NTP SOFTWARE SEAMLESS ARCHIVER FOR DELL EMC S ELASTIC CLOUD STORAGE (ECS)

Transcription

1 NTP SOFTWARE SEAMLESS ARCHIVER FOR DELL EMC S ELASTIC CLOUD STORAGE (ECS) ABSTRACT This white paper prvides the framewrk fr hw yu can deply the NTPS Seamless Archiver slutin t deliver enterprise-grade file data mving technlgy and strage integratin Dell EMC s highly scalable Elastic Clud Strage (ECS ) platfrm t ptimize yur custmer s file data strage. December, 2016 WHITE PAPER

2 The infrmatin in this publicatin is prvided as is. Dell Inc. makes n representatins r warranties f any kind with respect t the infrmatin in this publicatin, and specifically disclaims implied warranties f merchantability r fitness fr a particular purpse. Use, cpying, and distributin f any sftware described in this publicatin requires an applicable sftware license. Cpyright 2016 Dell Inc. r its subsidiaries. All Rights Reserved. Dell, EMC, and ther trademarks are trademarks f Dell Inc. r its subsidiaries. Other trademarks may be the prperty f their respective wners. Published in the USA 12/16, White Paper, H15722 Dell EMC believes the infrmatin in this dcument is accurate as f its publicatin date. The infrmatin is subject t change withut ntice. 2

3 TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION...4 Audience... 4 VALUE OF NTP S SEAMLESS ARCHIVER...4 ARCHITECTURE...4 UNDERSTANDING FILE DATA STUBS...6 What is a Stub?... 6 Backgrund Yu Need t Knw... 6 Stub Types... 6 Stub Types Chart... 7 IMPLEMENTATION BEST PRACTICES Preparatin Discvery Mving Data... 8 ARCHITECTURE BEST PRACTICES: ARCHITECTURE RULES OF THUMB...9 3

4 Intrductin Thrughut histry, data file strage patterns have becme eerily predictable. Yur cmpany wuld designate a central sil t stre user files, and as file data grew, yu wuld add and save data until the sil was full then yu d purchase a bigger sil t add capacity. But the cst f this data management has becme prhibitive t a pint where yu need a better slutin. Enter file data tiering and archiving, which helps yu reduce the cst f file data strage and file data management. NTPS Seamless Archiver makes data tiering simple, seamless and autmatic. It ptimizes data migratin by fllwing the preset standards that yu create based n strage events. With NTPS Seamless Archiver, yu avid having t cnfigure multiple slutins thrugh many interfaces; NTPS Seamless Archiver filters and mves yur file data autmatically in a way that is cmpletely invisible t users. It s the ideal unstructured file data archiving sftware. NTPS Seamless Archiver, in cnjunctin with the ther ECS fferings, delivers a ttal slutin fr the custmer. AUDIENCE This white paper is intended fr Dell EMC slutin engineers and field persnnel wh are interested in understanding the value and architecture f NTPS Seamless Archiver. It prvides an in-depth verview f architecture, stub management and implementatin best practices. Value f NTP s Seamless Archiver By cmbining the NTP Sftware enterprise file mving sftware with the rest f the ECS framewrk, yur custmers can enjy all the great benefits f the ECS platfrm in a highly hetergeneus strage envirnment t drive dwn the cst f primary strage while still maintaining the multi-site scalability and resilience at an archive cst. Because the sftware can be set up t be autmated, this archive benefit can cntinue t be realized thrughut the prduct lifecycle, rightsizing grwth t the apprpriate tier, and allwing yur custmers t adapt t an ever grwing and changing infrastructure and strage landscape. By cmbining the ability t target nsite ECS strage as well as cmmdity clud strage, NTPS Seamless Archiver allws yu t ultimately reduce the number and type f file data sils, while simultaneusly ptimizing them fr end users. Architecture Small Medium Business 4

5 Multi-site Multi-ge Enterprise 5

6 Understanding File Data Stubs Nw that file data archiving is at the tp f everyne s list, it is imprtant t have a wrking understanding f its cre technlgy s that yu dn t miss pprtunities and yu are able t make the right chices fr yur rganizatin. In this regard, ne f the mst imprtant things t understand is the variety f available stubs and whether yu shuld use them at all. WHAT IS A STUB? A stub is a file and it must cnfrm t the same rules as all f the ther files in yur envirnment. What makes a stub file special is that it is a very small file, r merely a catalg entry (directry entry, flder entry), that is deplyed t replace a larger, pre-existing, stale file s that the riginal file can be mved t anther lcatin, and still quickly be retrieved by the end user r applicatin. The infrmatin cntained within the stub tells the end-user r applicatin hw t quickly find and access the riginal file. Simple enugh, right? Well almst. Like mst things, the cmplexity lies in the details. Over the years the Strage Industry has created a lt f technlgies each ne better than the last. As a result, there are nw a lt f clever things that certain stubs can d, and even sme desirable things that n stub can d. The purpse f this sectin is t demystify the tpic f stubs and make clear the things that can and cannt be dne and the requirements fr ding them. We ll lk at this ne step at a time. BACKGROUND YOU NEED TO KNOW In any activity invlving file data, there are three critical elements: the system that hsts the file (yur netwrk s file server), the system that wants the file (the end-user s wrkstatin), and the type f the cnnectin (Windws/CIFS r Linux/NFS) t the strage. Each f these elements plays a rle in enabling which stubbing technlgies can be used t bring end-user value. This means that the full stry f what happens in an envirnment: which kind and where stubs are used needs t include the cmbined cnstraints f all f these cmpnents. Hwever, fr ur purpses here we are ging t fcus n stubs alne, which is mstly a discussin abut the capabilities f yur file server. STUB TYPES The NTPS Seamless Archiver sftware ffers five (5) distinct types f stubs. While sme f the stub-types that the sftware ffers are usable in almst every use case, thers are designed fr mre specific use cases. As we dig int the details, it s imprtant t remember that there are several traditinal file archiving architectures that d nt rely n the use f stubs at all t accmplish their benefits. Clearly, having several types f stubs ffers many additinal advantages that nn-stub archiving slutins cannt deliver. It is imprtant t remember that when it cmes t archiving, it s generally true that the mre (technlgically) sphisticated the architecture, the fewer the number f systems that can supprt it. 6

7 STUB TYPES CHART The table abve is intended t be a summary f each stub type. There is certainly mre t the stry but the right place t g frm here is a discussin f what s needed and what strage and server limitatins there are fr each f these stub types. The mst influential system in determining which stubs can and cannt be deplyed fr archiving is the system that hsts yur files. If the system that hlds yur files desn t d it (whatever it is), then it cannt be dne in that prtin f yur envirnment. Simple enugh, right? Nt s fast it is als the case that mst f the systems that hld yur file data have ne set f behavirs fr CIFS (Windws) files and anther set f behavirs fr NFS (Linux) files. Smetimes whether a particular architecture will wrk cmes dwn t a specific versin f the strage OS but we wn t g this far. Yu can relax. The matrix belw shws which stub types are supprted by each strage platfrm/os. Stub Type EMC VNX EMC Isiln HDS HNAS NetApp FAS NetApp ETCA Windws Active (Seamless) Yes N N Yes Yes Yes File System Links Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Simple HTML Stubs Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Rich HTML Stubs Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Implementatin Best Practices 1. PREPARATION Designing a set f plicies fr first remving the existing inventry f files that can be archived, and then autmating the archiving as an nging prcess, requires the creatin f ne r many plicies fr mving files t the ECS and what is left behind n primary. A majr benefit f the NTPS Seamless Archiver is that it allws yu t create as many hypthetical archive plices as yu want withut penalty. 7

8 Simulatin is the key t identifying the crrect strategy (r cllectin f plicies) fr each use case. Yu can develp a simulatin f each strategy and then estimate hw many files yur strategy will archive. Here are sme plicy strategies t cnsider: Archive by file attributes including: 1. File creatin date, mdified date, and/r accessed date 2. File size 3. File type (extensin) 4. a cmbinatin f all three Data capacity gals and limitatins f the primary tier Data capacity requirements fr the archive drive 2. DISCOVERY With the NTPS Seamless Archiver, the discvery scan can be used t determine the amunt f data that will be mved with each hypthetical plicy setting. (Fr example: larger than 1 MB and lder than 5 years) It s recmmended that the first archive jb yu run be a finite and manageable amunt f data. This is essential in allwing yu t: Understand the actual speed f data mvement (with ur integrity checks) fr yur envirnment. Knw hw much data yur systems can mve in a perid f time Determine if there will be any perfrmance r user impact Determine if there is a need fr any black ut windws (dn t mve data during prductin hurs) Determine hw aggressive yu can get with yur plicy settings. The ultimate gal is t have the knwledge and understanding t predict the maximum amunt f data mvement withut impacting end users. 3. MOVING DATA If yur custmer is like mst enterprise custmers, they are faced with ne r mre primary file strage sils, each f which has been accumulating file data n that single tier fr years and years. As a cnsequence, each sil has amassed a huge amunt f stale file data. This staleness f the data is a functin f hw lng the sil has been in use. Als, the file data cmes in many different sizes. Cnsider the fllwing data pints: 80% f the files in the datacenter sils have nt been mdified in at least tw years. Files that are larger than 1 MB likely cnsume 90% f the ttal strage. Once the custmer has an understanding f the file data archiving feeds and speeds, they can start t set plicies t get these files t the right tier at the right time. Remember that different stub types take up different amunts f space n yur primary strage tier. Generally speaking, the mre available yu want the files t be fr yur end user, the larger the stub type yu will want t use. There are likely files in yur envirnment that are s ld and stale, that there is n practical business case fr keeping them arund. These files can be preserved in an archive tier fr legal r cmpliance reasns withut taking up any f the primary file strage Remember that yur custmer likely has many small files that cllectively take up very little space. We suggest the fllwing adjustments: 8

9 1. Start archiving all files larger than 10 MB in manageable batches frm ldest t yungest until all 10 MB files lder than yur target aged date (2 years) have been archived. 2. Next mve t target the ldest files larger than 1 MB and cntinue t reduce the age requirement fr each archiving jb until yu reach the target age/date. 3. If necessary, repeat the abve prcess until yu reach files that are 100 KB in size. Architecture Best Practices: Architecture Rules f Thumb An imprtant nte: NTPS Seamless Archiver fr ECS is licensed t simplify architecture. We license based n the number f terabytes that are mved ff f primary strage. Custmers are free t deply as many Tiering Engines (n as many platfrms) as needed fr an effective installatin. A ne t ne relatinship is recmmended between primary strage servers and installatins f the Seamless Archiver Tiering Engine (Task Service and CTE) Multiple primary strage servers can be managed if in the same lcatin and smaller systems (fr example: 3 windws servers and ne FAS 3020 with less than 50 TB f ttal strage) Primary strage envirnments can be mixed HDS, NetApp and Windws can all be managed with ne installatin The multiple envirnment can be managed frm the same cnfiguratin site, similar t a hub and spke mdel Lcatin f the Tiering Engine T identify last access times, last mdified and create dates we scan the primary strage server fr metadata abut the files We recmmend these services be lcated in clse prximity t the strage server, scanning ver a WAN is nt suggested Initial archive and maintenance plicies Due t the large amunt f candidate data in an envirnment, a layered strategy shuld be rlled in t mve the initial data ver in segmented amunts After the envirnment has been brught up t date, plicies can be set t keep it current effrtlessly Resurce planning Wise use f the hurs f peratin will limit the impact f large vlumes f data being mved ver the netwrk, and lwer the impact placed n end users Keep an eye n database size and grwth Database size is nt an issue fr Active Stub Rehydratin The stubs d nt query the DB fr the lcatin f the file Fllw best practices n archiving large files first t maximize the amunt f data archived and minimize the number f entries in the DB The DB is nly used fr recvery f files withut stubs query times culd be extend with a large DB. Nte- this is rarely an issue when fllwing best practices as the custmer is archiving files that nbdy has tuched in years NTP Sftware leverages Micrsft SQL Server t mitigate any cncerns 9

10 Managing a glbal envirnment The cnfiguratin UI can handle well ver 200 Tiering Engines Blackut windws and schedule start times are dependent n the lcal time f the Tiering Engine It s nt recmmended t launch 200 archiving jbs at the same time, staggering times is best Fr cmplex independent Tiering Engine cnfiguratins, a secnd cnfiguratin site may be recmmended Archiving frm large petabyte installatins The Tiering Engine supprts a cnfiguratin where it can cnnect directly t a vfiler r a Strage Virtual Machine This cnfiguratin allws fr a ne t ne relatinship between the Tiering Engine and the vfiler/svm - meaning that a PB f strage spit between 10 vfilers can be supprted with 10 Tiering Engines. Tiering Engines in a single Virtual Machine as well as multiple VM s can be used n the same hst as lng as the hst has enugh resurces Nte that in mst envirnments cnfiguratins like the abve are nly run during prductin ff hurs. The amunt f data cming frm 10 Tiering Engines cnnected t ne NetApp Filer can saturate the netwrk and impact user perfrmance 10