ESX 3.5, HDS SMS 100, and iSCSI

[avadmin]

Quick rundown of configuration and activities to date:

Dell 2850, 2x 2.8 GHz procs with 12 GB RAM, ESX 3.5 Standard

Hitachi Data Systems SMS 100 with 2 storage processors.

Using software iSCSI initiator on second NIC, attached with GB switch to the ports on the SMS 100.

The Hitachi is set up with a LUN attached to a target attached to a port - no security, no authentication. From a windows server with iSCSI initiator, I can enter a port for discovery and see the LUN as a drive. From Virtual Center, configuration for storage adapters, I do the same thing, and get no targets. I changed to use target security and CHAP, I can get the HOST to show up in the SMS 100 and assign to the target, but still no targets after rescanning.

iSCSI is enabled and the firewall allows the port - I can attach to an EMC AX150 with iSCSI on the same switch just fine - discover, see the LUN, assign the server, access the LUN.

I have seen a couple of other threads where people are apparently using the SMS 100 with ESX 3.5 but the answers for their issues do not help. I have contacted HDS support but so far no joy. Any hints on how to get this thing to show up would be appreciated.

The "savings" on the Hitachi v geting another EMC box are dwindling....

[avadmin]

I have found the solution - in an unrelated iSCSI thread there was a mention of a 2TB limit for the LUN. The LUN I created as a target was of course 2TB. I created a smaller one, showed up just as easy as the AX150 (which was a smaller LUN for target). Is this an ESX limitation? Windows could see the LUN fine.

[DArndt · Accepted solution]

Yes, this is an VMware ESX server limitiation, currently it will only allow a max 2TB lun, not sure how it is caculated, but 1 MB less that 2TB shows up just fine in ESX, while 2TB doesn't.

-Dave

[BUGCHK]

You should be fine with up to 2199023255040 bytes = (2^32)-1 blocks ; 1 block = 512 byte

This is a limit still in many systems today.