VMware Cloud Community
bulldog34
Contributor
Contributor

setting up ISCSI

I am trying to get 2 esx servers connected via ISCSI to a compellent storge divice. The compellent is not able to see the servers and I am not able to ping anything on the compellent. Our network is open for the vlans to talk to each other. Any suggestions

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Cloneranger
Hot Shot
Hot Shot

Do you have a separate NIC for your iscsi access on ESX host, or is it an HBA?

If not an HBA are you planning to use a software initiator inside a Guest OS or are you using the VM Kernel One?

How are you trying to ping your storage device from the esx side?

If you are using ping on the service console, this is going to try and reach your storage through the service console network interface on the service console IP network.

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sthoppay_wipro
Enthusiast
Enthusiast

1. Note down the iSCSI address of your storage

2. On ESX firewall enable iSCSI Software Client

3. On Storage Adapter, enable iSCSI client

4. Under dynamic discovery, provide an iSCSI address of your storage.

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bulldog34
Contributor
Contributor

Do you have a separate NIC for your iscsi access on ESX host, or is it an HBA?

- Neither. we are trying to use the NIC that is connected to the LAN.

If not an HBA are you planning to use a software initiator inside a Guest OS or are you using the VM Kernel One?

-Not an HBA. We're trying to use VM Kernel

How are you trying to ping your storage device from the esx side?

- From the CLI on the ESX Server.

If you are using ping on the service console, this is going to try and reach your storage through the service console network interface on the service console IP network.

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rpartmann
Hot Shot
Hot Shot

Hi,

to get iscsi working you must know that it uses the ServiceConsole and the vmkernel.

So you should create a vmkernel portgroup. You will need it to enable iSCSI client on your ESX host.

Also open the iSCSI port (3260) on the Service Console.

esxcfg-firewall -e swISCSIClient

and ping from the ESX host your storage

ping <ip-storage> # ping over ServiceConsole

vmkping <ip-storage> # ping over the vmkernel interface

when that all works try to configure/enable the ISCSI over the VI Client

hth,

Reinhard.

ps: Award points if you find answers helpful. Thanks.

ps: Award points if you find answers helpful. Thanks.
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bulldog34
Contributor
Contributor

I was able to get it to ping through the service console but still not able to ping via vmkernal. Does the IP address of the vmkernal need to be on the subnet of the Storage device or the subnet of the esx server as they are different.

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ctfoster
Expert
Expert

You need a service console and a vmkernal device configured on the same subnet as the storage device.

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Igor_The_Great
Enthusiast
Enthusiast

See if your VMkernel default gateway is set up properly by issuing esxcfg-route

Also make sure your portmap is enabled and your firewall is disabled. Ex:

service portmap start

service firewall stop

-Igor If you found this or any other answer useful please consider the use of the Helpful or correct buttons to award points.
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neil_murphy
Enthusiast
Enthusiast

I had similar problems setting up my demo suite using an OpenFiler iSCSI target. In the end I had to put the VMkernel portgroup on the same vswitch as my primary Service Console. Creating the VMkernel portgroup and a second Service Console on a separate vSwitch (as suggested on some blogs) simply didn't work for me. Now vmnic0 is SC and iSCSI, vmnic1 is VMotion and vmnic2 is VM's. Worked for me!

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Anders_Gregerse
Hot Shot
Hot Shot

Have you read the following doc?

iSCSI SAN Configuration Guide

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bulldog34
Contributor
Contributor

What should the gateway be. Should it be on the same subnet as the storage device or the esx server. right now it is on the server subnet.

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ctfoster
Expert
Expert

If you are talking about the gateway on the kernel I think the consensus is to set it to the same IP address as the iSCSI kernel interface itself. Looks dumb but no more dumb than setting it to an address that doesn't exist. You don't set the gateway on the iSCSI Service Console.

If you found this or any other post helpful please consider the use of the Helpfull/Correct buttons to award points

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bulldog34
Contributor
Contributor

I get a message on my esx server that my iscsi driver is not loaded how would you load this.

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