Managing File Storage

This chapter contains the following sections:

File System Pools

A file system pool consists of volumes of the same disk type. File system pools are a type of storage pools that consists of a collection of disks that jointly contain all the data across a specified set of file systems. Policies are used to define file placement and migration to different file system pools.

File Systems

You can create, mount, unmount, set as destination, or remove a file system. A file system consists of one or more file system pools.

You can select one of the following presets to create a file system:
  • Single pool—Creates a file system with a single pool.
  • Compressed—Creates a file system with a compressed data pool and a placement policy that places incompressible files to the system pool.
  • Migration-ILM—Creates a file system that migrates data between a main pool called System and a secondary pool.
  • Custom—Creates a file system with customized settings.

Creating Single Pool File Systems

    Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
    Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
    Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
    Step 4   Click the File Systems tab.
    Step 5   Click Single Pool.
    Step 6   In the Single Pool dialog box, complete the following fields:

    Name

    Description

    File System Name field

    Enter a unique name for the file system.

    Owner

    Enter the name of the owner or the UID of the owner of the path. It can be a user name or a combination of domain and user name (for example, admin or domain\admin).

    File System Pool Name

    Choose the file system pool.

    Storage Pool table

    Choose the storage pool.

    1. Click Select and choose the storage pool.

    2. Click Select .

    File System Size

    Enter the size of the file system.

    File System Size Units

    Display only. The size of the file system in terms of GB.

    Step 7   Click Submit.

    Creating Compressed File Systems

      Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
      Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
      Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
      Step 4   Click the File Systems tab.
      Step 5   Click Compressed.
      Step 6   In the Create Compressed File System dialog box, complete the following fields:

      Name

      Description

      File System Name field

      Enter a unique name for the compressed file system.

      Owner

      Displays the name of the owner or the UID of the owner of the path. It can be a user name or a combination of domain and user name (for example, admin or domain\admin). The owner can also be the root.

      Owning Group

      Displays the name or GID of the group that is associated with the path. The owner group can also be the root.

      File System Pool Settings

      System (non compressed) table

      Choose the storage pool.

      1. Click Select and choose the storage pool.

      2. Click Select .

      Size (GB) field

      Enter the size of the file system.

      System (metadata) table
      Note   

      To enable metadata replication, select a pool from System (metadata)

      Choose the storage pool.

      1. Click Select and choose the storage pool.

      2. Click Select .

      Size (GB) field

      Enter the size of the file system.

      System (compressed) table

      Choose the storage pool.

      1. Click Select and choose the storage pool.

      2. Click Select .

      Size (GB) field

      Enter the size of the file system.

      Step 7   Click Submit.

      Creating Migration-ILM File Systems

        Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
        Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
        Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
        Step 4   Click the File Systems tab.
        Step 5   Click Migration-ILM.
        Step 6   In the Create Migration-ILM File System dialog box, complete the following fields:

        Name

        Description

        File System Name field

        Enter a unique name for the Migration-ILM file system.

        Owner

        root

        Owning Group

        root

        File System Pool Settings

        System table

        Choose the storage pool.

        1. Click Select and choose the storage pool.

        2. Click Select .

        Size (GB) field

        Enter the size of the file system.

        System (metadata) table
        Note   

        To enable metadata replication, select a pool from System (metadata)

        Choose the storage pool.

        1. Click Select and choose the storage pool.

        2. Click Select .

        Size (GB) field

        Enter the size of the file system.

        Name field

        Enter a unique name.

        Compressed check box

        Check this check box to create a compressed file system.

        Storage Pool

        Choose the storage pool.

        1. Click Select and choose the storage pool.

        2. Click Select .

        Size (GB) field

        Enter the size of the file system.

        Migration start thresold (%) field

        Starts migrating data automatically when the used capacity exceeds the specified value.

        Migration stop thresold (%) field

        Stops migrating data automatically when the used capacity decreases below the specified value.

        Enable Migration Schedule

        Check this check box that enables to schedule migration.

        • Type—Allows to choose the frequency to schedule migration.

        • Time of Day—Allows to choose the time (00:00) of the day for all types of migration.

        • Day of the Week—Allows to choose the time (00:00) of the day and one of the days by their names in the week, if Once a Week is the Type selected.

        • Days of the Week—Allows to choose the time (00:00) of the day and multiple days by their names in the week, if Multiple Days a Week is the Type selected.

        • Day of Month—Allows to choose the time (00:00) of the day and one of the days in the month, if Once a Month is the Type selected.

        • Days of Month—Allows to choose the time (00:00) of the day and multiple days by their names, if Multiple Days in a Month is the Type selected.

        Step 7   Click Submit.

        Mounting File Systems

          Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
          Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
          Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
          Step 4   Click the File Systems tab.
          Step 5   Choose the file system that you want to mount.
          Step 6   Click Mount.
          Step 7   In the Mount File System dialog box, click Submit.

          Unmounting File Systems

            Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
            Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
            Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
            Step 4   Click the File Systems tab.
            Step 5   Choose the file system that you want to unmount.
            Step 6   Click Unmount.
            Step 7   In the Unmount File System dialog box, click Submit.

            Deleting File Systems

              Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
              Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
              Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
              Step 4   Click the File Systems tab.
              Step 5   Choose the file system that you want to delete.
              Step 6   Click Delete.
              Step 7   In the Confirm File System Deletion dialog box, enter Yes in the text box.
              Step 8   Click Submit.

              File Sets

              A file set is a subset of a file system that provides granularity of functions such as snapshots or quotas within the file system. File sets provide the ability to partition a file system to allow administrative operations at a finer granularity than the entire file system. There are two types of file sets: dependent and independent.

              You can create a preset file set, either a basic or custom type.

              • Basic—If you are creating a basic file set, specify a path and name, and select if it is a dependent or independent file set type.

              • Custom—If you are creating a custom file set, specify a path and name, and select the file set type (independent or dependent). Depending on the file set type, you can specify quota or snapshot settings.

              Creating File Sets

                Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
                Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
                Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
                Step 4   Click the File Sets tab.
                Step 5   Click Create.
                Step 6   In the Create File Set dialog box, complete the following fields:

                Name

                Description

                File Set Type drop-down list

                Choose the preset file set type.

                Junction Path drop-down list

                Choose the path of junction. The junction path must be on one of the file systems.

                Subdirectory field

                Enter the name of the subdirectory to which the file set belongs.

                Name field

                Enter the name of the new file set.

                Owner field

                Enter the owner of path or the UID of the owner of the path. It can be a user name or a combination of domain and user name (for example, admin or domain\admin).

                Group field

                Enter the group or the GID of the group that is associated with the path.

                Comments field

                Enter comments, if any.

                Type drop-down list

                Choose the file set type.

                Maximum number of inodes field

                Specify the maximum number of inodes that the file set can use. This value depends on the available inodes in the file system.
                Note   

                The maximum number of inodes that need to be available to create a file set is 1024.

                Allocated number of inodes field

                Specify the number of inodes that are allocated when the file set is created.

                Set Quota check box

                Check this check box to set a quota on the new file set.

                Soft Limit field and Sizedrop-down list

                Enter the soft limit for the quota.

                Hard Limit field and Sizedrop-down list

                Enter the hard limit for the quota.

                Snapshot drop-down list

                Choose the snapshot rule.

                Step 7   Click Submit.

                Editing File Sets

                  Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
                  Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
                  Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
                  Step 4   Click the File Sets tab.
                  Step 5   Choose the file set that you want to edit.
                  Step 6   Click Edit.
                  Step 7   In the Edit File Set dialog box, enter details in the editable fields, and then click Submit.

                  Deleting File Sets

                    Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
                    Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
                    Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
                    Step 4   Click the File Sets tab.
                    Step 5   Choose the file set that you want to delete.
                    Step 6   Click Delete.
                    Step 7   In the Confirm File Set Deletion dialog box, type Yes in the text box.
                    Step 8   Click Submit.

                    File Shares

                    A share is a shared disk space available through the protocols specified during its creation. You can create Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), Secure Copy Protocol (SCP), File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Common Internet File System (CIFS), and Network File System (NFS) shares, provided that the corresponding protocol is enabled for the system.

                    Creating File Shares

                      Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
                      Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
                      Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
                      Step 4   Click the File Shares tab.
                      Step 5   Click Create.
                      Step 6   In the Create File Share dialog box, complete the following fields:

                      Name

                      Description

                      Share Type drop-down list

                      Choose the file share type.

                      Path drop-down list

                      Choose the file share path.

                      Share Name field

                      the name of the new file share.

                      Owner field

                      Enter the owner of path or the UID of the owner of the path. It can be a user name or a combination of domain and user name (for example, admin or domain\admin).

                      Group field

                      Enter the group or the GID of the group that is associated with the path.

                      Create a New Independent File Set check box

                      Check this check box to create a new independent file set that allows for snapshots, user and group quotas

                      Supported Protocols check boxes

                      Check one or more check boxes to enable the protocols for the file share:

                      1. HTTP

                      2. FTP

                      3. SCP

                      4. Enable CIFS. See CIFS Settings below.

                      5. Enable NFS. See NFS Settings below.

                      CIFS Settings

                      Read Only Access check box

                      Check the check box to enable read-only access. If selected, none of the users and user groups is allowed to modify the existing files or create new files on this share.

                      Browasable by the File System Browser check box

                      Check the check box to display the file share in a browser that supports file systems, for example, Windows Explorer.

                      Hide Objects check box

                      Check the check box to hide files and directories for users who have no read permissions.

                      Comments field

                      Enter comments, if any.

                      Display Access Control Lists with CIFS check box

                      Check the check box to enable that displays CIFS access control lists through the CIFS protocol.

                      Cache Policy drop-down list

                      Choose the caching policy for the client-side offline caching.

                      Share Permissions

                      To specify the access restriction to the file shares, do the following:
                      1. Click the + icon.

                      2. In the Add Entry to Share Permissions dialog box, enter the name of the user or group, or the security identifier (SID) for access to the file share.

                      3. Choose either to allow or deny access to the file share.

                      4. Choose the value for the selected type of access.

                      5. Click Submit.

                      NFS Settings

                      Add NFS Clients

                      To add NFS clients, do the following:

                      1. Click the + icon.

                      2. In the Add Entry to NFS Clients dialog box, enter the client host name or IP address.

                      3. Check the Read Only Access check box that enables only read-only access.

                      4. Check the Root Squash check box that enables mapping either the root UID or all client UIDs to the anonymous UID.

                      5. Check the Secure check box to specify the type of security to use when authenticating NFS clients. The default value is System. If the default value is selected, the UNIX UIDs and GIDs are used to authenticate users.

                      6. Check the All Squash check box.

                      7. Enter the anonymous UID for the root user in the Anonymous UID field. The default value is -2.

                      8. Enter the anonymous GID for the root user in the Anonymous GID field. The default value is -2.

                      9. Click Submit.

                      Step 7   Click Submit.

                      Deleting File Shares

                        Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
                        Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
                        Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
                        Step 4   Click the File Shares tab.
                        Step 5   Choose the file share that you want to delete.
                        Step 6   Click Delete.
                        Step 7   In the Delete File Share dialog box, click Submit.

                        Activating and Deactivating File Shares

                          Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
                          Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
                          Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
                          Step 4   Click the File Shares tab.
                          Step 5   Choose the file share that you want to activate or deactivate.
                          Step 6   Click Activate/Deactivate.
                          Step 7   Click Submit.

                          Quotas

                          You can define the quota for users, user groups, and file sets in the system. When you set a quota, you need to specify the soft and hard limits.

                          Creating Quotas

                            Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
                            Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
                            Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
                            Step 4   Click the Quotas tab.
                            Step 5   Choose the file system in which you want to create a quota.
                            Step 6   Click Create.
                            Step 7   In the Create Quota dialog box, complete the following fields:

                            Name

                            Description

                            Type drop-down list

                            Choose the level (file sets, user groups, and users) at which you want to set the quota.

                            Path drop-down list

                            Choose the file system path (including the sub directory) to set the quota.

                            Soft Limit field

                            Enter the soft limit for the quota.

                            Soft Limit Unit drop-down list

                            Choose the soft limit unit.

                            Hard Limit field

                            Enter the hard limit for the quota.

                            Hard Limit Unit drop-down limit

                            Choose the hard limit unit.

                            Quota Scope

                            Choose the file system path to set the quota.

                            Specify Group IDs and quota sizes

                            In the Specify Group IDs and Quota Sizes table:

                            1. Click the + icon.

                            2. In the Add Entry to Specify Group IDs and Quota Sizes dialog box, enter the group ID.

                            3. Enter the soft limit.

                            4. Choose the soft limit unit.

                            5. Enter the hard limit.

                            6. Choose the hard limit unit.

                            7. Click Submit.

                            Specify User IDs and quota sizes

                            In the Specify User IDs and Quota Sizes table:

                            1. Click the + icon.

                            2. In the Add Entry to Specify User IDs and Quota Sizes dialog box, enter the user ID.

                            3. Enter the soft limit.

                            4. Choose the soft limit unit.

                            5. Enter the hard limit.

                            6. Choose the hard limit unit.

                            7. Click Submit.

                            Step 8   Click Submit.

                            Editing Quotas

                              Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
                              Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
                              Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
                              Step 4   Click the Quotas tab.
                              Step 5   Choose the type of quota that you want to edit.
                              Step 6   Click Edit.
                              Step 7   In the Edit Quota dialog box, edit the quota sizes that you have already specified for soft limit and hard limit.
                              Step 8   Click Submit.

                              Deleting Quotas

                                Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
                                Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
                                Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
                                Step 4   Click the Quotas tab.
                                Step 5   Choose the type of quota that you want to delete.
                                Step 6   Click Delete.
                                Step 7   In the Delete Quota dialog box, click Submit.

                                Snapshots

                                You can create a snapshot of an entire file system or of an independent file set to preserve the contents of the file system or the independent file set quota at a single point in time. Snapshots can still be created or deleted manually at any time. The storage space is required only to retain a copy of all of the data blocks that have been changed or deleted after the time of the snapshot, and is charged against the file system or the independent file set quota.

                                You cannot create a snapshot of a dependent file set.

                                Snapshot Rules

                                You can configure (create, change, or delete) the snapshot scheduling rules to schedule the creation and deletion of snapshots. You can specify the frequency to automatically take snapshots and retain these snapshots in the system. You can take snapshots hourly, daily, weekly, or monthly. The frequency in which the snapshots are taken can also be defined for specific days of the week, specific weeks of the month, or specific months. A snapshot rule can be associated with one or more file sets, and a file set can have one or more rules defined for it.

                                Creating Snapshot Rules

                                  Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
                                  Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
                                  Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
                                  Step 4   Click the Snapshot Rules tab.
                                  Step 5   Click Create.
                                  Step 6   In the Create Snapshot Rule dialog box, complete the following fields:

                                  Name

                                  Description

                                  Name field

                                  Enter the snapshot rule name.

                                  Frequency drop-down list

                                  Choose the frequency to automatically create and retain snapshots.

                                  Frequency Options

                                  Specify the options according to the selection of the frequency.

                                  Retention—For each past time period, enter the minimum number of snapshots to be kept for this snapshot rule.

                                  Hours field

                                  Specify the hour.

                                  Days field

                                  Specify the day.

                                  Weeks field

                                  Specify the week.

                                  Months field

                                  Specify the month.

                                  Prefix field

                                  Specifies the prefix for the snapshots to be taken with this rule. The prefix is added to the date and time to identify the rule that created the snapshot. If the prefix is not specified, only the date and time is used. A prefix should be between 1 and 12 characters long and cannot contain any white space.

                                  Step 7   Click Submit.

                                  Creating Snapshots

                                    Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
                                    Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
                                    Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
                                    Step 4   Click the Snapshots tab.
                                    Step 5   Click Create.
                                    Step 6   In the Create Snapshot dialog box, complete the following fields:

                                    Name

                                    Description

                                    Snapshot Type drop-down field

                                    Choose the snapshot type either to create manually or schedule the creation of snapshots.

                                    Path field

                                    Specify the file path.

                                    Snapshot name

                                    Enter the snapshot name. Use the format @GMT-dddd.MM.dd-HH.mm.ss if Windows Volume Shadow Copy Service is used to restore files. (For example, @GMT-2015.01.23-09.46.12

                                    Snapshot Schedules

                                    Choose one or more snapshot schedules.

                                    Step 7   Click Submit.

                                    Deleting Snapshots

                                      Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
                                      Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
                                      Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
                                      Step 4   Click the Snapshots tab.
                                      Step 5   Click Delete.
                                      Step 6   In the Snapshot Deletion dialog box, click Delete.

                                      If the snapshots are used with NDMP (Network Data Management Protocol) backups, ensure that you deactivate and reactivate the NDMP configuration after you delete the snapshots.

                                      Step 7   Click Submit.

                                      Configuring Snapshot Notifications

                                      Use this procedure to specify the snapshots events that you want them to be notified.

                                        Step 1   On the menu bar, choose Physical > Storage.
                                        Step 2   In the left pane, navigate to the pod in which the storage account is added.
                                        Step 3   Choose the storage account type.
                                        Step 4   Click the Snapshots tab.
                                        Step 5   Click Configure .
                                        Step 6   In the Configure Snapshot dialog box, complete the following fields:

                                        Name

                                        Description

                                        Concurrent Rules check box

                                        Check this check box to notify when another rule is in progress while a new rule is attempting to start.

                                        Rule-created snapshot creation fails check box

                                        Check this check box to notify when the creation of a snapshot that is invoked by a rule fails.

                                        A snapshot deletion fails check box

                                        Check this check box to notify when the deletion of a snapshot that is invoked by a rule fails.

                                        The number of pending operations exceeds check box

                                        Check this check box to notify when the number of pending operations for a rule exceed a specified value.

                                        The total number of pending rule operations exceeds check box

                                        Check this check box to notify when the total number of pending operations for a rule exceed a specified value.

                                        A snapshot operation exceeds time limit (minutes)

                                        Check this check box to notify when the duration of a snapshot exceeds the specified time limit.

                                        Step 7   Click Submit.