Can you VMotion a server and relocate the data without taking the server down?
Dmotion will only work if you're moving the VM from an ESX 2.5.x server to 3.0.x. If you're all 3.0.1 then you'll need to shut down the VMs for the move.
Not with the current version. You would have to shut down the VM to move data stores. The next version of ESX 3.5 is supposed to support this.
Currently Dmotion (moving running VM's from one storage to another) is supported only from VMFS2 to VMFS3. The new version is supposed to expand on this so you can do it between VMFS3 volumes.
http://www.virtualization.info/2007/08/vmware-esx-server-31-virtualcenter-21.html
Storage VMotion (formerly DMotion)
Unofficially introduced with ESX Server 3.0.1, in its first version DMotion is a special VMotion operation only capable of moving running virtual machines from an ESX Server 2.5.x host to a new ESX Server 3.x., without shared SAN LUN mandatory requirement.
In ESX Server 3.1 this capability will be extended, allowing hot migration of running virtual machines between ESX 3.1 hosts through the Ethernet cable.
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I am running three hosts 3.0.1 on a cluster and they all see the SAN. So is it possible for the DMotion? or should I just request downtime?
Dmotion will only work if you're moving the VM from an ESX 2.5.x server to 3.0.x. If you're all 3.0.1 then you'll need to shut down the VMs for the move.