REST API and Dell Technologies Storage - PowerMax

In this post, we will discuss how you can use the REST API to manage Dell PowerMax storage arrays. We will use the Postman tool during the entire blog series. Feel free to download and install in your system to follow along. The first post in this series provides more details about Postman and the collections we will use in this article. So let’s get started with automating the Dell PowerMax storage system.

The PowerMax REST API 

There are many different ways to manage the PowerMax storage system. Traditionally many customers using the VMAX/PowerMax family systems are using the Solutions Enabler Tool. This is a comprehensive tool that allows storage administrators to automate many different storage tasks using scripting (Bash, Perl, Shell scripts, etc.).

PowerMax Unisphere GUI is HTML5 based management interface, it’s beautiful and functional and provides a web-based interactive experience for users.  Unisphere has a lot of automation baked in, and its intuitive wizards eliminate complexity and can often provide the right amount of automation for organizations where there isn’t a lot of change. With the latest Unisphere version, everything you can do in the GUI is supported using REST API.

Assessing Dell PowerMax REST API

Dell PowerMax’s REST API is available via Unisphere (installed or embedded) running on the array via the following Base URL.

https://{{unisphere_management_address}}:{{8443}}/univmax/restapi/{{version}}

• {{unisphere_management_address}} – Replace with IP Unisphere IP address or hostname
• {{8443}} – Default port of Unisphere. Change this as per your environment
• {{version}} – Replace this with the Unisphere version. For Unisphere version 9.0, replace with 90, for 9.1 with 91 and so on

It is important to note that most PowerMax systems are running multiple versions of the REST API which is a great way of ensuring your automation scripts keep working after an Enginuity upgrade

Supported REST API Operations

Unisphere for PowerMax’s REST API supports the following types of REST calls.

• GET – Get information on objects. For example – list all the PowerMax serial numbers managed using Unisphere
• POST – Create an Object. For example – Create new LUN/s
• PUT – Making changes to an object. For example – Change the size of the existing LUN
• DELETE – Remove an object. For example – Delete existing LUN/s

A REST client (like Postman) can be used to help figure out what REST calls you want to run during your automation project

Building your REST API calls

Now let’s get started with creating REST API calls. In this example, we will create a sample REST API call to list all the available SRPs (Storage Resource Pools)

Before we get started make sure you have Postman installed and Unisphere is reachable.

• Open Postman and click on New. Under the new drop-down, select Request

 

• In the New Request pop-up window enter the Request name, Description (optional), and Name of the Collection. Then click on Save.

 

• Click on the request type drop-down and select GET.
  • Please note that we are selecting GET because in this example we want to "list" all the available SRPs in our sample REST API.
  • This option will be different based on the type of REST API operation

 

• Enter the below Request URL
  • 1.1.1.1 – Replace with Unisphere IP address/hostname
  • 000123456789 – Replace with Serial number of PowerMax array

https://1.1.1.1:8443/univmax/restapi/90/sloprovisioning/symmetrix/000123456789/srp

Notice how the URL includes the serial number of the system. This is necessary because a single Unisphere can be used to manage multiple arrays

• Click on the Authorization. Enter Unisphere Username and Password. Then click Send

 

• In the Postman Response section, you’ll see the REST API response. In this case, you’ll see a list of all the SRPs in the PowerMax array.

 

Dell and REST API – Way Forward

I hope this helps you to get started with REST API and the Dell PowerMax storage system. You might also have understood that creating valid URLs is a very important aspect of using REST API. Having this in mind we have created a Postman collection for Dell PowerMax storage. Here’s the GitHub link to the repository. Feel free to download and share.

Below are the additional resources available for taking REST API usage to next level.

1. PowerMax REST client –This is a simple GUI tool that allows you to construct REST API calls. The best part of this tool is having a tree view of all resources on the Unisphere which the users can navigate through to select the desired REST call. You can see the PowerMax Rest Client in action in this video demo
2. Dell PowerMax REST API Concepts and Programmer’s Guide – This link has the REST API documentation for the Dell PowerMax array.
3. Dell Developer portal - This site contains online documentation for the REST API of all Dell products 

I hope this post will get you started with your Dell PowerMax automation journey.