iStorage Server: Working with VMware ESX/ESXi Server

iStorage Server is a network based storage virtualization software powered by KernSafe Technologies. Being a powerful, full-featured and software-only iSCSI Target, iStorage Server is an IP SAN solution that can quickly convert existing Windows computer into IP SAN. Storage media of iSCSI Target can include existing storage devices such as the entire hard disks or partitions, CD-RWs, tapes and USB storage devices, as well as disk image file or CD image files including ISO9660(,iso), .bin, .mdf, .cdi, .b5i, .nrg, .ccd, .sub, .img, .raw and other image file formats.

VMware ESX Server is the easiest way to get started with virtualization—and it’s free. Consolidate your applications onto fewer servers and start saving money through reduced hardware, power, cooling and administration costs. VMware ESX Server has been optimized and tested to run even your most resource intensive applications and databases with minimal performance overhead.

This article demonstrates how iStorage Server works under VMware ESX Server. Such powerful combination will expand the application scope of your virtual server, thereby enabling WINDOWS server to expand the storage of your virtualized server. It also allows you to directly use the storage devices of the existing Windows server for VMware ESX Server. With IP SAN solution provided by iStorage Server, you may set up operating system, install application and server software, as well as store data required by your virtual machines. Your XenServer storage can be expanded in the following 3-most-commonly-used ways:

• Use Virtual Image File Disk Device to create a file-based virtual storage device for VMware ESX Server. This allows quick data migration and backup. You may also try iStorage Server’s Mirror ( RAID-1) function for backup.
• Directly use the physical disk or partition of Windows server. This enables you to make good use of resource. No additional configurations, just add the storage media to iSCSI Targets.
• Use CD/DVD/RW bridge device or Virtual CD/DVD to map physical CD/DVD drives or CD/DVD image files (iso, .bin, .mdf, .cdi, .b5i, .nrg, .ccd, .sub, .img, .raw) on your Windows server to CD/DVD devices on VMware ESX Server virtual machine.

Here we’ll create an image file disk to expand XenServer storage, using a wizard to demonstrate how to configure your XenServer so as to use iSCSI storage provided by iStorage Server. The 3 steps are suggested as follows:

1. You need a server running XenServer. ESX Server must first be installed on to a suitable machine that will be used to create the virtual environment. For how to obtain or install VMware ESX Server, please contact the VMware supplier.

2. Create in iStorage Server an Image file disk. This will be used to expand your VMware ESX Server storage. If you want to learn more about the use of KernSafe iStorage Server, Please refer to the iStorage Server User Manual.

a), Decide which authentication mechanisms you would want to use: IP address authentication or CHAP user authentication.

IP address authentication allows you using client’s IP address to identify which client machine has assess right. CHAP user authentication allows you make an client machine has access right by specifying user name and password.

Open iStorage Server Management Console, you will see the following interface.

b), Create User.

Click ”Users” Tree Node on the left tree view, and then press “Add” button in the tool bar, a “Create/Edit User “ dialog will be shown. 

Enter user name and password as you like, but we recommend that the password should be 12-16 characters. We take the user name “ESXUser” and password “111111111111” as a example.
Press “OK” button to complete creating user. 

c), Create group.

After create user, we need a group to hold this user. Click “Groups” tree node in the left tree view, and then press “Add” button on the toolbar, a “Create/Edit Group” Dialog will be shown.  

Enter a group name as you like and then click “Add” button and then select the user which we just created, we take “ESXGroup” as a example. 

d) Create Target.

Click “Targets” tree node in the left tree view, and then press “Create” button on the toolbar, and then the create target wizard will be shown. 

Select “Image file disk device” and then press the “Next” button to continue. 

e) Enter the parameters for the image disk device.

We create a 4g bytes image device as a example, input device size 4096 and then press “Next” button to continue.

f) Set target authorization mode.

Select CHAP user authorization or IP address authorization, If you choose CHAP user authorization, select “ESXGroup” in “Select a group has read and write access” ; If you choose IP address authorization, please specify an IP address with which running the ESX Server.

In IP address authorization mode, you can also add clients to IP filter, so that these clients with specified IP can get read and write access.

Add clients to IP filter.

Press “Next” button in the “Set Authorization Mode” page to continue.

g) Enter iSCSI Target name and finish create target.

We use” iqn.2006-03.com.kernsafe.KernSafe.ESXTarget” as an example.

Press the “Finish” button to complete target creating.

OK, target side work is well done, we will configure ESX Server.

3. Configure VMware ESX Server to use the iSCSI device created by iStorage Server.

a) Install VMware Infrastructure Client 2.5.

Run VMware Infrastructure Client installation, the following interface will be shown. 

Press the “Next” button to proceed.

Installing VMware Infrastructure Client.

After coping files completed, press the “Finish” button to complete VMware Infrastructure Client installation. 

b) Log on to you ESX Server.

Run VMware Infrastructure Client, VMware Infrastructure Client Log on dialog appears. 

Input IP address / Name with which running ESX Server, User name and password, press “login” to proceed.

c) Configure ESX Server’s networking.

Open VMware Infrastructure Client. 

Click Networking link in the Hardware group, You will see the built-in Virtual Switch.

For using iSCSI, we need create a new Network, click “Add Networking” link, a “Add Network Wizard” wizard will be shown. 

On the first page of this wizard, select “VmKernel” which allows your virtual machines can use the iSCSI.
Press the “Next” button to continue. 

Select which virtual switch will handle the network traffic.

Select “User vSwitch0” option.
Press the “Next” button to continue.

Type the identification of the network adapters.

Input IP Address and Subnet mask, we take “192.168.0.102” and “255.255.255.0” as an example.
Press the “Next” button to continue.

Complete add networking.

Check the parameters are correct and press the “Back” button if any changes are required.
Press the “Finish” button to complete creating add networking.

d) Configure iSCSI Storage

Click “Storage Adapters” link in the Hardware group, and then click “Properties” link.
The “iSCSI Initiator (vmmhba32) Properties” Dialog appears. 

In the “General” page, press the “Configure…” button.

The “General Properties” dialog will be shown.

Select “Enabled” check box in the “Status” group, and press the “OK” to proceed.

Add iSCSI Target discovery.

In “Dynamic Discovery” page, press the “Add” button, an “Add Send Targets Server” dialog will be shown.

Input iSCSI Server address and port, with which is running the iStorage Server.
Press the “OK” button to proceed.

Type CHAP authentication information.

If you choose CHAP user authorization mode in target of iStorage Server, this step cannot be by past. Press “Configure…” button, the “CHAP Authentication” dialog will be shown.

Input CHAP user name and secret, In the previous of this article, we have created a user named “ESXUser” so we will specify it in this dialog. Or if you choose IP address authentication, you should select “Disable CHAP authentication”.

Press the “OK” button in this dialog and then press the “Close” button in the “iSCSI Initiator (vmmhba32) Properties” dialog to finish iSCSI Target configuration.

Then a prompt dialog will be shown.

Press the “Yes” button to proceed.

Please wait for a while, you will found a iSCSI device appears in the following interface:

Now, the iSCSI configuration is complete.

e) Configure Storage device.

Click “Storage” link in the Hardware group.

Click “Add Storage” link, the “Add Storage Wizard” wizard will be shown.

Select Disk/LUN

Select “vmhba32:7:0” device with the Identifier of “iqn.2006-03.com.kernsafe…”. Press the “Next” button to continue.

Partition and format the entire device.

Just use the default.
Press the “Next” button to continue.

Type the data store name.

Input “iStorage Server”.
Press the “Next” button to continue.

Format entire device.

According to the default recommend.
Press the “Next” button to continue.

Complete data store creating.

OK, now, the storage is going to be created, press the “Finish” button to finish the wizard.
And then press “Yes” in the following prompt dialog, so that the ESX Server formats the storage.
After this, you can see the storage device in the following interface.

Now, we have the storage to store virtual machines, show we will next to install virtual machine on it.

f) Manage and Install virtual machine.

In the “Virtual Machine” tab page of VMware Infrastructure Client, right click on the black page, and then select “Add Virtual Machine…”, a “New Virtual Machine Wizard” wizard will be shown.

Select the appropriate configuration.

Select “Typical” option.
Press the “Next” button to continue.

Type the virtual machine name.

Type In the virtual machine name, we take “windows 2000” as an example.
Press the “Next” button to continue.

Choose a data store for storing files of the virtual machine.

Specify a data store to store the virtual machine, select “iStorage Server”.
Press the “Next” button to continue.

Choose the guest operation system.

Select operation system, we select “Microsoft Windows 2000” as an example.
Press the “Next” button to continue.

Specify the number of virtual processors.

Press the “Next” button to continue.

Specify the virtual machine’s memory size.

Press the “Next” button to continue.

Choose which network connections will be used by the virtual machine.

Press the “Next” button to continue.

Specify the size of virtual disk that will be used by the guest machine.

Press the “Next” button to continue.

Check the parameters are correct and press the “Back” button if any changes are required.

Select “Edit the virtual machine settings before submitting”.
Press the “Continue” button to create the virtual machine.
In the following “Windows 2000 – Virtual Machine Properties” page, we click “New CD/DVD” link in the “Hardware” group and then select “Client Device” we will install OS form client computer.

Click the “Finish” button to complete virtual machine creating.

Insert windows 2000 installation CD, and then power on the virtual machine just created, you will see the windows 2000 imitation interface:

Formats the partition C:

Copy files.

Continue windows install.

Likewise, you may install Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Vista and Windows Server 2008, or even any version of Linux as you wish.

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