VSAN for Dell Perc H730P Adapter

[TIMOUMI Ameur]

My question is :

How should i configure the  Raid controller to build my VSAN solution for three dell power edge server r440?

( all disk (flash and capacity ) turned HBA or only the capacity disk ???.

Is thère any user guide stape by stape to build from configure IDRAC, openManagement, ESXI, VCENTER, VSAN,)or this projec?

Thx

[Dave Morera]

Hi Timoumiameur,

For the H730P controller,  you will need to set it up in passthrough mode, meaning that there will be no RAID configuration of any kind for any of the drives. Please check the VCG to ensure you are using the recommended Firmware and drivers for the version of vSAN you have.

VMware Compatibility Guide - I/O Device Search

Here is an operational guide fro StorageHub. Use the VCG to get the latest versions of FW and Drivers, as those may not match the versions stated in the guide.

Update Guide for Dell PERC9 H730 Controller

Hope this helps.

[chris122686]

VMware recommends you follow these best practices to avoid a vSAN cluster failure.

• Ensure that the driver and firmware version in use is compliant per the VMware Compatibility Guide for vSAN (VCG).
• Ensure that all drives are Dell supported drives that are validated for vSAN, and that all Dell firmware updates are applied to these drives.
  
  For assistance with this verification process, contact Dell support.
  
  Disclaimer: VMware is not responsible for the reliability of any data, opinions, advice, or statements made on third-party websites. Inclusion of such links does not imply that VMware endorses, recommends, or accepts any responsibility for the content of such sites.
  
• Review and implement the recommendations outlined in Required vSAN and ESXi configuration for controllers based on the LSI 3108 chipset (2144936).
  
  This article also includes links to the VCG for all applicable controllers, including the PERC H730 and FD332-PERC controllers.
  
• Review and implement the recommendations outlined in Best practices when using vSAN and non-vSAN disks with the same storage controller (2129050).

Refer to these tables for the recommended driver/firmware combinations for the major vSAN releases.

Note: This information was correct as of 15 November, 2016. Refer to the VCG for more information. For vSAN 6.x and 5.5:

Device	Recommended Driver	Recommended Firmware
BP13G+ (Non-expander backplane)	NA	2.23 or later
BP13G+EX (Expander backplane)	NA	3.03 or later
PERC H730	See the VMware Compatibility Guide
FD332-PERC	See the VMware Compatibility Guide

Note: To use the megaraid_perc9 driver in ESXi 5.5, you must disable the lsi_mr3 in ESXi 5.5 only and possibly the megaraid_sas driver. To disable these drivers in ESXi 5.5 only:

Note: This operation requires an ESXi host reboot to take effect. While rebooting ensure that an appropriate vSAN Maintenance Mode option is selected. For information about vSAN Maintenance Mode, see the Place a Member of Virtual SAN Cluster in Maintenance Mode section in the vSphere Storage Guide.

1. Log in to the ESXi host using SSH or console.
   
2. Disable the lsi_mr3 driver by running this command:
   
   esxcli system module set --enabled=false --module=lsi_mr3
   
3. Reboot the ESXi host.
   
4. Post reboot, determine the driver being used by the PERC controller. If the driver being used is megaraid_sasinstead of megaraid_perc9, disable the megaraid_sas driver to force the system to use the appropriate driver. To disable the megaraid_sas driver, run this command:
   
   esxcli system module set --enabled=false --module=megaraid_sas
   
5. If you disabled the megaraid_sas driver in step 4, reboot the ESXi host a second time.

Please mark this as correct if this answers and helps you .