EMC VSPEX FOR VIRTUALIZED MICROSOFT SQL SERVER 2012 WITH MICROSOFT HYPER-V

Transcription

1 IMPLEMENTATION GUIDE EMC VSPEX FOR VIRTUALIZED MICROSOFT SQL SERVER 2012 WITH MICROSOFT HYPER-V EMC VSPEX Abstract This describes, at a high level, the steps required to deploy multiple Microsoft SQL Server instances on an EMC VSPEX Proven Infrastructure with Microsoft Hyper-V enabled by EMC VNXe or EMC Next-Generation VNX, and EMC backup. The guide provides information on SQL Server 2012 implementations. October 2013

2 Copyright 2013 EMC Corporation. All rights reserved. Published in the USA. Published October EMC believes the information in this publication is accurate as of its publication date. The information is subject to change without notice. The information in this publication is provided as is. EMC Corporation makes no representations or warranties of any kind with respect to the information in this publication, and specifically disclaims implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. Use, copying, and distribution of any EMC software described in this publication requires an applicable software license. EMC 2, EMC, and the EMC logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of EMC Corporation in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners. For the most up-to-date listing of EMC product names, see EMC Corporation Trademarks on EMC.com. Part Number H

3 Contents Contents Chapter 1 Introduction 11 Purpose of this guide Business value Scope Audience Terminology Chapter 2 Before You Start 15 Overview Pre-deployment tasks Deployment workflow Deployment prerequisites Planning and sizing SQL Server Essential reading VSPEX Design Guide VSPEX Solution Overviews VSPEX Proven Infrastructures VSPEX with EMC backup and recovery guide Chapter 3 Solution Overview 23 Overview Solution architecture Key components Microsoft SQL Server EMC VSPEX Proven Infrastructure EMC Next-Generation VNX EMC VNXe EMC backup and recovery solutions Microsoft Windows Server 2012 with Hyper-V Microsoft MPIO and MCS EMC XtremSW Cache EMC PowerPath for Windows

4 Contents Chapter 4 Solution Implementation 35 Overview Physical setup Overview of physical setup Network implementation Overview of network implementation Storage implementation Overview of storage implementation VNXe configuration VNX configuration Microsoft Windows Server Hyper-V infrastructure implementation Overview of Hyper-V infrastructure implementation on VNXe Overview of Hyper-V infrastructure implementation on VNX SQL Server virtualization implementation Overview of SQL Server virtualization implementation Creating SQL Server virtual machines Installing SQL Server guest OS Assigning an IP address Creating SQL Server service accounts Creating a virtual disk for the SQL Server instance Application implementation Overview of application implementation Installing SQL Server 2012 instances Deploying SQL Server OLTP system Configuring SQL Server Backup and recovery implementation Chapter 5 Solution Verification 63 Baseline infrastructure verification Overview of baseline hardware verification Verifying Hyper-V functionality Verifying redundancy of solution components Monitoring the solution s health SQL Server OLTP workload performance verification Overview Key metrics Test scenario and configuration Test results Backup and recovery verification

5 Contents Chapter 6 Reference Documentation 69 EMC documentation Other documentation Links Appendix A Configuration Worksheet 73 Configuration worksheet for SQL Server

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7 Figures Contents Figure 1. Solution architecture Figure 2. VSPEX Proven Infrastructure Figure 3. Next-Generation VNX with multicore optimization Figure 4. Active/active processors increase performance, resiliency, and efficiency Figure 5. New Unisphere Management Suite Figure 6. SQL Server storage elements on a Hyper-V platform Figure 7. Example storage pools for VNXe Figure 8. Example storage layout for VNXe Figure 9. Storage system management with ESI Figure 10. Create pooled LUN Wizard from EMC Unisphere Figure 11. Storage Pool Properties FAST Cache enabled Figure 12. Example storage layout for VNX Figure 13. Example of Hyper-V datastores Figure 14. CSV disks Figure 15. CSV disks in ESI Figure 16. Format virtual disk Figure 17. SQL Server 2012 Installation Center Figure 18. SQL Server 2012 Setup Role in the installation wizard Figure 19. SQL Server 2012 Feature Selection in the installation wizard Figure 20. SQL Server 2012 Instance Configuration Figure 21. SQL Server 2012 Database Engine Configuration Figure 22. SQL Server 2012 installation completed Figure 23. Grant Lock pages in memory Figure 24. Set the maximum server memory Figure 25. Total IOPS to user database volume

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9 Contents Tables Table 1. Terminology Table 2. Pre-deployment tasks Table 3. Solution deployment process workflow Table 4. Deployment prerequisites checklist Table 5. Storage pools Table 6. Example of customer evaluation 50 GB user database (small) Table 7. Example of required resources: Small user database Table 8. Example of storage recommendations Small user database Table 9. VNXe software suites Table 10. VNXe software packs Table 11. Tasks for physical setup Table 12. Tasks for switch and network configuration Table 13. Tasks for VNX or VNXe storage array configuration Table 14. Example of storage layout Table 15. Storage layout example on VNX Table 16. Tasks for server installation on VNXe Table 17. Tasks for server installation on VNX Table 18. SQL Server host virtual machine installation and configuration Table 19. Example of SQL Server OLTP reference virtual machines Table 20. Example of VHDX and virtual disk storage layout Table 21. Tasks to implement a SQL Server deployment Table 22. Tasks for verifying the solution Table 23. Tools to monitor the solution Table 24. Example of key metrics for solution Table 25. SQL Server TPC-E-like environment characteristics Table 26. SQL Server virtual machine profile Table 27. Test results for SQL Server Table 28. Detailed server resource utilization Table 29. Common server information Table 30. Hyper-V server information Table 31. Array information Table 32. Network infrastructure information Table 33. VLAN information Table 34. Service accounts

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11 Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 1 Introduction This chapter presents the following topics: Purpose of this guide Business value Scope Audience Terminology

12 Chapter 1: Introduction Purpose of this guide Business value EMC VSPEX Proven Infrastructures are optimized for virtualizing business-critical applications. VSPEX gives partners the ability to design and implement the assets necessary to support Microsoft SQL Server 2012 in a virtualized environment on a VSPEX Private Cloud. EMC VSPEX for virtualized Microsoft SQL Server 2012 provides a validated system capable of hosting virtualized SQL Server at a consistent performance level. This solution is layered on a VSPEX Private Cloud for Microsoft Hyper-V and is backed by the highly available EMC VNX family, which provides the storage. All VSPEX solutions are sized and tested with EMC backup and recovery products. EMC Avamar and EMC Data Domain enable complete infrastructure, application, and backup and recovery, including granular recovery capabilities. The compute and network components, while vendor-definable, are laid out so they are redundant and powerful enough to handle the processing and data needs of the virtual machine environment. This describes how to implement, with best practices, the resources necessary to deploy Microsoft SQL Server 2012 on any VSPEX Proven Infrastructure for Microsoft Hyper-V. VSPEX enables customers to accelerate their IT transformation with faster deployments and simplified management, backup, and storage provisioning. Customers can realize greater efficiency with higher application availability, increased storage utilization, and faster and leaner backups. In addition, VSPEX provides customers with flexibility of choice when selecting a hypervisor, server, and network to address the requirements of their SQL Server environments. The designed methodology and best practices of EMC VSPEX are to: Deploy faster saving time and effort with Proven solutions Increase performance and scalability out of the box Reduce the customer s backup storage requirements and costs Meet backup windows Enable fast disk-based recovery 12

13 Chapter 1: Introduction Scope This describes the high-level steps required to deploy Microsoft SQL Server 2012 on a VSPEX Proven Infrastructure for Hyper-V with the Next-Generation VNX or VNXe storage systems. The guide assumes that a VSPEX Proven Infrastructure already exists in the customer environment. The examples used throughout this guide describe a deployment on an EMC VNXe 3150 or EMC VNX5800 array. The same principles and guidelines apply to VNXe3300, VNX5400, and VNX5600 arrays. EMC backup and recovery solutions for SQL Server data 2012 protection are described in a separate document, EMC Backup and Recovery Options for VSPEX for Virtualized Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Design and. Audience This guide is intended for internal EMC personnel and qualified EMC VSPEX partners. The guide assumes that VSPEX partners who intend to deploy this VSPEX for virtualized Microsoft SQL Server 2012 solution are: Qualified by Microsoft to sell and implement SQL Server solutions Certified in SQL Server, ideally with one or more of the following Microsoft certifications: Microsoft Certified Solutions Associate (MCSA) Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert (MCSE) Microsoft Certified Solutions Master (MCSM) Qualified by EMC to sell, install, and configure the VNX family of storage systems Certified for selling VSPEX Proven Infrastructures Qualified to sell, install, and configure the network and server products required for VSPEX Proven Infrastructures If you plan to deploy the solution, you must also have the necessary technical training and background to install and configure: Microsoft Windows Server 2012 with Hyper-V as virtualization platforms Microsoft SQL Server EMC backup and recovery products, including Avamar and Data Domain This guide provides external references where applicable. EMC recommends that partners implementing this solution are familiar with these documents. For details, refer to Essential reading and Chapter 6: Reference Documentation. 13

14 Chapter 1: Introduction Terminology Table 1 lists the terminology used in this guide. Table 1. Term AD CIFS CSV DBCC DNS emlc Terminology Definition Active Directory Common Internet File System Cluster-shared volume Database consistency check Domain name system Enterprise multilevel cell FAST Cache FAST VP File group IOPS iscsi LSN MCS MPIO NIC NTP OLTP Reference virtual machine Rpm RTM tempdb TPS VDM VHDX VSS A feature on EMC VNX series storage systems that enables you to use the lower response time and better IOPS of flash drives for specific applications Fully Automated Storage Tiering for Virtual Pools SQL Server database objects and files group Input/output operations per second Internet Small Computer System Interface Log sequence number Multiple Connections per Session Multipath I/O Network interface card Network Time Protocol Online transaction processing, typical applications of which include data entry and retrieval transaction processing Representation of a unit of measure for a single virtual machine, quantifying the compute resources in a VSPEX Proven Infrastructure Revolutions per minute Release to manufacturing A system database used by SQL Server as a temporary working area during processing Transactions per second Virtual Data Mover Hyper-V virtual hard disk format Volume Shadow Copy Service 14

15 Chapter 2: Before You Start Chapter 2 Before You Start This chapter presents the following topics: Overview Pre-deployment tasks Deployment workflow Deployment prerequisites Planning and sizing SQL Server Essential reading

16 Chapter 2: Before You Start Overview This chapter provides an overview of important information you need to be aware of, documents you need to be familiar with, and tasks you need to perform before you start implementing your VSPEX for virtualized SQL Server solution. EMC VSPEX for Virtualized Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Design Guide for this solution describes how to size and design your solution and how to select the right VSPEX Proven Infrastructure on which to layer SQL Server. The deployment examples in this are based on the recommendations and examples in the Design Guide. Before you deploy SQL Server on a VSPEX Proven Infrastructure, EMC recommends that you complete the pre-deployment tasks described in Table 2. Pre-deployment tasks Pre-deployment tasks include procedures that do not directly relate to environment installation and configuration, but whose results are needed during installation. Predeployment tasks include collecting hostnames, IP addresses, VLAN IDs, license keys, installation media, and so on. You should perform these tasks before visiting a customer to reduce the amount of time required on site. Table 2 describes the pre-deployment tasks for this solution. Table 2. Pre-deployment tasks Task Description References Gathering documents Gather the related documents listed in Essential reading. These are referred to throughout this guide. They provide details on setup procedures, sizing, and deployment best practices for the various solution components. Essential reading Gathering tools Gathering data Gather the required and optional tools for the deployment. Use Table 4 to confirm that all required equipment, software, and licenses are available for the deployment. Collect the customer-specific configuration data for networking, arrays, accounts, and so on. Enter this information into the Configuration Worksheet in Appendix A for reference during deployment. Deployment prerequisites Configuration worksheet for SQL Server 16

17 Chapter 2: Before You Start Deployment workflow To design and implement your VSPEX for virtualized SQL Server solution, refer to the process flow in Table 3 1. Table 3. Step Solution deployment process workflow Action 1 Use the VSPEX SQL Server 2012 qualification worksheet to collect user requirements. The Qualification Worksheet is in the Design Guide. 2 Use the EMC VSPEX Sizing Tool to determine the recommended VSPEX Proven Infrastructure for your SQL Server solution, based on the user requirements collected in Step 1. For more information about the VSPEX Sizing Tool, refer to the EMC VSPEX Sizing Tool portal. Note: If the Sizing Tool is not available, you can manually size the application using the guidelines in Appendix B of the Design Guide. 3 Use the Design Guide to determine the final design for your VSPEX solution. Note: Ensure that all application requirements, not just the requirements for virtualized SQL Server, are considered. 4 Refer to the appropriate VSPEX Proven Infrastructure document in Essential reading to select and order the right VSPEX Proven Infrastructure. 5 Follow this to deploy and test your VSPEX solution. Note: If you already have a VSPEX Proven Infrastructure environment, you can skip the implementation steps already completed. Deployment prerequisites This guide applies to VSPEX for virtualized SQL Server 2012 solutions with Hyper-V and the EMC VNX family of storage systems. The example described in this guide is for a deployment on a VNX5800 or VNXe3150 array. The same principles and guidelines apply to VNXe3300 and VNX 5400/5600. Table 4 itemizes the hardware, software, and licenses required to configure this solution. For additional information, refer to the hardware and software tables in the relevant VSPEX Proven Infrastructure document in Essential reading. 1 If your solution includes backup and recovery components, refer to EMC Backup and Recovery Options for VSPEX for Virtualized Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Design and for backup and recovery sizing and implementation guidelines. 17

18 Chapter 2: Before You Start Table 4. Deployment prerequisites checklist Requirement Description Version References / Notes Hardware Physical servers: Sufficient physical server capacity to host the required number of virtual machines as recommended by the Design Guide and VSPEX Sizing Tool. Networking: Switch port capacity and capabilities as required by the virtual server infrastructure VNX or VNXe: Multiprotocol storage array with the required disk layout. Note: The sufficient storage is required to completely support the needed reference virtual machines and the additional storage layout for applications. EMC VSPEX Private Cloud Microsoft Windows Server 2012 with Hyper-V for up to 100 Virtual Machines EMC VSPEX Private Cloud Microsoft Windows Server 2012 with Hyper-V for up to 1,000 Virtual Machines Backup: EMC Avamar GEN 4 in a singlenode configuration For backup and recovery Software VNXe Operating Environment (OE) EMC Online Support VNX OE for file VNX OE for block EMC Unisphere for VNX General Availability (GA) GA GA EMC Unisphere for VNXe EMC PowerPath /VE 5.9 EMC Storage Integrator 2.0 EMC Storage Integrator for Windows Technical Notes Microsoft Windows Server Microsoft SQL Server EMC Avamar Microsoft Windows Server 2012 Standard (or higher) with latest update 2012 Standard (or higher) edition Service Pack1 (SP1) with latest update 6.1 in server and client versions For Hyper-V host For backup and recovery 18

19 Chapter 2: Before You Start Requirement Description Version References / Notes Licenses Microsoft Windows Server license keys. Note: This requirement may be covered by an existing Software Assurance agreement and may be found on an existing customer Microsoft Key Management Server (KMS) (if applicable) Microsoft SQL Server license keys 2012 Refer to the Design Guide EMC FAST Cache enabler EMC FAST enabler EMC Thin Provisioning enabler N/A N/A N/A Planning and sizing SQL Server 2012 To plan and size your SQL Server 2012 instances, follow the recommendations and VSPEX Sizing Tool proposals introduced in EMC VSPEX for Virtualized Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Design Guide. Use the VSPEX Sizing Tool and the VSPEX for virtualized SQL Server qualification worksheet, as described in that guide. In this VSPEX for virtualized SQL Server solution, we 2 used the storage pool configuration detailed in Table 5. Table 5. Storage pools Pool name VSPEX private cloud pool SQL Server user database data pool SQL Server log and tempdb database pool Purpose This is the pool where all the virtual machine operating system (OS) volumes reside. For details, refer to the appropriate VSPEX Proven Infrastructure documents listed in Essential reading. This is the pool where the user database data resides. This is the pool where the user database log and tempdb reside. The example described here is the small-sized example described in the Design Guide Example 1: Small-sized SQL Server OLTP instance with single user database. A customer wants to create a business-critical SQL Server user database on a VSPEX Proven Infrastructure. To evaluate the requirements for creating the database, complete the qualification worksheet, as shown in Table 6. 2 In this guide, we refers to the EMC Solutions engineering team that validated the solution. 19

20 Chapter 2: Before You Start Table 6. Example of customer evaluation 50 GB user database (small) Question Do you have an existing SQL Server database that you would like to size for in the environment? Example answer Yes How many databases do you want to deploy? 1 What is the size of the user database (GB)? 50 What is the number of growth year? 50 What is the annual growth rate (%)? 30 Do you intend to use FAST VP? No What is the maximum number of IOPS? 525 What are the transactions per second (TPS) at peak loads (optional question)? What is the required tempdb size (optional question)? 200 N/A After you have received a completed qualification worksheet from the customer, and entered the answers into the VSPEX Sizing Tool, you see the following results: Required resources table that lists the number of virtual machines and their characteristics. Storage recommendations table that lists the additional storage hardware that is required to run the online transaction processing (OLTP) workload this is in addition to the VSPEX private cloud pool. Table 7 and Table 8 are examples based on the customer information provided in Table 6. In this guide, we used the resources shown in Table 7 for the small-sized SQL Server user database. Table 7. Example of required resources: Small user database SQL Server vcpu Memory SQL Server Resource requirement OS volume capacity OS volume IOPS 2 8 GB 100 GB Less than 25 No. of virtual machines 1 4 Total reference virtual machines Equivalent reference virtual machines The values of individual resources (CPU, memory, capacity, and IOPS) are rounded up to the closest whole number to determine the equivalent reference virtual machines required for each SQL Server instance. 20

21 Chapter 2: Before You Start For example, the SQL Server instance for the small-sized user database requires two vcpus, 8 GB of memory, 100 GB of storage, and 25 IOPS. This translates to: Two reference virtual machines for the CPU requirement Four reference virtual machines for the memory requirement One reference virtual machine for the capacity requirement One reference virtual machine for the IOPS requirement You should use the maximum reference virtual machines to support the performance requirement. Therefore the recommended reference virtual machine number is four for the designed SQL Server instance, multiplied by the number of virtual machines needed (one in this example), which results in four reference virtual machines in total. For more details about how to determine the equivalent reference virtual machines, refer to the appropriate document in Essential reading. Table 8 shows the suggested storage layout for the small user database. This is in addition to the VSPEX private cloud pool. Table 8. Example of storage recommendations Small user database Recommended additional storage layout for SQL databases Pool name RAID type Disk type Disk capacity Number of disks SQL Server user database data pool SQL Server user database log and tempdb pool RAID 5 (4+1) SAS disks 15,000 rpm 300 GB 10 RAID 10 (3+3) SAS disks 15,000 rpm 300 GB 6 Essential reading EMC recommends that you read the following documents, which are available from the VSPEX space in the EMC Community Network or from EMC.com or the VSPEX Proven Infrastructure partner portal. VSPEX Design Guide VSPEX Solution Overviews Refer to the following VSPEX Design Guide: EMC VSPEX for Virtualized Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Refer to the following VSPEX Solution Overview documents: EMC VSPEX Server Virtualization for Midmarket Businesses EMC VSPEX Server Virtualization for Small and Medium Businesses 21

22 Chapter 2: Before You Start VSPEX Proven Infrastructures VSPEX with EMC backup and recovery guide Refer to the following VSPEX Proven Infrastructure Guides: EMC VSPEX Private Cloud Microsoft Windows Server 2012 with Hyper-V for up to 100 Virtual Machines EMC VSPEX Private Cloud Microsoft Windows Server 2012 with Hyper-V for up to 1,000 Virtual Machines Refer to the following VSPEX with EMC backup and recovery guide: EMC Backup and Recovery Options for VSPEX for Virtualized Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Design and 22

23 Chapter 3: Solution Overview Chapter 3 Solution Overview This chapter presents the following topics: Overview Solution architecture Key components

24 Chapter 3: Solution Overview Overview Solution architecture This chapter provides an overview of the VSPEX Proven Infrastructure for virtualized SQL Server and the key technologies used in this solution. This VSPEX for virtualized SQL Server 2012 solution is enabled by Hyper-V and the VNX family of storage systems. This guide uses, as the working example, EMC VSPEX Proven Infrastructure for up to 1,000 virtual machines enabled by Microsoft Hyper-V. The VSPEX for virtualized Microsoft SQL Server 2012 solution was validated using VNX or VNXe and Hyper-V virtualized Windows Server platforms to provide storage and server hardware consolidation. The solution described in this guide includes servers, storage, network, backup and recovery, and SQL Server components that are focused on small- to medium-sized environments. The solution enables customers to quickly and consistently deploy and protect a small or medium virtualized SQL Server instance in a VSPEX Proven Infrastructure. The VNX and VNXe storage arrays are multi-protocol platforms that can support the Internet Small Computer Systems Interface (iscsi), Network File System (NFS), Common Internet File System (CIFS), Fibre Channel (FC), and Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) protocols, depending on the customer s specific needs. We validated this solution using iscsi for data storage. This solution requires the presence of Active Directory (AD) and domain name system (DNS). The implementation of these services is beyond the scope of this guide, but the services are prerequisites for a successful deployment. EMC backup and recovery solutions provide essential SQL Server 2012 data protection and are described in a separate document, EMC Backup and Recovery Options for VSPEX for Virtualized Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Design and. Figure 1 shows the architecture that characterizes the validated infrastructure for support of SQL Server 2012 on a VSPEX Proven Infrastructure. In this solution, we deployed all SQL Server instances as virtual machines on a Windows Server 2012 with a Hyper-V cluster across the back-end servers. A VNXe3150 or VNX5800 array provides the back-end storage functionality, but you can use any VNX or VNXe model that has been validated as part of the VSPEX Proven Infrastructures. The optional backup and recovery components of the solution provide SQL Server database data protection. Note: This solution applies to all VSPEX offerings using Hyper-V. 24

25 Chapter 3: Solution Overview Figure 1. Solution architecture Key components For more details, refer to the relevant documents listed in Essential reading. This section provides an overview of the following technologies used in this solution: Microsoft SQL Server 2012 EMC VSPEX Proven Infrastructure EMC Next-Generation VNX EMC VNXe EMC backup and recovery solutions Microsoft Windows Server 2012 with Hyper-V Microsoft MPIO and MCS EMC XtremSW Cache EMC PowerPath /VE 25

26 Chapter 3: Solution Overview Microsoft SQL Server 2012 EMC VSPEX Proven Infrastructure SQL Server 2012 is Microsoft s database management and analysis system for e- commerce, line-of-business, and data warehousing solutions. SQL Server is widely used to store, retrieve, and manage application data. Because it is used with a range of applications and each application has different requirements for performance, sizing, availability, recoverability, manageability, and so on, you should fully understand these factors and plan accordingly when deploying SQL Server. EMC has joined forces with the industry s leading providers of IT infrastructure to create a complete virtualization solution that accelerates deployment of the Private Cloud. VSPEX enables faster deployment, more simplicity, greater choice, higher efficiency, and lower risk. Validation by EMC ensures predictable performance and enables customers to select technology that uses their existing IT infrastructure while eliminating planning, sizing, and configuration burdens. VSPEX provides a virtual infrastructure for customers who want the simplicity that is characteristic of truly converged infrastructures, and more choices in individual stack components. VSPEX solutions are proven by EMC and packaged and sold exclusively by EMC channel partners. VSPEX provides channel partners with more opportunity, a faster sales cycle, and end-to-end enablement. By working closely together, EMC and its channel partners can now deliver infrastructure that accelerates the journey to the cloud for even more customers. VSPEX Proven Infrastructure, as shown in Figure 2, is a modular virtualized infrastructure validated by EMC and delivered by EMC s VSPEX partners. VSPEX includes a virtualization layer, server, network, and EMC storage and backup, designed by EMC to deliver reliable and predictable performance. Figure 2. VSPEX Proven Infrastructure 26

27 Chapter 3: Solution Overview VSPEX provides the flexibility to choose network, server, and virtualization technologies that fit a customer s environment to create a complete virtualization solution. VSPEX delivers faster deployment for EMC partner customers, with greater simplicity and efficiency, more choice, and lower risk to a customer s business. Application-based solutions such as SQL Server can be deployed on VSPEX Proven Infrastructures. The VSPEX for virtualized SQL Server solution was validated using VNX or VNXe and Hyper-V virtualized Windows Server platforms to provide storage and server hardware consolidation. The virtualized infrastructure is centrally managed, and enables efficient deployment and management of a scalable number of virtual machines and associated shared storage. EMC Next- Generation VNX Features and enhancements The EMC VNX flash-optimized unified storage platform delivers innovation and enterprise capabilities for file, block, and object storage in a single, scalable, and easy-to-use solution. Ideal for mixed workloads in physical or virtual environments, VNX combines powerful and flexible hardware with advanced efficiency, management, and protection software to meet the demanding needs of today s virtualized application environments. VNX includes many features and enhancements designed and built upon the first generation s success. These features and enhancements include: More capacity with multicore optimization with Multicore Cache, Multicore RAID, and Multicore FAST Cache (MCx) Greater efficiency with a flash-optimized hybrid array Better protection by increasing application availability with active/active array service processors Easier administration and deployment by increasing productivity with new Unisphere Management Suite VSPEX is built with the next generation of VNX to deliver even greater efficiency, performance, and scalability than ever before. Flash-optimized hybrid array VNX is a flash-optimized hybrid array that provides automated tiering to deliver the best performance to your critical data, while intelligently moving less frequently accessed data to lower-cost disks. In this hybrid approach, a small percentage of flash drives in the overall system can provide a high percentage of the overall IOPS. Flash-optimized VNX takes full advantage of the low latency of flash to deliver cost-saving optimization and high performance scalability. The EMC Fully Automated Storage Tiering Suite (FAST Cache and FAST VP) tiers both block and file data across heterogeneous drives and boosts the most active data to the cache, ensuring that customers never have to make concessions for cost or performance. Data generally is accessed most frequently at the time it is created, therefore new data is first stored on flash drives to provide the best performance. As that data ages and becomes less active over time, FAST VP tiers the data from high-performance to 27

28 Chapter 3: Solution Overview high-capacity drives automatically, based on customer-defined policies. This functionality has been enhanced with four times better granularity and with new FAST VP solid-state disks (SSDs) based on enterprise multi-level cell (emlc) technology to lower the cost per gigabyte. FAST Cache dynamically absorbs unpredicted spikes in system workloads. All VSPEX use cases benefit from the increased efficiency. VSPEX Proven Infrastructures deliver Private Cloud, end-user computing, and virtualized application solutions. With VNX, customers can realize an even greater return on their investment. VNX provides out-of-band, block-based deduplication that can dramatically lower the costs of the flash tier. VNX Intel MCx Code Path Optimization The advent of flash technology has been a catalyst in totally changing the requirements of midrange storage systems. EMC redesigned the midrange storage platform to efficiently optimize multicore CPUs to provide the highest performing storage system at the lowest cost in the market. MCx distributes all VNX data services across all cores (up to 32), as shown in Figure 3. The VNX series with MCx has dramatically improved the file performance for transactional applications like databases or virtual machines over network-attached storage (NAS). Figure 3. Next-Generation VNX with multicore optimization Multicore Cache The cache is the most valuable asset in the storage subsystem; its efficient use is key to the overall efficiency of the platform in handling variable and changing workloads. The cache engine has been modularized to take advantage of all the cores available in the system. Multicore RAID Another important part of the MCx redesign is the handling of I/O to the permanent back-end storage hard disk drives (HDDs) and SSDs. Greatly increased performance improvements in VNX come from the modularization of the back-end data management processing, which enables MCx to seamlessly scale across all processors. 28

29 VNX performance Chapter 3: Solution Overview Performance enhancements VNX storage, enabled with the MCx architecture, is optimized for Flash 1 st and provides unprecedented overall performance, optimizing for transaction performance (cost per IOPS) and bandwidth performance (cost per GB/s) with low latency, and providing optimal capacity efficiency (cost per GB). VNX provides the following performance improvements: Up to four times more file transactions when compared with dual controller arrays Increased file performance for transactional applications by up to three times with a 60 percent better response time Up to four times more Oracle and Microsoft SQL Server OLTP transactions Up to six times more virtual machines Active/active array service processors The new VNX architecture provides active/active array service processors, as shown in Figure 4, which eliminate application timeouts during path failover since both paths are actively serving I/O. Note: The active/active processors are only available for classic logical unit numbers (LUNs), not for pool LUNs. Figure 4. Active/active processors increase performance, resiliency, and efficiency Load balancing also has been improved and applications can achieve an up to two times improvement in performance. Active/active for block is ideal for applications that require the highest levels of availability and performance, but do not require tiering or efficiency services like compression, deduplication, or snapshot. With this VNX release, VSPEX customers can use virtual Data Movers (VDMs) and VNX Replicator to perform automated and high-speed file system migrations between systems. This process migrates all snaps and settings automatically, and enables the clients to continue operation during the migration. 29

30 Chapter 3: Solution Overview Unisphere Management Suite The Unisphere Management Suite extends Unisphere s easy-to-use, interface to include VNX Monitoring and Reporting for validating performance and anticipating capacity requirements. As shown in Figure 5, the suite also includes Unisphere Remote for centrally managing up to thousands of VNX and VNXe systems with new support for XtremSW Cache. Figure 5. New Unisphere Management Suite Virtualization management EMC Storage Integrator EMC Storage Integrator (ESI) is targeted towards the Windows and Windows applications administrator. ESI is easy to use, delivers end-to end monitoring, and is hypervisor agnostic. Administrators can provision in both virtual and physical environments for a Windows platform, and troubleshoot by viewing the topology of an application from the underlying hypervisor to the storage. Microsoft Hyper-V With Windows Server 2012, Microsoft provides Hyper-V 3.0, an enhanced hypervisor for Private Cloud that can run on NAS protocols for simplified connectivity. Offloaded Data Transfer The Offloaded Data Transfer (ODX) feature of Microsoft Hyper-V enables data transfers during copy operations to be offloaded to the storage array, freeing up host cycles. For example, using ODX for a live migration of a SQL Server virtual machine doubled performance, decreased migration time by 50 percent, reduced CPU on the Hyper-V server by 20 percent, and eliminated network traffic. EMC VNXe The VNXe series is optimized for virtual applications delivering industry-leading innovation and enterprise capabilities for file, block, and object storage in a scalable, easy-to-use solution. The VNXe series is designed for the IT manager in smaller environments. 30

31 VNXe features VNXe supports the following features: Chapter 3: Solution Overview Next-generation unified storage, optimized for virtualized applications Capacity optimization features including compression, deduplication, thin provisioning, and application-centric copies High availability, designed to deliver five 9s availability Multiprotocol support for file and block Simplified management with EMC Unisphere for a single management interface for all NAS, SAN, and replication needs VNXe software suites Table 9 lists the software suites that are available with VNXe. Table 9. VNXe software suites Suite Local Protection Suite Remote Protection Suite Application Protection Suite Security and Compliance Suite Features Increases productivity with snapshots of production data Protects data against localized failures, outages, and disasters Automates application copies and proves compliance Keeps data safe from changes, deletions, and malicious activity VNXe software packs available Table 10 lists the software packs that are available with VNXe. Table 10. VNXe software packs Pack VNXe3300 Total Protection Pack VNXe3150 Total Value Pack Features Includes the Local Protection Suite, Remote Protection Suite, and Application Protection Suite Includes the Remote Protection Suite, Application Protection Suite, and the Security and Compliance Suite EMC backup and recovery solutions EMC backup and recovery solutions EMC Avamar and Data Domain deliver the protection confidence needed to accelerate deployment of virtualized SQL Server. Optimized for virtualized application environments, EMC backup and recovery reduces backup times by 90 percent and increases recovery speeds by 30 times for worry-free protection. EMC backup appliances add another layer of assurance with end-to-end verification and self-healing for ensured recovery. For SQL Server, EMC backup delivers a full range of backup options to allow customers to meet the demanding needs of SQL database administrator (DBA). EMC 31

32 Chapter 3: Solution Overview backup provides SQL AlwaysOn Availability Groups backup support and flexible, granular restores. EMC backup provides the ability for DBAs to set backup policies within SQL Management Center Studio, enabling greater visibility and control. In addition, features like auto-discovery and auto-configuration for backup reduce complexity and save time while ensuring that critical data is always protected. EMC backup and recovery solutions also deliver big savings. The deduplication solutions reduce backup storage by 10 to 30 times, backup management time by 81 percent, and bandwidth by 99 percent for efficient offsite replication delivering a seven-month payback on average. For full technical guidance, refer to EMC Backup and Recovery Options for VSPEX for Virtualized Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Design and. This guide describes how to design, size, and implement EMC backup solutions for VSPEX Proven Infrastructures for virtualized SQL Server. Microsoft Windows Server 2012 with Hyper-V Microsoft Windows Server 2012 with Hyper-V provides a complete virtualization platform, which provides increased scalability and performance with a flexible solution from the data center to the cloud. It makes it easier for organizations to realize cost savings from virtualization and to optimize server hardware investments. Windows Server 2012 Hyper-V high-availability options include: Incremental backup support Enhancements in clustered environments to support virtual adapters within the virtual machine Inbox network interface card (NIC) teaming In Hyper-V, shared nothing live migration enables the migration of a virtual machine from one server running Hyper-V to another one, without the need for both of them to be in the same cluster or to share storage. Microsoft MPIO and MCS Multipathing solutions use redundant physical path components, such as adapters, cables, and switches, to create logical paths between the server and the storage device. Microsoft Multipath I/O (MPIO) architecture supports iscsi, Fibre Channel, and SAS SAN connectivity by establishing multiple sessions or connections to the storage array. In the event that one or more of these components fails, causing the path to fail, multipathing logic uses an alternate path for I/O so that applications can still access their data. Each network interface card (in the iscsi case) or HBA should be connected by using redundant switch infrastructures to provide continued access to storage in the event of a failure in a storage fabric component. Multiple Connections per Session (MCS) is a feature of the iscsi protocol, which enables combining several connections inside a single session for performance and failover purposes. Note: Microsoft does not support the use of both MPIO and MCS connections to the same device. Use either MPIO or MCS to manage paths to storage and load balancing policies. 32

33 Chapter 3: Solution Overview EMC XtremSW Cache If your customer has special performance requirements on SQL Server, consider using EMC XtremSW Cache as a solution. XtremSW Cache (formerly known as EMC VFCache) is intelligent caching software that uses server-based flash technology to reduce latency and accelerate throughput for dramatic application performance improvement. XtremSW Cache accelerates read operations and protects data by using a write-through cache to the networked storage to deliver persistent high availability, integrity, and disaster recovery. XtremSW Cache, coupled with array-based EMC FAST software, creates the most efficient and intelligent I/O path from the application to the data store. The result is a networked infrastructure that is dynamically optimized for performance, intelligence, and protection for both physical and virtual environments. EMC PowerPath for Windows EMC recommends installing EMC PowerPath for Windows as an alternative to Microsoft MPIO and MCS for advanced multipathing functionality such as intelligent path testing and performance optimization. PowerPath for Windows provides intelligent, high-performance path management with path failover and load balancing optimized for EMC and selected third-party storage systems. PowerPath for Windows supports multiple paths between a Hyper-V host and an external storage device. Having multiple paths enables the Hyper-V host to access a storage device, even if a specific path is unavailable. Multiple paths can also share the I/O traffic to a storage device. PowerPath for Windows is particularly beneficial in highly available environments because it can prevent operational interruptions and downtime. The PowerPath for Windows path failover capability avoids host failure by maintaining uninterrupted application support on the host in the event of a path failure (if another path is available). PowerPath for Windows works with Hyper-V as a Multipath Plug-in (MPP) that provides path management to hosts. It plugs in to the I/O stack framework to bring the advanced multipathing capabilities of PowerPath for Windows, including dynamic load balancing and automatic failover, to the Hyper-V hosts. 33

34 Chapter 3: Solution Overview 34

35 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Chapter 4 Solution Implementation This chapter presents the following topics: Overview Physical setup Network implementation Storage implementation Microsoft Windows Server Hyper-V infrastructure implementation SQL Server virtualization implementation Application implementation Backup and recovery implementation

36 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Overview This chapter describes how to implement the solution. If you already have a VSPEX Proven Infrastructure environment, you can skip the sections for the implementation steps already completed. Physical setup Overview of physical setup This section includes information about the preparation of the physical components of the solution. After the tasks in Table 11 are completed, the new hardware components are racked, cabled, powered, and ready for network connection. Table 11. Tasks for physical setup Task Description Reference Preparing network switches Install switches in the rack and connect them to power. Vendor installation guide Preparing servers Preparing VNX or VNXe Install servers in the rack and connect them to power. Install the VNX or VNXe storage array in the rack and connect it to power. Vendor installation guide VNX Unified Installation Guide VNXe Installation Guide For details of the physical setup, refer to the appropriate VSPEX Proven Infrastructure document in Essential reading. Network implementation Overview of network implementation This section provides the network infrastructure requirements that you need to support the solution architecture. Table 12 provides a summary of the tasks for switch and network configuration and references for further information. Table 12. Tasks for switch and network configuration Task Description Reference Configuring infrastructure network Configure the storage array and Windows host infrastructure networking as specified in the solution VSPEX Proven Infrastructure. VSPEX Proven Infrastructures Completing network cabling Connect: Switch interconnect ports VNX or VNXe ports Windows server ports 36

37 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Task Description Reference Configuring VLANs Configure private and public VLANs as required. Vendor switch configuration guide For details of the network implementation, refer to the appropriate VSPEX Proven Infrastructure document in Essential reading. Storage implementation Overview of storage implementation This section describes how to configure the VNX or VNXe storage array. In this solution, the VNX or VNXe provides Hyper-V datastores based on the iscsi servers for Windows hosts. Table 13 provides a summary of the tasks for switch and network configuration and references for further information. Table 13. Tasks for VNX or VNXe storage array configuration Task Description Reference Setting up initial VNX or VNXe configuration Provisioning storage for Hyper-V nodes on VNX Provisioning storage for Hyper-V datastores on VNXe Configure the IP address information and other key parameters, such as DNS and Network Time Protocol (NTP), on the VNX or VNXe. Create LUNs/file shares that will be presented to the Hyper-V nodes that host the virtual server operating system (OS). Create and provision iscsi LUNs for database data and log files. Create iscsi servers (targets) that will be presented to the Windows servers (iscsi initiators) as Hyper-V datastores that host the virtual servers. EMC VNXe3150 Installation Guide EMC VNXe3300 Installation Guide Getting Started with VNX Installation Assistant for File/Unified EMC VNXe Series Configuration Worksheet VNX File and Unified Worksheets Figure 6 shows the high-level architecture of the SQL Server components and storage elements validated in the VSPEX Proven Infrastructure for SQL Server 2012 on a Hyper-V virtualization platform. All the SQL Server volumes are stored in the new Hyper-V virtual hard disk format (VHDX) on a cluster-shared volume (CSV). For detailed information about additional storage pools for SQL Server data, refer to Table

38 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation SQL Server Windows Server 2012 boot volume, SQL Server system databases(master, model, msdb,etc) User database tempdb OS and SQL system database LUN VMDK Data LUN VMDK tempdb and log LUN VMDK iscsi iscsi iscsi VSPEX private cloud pool (RAID 5) SQL user database data pool (RAID 5) SQL user database log and tempdb pool (RAID 10) Figure 6. SQL Server storage elements on a Hyper-V platform VNXe configuration Setting up initial VNXe configuration Ensure that network interfaces, IP address information, and other key parameters such as DNS and NTP are configured on the VNXe before provisioning the storage. For more information about how to configure the VNXe platform, refer to the reference documents listed in Table 13. Provisioning storage for Hyper-V VNXe datastores Before you provision the storage for Hyper-V datastores, follow the recommendations and VSPEX Sizing Tool proposals introduced in the Design Guide. To configure the Hyper-V file system and provision storage for the virtual machine operating system on VNXe, refer to the appropriate VSPEX Proven Infrastructure document listed in Essential reading. 38

39 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Table 14 shows an example of a storage layout. For more information about the storage layout recommendations and design, refer to the Design Guide. Table 14. Example of storage layout Storage pool name RAID type Disk type SQL Server user database data pool RAID 5 (4+1) SAS disks 15,000 rpm Disk capacity 300 GB 10 Number of disks SQL Server user database log and tempdb pool RAID 10 (3+3) SAS disks 15,000 rpm 300 GB 6 Configuring iscsi on VNXe To configure iscsi servers on the VNXe storage array that will be used to store the SQL Server user database, follow these steps in EMC Unisphere: 1. Create a pool with the appropriate number of disks. 2. Create an iscsi server. 3. Create a Hyper-V storage resource. Creating a pool with the appropriate number of disks To create a pool: 1. In Unisphere, select System > Storage Pools. 2. Click Configure Disks to start the Disk Configuration wizard. Manually create a new pool using SAS disks: Use RAID5 (4+1) for a storage pool with 10 drives for the database data pool. This is an example of the small-sized SQL Server user database. In this example, for the SQL Server user database log and tempdb pool, use RAID10 (3+3) for a storage pool with six drives. Note: Also create your hot spare disks at this point. For more information, refer to EMC VNXe3150 Installation Guide or EMC VNXe3300 Installation Guide. Figure 7 shows an example of the storage pools created for the VNXe system in this solution. Figure 7. Example storage pools for VNXe 39

40 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Figure 8 shows the target storage layout for the VNXe system in this solution. This is an example only; the number of disks used in the VSPEX private cloud pool and SQL Server data pools may vary according to the customer s requirements. Figure 8. Example storage layout for VNXe Note: This solution supports more than one SQL Server instance and more than one database on each instance. You can use large pools with the combined number of disks to enable better overall performance. Creating an iscsi server In Unisphere, select Settings > iscsi Server Settings > Add iscsi Server to start the iscsi Server wizard. For detailed instructions on creating an iscsi server, refer to EMC VNXe3150 Installation Guide or EMC VNXe3300 Installation Guide. In this solution, we configured two IP interfaces for an iscsi storage server. These IP interfaces should be associated with two separate physical interfaces on the same storage processor. We also created two iscsi servers and presented them to a different VNXe storage processor. Creating a Hyper-V storage resource To create a Hyper-V storage resource: 1. In Unisphere, select Storage > Microsoft Hyper-V > Create. 40

41 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation 2. Create an iscsi datastore on the pool and iscsi server that you already created. 3. Use two different iscsi servers for different datastores so that each VNXe Hyper-V datastore can be presented to a different storage processor at a given time. During this procedure, consider the following: For the SQL Server user database datastore, calculate the total database capacity with a three-year growth. For the user database log and tempdb datastore, use 20 percent database capacity for the database log and tempdb. For more information about datastore sizing for SQL Server user databases, refer to the Design Guide. At this stage in the deployment process, the storage configuration required for the solution is complete. For details about storage implementation, refer to the appropriate document in EMC documentation. Using EMC Storage Integrator to manage storage for SQL Server You can also use EMC Storage Integrator (ESI) to provision and manage storage for SQL Server on VNXe. ESI simplifies the steps involved in viewing, provisioning, and managing block and file storage for Microsoft Windows. Figure 9 shows an example ESI GUI view of storage provisioned for SQL Server on VNXe. Figure 9. Storage system management with ESI 41

42 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation VNX configuration Setting up initial VNX configuration Ensure that network interfaces, IP address information, and other key parameters such as DNS and NTP are configured on the VNX before provisioning the storage. For more information on how to configure the VNX platform, refer to the appropriate VSPEX Proven Infrastructure document listed in Essential reading. Provisioning storage for application pool disks Before you provision the storage for the SQL Server instances, follow the recommendations and VSPEX Sizing Tool proposals introduced in the Design Guide. Table 15 shows an example of storage pools for SQL Server on VNX. This example also contains the FAST VP configuration for OLTP performance acceleration. See the layout for this example in the Example storage layout for VNX section. For more information about the storage layout recommendations and design, refer to the Design Guide. Table 15. Storage layout example on VNX Storage pool name RAID type Disk type Disk capacity Number of disks SQL Server user database data pool RAID 5 (4+1) SAS disks 15,000 rpm 300 GB 10 RAID 10 (1+1) FAST VP Solid State Drives (SSD) 200 GB 2 SQL Server user database log and tempdb pool RAID 10 (2+2) SAS disks 15,000 rpm 300 GB 4 To configure iscsi network settings, storage pools, iscsi LUNs, and storage groups on the VNX array: 1. In Unisphere, select the VNX array that is to be used in this solution. 2. Select Settings > Network > Settings for Block. 3. Configure the IP address for the network ports used for iscsi. 4. Select Storage > Storage Configuration > Storage Pools. 5. Click Pools and create the additional storage pools in VNX for SQL Server user databases and transaction logs and tempdb. Refer to Table 15 for detailed information. 6. Right-click a storage pool and select Create LUN to provision the LUNs in each of these pools. 7. Select Thin in the LUN Properties area, and then click Apply to create a pooled LUN. Thin LUN is created for storage groups by default. 42

43 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Figure 10. Create pooled LUN Wizard from EMC Unisphere 8. Select Host > Storage Groups. 9. To create storage groups to unmask LUNs to the Hyper-V hosts: a. Click Create and input a name for the storage group. b. Click Yes to finish the creation. c. In the prompt dialog box, click Yes to select LUNs or connect hosts. d. Click LUNs. Under Available LUNs, select all the LUNs created in the previous steps and click Add. e. Click Hosts. Under Available Hosts, select the Hyper-V servers to be used and add them into The Hosts to be Connected. Note: You can also use the ESI tool to provision the LUNs, as described in Using EMC Storage Integrator to manage storage for SQL Server. 43

44 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation FAST VP configuration on VNX FAST VP can increase the efficiency of all disk drive resources and get better performance with a lower cost. By adding additional FAST VP SSDs as extreme performance tier into the SQL Server data pool, FAST VP can automatically adapt to changes with business cycles. In VNX, FAST VP allows moving SQL data automatically between FAST VP SSDs and SAS tiers with a slice granularity of 256MB. This helps to reduce the response time dramatically and improve SQL OLTP performance. Enabling FAST VP is a transparent operation to SQL Server. No reconfiguration or downtime is necessary. To make the best use of either of the FAST technologies, EMC recommends that you enable FAST Suite on the user database storage pool only. For more details, refer to the Design Guide. To create and configure FAST VP: 1. For detailed steps about how to create FAST VP, refer to the appropriate VSPEX Proven Infrastructure document listed in Essential reading. 2. In the Create Storage Pool wizard, Select the Advanced tab, and then select Enabled to enable FAST Cache if customers would like to enable both FAST Cache and FAST VP for SQL Server user database storage pool. 3. Click OK to complete the configuration. EMC recommends that all the LUNs in the pool have the same tiering policy and set the FAST policy for the participating pool LUNs to Start High then Auto-Tier (recommended) for the SQL Server user database pool. For detailed steps about how to configure FAST VP at the LUN level, refer to VSPEX Proven Infrastructures. FAST Cache configuration on VNX By using flash drives in the array as an extended read-and-write cache, FAST Cache increases IOPS and dramatically decreases database response times compared to high cost, all SAS configuration. EMC allows caches from SAS tiers or NL-SAS tiers to FAST Cache space SSDs at page granularity of 64 KB. Enabling FAST Cache is a transparent operation to SQL Server and no reconfiguration or downtime is necessary. For more details, refer to the Design Guide. To create and configure FAST Cache, use these steps: 1. For detailed steps about how to create FAST Cache on a VNX storage array, refer to VSPEX Proven Infrastructures. 2. In Unisphere, after FAST Cache is created, click Storage and select Storage Pool. Select SQL Server Data Pool, and then click Properties. 3. In Storage Pool Properties, select Advanced. To enable FAST Cache, click Enabled, as shown in Figure

45 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Figure 11. Storage Pool Properties FAST Cache enabled 4. Click OK to complete the configuration. Note: FAST Cache feature on a VNX series array does not cause an instant performance improvement. The system must collect data about access patterns and promote frequently used information into the cache. This process can take a few hours, during which the performance of the array steadily improves. Example storage layout for VNX Figure 12 shows an example storage layout for VNX with FAST VP. This is an example only; the number of disks used in the VSPEX private cloud pool and SQL Server pools may vary according to the customer s requirements. For more information about the storage layout recommendations and design, refer to the Design Guide and the relevant documents in the VSPEX Proven Infrastructures section. 45

46 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Figure 12. Example storage layout for VNX At this stage in the deployment process, the storage configuration required for the solution is complete. For details about storage implementation, refer to the appropriate documents in the VSPEX Proven Infrastructures section. Microsoft Windows Server Hyper-V infrastructure implementation Overview of Hyper-V infrastructure implementation on VNXe This section provides the requirements for the installation and configuration of the Windows hosts and infrastructure servers required to support the solution architecture. Table 16 describes the tasks that must be completed on VNXe. Table 16. Tasks for server installation on VNXe Task Description Reference Installing Windows hosts Install Windows Server 2012 on the physical servers that are deployed for the solution. Install and Deploy Windows Server 2012 Installing and configuring Hyper-V and Failover Clustering Add the server role Hyper-V. Add the Failover Clustering and Multipath I/O features. Create and configure the Hyper-V cluster. Failover Clustering Overview 46

47 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Task Description Reference Configuring Windows hosts networking Configuring EMC PowerPath/VE or Microsoft MPIO Configuring initiator to connect to a VNXe iscsi server Provisioning VNXe datastores to Hyper-V Connecting to Hyper- V datastores Configure Windows hosts networking including NIC teaming and multiple connections per session. Configure PowerPath/VE or Microsoft MPIO to optimize connectivity with the storage arrays. Configure Windows Server 2012 initiator to connect to a VNXe iscsi server. Configure the VNXe array to enable the Hyper-V hosts to access the created datastores. Connect the Hyper-V datastores to the Windows hosts as Cluster Shared Volumes (CSV). NIC Teaming Overview Understanding Microsoft iscsi Initiator Features and Components EMC PowerPath and PowerPath/VE for Microsoft Windows Installation and Administration Guide Installing and Configuring MPIO EMC VNXe Series: Using a VNXe System with Microsoft Windows Hyper-V EMC VNXe3150 Installation Guide EMC VNXe3300 Installation Guide EMC VNXe Series: Using a VNXe System with Microsoft Windows Hyper-V For more details, refer to the appropriate VSPEX Proven Infrastructure document listed in Essential reading. Connecting Hyper-V datastores Before you connect the datastores, you must have deployed the appropriate VSPEX Proven Infrastructure. You then create the datastores for the SQL Server databases and connect the datastores to the appropriate Windows hosts as CSVs. These include the datastores configured for: SQL Server user databases storage SQL Server user databases log and tempdb storage Figure 13 shows an example of Hyper-V datastores used in this solution. Figure 13. Example of Hyper-V datastores 47

48 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation For instructions about how to connect the Hyper-V datastores to the Windows host, refer to EMC VNXe Series: Using a VNXe System with Microsoft Windows Hyper-V. After the datastores are connected and formatted on one of the hosts, enable CSV and then add the clustered disks as CSV disks. Figure 14 shows an example of CSV disks that are used in this solution. Figure 14. CSV disks You can also use ESI to view and manage CSV disks in an efficient manner. Figure 15 shows the same CSV disks in the ESI GUI. Figure 15. CSV disks in ESI Configuring PowerPath EMC recommends using PowerPath/VE software to optimize multipathing and performance through load-balancing algorithms. Port load balancing equalizes the I/O workload across all available channels. For EMC PowerPath/VE for Microsoft Windows installation and configuration, refer to EMC PowerPath and PowerPath/VE for Microsoft Windows Installation and Administration Guide. Configuring MPIO You can use MPIO as an alternative to PowerPath. MPIO is a Microsoft-provided framework that enables storage providers to develop multipath solutions that contain the hardware-specific information needed to optimize connectivity with their storage arrays. MPIO enables Windows to manage and efficiently use up to 32 paths between storage devices and the Windows host operating system. 48

49 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation In this solution, we combined the use of MPIO in fault tolerant mode with failover clustering. For more information about how to configure MPIO with failover clustering, refer to Microsoft Multipath I/O (MPIO) Users Guide for Windows Server Overview of Hyper- V infrastructure implementation on VNX This section provides the requirements for the installation and configuration of the Windows hosts and infrastructure servers required to support the solution architecture. Table 17 describes the tasks that must be completed on VNX. Table 17. Tasks for server installation on VNX Task Description Reference Installing Windows hosts Install Windows Server 2012 on the physical servers that are deployed for the solution. Install and Deploy Windows Server 2012 Installing and configuring Failover Clustering Configuring Windows hosts networking Configuring LUNS/file shares for the virtual machine OS Configuring the LUNs for the SQL Server databases Configuring EMC PowerPath/VE Add the server role Hyper-V. Add the Failover Clustering and Multipath I/O features. Create and configure the Hyper-V cluster. Configure Windows hosts networking including NIC teaming and multiple connections per session. Configure LUNS/file shares to store the virtual machine OS files. Connect the LUNs to the Windows 2012 Hyper-V hosts to store the SQL Server database files. Configure PowerPath/VE to optimize connectivity with the storage arrays. Failover Clustering Overview NIC Teaming Overview Understanding Microsoft iscsi Initiator Features and Components EMC Unisphere: Unified Storage Management Solution iscsi SAN Topologies EMC PowerPath and PowerPath/VE for Microsoft Windows Installation and Administration Guide For more details, refer to the appropriate VSPEX Proven Infrastructure document listed in Essential reading. Configuring the LUNs for the SQL Server databases To make the LUNs visible to the Hyper-V hosts, connect the LUNs to the iscsi/fc storage group. After the LUNs are connected and formatted on one of the hosts, enable CSV and then add the clustered disks as CSV disks. For instructions about how to connect the LUNs to the Windows Hyper-V host through iscsi, refer to iscsi SAN Topologies EMC Techbook. Configuring PowerPath EMC recommends using PowerPath/VE software to optimize multipathing and performance through load-balancing algorithms. Port load balancing equalizes the 49

50 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation I/O workload across all available channels. For EMC PowerPath/VE for Microsoft Windows installation and configuration, refer to EMC PowerPath and PowerPath/VE for Microsoft Windows Installation and Administration Guide. SQL Server virtualization implementation Overview of SQL Server virtualization implementation This section provides the requirements for the installation and configuration of the SQL Server host virtual machines. Table 18 describes the tasks that must be completed. Table 18. SQL Server host virtual machine installation and configuration Task Description Reference Creating the SQL Server virtual machines Installing SQL Server guest OS Installing or upgrade integration services Assigning IP addresses Creating user account Creating a virtual disk for the SQL Server instances Create virtual machines to be used for the SQL Server 2012 OLTP instances. Install Windows Server 2012 Datacenter Edition on the SQL Server host virtual machines. Install a software package for supported guest OS that improves integration between the physical computer and the virtual machine. Assign IP addresses for all the networks in all the virtual machines. Make all the SQL Server virtual machines join the domain. Create a SQL Server administrative account in the domain. Create a virtual disk to hold SQL Server user databases. Install the Hyper-V Role and Configure a Virtual Machine Configure Windows Service Accounts and Permissions Creating SQL Server virtual machines Create a virtual machine on the Hyper-V host with the customer s guest OS configuration by using storage space on the VSPEX private cloud pool for the infrastructure CSV that resides on the storage array. You can calculate the memory and processor requirements for the SQL Server virtual machine by using the VSPEX Sizing Tool and following the recommendations in the Design Guide. Table 19 shows an example of the memory and processor equivalent reference virtual machine requirements for the SQL Server OLTP instances used in this solution. The virtual machine operating system volumes should be created on one of the Windows servers designated for infrastructure virtual machines, and should use the datastore designated for the shared infrastructure. 50

51 Table 19. Example of SQL Server OLTP reference virtual machines Chapter 4: Solution Implementation SQL Server role vcpu Memory OS volume capacity SQL Server Resource requirement OS volume IOPS 2 8 GB 100 Less than 25 No. of virtual machines 1 4 Total reference virtual machines Equivalent reference virtual machines Installing SQL Server guest OS Assigning an IP address Install Windows Server 2012 on the SQL Server virtual machine by selecting the appropriate network and time and applying the latest update. Assign an IP address for each of the network adapters in all the SQL Server virtual machines, according to what you have planned for the IP address reservation for each server. Join every server to the existing domain. For more information, refer to the Configuration worksheet in Appendix A. Creating SQL Server service accounts To install the SQL Server 2012 database engine, EMC recommends that you provide dedicated accounts that can be configured to start SQL Server. You can create the accounts in your domain. For more detailed information about how to configure Windows Service Accounts and Permissions for SQL Server 2012, refer to the MSDN Library topic Configure Windows Service Accounts and Permissions. Creating a virtual disk for the SQL Server instance Hyper-V in Windows Server 2012 introduces a version of the virtual hard disk (VHD) format called VHDX. This format is now the default and can handle larger-capacity virtual volume files, beyond previous limits. In this solution, we used VHDX for SQL Server user databases and tempdb. To calculate the virtual disk layouts along with back-end VHDX topologies, use the VSPEX Sizing Tool and follow the recommendations in the Design Guide. Table 20 details the sample storage layout for the virtual disks used in this solution. Table 20. Example of VHDX and virtual disk storage layout SQL Server role SQL Server user database Volume name user database data user database log Volume size VHDX file path Storage pool 200 GB C:\ClusterStorage\Volume1 SQL Server user database data pool 40 GB C:\ClusterStorage\Volume2 SQL Server user database log and tempdb pool 51

52 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation SQL Server role tempdb Volume name SQL Server tempdb Volume size VHDX file path Storage pool 40 GB C:\ClusterStorage\Volume3 SQL Server user database log and tempdb pool Adding a virtual disk To add a virtual disk: 1. In Microsoft Failover Cluster Manager, click Hyper-V nodes and then select the SQL Server virtual machine. 2. Right-click the SQL Server virtual machine and select Edit Settings. 3. Click Add Hardware and select SCSI Controller. 4. To add a hard drive, click Add. 5. Select Create a new virtual disk and specify Disk Size and Location. Do not change the remaining default settings. 6. Click OK. 7. In the virtual machine, the disks appear as normal block SCSI devices. Format each disk with a 64 KB allocation unit size, as shown in Figure 16. Figure 16. Format virtual disk 8. Click OK. 52

53 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Application implementation Overview of application implementation This section includes information about how to implement SQL Server in the VSPEX Proven Infrastructure. After you complete the tasks in Table 21, the new SQL Server instance is ready to be verified and tested. Before you implement SQL Server 2012, you need to plan the SQL Server database, based on business needs. Refer to the Design Guide for guidance. Table 21. Tasks to implement a SQL Server deployment Task Description Reference Installing SQL Server 2012 instances Designing and deploying SQL Server 2012 OLTP system Configuring SQL Server 2012 Install SQL Server 2012 instances on the SQL Server virtual machines and verify the installation. Design and deploy SQL Server OLTP applications and databases based on the business needs. Configure the SQL Server 2012 database engine based on the best practices. Planning a SQL Server Installation Install SQL Server 2012 from the Installation Wizard (Setup) Validate a SQL Server Installation Online Transaction Processing (OLTP)---a Technical Reference Guide for Designing Mission- Critical OLTP Solutions Enable the Lock Pages in Memory Option (Windows) Add Data or Log Files to a Database Installing SQL Server 2012 instances This section outlines the steps for installing Server 2012 instances. After you complete these steps, the new SQL Server instance should be installed on the virtual machine. Installing.Net Framework and the latest update.net Framework 3.5 SP1 and.net Framework 4.0 are requirements for SQL Server 2012 installation. When you run the SQL Server installation wizard on a computer with the Windows Server 2012 OS, NET Framework 3.5 SP1 and 4.0 are automatically downloaded and installed. This process requires Internet access. 1. Download and install.net Framework 3.5 SP1, 4.0, and its latest update, on the SQL Server 2012 virtual machine. 2. Review installation requirements. 3. Install SQL Server 2012 from the installation wizard. 4. Verify the SQL Server 2012 Installation. If there is no Internet access, EMC recommends that you download.net Framework 3.5 SP1 and 4.0 on a computer with Internet access. Copy the downloaded installation files to the computer without Internet access, and then install.net Framework 3. SP1 and 4.0 before you run Setup.exe to install the SQL Server 2012 components. 53

54 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation For more detailed information, refer to the MSDN Library topic Microsoft.NET Framework 3.5 Deployment Considerations. Reviewing installation requirements Before you install SQL Server 2012, review all the installation requirements, system and network configuration, and security checks. For more information, refer to the MSDN Library topic Planning a SQL Server Installation. Installing SQL Server 2012 from the installation wizard The SQL Server installation wizard provides a single feature tree for installing all SQL Server components, so you do not need to install them individually. You can use the SQL Server installation wizard to install SQL Server 2012 instances on the virtual machine. To install SQL Server 2012: 1. For local installation, log in as a local administrator and launch the installation wizard. If you install the SQL Server instance from a remote share, use a domain account that has read and execute permissions on the remote share. 2. To launch the SQL Server 2012 installation wizard, insert the SQL Server installation media. From the root folder, double-click Setup.exe and follow the wizard to install SQL Server In this solution, we installed a new instance in the SQL Server virtual machine. To create a new instance of SQL Server, click Installation in the lefthand navigation pane, and then click New SQL Server stand-alone installation or add features to an existing installation, as shown in Figure

55 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Figure 17. SQL Server 2012 Installation Center 4. Follow the wizard to run the System Configuration Checker, input the product keys for SQL Server 2012, and check the latest update. 5. In the Setup Role dialog box, select SQL Server Feature Installation (see Figure 18), and then click Next to continue to the Feature Selection dialog box. 55

56 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Figure 18. SQL Server 2012 Setup Role in the installation wizard 6. In the Feature Selection dialog box, select the components for your installation. In this solution, we selected the Database Engine Services component for the OLTP workload. You can select the components based on your business requirements. Specify the location to install all the features and components. The prerequisites for the selected features are displayed, as shown in Figure 19. During the installation process, SQL Server 2012 Setup installs the prerequisites that are not already installed. 56

57 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Figure 19. SQL Server 2012 Feature Selection in the installation wizard 7. In the Instance Configuration dialog box, specify whether to install a default instance or a named instance. In this solution, we used the default instance for the SQL Server 2012 OLTP workload, as shown in Figure

58 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Figure 20. SQL Server 2012 Instance Configuration 8. In the Server Configuration dialog box, depending on the features that you choose to install, use the service accounts created in the Creating SQL Server service accounts section to specify login accounts for the actual SQL Server services that are configured. 9. In the Database Engine Configuration dialog box, specify the authentication mode and administrators for the database engine. In this solution, we used Windows authentication mode for the OLTP workload, as shown in Figure 21. You can select your own authentication mode based on the application requirements and business needs. 58

59 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Figure 21. SQL Server 2012 Database Engine Configuration 10. Follow the wizard to run the System Configuration Checker again based on the installation configuration rules. 11. In the Ready to Install dialog box, click Install to start SQL Server 2012 installation. When the installation is complete, you can view summary information and the SQL Server installation status, as shown in Figure

60 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Figure 22. SQL Server 2012 installation completed 12. Click Close to complete the SQL Server installation process. You may need to restart the SQL Server 2012 virtual machine. For more detailed information on installing other SQL Server 2012 components, refer to the MSDN Library topic Install SQL Server 2012 from the Installation Wizard (Setup). Verifying a SQL Server 2012 installation After installation is complete, use the Installed SQL Server features discovery report to verify the SQL Server 2012 installation. This displays a report of SQL Server 2012 products and features that are installed on the local server. For more detailed steps, refer to the MSDN Library topic Validate a SQL Server Installation. 60

61 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation Deploying SQL Server OLTP system Configuring SQL Server 2012 After installing the SQL Server 2012 instances, design and deploy your own SQL Server OLTP applications and databases on the VSPEX Proven Infrastructure. For more information about how to design SQL Server OLTP solutions with the best performance, refer to the Microsoft TechNet Library topic Online Transaction Processing (OLTP) --- a Technical Reference Guide for Designing Mission-Critical OLTP Solutions. In this VSPEX solution, we followed the best practices in the Design Guide to configure SQL Server 2012 for better performance. The following are some best practices for configuring SQL Server Granting the Lock pages in memory privilege to the SQL Server startup account To grant the Lock pages in memory privilege to the SQL Server startup account: 1. Run secpol.msc on the server. 2. In the left navigation pane, select Security Settings > Local Policies > User Rights Assignment. 3. Under Policy in the right-hand pane, double-click Lock pages in memory, as shown in Figure 23. Figure 23. Grant Lock pages in memory 4. On the Local Security Setting tab, click Add User or Group. 5. From Select Users, Computers, or Group: a. Select Locations and choose either your local computer name (for local groups/standalone) or your domain (for domain groups/clusters). b. Select Object Types and select Groups. c. In Enter the object names to select, enter your SQL Server group name created by the SQL Server Setup program (standalone) or your cluster domain group (for clusters). d. Click OK. 6. Restart the SQL Server instance. 61

62 Chapter 4: Solution Implementation For more detailed steps, refer to the MSDN Library topic Enable the Lock Pages in Memory Option (Windows). Setting the maximum server memory To set the maximum server memory, 1. Open SQL Server Management studio and connect to the SQL Server instance. 2. Right-click the SQL Server instance and select Server Properties. Then select Memory in the left navigation pane. 3. Set the Maximum server memory (in MB), as shown in Figure 24. Figure 24. Set the maximum server memory 4. Restart the SQL Server instance. Creating multiple data files for SQL Server databases EMC recommends that you create multiple data files for large SQL Server databases. For more detailed steps, refer to the MSDN Library topic Add Data or Log Files to a Database. Backup and recovery implementation All VSPEX solutions are sized and tested with EMC backup and recovery products, including EMC Avamar and EMC Data Domain. If your solution includes backup and recovery components, refer to VSPEX with EMC Backup and Recovery Options for VSPEX for Virtualized Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Design and for detailed information on implementing your backup and recovery solution. 62