Dell XC720xd Solutions Guide
Notes, Cautions, and Warnings NOTE: A NOTE indicates important information that helps you make better use of your computer. CAUTION: A CAUTION indicates either potential damage to hardware or loss of data and tells you how to avoid the problem. WARNING: A WARNING indicates a potential for property damage, personal injury, or death. Copyright © 2014 Dell Inc. All rights reserved. This product is protected by U.S. and international copyright and intellectual property laws.
Contents 1 About Dell web-scale converged appliance.................................................... 5 2 Supported hardware, firmware, and software................................................ 6 3 Documentation matrix.........................................................................................9 Dell documentation.............................................................................................................................. 9 Nutanix documentation..............................
Hyper-V......................................................................................................................................... 24 9 Replacing hardware........................................................................................... 25 Replacing components with no cluster data..................................................................................... 25 Replacing failed front HDD and SSD components that contain Cluster data..................................
About Dell web-scale converged appliance 1 Dell offers a web-scale converged appliance solution that includes the Dell XC720xd server and software from Nutanix (used as a virtual appliance), which simplifies virtualization by converging computer, storage, and network into a single appliance deployed in a clustered environment. The following figures show Dell XC720xd. For more information about the Dell XC720xd system, refer to the Dell XC720xd Owner’s Manual available at dell.com/xcseriesmanuals.
2 Supported hardware, firmware, and software This section describes the components of the web-scale converged appliance solution. Table 1. Dell XC720xd Supported Components Component Description Disk space required Configuaration 64 GB, 128 GB, and 256 GB A5, B5, B7 128 GB, 256 GB, 384 GB, 512 GB, and 768 GB B7, C5, C7 CPUs Configuration E5-2620 v2 A5 E5-2650 v2 B5 E5-2680 v2 B7 E5-2690 v2 C5 E5-2690 v2 C7 BIOS Version BIOS 2.4.3 and later iDRAC support Version iDRAC7 1.57.
Form Factor Model Capacity Speed Type Function Vendor Location 3.5” hybrid SSDSC2BA8 800 GB 00G3R SSD 6 Gbps SATA Data SSD Intel Front 3.5” N/A 1 TB 7.2K RPM 6Gbps NL SAS Data HDD Dell Supported Front 3.5” N/A 2 TB 7.2K RPM 6Gbps NL SAS Data HDD Dell Supported Front Table 3. Supported Host Bus Adapters (HBAs) Name Form Factor/Slot Firmware Version LSI 9207-8i Full Height/4 15.00.00.00 and later PERC H310 Adapter Full Height/6 20.12.1-0002 and later Table 4.
Table 8. Supported hypervisor OSs Name VMware ESXi 5.
Documentation matrix 3 The documentation matrix provides information about the documents you use to configure and deploy the Dell web-scale converged appliance solution. WARNING: See the safety and regulatory information that shipped with your system. Warranty information may be included with this document or as a separate document.
Table 9.
To learn about… Refer to… Instructions and reference for administering the Nutanix Operation System (NOS) outside the Nutanix Prism UI (such as cluster start/stop, manual upgrade, changing passwords, reconfiguring IP addresses, and troubleshooting tools). NOS Advanced Administration Guide Comprehensive instructions and references for the Web Console Guide Nutanix UI, including overview information. Managing VMware ESXi hosts that run NOS, including VMware vCenter requirements.
Licensing overview 4 Nutanix virtual computing platform licenses The Nutanix virtual computing platform includes various features to enable you to administer your environment according to your current and future requirements. You can use the default feature set of Nutanix Operating System (NOS), upgrade to a enhanced feature set, update your license for a longer term, or reassign existing licenses to nodes or clusters as required.
NOTE: To find the Service Tag of your Dell XC720xd, see the “Locating The Service Tag” section in this document. 4. After the Customer Portal account is created, you can manage your licenses. License management For more information about license management, complete the following tasks: 1. On the Nutanix Documentation portal, access the Web Console Guide (for access details, see the “Documentation matrix” section in this document). 2.
Deploying your system 5 WARNING: Before you set up and operate your Dell XC720xd, review the safety instructions that shipped with your storage enclosure. WARNING: The weight of your system without the physical disk drives installed (empty weight) is 10.3 kg (22.7 lb) and when fully populated with all the physical disks is 32.5 kg (71.5 lb). WARNING: Your system must be installed by Dell certified service technicians.
NOTE: At a minimum, there are three Dell XC720xd servers in a cluster. Each Dell XC720xd is referred to as a node. Figure 3. Cabling a system 1. Management Network 2. Host Network NOTE: The preferred (best practice) setup is to connect the 10/100 Mbps management port across all three nodes to the same switch (management network). Setting up VMware ESXi When you set up the VMware ESXi, you must prepare each node, and then configure your cluster.
Setting up Hyper-V When you set up Hyper-V, there are tasks for preparing your nodes and different tasks for configuring your cluster. Preparing your nodes 1. Access system GUI, and do one of the following: • Connect the physical keyboard or monitor or mouse to the ports on the Dell XC720xd. • Connect to the iDRAC GUI 2. Turn on system. 3. On the Microsoft Windows Settings page, to accept the Microsoft End User License Agreement, click I Agree.
Downloading and installing software applications 6 Dell OpenManage Essentials OpenManage Essentials is a hardware management application that provides a comprehensive view of the Dell XC720xd and its devices.
Dell Nautilus Dell Nautilus is a general maintenance release utility for updating firmware for SAS and SATA drives (or disks). For information about the supported Dell Nautilus version number, see the Supported hardware, firmware, and software section in this document. NOTE: You can update the firmware for the front HDDs and SSDs using the Nutanix Web GUI. You must use Dell Nautilus to update the boot (rear) SSDs.
8. Go to the latest drivers and firmware portal (http://www.lsi.com/sep/Pages/Dell.aspx) of LSI. 9. Expand Firmware. 10. Select the 9207_8i_Package and install.
7 Monitoring Table 11.
• Health Monitoring • Virtual Machine Monitoring • Performance Monitoring • Alert and Event Monitoring 21
8 Updating firmware Table 12.
• Connect to the iDRAC GUI. NOTE: For information about configuring and accessing the iDRAC GUI see iDRAC Quick Starrt Guide at dell.com/support/home. 4. Mount the Dell Nautilus ISO or the USB key to the system using virtual media. 5. While restarting the server, press F11 for BIOS boot manager. 6. From the list, select EFI Boot Manager. 7. From the EFI boot list, select Virtual CD or the USB drive. 8. To update drive firmware, click Update Firmware.
8. Disable Maintenance Mode and restart the system. Hyper-V 1. By using System Center Virtual Machine Manager (SCVMM), turn off the Controller Virtual Machine (CVM) and all the guest VMs on the host that have the LSI 9207-8i HBA which you want to update. 2. Using SCVMM, complete the on-screen instructions to put the host in Maintenance Mode. 3. Access the Hyper-V host GUI by using iDRAC or RDP. 4. Download LSI SAS2Flash and the firmware binaries to the host from the LSI website. 5.
Replacing hardware 9 This section describes high-level tasks to replace components correctly within the Dell XC720xd solution. Before you begin, for information about downloading the following required documents for the three hardware replacement tasks, see the “Documentation matrix” section in this document.
3. Refer to the Nutanix Hardware Replacement Documentation again, see the “Completing Data Drive Replacement” section and complete the replacement of the failed HDD or SSD. Replacing rear SSD (hypervisor boot drives) If the RAID is functioning when one of the two hypervisor boot drives fail, only physical replacement is required. No NOS or hypervisor tasks are necessary.
Recovering system 10 For information about recovery of your system, contact your service provider.
Getting help 11 Other Documents You May Need WARNING: See the safety and regulatory information that shipped with your system. Warranty information may be included within this document or as a separate document. • The Getting Started Guide provides an overview of setting up your system and includes the technical specifications. • The Rack Installation instructions provide information on how to rack your system.
Contacting Dell NOTE: If you do not have an active internet connection, you can find contact information on your purchase invoice, packing slip, bill, or Dell product catalog. Dell provides several online and telephone-based support and service options. Availability varies by country and product, and some services may not be available in your area. To contact Dell for sales, technical support, or customer service issues: 1. Go to dell.com/support/home. 2. Select your support category. 3.
