E2E Deployment and Operations Guide with Switchless Networking: Microsoft HCI Solutions from Dell Technologies

• 1

  About using this guide

• 1

  Deployment Introduction
• 2

  Document overview
• 3

  Audience and scope
• 4

  Known issues

• 1

  Solution Overview
• 2

  Solution introduction
• 3

  Deployment models
  • Switchless storage networking
• 4

  Solution integration and network connectivity

• 1

  Solution Deployment
• 2

  Solution deployment introduction
• 3

  Deployment prerequisites
  • Change operating system to iDRAC pass-through IPs
  • Install Windows Admin Center
  • Install OpenManage Integration with Microsoft Windows Admin Center
• 4

  Predeployment configuration
  • Configuring network switches
  • Configuring iDRAC and BIOS
  • Configure Intel E810 NICs
• 5

  Cabling instructions
  • Three-node, single-link full mesh switchless interconnect
  • Two-node, back-to-back connected architecture
  • Three-node, dual-link full mesh switchless interconnect
  • Four-node, dual-link full mesh switchless interconnect
• 6

  Operating system deployment
  • Manual operating system deployment
  • Factory-installed operating system deployment
  • Configure host networking
  • Upgrade using sConfig (Standalone systems)
• 7

  Install roles and features
• 8

  Change the hostname
• 9

  Registry settings
• 10

  Joining cluster nodes to an Active Directory domain
  • Verifying and updating firmware and software compliance
• 11

  Configuring firewall settings

• 1

  Switchless Architecture with Network ATC
• 2

  Requirements for switchless storage network topologies
• 3

  Setup IPs manually on SMB NICs
• 4

  Creating a cluster
• 5

  Creating network intents for switchless
• 6

  Enabling Storage Spaces Direct
• 7

  Configuring host management network as a lower-priority network for live migration
• 8

  Updating the page file settings
• 9

  Configuring a cluster witness
• 10

  Best practices and recommendations
  • Disable SMB signing
  • Update the hardware timeout for the Spaces port
  • Enable jumbo frames
  • Antivirus exclusions
• 11

  Enabling bit locker
• 12

  Recommended next steps
• 13

  Deployment services

• 1

  References
• 2

  Dell Technologies documentation
• 3

  Microsoft documentation

• 1

  GPU Integration
• 2

  Installing and configuring GPUs on AX platforms
  • AX-650 GPU configuration
  • AX-750 GPU configuration
  • AX-7525 GPU configuration
  • GPU physical installation
• 3

  GPU Discrete Device Assignment (DDA) on Azure Stack HCI
• 4

  GPU partitioning
  • Host and guest driver download and install instructions

• 1

  Day 1 operations
• 2

  Register Azure Stack HCI cluster to Azure
• 3

  Registering a Partner Admin Link (PAL) for Azure related solutions
  • Add a PAL through the Azure portal by using Azure PowerShell
  • Add a PAL through the Azure portal using the subscription user ID
  • Dell Technologies Partner IDs for Partner Admin Link
• 4

  Creating virtual disks

• 1

  Managing and monitoring clusters with Windows Admin Center
• 2

  Overview
• 3

  Access the HCI cluster
• 4

  View server details
• 5

  View drive details
• 6

  Managing and monitoring volumes
  • Creating volumes in Storage Spaces Direct
  • Managing volumes
• 7

  Enabling data deduplication on Storage Spaces Direct
• 8

  Monitoring and managing VMs
• 9

  Managing virtual switches

• 1

  Dell OpenManage Integration with Windows Admin Center
• 2

  Overview
• 3

  Prerequisites for managing AX nodes
• 4

  Installing the OMIMSWAC license
• 5

  Managing Microsoft HCI-based clusters
  • Overview
  • Prerequisite checks
  • Health status
  • Inventory
  • Locating physical disks and viewing their status
  • Viewing update compliance and updating the cluster
• 6

  Full Stack Cluster-Aware Offline Updating
• 7

  Full Stack Cluster-Aware Updating for Azure Stack HCI clusters
• 8

  Updating a standalone node before adding it to the cluster
• 9

  Enabling hardware alerts for HCI cluster
• 10

  Secure cluster with Secured-core
• 11

  Enabling operating system features
• 12

  Protect your infrastructure with infrastructure lock
  • Enable or disable infrastructure lock
• 13

  Manage CPU cores in Azure Stack HCI clusters
• 14

  Validate and remediate Azure Stack HCI clusters
  • View HCP compliance summary
• 15

  Onboard Dell policies to Azure Arc from Windows Admin Center
• 16

  View recommendations for storage expansion
  • View node level storage configuration details
• 17

  Known issues

• 1

  Updates and maintenance
• 2

  Firmware and driver updates using the manual method
  • Preparing for maintenance operations
  • Placing an AX node in maintenance mode
  • Obtaining the firmware catalog for AX nodes or Ready Nodes
  • Updating the AX node by using iDRAC out of band
  • Updating the out-of-box drivers
  • Exiting the AX node from maintenance mode
• 3

  Restarting a cluster node or taking a cluster node offline
• 4

  Extending volumes
• 5

  Performing AX node recovery
  • Configuring RAID for operating system drives
• 6

  Operating system recovery
  • Manual operating system recovery
  • Factory operating system recovery
  • iDRAC Service Module (iSM) for AX nodes and Storage Spaces Direct Ready Nodes
  • FullPowerCycle

• 1

  References
• 2

  Dell Technologies documentation
• 3

  Microsoft documentation