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Location: EqualLogic FAQ
Discussion: Ask additional questions here.
Keyword tags:
equallogic faq
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 scott_hanson |
Ask additional questions here.
Feb 4 2008, 11:09 AM EST Please add to this thread to ask any additional questions or comments you have. 3 out of 3 found this valuable. Do you? |
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rcook00 rcook00 |
RE: Ask additional questions here.
Feb 6 2008, 3:23 PM EST Hi Scott, Couple questions here as an existing EqualLogic customer (and Dell of course): We are due for renewal of a support contract (PS100E's) this year. Can we still extend support for these older series', and are the contract support tiers remaining the same, or are they being moved more in line with Dell's current server tiers? Secondly, are the upgrade options for the older series' still obtainable, or is the new 5000 series it? In the past year or so EqualLogic added options for in-place, online upgrades from one model to the next (replacing larger drives and the controllers to match). This seemed great for us as it requires no additional rack space or switch ports, not to mention cost-wise better then adding the now 5000series with identical capacity to the mix. I understand the 5000 now simplifies the configuration options and can be integrated with existing models, but curious what our options now are. and thanx! Robert Do you find this valuable? |
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scott_hanson |
RE: Ask additional questions here.
Feb 8 2008, 11:30 AM EST Robert, haven't forgotten about you. I sent this to Travis and Marc, should have a response soon. Thanks, Scott. Do you find this valuable? |
 MarcFarley |
RE: Ask additional questions here.
Feb 12 2008, 6:13 PM EST The maintenance programs for EqualLogic customers (Pre Dell) will continue as-is for another five years. I'll try to get an answer on legacy system upgrades in the next couple days. -Marc Do you find this valuable? |
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MarcFarley |
RE: Ask additional questions here.
Feb 13 2008, 4:43 PM EST Upgrades for EqualLogic arrays are currently available. They are a product offering and not a service offering. That means that they could go EOL (end of life) at any time and their availability depends on component inventory levels. If you are thinking about upgrading an existing EqualLogic iSCSI array you should contact your reseller or Dell/EqualLogic representative. Do you find this valuable? |
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MarcFarley |
RE: Ask additional questions here
Feb 18 2008, 1:07 PM EST I wanted to clarify a couple things. Customers who buy arrays can purchase service contracts, which include exchanges for failed controller and disk drives. These service contracts can extend up until 5 years after the purchase date. Upgrades to add a controller to single controller arrays or to exchange older/smaller disk drives with newer/larger disk drives will continue to be available as inventory levels allow. Currently this is estimated at two years, but that could change. Do you find this valuable? |
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rcook00 rcook00 |
RE: Ask additional questions here
Feb 20 2008, 2:30 PM EST Thank you for the info Marc. Do you find this valuable? |
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filler filler |
RE: Ask additional questions here.
Jul 2 2008, 6:44 AM EDT Hi! we get theese questions from customers from time to time , and i havent found any documents that eplains it Questions are : What happens in a "multiple shelf/equallogic config" when a shelf fails? and if it has failed what happens and how when its fixed.? hopefullynot going to happen often but its questions that I get often... Cheers Ola Andreas Do you find this valuable? |
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MarcFarley |
RE: Ask additional questions here.
Jul 7 2008, 11:12 AM EDT "Dell EqualLogic is a system where the controller is integrated with all disks in a single enclosure. In other words, it is not a multi-shelf system. Systems can be combined in groups that operate as a single logical system. Each "shelf" is a complete fully-redundant system. Do you find this valuable? |
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filler filler |
RE: Ask additional questions here.
Jul 8 2008, 6:40 PM EDT Hi! Yes i know they are independent enclosures , but when they are configured to be in a "three-member, single-pool group. Volume data can be automatically balanced across the pool members" ,I understand this as "spanning'" of the volumes. how do things behave when a enclosure fails ? Some details about behaviour and how it behaves when the enclosure is up and running again would be interesting :-) Cheers Ola Andreas Do you find this valuable? |
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MarcFarley |
RE: Ask additional questions here.
Jul 24 2008, 2:03 PM EDT Redundant protection mechanisms for EqualLogic storage systems are as follows: 1) Each array has redundant protection for all active components: controllers, cache memory, power supplies, fans, network ports and disk drives. This is the same standard of redundancy provided all major storage system vendors. 2) Any volume on EqualLogic storage can have its data replicated to another EqualLogic replication volume, which is typically located at a remote site. The software for doing this is included in the price of the system. The word “shelf” usually refers to enclosures with disk drives that need to be connected to controllers or “heads” in order to function. As EqualLogic arrays are fault tolerant storage systems including all components, including controllers, cache memory and so on, we don’t usually refer to them as shelves. EqualLogic volumes are virtual storage containers that can span physical array boundaries and store data on multiple physical arrays. All volumes, including those that span multiple arrays, can have their data replicated to a remote volume, which can store data on one or more physical arrays. Where replication is concerned, the configuration of arrays at local and remote sites don’t have to be the same, but the storage capacities of local and remote volumes have to be the same. There are four types of failure scenarios for storage systems: 1) Site disaster, such as a flood, fire, etc. 2) Dual component failure within an array 3) Software bugs 4) Operator errors Recovery from these are covered in the next reply (this response exceeded the size limit and was split in two) Do you find this valuable? |
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MarcFarley |
RE: Ask additional questions here.
Jul 24 2008, 2:04 PM EDT (This is a continuation of the previous reply) Disaster recovery practices for site disasters include failing over to use storage and systems at a remote site and/or recovery of backed up data. Dual component failures are rare, but can occur. When that happens, the storage array and any volumes with data stored on them go offline and are unavailable for I/O operations. Data in cache memory will be retained by cache batteries, which are rated for 72 hours. When failed components have been replaced, the array is restarted and volumes with data on it are brought back online. Volumes that span arrays do not require special operator actions, they will be brought back online following the completion of internal consistency checks. If replication is being used, failover procedures can be used to continue operations until remedies have been made to the failed array. Software bugs are rare, but can occur. Customers should always contact technical support for assistance in such cases to determine the best course of action. EqualLogic systems have been designed to make it difficult for “pilot error” to cause a system failure. Operator errors in conjunction with one of the other three failure modes have the most potential to complicate recovery operations. The best approach is to contact technical support when it is not clear what course of action to take. Unlike many systems, shutting down and restarting an array to see if a problem will automatically be resolved is not necessarily a good practice. Do you find this valuable? |
