Tag Archives: VNX

How to expand a LUN on VNX using the CLI

Posted by on November 16, 2018 No comments

Once in a while you come across a storage system that cannot be managed through the GUI or you just want to script or use the CLI to perform management tasks on a VNX. Recently I came across an old VNX2 which GUI wasn’t responding the way I’d like, so I decided to use the CLI instead.

In this particular case I needed to expand a LUN.

First I listed the current size:

naviseccli -h [SPA/B ip#] -user [user] -password [password] -scope [scope] getlun [LUN#]

Then I expanded the LUN to the new size:

naviseccli -h [SPA/B ip#] -user [user] -password [password] -scope [scope] lun -expand -l [LUN#] -capacity [new capacity] -sq [mb/gb/tb/bc]

Pay attention to the number and the prefix! It could be a lot of work if you needed to resize a LUN from 50GB to 60GB and instead GB, you used TB…..

And finally I checked if the new size was actually available:

naviseccli -h [SPA/B ip#] -user [user] -password [password] -scope [scope] getlun [LUN#]

Sometimes CLI is so much easier than the GUI!

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How to remove an offline VNX from a Unisphere domain

Posted by on September 3, 2018 No comments

When decommissioning a VNX, I recently forgot to remove the array from the existing domain. After the VNX was “unracked and unstacked” I saw my mistake and tried to remove it from the domain by using the “add/remove systems” in Unisphere, but the remove-button was grayed out. Even engineering mode didn’t help me.

There is another way to remove unwanted VNXs from a domain! You might have guessed it already, because it’s by using the command line!

First you’ll have to find out what existing VNX is the domain master. This can be done in Unisphere by looking up the current master. Click on “Domains” followed by “Select Domain Master”.

The outcome will show you the list of domain in the domain as well as the current master.

Now you can open a command line box and enter the following command to deleted the unwanted VNX from the domain:

naviseccli -Address -User -Password -Scope 2 domain -remove

How to create a snapview snapshot on an existing LUN

Posted by on May 8, 2017 No comments

I apologize in advance for this (6 years or so too late) post, since it’s for creating a snapview snapshot on a LUN on a VNX. It’s simply meant as a reminder for the command line syntax:

Examples for creating snapview snapshots (it only defines it, no COFW is happening at this point):
naviseccli -h 172.16.20.96 snapview -createsnapshot 17 -snapshotname VMFS-001-SNAP
naviseccli -h 172.16.20.96 snapview -createsnapshot 18 -snapshotname VMFS-003-SNAP
naviseccli -h 172.16.20.166 snapview -createsnapshot 27 -snapshotname VMFS-002-SNAP
naviseccli -h 172.16.20.116 snapview -createsnapshot 5 -snapshotname VMFS-004-SNAP

To start an actual point in time session (and the start of COFWs):
naviseccli -h [ip address] snapview -startsession [session name] -snapshotname VMFS-001-SNAP

To stop a session:
cnaviseccli -h [ip address] snapview -stopsession [session name]

To activate a snapview session (make the data visible):
naviseccli -h [ip address] snapview -activatesnapshot [session name] -snapshotname VMFS-001-SNAP

To deactivate a snapview session (stop presenting the data to the hosts):
naviseccli -h [ip address] snapview -deactivatesnapshot [session name] -snapshotname VMFS-001-SNAP

Free EMC trial software / virtual appliances

Posted by on May 24, 2016 No comments
virtual machine

A quick heads-up this time about building your own lab environment

Sometimes you just want to run a VNX, Avamar, PowerPath, Data Domain or Isilon as a virtual machine to see how things work, or to write work instructions. And EMC offers a lot of these virtual appliances for free!

Take a look at these:

 

EMC Unity: simplicity redefined

Posted by on May 2, 2016 1 comment
EMC Unity

It’s been a while since the VNX2 was born: September 2013, I remember it very well. Being a part of the EMC Elect, I was invited to be at the actual launch in Milan (Italy) and what a ride it was! The whole launch was wrapped around Formula 1 technology and it sure was “speed 2 lead“. That “old” VNX2, which I’m still perfectly happy with by the way, was a revolution in my humble opinion: multi-core everything, in short MCx. And yes, it was like everything just went faster, smoother and better.

New technologies

But with new technologies popping up every so many months now, it was time for a new mid-range storage array. Flash storage isn’t a novelty anymore, it’s a must! And the “old” hybrid arrays were fine, but needed some fine-tuning. With flash devices growing bigger every quarter or half a year and faster as well, the whole back-end needed an upgrade. The old 6 Gb back-end (x4) needed an upgrade.

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