Dell PowerStore Native Integration with Dell PowerProtect DD Series Appliances for DP in Oracle Environments
Wed, 10 May 2023 13:29:40 -0000
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Having many years of production database experience, I know DBAs will be eager to give this new capability a try.
PowerStoreOS 3.5 has just been released and with it comes more data protection capabilities. This translates into a more robust arsenal of tools and capabilities for the DBA’s tool kit. The feature provides a way to quickly backup, restore, and thinly provision database clones for different environments from a remote data source!
There are several data protection enhancements added to PowerStoreOS 3.5. One that excites me is a native backup solution that integrates with remote data storage appliances: Dell PowerProtect DD series appliances.
Integration with PowerProtect DD series appliances
The native integration from PowerStore to PowerProtect DD series appliances allows DBAs to create a crash consistent backup image of a database in the form of a remote snapshot. Administrators can initiate this remote snapshot directly from PowerStore Manager with a remote connection to a PowerProtect DD appliance. Because the snapshot is created directly on the PowerProtect DD appliance, no additional storage is consumed on PowerStore, making this backup strategy storage efficient. This close integration significantly streamlines the process of transmitting backups to the remote PowerProtect DD Series appliance by eliminating the need for a dedicated backup host, and reduces time and complexity.
This removes the worries of having to work with other types of remote storage, including tape, for your Oracle crash consistent images!
Remote Backup Rules
New to PowerStoreOS 3.5 is a new protection rule called a Remote Backup Rule, which sets a schedule by which remote snapshots are taken. The rule allows users to create remote crash consistent Oracle database snapshots on a PowerProtect DD Series appliance.
A Remote Backup Rule can be scheduled for any day of the week with a frequency of every 6, 12, or 24 hours, or at a specific time of day. The default retention period for the remote snapshots is 7 days but can be configured up to 70 years!
After a Remote Backup Rule is created, it can be added to a protection Policy. In the following figure, remote backup rule ORA-ASM-DB2 has been added to the ORA-ASM-DB2 protection policy.
After the remote backup rule is added to a protection policy, the protection policy can be assigned to the storage resource used by the Oracle database, such as a volume group with write-order consistency enabled. The following figure shows that the PowerStore volume group ORA-ASM-DB2 is assigned the ORA-ASM-DB2 protection policy.
Remote snapshots will now be automatically generated, based on the defined schedule in the remote backup rule ORA-ASM-DB2.
Creating remote snapshots
Creating remote snapshots are just clicks away! To create a remote snapshot manually, select Protection, then Remote Backup. Click BACKUP SESSIONS, select the desired backup session, then click BACKUP. That’s all that’s needed to create the snapshot on the remote PowerProtect DD appliance.
Effortless retrieval of remote backups of Oracle databases
The PowerStoreOS 3.5 retrieve option has several use cases. Here I’ll mention two. One is to retrieve a remote snapshot for a currently existing PowerStore resource and restore it. Another is to create a thin clone of the PowerStore resource from the retrieved remote snapshot. For Oracle databases, the PowerStore resource is the PowerStore Volume Group that contains the volumes that are hosting the Oracle database.
To retrieve a remote snapshot for a volume group, it’s as simple as six mouse clicks from the Remote Backup feature!:
RESOURCES --> select the PowerStore resource --> MANAGE SNAPSHOTS:
Select the remote snapshot --> RETRIEVE --> RETRIEVE:
When the PowerStore storage resources have been recovered by the snapshot, simply start the Oracle database and Oracle does the rest with crash recovery.
Conclusion
PowerStoreOS 3.5 provides enhanced data protection features that simplify the DBA’s tasks of taking backups, recoveries, restores, and cloning databases with a few mouse clicks. DBAs will find this feature a great tool for their toolkit.
PowerStoreOS 3.5 is truly a game changer! This new data protection capability is just one of the numerous features introduced in PowerStoreOS 3.5. Be sure to keep an eye out for additional blog posts that showcase these valuable features.
Author: Mark Tomczik
Related Blog Posts
What’s New in PowerStoreOS 3.6?
Thu, 05 Oct 2023 14:22:36 -0000
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Dell PowerStoreOS 3.6 is the latest software release on the Dell PowerStore platform.
This release contains a diversified feature set in categories such as hardware, data protection, NVMe/TCP, file, and serviceability. The following list provides a brief overview of the major features in those categories:
- Hardware: PowerStoreOS 3.6 introduces the highly anticipated Data-In-Place (DIP) upgrade feature, which allows users to perform a hardware refresh while remaining online, with no downtime or host migration.
- Data Protection: PowerStoreOS 3.6 now includes support for Metro Witness Server, which allows users to configure a fully active-active configuration for metro volumes across two PowerStore clusters—with more intelligent failure handling, resiliency, and availability during an unplanned outage.
- NVMe/TCP enhancements: Users now have the option to use NVMe storage containers to support host access through the NVMe/TCP protocol for Virtual Volumes (vVols).
- File: Administrators can perform disaster recovery tests within a network bubble, while using an identical configuration as their production NAS server environment.
- Serviceability: To build on the existing remote syslog implementation, PowerStore alerts can now be forwarded to one or more remote syslog servers in PowerStoreOS 3.6. The following sections also provide information about the Non-Disruptive Upgrade (NDU) paths to the PowerStoreOS 3.6 release.
Hardware
Data-In-Place (DIP) upgrades
Data-In-Place upgrades allow users to convert their PowerStore Appliance from a PowerStore x000T model to a PowerStore x200T model. This is a non-disruptive process because only a single node is upgraded at a time, while the other node continues to service host I/O. Data-In-Place upgrades are performed easily through PowerStore Manager’s Hardware tab.
The following table outlines the supported Data-In-Place upgrade paths from the source to target models. For PowerStore 9000T models, only block-optimized upgrades are supported to the PowerStore 9200T model. When upgrading a PowerStore 3000T to a PowerStore 5200T model, additional NVRAM drives are required. When upgrading from a PowerStore 5000T model to a PowerStore 9200T model, a power supply upgrade may also be required.
Note: *Denotes only block-optimized upgrade is supported
Data Protection
Metro Witness server support
Metro Volume support was introduced in PowerStoreOS 3.0. Since PowerStoreOS 3.0, Metro Volumes required manual intervention to fail over if the preferred site went down. PowerStoreOS 3.6 introduces the Metro Witness server feature. The Metro Witness server runs software that automatically forces the non-preferred site to remain online and service I/O if the preferred site were to go offline.
The Metro Witness software is a distributed RPM package available for Linux SLES or RHEL distributions. The RPM can be deployed on a bare-metal server or a virtual machine. The Metro Witness server and software can easily be set up in minutes!
NVMe/TCP enhancements
NVMe/TCP for Virtual Volumes (vVols)
NVMe is transfer protocol that is specifically designed for connecting Solid State Drives (SSDs) to PCIe buses. NVMe over Fabrics (NVMe-oF) is an extension of the NVMe protocol to both TCP and Fibre Channel (FC) data streams. PowerStore currently supports both TCP and FC as NVMe-oF transports.
With the VMware vSphere 8.0U1 release, VMware introduced NVMe/TCP support for vVols. As the request for NVMe/TCP support grows, PowerStoreOS 3.6 expands its existing NVMe/TCP support to vVols as well! With this feature, PowerStore will be the industry’s 1st array to support NVMe/TCP for vVols[1].
From a performance perspective, NVMe/TCP is comparable to FC. From a cost perspective, NVMe/TCP infrastructure is cheaper than FC and can leverage existing network infrastructure. NVMe/TCP has a higher performance benefit than iSCSI and has lower hardware costs than FC. With the addition of NVMe/TCP support for vVols in PowerStoreOS 3.6, we combine performance, cost, and storage/compute granularity for system administrators.
File
Disaster Recovery (DR) tests within a network bubble
Many organizations are required to run disaster recovery (DR) tests using the exact same configuration as production. This includes identical IP addresses and fully qualified domain names. Running these types of tests reduces risk, increases reproducibility, and minimizes the chance of any surprises during an actual disaster recovery event.
These DR tests are carried out in an isolated environment, which is completely siloed from the production environment. Using network segmentation for proper isolation allows there to be no impact to production or replication. This allows users to meet the requirements of using identical IP addresses and FQDNs during their DR tests.
In PowerStoreOS 3.6, the appliance offers the file capability to create a Disaster Recovery Test (DRT) NAS server with a DR test interface. These DRT NAS servers permit a user to create a NAS server with an identical configuration as production, including the ability to duplicate IP addresses.
Note: DRT NAS servers and interfaces can only be configured using the CLI or REST API.
Serviceability
Remote Syslog support for PowerStore alerts
PowerStoreOS 2.0.x introduced support for remote syslog for auditing. These audit types included:
- Config
- System
- Service
- Authentication / Authorization / Logout
PowerStoreOS 3.6 has added support for forwarding of system alerts as well. This equips system administrators with more versatility to monitor their PowerStore appliances from a centralized location.
Upgrade Path
The following table outlines the NDU paths to upgrade to the PowerStoreOS 3.6 release. Depending on your source release, it may be a one or two step upgrade.
Note: *Denotes source release is not supported on PowerStore 500T models
Conclusion
The PowerStoreOS 3.6 release offers numerous feature enhancements that are unique and deepen the platform. It’s no surprise that PowerStore is deployed in over 90% of Fortune 500 vertical sectors[2] [1]. With PowerStore continuing to deliver on hardware, data protection, NVMe/TCP, file, and serviceability in this release, it’s no secret that the product is extremely adaptable and versatile in modern IT environments.
Resources
For additional information about the features described in this blog, plus other information about the PowerStoreOS 3.6 release, see the following white papers and solution documents:
- Dell PowerStore: Introduction to the Platform
- Dell PowerStore Manager Overview
- Dell PowerStore: File Capabilities
- Dell PowerStore: Replication Technologies
- Dell PowerStore: Virtualization Integration
- Dell PowerStore: Metro Volume
- Dell PowerStore: VMware vSphere Best Practices
- Dell PowerStore: VMware Site Recovery Manager Best Practices
- Dell PowerStore: VMware vSphere with Tanzu and TKG Clusters
- NVMe Transport Performance Comparison
Other Resources
- What’s New in PowerStoreOS 3.5?
- PowerStore Simple Support Matrix
- PowerStore: Info Hub – Product Documentation & Videos
- Dell Technologies PowerStore Info Hub
Author: Louie Sasa
[1] PowerStore is the industry's first array to support NVMe/TCP for vVols. Based on Dell internal analysis, September 2023.
[2] As of January 2023, based on internal analysis of vertical industry categories from 2022 Fortune 500 rankings.
Reduce Worry, Reuse Resources—Dell PowerStore Recycles
Tue, 06 Jun 2023 17:24:02 -0000
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When data loss occurs in an organization, it can be extremely devastating. Revenue loss, employee disruption, reputational damage, legal implications, and business closure are all potential ramifications.
Studies indicate that human error proves to be one of the most common causes of data loss today. With modern technology scaling in complexity and capacity, human error is bound to occur. Human error in an IT ecosystem can come in many forms, including accidental deletion of data, data sprawling (unorganized data), and administrative errors.
Data protection measures such as backups, snapshots, and replication may be used to rectify data loss from accidental deletion. In certain scenarios, using these measures may be time consuming and costly to a business. Users also might not have the resources to take backups or snapshots, or replicate data to another system.
Dell PowerStore Recycle Bin
In PowerStoreOS 3.5, we introduced the Recycle Bin—a guardrail that combats the accidental deletion of block storage resources. This feature is intended to mitigate human error in an IT environment.
For instance, a user might mistakenly delete a mission-critical volume on a PowerStore appliance. The user initially planned on remapping and re-protecting the volume but accidentally deleted it. With the Recycle Bin automatically enabled in PowerStoreOS 3.5, the deleted resource can now be easily retrieved seconds later. The prerequisites for deleting a block storage resource in PowerStoreOS 3.5 remain the same as with previous versions, which means a block storage resource must have no associated host mappings and no protection policies. Figure 1 displays the volume named “Marketing” that fits the criteria for deletion.
Figure 1 – Volumes page
When users delete a block storage resource, they are prompted with a delete resource confirmation window, as shown in Figure 2. Users can elect to skip the Recycle Bin when deleting the block storage resource by selecting the checkbox, causing immediate deletion. By default the checkbox is not selected, and proceeding without selecting this option places the block storage resource into the Recycle Bin.
Figure 2 – Delete Volume Window
The Recycle Bin can be accessed in the PowerStore Manager UI under the Storage tab.
Figure 3 – Storage > Recycle Bin
The Recycle Bin view has sections for Volumes and Volume Groups. Once a resource is placed into the Recycle Bin, a user has the option to Recover or Expire Now, as shown in Figure 4. The Recover option recovers the block storage resource back into the storage section for use, while the Expire Now option triggers expiration to permanently delete the resource.
Figure 4 – Recycle Bin view
Configuration of the Recycle Bin expiration duration applies throughout the whole PowerStore cluster. By default, the expiration duration value is set to 7 days, but it can be set to range anywhere from 0–30 days. Note that resources placed in the Recycle Bin consume storage capacity and count against the PowerStore appliance limits.
Figure 5 – Settings > Cluster > Recycle Bin
Conclusion
Data is the core component of your organization. It’s what makes your business operational, which is why it is imperative to protect it. We’ve all had those difficult days at work, and mistakes can happen. It’s great to have technology that is forgiving when those errors occur. I hope this blog gave you a quick glimpse of Dell PowerStore Recycle Bin’s resilience and how it can benefit your organization.
Resources
For more information, check out these resources:
Author: Louie Sasa, Senior Engineering Technologist