How to Add and Classify SMI-S and SMP Storage Devices in VMM

Updated: May 13, 2016

Applies To: System Center 2012 SP1 - Virtual Machine Manager, System Center 2012 R2 Virtual Machine Manager, System Center 2012 - Virtual Machine Manager

Use the following procedure to add remote storage devices in Virtual Machine Manager (VMM). You can add and discover external storage arrays that are managed by Storage Management Initiative – Specification (SMI-S) or Store Management Provider (SMP) providers. You can assign friendly-name classifications for the added storage. For example, you can assign a Gold classification to solid-state drive (SSD) storage and a Bronze classification to slower drives.

Account requirements To complete this procedure, you must be a member of the Administrator user role, or a member of the Delegated Administrator user role.

Before you begin this procedure, verify the following prerequisites:

• Ensure that you are using a supported storage array. For a list of supported arrays, see the "Supported Storage Arrays" section of the topic Configuring Storage in VMM.

• To add an SMI-S storage device, ensure that you have installed the SMI-S provider for the array on a server that the VMM management server can access over the network by IP address or by fully qualified domain name (FQDN). For information about how to obtain SMI-S providers, see Configuring Storage in VMM.

  Note

  Do not install the SMI-S provider on the VMM management server. This configuration is not supported.

  WMI SMP providers from Dell EqualLogic and NexSan must be installed on the VMM server.

• You can create a Run As account before or while you are run the Add Storage Devices Wizard to discover storage. The Run As account must have permissions to access the SMI-S provider. You can create a Run As account in the Settings workspace. For more information about Run As accounts, see How to Create a Run As Account in VMM.

Use the following procedures to add, discover, and classify block storage devices.

To discover storage devices

1. Open the Fabric workspace.

2. In the Fabric pane, click Storage.

3. On the Home tab, click Add Resources, and then click Storage Devices to start the Add Storage Devices Wizard.

4. On the Select Provider Type page, select one of the following:

   1. Select the Add a storage device that is managed by an SMI-S provider check box to specify and discover a storage device or an array that is supported by the SMI-S protocol.

   2. Select Add a storage device that is managed by an SMP provider to specify and discover a storage device or an array that is supported by the SMP protocol.

5. On the Specify Discovery Scope page, do the following:

   1. If you are adding an SMI-S provider storage device, do the following:

      1. In the Protocol list, select one of the following:

         • SMI-S CIMXML Choose this option to specify the SMI-S CIMXML-based storage provider that can be used to manage the storage devices.

         • SMI-S WMI WMI Choose this option to specify the SMI-S WMI-based storage provider that can be used to manage the storage devices.

      2. In the Provider IP address or FQDN box, enter either the IP address or the FQDN of the storage provider.

      3. In the TCP/IP port box, enter the port number that is used to connect to the provider.

      4. Select the Use Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) connection check box to enable HTTPS for communicating with the SMI-S CIMXML provider. This setting is not available for the SIM-S WMI protocol.

      5. Next to the Run As account box, click Browse, and select a Run As account that can access the storage provider. If you do not have an account, click Browse, and then in the Select a Run As Account dialog box, click Create Run As Account.

   2. To add an SMP provider, select it from the Provider list. If the SMP provider is not in the list, click Import to refresh the list.

6. On the Gather Information page, VMM automatically tries to discover and import the storage device information. To retry discovery, click Scan Provider. Note the following if you selected the option to use an SSL connection for an SMI-S provider:

   1. During discovery, the Import Certificate dialog box appears. Review the certificate information for the storage provider, and then click Import.

   2. By default, when you import a certificate for a storage provider, verification of the common name (CN) that is used in the certificate occurs. However, this process might cause an issue where storage discovery fails when the certificate does not contain a CN value, or the CN value does not match the expected format of NetBIOS name, FQDN, or IP address that VMM uses.

   3. If you receive the error messages "SSL certificate common name is invalid" or "Certificate Authority not recognized", you must disable CN verification for the storage provider certificate in the registry. To do this, follow these steps on the VMM management server:

      Warning

      This task contains steps that indicate how to modify the registry. However, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, ensure that you follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up the registry, which is included in the system state, see Windows Server Backup.

      1. Click Start, type regedit in the Search programs and files box, and then press ENTER.

      2. In the User Account Control dialog box, click Yes to continue.

      3. In Registry Editor, locate, and then click the following registry subkey:

         HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SOFTWARE/Microsoft/Storage Management/

      4. On the Edit menu, point to New, and then click DWORD (32-bit) Value.

      5. Type DisableHttpsCommonNameCheck, and then press ENTER.

      6. Double-click DisableHttpsCommonNameCheck.

      7. In the Value data box, type a value of 1, and then click OK.

      8. Close Registry Editor.

   If the discovery process succeeds, the discovered storage arrays, storage pools, manufacturer, model, and capacity are listed on the page. When the process finishes, click Next.

7. On the Select Storage Devices page, do the following for each storage pool that requires a classification:

   1. Select the check box next to a storage pool that you want VMM to manage.

   2. In the Classification column, select the storage classification that you want to assign. For instructions about how to create a new classification, see How to Create Storage Classifications in VMM. Then click Next.

8. On the Summary page, confirm the settings, and then click Finish.

   The Jobs dialog box appears. Ensure that the job has a status of Completed, and then close the dialog box.

9. To verify the newly discovered storage information, in the Fabric workspace, on the Home tab, click Fabric Resources. In the Fabric pane, expand the Storage node, and then do any of the following:

   • To view the storage pools that are assigned to a classification, click Classifications and Pools, and then expand the classification where you added storage. Expand a storage pool to view logical unit information for the pool.

   • To view storage provider information, click Providers. You can view the storage provider name, management address, managed arrays, and the provider status.

   • To view discovered storage arrays, click Arrays. You can view the name of the array, total and used capacity, the number of managed storage pools, the provider name, and the provider status.

To change the storage classification for a storage pool

1. In the Fabric workspace, expand Storage, and then click Classification and Pools.

2. In the Classifications, Storage Pools and Logical Units pane, expand the storage classification that contains the storage pool that you want to reclassify.

3. Right-click the storage pool that you want to reclassify, and then click Properties.

4. In the Classification list, click the classification that you want to assign, and then click OK.

Configuring Storage in VMM