Dell EMCVxRack™ System SDDCArchitecture Overviewfor VMware Cloud Foundation v. 2.2

Document revision 1.0

September 2017

Revision History

Date Document revision Description of changes

September 2017 1.0 Initial release

Revision History | 2

Contents

Introduction.................................................................................................................................................4

System features.......................................................................................................................................... 5

System architecture and components......................................................................................................6

Compute ..................................................................................................................................................... 9

Network......................................................................................................................................................10Network topology .................................................................................................................................10

Storage ......................................................................................................................................................11

Virtualization............................................................................................................................................. 12Virtualization Components SDDC........................................................................................................ 12

Base configurations and scaling.............................................................................................................13

VxRack System management software.................................................................................................. 14

Sample configurations............................................................................................................................. 15Sample VxRack System SDDC with 8 Nodes......................................................................................15Sample VxRack System SDDC with 96 Nodes....................................................................................16

Additional references............................................................................................................................... 20Network components............................................................................................................................20Storage components ........................................................................................................................... 20Virtualization Components SDDC........................................................................................................ 20

3 | Contents

IntroductionThis document describes the high-level design of the VxRack System SDDC. This document alsodescribes the hardware and software components that Dell EMC includes in each VxRack SDDC system.

The target audience for this document includes sales engineers, field consultants, advanced servicesspecialists, and customers who want to deploy a virtualized infrastructure using VxRack SDDC.

Refer to the Glossary for terms, definitions, and acronyms.

Introduction | 4

System featuresVxRack System SDDC is a modular hyper-converged platform that allows extreme scalability andflexibility for next generation cloud workloads and tier 2 applications.

VxRack SDDC is designed for deployments involving large numbers of VMs and users. It provides thefollowing features:

• Low provisioning complexity with simple-to-use functionality

• Flexible and variable configuration options

• Horizontal scaling by adding, moving and removing nodes on-the-fly to extend software definedstorage with VSAN capacity exponentially

• Step-sized building blocks for future Dell EMC data center environments

• Pre-configured, pre-loaded, pre-tested, and fully optimized IT stack, delivered as a fullyassembled and supported system

• Enhanced network and security capabilities with VMware NSX network virtualization

5 | System features

System architecture and componentsVxRack System SDDC architecture includes compute, network, storage, virtualization, and managementcomponents.

VxRack SDDC contains the following components:

Resource Components

Compute VxRack 1 RU Node Compute enclosures

Network • Cisco Nexus 93180YC-EX Top of Rack (ToR) Switches

• Cisco Nexus 9332PQ Inter-rack Switch

• VxRack Management switch

Storage VxRack Infrastructure Software that consists of VMware vSAN software-defined storage.

Virtualization VMware Cloud Foundation components.

Management VMware Cloud Foundation management components.

The Dell EMC Release Certification Matrix (RCM) provides a list of the certified versions of componentsfor VxRack SDDC .

System architecture and components | 6

The following illustration provides a high-level overview of the physical components of a single rackconfiguration of the VxRack SDDC architecture:

7 | System architecture and components

The following illustration provides a high-level overview of the physical components of a multiple rackconfiguration of the VxRack SDDC architecture:

System architecture and components | 8

ComputeVxRack SDDC enclosures are high-density, two socket, 1 RU rack-mount enclosures that are built forproduction-level applications.

For a single 42 RU cabinet, the minimum server configuration is eight and the maximum is 24.

The maximum scale-out configuration is eight cabinets, each with 24 servers, for a maximum of 192nodes.

VxRack SDDC offers two storage configurations:

• Hybrid

• All Flash

Hybrid and All Flash storage cannot be mixed in the same VxRack System.

9 | Compute

NetworkThe Cisco Nexus switches in the network layer provide 10 GbE or 40 GbE IP connectivity between theVxRack System and the external network.

VxRack SDDC includes Cisco Nexus 93180YC-EX Top of Rack (ToR) switches, as well as the optionalCisco Nexus 9332PQ inter-rack switches.

Network topologyLAN switching uses the Cisco Nexus 93180CY-EX Switch for Top of Rack (ToR) and the Cisco Nexus9332PQ Switch for inter-rack switching.

Each 42 RU rack configuration uses a pair of ToR switches and a single management switch.

One expansion rack requires a pair of Cisco Nexus 9332PQ Switches for inter-rack switching. These areadded to the second rack to allow connectivity between racks and inter-rack east - west traffic. Eachexpansion rack requires two Cisco Nexus 93180CY-EX ToR switches that connect to the Cisco Nexus9332PQ Switches in the first rack.

The compute layer connects to the Ethernet component of the network layer. The southboundinterconnects connect to the Cisco Nexus switches in the Ethernet network through 10 GbE portchannels.

All racks will be part of the same VxRack SDDC domain, up to the supported maximum scale-outconfiguration of 192 nodes, or eight 42 RU racks.

Network | 10

StorageVxRack System SDDC uses the VMware Virtual SAN software-defined storage technology.

Virtual SAN allows you to create a VSAN from the local datastores on clustered ESXi instances. Theresulting VSAN becomes a shared-datastore for the VMware ESXi instances contributing storage, thatleverages local disk storage on servers.

In VxRack SDDC, each virtual rack domain contains one or more clusters. The VMware SDDC Managercreates a single VSAN volume spanning all the hosts within each cluster. This means that each clustermust have a minimum of four hosts.

11 | Storage

VirtualizationVxRack System SDDC virtualization is provided by VMware Cloud Foundation components.

VMware vSphere is the virtualization platform that provides the foundation for the private cloud. The coreVMware vSphere components are the VMware vSphere ESXi and VMware vCenter Server formanagement. VMware vSphere 6.5U1 which supports Enhanced Linked Mode for vCenter 6.5U1.

The hypervisors are deployed in a cluster configuration. The cluster allows dynamic allocation ofresources, such as CPU, memory, and storage. The cluster also provides workload mobility and flexibilitywith the use of VMware vMotion and Storage vMotion technology.

Virtualization ComponentsThe following table provides a description of the virtualization components:

Product Description Link to documentation

VMware CloudFoundation

Software suite of virutualization components fromVMware that is included with VxRack SystemSDDC

https://www.vmware.com/products/cloud-foundation.html

Virtualization | 12

Base configurations and scalingVxRack System SDDC has a base configuration that is a minimum set of compute and storagecomponents, as well as fixed network resources. These components are integrated within one or more28-inch 42 RU racks.

Within the base configuration, the following hardware aspects can be customized:

Hardware Minimum set

Compute Eight 1 RU 1 Node enclosures.

Network Two Cisco Nexus 93180YC-EX Switches.

Storage No minimum. Storage is based solely on the associated enclosure.

Management VMware Cloud Foundation Manager

VxRack SDDC is a scale-out solution that allows you to add up to 192 nodes with various CPU, memory,and drive options.

VMware VSAN provides software defined storage (SDS), which allows scaling from a base configurationto a large-scale deployment.

Together, the components offer balanced CPU, I/O bandwidth, and storage capacity relative to thecompute and storage arrays in the VxRack system. All components have N+N or N+1 redundancy.

These resources can be scaled up as necessary to meet increasingly stringent requirements. Themaximum supported configuration differs based on core components. To scale up storage and computeresources, add nodes to the environment. Optionally, add expansion racks with additional resources.

13 | Base configurations and scaling

VxRack System management softwareSystem management for VxRack System SDDC is provided by VMware Cloud Foundation managementcomponents.

The VMware Cloud Foundation Manager serves as the single interface for managing the VxRack SDDC.From this console, an administrator can provision resources and monitor changes to the physical andlogical infrastructure. VMware Cloud Foundation also provides Lifecycle Management (LCM) and otheroperational activities.

VMware Cloud Foundation Manager provides automation for the following operations:

• Initial system startup

• Server and switch configuration

• Discovery of new devices

• Resource provisioning

• Reporting and notifications

• LCM for some hardware and software components.

VxRack System management software | 14

Sample configurations

Sample VxRack System SDDC with 8 NodesThese are provided for sample purposes only. For specifications for a specific VxRack SDDC design,consult your vArchitect.

15 | Sample configurations

Sample VxRack System SDDC with 96 NodesCabinet elevations vary based on the specific configuration requirements. These are provided for samplepurposes only. For specifications for a specific VxRack SDDC design, consult your vArchitect.

Cabinet 1

Sample configurations | 16

Cabinet 2

17 | Sample configurations

Cabinet 3

Sample configurations | 18

Cabinet 4

19 | Sample configurations

Additional referencesReferences to related documentation for virtualization, compute, network and storage components areprovided.

Network componentsThe following table provides references for the network components:

Product Link to documentation

Cisco Nexus 93180YC-EXSwitch https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/support/switches/nexus-93180yc-ex-switch/model.html

Cisco Nexus 9332PQ Switch http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/support/switches/nexus-9332pq-switch/model.html

Storage componentsThe following table provides a description of the storage components:

Product Description Link to documentation

VMware VirtualSAN

Virtual SAN provides for virtual storage created fromthe local datastores on ESXi instances.

https://www.vmware.com/products/virtual-san

Virtualization ComponentsThe following table provides a description of the virtualization components:

Product Description Link to documentation

VMware CloudFoundation

Software suite of virutualization components fromVMware that is included with VxRack SystemSDDC

https://www.vmware.com/products/cloud-foundation.html

Additional references | 20

The information in this publication is provided "as is." Dell Inc. makes no representations or warranties of any kind withrespect to the information in this publication, and specifically disclaims implied warranties of merchantability or fitnessfor a particular purpose.

Use, copying, and distribution of any software described in this publication requires an applicable software license.

Copyright © 2017 Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. All Rights Reserved. Dell, EMC, and other trademarks are trademarks ofDell Inc. or its subsidiaries. Other trademarks may be the property of their respective owners. Published in the USA inSeptember 2017.

Dell EMC believes the information in this document is accurate as of its publication date. The information is subject tochange without notice.

21 | Copyright