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Both clustered SAN volumes attached to one ESXi 5.5 host, why?

This is a 2-node ESXi 5.5 hosts, to shared 2 volumes from an SAN iSCSI storage. However, upon the power up, I found that both these SAN volumes attached to only 1 ESXi 5.5 host.

A cluster was created to cover the above 2 hosts. On a esxi cluster, I saw an error message - Insufficient vSphere HA Failover resources, any thing wrong/missing with the ha setup?

Please see my clustering setup:

- there are 2 vSwitches - vswitch0, for VM network and management (nic0, nic1 & nic2)
- vSwitch1, contains iSCSI 1 (nic3, nic 4(unused)) and iSCSI 2 (nic4, nic3 unused), storage
heartbeat (both nic3 and 4), and vMotion (vMotion and mgmt)
- ESXi Clustering:

Cluster Features:            CTS Cluster
                        ¿ Turn on vSphere HA (true)
                        ¿ Turn on vSphere DRS (false)

vSphere HA:        Enable Host Monitoring (true)
                        ¿ Enable: Disallow VM power on operations that violate
                          availability constraints
                        ¿ Host failure the cluster tolerates: 1
VM Monitoring:            Disabled

Datastore Heartbeating:      ¿ Select any of the cluster datastores

VMware EVC:            Disabled

Swapfile Location:            ¿ Store the swapfile in the same directory of the virtual
                          machine (recommended)

How to change so as one clustered volume is attach to one esxi 2 from esxi 1?

Andrew Hancock (VMware vExpert PRO / EE Fellow/British Beekeeper)

if you only have the SAN volumes attached to a single Host, you'll not be able to perform VMware HA?

So why are the iSCSI LUNs missing?

is this a new installation?

Are the LUNs present on the Hosts?

just missing the datastores?

MichaelBalack

ASKER

Hi Hanccocka,

Altogether there are 2 iscsi lun, but both lun are always atteched to esxi 1. My question is, how to change so as lun 1 is attach to esxi 1, and lun 2 move to esxi 2?

MichaelBalack

ASKER

This is a new setup.

Andrew Hancock (VMware vExpert PRO / EE Fellow/British Beekeeper)

All your LUNs, should be attached to both ESXi hosts.

What type of SAN do you have , iSCSI or Fibre Channel?

Did you grant access to both IQN or WWNN for each LUN?

Some SANs you also have to enable, LUN access from multiple IQNs

MichaelBalack

ASKER

Hi Hanccocka,

This is using iscsi san.

both lun have granted access for simultaneous 2 hostss to access, byuqn.

Andrew Hancock (VMware vExpert PRO / EE Fellow/British Beekeeper)

Can you check if the LUNs are present, e.g. check Configuration > Storage Adaptors > iSCSI Software Adaptor?

Have you added the correct IP Address of the SAN to both ESXi hosts?

How did you configure iSCSI?

Are you using Jumbo Frames?

see my EE Article, Step by Step Tutorial Instructions with Screenshots

HOW TO: Add an iSCSI Software Adaptor and Create an iSCSI Multipath Network in VMware vSphere Hypervisor ESXi 5.0

HOW TO: Enable Jumbo Frames on a VMware vSphere Hypervisor (ESXi 5.0) host server using the VMware vSphere Client

can you vmkping the SAN from both host consoles?

MichaelBalack

ASKER

Hi Hanccocka,

Can you check if the LUNs are present, e.g. check Configuration > Storage Adaptors > iSCSI Software Adaptor?

ans: Both LUNs are there

Have you added the correct IP Address of the SAN to both ESXi hosts?

ans: That should be a correct ip. Before creating the clustering, I only allow a single esxi host to 1 volume, and both esxi hosts can detect and attach the LUN without problem. after this, I even setup VMs on both LUNs on different esxi hosts.

How did you configure iSCSI?

ans: Create a vSwitch, in which it contains a vSwitch, iscsi 1 (vmkernel, attach nic1, unused nic2), iscsi 2 (vmkernel, attach nic2, unused nic1), and a iscsi storage (attach both nic1 and 2)

Are you using Jumbo Frames?

ans: Yes, it is. mtu is 9000. This is using DELL PS4100xv, and requested to use this mTU values on switch, iscsi ports.

Andrew Hancock (VMware vExpert PRO / EE Fellow/British Beekeeper)

So, on both hosts, the LUNs are present, but datastores are missing from one?

MichaelBalack

ASKER

Both lun are present on both hosts. The problem is, on esxi 1, when i click virtual machines tab, i saw all 5 vm. But, if on esxi 2, when i click virtual machines tab, i saw none.

2 vm are stored in lun 1, and 3 vm on lun 2.

Andrew Hancock (VMware vExpert PRO / EE Fellow/British Beekeeper)

okay, I beginning to understand, okay if the datastore is missing.

at the console or ssh (remotely) can you type the following:-

esxcfg-volume -l

what is the output

MichaelBalack

ASKER

Hi Hanccocka,

Sorry to make you confuse with my writing based on my understanding about the situation.

I agree I may not fully understand how the cluster work, correct me if I am wrong. This is using a trial version of VMware esxi 5.5, in which HA, vMotion, vMotion storage, and others are available.

Now I managed to see total 5 VMs in the cluster. I can freely move any vm from iscsi LUN 1 to LUN 2 while vm is on, this should be the work of vMotion storage, right? If without vMotion storage, but with vmotion alone, I can't move the vm live, instead, I have to power off and get it migrate, right?

I am sure nothing is incorrectly setup for the cluster ha, as I can migrate a vm to a different host, datastore, or host and datastore, with conditions applied.

Thanks for the patient.

ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION

Andrew Hancock (VMware vExpert PRO / EE Fellow/British Beekeeper)

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MichaelBalack

ASKER

Good