExpert '2009

http://blog.vadmin.ru

As Anton states the only method to get a LUN larger that 2TB is to utilise either the iSCSI initiator in the OS or via a NPIV HBA, otherwise split the disk into two LUNs

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Tom Howarth VCP / vExpert

VMware Communities User Moderator

Blog: www.planetvm.net

Contributing author for the upcoming book "[VMware vSphere and Virtual Infrastructure Security: Securing ESX and the Virtual Environment|http://my.safaribooksonline.com/9780136083214]”. Currently available on roughcuts