Virtual Storage + Virtual Servers

Using Virtualization

Consolidating hardware resources into virtual storage, servers, operating systems, applications or networks allows any organizations to improve efficiency and simplify the management of its IT infrastructure. Since its founding in 2000, StoneFly has been applying the principles of virtualization in the development of simple-to-operate, highly available, high-performance IP SAN technology. With StoneFly’s StoneFusion Operating System, centralizing storage resources into an intelligent storage area network, with advanced storage services allows organizations to increase storage utilization and remove islands of underutilized disk resources. StoneFly’s virtualization engine applies networking principles for efficient storage management. Each Stonefly Storage Concentrator creates centrally managed pools of storage from multiple physical resources. These pools are managed by the Storage Concentrator and are carved out into iSCSI logical volumes; separating the iSCSI intelligence from disk and RAID hardware. With this layered approach, StoneFusion’s advanced storage management is able to improve SAN reliability, availability, and scalability (RAS) for data recovery, data protection, and creating virtual-disk templates in order to simplify system provisioning. Server Virtualization enables organizations to consolidate physical servers into a single system running multiple operating systems and applications to increase system utilization. Virtual servers benefit from a centralized and virtualized storage infrastructure environment to reduce system management requirements, capital expenditures, and administrative overhead. By using StoneFly IP SANs, and advanced storage virtualization and provisioning, with virtual servers, IT administrators can:

• Deploy storage networks with existing Ethernet infrastructure for seamless storage integration

• Simplify storage deployment for virtual machines without suffering system downtime • Eliminate application downtime with easy storage resource expansion • Expand storage on the fly with efficient storage provisioning and centralized iSCSI storage

pools • Expedite virtual server deployments by using StoneFly Reflection to create pre-configured

virtual server “templates” • Centralize storage and server volume management • Utilize clustering technology for building highly available server and storage infrastructures

Benefits of StoneFly IP SANs

StoneFusion-powered storage can be easily deployed in environments requiring tiered storage, high availability, or flexibility.

• Stonefly Modular Storage Concentrators (MSC): MSCs are designed for mission critical deployments requiring flexibility, tiered storage, clustering and high availability.

MKT-516-SF-Virtual Server Technical Brief

StoneFly, Inc. | www.StoneFly.com

• Stonefly Integrated Storage Concentrators (ISC): The cost-effective ISC product line is an easy to deploy IP-SAN-in-a-Box, providing integrated storage and management.

• Stonefly Hybrid Storage Concentrators (HSC). The HSC product line is the best of both worlds, offering the benefits of Stonefly clustering and the ease of IP SAN-in-a-Box deployment.

Deploying a StoneFly IP SANs with VMware Virtual Infrastructures

Figure 1 StoneFly IP SAN + VMware Virtual Infrastructure

The VMware Infrastructure Storage Architecture manages and presents the storage to virtual machines independent of the physical storage environment that is attached to it. Applications and virtual machines are unaware of the characteristics of the storage device beyond its virtual HBA (host bus adapter). For each VMware virtual machine, StoneFly iSCSI volumes are seen as locally attached SCSI disks. Cloning and adding a mirror image to a volume is remarkably fast and efficient. Using StoneFly’s Reflection technology to manage disk images and virtual server templates, allows administrators to deploy new virtual machines in minutes, simplifying application server deployment and management. A virtual machine can be provisioned additional storage by hot-adding virtual hard disks (or expand existing virtual disks) from the StoneFly SAN without causing any system downtime. Additionally, key VMware technologies including VMotion, HA (High Availability), and DRS (Distributed Resource Scheduling) are also supported and offer organizations a simpler solution for building DR and remote sites for business continuity applications.

VMware Storage / SAN Compatibility

Hardware Compatibility List Link: http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vi35_san_guide.pdf (See StoneFly on page 41)

MKT-516-SF-Virtual Server Technical Brief

StoneFly, Inc. | www.StoneFly.com

Deploying a StoneFly IP SANs with Citrix XenServerHypervisor Technology

Windows

SQL Server 2003

SUSE Linux

Apache

Windows

Exchange 2003

Networking ServicesLAN/SAN

Xenserver Virtualization[Storage, File Systems, Resources,

iSCSI initiator]

Clients

Storage ArraysStoneFly Storage Concentrators

StoneFly IP SAN

Legend

Virtual Object/Layer

Network Interface Port

Virtual Networking Services

Virtual Server

VMware LayerPhysical Server

Logical Disk

NIC

NIC

NIC

Figure 2 StoneFly IP SAN + Xenserver

With Citrix Xenserver, unifying server and storage virtualization is simple to deploy and manage. Xenserver’s core hypervisor application has revolutionized virtual server deployments with its open source background. Xenserver has been designed from the ground up to be platform and operating system agnostic, and supports VMware and Microsoft virtual servers and disk images in addition to the Xenserver format. With robust paravirtualization and an enthusiastic developer community Xenserver is integrated into many industry leading operating systems and server hardware systems from Red Hat to Dell Computer. Xen leverages virtualization ready processors and operating systems for a high-performance virtual servers that utilize standard server hardware, not emulated hardware drivers fro environments where bare-metal performance is critical. Additionally, StoneFly IP SANs support key Xen technologies including XenMotion live migration, XenCenter comprehensive management, and VM layer resource quality of service, offer organizations a flexible platform for building disaster recovery and remote sites for business continuity applications – and simplifying system deployment and administration.

Xenserver Storage Compatibility

Hardware Compatibility List Link : http://hcl.xensource.com/?showall=no&subtab=storage

Deploying IP SANs with virtual server technologies is an ideal way to consolidate server and storage administration, gain organizational efficiencies, simplify the deployment of new applications, enhance disaster recovery, and improve business continuity initiatives. Implementing a StoneFly IP SAN with VMware’s Virtual Infrastructure offers IT administrators an easy way to manage and reduce complexities in their IP infrastructure.

MKT-516-SF-Virtual Server Technical Brief

StoneFly, Inc. | www.StoneFly.com

About StoneFly

Stonefly is an iSCSI Pioneer, offering cost-effective, field-tested IP SAN solutions. With the scalable architecture of the intuitive StoneFusion platform, Stonefly IP SANs are ideal for storage deployments for all organizations. Headquartered in San Diego, StoneFly started in April 2000 to deliver upon the vision of simple and affordable storage optimization through IP SAN solutions. In 2006 Stonefly was acquired by Dynamic Network Factory and continues to operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary.