- Notes, cautions, and warnings
- Introduction
- Revision history
- PowerFlex overview
- System requirements and product limits
- Architecture
- System
- MDM cluster
- Virtual IP addresses
- Storage definitions
- Storage pools
- Acceleration pools
- Data layout
- Volumes
- Naming PowerFlex objects
- NVMe over TCP overview
- PowerFlex file services
- Replication
- Replication peer systems
- Storage data replicator
- Journal
- Replication consistency group
- Replication pairs
- Recovery point objective
- Replication I/O flow
- Replication auto-provision
- Replication initial copy
- Activating or terminating a replication consistency group
- Pausing replication
- Using replicated volumes
- Accessing target volumes
- Setting up replication
- Dell APEX Block Storage
- Protection and load balancing
- Cache
- Networking requirements and limitations
- SDC connection monitoring
- SMART hardware monitoring
- Snapshots
- Performance
- Migrating volumes
- Implementing PowerFlex
- Additional functions
- Maintenance
- PowerFlex management
- Configure direct attached storage
Dell PowerFlex 4.6.x Technical Overview
File system storage
A file system represents a set of storage resources that provide network file storage.
The storage system establishes a file system that Windows users or Linux/UNIX hosts can connect to and use for file-based storage. Users access a file system through its shares, which draw from the total storage that is allocated to the file system.
| Component | Description |
|---|---|
| PowerFlex file services server | A file server that is configured with its network interfaces and other settings exclusively exporting the set of specified file systems through mount points called shares. Client systems connect to a PowerFlex file services server on the storage system to get access to the file system shares. A PowerFlex file services server can have more than one file system, but each file system can only be associated with one PowerFlex file services server. |
| File system | A manageable container for file-based storage that is associated with the following properties:
|
| Share or export | A mountable access point to file system storage that network users and hosts can use for file-based storage. |
| Windows users or Linux/UNIX hosts | A user, host, netgroup, or subnet that has access to the share and can mount or map the resource. For Windows file systems, access to the share is based on share permissions and access control lists that assign privileges to objects defined in Active Directory. For Linux/UNIX file systems, access is permitted based on NFS access settings. |
Shares and exports
Shares represent mount points through which users or hosts can access file system resources. Each share is associated with a single file system and inherits the file system protocol (SMB or NFS) established for that file system. Shares of a multiprotocol file system can be either SMB or NFS.
Access to shares is determined depending on the type of file system:
- Windows (SMB) shares: Access is controlled by SMB share permissions and the ACLs on the shared directories and files. For example, you can configure share permissions using the Microsoft Computer Management utility.
- Active Directory SMB servers: Configure access for users and groups using Windows directory access controls. User/group authentication is performed through Active Directory.
- Stand-alone SMB servers: Manage a stand-alone SMB server within a workgroup from a Microsoft Windows host.
- Linux/UNIX (NFS) exports: Hosts access is defined by the NFS access control settings of the NFS export. Use PowerFlex to configure access for individual Linux/UNIX hosts or IP address subnets.
All shares within a single file system draw from the total quantity of storage allocated for the file system. Consequently, storage space for shares is managed at the file system level.
PowerFlex file services servers
PowerFlex file services servers provide access to file systems. Each PowerFlex file services server supports Windows (SMB) file systems, Linux/UNIX (NFS) exports, or both. To provide isolated access to a file system, you can configure a file server to function as independent file server with server-specific DNS, NIS, and other settings. The IP address of the PowerFlex file services server provides part of the mount point that users and hosts use to map to the PowerFlex file services storage resource, with the share name providing the rest. Each PowerFlex file services server exposes its own set of file systems through the file system share, either SMB or NFS.
Once a PowerFlex file services server is running, you can create and manage file systems and shares on that PowerFlex file services server.
NOTE:You can create a file system only if there is a
PowerFlex file services server running on the storage system. The types of file systems that you can create are determined by the file sharing protocols (SMB, NFS, or multiprotocol) enabled for the file services server.
PowerFlex file services server physical requirements
PowerFlex file nodes can be configured as small, medium, or large, according to the following specifications for Dell PowerEdge R650.
| Configuration | Cores | RAM (GB) | NICs | Local storage (GB) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small | 2 * 12 (24) | 128 | 4 * 25 GbE | BOSS-S2 480 GB * 2 M.2 |
| Medium | 2 * 16 (32) | 256 | 4 * 25 GbE | BOSS-S2 480 GB * 2 M.2 |
| Large | 2 * 28 (56) | 256 | 4 * 25/100 GbE | BOSS-S2 480 GB * 2 M.2 |
CPU
- 2 * Intel® Xeon® Gold 5317 2.8G, 12C, 150W
- 2 * Intel® Xeon® Gold 6346 3.1G, 16C, 205W
- 2 * Intel® Xeon® Gold 6348 2.6G, 28C, 235W
Memory
- 128 GiB: 16 * 8 GiB RDIMM, 3200 MT/s, single rank
- 256 GiB: 16 * 16 GiB RDIMM, 3200 MT/s, dual rank
PowerFlex file nodes can be configured as small, medium, or large, according to the following specifications for Dell PowerEdge R660.
| Configuration | Cores | RAM (GB) | NICs | Local storage (GB) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small | 2 * 12 (24) | 128 | 4 * 25 GbE | BOSS-S2 480 GB * 2 M.2 |
| Medium | 2 * 16 (32) | 256 | 4 * 25 GbE | BOSS-S2 480 GB * 2 M.2 |
| Large | 2 * 28 (64) | 384 | 4 * 25/100 GbE | BOSS-S2 480 GB * 2 M.2 |
CPU
- 2 * Intel® Xeon® Silver 4410Y 2G, 12C/24T, 16 GT/s, 30M Cache, Turbo, HT (150W) DDR5-4000
- 2 * Intel® Xeon® Gold 6426Y 2.5G, 16C/32T, 16 GT/s, 38M Cache, Turbo, HT (185W) DDR-4800
- 2 * Intel® Xeon® Gold 6448Y 2.1G, 32C/64T, 16 GT/s, 60M Cache, Turbo, HT (225W) DDR5-4800
Memory
- 128 GB: 16 * 8 GB RDIMM, 4800 MT/s, single rank
- 256 GB: 16 * 16 GB RDIMM, 4800 MT/s, dual rank
- 384 GB: 24 * 16 GB RDIMM, 4800 MT/s, dual rank
Network
The requirements are similar when customers use bring-your-own hardware.
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