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Hardware

Overview

Hardware: The hardware refers to a collection of hardware devices that form a storage cluster, such as servers, hard disks, and networking equipment.

Related Definitions

  • Hard Disk: A hard disk is the physical unit of a data disk. All hard disks on storage servers are scanned and displayed in the list. Healthy free disks can be added as data disks.
  • Topology: Topology represents a visual depiction of how physical resources are actually deployed within a cluster. You can use this feature to configure data redundancy policies for storage pools.
  • Server: Servers are divided into storage servers and storage gateway servers.
  • Cluster: A cluster is a logical collection of servers.

Hard Disk

Scan Hard Disks on General Purpose Node

On the main menu of ZStack ZStone, choose Hardware > Hard Disk. On the Hard Disk page, click Scan and all hard disks on storage servers and their information will be displayed in the list.

Figure 1. Scan hard disks


Note:
  • Healthy free disks can be used for cache partitioning (SSD recommended) or added as data disks. If you set cache partition, ensure that each partition has a minimum capacity of 50 GB.
  • A scanned unknown disk implies that the disk contains unrecognized partitions.
    • For ZStack ZStone 4.2.0 and earlier versions, run the wipefs -af /dev/sdX command to manually clean up partitions before rescanning the disk.
    • For ZStack ZStone 4.2.0 and later versions, go to the Hard Disk page and click Initialize Hard Disk to clean up partitions directly.
  • In some hardware environments, newly-added hard disks may not be detected. Reboot the server or contact official technical support for assistance.

Manage Hard Disks on General Purpose Node

On the main menu of ZStack ZStone, choose Hardware > Hard Disk. Then, the Hard Disk page is displayed.

The following actions help to manage hard disks.
Action Description
Scan Scan and list all hard disks in the server and their use.
Set Cache Partition You can set cache partitions for one or more healthy free disks.
Note:
  • Each partition has a minimum capacity of 50 GB.。
  • You can set up to 36 partitions.
  • If you fail to perform bulk action, select free disks of the same total capacity and try to set cache partition again.。
Clean up Cache We support cleaning up cache for cache disks in the healthy state.
Note:
  • Cleaning up cache means cleaning up all partitions in the cache disk. The clean-up cannot be recovered. Proceed with caution.
  • You can reset cache partition or add hard disks as data disks.
  • If the partitions of a cache disk is currently in use by data disks, you cannot clean up the cache disk. You need to delete the associated data disks first before trying to clean up cache again.
Initialize Hard Disk Initialize one or more disks in the healthy state whose use is unknown.
Note:
  • After initialization, the use of a hard disk will change from Unknown Disk to Free Disk.
  • Initializing hard disks will erase all existing partitions. This operation may cause permanent data loss. Proceed with caution.
Disk Light Enable or disable the disk light to quickly locate the hard disk.
Note:
  • You cannot light up a system disk, virtual disk, or offline disk.
  • We recommend you use the hard disk compatible with our platform, for example, HGST HUS728T8TALE6L4 or ST2000DM001-1ER164 and so on.

Scan Hard Disks on High-Performance Node

On the main menu of ZStack ZStone, choose Hardware > Hard Disk. On the Hard Disk page, click High-Performance Node > Scan and all hard disks on storage servers and their information will be displayed in the list.

Figure 1. Scan hard disks on High-Performance Node


Manage Hard Disks on High-Performance Node

On the main menu of ZStack ZStone, choose Hardware > Hard Disk > High-Performance Node. Then, the High-Performance Node page is displayed.

The following actions help to manage hard disks.
Action Description
Scan Scan and list all hard disks in the server and their use.
Initialize Hard Disk Initialize one or more disks in the healthy state whose use is unknown.
Note:
  • After initialization, the use of a hard disk will change from Unknown Disk to Free Disk.
  • Initializing hard disks will erase all existing partitions. This operation may cause permanent data loss. Proceed with caution.
Disk Light Enable or disable the disk light to quickly locate the hard disk.
Note:
  • You cannot light up a system disk, virtual disk, or offline disk.
  • We recommend you use the hard disk compatible with our platform, for example, HGST HUS728T8TALE6L4, ST2000DM001-1ER164 and so on.

Further Details About Hard Disk

On the main menu of ZStack ZStone, choose Hardware > Hard Disk. On the Hard Disk page, select one disk and enter its details page.

The details page presents basic information and S.M.A.R.T information of the hard disk in card form.

Basic Info

In this card, you can check the disk's basic information, including identifier, server, UUID, drive path, state, total capacity, medium, use, serial number, model, and disk light.

S.M.A.R.T Info

In this card, you can check the disk's S.M.A.R.T information, including ID, note, healthy state, current value, worst value, threshold value, and raw value. Meanwhile, you can identify the health state of the disk through the S.M.A.R.T mechanism.
  • Healthy: The current value and the worst value are much greater than the threshold value.
  • Alarm: The current value and the worst value are greater than but close to the threshold value.
  • Error: The current value and the worst value are smaller than the threshold value.
Note: We recommend you use RAID cards or hard disks compatible with our platform.
  • RAID Cards: PM8222 (Provided by INSPUR), 3008IMR (Provided by AVAGO) and so on.
  • Hard disks: HGST HUS728T8TALE6L4, ST2000DM001-1ER164 and so on.

Topology

Plan a Topology

On the main menu of ZStack ZStone, choose Hardware > Topology. Then, the Topology page is displayed.

When you first enter the Topology page, ZStack ZStone provides a Wizard instruction for you.

Get Started with Topology

  • Add a topology object

    Click on a topology icon and drag it onto the canvas.

    Figure 1. Add a topology object


  • Move a topology object

    Click on a topology object, hold the mouse, and drag the object to the new position.

    Figure 2. Move a topology object


  • Edit the name of a topology object

    Hover over an object and click the Edit icon to edit the name of a topology object.

    Figure 3. Edit a name


  • View the topology details

    Click a topology object and you can view the detailed information about it.

    Figure 4. View topology details


  • Delete a topology object

    Hover over an object and click the Delete icon to delete it.

    Figure 5. Delete a topology object


Considerations

  • To plan a topology, you need to place topology objects in a way that adheres to the hierarchical relationship, for example, Data Center>Room>Rack>Server. In this hierarchy, servers must be placed under racks and cannot exist independently in the topology.
  • When you drag topology objects onto the canvas, these objects are named as data-center-x, room-x, and rack-x by default. You can edit the name of a topology object. The name must be 1 to 128 characters in length and can contain letters, digits, periods (.), underscores (_), or hyphens (-).
  • You cannot move a server when data disks on the server are used in a storage pool.
  • You cannot delete a topology object when there are child resources.
  • We recommend that you do not change the topology if you have created a storage pool after planning a topology.

Server

Add a General Purpose Storage Server

On the main menu of ZStack ZStone, choose Hardware > Server. On the Server page, click Add Server.

Adding a general purpose storage server involves five steps. Set the following parameters to complete the server configurations.

Step One: Basic Configurations

  • Server IP Address: Enter the server IP address. You can specify either a single IP address or IP address range. We support adding multiple servers in bulk.
  • Type: Select server type. Two server types are supported:
    • Storage Server:
      • Provides storage pools with hard disks that can be used as data disks.
      • Supports five roles: Management, Monitor, Block Storage Gateway, Object Storage Gateway, and File Storage Gateway.
    • Storage Gateway Server:
      • Hosts various interfaces and clients. The system only manages the server gateways and does not manage hard disks on the server.
      • Supports only one role: Block Storage Gateway.
  • Role: Configure the role of servers. Five roles are supported:
    • Admin Role (Management):
      • Responsible for the collection and management of the runtime status of the cluster and manages the distributed storage cluster as the management node in multiple ways, such as GUI and API.
      • We recommend that you deploy at least 2 admin roles to meet the high availability requirement.
    • Monitor Role:
      • Responsible for monitoring the cluster storage data and maintaining overall status of the cluster, including metadata such as data mapping and cluster authentication.
      • We recommend that you deploy an odd number of monitor roles (3+2*N, N≥0) to meet the high availability requirement.
    • Block Storage Gateway:
      • Responsible for the access between the server and the storage cluster through Block interface.
      • By default, this role is selected for a storage server.
      • By default, this role is selected for a gateway server. And a storage gateway server only supports this role.
    • Object Storage Gateway:
      • Responsible for the access between the server and the storage cluster through Object interface.
      • To use object storage service, you need to select this role.
      • On an object storage gateway server, you can turn on the object gateway to provide the S3 protocol and gateway services.
    • File Storage Gateway:
      • To use file storage service, you need to select this role.
      • On a file storage gateway server, you can create a file gateway to provide file storage access protocols such as SMB and NFS.
    Note:
    • When you add a server for the first time, three roles including Management, Monitor, and Block Storage Gateway, are selected by default. The Block Storage Gateway role can be deselected, while Management and Monitor roles are required.
    • For subsequent server additions, you can add storage servers without roles.
    • Deploy at least three storage servers with Management, Monitor, and Block Storage Gateway roles in a cluster.
Figure 1. Basic configurations


Step Two: Environment Configurations

  • SSH Username: Enter the SSH username for the server. Default: root.
  • SSH Password: Enter the SSH password. The system uses this password only for password-free login configurations and does not store the password.
  • Port: Enter the server port number. Default port: 22.
  • Server Name: (Optional) Specify a server name.

    Naming rules: 1-63 characters long. The name can contain lower-case letters (a-z), digits (0-9), periods (.), and hyphens (-). Avoid starting with a hyphen or number as well as ending with a hyphen.

    Note:
    • If you do not set a server name, ensure the server name-to-IP mapping is preconfigured in /etc/hosts file. The system uses the existing server name after server addition.
    • If you set a new server name, it overwrites the existing name-to-IP mapping in /etc/hosts file.
    • When you add servers in bulk, the names of these servers will end with a suffix, that is, the last part of their IP address (0-254), to distinguish these servers, for example, server-24.
  • Time Sync Service: Choose to enable or disable the time synchronization service.

    If you enable this setting, the system synchronizes the newly-added server's clock with other servers in the cluster.

  • Password-Free Login: If you enable this setting, the system configures password-free logins to the server with the SSH username and password.
Figure 2. Environment configurations


Step Three: Network Configurations

  • Admin IP: Sets the IP address the management network which manages and configures storage clusters. The default admin IP is the server IP address.
  • Public IP: Sets the IP address of the public cluster network which facilitates interaction between block storage gateways and storage pools.
  • Cluster IP: Sets the IP address of the cluster internal network which monitors data disks across cluster servers and synchronizes replicas.
    Note: Skip setting Cluster IP when you add a storage gateway server.
Figure 3. Network configurations


Step Four: Confirm

Review the information of the server to add. You can navigate back to modify configuration details if needed.

Figure 4. Confirm


Step Five: Install

Check the server deployment progress. If you exit this page during installation, the process continues in the background. You can check the process via the operation log at any time.
Note:
  • You cannot exit the page when adding a server for the first time.
  • Avoid refreshing the browser when adding a server for the first time.
Figure 5. Install


Manage a General Purpose Storage Server

On the main menu of ZStack ZStone, choose Hardware > Server > General Purpose Node. Then, the General Purpose Node page is displayed.

The following actions help to manage general purpose storage servers.
Action Description
Add Server Add one or more servers.
Note: If a monitoring server in the disconnected state exists in the cluster, you cannot add a new server.
Add Role Add roles to servers.
Note: You cannot add roles when:
  • The server is in transition (for example, adding, deleting, or setting roles) or disconnected.
  • The server already has the maximum allowed roles for its license.
  • The server is a storage gateway type.
Delete Role Deleting roles from servers.
Note: You cannot delete roles when:
  • The server is in transition (for example, adding, deleting, or setting roles) or disconnected.
  • The server has no roles remaining.
  • The server is a storage gateway type.
Delete Server Deleting a server stops the services provided by the server and deletes all relevant data. Deleted data cannot be recovered. Proceed with caution.
Note: To delete a server requires meeting the following requirements:
  • The server is in the connected state.
  • The cluster where the server is located is in the healthy status.
  • No data disks are running in the server.
  • The server is not added as an Object Storage Gateway.
  • Cannot delete other servers if any server is currently being deleted.
  • Keep at least one server with both Management and Monitor roles. You may remove the last Management/Monitor server if intentionally deleting all roles.

Add a High-Performance Storage Server

On the main menu of ZStack ZStone, choose Hardware > Server. On the Server page, click High-Performance Node > Add Server.

Adding a high-performance storage server involves five steps. You can configure the server by entering parameters following these examples.

Step One: Basic Configurations

  • Server IP Address: Enter the server IP address. You can specify either a single IP address or IP address range to add multiple servers in bulk.
  • Type: The default type is Storage Server, providing high-performance storage pools with hard disks and other resources.
  • Role: Configure the role of servers. Three roles are supported:
    • Management: Deploy MDS and ETCD services on the servers with the management role. MDS (Metadata Service) manages metadata, monitors cluster state, and handles scheduling. ETCD provides persistent storage for MDS metadata.
      Note:
      • If you add a high-performance server for the first time, this role is selected by default and you cannot deselect it.
      • The servers with the management role cannot exceed 3.
    • Data: Deploy Chunkserver service on the servers with the data role. Chunkserver provides data I/O and node management services.
    • Block Storage Gateway: Deploy gateway service for volume access.
      Note: This role is selected by default and you cannot deselect it.

Step Two: Environment Configurations

  • SSH Username: Enter the SSH username for the server. Default: root.
  • SSH Password: Enter the SSH password. The system uses this password only for password-free login configurations and does not store the password.
  • Port: Enter the server port number. Default port: 22.
  • Server Name: (Optional) Specify a server name.

    Naming rules: supports 1-63 characters including lowercase letters (a-z), numbers (0-9), periods (.), or hyphens (-). Hyphens cannot appear at the start or end. Avoid starting with numbers.

    Note:
    • If you do not set server name, ensure the server name-to-IP mapping is preconfigured in /etc/hosts file. The system uses the existing server name after server addition.
    • If you set a new server name, it overwrites the existing name-to-IP mapping in /etc/hosts file.
    • When you add servers in bulk, the name of these servers will be followed by the last digit of their IP address (0-254) and so forth to distinguish these servers, for example, server-24.
  • Time Sync Service: Choose to enable or disable the time synchronization service.

    If you enable this setting, the system synchronizes the newly added server's clock with other servers in the cluster.

  • Password-Free Login: If you enable this setting, the system configures password-free logins to the server with the SSH username and password.

Step Three: Network Configurations

  • Admin IP: Sets the management network IP address for cluster administration. The default admin IP is the server IP address.
  • Public IP: Sets the public network IP address that handles the communication between business clients and metadata services.
  • Cluster IP: Sets the internal network IP address that is used for communication between metadata services, between metadata services and data disks, as well as for data transmission during recovery.
    Note: Skip setting Cluster IP when you add a storage gateway server.

Step Four: Confirm

Review the information of the server to be added. You can navigate back to modify configuration details if needed.

Step Five: Install

Check the server installation progress. If you exit this page during installation, the process continues in the background. You can check the installation status via the operation log at any time.
Note:
  • You cannot exit the page when adding a server for the first time.
  • Avoid refreshing the browser when adding a server for the first time.

Manage a High-Performance Storage Server

On the main menu of ZStack ZStone, choose Hardware > Server > High-Performance Node. Then, the High-Performance Node page is displayed.

The following actions help to manage high-performance storage servers.
Action Description
Add Server Add one or more high-performance storage servers.
Delete Deleting a server stops the services provided by the server and deletes all relevant data. Deleted data cannot be recovered.
Note: To delete a server requires meeting the following requirements:
  • The server is in the connected state.
  • No management service is running on the server.
  • No Chunkserver service is running on the server.

Cluster

View General Storage Cluster

On the main menu of ZStack ZStone, click Hardware > Cluster. Then, the Cluster page is displayed.

On the General Storage tab, you can view the information of the initialized general storage cluster, including the cluster name, network configuration, time server address, server count, and creation time.

Initialize High-Performance Storage Cluster

On the main menu of ZStack ZStone, click Hardware > Cluster. On the Cluster page, click High-Performance Storage > Initialize Cluster. Then, the Initialize Cluster page is displayed.

On the displayed page, set the following parameters:
  • Name: Enter a name for the high-performance storage cluster.

    Naming rules: 1-128 characters long. The name can contain lowercase letters (a-z), numbers (0-9), periods (.), or hyphens (-). Avoid starting with a hyphen or a number as well as ending with a hyphen.

  • Admin IP CIDR: Enter the CIDR of the management network which manages and configures storage clusters.
  • Public IP CIDR: Enter the CIDR of the public cluster network which is used for communication between business clients and metadata services.
  • Cluster IP CIDR: Enter the CIDR of the cluster internal network which is used for communication between metadata services, between metadata services and data disks, as well as for data transmission during recovery.
    Note: In a small-scale configuration scenario, you can reuse the public IP. In a large-scale configuration scenario, for example, with more than 10 servers, we recommend that you deploy a cluster IP separately from the public IP.
  • Time Sync Server IP: Enter the IP address of the time server. The time server ensures clock synchronization across cluster nodes to maintain system health.
    Note: We recommend keep the time server IP address within the same CIDR as the Admin IP.
  • RDMA Transmission: Set whether to enable RDMA transmission. After enabling RDMA transmission, data disks within the cluster will communicate using the RDMA protocol.

Set RDMA Transmission

On the main menu of ZStack ZStone, click Hardware > Cluster. On the Cluster page, click High-Performance Storage > Set RDMA.

You can enable or disable RDMA for high-performance storage clusters. To enable RDMA, make sure the high-performance storage cluster has been initialized and at least three high-performance storage servers are added to the cluster. After enabled, data disks within the cluster will communicate using the RDMA protocol.
Note: High-Risk Operation: Configuring RDMA for the cluster will interrupt cluster services. Proceed with caution.
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