PowerStoreOS 3.0 introduced NVMe-vVol host connectivity supporting NVMe/FC vVols. NVMe-oF vVols is a new specification which introduces VASA 4.0 and vVols 3.0. This new specification requires HBAs and fabric switches that are NVMe capable, to extend the volumes from the array to the host. VMware added the corresponding NVMe-oF vVol support in vSphere 8.0.

Support for NVMe/TCP vVols was introduced with PowerStoreOS 3.6 and VMware vSphere 8.0 Update 1. NVMe/TCP yields high fibre channel-like performance at Ethernet prices. Customers of any size can benefit from this feature by delivering enterprise level performance for demanding application requirements.

Note: TCP ports 8009 and 4420 must be open for discovery and data respectively. In addition, the ESXi host time must be synchronized with PowerStore. Time synchronization can be automated using NTP or PTP for vSphere and NTP for PowerStore.

Figure 2.   Enabling NVMe over TCP on a VMkernel port in the vSphere Client

Figure 3.   Adding an NVMe over TCP adapter in the vSphere Client

Figure 4.   Using PowerStore Manager to configure a PowerStore host with an NVMe vVol initiator

Figure 5.   Using PowerStore Manager to create an NVMe vVol Storage Container

Note: With NVMe-oF vVols, there is no physical Protocol Endpoint (PE): the PE is now a logical object representation of the ANA group where the vVols reside. Until a VM is powered on, the vPE does not exist. When a VM is powered on, the vPE is created so the host can access the vVols in the ANA group. For more information, see What’s New with vSphere 8 Core Storage.