Pivot3 VSTAC Setup Guide

Setup Guide
for Pivot3 vSTAC™ Appliances

Document Version 3.1
August 7, 2015
vSTAC Appliance Setup Guide
Purpose
This edition applies to Version 6.5.x and above of the Pivot3 vSTAC® Operating System and to any
subsequent releases until otherwise indicated in new editions.
This document contains information proprietary to Pivot3, Inc. and shall not be reproduced or transferred to
other documents or used for any purpose other than that for which it was obtained without the express
written consent of Pivot3, Inc.
How to Contact Pivot3
Pivot3, Inc. General information: info@pivot3.com
221 West 6th St., Suite 750 Sales: sales@pivot3.com
Austin, TX 78701 Tech Support: support@pivot3.com
Tel: +1 512-807-2666 Website: www.pivot3.com
Fax: +1 512-807-2669 Online Support: www.pivot3.com/support
EULA & Open Source Notices

During the installation of all Pivot3 software components, a copy of the Pivot3 End User License Agreement
will be placed in a subdirectory called “Documentation” located under the primary installation directory. If
applicable, the Pivot3 Open Source Notices document will also be found in the Documentation subdirectory.
About This Guide

This document provides procedures for:
• Connecting vSTAC Appliances to the SAN and VMware management networks
• Combining vSTAC Appliances to create a vSTAC Protection Group
This guide is written for Service Engineers and System Administrators configuring a Pivot3 vSTAC Protection
Group using VMware. The Pivot3 Appliances should be set up as described in the Pivot3 Hardware
Installation Guide, and the procedures in this document require an understanding of the following:
• The operating systems installed on the application servers connected to the vSTAC Protection Group
• Communication protocols installed on local application servers
• vSphere Client for accessing VMware ESXi hosts or vCenter
© Copyright 2007-2015 Pivot3, Inc.

All rights reserved. Specifications are subject to change without notice. Pivot3, RAIGE, Pivot3 vSTAC, Pivot3 vSTAC OS, Pivot3 vSTAC
Enterprise HCI, Pivot3 vSTAC P Cubed, Pivot3 vSTAC R2S, Pivot3 vSTAC Edge, Pivot3 vSTAC Manager, Pivot3 vSTAC Watch, Pivot3 Virtual
Security Server (VSS), Pivot3 Enterprise HCI, vBank, CloudBank, DataBank, and High-Definition Storage are trademarks or registered
trademarks of Pivot3. All other brands or products are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders and should be
| pivot3.com August 7, 2015 |2

Table of Contents
Install Pivot3 vSTAC Appliances......................................................... 4
Configure ESXi for VMware Management Access .............................. 7
Set up the vSTAC Management Station ........................................... 11
Set the iSCSI IP Addresses for ESXi Hosts ......................................... 13
Configure NIC Ports for Pivot3 Features .......................................... 16
Create a Pivot3 vSTAC Protection Group ......................................... 17
Create the VMware Datastore ........................................................ 22
Pivot3 Proactive Diagnostics (PPD) ................................................. 29
Quick Diagnostics............................................................................ 33
Maintenance Mode......................................................................... 35
Upgrade vSTAC OS on Protection Groups ........................................ 38
Management through SNMP .......................................................... 40
Shutdown Procedure ....................................................................... 43
Appendix A Using vSMS’s Command Line Interface .......................................... 44
Appendix B vSTAC Manager Status Icons and Definitions................................. 45
Appendix C Configuring Pivot3 vSMS for IPv6 Access ....................................... 47
Appendix D Configure NIC Ports for Pivot3 Features in v6.5 ............................. 49

Install Pivot3 vSTAC Appliances

Create a foundation for a fault-tolerant network with Pivot3 vSTAC technology.
This section describes how to:
• Connect Pivot3 vSTAC Appliances and Ethernet switches to create an iSCSI SAN
• Connect Pivot3 vSTAC Appliances to the management network Ethernet switch
Required items for this section:
• Pivot3 vSTAC Appliances and latest Pivot3 Hardware Installation Guide
• An industry standard 19” data center rack
• Two 10 Gigabit Ethernet switches for the Storage Area Networks
• An Ethernet switch for the management network, or if connecting to an existing management network,
an open switch port on the management network Ethernet switch for each vSTAC Appliance
NOTE: Pivot3 vSTAC Appliances have two Network Interface Card (NIC) ports dedicated for iSCSI SAN
connectivity. Each SAN NIC port must be on a different subnet (no routers).
NOTE: 10GbE is required for SAN switch connections. vSTAC versions through 6.0 may leverage 1GbE in
small to medium deployments; however, vSTAC versions 6.5 or later require 10GbE.
NOTE: Pivot3 strongly recommends using two physically separate switches for the SAN Networks, each
dedicated to a different subnet. This protects the vSTAC Protection Group from a single switch failure
and provides the most predictable performance.
Install Pivot3 vSTAC Appliances

Follow the manufacturer’s instructions to install hardware in a 2U rack.
Follow the switch vendor’s instructions to install the Ethernet switches in the rack.
Connect the vSTAC Appliances to the Ethernet switches:
Connect the NIC ports labeled “SAN Network 0” of all Appliances to the Ethernet switch for SAN
Network 0.
Connect the NIC ports labeled “SAN Network 1” of all Appliances to the Ethernet switch for SAN
Network 1.
Connect the NIC ports labeled “Management Network” of all Appliances to the Ethernet switch for
the management network. The Management Network is used to manage vSTAC OS on all appliances
and ESXi if applicable.
Application Network ports are for use with the local application network if applicable. Connect as
needed. Note that vSTAC Data Appliances do not have this port.
NOTE: For simplicity, this guide refers to “SAN Network 0” and “SAN Network 1” throughout. Local network
naming conventions may vary.

Hard Disk Numbering for Lenovo RD650 Flash

0 4
1 5
2 6
3 7

Hard Disk Numbering for Pivot3 2U Appliances

0 3 6 9
1 4 7 10
2 5 8 11
Rear-Facing SSD Numbering
12 13
Hard Disk Numbering for Pivot3 1U Appliance

0 1 2 3

Configure ESXi for VMware Management Access

VMware ESXi is the hypervisor for the vSTAC Watch, Edge, and Enterprise HCI platforms. As ESXi patches and
updates become available, functionalities may change; patching or updating ESXi past the level recommended
for the currently released vSTAC OS version is a calculated risk. Pivot3 recommends using only the version of
ESXi supported by the current vSTAC OS version.
• Configure the Management Network settings for ESXi on new Pivot3 vSTAC Appliances
• Allow Appliances to be accessed by VMware management tools
VMware documentation:
More information on getting started with ESXi is available from VMware.

• Pivot3 vSTAC Appliances that have been installed as detailed in Section 1 and are powered on
• A keyboard and monitor or KVM connection to each Appliance
Configure the IP addresses for the VMware Management Network

The Management Network must be configured before VMware management tools can manage the vSTAC
Appliances.
NOTE: When using DHCP, the IP address is automatically determined and displayed on the console. Make a
note of the IP address assigned and skip to Section 3.
Connect the vSTAC Appliance to a KVM or connect a keyboard and monitor. The monitor shows the
VMware ESXi direct console.
Press <F2> to login to the ESXi console. The default user name is root and the default password is
vSphereP3. Press <Enter>.

ESXi displays the System Customization screen. (Password can be configured whenever it is convenient.
Remember to make a note of Administrator credentials when set. User name and password can be
reset, but credentials will not be recoverable if lost or forgotten.)
Use the up and down arrow keys on the keyboard to highlight Configure Management Network. Press
<Enter>.
On the Configure Management Network screen, use the up and down arrow keys on the keyboard to
highlight IP Configuration. Press <Enter>.

If there is a DHCP server on the VMware Management Network, select the top option in the display
dialog, Use dynamic IP address & network configuration. The values for IP Address, Subnet Mask, and
Default Gateway will be set dynamically by the DHCP server. Make a note of the IP address for this host.
NOTE: If using Use dynamic IP address & network configuration, ensure that the IP address of the ESXi host
does not change on reboot. If the host IP changes on reboot, VMware management tools will not
be able to autoconnect to the ESXi host.
If there is not a DHCP server on the VMware Management Network, the values for IP Address, Subnet
Mask, and Default Gateway must all be manually entered. Select the second option on the display
console, Set static IP address and network configuration, and complete the manual entry of values for
IP Address, Subnet Mask, and Default Gateway. Make a note of this host’s IP address. Once completed,
press <Enter> to return to the Configure Management Network screen.
OPTIONAL: If the VMware Management Network is using DNS, on the Configure Management Network
screen, select DNS Configuration. Press <Enter>.

With a choice of Obtain DNS server addresses and a hostname automatically, the selection task will be
completed automatically. Simply press the Enter key to move through this screen. The other available
option, Use the following DNS server addresses and hostname, requires that the information be
entered manually and connected to host name that is unique on the network. Once complete, press
<Enter> to return to the Configure Management Network screen.
NOTE: In order for vCenter to communicate with the host, the hostname must be resolvable on the network
from vCenter, ESXi host in cluster, client PC, and any 3rd party tool that references the host by
hostname.
Press <Esc> to return to the System Customization screen. If any changes were made to the
Management Network settings, a confirmation prompt will appear. Press <Y> to apply the changes and
restart the management network.
Repeat Steps 1-10 for each of the vSTAC Appliances.
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Set up the vSTAC Management Station

The vSTAC Management Station must be properly set up to manage Appliances, and a critical part of this
procedure is downloading and installing vSTAC Manager Suite (vSMS) and vSphere Client.
• Install all vSMS Software on a computer (referred to as the Management Station) connected to the
Management Network or iSCSI SAN networks as applicable
• Install vSphere Client
• A computer running Microsoft Windows with:
 IP connectivity to the management network
 Access to the Internet. If access to the Internet is not available, obtain the latest vSphere Client
installation package from VMware.
• Pivot3 Software and Documentation from the Pivot3 Support Portal
• Completed installation and configuration steps in Section 1 and Section 2.
• ESXi host IP address of one system that was configured in Section 2.
Install vSTAC Manager Software

Launch vSTAC_Manager_<software-version>.exe from the software package that was distributed with the
Pivot3 hardware. Follow the step-by-step wizard to complete the installation.
vSTAC Manager provides live status reporting of each component within a Protection Group. The graphic
descriptors are listed and explained in Appendix B vSTAC Manager Status Icons and Definitions.
Pivot3 strongly recommends that Pivot3 Proactive Diagnostics (Optional) remains checked. The benefits of
PPD will be explained in more detail in Section 8.
Install VMware vSphere Client

Launch a browser window.
Type the ESXi host IP address of one of the ESXi hosts in the address bar.
The browser may display an error message indicating a problem with the security certificate or the
connection is untrusted. Continue with the connection to the address anyway.

VMware ESXi displays the Welcome screen.
Select Download vSphere Client as seen above.

Save the vSphere Client file to the local hard drive.
Once download is complete, navigate to the location where the vSphere Client file was saved and run
the .exe, following prompts to complete the installation.
For more VMware information on vSphere Administration
Documents are available from VMware that help explain:
• Using vSphere Client
• Installation and configuration of vCenter Server
• Managing ESXi and vCenter Server licenses

Set the iSCSI IP Addresses for ESXi Hosts

This section explains how to set the IP addresses that will be used by the iSCSI initiator on each VMware ESXi
host. The ESXi iSCSI initiator will be used to connect to Pivot3 logical volumes that will serve as VMware
datastores. These steps will ensure that the iSCSI initiator has fault-tolerant connections to each volume.
• Use vSphere Client to configure the VMkernel Ports on the vSphere switches associated with the SAN
Networks and Management NIC
• The IP addressing information (IP addresses, subnet masks, and any default gateways) for the SAN
Networks and Management NIC
The following procedure must be repeated for each vSTAC Appliance:
Launch VMware vSphere Client. In the IP address / Name: field, enter the VMware Management
Network IP address of the first vSTAC Appliance to be configured that will host virtual machines. These
are the ESXi host IP addresses configured in Section 2. The default user name is root and the default
password is vSphereP3.
After vSphere Client has connected, select the IP address in the left pane.
Select the Configuration tab.
In the Hardware panel, select Networking. The following steps in this section will describe how to
modify vSwitch0 associated with Management NIC, vSwitch1 associated with SAN Network 0, and
vSwitch 2 associated with SAN Network 1.
Click Properties… for vSwitch1.

The vSwitch1 Properties dialog is displayed. On the Ports tab, select the entry for SAN iSCSI VMK 0 and
then click the Edit… button.
The SAN iSCSI VMK 0 Properties dialog are displayed. Select the IP Settings tab. The default setting is to
obtain IP settings automatically.

To manually enter this information, click the Use the following IP settings: radio button and enter a
valid IP address and subnet mask that are useable for SAN Network 0.
WARNING: Do not edit the Default Gateway here. The iSCSI VMK will not need a unique value.
Click the OK button to exit the SAN iSCSI VMK 0 Properties dialog. Select the Close button to exit the
vSwitch1 Properties dialog.
Repeat Steps 1-9 for vSwitch2. Select SAN iSCSI VMK 1 in Step 6 and use valid IP settings for SAN
Network 1 in Step 8.
Repeat Steps 1-9 for Management NIC in vSwitch0. Select Management NIC in Step 6 and use valid IP
settings for Management NIC in Step 8.
IPv6 settings can be left as default or configured as desired for the local network.

Configure NIC Ports for Pivot3 Features

The SAN Networks managed through vSTAC Operating System operate on an isolated network, processing
storage data through physical switches. Isolating the SAN Networks provides greater security by leaving the
Management and Application networks available to run virtual machines and support an application-specific
configured environment.
CAUTION: If IPv6 has not yet been enabled on the network, follow the procedure in Appendix C Configuring
Pivot3 vSMS for IPv6 Access before beginning this section’s procedure.

• Configure the Management NIC settings in vSTAC Manager for direct control over the Management
Network.
• Pivot3 vSTAC Appliance with vSTAC OS that has been installed, powered on, and is visible by vSMS.
• Access to a DHCP Server or desired static IP Address, Subnet Mask, and Default Gateway settings
CRITICAL: Many Pivot3 features will not function correctly without a Management NIC defined.
Configure Management NIC Within vSMS
When the Management Station is on the same network as the Protection Group, this can be done through
vSTAC Manager Suite. If the Management Station is on a separate network or the Management NIC is
purposely not included at this time, follow the procedure in Appendix D Configure NIC Ports for Pivot3
Features in v6.5.
In vSTAC Manager’s Physical view, highlight an Appliance (either within a Protection Group or
Unassigned) and click Configuration > Management NIC.
Determine how the IP address should be set. For the Management NIC, there are two configuration
options and one “Disable Management NIC” option.
Click the radio button next to Specify Static IP Addresses and enter Subnet Mask and IP Address.
Click Apply.
Alternatively, if there is a trusted DHCP server on the network, choose Obtain DHCP IP Address.
Click Apply.

Create a Pivot3 vSTAC Protection Group

This section explains how to assign Pivot3 vSTAC Appliances to a new Pivot3 vSTAC Protection Group, name the
Protection Group, and set IP addresses for the Appliances in the Protection Group.
• Discover the Pivot3 Appliances in the vSTAC Domain
• Create the vSTAC Protection Group
• The user name and password to be initially used for the Protection Group Administrator, if applicable
• The name to be assigned to the vSTAC Protection Group
• The IP addressing information (IP addresses, subnet masks, and any applicable default gateways) for the
SAN Networks
Determine Desired Security Level

vSTAC Manager offers two security levels in which to set up and manage the vSTAC Protection Groups that
are defined in the domain: Require Administrator Login Mode and Disable Administrator Login Mode.
During initial launch, the option to Disable Administrator Login is offered.
NOTE: The username must be 2-15 keyboard characters long and the password must be 2-15 characters
long (no spaces, “&,” or “<” allowed). Both must begin with a letter (A-Z, a-z).
Login Mode Security Level Description

Require High (with appropriate At every launch, vSTAC Manager checks Administrator
Administrator password and normal credentials (username and password) against all existing
Login security precautions) Protection Groups’ setup credentials to determine which
Appliances should be displayed as accessible for the current
Administrator.
NOTE: Each vSTAC Protection Group can have the same or
different Administrator credentials.
Disable None – Data security must vSTAC Manager bypasses the login dialog completely. Only
Administrator be driven externally. Protection Groups with no assigned credentials will be
Login accessible.
NOTE: Any Protection Groups that have been created with
Administrator credentials will show up as “Access
Denied” in vSTAC Manager view.
• To re-enable login requirements after they have been disabled, click Configuration > Require
Administrator Login. Follow the prompts and restart vSTAC Manager.
Launch vSTAC Manager

Launch vSTAC Manager installed in Section 3 and go to the Physical tab view.
Create a Protection Group

Member Appliances are combined into a vSTAC Protection Group, allowing them to be viewed and managed
as a single, unified storage system.

NOTE: An Appliance can only be a member of one vSTAC Protection Group.
While still under the Physical tab of the vSTAC Manager’s navigation pane, click on any desired
unassigned Appliance.
Click Create vSTAC Protection Group in the Quick Links section. (Alternatively this can be done by right-
clicking an available Appliance on the Physical tab of the navigation pane.)
Choose the desired member Appliances for the Protection Group from the available options on the next
screen. vSTAC Manager will offer as many unassigned Appliances as are available and manageable with
the current Administrator’s credentials.
NOTE: Protection Groups cannot be set up with two Appliances.
Give the Protection Group a unique name of up to 15 alpha-numeric characters.

Set Hypervisor Credentials

In order to provide support for all features, vSMS and vSTAC OS require administrator-level access to each
ESXi hypervisor in the domain.
NOTE: All ESXi hypervisors on the vSTAC Protection Group member appliances must accept the same login
credentials to perform VM configuration operations.
In vSTAC Manager, highlight the desired Protection Group from the Physical tab view.
NOTE: If the login credentials for any ESXi hypervisor are invalid, vSTAC Manager will report the Pivot3 VM
Failover status as Access Denied.
Navigate to Configuration > Hypervisor Login Credentials.
Enter the credentials as requested.

NOTE: Specifying the ESXi hypervisor login credentials does not set or change the credentials on the
individual hypervisors. It simply tells vSTAC Manager and vSTAC OS which credentials are required
for ESXi hypervisor access.
NOTE: Only enter vCenter credentials if vCenter is expected to be used; the checkbox must be selected in
order to enable this option. De-selecting this checkbox removes these credentials, and may affect
system functionality.

Assign IP Addresses for iSCSI Connectivity

At this point, static IP addresses must be assigned to the vSTAC Appliances so that the iSCSI initiator can
connect to Pivot3 logical volumes and send I/O. Each storage NIC on every member Appliance must be
assigned a unique static IP address. If the static IP addresses have been preconfigured, this step is used to
validate the IP addresses of all Appliances in the expected subnets.
There are two ways to complete this step.
Manually enter the IP addresses to be assigned to each NIC in every Appliance (preferred), or
Allow vSTAC Manager to automatically generate IP addresses for the member Appliance.
Regardless of the method chosen, values must be entered in the subnet information table for each SAN
Network. vSTAC Manager will automatically fill in the following values if any Appliance has a static or DHCP
address:
• Subnet Mask –by default is assigned the common Class C value of 255.255.255.0 for each subnet. This
value may be changed based on the IP address requirements of the local SAN Networks.
• Network Address – enter a unique value for each subnet. This is the value of the Network Portion of a
full IP address after applying the Subnet Mask value.
• Default Gateway – set only if a SAN Network is routable to another IP subnet. In most configurations,
this field will be left blank.
For IP address manual entry, enter the desired (and verified available) IP addresses into each NIC for
every Appliance until all IP addresses have been entered. Ensure that the IP addresses are valid and
available on the network.
NOTE: The IP Addresses for NIC 0 must all be on the subnet defined by Subnet 0; the IP Addresses for NIC 1
must all be on the subnet defined by Subnet 1.
For vSTAC Manager to automatically generate IP addresses, enter Subnet Mask data and Default
Gateway if applicable. The option Auto Generate IP Addresses will activate in the Specify IP Addresses
dialog box. Click this link.

Another dialog box will open. Enter values in the Start Address box for each subnet. These values will be
assigned to the associated NICs for the first vSTAC Appliance. vSTAC Manager then increments the Host
portion of the Start Address for each subnet and sequentially assigns IP addresses to the remaining
Appliances.
Click Apply.
CAUTION: Automatic generation of IP addresses should be used ONLY when there is a contiguous block of
available IP addresses across the Protection Group. Ensure that all IP addresses are currently
unused on the subnet. Contact a network administrator for assistance.
Once all IP addresses have been entered or generated, click Finish or Next as applicable.
Verify Administrator credentials (user name and password) if applicable. vSTAC Manager will begin the
Protection Group creation process. This may take several minutes to complete; the time varies
depending on the number of Appliances.
vSTAC Manager will display the Protection Group once it has been completed.
Best Practices: Using vSTAC Manager Software
Recommended best practices:
• If using Administrator login credentials, configure a second Protection Group Administrator as a backup.
After a Protection Group is created, use vSTAC Manager to set up an additional Protection Group
Administrator. Select Administrators from the Configuration menu to add a new administrator.
• When using any vSTAC Manager Wizard, to understand why the Next or Finish button is not enabled,
mouse over the button to see a pop-up explanation.

Create the VMware Datastore

This section explains how to use vSTAC Manager to create a logical volume for the VMware Datastore. It
describes the available RAID protection levels and setting rebuild priority, capacity, and iSCSI Initiator access to
the volume. Note that this may require working with two applications open at the same time, so the steps below
call out the application at the beginning of each step when a change is required.
Within a vSTAC Storage Tier, the administrator can allocate available capacity into logical volumes. A logical
volume is physically distributed across all of the devices of the host Storage Tier type on all physical Appliances
in a vSTAC. This approach utilizes the I/O potential from every Appliance and allows the I/O potential for logical
volumes containing frequently accessed data to be increased by adding additional vSTAC Appliances to the host
vSTAC Protection Group.
The host operating system, however, still views the logical volume as a single storage unit. The Administrator
can name the logical volume, define its capacity, set its protection (RAID) level, and determine individual backup
and recovery options.
• Create a logical volume using vSTAC Manager
• Create a datastore using vSphere Client
• Configure access to the datastore by multiple ESXi hosts
• Volume name to be assigned
• RAID protection desired
• Usable capacity in gigabytes (GB) which is defined as 230 = 1073741824 bytes
• Host identifier value to be used to grant access (must be identical to iSCSI Alias)
• CHAP secret requirements (if applicable)
Create a Logical Volume

Launch vSTAC Manager. In the Logical view tab, the storage type used in each Protection Group is listed
under the desired Protection Group name. Select the Storage Tier on the vSTAC Protection Group that
will host the logical volume.
Launch the Create Logical Volume wizard by clicking on the option from Quick Links on the right side of
the screen.
Follow the instructions in the Create Logical Volume wizard.

First, create the logical volume name (called MyVolume in the example below). The name must be
unique within the Protection Group and comprised of 1-15 alpha-numeric characters.
Assign the settings to the logical volume.

• QoS (Quality of Service) – determines the rebuild priority of the logical volume versus other volumes.
• RAID Level – RAID protection levels are provided to meet the data protection goals of each application.
Not all supported RAID levels may be available due to Appliance or drive failures, or available capacity
constraints. Only the RAID levels compatible with the current drive and volume will be displayed in the
drop-down menu.
• Usable Capacity – the amount of usable storage for the logical volume. vSTAC Manager uses “GB” and
“TB” to mean standards based on binary multiples of the byte. For example, 1 GB in vSMS is 230 bytes. 1
TB in vSMS is 240 bytes.
Single-Appliance Protection Group RAID Levels
RAID 1 Disk mirroring within the Appliance.
RAID 5 Striping with parity.
RAID 6 Protects against up to two drive failures.
Multi-Appliance Protection Group RAID Levels Supported in Maintenance Mode, recommended
RAID 1e* Protects up to 1 disk or 1 appliance failure. Enhanced network mirroring. The protection
capacity required for RAID 1e is 100% of the primary data. RAID 1e protects against the
failure of any drive in the Protection Group. The “e” indicates enhanced RAID 1 since data is
also protected if an entire Appliance fails.
RAID 1p Protects up to 3 simultaneous disk failures or 1 disk and 1 appliance failure.
Mirroring within the Appliance and enhanced network mirroring across the Protection
Group. RAID 1p provides the same amount of data protection as RAID 6e and RAID 6p;
however, it provides a much higher level of random write performance at the expense of
storage capacity.
RAID 5e* Protects up to 1 disk or 1 appliance failure. Enhanced striping with parity. The “e”
indicates the enhanced RAID 5 protection for all drives in the Appliance.

*- RAID 1e and 5e are the only supported RAID levels available on blade servers.
Multi-Appliance Protection Group RAID Levels Supported in Maintenance Mode, recommended
RAID 6e Protects up to 3 simultaneous disk failures or 1 disk and 1 appliance failure.
Enhanced striping with disk parity. This is a valid choice for Protection Groups utilizing vSTAC
Watch or vSTAC Data Appliances with three or more Appliances. The “e” indicates enhanced.
RAID 6p Protects up to 3 simultaneous disk failures or 1 disk and 1 appliance failure.
Enhanced striping with dual disk parity. RAID 6p is a tradeoff between 1p and 6e and
provides greater random write performance than 6e along with better capacity efficiency
than 1p.
RAID 6x Protects up to 5 simultaneous disk failures or 2 disks and 1 appliance failure.
Enhanced striping with dual disk parity. This is a valid choice for Protection Groups utilizing
vSTAC Watch or vSTAC Data Appliances with three or more Appliances. The “x” indicates
expanded RAID 6 since data is also protected against five simultaneous disk failures, or the
failure of two drives and an entire Appliance.
The minimum capacity for a logical volume is 1GB. Capacity must be specified in 1GB increments. The
maximum usable capacity is displayed under the Capacity text field and is updated when the RAID Level is
changed. Changing the RAID level updates the maximum usable capacity. The Next button will be enabled or
disabled based on remaining capacity.
NOTE: To dynamically expand capacity or change the RAID level of a logical volume, these options are
available under Quick Links when the volume is selected from the Logical tab view. Access Control for
a volume may also be modified from this area.
• If desired, enable CHAP (Challenge Handshake Authentication Protocol) authentication. CHAP is an
optional security mechanism that allows network entities to perform additional authentication. If this
box is checked, iSCSI initiators must provide the correct CHAP secret when accessing the logical volume.
If this box is not checked, no CHAP secret will be required.
After entering the name and settings, click Next.
The second step is to define the access control for the volume. This step allows the option of specifying
the initial Host Identifier and its access rights. Additionally, set its CHAP secret value if CHAP is being
used.
NOTE: The Host Identifier in vSMS is not case sensitive. All iSCSI names are converted to lowercase
internally. Therefore APPSERVER, appserver, and ApPsErVeR are all considered to be the same name.
In the Host Identifier field, enter a valid identifier value; either a unique iSCSI name or the iSCSI Alias if
already configured. This value is required in a later step to configure the iSCSI initiator on each ESXi host
of the vSTAC Appliances in a Protection Group.

Next, ensure the Access field is set to Read/Write. Finally, set the CHAP secret value if CHAP is enabled.
Click Next.
NOTE: If applicable, this step is the only time that the CHAP Secret will be visible. Save this value for future
reference. The CHAP secret can be changed or deleted later.
The final step to create a logical volume is to confirm its settings. As shown in this example, the logical
volume’s capacity is 1.953 TB (3.455 TB total); additional storage will be allocated from the Protection
Group for RAID protection parity and sparing. Check the information in the Confirmation dialog, and if
editing is needed click Back and make corrections. If no editing is needed, click Finish to continue.
Storage capacity from the vSTAC Protection Group has been allocated to the logical volume and is now
ready to be configured as a VMware datastore.

Create the VMware Datastore

From the Management Station, launch VMware vSphere Client. In the IP address / Name: field, enter
the VMware Management Network IP address of the first vSTAC Appliance to be configured that will
host virtual machines. These are the ESXi host IP addresses configured in Section 4. The default user
name is root and the default password is vSphereP3.
After vSphere Client has connected, select the IP address in the left pane.
Select the Configuration tab.
In the Hardware panel, select Storage Adapters.
In the Storage Adapters list, select the iSCSI device under iSCSI Software Adapter. In the Details panel
below the Storage Adapters list, click on the Properties… link on the right side of the panel.
The iSCSI Initiator Properties dialog is displayed. On the General tab, select the button labeled
Configure….
The General Properties dialog is displayed. Click Configure... In the iSCSI Alias field, enter the Host
Identifier value used during the creation of the datastore logical volume. Select OK to save the alias.
NOTE: The Alias entered in the General Properties dialog MUST be identical to the Host Identifier entered
during the creation of the volume.
The Alias field in the iSCSI Properties section of the General tab of the iSCSI Initiator Properties dialog
should now display the Host Identifier value. Select Close to close the dialog.
Click Rescan All… at the top right of the dialog. Leave both boxes checked as default. Click OK. Watch
that the scan completes in the bottom pane under Recent Tasks. When the Status shows “Completed,”
the new volume should become visible in the dialog.
Next, in the Hardware panel, click Storage. Click Add Storage. The Add Storage dialog displays. Under
Storage Type, either leave the default or select Disk/LUN and click Next. vSphere displays the Add
Storage wizard. The name of the new volume is now visible in Select Disc LUN. Highlight it. Click Next to
navigate through setting the options in this wizard.
In File System Version, review and click Next.

In Current Disk Layout, review and click Next.
In Properties, enter a unique datastore name.

In Disk/LUN - Formatting, the size of the logical volume created at the beginning of this section will
dictate the maximum file size available for the Datastore. Depending on preference, choose Maximum
available space or set a Custom space setting by entering a value no greater than the presented
maximum available space. The two options are equivalent if not modified.
Click Next.

The last part of the Wizard displays the Ready to Complete dialog. Review and click Finish.
Monitor the Recent Tasks pane at the bottom of the vSphere Client dialog for “Completed” to display
beside Create VMFS datastore.
Close vSphere Client by selecting Exit from the File menu.

Repeat Steps 1 – 9 for the remaining vSTAC Appliances that will be hosting virtual machines to allow ESXi
on those Appliances to access the datastore.
After the rescan performed in Step 9, the datastore should automatically be added and configured for use by
the ESXi host. Verify this has been done by selecting Storage in the Hardware panel and viewing the list of
datastores.
NOTE: Exit vSphere Client after each Appliance is successfully configured.

Pivot3 Proactive Diagnostics (PPD)

Pivot3 implemented an optional proactive diagnostic component in the 6.0 upgrade of vSMS. This feature allows
Pivot3 visibility into how the product is being used and how it can be improved. Customers may also initiate a
support agreement with Pivot3 that will allow Pivot3 to proactively monitor the vSTAC Domain and notify the
customer if any issues are detected.
• Configure PPD within vSMS for optional proactive diagnostic service from Pivot3 support
• A computer running Microsoft Windows with:
 vSMS as installed in Section 3
 Access to the Internet (outgoing port 443/TCP to ppd.pivot3.com)
What is PPD?
Pivot3 Proactive Diagnostics is an optional service that allows vSMS to report diagnostic system metadata to
Pivot3 Support. Reported information includes Appliance health, Protection Group performance, logical
volume operational errors, and vSMS reported error diagnostics. No confidential or secure data is conveyed
through this feature, and using it is optional.
Once enabled, Pivot3 Proactive Diagnostics runs as a service that starts automatically when the
Management Station is powered on.
The Pivot3 Proactive Diagnostic Service monitors the local subnets and, optionally, client-specified subnets
to monitor the vSTAC Domain accessible using the configured Administrator credentials.
When the PPD service is enabled, the status of the current vSTAC domain will be uploaded to Pivot3 Support
approximately once every 24 hours. Pivot3 will notify the registered contact when there are conditions that
may lead to potential data loss or reduced performance. The PPD service must be enabled on a computer
that will have continuous access to both the vSTAC Domain and the Internet.
A valid Proactive Diagnostic ID is required to receive notifications from Pivot3. A free PPD ID will be provided
to enable notifications on all appliances that have Pivot3 Premium Support (or better). Complete the
Contact Information tab and check the Enable box on this tab to receive a PPD ID. An email with the PPD ID
will be sent to the specified contact once eligibility has been verified. Pivot3 Support will not send out
notifications until the PPD ID has been registered in this wizard.
CAUTION: Pivot3 has no obligation to take action regarding any conditions that are detected until a valid
PPD ID associated with an active support agreement is included.
Some conditions detected by Pivot3 Proactive Diagnostics

• Degraded, Offline, Not Ready, or Not Booted vSTAC Protection Groups
• Degraded or Failed vSTAC Appliances
• Degraded or Failed Drives
• Abnormal Drive error rates
• Degraded or Failed Volumes
• Abnormal Volume media errors
• Network connection issues
• Degraded or Failed vSTAC Data environmental status

Pivot3 Proactive Diagnostics Service can initiate the customer support process to correct these issues before
they become critical.
The PPD versions monitor will also notify you when updates to the vSTAC Operating System are available
and will identify critical updates to further protect network investment and critical data.
To provide this protection, the PPD Service needs to be configured with the administrator login credentials
of the vSTAC Domain.
The PPD Service can be configured to monitor vSTAC Domains on Subnets not directly accessible to the
client executing the Pivot3 Proactive Diagnostics Service.
NOTE: Pivot3 Proactive Diagnostics is disabled by default and must be enabled before monitoring will begin.
Pivot3 Proactive Diagnostics is an optional component during vSTAC Manager installation. It is highly
recommended that this box remain checked and PPD is installed with the rest of the Management
Station configuration in Section 3 of this guide. No data is sent to Pivot3 unless PPD is also enabled after
installation.
To activate PPD, complete the installation and setup of the Management Station as instructed in Section
3.
Click on the vSTAC Domain header in the tree to the left. Then click Configuration > Proactive
Diagnostics. A dialog box will appear.

Click the first tab, Enable Proactive Diagnostics. Click the checkbox in front of “Enable Proactive
Diagnostics” at the bottom. Enter the Proactive Diagnostics ID associated with a purchased support
agreement and click Apply.
To monitor subnets not connected to the PPD client, click on the Monitored Discovery Paths Tab.
NOTE: The Monitored Discovery Paths option is not the recommended configuration for PPD.
To add remote appliances to PPD monitoring, enter the IP address for one network from the appliance
and click “Add Path.” The IP address will then show up in the “Monitored Paths” area. Repeat for each
network on each remote appliance.
To remove an unneeded IP address from PPD monitoring, highlight the IP address to be deleted in the
“Monitored Paths” area and click the Remove Path button.

The last tab in the PPD dialog is the Contact Information Tab. Any information entered into these blanks
will accompany the report sent by vSTAC Manager and provided to the Pivot3 support team.
NOTE: Pivot3 is under no obligation to notify customers of any issues except as provided by a support
agreement that includes Proactive Diagnostics and PPD ID is correctly configured.
Verify Proactive Diagnostics

In the Logical or Physical tab view, highlight the desired domain.
Click View > Proactive Diagnostics Status.
PPD will display all monitored domain data and service exceptions for the current Administrator’s
domain. Verify that the Protection Group components are categorized correctly.

Quick Diagnostics
Quick Diagnostics is separate from Pivot3 Proactive Diagnostics (explained in Section 8) in that the Quick
Diagnostics log file is essentially an integrated event log. These event logs are useful for troubleshooting and
diagnostics, especially under the guidance of Pivot3 Support.
• Retrieve and view a Quick Diagnostics File
• Open a previously saved Quick Diagnostics File
• Read and understand a Quick Diagnostics File
• Pivot3 vSTAC Manager installed as per Section 3.
Pull a Quick Diagnostics File

There are three ways to retrieve a Quick Diagnostics File:
With vSTAC Manager on the Physical tab view, select a Protection Group or Unassigned Appliance (not
Domain) for which to retrieve a Quick Diagnostics file.
Click View > Quick Diagnostics.
vSMS will parse the file. Then the Appliance’s Quick Diagnostics window will show all of the events
that have been logged on this Appliance.
NOTE: The log retrieved by Quick Diagnostics is cumulative from setup and log entries are very rarely
deleted.
To save a copy of the Quick Diagnostics log for further use or to send to support:
Highlight the Appliance (Assigned or Unassigned) to retrieve Quick Diagnostics on.
Click Help > Support > Save Diagnostics > Quick Diagnostics

Determine where to save the Quick Diagnostics file on the local Management Station. vSMS will
name the file according to its pre-configured naming convention and provide the option to open the
file.
To view a previously saved Quick Diagnostics file, highlight the active vSTAC Domain in vSTAC Manager.
Click View > Saved Quick Diagnostics Archive.
Navigate to where the Quick Diagnostics .tar file has been saved, and select the correct file.
Click Open.
Reading a Quick Diagnostics File
There are three degrees of event severity within two network scopes in the Quick Diagnostics log entries:
Major, Minor, and Informational for either Appliance or Protection Group. Each system event is logged and
categorized for the Quick Diagnostics Report and displayed in reverse chronological order (the most recent
event is listed first).
The top half of the Quick Diagnostics window contains all log entries for the selected component. The
bottom half of the Quick Diagnostics window gives a short explanation of the log entry.
vSTAC Manager provides view options with the arrow icon on the right of the log entries. A Quick-Save
function is also available in this area.

Maintenance Mode
What is Maintenance Mode?
Maintenance Mode is an intermediary status for vSTAC OS and vSTAC Management Suite to send a server
into while preparing the vSTAC environment for hardware or configuration changes, changing ElastiCache™
settings, or many other situations concerning vSTAC OS and / or the ESXi hypervisor. To perform externally
driven system changes, this status must be set manually through vSMS or through vSphere.
There are two functional “levels” of Maintenance Mode, and each provides access to different aspects of
the Pivot3 vSTAC Protection Group. vSTAC Manager’s Maintenance Mode provides access to vSTAC OS in
the Protection Group, and Maintenance Mode built into VMware vSphere works exclusively with ESXi
settings. vSTAC Manager and vSphere work behind the scenes to activate this status and provide maximum
transparency.
Before Entering Maintenance Mode

Ensure the following conditions are true before attempting to enter Maintenance Mode in either vSTAC
Management Suite or VMware vSphere Client environment:
• The host to be entered into Maintenance Mode is in a vSTAC Protection Group with a configured
volume
• RAID level on volume will support Maintenance Mode, as defined on p.23, RAID Level
• The Pivot3 VM is powered on and in a ready state
• The Protection Group is made up of at least three appliance nodes or at least four blade nodes. Single-
node Protection Groups cannot take advantage of Maintenance Mode, and all Protection Group
requirements mentioned in Section 6 still apply.
Changes to vSTAC OS: Access Maintenance Mode through vSMS

For virtual maintenance or changes needed not affecting hardware or ESXi, use vSTAC Manager to enter
Maintenance Mode.
Enter Maintenance Mode through vSMS
On the Physical tab within vSTAC Manager, click on the Pivot3 host to be entered into Maintenance
Mode.
Click Configuration in the top menu and navigate to Maintenance Mode as shown below.

A dialog box will pop up to confirm this choice. To continue, click Yes.
NOTE: Depending on type and name of the host being sent into Maintenance Mode, this verbiage will differ
slightly.
Maintenance Mode status will be visible in both tabs of vSTAC Manager. While Maintenance Mode is
active, affected elements will be highlighted yellow and given a small icon .
Now that the host is in Maintenance Mode, install or upgrade as necessary. Other hosts in the
Protection Group will take on extra work to provide a seamless experience for the end user and I/O will
continue as needed. Writes stored on the Protection Group during Maintenance Mode will then be
written to the host during synchronization.
NOTE: Depending on RAID Level chosen, additional failures within the Protection Group during this
procedure may reboot the Protection Group and cause the host in Maintenance Mode to fail out of
the Protection Group. This situation will require a rebuild, and is the main reason Pivot3
recommends choosing the strongest RAID level available during initial setup.
Exit Maintenance Mode

After all maintenance has been completed, the host will need to be taken out of Maintenance Mode via
vSTAC Manager.
Highlight the relevant host in the Physical tab and navigate to Configuration > Maintenance Mode.
NOTE: Hosts can not exit from Maintenance Mode until vSTAC Manager monitors a full power cycle and
the host has completely rebooted. Any attempts to exit Maintenance Mode before then will cause an
error; simply try again later. This process may be viewed via VMware vSphere’s Console tab to
actively monitor full power cycle completion.
When the dialog pops up to confirm, click Yes.
Changes to ESXi or Hardware: Access Maintenance Mode through vSphere

If the changes involve hardware or ESXi configuration, enter Maintenance Mode through vSphere.
Note: All VMs other than the Pivot3 VM on this host must be powered off, or the appliance will not fully
enter Maintenance Mode through vSphere.
Ensure all VMs other than Pivot3_VM are powered off.

Right-click the host’s IP address in vSphere and choose Enter Maintenance Mode.
The next step is to enter maintenance mode, but first power down any VMs other than the Pivot3 VM
residing on the host.
A dialog box will warn of VMs that have not yet been powered off. Click Yes and wait until the Enter
maintenance mode task reads Completed in the Recent Tasks section of vSphere.
NOTE: Enter Maintenance Mode task may hang at 100% for a few moments. Continue waiting until the
Status changes to Completed (should take no longer than 1 hour). If the task continues to hang,
check Quick Diagnostics Viewer in vSTAC Manager to begin troubleshooting.
Now that the host has fully entered Maintenance Mode, perform maintenance as needed to ESXi or
physical hardware settings.
Exit Maintenance Mode
After all maintenance has been completed, the host will need to be taken out of Maintenance Mode
through vSphere. Ensure the hardware is powered on and ready.
Right-click the host IP in vSphere and choose Exit Maintenance Mode.
vSTAC Manager should recognize when the hypervisor has released from Maintenance Mode and will
update statuses accordingly.

Upgrade vSTAC OS on Protection Groups

This section explains the upgrade procedure for the vSTAC OS on Pivot3 Protection Groups.
• Upgrade the vSTAC OS on Pivot3 Protection Groups
• Access to the Internet or the latest vSTAC OS software package from Pivot3
Determine Upgrade Required

Ensure the software package received is the latest version of the vSTAC OS and that the .zip file is fully
extracted into its own directory folder.
If PPD is installed and the Management Station is connected to the internet, vSTAC Manager identifies
outdated Operating Systems on Appliances and will highlight them and display “Critical Upgrade
Required.”
With the Protection Group highlighted in the Physical tab view of STAC Manager, click Configuration >
vSTAC OS.
Make a note of the active OS version on the Appliance(s) to be upgraded and whether there is an
available or required upgrade.
Click Browse and navigate to the unzipped software package procured from Pivot3.
Choose the .upg file and click Select.
NOTE: Any upgrade from vSTAC OS version 5.x to 6.x requires Pivot3 support and will not follow this
documented procedure exactly.
Between version 6.0 and 6.5, vSTAC Manager may require validation of the hypervisor information
before upgrade (See Specific Issues by Upgrade). Verify the vSphere IP address and Administrator
credentials for correctness. Once all IP addresses have been populated correctly, click Next.

vSTAC OS 6.5.x and above provides Online and Offline upgrade options, and vSTAC Manager will disable
choices that are not available. Choose the preferred method and click Start Upgrade.
Online Upgrades will sequentially upgrade each member Appliance within the Protection Group.
Each appliance will be placed into Maintenance Mode, the vSTAC OS or the vSphere hypervisor and
supporting VIBs will be upgraded if required. Client I/O can continue during the upgrade. The level of
client I/O affects the time Online Upgrade requires to complete.
CRITICAL: For data protection purposes, Online Upgrades should not be interrupted once started.
Offline Upgrades typically require less overall time to complete, but is disruptive to client I/O. Offline
Upgrades will result in all members being rebooted. If the hypervisor credentials have been
configured, all guest virtual machines will be shut down as a result of this operation.
NOTE: Offline upgrades result in all data being inaccessible until the upgrade has completed. To prevent
application failure, ensure that all I/O has stopped before beginning upgrade.
Once the upgrade has completed, click Close.
Specific Issues by Upgrade

As vSTAC OS evolves, procedures may vary slightly from those presented and/or initially configured.
Examples are listed below, and this list will grow as our solutions become more sophisticated. Alternate
documentation may also be available.
6.0.x to 6.5
Because this upgrade requires the entire Protection Group to reboot, vSTAC Manager must be administered
from a separate PC or laptop. Management stations within the Protection Group, such as that included with
P-Cubed solutions, are not candidates for this upgrade.
NOTE: If the Management Station is rebooted or goes offline during an upgrade, the system will fail and
data may be compromised. If this happens, call Pivot3 support immediately.
This upgrade also requires upgrades of the following elements if applicable to the environment:
Deployment Element Affected Critical Step
All Pivot3
vSTAC Manager Suite Upgrade to 6.5
Deployments
Pivot3 RAIGE Connection Upgrade available in installation file
Surveillance
Manager RCM_Setup_009B.
All using vCenter VMware vCenter Upgrade vCenter to 5.5
For issues with Failover not functioning correctly or occasional temporary ESXi disconnects from vCenter,
check the settings and / or follow the procedure listed in Appendix D Configure NIC Ports for Pivot3 Features
in v6.5 for optimal configuration success.

Management through SNMP

The vSTAC OS supports SNMP v2c. An SNMP-managed network consists of three key components:
• Managed devices
• Agents
• Network-management systems (NMS)
In Pivot3 architecture, the managed devices are Appliances, the agents are inside each Appliance, and the
NMS is third-party software.
Running SNMP in a Pivot3 Scale-out Application Protection Group
Agents
SNMP is configured at the Protection Group level via vSMS. All agents are affected by the Protection Group
settings, so there is no need to do anything independently to each agent. Since Appliances (managed
devices) cooperate within a Protection Group, the agents are capable of providing information and traps for
events on all Appliances within a Protection Group. Protection Group-wide events like Appliance failures can
be reported from the agent in any available Appliance.
To launch the SNMP dialog, select the vSTAC Protection Group in the Logical view of vSTAC Manager and
then select Configuration > SNMP Settings.
Network-Management System (NMS)

Third-party management software using SNMP can be found from many sources. Some are simple trap
catchers that route traps to email. Others involve more sophisticated polling mechanisms. Some examples
of third-party management software packages include HP OpenView product family, IBM Tivoli products,
Solarwinds Orion Network Performance Monitor, Trap Receiver and WhatsUp Gold.
A vSMS Client running such software must have access to the Management Network, both of the SAN
Networks of the vSTAC Protection Group, and the Application network if applicable. In many cases the SAN
Networks will be isolated networks so the vSMS client will have to be physically connected to both
networks. Another option would be to have an NMS running on the standalone application server that is
utilizing the vSTAC Protection Group. This server is in essence a gateway between the SAN Networks and the
public network.

When the network-management application uses SNMP for polling, be sure to set up polls for both of the
static IP addresses of each Appliance. Otherwise a failed switch may not be reported.
The Protection Group agents use default SNMP ports. The NMS must allow access to UDP port 162 to
receive traps and UDP port 161 to poll for information. Each of these ports may have to be opened on the
NMS if a firewall is enabled.
Many network-management applications use SMTP to forward traps as email. The network-management
application will push an SMTP message to the corporate email server, which will forward the message as an
email to a specified email address. The default SMTP port is TCP port 25. This port must be exempted from a
firewall at the corporate email server.
Table 12-1: Ports for SNMP network management
Port Transport Used For Must be open at
25 TCP SMTP email Email server receiving SMTP messages
161 UDP SNMP requests vSTAC Management Station
162 UDP SNMP traps vSTAC Management Station
Community Strings
Community Strings are configured through vSMS for a vSTAC Protection Group. There are separate
Community Strings for SNMP Clients and Trap Targets. The common default value for both community
strings is “public.”
The Community String for SNMP Clients is used to allow the agents to be in a group polled by an NMS.
Specifically, this is the Community String for SNMP GETs. SNMP SETs are not supported. The agents will only
answer an NMS retrieval request if the NMS knows the Community String.
The Community String for Trap Targets allows an NMS functioning as a trap receiver to filter for desired
traps. Trap receivers receive all traps sent and it is up to this NMS to filter on the Community String. A trap
receiver may choose to ignore the Community String.
Pivot3 MIB
SNMP uses management information bases (MIBs) to define the variables an SNMP managed system offers.
A Pivot3 MIB has been defined to describe each object identifier used for alerts and status for Pivot3
storage. The Pivot3 MIB is contained within the file PIVOT3SYS-MIB.txt which may be found on the “Pivot3
Software & Documentation Disc” in the SNMP Support folder.
The SNMP MIB hierarchy is a tree with levels defined by different organizations. When importing a MIB file
into a management software application, the MIB details will exist within that hierarchy. The Pivot3 MIB will
be imported into the enterprises class of the MIB tree. MIB-II is also supported.

Pivot3 MIB in MIB Tree

Shutdown Procedure
The best way to shut down a Protection Group safely is to first ensure all I/O has stopped, and then shut down
each host. This prevents data loss and inaccurate failure status readings.
Application Server VM
Stop all I/O.
Shut down the virtual machine using the operating system method of performing a system shutdown.
Repeat the previous steps on all Application Server VMs.
vSTAC Manager
Launch vSTAC Manager and log in using the proper credentials for the vSTAC Protection Group to be
shut down.
Select the Physical view tab and select the Protection Group to shut down.
Navigate to File > Shutdown. A dialog box will require confirmation.
Click Yes.
Navigate to File > Exit to exit vSTAC Manager.
Verify the VMs have been shut down by connecting to VMware vSphere Client and logging in to all
vSTAC ESXi Hosts in the Protection Group. Verify all relevant VMs are powered off.
vSTAC ESXi Host

Launch the VMware vSphere Client and log in to the vSTAC ESXi host in the chosen vSTAC Protection
Group.
Select the IP address in the left pane, then right-click the IP address and select Shut Down from the
menu displayed. Follow the instructions in the dialogs displayed to shut down the ESXi host.
Repeat Steps 1 and 2 for all other vSTAC ESXi hosts in the vSTAC Protection Group if applicable.
Ensure all vSTAC ESXi hosts have been shut down.
Procedure Verification After Power Up

Using VMware vSphere client, connect to and log in to all vSTAC ESXi Hosts in the Protection Group and
verify the VM has started back up.
Using vSTAC Manager, log in to the chosen Protection Group and verify Protection Group health.

Appendix A Using vSMS’s Command Line Interface

To use the vSMS command line interface (CLI):
From the Windows Start menu, select Programs > Pivot3 > vSTAC Manager Suite > vSTAC Manager
Suite CLI.
If specified Administrator credentials are required, Log in to vSTAC Manager.
Table A-1 below shows the CLI help available from the vSTAC Manager # prompt.
Table A-1: vSMS command line interface (CLI) help
This command: Displays:
help All available help syntax
help [command] Help for the specific command
help config The commands that configure vSMS entities
help show The commands to display information on vSMS entities
help all The command name and a short description for CLI
commands.
-v [OPTIONAL] Change the output to verbose mode: Command

Name, Syntax Detailed Description.
outputPath [OPTIONAL] Save the output to a user specified file. Paths

with embedded spaces MUST be contained in quotes.
Command Examples: Output:

help all Display all CLI commands to the console.
help all -v Display all CLI commands in verbose format to the console.
help all -v "c:\CLI Commands\syntax.txt" Save all CLI commands in verbose format to the file c:\CLI
Commands\syntax.txt

Appendix B vSTAC Manager Status Icons and Definitions

vSTAC Manager Suite has been enhanced to show Logical and Physical status of Pivot3 network setups. Each
status state is identified by a relevant icon and a brief description. Below are expanded explanations of possible
Protection Group statuses.
Icon Status Description Next Step
A critical upgrade is required to
Upgrade Required maintain Protection Group Upgrade immediately.
functionality and availability.
Appliances in the Protection Group

Incomplete Upgrade are running different versions of Finish upgrading Protection Group.
vSTAC OS.
Upgrade An upgrade is available with minor

Upgrade as soon as possible.
Recommended bug fixes or enhancements.
An upgrade is available, but it does

Upgrade Available not have critical bug fixes or Upgrade when and if desired.
enhancements.
The Administrator credentials

Restart vSTAC Manager and log in
Access Denied entered do not match the
with the correct credentials.
credentials required for access.
During an online upgrade, the main

next step is to wait for completion.
Ensure that this status is not allowed
to persist indefinitely. To exit this
This Protection Group has been put
Maintenance Mode mode, from the Physical Tab of
in Maintenance Mode.
vSTAC Manager highlight the active
Appliance and then click
Configuration > Maintenance
Mode.
Wait for process to complete. I/O

Rebuilding A degraded volume is being rebuilt. may be negatively impacted during
rebuild.
Check physical network to ensure all

There is an interruption in power
Appliances are powered on and
Offline / throughput or an issue on the
correctly connected. If status
Not Connected network that is preventing
persists, contact Pivot3 support for
communication.
assistance.

Icon Status Description Next Step

Repair or replace failed component.
A component is failed and the
Degraded Contact Pivot3 support or consult
Protection Group is degraded.
Section 9 for diagnostic assistance.
If the reason for the failure is known,

power off and replace the failed
component. If the cause of the
A disk, drive, volume, or Appliance
Failed failure is unknown, review Diagnostic
has failed.
Logs as explained in Section 9.
Contact Pivot3 support for
assistance.
The Protection Group is waiting for Power on more Appliances and wait
Not Ready other Appliances to come online or or address process that is holding up
recover from shutdown. the Protection Group.
Power on more Appliances if

applicable.
There is at least one Appliance on
Not Booted the Protection Group that has NOTE: If the “Continue Boot”
failed to boot. dialog comes up, contact Pivot3
support immediately.
Improving the data layout to

Optimizing enhance performance and Wait for process to complete.
availability.
Appliance is being removed from

Removing Wait for process to complete.
the Protection Group.
A degraded Appliance is being

Removing -- removed from the Protection Wait for process to complete.
Degraded Group.
Protection Group is re-

Re-Synchronizing synchronizing changes that were Wait for process to complete.
made in Maintenance Mode.

Appendix C Configuring Pivot3 vSMS for IPv6 Access

If the Management Station is not configured for IP version 6 (IPv6), follow the procedure outlined below to pre-
configure the IP addresses on the SAN Network interfaces of the vSTAC Appliances. Once completed, this
procedure will enable vSMS on the Management Station to discover the vSTAC Appliances using IPv4.
Otherwise, skip these steps and proceed to the next section.
Repeat this procedure for each new vSTAC Appliance
From the Management Station, launch VMware vSphere Client. In the IP address / Name: field, enter the
VMware Management Network IP address of the vSTAC Appliance to be configured. These are the ESXi
host IP addresses configured in Section 2. The default user name is root and the default password is
vSphereP3.
NOTE: For vSTAC Data Appliances, a KVM attached to the hardware will provide the functionality described
in this section.
After vSphere Client has connected, select the IP address in the left pane and press the plus (+) key to
display the virtual machines.
Select the Pivot3_VM and then select the Console tab. Click in the console display area to enable
keyboard input.
Press <Alt> and <F2> at the same time to display the login screen.
At the login prompt, type p3setip and at the password prompt, type pivot3.
NOTE: The login will not register as correct until the Appliance has reached a certain point in the boot
sequence. If the correct credentials are entered and still cause an incorrect login error message, wait
a few moments and repeat Steps 4 and 5 above.
The vSTAC OS IP Setup Utility displays. Use this utility to set IP addresses on all available NICs.
At the ipset> prompt, type nics to determine all available NICS visible to the network. Each of these
NICs will require IP addresses. A typical setup will include san0, san1, and mgmt0.
At the ipset> prompt, type nic san0 to begin the IP address configuration for the first SAN NIC port.
Example:
ipset>nic san0

Next, type ip and the IP address to be assigned to the SAN NIC port. Example:
ipset>ip 10.3.15.145
Next, type netmask followed by the subnet mask value. Example:
ipset>netmask 255.255.255.0
Optionally, to set a gateway, type gateway and the gateway IP address. Example:
ipset>gateway 10.3.15.1
NOTE: Do not set default gateway on SAN or Management NICs.
Repeat Steps 6 – 11 to set the static IP address configuration for the second SAN NIC port, replacing 0
with 1 in Step 8.
Repeat Steps 6 – 11 to prepare the IP address configuration for the Management NIC port, replacing
san0 with mgmt0 in Step 8.
If there is a DHCP server on the network, the IP address for the Management NIC can be quickly set
by typing ip dhcp. The Management NIC is the only port that can be set this way.
Type print at the ipset> prompt to review the values entered for all available NIC ports.
If all the information is correct, type set to retain all the information input in previous steps.
NOTE: The setip function cannot be performed on Appliances in Protection Groups. The IP address can be
modified later through vSTAC Manager as explained in Section 5.
Exit the utility by typing quit at the ipset> prompt.

Press <Alt> and <F1> at the same time to return to the status console screen.

Appendix D Configure NIC Ports for Pivot3 Features in v6.5

See Configure Management NIC Within vSMS in Section 5 for the recommended procedure for this task. Below is
a secondary configuration for systems without the ability to configure the Management NIC in vSMS.
NOTE: This section applies ONLY to vSMS v6.5 configurations. Other versions approach this task differently
during setup and this section will not apply.
In vSphere, select the appliance hosting ESXi and navigate to Configuration > Networking.
Click Properties… for the SAN Network 0 vSwitch named vSwitch 1.
Highlight the SAN iSCSI VMK 0 port and click Edit…

Check the Enabled box next to Management Traffic and click OK.
To verify that the previous step has registered properly, close and relaunch the SAN Network 0 vSwitch
properties dialog. The SAN iSCSI VMK 0 now shows Management Traffic as “Enabled.”

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Pivot3 VSTAC Setup Guide

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Pivot3 VSTAC Setup Guide

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Setup Guide

for Pivot3 vSTAC™ Appliances

221 West 6th St., Suite 750 Sales: sales@pivot3.com

Austin, TX 78701 Tech Support: support@pivot3.com

Tel: +1 512-807-2666 Website: www.pivot3.com

Fax: +1 512-807-2669 Online Support: www.pivot3.com/support

EULA & Open Source Notices

About This Guide

© Copyright 2007-2015 Pivot3, Inc.

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Install Pivot3 vSTAC Appliances

Install Pivot3 vSTAC Appliances

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Hard Disk Numbering for Lenovo RD650 Flash

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Hard Disk Numbering for Pivot3 2U Appliances

Hard Disk Numbering for Pivot3 1U Appliance

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Configure ESXi for VMware Management Access

Required items for this section:

Configure the IP addresses for the VMware Management Network

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Repeat Steps 1-10 for each of the vSTAC Appliances.

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Set up the vSTAC Management Station

Install vSTAC Manager Software

Install VMware vSphere Client

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VMware ESXi displays the Welcome screen.

Select Download vSphere Client as seen above.

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Set the iSCSI IP Addresses for ESXi Hosts

Click Properties… for vSwitch1.

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Configure NIC Ports for Pivot3 Features

This section describes how to:

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Create a Pivot3 vSTAC Protection Group

Determine Desired Security Level

Login Mode Security Level Description

Launch vSTAC Manager

Create a Protection Group

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NOTE: An Appliance can only be a member of one vSTAC Protection Group.

Give the Protection Group a unique name of up to 15 alpha-numeric characters.

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Set Hypervisor Credentials

Navigate to Configuration > Hypervisor Login Credentials.

Enter the credentials as requested.

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Assign IP Addresses for iSCSI Connectivity

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Create the VMware Datastore