is a collection of topological elements (, , , and ) shown as nodes in the Topology View of the . You must define the various topological elements if you want to define specific for host groups and/or hosts.
Note: Even if you are not planning to use Storage Partitioning, you can still define hosts and HBA host ports connected to the and view the default virtual disk-to-LUN mappings to determine which logical unit numbers are being used to access the in the storage array.
Defining Storage Partition Topology
The following are the key topological elements that must be defined to create a storage partition:
Default Group
A Default Group is a standard node in the Topology View that designates all host groups, hosts, and HBA host ports that: (1) do not have any specific virtual disk-to-LUN mappings, and (2) share access to any virtual disks that were automatically assigned default by the during virtual disk creation.
Host Group
A host group is an optional topological element that you define to designate a collection of hosts that will share access to the same virtual disks. For more information, see Defining a Host Group.
Note:Define a host group ONLY if you have two or more hosts that will share access to the same virtual disks.
Host
A host is a computer attached to the storage array that accesses various virtual disks on the storage array through its HBA host ports. You define a host as a separate entity or as part of a host group. Also, you can define specific virtual disk-to-LUN mappings to an individual host and have the host be part of a host group that shares access to one or more virtual disks. For more information, see Defining a Host.
HBA Host Port
An HBA host port is a physical connection on the that resides within a host. When the host adapter only has one physical connection (HBA host port), the terms HBA host port and host adapter are synonymous. HBA host ports are automatically detected by the storage management software. An HBA host port is the actual physical connection that allows a host to gain access to the virtual disks in a storage array. Therefore, if you want to define specific virtual disk-to-LUN mappings for a particular host and create storage partitions, you must define its associated HBA host ports. Initially, all detected HBA host ports belong to the Default Group and have access to any virtual disks that were automatically assigned default LUNs by the RAID controller module firmware during virtual disk creation. For more information, see Defining an HBA Host Port.
Any HBA host port in the Default Group can automatically access the following virtual disks:
Virtual Disks that, when created, were given default
Any virtual disks created using previous versions of this storage management software. Such virtual disks are automatically given default virtual disk-to-LUN mappings. If desired, you can change these mappings by selecting the particular mapping and selecting Mappings >> Change >> Mapping. For more information, see Changing a Virtual Disk-to-LUN Mapping.
An mapping is not required for managed storage arrays. If your storage array is managed using an out-of-band connection, and an Access Virtual Disk mapping is assigned to the Default Group, an Access Virtual Disk mapping will be assigned to every host created from the Default Group. To prevent this from happening, remove the Access Virtual Disk mapping from the Default Group. For more information, see Removing an Access Virtual Disk Mapping.
Example
In the following example, the virtual disks in Storage Array Midwest have not been given specific virtual disk-to-LUN mappings; the RAID controller module firmware has automatically assigned them. Therefore, any host and associated HBA host ports from the Default Group can request data from these virtual disks.
Reconfiguring Storage Partition Topology
A storage partitions topology is reconfigurable. You can:
