IBM Spectrum Control

Version 5.2.9

User's Guide

IBM

SC27-6588-01
 Note:
Before using this information and the product it supports, read the information in “Notices” on page 359.

This edition applies to version 5, release 2, modification 9 of IBM Spectrum Control (product numbers 5725-F93,
5725-G33, 5725-Y23, and 5725-Y24) and to all subsequent releases and modifications until otherwise indicated in
new editions.
This edition replaces SC27-6588-00
© Copyright IBM Corporation 2001, 2016.
US Government Users Restricted Rights – Use, duplication or disclosure restricted by GSA ADP Schedule Contract
with IBM Corp.
Contents
About this guide . . . . . . . . . . . v Analyzing and re-tiering volumes in pools on tier
Who should read this guide . . . . . . . . . v 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Publications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v Collocating volumes . . . . . . . . . . 63
Accessing publications online. . . . . . . . v Monitoring capacity usage at different levels of a
IBM Redbooks . . . . . . . . . . . . vii business hierarchy . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Translation . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii Comparing storage usage in each department . . 66
Providing feedback about publications . . . . vii Using applications and subcomponents to monitor
IBM Spectrum Control Service Management capacity and space usage . . . . . . . . . . 68
Connect community . . . . . . . . . . . viii Viewing storage capacity and usage trends . . . 69
Contacting IBM Software Support . . . . . . viii Limiting a set of storage to provision in the vSphere
Reporting a problem . . . . . . . . . . viii Web Client extension . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Conventions used in this guide . . . . . . . . ix Viewing NPIV connections between server ports
and switch ports in a fabric . . . . . . . . . 72
New for IBM Spectrum Control Version
5.2.9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi Chapter 5. Managing resources . . . . 75
Adding resources . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Resources that you can monitor . . . . . . 75
Chapter 1. Getting started . . . . . . . 1 Required user roles for monitoring resources . . 80
Managing resources . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Adding storage systems . . . . . . . . . 81
Configuring and administering . . . . . . . . 7 Adding fabrics and switches. . . . . . . . 85
Navigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Adding hypervisors . . . . . . . . . . 88
Adding servers . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Chapter 2. Product licenses. . . . . . 15 Removing resources . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Functions that are available based on role and Collecting data . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
license . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Collecting asset and status data. . . . . . . 99
Collecting performance data . . . . . . . 103
Chapter 3. Product overview . . . . . 23 Collecting information about shares on storage
Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Interfaces for IBM Spectrum Control . . . . . . 24 Alerting and event processing . . . . . . . . 111
Starting IBM Spectrum Control . . . . . . . . 25 Alert severities . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Navigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Defining alerts . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Replication products . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Viewing and modifying alert definitions . . . 121
Key concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Viewing and modifying alert notification
Data collection . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Performance monitoring and troubleshooting . . 33 Viewing alerts . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Applications and departments . . . . . . . 35 Acknowledging alerts . . . . . . . . . 129
Storage optimization . . . . . . . . . . 36 Removing alerts . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Cloud configuration . . . . . . . . . . 37 Viewing information about resources . . . . . 130
Provisioning storage . . . . . . . . . . 42 How information is organized . . . . . . . 130
Storage reclamation. . . . . . . . . . . 46 Dashboard view . . . . . . . . . . . 133
IBM Spectrum Control VASA provider . . . . 47 Viewing information about top-level resources 137
vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Viewing information about internal, object, and
Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 related resources . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Alerts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Monitoring the status and condition of resources 139
Reporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 How the condition of a resource is determined 141
Units of measurement for storage data . . . . 51 Viewing the overall condition of resources. . . 144
Role-based authorization . . . . . . . . . 52 Viewing the condition of specific types of
Fabrics and zones . . . . . . . . . . . 53 resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Agents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Viewing the status of resources . . . . . . 145
Acknowledging the condition and status of
Chapter 4. Scenarios. . . . . . . . . 59 resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Monitoring the performance of resources . . . . 149
Optimizing the performance of storage virtualizers 59
Viewing performance information . . . . . 150
Redistributing volume workloads to balance
Viewing performance alerts and threshold
pools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
violations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 iii

Monitoring and administering applications and Renaming tasks . . . . . . . . . . . 247
departments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165 Deleting tasks . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
Applications. . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Departments . . . . . . . . . . . . 178 Appendix A. Reference . . . . . . . 251
Application and department hierarchies . . . 184 Alerts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Exporting information about applications and Triggering conditions for alerts . . . . . . 252
departments . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185 Triggering actions and notifications for alerts 281
Viewing the data paths of resources . . . . . . 187 Performance data . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
Resources that you can view in a data path . . 188 Performance metrics . . . . . . . . . . 283
Navigating in a data path . . . . . . . . 191 Cinder driver for IBM Spectrum Control . . . . 338
Viewing information about top-level resources 191 Planning to deploy the Cinder driver . . . . 339
Viewing information about internal resources 191 Setting up the Cinder driver environment . . . 341
Zooming in . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192 Requirements for installing the Cinder driver 342
Zooming out . . . . . . . . . . . . 192 Cinder driver package contents . . . . . . 343
Changing the layout . . . . . . . . . . 192 Installing the Cinder driver. . . . . . . . 344
Saving the display settings . . . . . . . . 193 Uninstalling the Cinder driver. . . . . . . 345
Printing a view . . . . . . . . . . . . 193 Configuring the Cinder driver . . . . . . . 346
Exporting a data path to a file . . . . . . . 193 Learn more about the Cinder driver . . . . . 347
Provisioning storage . . . . . . . . . . . 193 Limitations and known issues for the Cinder
Configuring IBM Spectrum Control for driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347
provisioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194 Opening IBM Spectrum Control on Windows
Provisioning storage with the IBM Spectrum operating systems . . . . . . . . . . . . 348
Control GUI . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211 Opening IBM Spectrum Control GUIs and CLIs 348
Provisioning storage with the vSphere Web Accessing administration tools . . . . . . 350
Client extension . . . . . . . . . . . 216
Optimizing storage tiering . . . . . . . . . 219
Appendix B. Accessibility features for
Setting the tier level of storage pools . . . . 220
Analyzing tiering by servers . . . . . . . 220 IBM Spectrum Control . . . . . . . 353
Analyzing tiering by hypervisors . . . . . . 220
Analyzing tiering by storage virtualizers . . . 220 Appendix C. Accessibility features for
Analyzing tiering by storage pools . . . . . 221 Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for
Analyzing tiering by volumes . . . . . . . 221 Replication . . . . . . . . . . . . 355
Tiering volumes by I/O density and I/O rate 221
Modifying the criteria for analyzing tiering . . 222
Optimizing storage pools . . . . . . . . . 222
Notices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359
Balancing pools . . . . . . . . . . . 223 Privacy policy considerations . . . . . . . . 361
Modifying the criteria for balancing pools . . . 223 Trademarks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361
Criteria for identifying the pools that require
balancing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224 Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363
Reclaiming storage . . . . . . . . . . . 225 A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363
Viewing storage reclamation . . . . . . . 225 B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363
Viewing storage reclamation by storage system 226 C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363
Excluding volumes from reclamation analysis 226 D . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364
Transforming and migrating volumes . . . . . 227 E . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364
Modifying the period for analyzing performance F . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364
data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228 G . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364
Modifying the properties of resources . . . . . 228 H . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
Opening the management GUI for a resource. . . 231 J. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
Opening the DS Storage Manager GUI for a L . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
DS8000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231 M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
Exporting information to a file . . . . . . . 232 N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
Customizing lists of resources, tasks, and alerts . . 233 P . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
Filtering lists . . . . . . . . . . . . 234 R . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
Sorting lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234 S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
Showing, hiding, and reordering columns in T . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367
lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235 V . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367
Managing tasks. . . . . . . . . . . . . 236 Z . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367
Viewing tasks . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
Managing tasks for provisioning . . . . . . 240 Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 369
Managing tasks for tiering storage, balancing
pools, and transforming storage . . . . . . 242

iv IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

About this guide
IBM Spectrum Control™ manages storage infrastructure by centralizing,
automating, and simplifying the management of complex and heterogeneous
storage environments. This guide provides task-oriented user information that
helps you to obtain optimal product performance.

Who should read this guide

This publication is intended for administrators and users who want to learn how
to use IBM Spectrum Control to monitor and manage storage resources and
infrastructure.

Administrators and users must be familiar, or become familiar, with the following
concepts:
v Storage Area Network (SAN)
v Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP)
v Storage provisioning, optimization, performance, tiers, and cloud configuration
v IBM® DB2®
v Jazz™ for Service Management
v IBM Tivoli® Common Reporting
v vSphere Web Client extension and VASA

Publications
A number of publications are provided with IBM Spectrum Control.

IBM Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for Replication is no longer installed with
IBM Spectrum Control. For current Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for
Replication users who upgrade to IBM Spectrum Control, Tivoli Storage
Productivity Center for Replication will remain available. See IBM Knowledge
Center for any earlier versions of Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for Replication
publications.

The following section describes how to access these publications online.

Accessing publications online

Information about installing, configuring, using, upgrading, and uninstalling IBM
Spectrum Control and related products is available online.

Use Table 1 on page vi to view and download these publications. Translated

documents are available for some products.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 v

 Table 1. Locations of publications for IBM Spectrum Control and related products
Product Online location
IBM Spectrum Control http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
SS5R93/

In the navigation pane, click IBM Spectrum Control for

the appropriate release. To obtain PDF documents, in
the navigation pane, click IBM Spectrum Control >
Printable documentation.
IBM Copy Services Manager http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
(formerly known as IBM Tivoli SSESK4
Storage Productivity Center for
Replication)
IBM WebSphere® Application http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
Server SSEQTP/mapfiles/product_welcome_was.html
Jazz for Service Management http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
SSEKCU/welcome
IBM System Storage® DS3000, http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
IBM System Storage DS4000® or
IBM System Storage DS5000™ Go to the preceding website and go to System Storage
> Disk systems.
IBM System Storage DS6000™ http://www.redbooks.ibm.com/abstracts/
sg246781.html

The DS6000 series is no longer supported. For

information, see the preceding publication.
IBM System Storage DS8000® http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/

Go to the preceding website and go to System Storage

> Disk systems > Enterprise Storage Servers. Select the
DS8000 series system that you want.
IBM System Storage DS® Open http://www.ibm.com/support/
Application Programming docview.wss?uid=ssg1S7001160
Interface publications
Use these publications for information about how to
install, configure, and use the CIM agent.
IBM System Storage SAN http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
Volume Controller STPVGU
IBM Storwize® V3500 http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
STLM6B/landing/v3500_welcome.html
IBM Storwize V3700 http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
STLM5A/landing/V3700_welcome.html
IBM Storwize V5000 http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
STHGUJ/landing/V5000_welcome.html
IBM Storwize V7000 http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
ST3FR7/landing/V7000_welcome.html
IBM Storwize V7000 Unified http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
ST5q4U/landing/v7000_unified_welcome.html
IBM Scale Out Network Attached http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
Storage (IBM SONAS) STAV45/landing/sonas_151_kc_welcome.html
IBM XIV® Storage System http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
STJTAG

vi IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Table 1. Locations of publications for IBM Spectrum Control and related
products (continued)
Product Online location
™
IBM Spectrum Accelerate http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
STZSWD/welcome
IBM Spectrum Scale™ http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
SSFKCN/gpfs_welcome.html
IBM DB2 Database for Linux http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
UNIX and Windows SSEPGG/welcome
IBM System Storage N series http://www.ibm.com/systems/storage/network/
index.html

For more information about IBM System Storage N

series, see http://www.ibm.com/systems/storage/
network/software/.
IBM Systems Director http://www.ibm.com/systems/software/director/
index.html
VMware vSphere http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/vsphere-esxi-
vcenter-server-pubs.html
IBM Cognos® Business http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
Intelligence SSEP7J
IBM FlashSystem™ V840 http://www.ibm.com/systems/storage/flash/v840/
Enterprise Performance Solution overview.html
IBM FlashSystem V9000 http://www.ibm.com/systems/storage/flash/v9000/
overview.html

IBM Redbooks
The IBM Redbooks® are publications about specialized topics.

You can order publications through your IBM representative or the IBM branch
office serving your locality. You can also search for and order books of interest to
you by visiting the IBM Redbooks home page at http://www.redbooks.ibm.com.

Translation
Translated publications are available from IBM Knowledge Center, which is
available in certain translated languages. It is displayed in the language that is
appropriate for the browser locale setting.

When a locale does not have a translated version, the information is displayed in
English, which is the default language. Translations of the PDFs are available when
the information is translated.

Providing feedback about publications

Your feedback is important to help IBM provide the highest quality information.

To provide comments or suggestions about the product documentation, go to the

following location for IBM Spectrum Control: http://www.ibm.com/support/
knowledgecenter/SS5R93/.Click Add Comment on the welcome page or on
individual topic pages in a specific release. You must have an IBM ID and
password to add a comment.

About this guide vii

IBM Spectrum Control Service Management Connect community
Connect, learn, and share with Service Management professionals: product support
technical experts who provide their perspectives and expertise.

Access Service Management Connect at https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/

servicemanagement/. Use Service Management Connect in the following ways:
v Become involved with transparent development, an ongoing, open engagement
between other users and developers of IBM products. You can access early
designs, sprint demonstrations, product roadmaps, and prerelease code.
v Connect one-on-one with the experts to collaborate and network about IBM and
the Storage Management community.
v Read blogs to benefit from the expertise and experience of others.
v Use wikis and forums to collaborate with the broader user community.

Contacting IBM Software Support

You can contact IBM Software Support by phone, and you can register for support
notifications at the technical support website.
v Go to the IBM Spectrum Control technical support website at
http://www.ibm.com/support/entry/portal/Overview/Software/Tivoli/
Tivoli_Storage_Productivity_Center.
To receive future support notifications, sign in under Subscribe to support
notifications. You are required to enter your IBM ID and password. After you
are authenticated, you can configure your subscription for IBM Spectrum
Control technical support website updates.
v Customers in the United States can call 1-800-IBM-SERV (1-800-426-7378).
v For international customers, go to the IBM Spectrum Control technical support
website to find support by country. Expand Contact support and click Directory
of worldwide contacts.

You can also review the IBM Software Support Handbook, which is available at
http://www14.software.ibm.com/webapp/set2/sas/f/handbook/home.html.

The support website offers extensive information, including a guide to support

services; frequently asked questions (FAQs); and documentation for all IBM
Software products, including Redbooks and white papers. Translated documents
are also available for some products.

When you contact IBM Software Support, be prepared to provide identification

information for your company so that support personnel can readily assist you.
Company identification information might also be needed to access various online
services available on the website. See “Reporting a problem.”

Reporting a problem
Provide the IBM Support Center with information about the problems that you
report.

Have the following information ready when you report a problem:

v The IBM Spectrum Control version, release, modification, and service level
number.
v The communication protocol (for example, TCP/IP), version, and release number
that you are using.

viii IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 v The activity that you were doing when the problem occurred, listing the steps
that you followed before the problem occurred.
v The exact text of any error messages.

Conventions used in this guide

Information is given about the conventions that are used in this publication.

This publication uses several conventions for special terms and actions, and for
operating system-dependent commands and paths.

The following typeface conventions are used in this publication:

Bold
v Flags that display with text
v Graphical user interface (GUI) elements (except for titles of windows
and dialogs)
v Names of keys
Italic
v Variables
v Values that you must provide
v New terms
v Words and phrases that are emphasized
v Titles of documents
monospace
v Commands and command options
v Flags that display on a separate line
v Code examples and output
v Message text
v Names of files and directories
v Text strings that you must type, when they display within text
v Names of Oracle Java™ methods and classes
v HTML and XML tags that display like this, in monospace type

For syntax notations, remember the following details.

v In AIX®, the prompt for the root user is #.
v In AIX and Linux, the commands are case-sensitive, so you must type
commands exactly as they are shown.

About this guide ix

x IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
New for IBM Spectrum Control Version 5.2.9
New features and enhancements are available in IBM Spectrum Control™ Version
5.2.9.

The following features and enhancements are now available:

v “Storage reclamation”
v “Port names”
v “Enhanced platforms”
Storage reclamation
To identify the volumes that are not being used, the storage systems in
your data center that you add for monitoring are regularly analyzed.
Criteria such as volume performance and host connections are considered.
This function provides the following benefits:
v You can reclaim unused storage capacity and more effectively allocate
volume space on your block storage systems.
v You can view the amount of storage that can be reclaimed in each of the
storage systems that are monitored.
v You can use the volume reclamation recommendations to reclaim unused
storage space and use your storage more efficiently. By reclaiming the
volumes, you can reduce costs by recycling existing storage space
instead of purchasing new storage media.
The following figure shows the reclaimable capacity for tiered and
non-tiered storage, and a list of the reclaimable volumes on the
Reclaimable Capacity page:

Port names
IBM Spectrum Control now displays the switch blade number, port
number, and blade names just as they were defined in other tools, such as
Brocade Network Advisor. On a list of switches, the Name column
displays the port names that you defined by using the switch management
tools. The Port number column now shows only the port number
information.
Enhanced platforms
IBM DB2 Version 10.5 Fix Pack 6 is now included with IBM Spectrum
Control. If you already have a version of DB2 that is supported by IBM

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 xi

 Spectrum Control Version 5.2.9, for example DB2 Version 10.1, then you are
not required to upgrade to DB2 Version 10.5 Fix Pack 6.

For a list of the supported DB2 versions, go to http://www.ibm.com/

support/docview.wss?uid=swg27047043#Databases.

Limitations and known issues

For information about limitations and known issues that might occur when you
use IBM Spectrum Control Version 5.2.9, see http://www.ibm.com/support/
docview.wss?uid=swg21974306.
Related information:
New for IBM Spectrum Control Version 5.2.8
Knowledge Centers for Tivoli Storage Productivity Center Version 5.2.7 and
earlier

xii IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Chapter 1. Getting started
Learn about the key tasks for setting up IBM Spectrum Control for managing the
resources and infrastructure in a storage environment. The getting started guide
provides a list of tasks in sequential order for helping you to learn how to install,
configure, and use IBM Spectrum Control.

Complete the following tasks to install and set up IBM Spectrum Control for
monitoring and managing storage resources. Click the included links to learn more
information about each task.
Table 2. Tasks for getting started with IBM Spectrum Control

Task Description Learn more

Planning for The time that you invest in planning directly
installation and affects your ease of implementation. v Hardware requirements
upgrades. Planning includes the following tasks:
v Software requirements.
v Ensuring that your systems meet hardware
and software requirements v TCP/IP ports used by IBM Spectrum
v Becoming familiar with the operating Control
systems, storage resources, agents, and v Planning for IBM Spectrum Control
communication protocols that can be used authentication and authorization
with IBM Spectrum Control
v Ensuring that ports are open for use v Planning for resources
v Understanding authentication and For more information about the software and
role-based authorization resources that are supported by IBM
v Understanding the requirements for
Spectrum Control, see IBM Spectrum
specific types of resources
Control interoperability matrix at
http://www.ibm.com/support/
docview.wss?uid=swg21386446.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 1

Table 2. Tasks for getting started with IBM Spectrum Control (continued)

Task Description Learn more

Installing or If you have a previous version of IBM You can run the installation process as a GUI
upgrading IBM Spectrum Control installed, you can upgrade wizard or through a command line in silent
Spectrum Control. it to the current version. If you do not have a mode.
previous version, you can use the following
methods to install it: v Upgrading and migrating

Single-server environment v Installing DB2

Install IBM Spectrum Control and
its components on a single server. v Installing IBM Spectrum Control in a
single-server environment
Multiple-server environment
Install IBM Spectrum Control on v Installing IBM Spectrum Control in a
multiple servers if you are multiple-server environment
monitoring large storage
v Install Jazz for Service Management
environments, where one server is
and Tivoli Common Reporting
not sufficient to manage all the IBM
Spectrum Control components.

When you install IBM Spectrum Control, the

following components are also installed:
DB2 (required)
IBM Spectrum Control stores the
information that it collects about
storage resources in a DB2 database.
Jazz for Service Management and Tivoli
Common Reporting (optional)
Install these components if you
want to use IBM Spectrum Control
reports in the web-based GUI.
Starting the IBM The IBM Spectrum Control GUI runs in a “Starting IBM Spectrum Control” on page 25
Spectrum Control web browser and can be accessed from
GUI. anywhere that you have a web browser and
connectivity to a network.
Adding resources for Before you can monitor the resources in your “Adding resources” on page 75
monitoring. environment, you must add them to IBM
Spectrum Control. You can add the following
resources for monitoring:
v Storage systems
v Switches
v Fabrics
v Servers
v Hypervisors
Deploying Storage You can deploy Storage Resource agents on For more information about Storage
Resource agents on servers that you want to monitor. Deploy Resource agents, see “Adding servers” on
servers (optional). agents if you want to complete the following page 91.
tasks:
For a list of the servers where you can
v Collect storage usage and trending
information about servers (scans) deploy Storage Resource agents, see IBM
v Collect database application information Spectrum Control interoperability matrix at
http://www.ibm.com/support/
v Discover the fabrics that are visible to a
docview.wss?uid=swg21386446 and go to the
server
Agents, Servers, and Browsers section.
v Enforce storage policies
v Collect zone information

2 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 2. Tasks for getting started with IBM Spectrum Control (continued)

Task Description Learn more

Collecting data about Determining the information that you want v “Adding resources” on page 75
resources. to gather about storage resources is critical to
v “Collecting data” on page 98
helping you implement a storage
management strategy. When you determine
the types of information you want to collect
about your resources, you can select the data
collection jobs that you want to run.
Probes Probes collect status, asset, and
capacity information about
resources.
Performance Monitors
Performance monitors collect
metrics that measure the
performance of storage systems and
switches.
Tip: Probes and performance monitors are
automatically scheduled when you add
resources for monitoring.
Configuring how In the web-based GUI, enable alert
Configuring alert notifications
alerts are received. notifications. Alerts can define notification
actions that send email, generate Simple
Network Management Protocol (SNMP)
traps, or generate IBM Tivoli
Netcool/OMNIbus events. To receive these
types of alert notifications, you must
configure IBM Spectrum Control to direct the
notifications to a specific email address,
SNMP destination, or Tivoli
Netcool/OMNIbus server.
Specifying the alerts Determining when and how you are alerted v “Defining alerts” on page 113
that are generated to conditions or violations within your
v “Viewing and modifying alert notification
when a problem is storage environment is important to helping
settings” on page 124
detected on monitored you maintain and administer storage
storage. resources. Alerts are triggered by conditions v “Viewing all alerts” on page 127
that are detected during data collection and v “Triggering conditions for alerts” on page
event processing. 252

To set up and manage alerts, complete the

following tasks:
v For each resource that you want to
monitor for issues, specify the conditions
and performance thresholds that can
trigger alerts.
v Determine how you want to be notified
when alerts are triggered.
v View, acknowledge, and remove alerts that
are detected. For alerts that are triggered
by performance threshold violations, you
can view a chart of the historical
performance of the resource that violated a
threshold.

Chapter 1. Getting started 3

Table 2. Tasks for getting started with IBM Spectrum Control (continued)

Task Description Learn more

Configuring data Specify how long to retain the data that is
Configuring history and data retention
retention (optional). collected about resources and the log files
that are generated by IBM Spectrum Control.
By specifying the number of weeks for
history retention, you can control the amount
of data that is retained and available for
historical analysis and charting. The longer
that you retain data, the more informative
your analysis, but the more storage space
that is required to store that data. Default
retention settings are provided.
Configuring Determine the authentication mechanism and
Authorizing users
authentication and authorization level for users. The
user access. authentication mechanism determines the
user groups to which you can assign roles.
Roles determine the IBM Spectrum Control
functions that are available to the users in a
group. In the web-based GUI, you can assign
the following roles to groups of users:
v Administrator
v Monitor
v External Application

Managing resources
Learn about the key tasks for getting started with monitoring and managing
storage resources.

After installing IBM Spectrum Control and adding resources for monitoring,
complete the following tasks to manage your storage environment.
Table 3. Tasks for monitoring and managing resources

Task Description Learn more

Monitoring the Collect and view key performance metrics v “Monitoring the performance of resources”
performance of about resources and specify alerts to be on page 149
resources. notified of threshold violations. Use metrics
to measure, identify, and troubleshoot v Reporting in IBM Spectrum Control
performance issues and bottlenecks in your
storage. Threshold violations alert you when
the performance of a monitored resource
falls outside of a specified range.

4 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 3. Tasks for monitoring and managing resources (continued)

Task Description Learn more

Monitoring the View detailed information about the capacity v “Viewing information about resources” on
capacity of resources. of monitored resources in the web-based page 130
GUI. You can view capacity information for
storage systems, servers, hypervisors and v Reporting in IBM Spectrum Control
their internal resources, such as volumes,
pools, disks, and virtual machines. For v Click the Help icon in the web-based
example, you can view the total amount of GUI to view descriptions of the capacity
storage space that is committed to a volume, information that is displayed for resources.
the amount of allocated space that is used by
a volume, and the amount of space that is
allocated to a volume and is not yet used.

You can also use the optional Cognos

Business Intelligence reporting tool to view
and create capacity reports about multiple
resources.

Use the information that is collected about

storage capacity to help with the capacity
planning of the storage within your
organization.
Monitoring the status Monitor the status and condition of resources v “How the condition of a resource is
of resources. to identify potential problem areas in a determined” on page 141
storage environment. On the dashboard in
v Viewing the overall status of a storage
the IBM Spectrum Control GUI, you can
environment
view a high-level summary of the statuses
for each type of resource. From the v Viewing the status of individual resources
dashboard, you can drill down to view the v Viewing the status of internal resources
individual status for each monitored
resource.
Viewing the In the web-based GUI, you can generate a v Viewing data paths
relationships between graphical or tabular representation of the
resources. relationships between host connections, v Viewing relationship reports in the
servers, hypervisors, virtual machines, Cognos BI reporting tool
storage systems, and the fabrics through
which they are connected. View data paths
to monitor status and pinpoint problem areas
in the path of monitored storage throughout
your environment.

You can also use the optional Cognos BI

reporting tool to view reports about the
relationships between resources. For
example, you can view a report about the
end-to-end relationship of all the servers in
your environment to back-end storage.

Chapter 1. Getting started 5

Table 3. Tasks for monitoring and managing resources (continued)

Task Description Learn more

Monitoring and Storage resources can be grouped together to v “Creating applications” on page 171
managing applications represent data modeling concepts such as
v “Adding subcomponents” on page 175
and departments. applications, subcomponents (member
applications), departments and v “Adding applications to departments” on
subdepartments to create a business page 182
hierarchy. The monitoring and management v “Using filters to assign resources to
of applications and departments enables you applications” on page 172
to perform capacity trending, health v “Removing resources from applications”
monitoring, and performance on page 177
troubleshooting for the storage resources in
your environment. v “Viewing information about applications”
on page 176
In IBM Spectrum Control, you can create v “Creating departments” on page 180
applications and departments, add v “Adding and creating subdepartments” on
applications and departments, use a filtering page 181
criteria to add resources to the applications,
remove related resources from within the v “Viewing information about departments”
context pf applications, remove applications on page 182
and departments, view key properties and
view detailed storage information for
applications and departments.
Identifying hot spots IBM Spectrum Control collects detailed v “Redistributing volume workloads to
of high utilization. information about storage system pools, balance pools” on page 60
including utilization values. The utilization
v “Analyzing and re-tiering volumes in
value is an estimate of the average daily
pools on tier 1” on page 61
utilization of the physical resources such as
controllers, disks, ports, and nodes that are v “Collocating volumes” on page 63
associated with the pool.

By scanning the utilization values for pools

on a storage virtualizer, such as SAN Volume
Controller, you can identify the hot spots or
the pools that have high utilization values on
the storage virtualizer. You can also
determine the course of action that you take.
Setting up self-service Storage provisioning is the process of “Provisioning storage” on page 42
provisioning. assigning storage to optimize the
performance of a storage environment. To
provision storage with IBM Spectrum
Control, create service classes and capacity
pools to classify and separate storage
resources. After configuration, use the
web-based GUI, vSphere Web Client
extension, or other tool with those service
classes and capacity pools to provision
storage.

In the web-based GUI, you are guided

through the steps for provisioning volumes
or shares. IBM Spectrum Control then
recommends storage placement that is based
on storage system free space and
performance data. If you agree with the
recommendation, IBM Spectrum Control can
implement the provisioning.

6 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 3. Tasks for monitoring and managing resources (continued)

Task Description Learn more

Provisioning storage If you maintain virtual storage in a VMware v “Provisioning storage with the vSphere
in a virtual storage vSphere environment, you can use the Web Client extension” on page 216
environment. vSphere Web Client extension for IBM
v “Limiting a set of storage to provision in
Spectrum Control to complete provisioning
the vSphere Web Client extension” on
tasks and to view information about storage
page 71
resources in the vSphere Web Client. The
client includes details about performance and
asset, copy services, and fabric information.
Running reports and Use reports to view detailed information
setting up report about the condition, capacity, and v Reporting in IBM Spectrum Control
scheduling and performance of resources. IBM Spectrum
v Reporting in a vSphere environment
delivery. Control provides multiple user interfaces for
running reports.
Cognos BI reporting tool (optional)
You can use the optional Cognos BI
reporting tool to run, schedule, and
deliver predefined and custom
reports. These reports include
information about storage capacity,
assets, and performance of storage
systems, switches, fabrics, servers,
hypervisors, and their internal
resources.
vSphere Web Client
Use the vSphere Web Client
extension to view reports about
virtual environments and storage
resources. You can view reports that
are customized to use information
from IBM Spectrum Control. The
reports include fabric connections,
storage mapping information, and
performance metrics for storage
systems.

Related concepts:
Chapter 5, “Managing resources,” on page 75
Use IBM Spectrum Control to monitor and manage the resources and storage
infrastructure in an enterprise environment. In the GUI, you can view the
condition, capacity, performance, and relationships of storage resources.

Configuring and administering

Learn about the key tasks for getting started with configuring and administering
IBM Spectrum Control and its related components.

Complete any of the following tasks to customize IBM Spectrum Control for your
environment and administer its components.

Chapter 1. Getting started 7

Table 4. Tasks for configuring and administering IBM Spectrum Control

Task Description Learn more

Configuring IBM Configure IBM Spectrum Control according v “Customizing lists of resources, tasks, and
Spectrum Control. to the standards within your organization, alerts” on page 233
including the following tasks:
v If the Cognos BI reporting tool is not
v Customizing lists of resources, tasks, and enabled, you must install Jazz for Service
alerts Management and IBM Tivoli Common
v Enabling reports in the optional Cognos Reporting. For more information, see
Business Intelligence reporting tool
Install Jazz for Service Management
v Configuring how alerts are received and Tivoli Common Reporting.
v Configuring data retention
v Configuring the vSphere Web Client
v Configuring authentication and user access extension for IBM Spectrum Control
v In the vSphere client, you can configure
the vSphere client and VASA provider v Configuring the VASA provider
Administering DB2 After IBM Spectrum Control is installed and
and IBM Spectrum configured, complete the following v Administering resources and data
Control. administering tasks as needed: sources
v Administering resources and data sources v Starting and stopping the IBM
v Starting and stopping IBM Spectrum Spectrum Control servers
Control servers
v Checking IBM Spectrum Control status
v Checking the status of IBM Spectrum
Control components v Packaging log files for IBM Software
v Packaging log files for IBM Software Support
Support
v Changing passwords
v Changing passwords for IBM Spectrum
Control components v Administering DB2
v Administering DB2 and backing up the
database repository

Navigation
The IBM Spectrum Control GUI provides many of the functions for managing a
storage environment. To access the functions in this GUI, use the menu bar at the
top of the main window.

GUI element Description

Page banner Use the banner at the top of every page in the GUI to
complete the following tasks:
v View the name of the product license that is active.
v Access resource pages and main product functions
from the menu bar.
v View the ID and role of the user who is logged in to
the GUI. The role of a user determines the product
functions that are available to that user. For more
information about roles, see “Role-based
authorization” on page 52.
v Access the online help to view information about the
currently displayed page and the overall product.

8 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

GUI element Description
Home
Dashboard
Use the dashboard to view the overall status of
monitored resources and identify potential
problem areas in a storage environment. You
can learn about:
v Condition and usage of resources
v Entities that consume storage on those
resources
v Number and status of unacknowledged alert
conditions that are detected on the monitored
resources
v Most active storage systems in your
environment.
Performance Monitors
Use performance monitors to collect information
about the performance of storage systems and
switches. This information includes key
performance metrics and notifications of
threshold violations.
Alerts Use alerts to be notified when certain
configuration, status, and performance
conditions are detected on monitored resources.
Tasks Manage the tasks that are created when you
complete the following actions:
v Assign storage to servers, hypervisors, or a
cluster.
v Place volumes on the tiers that match the
workload requirements of the volume.
v Move or convert volumes.
v Move volumes from overutilized pools to
pools that are less used.
System Management
View information about the overall condition of
IBM Spectrum Control. You can view
information about the servers on which the
product is installed. This information includes
component server and database status, certain
server alerts and database connection alerts,
server file-system capacity information, and
remote volume-performance information.

Chapter 1. Getting started 9

GUI element Description
Storage Add storage systems for monitoring and view asset,
status, and performance information about their internal
and related resources. You can also complete the
following actions to manage and administer storage
systems:
v Modify the schedules for data collection.
v View the data path of connected resources.
v Assign storage to servers, hypervisors, or a cluster.
v Place volumes on the tiers that match the workload
requirements of the volume.
v Move or convert volumes.
v Move volumes from overutilized pools to pools that
are less used.
v Add resources to a capacity pool.
v Open management GUIs.
v Update login credentials.
v Acknowledge conditions and statuses.
Servers Add servers and hypervisors for monitoring and view
asset and status information about their internal and
related resources. You can also complete the following
actions to manage and administer these resources:
v Deploy Storage Resource agents to servers for full
monitoring.
v Modify the schedules for data collection.
v View the data path of connected resources.
v Assign storage to servers, hypervisors, or a cluster.
v Modify and upgrade Storage Resource agents.
v Acknowledge conditions and statuses.
Network Add switches and fabrics for monitoring and view asset,
status, and performance information about their internal
and related resources. You can also complete the
following actions to manage and administer these
resources:
v Modify the schedules for data collection.
v View the data path of connected resources.
v Setting or modifying the zoning policy.
v Open the management GUI for a switch.
v Acknowledge conditions and statuses.

10 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 GUI element Description
Groups Add applications and departments to combine resources
that are grouped by applications and departments.
Applications and departments are used to monitor and
view status, capacity, and performance information, and
view details about their related resources. You can also
complete the following actions to manage and administer
applications and departments:
v Create applications and departments to model data for
storage resources, allowing for enhanced capacity
trending and performance troubleshooting.
v View the status of resources that make up the
applications and departments.
v Create resource filters to automatically add resources
to applications.
v Add resources directly to applications and add
applications to existing applications and departments.
v Add departments to existing departments.
v View subcomponent (member application) information
to support hierarchal levels of storage grouping.
v Remove applications and departments.
| Advanced Analytics Configure IBM Spectrum Control for provisioning,
| optimizing, and reclaiming storage. The GUI guides you
| through the steps for managing your storage such as
| creating service classes and capacity pools to provision
| storage and creating tiers to optimize storage placement.
| You can complete the following tasks:
| v Provision servers, hypervisors, or a cluster
| v Optimize storage by re-tiering volumes and balancing
| pools
| v Reclaim storage that is not being used
Cognos (optional)
Use the web-based GUI when you want to individually
view details about resources, for example when you
want to troubleshoot a resource.

You can also use the optional Cognos Business

Intelligence reporting tool to analyze multiple storage
systems, switches, servers, and hypervisors. For example,
you can compare performance metrics across multiple
storage systems. You can also view a report about the
aggregate volume load that is on a server or hypervisor.

Use the Cognos BI reporting tool to schedule reports to

run on different systems and with different options. You
can specify schedules and output formats for the reports,
and different ways to share the reports.

When you click a Cognos BI reporting option, a separate

browser tab is opened.

For information about how to get started with the

Cognos BI reporting tool, see http://www.ibm.com/
support/knowledgecenter/SS5R93_5.2.9/
com.ibm.spectrum.sc.doc/
fqz0_c_getting_started_reports.html.

Chapter 1. Getting started 11

GUI element Description
Settings Complete the following actions to customize IBM
Spectrum Control for your environment:
v Modify the authentication repository and assign IBM
Spectrum Control roles to user groups. Roles
determine the product functions that are available to
users.
v Specify how long to retain the data that is collected
about resources and the log files that are generated by
IBM Spectrum Control.
v Review the distribution of capacity in your storage
environment to determine whether you have sufficient
capacity to meet the demands of your tiered storage.

Keyboard navigation

Most of the features of the IBM Spectrum Control GUI are accessible by using the
keyboard. For those features that are not accessible, equivalent function is available
by using the command-line interface (CLI), except as noted in the product release
notes.

You can use keys or key combinations to perform operations and initiate many
menu actions that can also be done through mouse actions. The following sections
describe the keys or key combinations for different parts of the GUI:
For navigating in the GUI and the context-sensitive help system:
v To navigate to the next link, button, or topic within a panel, press Tab.
v To move to the previous link, button, or topic within a panel, press
Shift+Tab.
v To select an object, when the object is in focus, press Enter.
For actions menus:
v To navigate to the grid header, press Tab.
v To reach the drop-down field, press the Left Arrow or Right Arrow key.
v To open the drop-down menu, press Enter.
v To select the menu items, press the Up Arrow or Down Arrow key.
v To start the action, press Enter.
For filters:
To specify a filter option and text:
1. Press Tab to navigate to the magnifying glass icon.
2. Press the Up Arrow or Down Arrow key to navigate the filtering list.
3. Press Enter to select a filtering option.
4. When a filtering option is selected, the cursor moves to the filter text
box. Type the filter text and press Enter. To reset a filter, press Enter.
For text fields:
v To navigate to text fields, press Tab.
v To navigate to the fields that are available for editing, press Tab.
v To navigate to the next field or to the Submit button, press Tab.
For tables or lists:

12 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

v To navigate between column headers, focus on a column header and use
the Left Arrow and Right Arrow keys to move to other column headers.
v To navigate between data cells, focus on a data cell and use the Left,
Right, Up, Down, Pageup, and Pagedown Arrow keys.
v To sort a column, focus on a column header and press Enter. The focus
remains on the column header after the sort occurs.
v To change the size of a column, focus on the column header, hold
Shift+Control, and press the Left or Right Arrow keys.
v To follow a link in a data cell, focus on a data cell and press Shift+F9.
v To open a menu for a table row, focus on the row and press Shift+F10.
v To select consecutive rows, select the first row and hold Shift, press the
Up or Down Arrow keys to go to the last row in the range, and press
the Space bar to add the new rows to the selection.
v To select non-consecutive rows, select a row and hold Control, press the
Up or Down Arrow keys, and press the Space bar to add the new row to
the selection.

Restriction: For Chinese languages, the keyboard combination

Control+Space bar is not enabled for selecting multiple rows at the same
time.

Chapter 1. Getting started 13

14 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
Chapter 2. Product licenses
Multiple product licenses are available for IBM Spectrum Control, formerly known
as IBM Tivoli Storage Productivity Center. Each license determines the features that
you can access from the IBM Spectrum Control GUI, command-line interface, and
the API. You can review the features that are included with each license and
determine which license meets your storage management needs.
IBM Spectrum Control Standard Edition and IBM Spectrum Control Standard
Select Edition
These licenses provide the following features:
v Single dashboard view of the storage environment, which enables you to
manage storage systems, hypervisors, servers, and networks
v Capacity and usage monitoring, as well as management and planning
for the heterogeneous storage environment
v Performance monitoring for storage systems and networks
v Health and alerting for storage systems, hypervisors, servers, and
networks
v Modeling of departments and applications to understand the consumer
view of the environment
v Administrative tools, such as:
– VMware vCenter plug-in, which enables you to manage and
provision virtual storage in a vSphere environment, and to view
reports about storage systems that are monitored by IBM Spectrum
Control
– Reports from IBM Cognos(R) Business Intelligence, which provides
reporting and analytics information
This license includes a license for IBM Copy Services Manager (formerly
known as IBM Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for Replication). Copy
Services Manager manages 2-site replication, 3-site replication, and
advanced copy services. You can learn more about how to download and
install Copy Services Manager at http://www.ibm.com/support/
knowledgecenter/SSESK4.
The IBM Spectrum Control Standard Edition license is priced by the
capacity of the storage systems that it manages.
The IBM Spectrum Control Standard Select Edition license is priced by the
number of storage enclosures that it manages.
IBM Spectrum Control Advanced Edition and IBM Spectrum Control Advanced
Select Edition
These licenses contain everything that is in the IBM Spectrum Control
Standard Edition license, and the following features:
v Analytics-driven, tiered-storage optimization that automatically moves
data to the most cost-effective tier
v Pool balancing
v Block storage provisioning
v Storage reclamation

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 15

 v Application-aware snapshot-based protection that is offered by IBM
Spectrum Protect™ Snapshot (formerly known as IBM FlashCopy®
Manager)
The IBM Spectrum Control Advanced Edition license is priced by the
capacity of the storage systems that it manages.
The IBM Spectrum Control Advanced Select Edition is priced by the
number of storage enclosures that it manages.

The IBM Tivoli Storage Productivity Center license is now IBM Spectrum Control
Standard Edition.

IBM Spectrum Control Advanced Edition is a new software-only product that

offers the same functions as the Storage Analytics Engine product that was part of
IBM Virtual Storage Center.

To view a complete list of devices that can be used with IBM Spectrum Control, go
to http://www.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg21386446. Click the
appropriate release under Storage.

Table 5 shows the IBM Spectrum Control licenses and their names from previous
releases.
Table 5. IBM Spectrum Control licenses and their previous names
Name of Tivoli Storage Name of Tivoli Storage
Name of IBM Spectrum Productivity Center Version Productivity Center Version
Control license 5.1 license 5.2.1 through 5.2.7 license
IBM Spectrum Control Tivoli Storage Productivity Tivoli Storage Productivity
Standard Edition Center Center
IBM Spectrum Control Tivoli Storage Productivity Tivoli Storage Productivity
Standard Select Edition Center Select Center Select
IBM Spectrum Control Tivoli Storage Productivity IBM SmartCloud Virtual
Advanced Edition Center Advanced or IBM Storage Center Storage
SmartCloud® Virtual Storage Analytics Engine
Center
IBM Spectrum Control Tivoli Storage Productivity IBM SmartCloud Virtual
Advanced Select Edition Center Advanced or IBM Storage Center Storage
SmartCloud Virtual Storage Analytics Engine
Center

Functions that are available based on role and license

Your IBM Spectrum Control role and product license determine the functions that
are available in the product.

Users who are assigned the Administrator role or the Monitor role can use product
functions. The functions that are available depend on the role that is assigned to
the user:
Administrator role
Users who are assigned the Administrator role have access to all
monitoring and administrative functions and are limited only by license
restrictions.
Monitor role
Users who are assigned the Monitor role can view information about
16 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
 monitored resources and other objects such as tasks, alerts, and service
classes. They can acknowledge alerts and resource statuses, open logs, and
open management GUIs. Users who are assigned the Monitor role do not
have access to administrative functions, with the following exceptions:
v They can assign storage pools to tiers.
v They can be granted permission in a service class to provision storage by
using the service class. If so, they can use the Provision Storage wizard
to create a provisioning task. Users can delete provisioning tasks that
they create. If the service class specifies that administrator approval is
not required, the users can run or schedule the provisioning tasks that
they create.

To use some functions, you must have the IBM Spectrum Control Advanced
Edition license. If you have the IBM Spectrum Control Standard Edition license or
the IBM Spectrum Control Standard Select Edition license, the following functions
are not available:
v Storage tier optimization. The Analyze Tiers wizard is not available.
v Pool balancing. The Balance Pools wizard is not available.
v Block storage provisioning. You are not able to provision volumes by using
either the Provision Storage wizard or the vSphere Web Client extension.
However, there are no license restrictions for file storage provisioning, therefore,
Network Attached Storage (NAS) file shares can be provisioned.

The following table outlines the functions available by role. Some functions are
restricted to the Administrator role. Functions that are restricted to the IBM
Spectrum Control Advanced Edition license are also shown. In addition to the
restrictions listed in this table, users who are assigned the Monitor role do not
have access to user management functions.
Table 6. Role and license restrictions
Functions that require
the IBM Spectrum
Resource or Control Advanced
object Functions available by role Edition
Performance Users who are assigned the Monitor or All functions are
monitors Administrator role can complete the following available, depending
monitoring actions: on role.
v View information about the switch or storage
system that is being monitored
v Open performance monitor logs
v Export performance monitor information to a file

Users who are assigned the Administrator role can

also complete the following administrative actions:
v Start or stop a performance monitor
v Schedule a performance monitor

Chapter 2. Product licenses 17

 Table 6. Role and license restrictions (continued)
Functions that require
the IBM Spectrum
Resource or Control Advanced
object Functions available by role Edition
Alerts Users who are assigned the Monitor or All functions are
Administrator role can complete the following available, depending
monitoring actions: on role.
v View information about alerts
v Remove alerts
v Acknowledge alerts
v Enable and disable alerts
v Export alert information to a file

Users who are assigned the Administrator role can

also define alert definitions and edit alert
notification settings.
Tasks Users who are assigned the Monitor or All functions are
Administrator role can complete the following available, depending
monitoring actions: on role.
v View information about tasks
v Open task logs
v Export task information to a file

If a user assigned the Monitor role has permission

to provision storage by using a service class, the
user can delete provisioning tasks that the user
creates. If the service class does not require
administrator approval, the user can also schedule
and run the provision tasks that the user creates.

Users who are assigned the Administrator role can

also complete the following administrative actions:
v Run tasks
v Schedule tasks
v Delete tasks
Storage Users who are assigned the Monitor or Optimize storage
systems Administrator role can complete the following tiering
monitoring actions:
v View information about storage systems
v Acknowledge storage system status
v Open the management GUI or element manager
for a storage system
v Export storage system information to a file

Users who are assigned the Administrator role can

also complete the following administrative actions:
v Add and remove storage systems
v Schedule data collection jobs
v Optimize storage tiering
v Add storage systems to capacity pools
v Administer connections

18 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 6. Role and license restrictions (continued)
Functions that require
the IBM Spectrum
Resource or Control Advanced
object Functions available by role Edition
Volumes Users who are assigned the Monitor or v Transform storage
Administrator role can complete the following volumes
monitoring actions:
v Optimize storage
v View information about volumes tiering
v Acknowledge volume status
v Export volume information to a file

Users who are assigned the Administrator role can

also complete the following administrative actions:
v Transform storage volumes
v Optimize storage tiering
Pools Users who are assigned the Monitor or v Balance pools
Administrator role can complete the following
v Optimize storage
monitoring actions:
tiering
v View information about pools
v Acknowledge pool status
v Export pool information to a file

Users who are assigned the Administrator role can

also complete the following administrative actions:
v Add pools to capacity pools
v Balance pools
v Optimize storage tiering
Shares Users who are assigned the Monitor or All functions are
Administrator role can complete the following available, depending
monitoring actions: on role.
v View information about shares
v Export pool information to a file
Servers Users who are assigned the Monitor or v Provision block
Administrator role can complete the following storage.
monitoring actions:
There are no license
v View information about servers restrictions for
v Acknowledge server status provisioning file
v View and collect logs storage.
v Export server information to a file v Optimize storage
tiering.
If a user assigned the Monitor role has permission
to provision storage by using a service class, the
user can provision storage to servers.

Users who are assigned the Administrator role can

also complete the following administrative actions:
v Add and remove servers
v Schedule data collection jobs
v Provision storage to servers
v Modify Storage Resource agents

Chapter 2. Product licenses 19

 Table 6. Role and license restrictions (continued)
Functions that require
the IBM Spectrum
Resource or Control Advanced
object Functions available by role Edition
Hypervisors Users who are assigned the Monitor or Provision block
Administrator role can complete the following storage.
monitoring actions:
There are no license
v View information about hypervisors
restrictions for
v Acknowledge hypervisor status provisioning file
v Export hypervisor information to a file storage.

If a user who is assigned the Monitor role has

permission to provision storage by using a service
class, the user can provision storage to hypervisors.

Users who are assigned the Administrator role can

also complete the following administrative actions:
v Add and remove hypervisors
v Schedule data collection jobs
v Provision storage to hypervisors
v Administer connections
Switches Users who are assigned the Monitor or Enable automatic
Administrator role can complete the following zoning
monitoring actions:
v View information about switches
v Acknowledge switch status
v Open the management GUI or element manager
for a switch
v Export switch information to a file

Users who are assigned the Administrator role can

also complete the following administrative actions:
v Add and remove switches
v Schedule data collection jobs
v Administer connections
v Enable automatic zoning

20 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 6. Role and license restrictions (continued)
Functions that require
the IBM Spectrum
Resource or Control Advanced
object Functions available by role Edition
Fabrics Users who are assigned the Monitor or Enable automatic
Administrator role can complete the following zoning
monitoring actions:
v View information about fabrics
v Acknowledge fabric status
v Export fabric information to a file

Users who are assigned the Administrator role can

also complete the following administrative actions:
v Add and remove fabrics
Note: For Cisco fabrics, you must remove
individual switches using the Switch panels.
When the last switch of a fabric is removed, the
fabric is removed.
v Schedule data collection jobs
v Administer connections
v Enable automatic zoning
Service Users who are assigned the Monitor or Create block-storage
classes Administrator role can complete the following service classes.
monitoring actions:
There are no license
v View information about service classes
restrictions for working
v Export service class information to a file with file-storage
service classes.
Users who are assigned the Administrator role can
also complete the following administrative actions:
v Create service classes
v Modify service classes
v Delete service classes
Capacity Users who are assigned the Monitor or All functions are
pools Administrator role can complete the following available, depending
monitoring actions: on role.
v View information about capacity pools
v Export capacity pool information to a file

Users who are assigned the Administrator role can

also complete the following administrative actions:
v Create capacity pools
v Modify capacity pools
v Delete capacity pools

Chapter 2. Product licenses 21

 Table 6. Role and license restrictions (continued)
Functions that require
the IBM Spectrum
Resource or Control Advanced
object Functions available by role Edition
Applications Users who are assigned the Monitor or All functions are
and Administrator role can complete the following available, depending
departments monitoring actions: on role.
v View information about applications and
subcomponents
v View information about departments and
subdepartments
v View related resources assigned to applications
and departments

Users who are assigned the Administrator role can

also complete the following administrative actions:
v Create applications and departments
v Create filters to add resources
v Modify filters to change resources
v Remove filters
v Add resources to applications directly
v Remove resources from applications
v Add applications as members of other
applications
v Create departments
v Add departments to other departments
v Add applications to departments

22 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Chapter 3. Product overview
IBM Spectrum Control provides a set of policy-driven automated tools for
managing storage capacity, availability, events, performance, and resources. It can
reduce the complexity of managing a storage environment by centralizing,
simplifying, and optimizing storage tasks that are associated with storage systems,
storage networks, performance troubleshooting, and capacity management.

Because it is policy-based, IBM Spectrum Control can detect potential problems

and automatically adjust storage and resources that are based on the policies and
actions that you define. For example, it can notify you when a server or storage
system is running out of disk space or warn you of impending storage hardware
failure. By alerting you to these and other issues that are related to your stored
data, you can use IBM Spectrum Control to prevent unnecessary system and
application downtime.

IBM Spectrum Control provides the following benefits and functions:

v Simplifies the management of storage infrastructures
v Manages, administers, and provisions SAN-attached storage
v Monitors and tracks performance of SAN-attached devices
v Monitors, manages, and controls (through zones) SAN fabric components
v Manages the capacity utilization and availability of file systems and databases

Architecture
The IBM Spectrum Control consists of several components that form the
infrastructure of its storage-management functions.
Data server
This component is the control point for product scheduling functions,
configuration, and event information. It also includes functions that
schedule data collection and discovery for the Device server.
Device server
This component discovers, gathers information from, analyzes performance
of, and controls storage subsystems and SAN fabrics. It coordinates
communication with and data collection from agents that scan SAN fabrics
and storage devices.
Web server
IBM Spectrum Control uses the WebSphere Application Server as the web
application server to host its GUI, storage management API for cloud, and
VMware vSphere web client extension.
Alert server
This component manages the complex event processing that is related to
alerting on the condition of resources and their attributes. The ability to
detect and be notified about configuration, capacity, and performance
changes within a storage environment is important to helping you
maintain and administer storage resources.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 23

 Jazz for Service Management and Tivoli Common Reporting (optional)
If you plan to use the optional Cognos Business Intelligence reporting tool,
you must install Jazz for Service Management and Tivoli Common
Reporting.
Tivoli Common Reporting includes Cognos BI reporting tool. You can use
this tool to create reports and view predefined reports to analyze multiple
storage systems, switches, servers, and hypervisors.
For large storage environments where one server is not sufficient to
manage all the IBM Spectrum Control components, you can install the
product on multiple servers. In this type of environment, Jazz for Service
Management and Tivoli Common Reporting can run on a separate server.
Database
A single database instance serves as the repository for all IBM Spectrum
Control components.
Agents
Storage Resource agent, CIM agents, and SNMP agents gather host,
application, storage system, and SAN fabric information and send that
information to the Data server or Device server.
GUI Use the IBM Spectrum Control web-based GUI to manage the storage
infrastructure in an enterprise environment.
CLI Use the command-line interface (CLI) to issue commands for key IBM
Spectrum Control functions.

Interfaces for IBM Spectrum Control

IBM Spectrum Control provides multiple user interfaces for managing the storage
infrastructure in an enterprise environment.
Web-based GUI
This interface runs in a web browser and includes the ability to monitor,
manage, and troubleshoot storage resources. You can also report on the
condition, capacity, and performance resources in the optional Cognos
Business Intelligence reporting tool. You can access this interface from
anywhere that you have a web browser and connectivity to a network.
Cognos BI reporting tool (optional)
This interface runs in a web browser. Use this interface to view predefined
reports and create custom reports about IBM Spectrum Control. You can
access the reports from the web-based GUI, and work with the reports in
the Cognos BI reporting tool. The Cognos BI reporting tool is included in
Tivoli Common Reporting. For more information about how to use the
Cognos BI reporting tool to view and create reports about IBM Spectrum
Control, see Reporting in IBM Spectrum Control.
Command-line interface
Use this interface to run IBM Spectrum Control commands from a
command prompt. For more information about CLI commands, see the
IBM Spectrum Control Command-Line Interface Reference.
Related concepts:
Chapter 5, “Managing resources,” on page 75
Use IBM Spectrum Control to monitor and manage the resources and storage
infrastructure in an enterprise environment. In the GUI, you can view the
condition, capacity, performance, and relationships of storage resources.

24 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Starting IBM Spectrum Control
You can start IBM Spectrum Control by opening a web browser and entering a
web address for the IBM Spectrum Control logon page. For example, you might
enter https://storage.example.com:9569/srm.

Before you start IBM Spectrum Control, ensure that you are using a supported web
browser. For a list of web browsers that you can use with IBM Spectrum Control,
see IBM Spectrum Control interoperability matrix at http://www.ibm.com/
support/docview.wss?uid=swg21386446. In the Agents, Servers and Browser column,
click the version of IBM Spectrum Control that is installed on your system. On the
next page, click Web Browsers to find the web browsers that you can use.

Start the IBM Spectrum Control GUI to administer and monitor the condition,
capacity, and relationships of the resources within your storage environment.
1. On a server running the Windows operating system, start IBM Spectrum
Control GUI. If you are not on a server running the Windows operating
system, start a web browser and enter the following address in the address
field:
https://host_name:port/srm

In the preceding address, specify the following values:

host_name
The IBM Spectrum Control server. You can specify the host name as an IP
address or a Domain Name System (DNS) name.
port
The port number for IBM Spectrum Control. The default port number for
connecting to IBM Spectrum Control by using the HTTPS protocol is 9569.
However, this port number might be different for your site. For example,
the port number might be different if the default port range was not
accepted during installation. If the default port number does not work, ask
your IBM Spectrum Control administrator for the correct port number.

Tip: If you have a non-default port, check the value of the

WC_defaulthost_secure property in TPC_installation_directory/web/conf/
portdef.props file.
2. From the IBM Spectrum Control logon page, type your user name and
password and click Log in. The IBM Spectrum Control GUI opens in the
browser.

Chapter 3. Product overview 25

Navigation
The IBM Spectrum Control GUI provides many of the functions for managing a
storage environment. To access the functions in this GUI, use the menu bar at the
top of the main window.

GUI element Description

Page banner Use the banner at the top of every page in the GUI to
complete the following tasks:
v View the name of the product license that is active.
v Access resource pages and main product functions
from the menu bar.
v View the ID and role of the user who is logged in to
the GUI. The role of a user determines the product
functions that are available to that user. For more
information about roles, see “Role-based
authorization” on page 52.
v Access the online help to view information about the
currently displayed page and the overall product.

26 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

GUI element Description
Home
Dashboard
Use the dashboard to view the overall status of
monitored resources and identify potential
problem areas in a storage environment. You
can learn about:
v Condition and usage of resources
v Entities that consume storage on those
resources
v Number and status of unacknowledged alert
conditions that are detected on the monitored
resources
v Most active storage systems in your
environment.
Performance Monitors
Use performance monitors to collect information
about the performance of storage systems and
switches. This information includes key
performance metrics and notifications of
threshold violations.
Alerts Use alerts to be notified when certain
configuration, status, and performance
conditions are detected on monitored resources.
Tasks Manage the tasks that are created when you
complete the following actions:
v Assign storage to servers, hypervisors, or a
cluster.
v Place volumes on the tiers that match the
workload requirements of the volume.
v Move or convert volumes.
v Move volumes from overutilized pools to
pools that are less used.
System Management
View information about the overall condition of
IBM Spectrum Control. You can view
information about the servers on which the
product is installed. This information includes
component server and database status, certain
server alerts and database connection alerts,
server file-system capacity information, and
remote volume-performance information.

Chapter 3. Product overview 27

GUI element Description
Storage Add storage systems for monitoring and view asset,
status, and performance information about their internal
and related resources. You can also complete the
following actions to manage and administer storage
systems:
v Modify the schedules for data collection.
v View the data path of connected resources.
v Assign storage to servers, hypervisors, or a cluster.
v Place volumes on the tiers that match the workload
requirements of the volume.
v Move or convert volumes.
v Move volumes from overutilized pools to pools that
are less used.
v Add resources to a capacity pool.
v Open management GUIs.
v Update login credentials.
v Acknowledge conditions and statuses.
Servers Add servers and hypervisors for monitoring and view
asset and status information about their internal and
related resources. You can also complete the following
actions to manage and administer these resources:
v Deploy Storage Resource agents to servers for full
monitoring.
v Modify the schedules for data collection.
v View the data path of connected resources.
v Assign storage to servers, hypervisors, or a cluster.
v Modify and upgrade Storage Resource agents.
v Acknowledge conditions and statuses.
Network Add switches and fabrics for monitoring and view asset,
status, and performance information about their internal
and related resources. You can also complete the
following actions to manage and administer these
resources:
v Modify the schedules for data collection.
v View the data path of connected resources.
v Setting or modifying the zoning policy.
v Open the management GUI for a switch.
v Acknowledge conditions and statuses.

28 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 GUI element Description
Groups Add applications and departments to combine resources
that are grouped by applications and departments.
Applications and departments are used to monitor and
view status, capacity, and performance information, and
view details about their related resources. You can also
complete the following actions to manage and administer
applications and departments:
v Create applications and departments to model data for
storage resources, allowing for enhanced capacity
trending and performance troubleshooting.
v View the status of resources that make up the
applications and departments.
v Create resource filters to automatically add resources
to applications.
v Add resources directly to applications and add
applications to existing applications and departments.
v Add departments to existing departments.
v View subcomponent (member application) information
to support hierarchal levels of storage grouping.
v Remove applications and departments.
| Advanced Analytics Configure IBM Spectrum Control for provisioning,
| optimizing, and reclaiming storage. The GUI guides you
| through the steps for managing your storage such as
| creating service classes and capacity pools to provision
| storage and creating tiers to optimize storage placement.
| You can complete the following tasks:
| v Provision servers, hypervisors, or a cluster
| v Optimize storage by re-tiering volumes and balancing
| pools
| v Reclaim storage that is not being used
Cognos (optional)
Use the web-based GUI when you want to individually
view details about resources, for example when you
want to troubleshoot a resource.

You can also use the optional Cognos Business

Intelligence reporting tool to analyze multiple storage
systems, switches, servers, and hypervisors. For example,
you can compare performance metrics across multiple
storage systems. You can also view a report about the
aggregate volume load that is on a server or hypervisor.

Use the Cognos BI reporting tool to schedule reports to

run on different systems and with different options. You
can specify schedules and output formats for the reports,
and different ways to share the reports.

When you click a Cognos BI reporting option, a separate

browser tab is opened.

For information about how to get started with the

Cognos BI reporting tool, see http://www.ibm.com/
support/knowledgecenter/SS5R93_5.2.9/
com.ibm.spectrum.sc.doc/
fqz0_c_getting_started_reports.html.

Chapter 3. Product overview 29

GUI element Description
Settings Complete the following actions to customize IBM
Spectrum Control for your environment:
v Modify the authentication repository and assign IBM
Spectrum Control roles to user groups. Roles
determine the product functions that are available to
users.
v Specify how long to retain the data that is collected
about resources and the log files that are generated by
IBM Spectrum Control.
v Review the distribution of capacity in your storage
environment to determine whether you have sufficient
capacity to meet the demands of your tiered storage.

Keyboard navigation

Most of the features of the IBM Spectrum Control GUI are accessible by using the
keyboard. For those features that are not accessible, equivalent function is available
by using the command-line interface (CLI), except as noted in the product release
notes.

You can use keys or key combinations to perform operations and initiate many
menu actions that can also be done through mouse actions. The following sections
describe the keys or key combinations for different parts of the GUI:
For navigating in the GUI and the context-sensitive help system:
v To navigate to the next link, button, or topic within a panel, press Tab.
v To move to the previous link, button, or topic within a panel, press
Shift+Tab.
v To select an object, when the object is in focus, press Enter.
For actions menus:
v To navigate to the grid header, press Tab.
v To reach the drop-down field, press the Left Arrow or Right Arrow key.
v To open the drop-down menu, press Enter.
v To select the menu items, press the Up Arrow or Down Arrow key.
v To start the action, press Enter.
For filters:
To specify a filter option and text:
1. Press Tab to navigate to the magnifying glass icon.
2. Press the Up Arrow or Down Arrow key to navigate the filtering list.
3. Press Enter to select a filtering option.
4. When a filtering option is selected, the cursor moves to the filter text
box. Type the filter text and press Enter. To reset a filter, press Enter.
For text fields:
v To navigate to text fields, press Tab.
v To navigate to the fields that are available for editing, press Tab.
v To navigate to the next field or to the Submit button, press Tab.
For tables or lists:

30 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 v To navigate between column headers, focus on a column header and use
the Left Arrow and Right Arrow keys to move to other column headers.
v To navigate between data cells, focus on a data cell and use the Left,
Right, Up, Down, Pageup, and Pagedown Arrow keys.
v To sort a column, focus on a column header and press Enter. The focus
remains on the column header after the sort occurs.
v To change the size of a column, focus on the column header, hold
Shift+Control, and press the Left or Right Arrow keys.
v To follow a link in a data cell, focus on a data cell and press Shift+F9.
v To open a menu for a table row, focus on the row and press Shift+F10.
v To select consecutive rows, select the first row and hold Shift, press the
Up or Down Arrow keys to go to the last row in the range, and press
the Space bar to add the new rows to the selection.
v To select non-consecutive rows, select a row and hold Control, press the
Up or Down Arrow keys, and press the Space bar to add the new row to
the selection.

Restriction: For Chinese languages, the keyboard combination

Control+Space bar is not enabled for selecting multiple rows at the same
time.

Replication products
Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for Replication and IBM Copy Services Manager,
which is built on existing replication technology, are the replication tools available
for use with IBM Spectrum Control.

Availability

Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for Replication is available under the following
conditions:
v In Tivoli Storage Productivity Center V5.2.7 and earlier, Tivoli Storage
Productivity Center for Replication is automatically available.
v In IBM Spectrum Control V5.2.8 and later, Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for
Replication is only available if you upgrade from Tivoli Storage Productivity
Center V5.2.7 or earlier.

IBM Copy Services Manager is available with every IBM Spectrum Control V5.2.8
or later license.

Information about Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for

Replication

Information about how to use Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for Replication is
available in the IBM Knowledge Center for Tivoli Storage Productivity Center
V5.2.7. Use the following links to view this information:
Table 7. Information about Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for Replication
Task Link to related information
Learn about Tivoli Storage
Product overview
Productivity Center for
Replication and its key
concepts

Chapter 3. Product overview 31

 Table 7. Information about Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for Replication (continued)
Task Link to related information
Plan for using the product.
Planning
Starting Tivoli Storage
Starting the GUI
Productivity Center for
Replication
View scenarios that illustrate
Scenarios
how replication can be used.
Manage replication
Managing replication
components, including setting
up the management servers,
adding storage connections and
paths, creating sessions and
copy sets, setting up data
replication, performing planned
maintenance, and recovering
from a disaster.
Use CLI commands to access
CLI commands
functions within the product.
View information about
Configuration files
configuration files
View explanations of messages
Messages
that might be generated when
you use the product
View product documentation
ftp://public.dhe.ibm.com/software/tivoli/tpc/v527/

Information about IBM Copy Services Manager

IBM Copy Services Manager provides automation for 2-site replication, 3-site
replication, and advanced copy services from a single point of control across
multiple platforms. To learn more about how to download and install it, see
IBM Copy Services Manager.

Key concepts
This section contains a technical overview that will help you understand how IBM
Spectrum Control works. An understanding of the concepts in this section will
help you use IBM Spectrum Control effectively.

Data collection
To help you implement a storage management strategy, it is critical that you
determine the information that you want to gather about the resources within your
environment. You can schedule different data collection jobs depending on the
types of information that you want to gather and the resources that you want to
monitor.

Use probes and performance monitors to collect detailed information about

resources. You must schedule and run these data collection jobs before you can
complete other tasks within IBM Spectrum Control, such as viewing reports,
setting alerts, viewing data paths, and managing storage systems.

32 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 You schedule probe and performance monitor jobs for a resource when you add
the resource for monitoring. After you add the resource, you can modify the probe
and performance monitor job schedules on the list and details pages for the
resource. For example, to modify the probe job schedule for a storage system, go to
the Storage Systems page or the Storage System details page in the web-based
GUI.

Schedule data collection jobs to gather the following types of information:

Asset and status information
Use probes to collect asset, storage statistics, and status information about
resources. You can run probes on all the resources that are monitored by
IBM Spectrum Control.
Performance monitoring
Use performance monitors to collect metrics that measure the performance
of switches and storage systems.

Performance monitoring and troubleshooting

IBM Spectrum Control can collect information about the performance of storage
systems and switches. This information includes key performance metrics and
notifications of threshold violations that can help you measure, identify, and
troubleshoot performance issues and bottlenecks in your storage.

To monitor the performance of resources and check for threshold violations,

complete the following tasks:
v Add resources for monitoring and schedule data collection
v Define performance thresholds
v View and troubleshoot performance issues

Collect performance data

Before you can troubleshoot and view reports about performance, you must collect
data about monitored resources. Performance monitors are data collection jobs that
gather performance information about resources. This information includes metrics
that measure the performance of the components within a resource. Metrics
measure the performance characteristics of volumes, ports, and disks on storage
systems and switches. IBM Spectrum Control provides many different metrics for
measuring performance. For example, some key metrics for storage systems are
I/O rate in I/O operations per second, data rate in MiB per second, and response
time in milliseconds.

You can use metrics in IBM Spectrum Control to track growth or change in I/O
rates, data rates, and response times. In many environments, I/O and data rates
grow over time, and response times increase as those rates increase. This
relationship can help with "capacity planning" for your storage. As rates and
response times increase, you can use these trends to project when more storage
performance and capacity is required.

Define performance thresholds

Performance thresholds alert you when the performance of a monitored resource
falls outside of a specified range and might represent a potential problem. When
you define a performance threshold for an internal component of a resource, select

Chapter 3. Product overview 33

 a specific metric that you want to measure and its boundary values. When the
performance of a resource falls outside the boundary values, a threshold violation
occurs.

For example, you can define a performance threshold that alerts you when the
overall back-end response time for a managed disk on a SAN Volume Controller
exceeds a certain value. The overall back-end response time is a metric that
measures the average number of milliseconds that it takes to service each I/O
operation on a managed disk.

View and troubleshoot performance issues

After data collection and performance thresholds are configured, you can use the
web-based GUI to complete the following tasks:
v Measure, compare, and troubleshoot the performance of switches, storage
systems, and their internal resources.
v Review the threshold violations and alerts that were triggered when the
performance of a resource fell outside of a specific range.
v View performance information in a chart or table format to help you quickly
identify where and when performance issues are occurring. The chart is a visual
representation of how the performance of resources trend over time.
v Customize views of performance so that you can analyze specific resources and
metrics during time ranges that you specify.
v Drill down into resources to view detailed information about the performance of
internal and related resources. For example, if a SAN Volume Controller storage
system is shown in the chart, you can quickly view and compare the
performance of its internal and related resources, such as disks, volumes, ports,
managed disks, and back-end storage.
v Implement server-centric monitoring of SAN resources without requiring a
Storage Resource agent. When you add an agentless server for monitoring, IBM
Spectrum Control automatically correlates that server with the ports on known
host connections. If matches are found between the server and host connections
on monitored storage systems, you can view the performance of the internal
resources that are directly associated with the SAN storage that is assigned to
the server. For example, if a SAN Volume Controller maps two volumes to the
server, you can view the performance of those volumes and the related managed
disks.
v Export performance information to a CSV file. A CSV file is a file that contains
comma-delimited values and can be viewed with a text editor or imported into a
spreadsheet application.
v In the optional Cognos Business Intelligence reporting tool, you can also view
and create performance reports about multiple resources.
Related concepts:
“Monitoring the performance of resources” on page 149
IBM Spectrum Control can collect information about the performance of storage
systems and switches. This information includes key performance metrics that can
help you measure, identify, and troubleshoot performance issues and bottlenecks in
your storage.
Related tasks:
“Adding resources” on page 75
You must add resources to IBM Spectrum Control before you can collect data,
generate reports, and manage storage that is related to those resources.
Related reference:

34 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 “Performance metrics” on page 283
IBM Spectrum Control can collect information about the performance of storage
systems and switches. This information includes metrics that measure the
performance of volumes, ports, and disks. You can view performance information
or specify alerts for when the performance of a resource falls outside a specified
range.
Related information:
Reporting
IBM Spectrum Control provides multiple user interfaces for viewing reports about
the storage infrastructure in an enterprise environment.

Applications and departments

IBM Spectrum Control provides storage grouping to define resources that utilize
application and department business modeling. The information can be used to
view the performance of resources that belong to an application and the capacity
growth of a department. The pages for the monitoring and management of
applications and departments are aligned with user scenarios. For example,
capacity trending, resource health monitoring and performance troubleshooting.

To manage and administer applications and departments, complete the following

tasks:
v Create applications and departments to model data for storage resources,
allowing for enhanced capacity trending and performance troubleshooting.
v View the status of resources that make up the applications and departments.
v Create resource filters to automatically add resources to applications.
v Add resources directly to applications
v Add applications to existing applications and departments.
v Add departments to existing departments.
v View subcomponent (member application) information to support hierarchal
levels of storage grouping.

Applications

An application is a program or a project that consumes storage resources within an

organization and interfaces with other enterprise groups that are important to the
running of a business. Use IBM Spectrum Control to model the storage usage that
is consumed in your environment by assigning the usage to applications to see the
overall health status.

An application can be part of a department and have its own subcomponents

(member applications) that are used to create a five level deep hierarchy.
Applications that are grouped together can range from large line of business
systems to specialized software, in a department, that runs on either client
computers or servers. For example, an application might be an automated billing
system within the Finance department, VMware running in the Information
Technology department or an email marketing system that is part of the Marketing
department.

The Applications page shows capacity information about the applications that are
monitored by organization and interfaces with other enterprise groups that are
important to the running of a business. Use IBM Spectrum Control to view and
manage the resources that are defined to the applications. If the application is
associated with a department, information about that department is also shown.

Chapter 3. Product overview 35

 Departments

A department is a division within a business. Use IBM Spectrum Control to model

the storage capacity that is consumed in your department for your business
environment, in accordance with other department members.

A department can be hierarchical in its organizational layout. For example, a

department might use 15 applications and be part of another five departments. A
department might share storage resources with another department,
subdepartment or an application even if they do not belong in the same hierarchy.
For example, in a collaboration scenario, a single IBM SAN Volume Controller
might be shared by multiple departments.

The Departments page shows storage capacity information about the top level
departments, the subdepartments and any applications that belong to the
department that are monitored by IBM Spectrum Control.

Storage optimization
Storage optimization tasks optimize the resources in your storage environment.
You can use the web-based GUI to create tasks to balance pools, re-tier volumes, or
transform volumes that are in storage virtualizer pools.

Balancing the workload of volumes across storage pools

Use the Balance Pools wizard to balance the workload of volumes across pools on
the same tier. The pools are analyzed and recommendations are generated to move
volumes from pools with high-activity values to pools with low-activity values.

Re-tiering volumes

Use the Analyze Tiering wizard to re-tier volumes to balance pools or to tier
volumes based on the criteria that you set in tiering policies. For example, you can
tier volumes that are based on the volume workload or on file usage, or both.
Depending on the conditions that are set in the tiering policy, recommendations are
generated. For example, you can reduce storage costs by moving volumes with low
workloads to lower or less expensive tiers. You can also improve performance and
use storage more efficiently by moving volumes with heavy workloads to the tiers
that best meet their workload requirements.

Transforming volumes

Use the Transform Storage wizard to complete the following tasks for one or more
volumes in storage virtualizer pools:
v Move volumes from one storage virtualizer pool to another pool in the same
storage virtualizer pool.
v Move volumes in a storage virtualizer pool to a pool that is enabled for Easy
Tier®.
v Convert fully allocated volumes to thin-provisioned volumes and convert
thin-provisioned volumes to fully allocated volumes.
v Convert fully allocated volumes to compressed volumes and convert compressed
volumes to fully allocated volumes.

36 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 The pools are analyzed and recommendations are generated. For example, analysis
occurs to ensure that there is sufficient space in the pool to convert volumes or add
volumes.
Related tasks:
“Optimizing storage pools” on page 222
Analyze the activity of pools and resolve performance hot spots by redistributing
volumes across each storage tier.
“Optimizing storage tiering” on page 219
To optimize the placement of volumes on storage tiers, analyze the tiering of
volumes in your storage environment.
“Managing tasks for tiering storage, balancing pools, and transforming storage” on
page 242
To optimize the resources in your storage environment, use tiering storage,
balancing pools, and transforming-storage tasks. Use the Tasks page in the
web-based GUI to manage all the tasks that are used by IBM Spectrum Control to
optimize storage. Use resource list and resource detail pages to manage the
optimization tasks for resource types and for specific resources.
Related reference:
“Criteria for identifying the pools that require balancing” on page 224
To identify the pools that require balancing, performance data is collected to
determine the relative activity of pools on the same tier. The performance
capability of pools is preserved by setting an activity limit for each tier of storage.

Cloud configuration
To take advantage of the simplified provisioning and optimization capabilities that
are available by using the web-based GUI, some configuration is required.

To provision storage, you are required to specify only the storage capacity and
storage quality that is required. After volumes are created, IBM Spectrum Control
can analyze and optimize volume performance. To take advantage of these
capabilities, create service classes and, optionally, capacity pools.

A tutorial of cloud configuration concepts is available in the web-based GUI. In the

menu bar, go to Advanced Analytics > Cloud Configuration, and click Learn the
Concepts.

Service classes
A service class is a set of properties that describe capabilities and characteristics of
storage resources. A service class typically describes a particular quality of service,
and is used during provisioning to describe storage requirements. For example, a
block-storage service class specifies properties such as a required RAID level, and
whether storage resources must be able to encrypt or thin provision volumes.

Service classes simplify provisioning requests by representing a level or type of

storage quality. When you are requesting storage, only the required capacity and
service class must be specified. Before you can provision storage, you must create
service classes that describe the capabilities and characteristics of the storage you
want to be able to provision. Service classes can later be modified or deleted as the
needs of your installation change.

Block-storage service classes

A block-storage service class describes attributes and capabilities of block storage

resources. When you provision volumes, you specify the requirements by using a

Chapter 3. Product overview 37

 block-storage service class. Based on the requirements of the service class, IBM
Spectrum Control identifies a storage pool for the volume.

File-storage service classes

A file-storage service class describes attributes of file storage resources. The file
storage resources include Network Attached Storage (NAS) filers, Network Shared
Disks (NSDs), and file systems. When you provision shares, you specify the
requirements by using a file-storage service class. Based on the requirements of the
service class, IBM Spectrum Control identifies a file system or IBM SONAS NSD
for the share. Space on an IBM SONAS NSD is allocated if a new file system is
required or an existing file system requires more space.

Service class properties

A service class represents storage resources with common traits. These common
traits are the service class properties, and collectively describe a particular quality
of service. Before you create service classes, consider the levels of storage quality
that you want to have available for provisioning requests. For block storage, for
example, you can organize service classes by storage tier or RAID level. Some
service class properties are used during provisioning to identify the best location
for storage placement. Other service class properties determine how the storage is
configured, and reflect the performance, reliability, or security considerations for
the level of service.

In addition to the standard properties of a service class, you can create your own
properties by using custom tags. Custom tags can represent any common trait that
storage systems must have. For more information about creating your own
properties by using custom tags, see “Custom tags” on page 40.

Block-storage service classes can specify the following properties:

v Storage tier or range of storage tiers
v RAID level
v Whether volume virtualization is required or not allowed. This property is
available only when at least one IBM storage virtualizer is managed by IBM
Spectrum Control. The IBM storage virtualizers include SAN Volume Controller,
Storwize V7000, and Storwize V7000 Unified.
If volume virtualization is required, the VDisk mirroring property specifies
whether volumes are mirrored to a second storage pool, which uses different
backend storage, on the same IBM storage virtualizer.
v Whether volumes must be thin provisioned or must not be thin provisioned.
When a thin-provisioned volume is created in a DS8000, an extent space efficient
(ESE) volume is created.
If thin provisioning is required, you can specify thin-provisioning configuration
properties for the IBM storage virtualizers and IBM XIV Storage System. The
following properties might be available:
– If the volume is created on an XIV, the locking behavior configuration
property affects the volume that is created.
– If the volume is created on an IBM storage virtualizer, the following
configuration properties affect the volume that is created:
- Allocated space
- Auto-expand
- Warning level

38 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 - Grain size
v Whether volumes are compressed. This property is applied only when an IBM
storage virtualizer has at least one I/O group that contains a compressed
volume. If there are no existing compressed volumes in an I/O group, IBM
Spectrum Control will not create compressed volumes.
This property is available only when the thin provisioning property is enabled.
v A multipathing policy. If a server has a Storage Resource agent (SRA) and uses
an IBM System Storage Multipath Subsystem Device Driver (SDD), the server
multipathing policy is used to configure the driver. If provisioning is initiated
from the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control, the VMware
vSphere multipathing policy is used to configure the multipath driver on the
hypervisor.
If a multipathing policy is set, and fabrics are managed by IBM Spectrum
Control, the following properties affect how the storage system is connected to
the host:
– Whether the storage system and the client host are connected through fully
redundant paths
– Number of paths between the storage system and the client host
v If at least one DS8000 Encryption Group is discovered by IBM Spectrum Control,
the following properties are available and affect the storage placement and
configuration of volumes:
– Whether volumes must be encrypted
– If volumes must be encrypted, the DS8000 encryption group to use

File-storage service classes have the following properties:

v Whether dedicated storage is required, or whether shared storage is allowed. In
other words, whether the file system from which the NAS share is provisioned
can contain other NAS shares.
v Fileset type. The fileset type is either an independent fileset with its own
allocated nodes, or a dependent fileset allocated on the file system.
v Access path host name replacement. For more information, see “Special
consideration for provisioning by using the VMware vSphere Web Client
extension” on page 41.

Predefined service classes

To illustrate service classes, a set of predefined service classes are provided. From
the Service Classes page in the web-based GUI, you can view any of these service
classes for more information. Select a service class and then select Actions > View
/ Modify. To display help information about a service class property, complete the
following steps:
1. Move the mouse pointer over the field or control.
A question mark icon is displayed next to the field.
2. Move the mouse pointer over the question mark icon to display an explanation
of the property.

The following sample block-storage service classes are provided for illustration.
Gold The Gold service class represents the highest-performing storage resources
for mission-critical applications.
Silver The Silver service class represents high-performing storage resources for
applications in production.

Chapter 3. Product overview 39

 Bronze
The Bronze service class represents standard storage resources for
non-mission-critical applications.

The following sample file-storage service classes are provided for illustration.
NormalIsolation
The NormalIsolation service class describes normal isolation file storage by
specifying that shared storage is allowed. The file system from which the
NAS share is provisioned can contain other NAS shares.
EnhancedIsolation
The EnhancedIsolation service class describes enhanced isolation file
storage by specifying that dedicated storage is required. The file system
from which the NAS share is provisioned cannot contain other NAS shares.

Custom tags

During provisioning, IBM Spectrum Control determines candidates for storage

placement by comparing the requirements of a service class with the known
capabilities, configuration, and performance of the available storage systems. You
can think of the storage placement determination as a filtering process. IBM
Spectrum Control filters the set of available storage resources against properties of
the service class until only the storage resources that can satisfy all of the
requirements remain.

In addition to the standard properties of a service class, you can create custom
requirements for the service class by specifying up to three custom tags. To
provide the service class, storage resources must have all the same tags that are
specified in the service class.

When you specify tags on a block-storage service class, only pools that have all the
same tags are candidates for provisioning. If a pool is not tagged, any tags on the
containing storage system also apply to the pool.

When you specify tags on a file-storage service class, only file systems and NSDs
that have all the same tags are candidates for provisioning. If a file system or NSD
is not tagged, any tags on the containing storage system also apply to the internal
resource.

During provisioning, IBM Spectrum Control filters candidates for provisioning

against the custom tags.

Before you create service classes, consider whether there are any special
requirements for provisioning that are not addressed by the standard properties of
the service class. If so, tag the appropriate storage resources to satisfy custom
requirements of a service class. When you are defining the service class, specify the
custom tags that are required.

Adding users to a service class

By default, only administrators can provision storage. However, an administrator

can add users to a service class to grant them permission to provision by using the
service class. In order for an administrator to grant permission to provision to a
user, the user must be assigned to the Monitor or External Application role.

40 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

When you are granting users permission to provision by using a particular service
class, you can also specify whether execution of provisioning plans created by
these users requires administrator approval. The requirement for administrator
approval applies to all non-administrative users who are added to the service class,
and also applies to external applications such as the vSphere Web Client extension.
Approval cannot be required for some non-administrative users and not for others.

Before you create service classes, consider whether you want to allow users to
request their own storage. Consider whether you want user provisioning requests
to require administrator approval.

Associating capacity pools with a service class

Before you create service classes, consider whether certain storage requests must
always be satisfied from a particular set of resources. If so, you can associate one
or more capacity pools with a service class. For example, suppose that a set of
storage resources are allocated to a particular department of your business. All
storage requests for that department must be satisfied by those storage resources.
In this case, you can add all the storage resources to a capacity pool and associate
that capacity pool with a service class. You can also add the members of the
department to the service class. The department members can then request their
own storage as needed. However, the requests can be satisfied only by the storage
resources that are allocated to the department.

When you are configuring capacity pools and service classes, keep in mind that a
storage resource can be a member of only one capacity pool. Adding storage
resources to a capacity pool is not a viable approach if the resources are already
members of another capacity pool. Consider specifying custom tags to achieve the
same result. In the preceding example, suppose that some or all of the storage
resources that are allocated to the department are already members of capacity
pools. In this case, you can instead tag the storage systems and the service class
with matching tags to achieve the same result. With either approach, only the
storage systems that are allocated to the department are candidates for
provisioning when storage is requested by using the service class.

Special consideration for provisioning by using the VMware vSphere

Web Client extension

When a file share is provisioned by the VMware vSphere Web Client extension, an
access path to the share is provided by IBM Spectrum Control. By default, the path
includes the cluster name of the file storage system in which the share is created. A
cluster name must be a valid host name that is registered with a Domain Name
System (DNS) server. If the cluster name is not valid, the share is not accessible
under the access path that is returned by IBM Spectrum Control.

To address this situation, you can set one of its custom tags for a file storage
system to specify an access path host name replacement. A file-storage service class
can specify which of the file storage system custom tags contains the access path
host name replacement.

If file shares are provisioned by using the VMware vSphere Web Client extension,
determine whether you must set access path host name replacements.

Capacity pools
Capacity pools are groups of storage resources. You can use capacity pools to
separate storage resources in any way that serves the needs of your environment

Chapter 3. Product overview 41

 or business. Configure capacity pools to track the used and available space for
block and file storage on any set of storage resources. Provisioning requests can
also be restricted to resources in a capacity pool.

The following types of storage resources can be grouped into capacity pools:
v Storage systems
v Storage pools
v File systems of file storage systems
v IBM SONAS Network Shared Disks (NSDs)

You can organize storage resources into capacity pools in any way that serves your
business needs. For example, you can separate the storage resources that are
allocated for separate divisions of your business into separate capacity pools. You
can then track the storage use for each division separately, and restrict provisioning
requests to the appropriate set of storage resources.

Tracking used and available space in a capacity pool

You can track the used and available space for any set of storage resources by
adding the storage resources to a capacity pool. From the Capacity Pools pane of
the web-based GUI, you can view the total capacity of the resources, and monitor
the following capacity measurements:
v Used file space
v Available file space
v Used block space
v Available block space

Restricting a provisioning request to a capacity pool

You can use capacity pools to define a set of storage resources from which
provisioning requests must be satisfied. When you are requesting storage by using
the Provision Storage wizard or the vSphere Web Client extension, you can specify
a capacity pool. If you do, the provisioning request is restricted to resources in the
capacity pool. Only those resources are candidates for provisioning.

You can also associate a service class with capacity pools. If a service class is
associated with capacity pools, provisioning requests for the service class must
specify, and be constrained to, one of the associated capacity pools. Because you
can also grant non-administrative users permission to provision storage by using
the service class, associating capacity pools with the service class restricts the users
to a specific set of resources.

Provisioning storage
The Provision Storage wizard simplifies the steps for submitting provisioning
requests. When you use the Provision Storage wizard, you concern yourself only
with which service class is needed for the new volumes or shares, and how much
capacity you require.

Storage requirements

In the Provision Storage wizard, you specify your storage requirements by

specifying a service class. Certain properties of the service class describe
capabilities that storage resources must have in order to provide the service class.

42 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

For example, when you provision volumes, a block-storage service class specifies
properties such as a storage tier, a RAID level, and whether the pool must be able
to encrypt or thin provision volumes.

A service class typically represents a quality or service. For example, IBM

Spectrum Control provides predefined block-storage service classes named Gold,
Silver, and Bronze. Gold represents the highest-performing storage resources, and
Silver and Bronze represent lesser levels of storage quality.

The different levels of storage quality that are provided by each service class are
defined by the service class properties. For example, each service class specifies a
different required storage tier that depends on the level of service that is required.
Because the Gold service class is for mission critical applications, it sets thin
provisioning off.

When you use the Provision Storage wizard, you concern yourself only with which
service class is required. If you are unfamiliar with the service classes, however,
you can open a separate window to view service class information. If you have
Administrator privileges, you can modify or create service classes.

Storage constraints

IBM Spectrum Control identifies the storage resources that can provide the
capacity and the service class from a set of storage resources. This set might be all
the storage resources that are known to IBM Spectrum Control, or it might be
constrained to a subset of those resources. In particular, your site can create
capacity pools. Capacity pools are groups of storage resources. You can use capacity
pools to separate storage resources in any way that serves the needs of your
environment or business. For example, a capacity pool might contain the storage
resources that are allocated to a particular department or division of your business.

A service class might restrict storage placement to one or more capacity pools. If
the service class you are provisioning from restricts placement, you must select one
of the allowed capacity pools. If the service class does not restrict storage
placement, you can specify that candidates for provisioning can be selected from
all storage resources that are known to IBM Spectrum Control, all storage resources
in any capacity pool, or storage resources in a particular capacity pool. If you are
unfamiliar with the capacity pools that you can select when you are using the
Provision Storage wizard, you can open a separate window to view capacity pool
information. If you have Administrator privileges, you can modify or create
capacity pools.

If the fabrics are managed by IBM Spectrum Control, the set of storage resources
might be further constrained by your zoning policy. If the zoning policy is not
configured to automatic zoning, only storage systems with connectivity to the
server or hypervisor are candidates for storage placement.

Provisioning volumes

Restriction: To provision volumes, you must have the IBM Spectrum Control
Advanced Edition license.

To provision volumes, you select one or more servers or hypervisors and start the
Provision Storage wizard. You can request one or more volumes. For each volume,
you specify a volume name, the capacity that is required, a service class, and,
optionally, a capacity pool. For each volume, IBM Spectrum Control identifies the

Chapter 3. Product overview 43

 storage pools that can provide the capacity and the service class. From the set of
pools that can provide the capacity and service class, IBM Spectrum Control
identifies the best location for the storage. The best location for the storage is based
on the unallocated volume space in the pool and performance data. Preference is
first given to storage pools and systems that already contain volumes for the
selected server or hypervisor. Preference is then given to systems that have
available performance data.

On storage systems, volumes are allocated in increments of a set unit size that
depends on the storage system type. Depending on the storage system that was
identified as the best location for the storage, the volumes that are allocated might
be larger than the capacity you requested for the following reasons:
v On SAN Volume Controller, Storwize V7000, and Storwize V7000 Unified,
volumes are allocated in increments of an extent size. The extent size is set when
the MDisk group is created. The capacity that you requested is rounded up, if
necessary, to the full extent size.
v On a DS8000, volumes are allocated in increments of a 1 GiB fixed extent size.
The capacity that you requested is rounded up, if necessary, to the full extent
size.
v On an XIV, volumes are allocated in fixed increments of 16 GiB. The capacity
that you requested is rounded up, if necessary, to complete the 16 GiB
increment.

Provisioning shares

To provision a share, you select one or more servers or hypervisors and start the
Provision Storage wizard. You specify the capacity that is required for the share, a
service class, and information about how to export the share. IBM Spectrum
Control identifies the file systems and Network Shared Disks (NSDs) that can
provide the capacity and the service class. From the set of file systems and NSDs
that can provide the capacity and service class, IBM Spectrum Control identifies
the best location for the storage. The best location for the storage is based on the
available space on the file system or NSD.

The provisioning task

When you complete the steps of the Provision Storage wizard, IBM Spectrum
Control creates a provisioning task for the share or volume. If you request multiple
volumes, a separate task is created for each unique service class and capacity pool
combination you specify in your volumes request. If a requested volume is not
constrained to a capacity pool, the set of all available storage resources is
considered the capacity pool. If you have Administrator privileges, you can save,
run, or schedule provisioning tasks.

In the service class, an administrator can grant users permission to provision by

using the service class. In the service class, an administrator can also specify
whether scheduling or running provisioning tasks that are created by using the
service class requires administrator approval. If you are a user with permission to
provision by using the service class, and administrator approval is not required,
you can save, run, or schedule the task. If administrator approval is required, you
can only save the task. If you save the task, an administrator can later schedule or
run it.

Although IBM Spectrum Control identifies the best location for storage when it
creates the provisioning task, the implementation of the task might fail. For

44 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

example, the implementation of the task might fail because of changes in the
environment that occur after the task is created and before it is run. The
implementation of the task might also fail because of storage system restrictions
that are not considered when the task is created.

Viewing task details and logs

When a provisioning task is running, you can view its status in a details page. If
you run the provisioning task immediately after you complete the steps of the
Provision Storage wizard, the details page is already displayed. You can also
display details of a provisioning task from the Tasks page. From the details page,
you can open logs for the provisioning task. The logs show the steps that are taken
by the task during processing and include detailed information about any
warnings or errors.

Tracking

In the Provision Storage wizard, you can specify a ticket identifier for tracking
purposes. The ticker identifier is associated with the provisioning task, and with
any volume or share that is created by the provisioning task.

The ticket identifier can be viewed by showing the Ticket column in the Volumes
page or the Shares page. The ticket identifier can also be viewed in the properties
notebook for a volume or share.

Tip: If you request multiple volumes, a separate provisioning task is created for
each unique service class and capacity pool combination you specify in your
volumes request. By specifying a ticket identifier when you request the volumes,
you can easily track the set of provisioning tasks and volumes that are created by
the single request.

Storage configuration

Whether you are provisioning volumes or shares, IBM Spectrum Control configures
the storage and resources as specified by certain properties of the service class,
and, in the case of volumes, according to your zoning policy.

When you provision volumes, IBM Spectrum Control configures volumes and
resources according to properties of the service class:
v If the service class requires thin provisioning, the volume is created in a pool
that can thin provision volumes. During provisioning, other properties of the
service class are used to configure the thin provisioned volume for the particular
type of storage system that contains the pool. Because you configure thin
provisioned volumes differently for the different storage system types, the
service class has a unique set of thin provisioning properties for each type.
v If the service class specifies a multipathing policy for servers, the IBM System
Storage Multipath Subsystem Device Driver (SDD) on the server is configured to
use that policy. For the SDD to be configured, a Storage Resource agent (SRA)
must be running on the server. If a VMware vSphere multipathing policy is
specified for hypervisors, the policy is configured only if provisioning is initiated
from the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control.

When you are provisioning volumes, if automatic zoning is enabled, new zones
might be created to connect a server to the storage system. Existing zones are used

Chapter 3. Product overview 45

 if the server already has connectivity to the storage system. Otherwise, one or
more new zones are created between a host initiator port and a controller, node, or
module port.

When you provision shares, IBM Spectrum Control configures at least one file
access protocol for the file share.

Storage reclamation
You can use volume reclamation recommendations to reclaim unused storage
capacity in your environment and use your storage more efficiently.

The block storage systems in your data center that you add for monitoring are
regularly analyzed. You can view a list of the volumes that are allocated space but
are not used for storing data. By reclaiming the volumes, you can recycle existing
storage space instead of purchasing new storage media.

The following figure shows an overview of storage reclamation:

Reclamation recommendations which are based on capacity data are available after
a device probe, while recommendations which are based on performance data are

46 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 available after the specified analysis period. By default, capacity data for one day
and performance metrics about the I/O activity for 14 days are collected. Volumes
are identified as reclaimable if, for example, they have no I/O activity over the
previous 14 days or if they are not assigned to servers.

For a more thorough analysis, you can change the number of days for which
performance metrics are collected. If you shorten the analysis period, less data is
used to determine I/O activity. When you extend or shorten the analysis period, it
is also changed for other optimization features such as tiering and balancing.

To identify volumes that can be reclaimed, you enable performance monitoring for
the block storage systems. Only block storage systems that support performance
monitoring can be analyzed for I/O activity.

Restriction: Volumes are identifiable as reclaimable in IBM Spectrum Accelerate

storage systems based on I/O activity. Information about the assignment of
volumes to servers is not available.

Supported storage systems: Go to IBM Spectrum Control interoperability matrix,

and then click the release number in the Storage column.

IBM Spectrum Control VASA provider

IBM Spectrum Control VASA provider enables the IBM Spectrum Control
administrator to bring visibility of IBM Spectrum Control managed storage
resources to a vCenter server administrator.

About vSphere API for Storage Awareness APIs Providers

(VASA)

VASA enables coordination between VMware vCenter and storage arrays. It is

designed to provide built-in storage insight to support VM storage provisioning,
assist with storage troubleshooting and enable new DRS-related use cases for
storage.

VASA benefits

For VMware vSphere users, the IBM Spectrum Control VASA provider improves
the ability to monitor and automate storage-related operations in VMware
environments.

A IBM Spectrum Control storage administrator can share certain IBM Spectrum
Control alerts and storage capabilities for resources that are mapped to a vCenter
server.

The IBM Spectrum Control VASA provider provides the underlying connectivity
for alerts and information to be shared.

IBM Spectrum Control VASA provider architecture

This figure shows the IBM Spectrum Control VASA provider running on a IBM
Spectrum Control connected to both the VMware vCenter server and the managed
storage resources.

Chapter 3. Product overview 47

 A IBM Spectrum Control storage administrator can share certain IBM Spectrum
Control alerts for resources that are mapped to a vCenter server.

The IBM Spectrum Control VASA provider provides the underlying connectivity,
and is automatically deployed and running after a IBM Spectrum Control
installation. You must register a IBM Spectrum Control server to view its
information in vCenter storage reports and views.

vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control

With the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control, you can manage
virtual storage in a vSphere environment. You can use the vSphere Web Client
extension to complete provisioning tasks and to view information about storage
resources in the vSphere Web Client.

Provisioning storage in the vSphere Web Client extension

You can use the vSphere Web Client extension to provision storage capacity on
storage systems that are monitored by IBM Spectrum Control. You can provision
file and block storage and use the service classes and capacity pools that you
create in IBM Spectrum Control. Additionally, you can choose to create data stores
on your storage volumes.

Viewing storage reports in the vSphere Web Client extension

You can use the vSphere Web Client extension to view information about the
storage systems that are monitored by IBM Spectrum Control. You can view the
mapping of your virtual storage resources to storage systems that are monitored by
IBM Spectrum Control. You can view metrics for your storage systems. You can
also view information about the fabric that is connected to a storage adapter. From
the storage reports, you can click links to open the resources in the IBM Spectrum
Control GUI.

48 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 vSphere supported locales

The locales that are supported by the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM
Spectrum Control depend on the vSphere support. In vSphere 5.x, the following
locales are supported:
v English: en_US
v German: de_DE
v Japanese: ja_JP
v Simplified Chinese: zh_CN
v French: fr_FR
v Korean: ko_KR
When a locale does not have a translated version, the vSphere Web Client
extension is displayed in English, which is the default language.
Related concepts:
“Provisioning storage with the vSphere Web Client extension” on page 216
You can use the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control to
manage and monitor your virtual environment and storage devices.
Related information:
Reporting in the stand-alone GUI
Use reports to view detailed information about the storage resources in your
environment. These reports are organized into different types and categories and
provide both summary and detailed information depending on your needs.

Alerts
Determining when and how you are alerted to configuration and performance
conditions within your storage environment is important to helping you maintain
and administer storage resources. Many conditions can trigger alerts. You can set
up IBM Spectrum Control so that it examines the attributes, capacity, and
performance of a resource and notifies you when changes or violations are
detected.

Conditions that generate alerts are detected during data collection and event
processing. For some storage systems such as IBM Spectrum Accelerate and the
XIV, events are polled every minute from the resource

For other resources, events are subscription-based, where the resource itself or a
data source such as a CIM agent sends the events to IBM Spectrum Control when
conditions change on the resource. Examples of storage systems that use
subscription-based event processing include SAN Volume Controller, Storwize
V7000, Storwize V7000 Unified, FlashSystem V840, and FlashSystem V9000. For
these storage systems, a probe is automatically run when many events are received
from the storage system in a short time period. To avoid performance bottlenecks,
probes are run only every 20 minutes.

Triggering conditions for alerts

The conditions that trigger alert notifications depend on the type of resource that
you are monitoring. In general, the following types of conditions can trigger alerts:
v An attribute or configuration of a resource changed
v The capacity of a resource fell outside a specified range
v The performance of a resource fell outside a specified range

Chapter 3. Product overview 49

 v The storage infrastructure was changed, such as a new or removed resource
v Data is not being collected for a resource

For example, you can use performance thresholds to be notified when the total I/O
rate for storage systems falls outside a specified range. This information can help
you identify areas in your storage infrastructure that are over used or under used.
IBM Spectrum Control provides many metrics for measuring performance and
determining violations of the thresholds that you specify.

Alert notifications and triggered actions

When an event occurs and triggers an alert, the alert is written to a log. You can
also select one or more other ways to be notified of the event. These alert
notifications include SNMP traps, IBM Tivoli Netcool/OMNIbus events, login
notifications, entries in Windows event log or UNIX syslog, and emails.
Additionally, if a Storage Resource agent is deployed on a monitored server, you
can run a script or start an IBM Tivoli Storage Manager job in response to the alert.

Acknowledging alerts: Some alerts are triggered by conditions that commonly

occur and can be ignored. In such cases, you acknowledge these alerts to indicate
that they were reviewed and do not require immediate resolution. By
acknowledging alerts, you can more quickly identify other alerts that must be
reviewed and resolved.

Prerequisites for using alerts

The following conditions must be met to successfully use alerts:

v Data collection schedules are configured and scheduled to run regularly. For
example, to detect violations of performance thresholds, you must run
performance monitors to collect performance data about resources. Running
performance monitors regularly also helps to establish a history of performance
for trending analysis.
v If you want to be notified about an alert in some way other than an entry in the
log file, such as using SNMP traps, IBM Tivoli Netcool/OMNIbus events, or
email, you must configure those alert destinations before you use the alert.
v If an alert is triggered based on an SNMP trap from the monitored resource, you
must properly configure the SNMP server of the monitor resource to enable IBM
Spectrum Control to listen to SNMP traps. The default port number is 162, and
the default community is public.
Related concepts:
“Alerting and event processing” on page 111
Determining when and how you are alerted to configuration and performance
conditions within your storage environment is important to helping you maintain
and administer storage resources. Many conditions can trigger alerts. You can set
up IBM Spectrum Control so that it examines the attributes, capacity, and
performance of a resource and notifies you when changes or violations are
detected.
Related tasks:
“Acknowledging alerts” on page 129
Some alerts in IBM Spectrum Control are triggered by conditions that commonly
occur and can be ignored. In such cases, you acknowledge these alerts to indicate
that they were reviewed and do not require immediate resolution. By
acknowledging alerts, you can more quickly identify the other alerts in lists that
must still be reviewed and resolved.

50 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Reporting
Use reporting functions to view overview and detailed information about your
storage.

View detailed information about the capacity of monitored resources in the

web-based GUI. You can view capacity information for storage systems, servers,
hypervisors and their internal resources, such as volumes, pools, disks, and virtual
machines. For example, you can view the total amount of storage space that is
committed to a volume, the amount of allocated space that is used by a volume,
and the amount of space that is allocated to a volume and is not yet used.

You can also use the optional Cognos Business Intelligence reporting tool to view
predefined reports and create custom reports about the resources managed by IBM
Spectrum Control. You access reports from the IBM Spectrum Control GUI, and
work with the reports in the Cognos BI reporting tool. Tivoli Common Reporting
provides the Cognos BI tool for IBM Spectrum Control reports.

You can use the Cognos BI reporting tool to view over 70 predefined reports about
the capacity and performance of your resources in Tivoli Common Reporting.
Charts are automatically generated for most of the predefined reports. Depending
on the type of resource, the charts show statistics for space usage, workload
activity, bandwidth percentage, and other statistics.

You can schedule reports and specify to create the report output in HTML, PDF,
and other formats. You can also configure reports to save the report output to your
local file system, and to send reports as email attachments.

You must collect information about your environment before you can use reports
to view details about the storage resources in it. You can use monitoring jobs in
IBM Spectrum Control such as probes and performance monitors to gather
comprehensive information and statistics about your storage resources.

Units of measurement for storage data

IBM Spectrum Control uses decimal and binary units of measurement to express
the size of storage data.

Decimal units such as kilobyte (KB), megabyte (MB), and gigabyte (GB) are
commonly used to express the size of data. Binary units of measurement include
kibibyte (KiB), mebibyte (MiB), and gibibyte (GiB). Table 8 compares the names,
symbols, and values of decimal and binary units.
Table 8. Comparison of binary and decimal units and values
Binary Decimal
Value (base Value (base
Name Symbol 2) Name Symbol 10)
kibibyte KiB 210 kilobyte KB 103
mebibyte MiB 220 megabyte MB 106
gibibyte GiB 230 gigabyte GB 109
tebibyte TiB 240 terabyte TB 1012
pebibyte PiB 250 petabyte PB 1015
exbibyte EiB 260 exabyte EB 1018

Chapter 3. Product overview 51

 Binary units of measurement express the size of data more accurately. When you
compare the size of 100 KB to 100 KiB, the difference is relatively small, 2.35%.
However, this difference grows as the size of the data values increases. When you
compare the size of 100 TB to 100 TiB, the difference is 9.06%.

In general, IBM Spectrum Control uses base 2 values for memory and disk space
values, and base 10 values for space on physical hard drives.

Table 9 shows the percentage difference between decimal and binary values across
a range of data sizes.
Table 9. Percentage difference between decimal and binary units
Binary equivalent of
Decimal value decimal value Difference
100 kilobytes (KB) 97.65 kibibytes (KiB) 2.35%
100 megabytes (MB) 95.36 mebibytes (MiB) 4.64%
100 gigabytes (GB) 93.13 gibibytes (GiB) 6.87%
100 terabytes (TB) 90.94 tebibytes (TiB) 9.06%
100 petabytes (PB) 88.81 pebibytes (PiB) 11.19%
100 exabytes (EB) 86.73 exbibytes (EiB) 13.27%

Role-based authorization
Roles determine the functions that are available to users of IBM Spectrum Control.
When a user ID is authenticated to IBM Spectrum Control through the GUI, CLI,
or APIs, membership in an operating system or LDAP group determines the
authorization level of the user.

In Version 5.2, the roles that were previously defined in IBM Spectrum Control
were consolidated into a smaller set of roles. The following table shows how the
roles in versions earlier than 5.2 are mapped to the current set of roles:
Table 10. How roles in previous versions of IBM Spectrum Control are mapped to the roles
in version 5.2 and later
Roles in previous Roles in version 5.2 and
versions later Authorization level
Superuser Administrator This role has full access to all monitoring
and administrative functions. At least one
Productivity Center group must have the Administrator role.
administrator Note: When IBM Spectrum Control is
first installed, the following operating
Disk administrator system groups are assigned the
Administrator role:
Fabric administrator
v Windows: Administrators
Data administrator v UNIX and Linux: root
Tape administrator v AIX: system

52 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Table 10. How roles in previous versions of IBM Spectrum Control are mapped to the roles
in version 5.2 and later (continued)
Roles in previous Roles in version 5.2 and
versions later Authorization level
Disk operator Monitor This role has access to the following
read-only functions:
Fabric operator
v Viewing and exporting information
Data operator about monitored resources
v Viewing, acknowledging, and
Tape operator removing alerts
v Viewing tasks and data collection jobs
v Viewing data paths
v Opening management GUIs
v Opening logs
This role did not External Application This role enables users of other
exist in versions 5.1 applications to use the provisioning
or earlier. capability of IBM Spectrum Control to
provision storage. For example, a
VMware user with this role can provision
storage in the vSphere GUI by using the
vSphere Web Client extension for IBM
Spectrum Control.

If you assign the External Application

role to the user, you must also assign one
or more service classes to the user.

This role does not enable users to log in

to the IBM Spectrum Control GUI.

Tips:

v To determine the role of the user who is logged in, click the user icon in the
upper-right corner of any page in the GUI.
v If a user belongs to multiple groups and the groups have different roles, the role
with the highest level of authorization is granted to the user. For example, if a
user belongs to a group that is assigned the Administrator role and also belongs
to a group that is assigned a Monitor role, the user is granted the authorization
of the Administrator role.
v If a user is not a member of a group that is assigned a IBM Spectrum Control
role, no access is granted to that user.
v If you have been assigned the Monitor role, you can only open and view logs
from the Data Collection page for the selected resource.
v The IBM Spectrum Control installation program adds the administrator, external
application, and monitor roles to the IBM Spectrum Control installation user.

Fabrics and zones

Use the IBM Spectrum Control to learn more about fabrics and zones.

Monitoring fabrics and zones in the GUI

You can monitor switches and fabrics in the IBM Spectrum Control GUI. You can
also enable automatic zoning so that new zones are created during storage
provisioning, if necessary, to connect a server to a storage system.

Chapter 3. Product overview 53

 You can use the GUI to add switches and fabrics for monitoring. You can add the
following types of switches:
v Brocade
v Cisco
v Other switches
After switches and fabrics are probed, you can view detailed status and
performance information about the switches and fabrics. You can also test the
connection to the switch or fabric.

Information that you can view about a fabric includes the following properties:
v The fabric type
v The number of physical and virtual switches in the fabric
v The number of ports that are on all the switches in the fabric
v The number of switch ports that are online and connected to other ports in a
fabric
v The name of the principal switch of the fabric

Information that you can view about a switch includes the following properties:
v The number of ports on a switch
v The number of ports that are connected to a storage resource
v The name of the fabric where a switch is a member
v The name of the vendor or manufacturer for a switch

From the Details page of a fabric, you can open the Zone Sets page to view
information about the zone sets on the fabric, and to identify which is the active
zone set.

You can enable automatic zoning in the GUI. When automatic zoning is enabled,
IBM Spectrum Control creates new zones during provisioning if new zones are
needed to connect the storage system with the server. When you set the zoning
policy, you can specify whether zone changes from automatic zoning are made to
the active zone set, or to a new inactive active zone set.

Zones, zone aliases, and zone sets

Zones, zone aliases, and zone sets allow logical grouping of ports and storage
devices within a storage area network. This section describes zoning concepts and
elements.

In a storage area network a zone is a logical grouping of ports to form a virtual

private storage network. Zones that belong to a single SAN can be grouped into a
zone set, which can be activated or deactivated as a single entity across all switches
in the fabric. A zone set can contain one or more zones, and a zone can be a
member of more than one zone set. Using zoning, you can automatically or
dynamically arrange fabric-connected devices into logical groups across a physical
fabric.

Ports and devices in a zone are called zone members. A zone can contain one or
more zone members. Ports that are members of a zone can communicate with each
other, but they are isolated from ports in other zones. Devices, however, can belong
to more than one zone. A zone alias is a collection of zone members. A zone alias
can be added to one or more zones.

54 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Note: In some cases, inactive zones might not have any zone members. Activating
an inactive zone set that contains empty zones will fail if a switch does not
support empty zones in active zone definitions.

Zone membership can be specified by:

v The N_Port_Name of the N_Port connected to the switch (also known as WWN
zoning or port name zoning)
v The N_Port address identifier assigned during fabric login (also known as PortId
or FCID zoning)
v The Node_Name associated with the N_Port
v The Domain identification (Domain_ID) and physical port ID of the Switch Port
to which the N_Port is attached (also known as domain port zoning)
v An alias name

Zoning supports the use of aliases, which are meaningful names assigned to
devices. An alias can also be a group of devices that are managed together to make
zoning easier.

There are two types of zoning:

Hardware zoning (port zoning)
In hardware zoning (also called port zoning), the members of a zone are the
physical ports on a fabric switch.
Software zoning (WWN zoning)
Software zoning uses the Simple Name Server (SNS) that runs inside a
fabric switch. It is based on the node WWN or port WWN of the zone
members to be included. Software zoning lets you create symbolic names
for the zones and zone members.

A default zone is a group of devices that are not members of the active zone set.
These can communicate with each other but not with members of any other zone.
Default zoning is enabled by default. You can use a switch element manager to
configure the Default Zone option to enable or disable the default zone
independently of the active zone set.

Note:
1. If the default zone is disabled, devices that are not members of the active zone
set cannot communicate.
2. If the default zone is disabled and no zone set is active, no devices can
communicate.
3. If default zoning is enabled, deactivating the active zone set makes all devices
members of the default zone. If default zoning is disabled, all communication
stops.
4. If you activate one zone set while another zone set is active, the currently
active zone set is deactivated.
5. If your EFC Manager manages multiple fabrics, ensure that you have the
correct zone set for the fabric you are currently updating.

You can view zones in SANs using the topology viewer console. Fabric Manager
lets you view zone membership.

Note: Certain types of switches and the types of agents configured can affect the
zoning operations that you can perform.

Chapter 3. Product overview 55

 Switch zoning capabilities
When you select a fabric in which to perform zoning operations, Fabric Manager
determines the capabilities of the switches in the SAN and limits the zoning
operations based on that information.

To see a list of supported switches and their capabilities, default values, ranges,
and possible effects, go to http://www.ibm.com/support/
docview.wss?uid=swg27027300.

Zoning for Cisco MDS 9000 devices:

Cisco switches support virtual SANs (VSANs), which is the logical partitioning of
a fabric into multiple fabrics. The overall network is referred to as the physical
infrastructure, and the logical fabrics are the VSANs. Fabric Manager provides
basic zone discovery for the Cisco MDS 9000 series of devices using the FC-GS-3
protocol.

The following tasks are supported:

v Creating, deleting, and updating zones
v Creating, deleting, updating, activating, and deactivating zone sets

Fabric Manager supports these zone member types:

v N_Port WWN
v FC ID (the fibre channel ID of an N_port attached to the switch)
Unsupported zone and zone member types are displayed as non-standard on the
topology display. Fabric Manager does not allow zone management of zones and
zone sets that contain unsupported members.

Brocade switches in zones:

Brocade switches support some non-standard zones such as quick loop zones,
fabric assist zones, and protocol zones. If the switch configurations have these
zones already defined, Fabric Manager preserves them and does not modify them
in any way. If they are part of a zone set that is active at some time, the devices
that are part of such zones that are also online are displayed in the topology Zone
View.

You can create, change, and delete non-standard zones by using the Brocade switch
management application.

Note: IBM Spectrum Control allows you to add empty zones to an inactive zone
definition. Activation of a zone set containing empty zones may still fail if the
switch does not support empty zones in active zone definitions.

Agents
The IBM Spectrum Control uses agents to gather data: Common Information
Model (CIM) agents, Storage Resource agents, and SNMP agents.

Common Information Model agents

Common Information Model (CIM) agents enable communication between storage
devices, such as storage systems and fabric switches, and IBM Spectrum Control.
Each storage device that you want to manage must have a CIM agent either
installed or embedded unless it is a device that uses Native API connection.

56 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

CIM agents are provided by the vendor of the storage subsystem or fabric switch.
Each vendor provides unique agent code for their family of storage devices. This
code implements a Common Information Model Object Manager (CIMOM) that
conforms to the Storage Management Initiative Specification (SMI-S) of the Storage
Networking Industry Association (SNIA).

The CIM agent enables communication between the storage device and IBM
Spectrum Control. Commands and responses are transmitted between IBM
Spectrum Control and the CIM agent using an XML transport layer. The CIM agent
to storage device layer uses a vendor-specific proprietary interface.

The CIM agent usually must be installed and configured, so that it can identify the
storage devices with which it communicates. Some storage devices, such as fabric
switches, contain embedded CIM agents and so do not require that CIM agents be
installed. In these cases, IBM Spectrum Control must be configured to point
directly to the storage devices that contain the embedded CIM agents.

CIM agents can be referred to as SMI-S providers, CIM proxy agents, and CIMOM
agents. CIM agents can be embedded in the device or installed on a separate
computer.

Note:
v Do not install multiple CIM agents on a single computer because of port
conflicts.
v Do not install a CIM agent on the system where a IBM Spectrum Control server
component is installed.

Storage Resource agents

Use Storage Resource agents to collect information about storage resources such as
servers, virtual machines, workstations, and HBAs.

You must deploy Storage Resource agents on resources where you want to gather
the following information:
v Asset information
v File and file system attributes
v Network-attached storage (NAS) device information
v Topology information

Tip: You can also monitor servers without deploying a Storage Resource agent.
When you add an agentless server, IBM Spectrum Control correlates information
about that server with the known host connections on monitored resources. If a
match is made between the server and a monitored resource, you can view
topology information and the capacity and performance of the storage that is
assigned to that server. For more information about when to deploy a Storage
Resource agent or add an agentless server, see “Adding servers” on page 91.

SNMP agents
An SNMP agent, also called an out-of-band agent, is software that runs on a
switch. IBM Spectrum Control uses SNMP to retrieve information about the switch
and the fabric that the switch is a member of.

Be sure that your SNMP agents point to each switch in the Storage Area Network
(SAN) that you want to manage.

Chapter 3. Product overview 57

 SNMP agents are necessary for retrieving virtual storage area network (VSAN)
information for Cisco switches. For Brocade fabrics, if no SMI agent is configured
for the Brocade switches, SNMP agents are necessary for retrieving zoning
information for Brocade switches.

IBM Spectrum Control uses SNMPv3 (preferred) or SNMPv1 to probe switches and
fabrics, and uses SNMPv2 or SNMPv3 to collect performance data. Some switches
are configured to use SNMPv3 by default.

IBM Spectrum Control Monitoring Agent

The IBM Spectrum Control Monitoring Agent can be used by the IBM Tivoli
Enterprise Monitoring Server to monitor systems in your enterprise. This agent is
an optional program you can install and use in your enterprise.

IBM Tivoli Monitoring monitors and manages system and network applications on
a variety of operating systems, tracks the availability and performance of your
enterprise system, and provides reports to track trends and troubleshoot problems.
The IBM Spectrum Control Monitoring Agent participates in that environment.

For performance reasons, install the IBM Spectrum Control server on a separate
system from the IBM Tivoli Monitoring server. You can install the IBM Spectrum
Control Monitoring agent on any system you want to monitor.

Before using the IBM Spectrum Control Monitoring Agent, you must have IBM
Tivoli Enterprise Monitoring Server installed. For information about the IBM Tivoli
Enterprise Monitoring Server, see http://www.ibm.com/support/
knowledgecenter/SSTFXA_6.2.1/com.ibm.itm.doc_6.2.1/welcome.htm.

For information about installing IBM Tivoli Monitoring, see the Quick Start Guide
at http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/SSTFXA_6.2.0.1/
com.ibm.itm.doc/GI11-8058-00.htm.

To use the IBM Spectrum Control Monitoring Agent, install this agent on the
system you want to monitor.

To view the type of reports that are displayed by the IBM Spectrum Control
Monitoring Agent, see http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/
SS5R93_5.2.9/com.ibm.spectrum.sc.doc/fqz0_c_using_tpcma.html.

58 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Chapter 4. Scenarios
This section contains scenarios which illustrate how to perform specific tasks using
IBM Spectrum Control.

The provided scenarios set out situations that can be solved using IBM Spectrum
Control. When using these scenarios you should remember the following:
v The scenarios are intended to be step-by-step instructions that you follow to
complete a specific job. Each scenario contains multiple tasks that must be
followed in the order given.
v Specific values are given in the scenarios, such as user name, IP Address, probe
name, and so forth. These are for illustration purposes only and you must
replace them with values appropriate for your system.
v The scenarios do not provide in-depth conceptual information about the tasks.
See the appropriate topics in the IBM Spectrum Control Knowledge Center for
more information about the concepts behind the tasks.
v You will complete a scenario successfully if you follow the instructions correctly
and your system performs as expected.

Optimizing the performance of storage virtualizers

In these scenarios, you balance pools and analyze tiering to help resolve
performance hotspots and manage storage resources efficiently.

You can optimize the placement of volumes on the following storage virtualizers:
v SAN Volume Controller
v Storwize V7000
v Storwize V7000 Unified block storage

Learn more: For information about the components that can be used with IBM
Spectrum Control Version 5.2 (or later), see IBM Spectrum Control
interoperability matrix at http://www.ibm.com/support/
docview.wss?uid=swg21386446.

To optimize the placement of volumes in storage virtualizer pools, you must

complete the following tasks:
v Probe the storage virtualizers.
v Set the tier level of the storage pools that you want to analyze.
v Collect performance data to analyze the pools and volumes.

When you run the analysis to balance pools, you optimize storage performance by
redistributing volume workloads across pools on the same tier.

With run the tiering analysis, you optimize storage performance by specifying
thresholds to move volumes to higher and lower tiers .
Related tasks:
“Optimizing storage tiering” on page 219
To optimize the placement of volumes on storage tiers, analyze the tiering of
volumes in your storage environment.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 59

 “Optimizing storage pools” on page 222
Analyze the activity of pools and resolve performance hot spots by redistributing
volumes across each storage tier.
“Managing tasks for tiering storage, balancing pools, and transforming storage” on
page 242
To optimize the resources in your storage environment, use tiering storage,
balancing pools, and transforming-storage tasks. Use the Tasks page in the
web-based GUI to manage all the tasks that are used by IBM Spectrum Control to
optimize storage. Use resource list and resource detail pages to manage the
optimization tasks for resource types and for specific resources.

Redistributing volume workloads to balance pools

In this scenario, you identify performance hot spots and then run the balance pools
analysis to help resolve them.

The pools that you want to analyze are on a SAN Volume Controller with two
DS8000 back-end storage systems.

If the activity deviation percentage of the pool exceeds the threshold set for the
pool, which is > 10 %, the pool is identified as a candidate for balancing. If the
activity deviation percentage of the pool lies within the threshold range set for the
pool, which is < −10 % to > +10 %, the pool is considered to be balanced.

Tip: On the Pools page, the activity level of the pool is shown in the Activity
column. The difference between the activity level of the pool and all of the other
pools on the same tier and storage system is shown in the Activity Deviation (%)
column.

To balance the pools, you open the Balance Pools wizard.

60 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
 1. From the Storage menu, click Storage Systems.
2. To group the pools by storage system, click the Storage System column
heading.

Tip: Examine the activity deviation percentage values for the pools. Select
pools with low and high activity levels on each of the tiers that you want to
balance so that the volumes can be moved from high-activity pools to
low-activity pools.
3. Right-click the pools on the tiers that you want to balance and then click
Balance Pools.
4. Specify the number of days for estimating the activity of the pools.
5. Click Analyze.

The Balance Analysis task opens.

Click Execute to implement the recommendations. To create a schedule, click

Schedule > Analysis.
Related tasks:
“Optimizing storage pools” on page 222
Analyze the activity of pools and resolve performance hot spots by redistributing
volumes across each storage tier.
“Modifying the criteria for balancing pools” on page 223
When a task is created after you run the analysis for balancing pools, you can
modify the criteria that determine which pools are balanced.
Related reference:
“Criteria for identifying the pools that require balancing” on page 224
To identify the pools that require balancing, performance data is collected to
determine the relative activity of pools on the same tier. The performance
capability of pools is preserved by setting an activity limit for each tier of storage.

Analyzing and re-tiering volumes in pools on tier 1

In this scenario, you analyze the current placement of volumes in pools on tier 1 so
that you can move volumes with low workloads from tier 1 to tier 2 or tier 3
pools.

Chapter 4. Scenarios 61
 The pools that you want to analyze are on a SAN Volume Controller with two
DS8000 storage systems. The pools on the storage virtualizer are assigned to tier 1,
tier 2, and tier 3.

You want volumes with the highest workloads in tier 1 pools and you want
volumes with low workloads in tier 2 or tier 3 pools. To tier your storage, you
enter two I/O rate thresholds to generate recommendations to re-tier the volumes.

Tip: You can tier volumes by I/O rate or I/O density.

To ensure that the pools that are selected as destination pools for the volumes can
handle the additional workload, you specify the maximum I/O rates for pools on
each tier of storage. Only the pools with I/O rates below the maximum I/O rate
can be selected as destination pools for the volumes.

62 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 1. From the Storage menu, click Storage Systems.
2. Right-click the storage virtualizer and click View Details.
3. In the navigation pane, click Pools. To organize the pools by tier level, click
the Tier column heading.
4. Select the pools on tier 1, right-click and then click Analyze Tiering.
5. Select all of the pools on tier 2 and tier 3 as target pools, and then click Next.
6. Enter 14 as the number of days for analyzing the pools.
7. Set the threshold for moving volumes from tier 1 to tier 2. The volumes with
I/O rates above the threshold that you set remain in the tier 1 pools. The
volumes with I/O rates below the threshold that you set are moved down to
tier 2 pools.
8. Set the threshold for moving volumes from tier 2 to tier 3. The volumes with
I/O rates above the threshold that you set remain in the tier 2 pools. The
volumes with I/O rates below the threshold that you set are moved down to
tier 3 pools.
9. Set the maximum I/O rate for pools on each tier.
10. Click Analyze.

The Analyze Tiering task is shown.

Click Execute to implement the recommendations. To create a schedule, click

Schedule > Analysis. Alternatively, you can modify the criteria that you set for
analyzing the volumes on the Tasks page and run the analysis again.
Related tasks:
“Modifying the criteria for analyzing tiering” on page 222
When a task is created after you run the tiering analysis, you can modify the
criteria for tiering the volumes.

Collocating volumes
In this scenario, you want to minimize the exposure of servers to multiple
back-end storage systems by collocating volumes that are assigned to the same
hypervisor or server. You can enforce the collocation of volumes when you enter
the criteria for analyzing tiering and balancing pools.

To ensure that volumes in the same storage pool that are assigned to the same
server or hypervisor are kept together, you want to enforce the collocation of
volumes. By enforcing the collocation of volumes, you prevent the placement of
related volumes in destination pools that might be on multiple back-end storage
systems.

Multiple host connections to the same hypervisor or server: If the volumes in the
source pool that are assigned to the same hypervisor or server are assigned to
different host connections, the collocation of the volumes is affected. In such cases,
if volumes require optimization, the volumes that are assigned to the same host
connection are kept together. To view information about the host connection for the
volume, right-click the volume, select View Details, and then click the Host
Connections tab.
1. From the Storage menu, click Pools.
2. Right-click the pools that you want to analyze, and then click Analyze Tiering.
3. Select the target storage pools.
4. On the Optimize the Placement of Volumes page, ensure that Colocate volumes
is set to Yes.

Chapter 4. Scenarios 63
 5. Click Analyze.

If a volume requires re-tiering, a recommendation is generated to move all of the

volumes that are assigned to the same server to the same destination pool. If none
of the target pools has sufficient space to accommodate all of the volumes, then
recommendations to move the volumes are not generated.
Related tasks:
“Optimizing storage pools” on page 222
Analyze the activity of pools and resolve performance hot spots by redistributing
volumes across each storage tier.
“Optimizing storage tiering” on page 219
To optimize the placement of volumes on storage tiers, analyze the tiering of
volumes in your storage environment.
“Modifying the criteria for analyzing tiering” on page 222
When a task is created after you run the tiering analysis, you can modify the
criteria for tiering the volumes.

Monitoring capacity usage at different levels of a business hierarchy

The monitoring and management of applications and departments enables you to
monitor storage capacity usage, recognize trends, monitor health status, and
troubleshoot performance of the storage resources in your business organization.

The department model comprises these main elements:

v The department
v The subdepartments that the department contains
v The applications, or the application subcomponents, or both that the department
uses

In the following scenario, you want to create a department model that monitors
the capacity and space usage of the Books Sales department, and these
subdepartments:
v Wholesale
v Retail
v Online

To monitor the capacity and space usage of the departments, you add the
applications that the department and its subdepartment use to each of the
subdepartments.

The department model that you create determines how you can view capacity
usage and space information. To view the total capacity and space usage of a
department regardless of the subdepartments that the department contains, you
create a department and add the applications and subcomponents to the
department.

If, however, you want to see the capacity and space usage of the department and
its subdepartments, you create a department hierarchy by adding subdepartments
to departments. You then add the applications and application subcomponents that
each subdepartment uses to the subdepartments. You can then view capacity and
space usage for the department and for the individual subdepartments.

64 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

You can create more complex models of departments by adding subdepartments to
subdepartments. In the following illustration, the department model is extended to
include two more layers of subdepartments under the Wholesale subdepartment.

To monitor the capacity and space usage of the departments in your business
organization, complete the following tasks:
v Create the Book Sales department.
v Create the Wholesale, Retail, and Online departments to represent the
subdepartments.
v Add the Wholesale, Retail, and Online as subdepartments to the Book Sales
department.
v Create the Book Sales DB application and the Wholesale Transactions, Retail
Transactions and Online Transactions applications to represent the
subcomponents that are used by the departments.
Different applications require different storage capabilities, and different levels of
performance and uptime. The storage requirements of the departments are
constantly growing and they need to modify their behaviors in a way that justifies
the cost of their actions concerning storage utilization. The data modeling of
storage resources using the application and department concept enables you to
plan and implement a chargeback system if necessary.
Related concepts:
“Departments” on page 178
View information about departments and structure the hierarchy to mirror your
business organization. Monitor the detailed information about capacity and space
usage that is collected for departments and subdepartments, and monitor the
performance of the applications and the application subcomponents that are added
to departments and subdepartments.
Related tasks:
“Creating departments” on page 180
To model the storage capacity that is consumed in a department for your business
environment, in accordance with other department and application members,
create departments for monitoring in IBM Spectrum Control.

Chapter 4. Scenarios 65
 “Adding and creating subdepartments” on page 181
To further enhance your data modeling at the department level and to add to your
overall business hierarchy for monitoring, add an existing subdepartment or create
a new subdepartment.
“Viewing information about departments” on page 182
You can view detailed information about departments for use in storage capacity
monitoring and performance troubleshooting. You can view additional information
on the applications and subdepartments that are used to establish a hierarchal
business structure.
“Creating applications” on page 171
To monitor storage capacity, troubleshoot performance, and view storage area
network dependencies for applications, you can create applications for monitoring
in IBM Spectrum Control.
“Adding subcomponents” on page 175
You created a new application and a subcomponent, with their own set of
resources and added it to your business hierarchy. You now want to add another
level to your business hierarchy.

Comparing storage usage in each department

In this scenario, you compare the storage usage in each department within your
organization to spot a potential storage usage issue.

To monitor the capacity and space usage of a department, you create the
department and subdepartments, and you add the application subcomponents to
the subdepartments.

You want to monitor the capacity and space usage of departments in an

organization that sells books.

The sales department of the organization, Book Sales, has these subdepartments:
v Wholesale
v Retail
v Online

Although you can add applications and application subcomponents when you
create departments, it is easier and quicker to create the applications and
application subcomponents beforehand.

You want to know the total amount of storage space that the Book Sales
department uses, and you want to know the amount of space that each
subdepartment uses. To know how much space the Book Sales and its
subdepartments use, you must associate the department and its subdepartments
with the applications that they use. For example, the Book Sales department and

66 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

its subdepartments use a database application named Book Sales DB. The Book
Sales DB application contains these subcomponents:
v Wholesale Transactions
v Retail Transactions
v Online Transactions

To create the department and subdepartments, you complete these tasks:

1. You create the Wholesale department and add the applications and application
subcomponents that the subdepartment uses.
2. You create the Retail department and add the applications and application
subcomponents that the subdepartment uses.
3. You create the Online department and add the applications and application
subcomponents that the subdepartment uses.
4. You create the Book Sales department. You do not have to add applications or
subcomponents to the Book Sales department because the Book Sales
department inherits the applications and application subcomponents that are
added to the subdepartments.
5. You add the Wholesale, Retail, and Online departments as subdepartments to
the Book Sales department.

When you complete adding the departments and associating the departments with
the applications that are used by the departments, you can view the information
that is collected about the departments on the Departments page and on the details
page for the department.

You want to target what department and what storage resources might be
responsible for a change or a upward trend in significant storage usage. By
correctly classifying the department or departments you can properly plan to
archive or switch the storage within the organization.
Related concepts:
“Departments” on page 178
View information about departments and structure the hierarchy to mirror your
business organization. Monitor the detailed information about capacity and space
usage that is collected for departments and subdepartments, and monitor the
performance of the applications and the application subcomponents that are added
to departments and subdepartments.
Related tasks:
“Creating departments” on page 180
To model the storage capacity that is consumed in a department for your business
environment, in accordance with other department and application members,
create departments for monitoring in IBM Spectrum Control.
“Adding and creating subdepartments” on page 181
To further enhance your data modeling at the department level and to add to your
overall business hierarchy for monitoring, add an existing subdepartment or create
a new subdepartment.
“Viewing information about departments” on page 182
You can view detailed information about departments for use in storage capacity
monitoring and performance troubleshooting. You can view additional information
on the applications and subdepartments that are used to establish a hierarchal
business structure.

Chapter 4. Scenarios 67
 “Creating applications” on page 171
To monitor storage capacity, troubleshoot performance, and view storage area
network dependencies for applications, you can create applications for monitoring
in IBM Spectrum Control.
“Adding subcomponents” on page 175
You created a new application and a subcomponent, with their own set of
resources and added it to your business hierarchy. You now want to add another
level to your business hierarchy.

Using applications and subcomponents to monitor capacity and space

usage
To monitor the performance, capacity, and space usage of the applications in your
business organization, create applications and subcomponents. You can also add
applications to departments so that storage capacity and usage can be monitored in
an overall business hierarchal manner.

You can create a simple application model, which consists of an application and
use a filter to associate the storage resources that the application uses with the
application. Alternatively, you can create a complex application model that
comprises an application and application subcomponents and then add filters to
associate the storage resources that each application subcomponent uses with each
of the subcomponents.

Besides creating applications to monitor the performance, capacity, and space

usage of the applications in your business organization, you also create
applications to add them to departments. When you add applications to
departments, you can monitor the capacity and space usage of the departments
and you can monitor the performance of the storage resources that are associated
with the applications that each department uses.

To monitor the capacity of an application, you create an application model that is

based on the following elements:
v The application
v The subcomponents that the application contains
v The applications, application subcomponents, or both that are added to the
department

In the following scenario, you want to create an application model that monitors
the capacity, space usage, and performance of the Book Sales DB application. The
application model that you want to create comprises these application
subcomponents:
v Wholesale Transactions
v Retail Transactions
v Online Transactions

68 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Figure 1. An application with a three subcomponent hierarchy

To understand how capacity is trending for storage in an application and

subcomponents, complete these tasks:
1. Create the Book Sales DB application.
2. Create the Wholesale Transactions, Retail Transactions and Online Transactions
applications to represent the subcomponents.
3. Add the Wholesale Transactions, Retail Transactions, and Online Transactions
as subcomponents to the Book Sales DB application.
4. Create the Book Sales department and the Wholesale, Retail, and Online
subdepartments to be associated with the applications.
Related concepts:
“Applications” on page 169
View information about storage area network resources that you can model by
using applications in your business environment. The monitoring and management
of applications enables you to perform capacity trending, health monitoring, and
performance troubleshooting tasks.
Related tasks:
“Creating applications” on page 171
To monitor storage capacity, troubleshoot performance, and view storage area
network dependencies for applications, you can create applications for monitoring
in IBM Spectrum Control.
“Adding subcomponents” on page 175
You created a new application and a subcomponent, with their own set of
resources and added it to your business hierarchy. You now want to add another
level to your business hierarchy.
“Viewing information about applications” on page 176
You can view information about the application that you created as related
resources, filters that are used to populate the application with resources, any
subcomponents, capacity trending and performance information.

Viewing storage capacity and usage trends

You can view the capacity and usage trends of storage resources used by an
application and subcomponents to diagnose how much storage a particular
application is using in relation to the other applications and departments in the
business hierarchy.

Chapter 4. Scenarios 69
 You want to understand how capacity is trending for storage that is used by the
Book Sales DB application and the Wholesale Transaction, Retail Transactions and
Online Transactions subcomponents and the association the application has with
the Book Sales department and subdepartments.

The storage resources that are used by the application and that are used by each
subcomponent are associated with the application and its subcomponents. For
example, the storage resources are assigned as follows:
1. Create a database application called Book Sales DB and assign resources that
use the volumes on the IBM® Storwize V7000 with names that begin with
bksales for storing sales transactions.
2. Create the subcomponent applications named Wholesale Transaction, Retail
Transactions and Online Transactions.
3. Assign the volumes on the IBM Storwize V7000 with names that begin with
bksales_ws to the Wholesale Transactions subcomponent, which is used for
storing wholesale sales transactions.
4. Assign the volumes on the IBM Storwize V7000 with names that begin with
bksales_rt to the Retail Transactions subcomponent, which is used for storing
retail sales transactions.
5. Assign the volumes on the IBM Storwize V7000 with names that begin with
bksales_ol to the Online Transactions subcomponent, which is used for storing
online sales transactions.

Note: On the Create Filter page, you can specify a name pattern to determine
which volumes to include. For volumes, you can specify name patterns to
determine from which servers, storage systems, or pools the volumes are
selected. You can then click Preview to view the volumes that are selected for
inclusion in your application.

To monitor space usage for the Book Sales department and its subdepartments,
you associate the Book Sales DB application and the Wholesale, Retail, and Online
Transactions subcomponents of the application as follows:
v You associate the Book Sales DB application with the Book Sales department.
v You associate the Wholesale subdepartment with the Wholesale Transactions
subcomponent.
v You associate the Retail subdepartment with the Retail Transactions
subcomponent.
v You associate the Online subdepartment with the Online Transactions
subcomponent.

Figure 2. The application, subcomponent, assigned resources and department association

70 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 You can view the capacity information that is collected about the application on
the Applications page. You can also view capacity information for each application
and subcomponent on the details page. When you complete adding the
departments and associating the departments with the applications that are used
by the departments, you can view the information that is collected about the
departments on the Departments page and on the details page for the department.
.
Related concepts:
“Applications” on page 169
View information about storage area network resources that you can model by
using applications in your business environment. The monitoring and management
of applications enables you to perform capacity trending, health monitoring, and
performance troubleshooting tasks.
Related tasks:
“Creating applications” on page 171
To monitor storage capacity, troubleshoot performance, and view storage area
network dependencies for applications, you can create applications for monitoring
in IBM Spectrum Control.
“Adding subcomponents” on page 175
You created a new application and a subcomponent, with their own set of
resources and added it to your business hierarchy. You now want to add another
level to your business hierarchy.
“Adding applications to departments” on page 182
To further enhance the data storage modeling in a business environment and see
the storage capacity that is used at the different levels of your business hierarchy,
add applications to departments. The departments you select from the Add to
Department page become parents of the selected applications.
“Viewing information about applications” on page 176
You can view information about the application that you created as related
resources, filters that are used to populate the application with resources, any
subcomponents, capacity trending and performance information.

Limiting a set of storage to provision in the vSphere Web Client

extension
In this scenario, a storage administrator limits the storage that a vSphere user can
provision.

You plan to dedicate two storage pools to be used with vSphere. You want to
allow a vSphere user to provision storage by using the vSphere Web Client
extension for IBM Spectrum Control. You want to define the two storage pools as
the resources that the user can use.
1. Create a capacity pool that the vSphere user can provision from. Place the two
storage pools that you designated as provisioning targets for vSphere in the
capacity pool. To add storage pools to the capacity pool, follow the instructions
in “Adding resources to capacity pools” on page 200.
2. Create a service class and specify that the service class can be used to provision
storage only from the capacity pool. To create the service class, follow the
instructions in “Creating service classes” on page 194.
3. Create a user ID for the vSphere user and assign the External Application role
to that ID. To assign the role to the user, follow the instructions that are
provided in the product documentation at http://www.ibm.com/support/

Chapter 4. Scenarios 71
 knowledgecenter/SS5R93_5.2.9/com.ibm.spectrum.sc.doc/
fqz0_t_associate_user_group_to_roles.html.
4. Associate the user with the service class. To associate the user with the service
class, follow the instructions in “Modifying service classes” on page 196.

When you complete these tasks, a vSphere user can provision storage by using the
vSphere Web Client extension, but they are limited to the service class that was
created. Because the service class is associated with the capacity pool that contains
your designated vSphere storage pools, you limited where the vSphere user can
provision data.
Related concepts:
“Cloud configuration” on page 37
To take advantage of the simplified provisioning and optimization capabilities that
are available by using the web-based GUI, some configuration is required.
Related tasks:
“Provisioning block storage” on page 216
Use the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control to provision block
storage on IBM Spectrum Control. You can also have a data store created on the
storage volume.
“Provisioning file storage” on page 217
Use the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control to provision file
storage on IBM Spectrum Control.

Viewing NPIV connections between server ports and switch ports in a

fabric
In this scenario, a storage administrator views the N-Port ID Virtualization (NPIV)
connections between the server ports and the switch port in the fabric. With NPIV,
multiple node ports can be logically connected to one switch port.

You want to view connectivity information for a switch port that has NPIV
connections.
1. In the menu bar, go to Network > Switches. Double-click the switch that you
want to view, or right-click the switch and click View Details.

Tip: Alternatively, in the menu bar, go to Network > Fabrics. Double-click the
fabric that you want to view, or right-click the fabric and click View Details. In
the Internal Resources section, click Switches. Double-click the switch that you
want to view, or right-click the switch and click View Details.
2. In the Internal Resources section, click Ports. You can view details about the
ports, including the number of NPIV connections.
3. In the Connected NPIV Ports column for the port that you want to view, click
the number of ports. You can view the following information about the NPIV
connections:
v In the Connected NPIV Ports tab, you can view details about the NPIV
connections, such as the port type and the name of the connected resource.
The port type can be N_Port (end node port) or NP_Port (proxy node port).
v In the Connectivity tab, you can view details about the physically connected
end-node port.

72 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Tip: If IBM Spectrum Control does not differentiate between the physical
and logical connections for the switch port, the details about the NPIV
connections are displayed in the Connectivity tab. The Connected NPIV
Ports tab is not displayed.

Chapter 4. Scenarios 73
74 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
Chapter 5. Managing resources
Use IBM Spectrum Control to monitor and manage the resources and storage
infrastructure in an enterprise environment. In the GUI, you can view the
condition, capacity, performance, and relationships of storage resources.

Use the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control to manage a
vSphere virtual storage environment. You can complete provisioning tasks and
view information about storage resources in the vSphere Web Client extension.

Adding resources
You must add resources to IBM Spectrum Control before you can collect data,
generate reports, and manage storage that is related to those resources.
Related concepts:
“Alerting and event processing” on page 111
Determining when and how you are alerted to configuration and performance
conditions within your storage environment is important to helping you maintain
and administer storage resources. Many conditions can trigger alerts. You can set
up IBM Spectrum Control so that it examines the attributes, capacity, and
performance of a resource and notifies you when changes or violations are
detected.
Related reference:
“Triggering conditions for alerts” on page 252
Define alerts so that IBM Spectrum Control automatically notifies you when certain
conditions or events are detected on monitored resources. Such conditions are the
triggering conditions for the alert. The specific conditions that can trigger alerts
depend on the type of resource that is being monitored.

Resources that you can monitor

You can use IBM Spectrum Control to monitor storage systems, servers,
hypervisors, fabrics, and switches. Information about these top-level resources
includes information about their internal resources and related resources. Internal
resources are components that exist in a top-level resource. Related resources are
external to a top-level resource, but are related to it through assigned storage, a
network connection, or virtual hosting.

Information about object storage systems includes information about their object
resources and related resources. Object resources are resources in a GPFS cluster,
such as accounts and containers, that enable the GPFS cluster to be used as an
object storage system.

Fabrics

A fabric is a network of hubs, switches, adapter endpoints, and connecting cables

that support a communication protocol between devices. The following table
shows the internal resources and related resources that you can monitor for fabrics.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 75

 Table 11. Fabric resources that you can monitor.
Top-level resource icon Internal resources Related resources

Switches
Hypervisors
Inter-switch connections
Servers
Blades
Storage systems
Ports
NPV switches (Cisco
Zone sets switches in NPV mode and
Brocade switches in Access
Gateway mode)

Discovered ports

Hypervisors

A hypervisor is a layer of software or a physical device that manages multiple,

virtual instances of operating systems on the same hardware. Hypervisors that you
can monitor include VMWare vSphere data sources such as ESX, ESXi, and vCenter
servers. If a hypervisor is part of a cluster, information about that cluster is also
available.

The following table shows the internal resources and related resources that you can
monitor for hypervisors.
Table 12. Hypervisor resources that you can monitor.
Top-level resource icon Internal resources Related resources

Virtual machines Storage systems

Controllers Fabrics

Switches
Disks
Cluster
Data stores

VMDKs

Servers
A server is a computer or host that is connected to a network and provides an
access point to that network. If a server is part of a cluster, information about that
cluster is also available. You can monitor the following internal resources and
related resources for servers.

76 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 13. Server resources that you can monitor.
Top-level resource icon Internal resources Related resources

Controllers Storage systems

Disks Fabrics

Switches
Volume groups

File systems and logical VMDKs

volumes

Shares and exports

Storage systems

A storage system is a device, such as a Redundant Array of Independent Disks

(RAID) controller that creates and manages other storage devices. A storage
virtualizer is a storage system that virtualizes storage space from internal storage
or from another storage system.

Storage systems can be configured for block storage, file storage, a combination of
block and file storage, or a combination of file and object storage. The method that
a storage system uses for managing data determines the internal resources or
object resources that are monitored.

The following tables show the internal resources, object resources, and related
resources that you can monitor for block, file, and object storage systems.

Block storage systems

Chapter 5. Managing resources 77

 Table 14. Block storage system resources that you can monitor.
Top-level resource icon Internal resources Related resources

Disks Back-end storage systems

External disks Fabrics

Host connections Hypervisors

I/O groups
Servers
Managed disks Switches
Modules
Virtualizer storage systems
, Nodes
GPFS clusters
Pools

Ports

RAID arrays

Volumes

File storage systems

Table 15. File storage system resources that you can monitor.
Top-level resource icon Internal resources Related resources

Disk Controllers Back-end storage systems

Clusters Fabrics

Disks GPFS clusters

Shares Hypervisors

Filesets Servers

File systems Switches

Network shared disks

Nodes

Pools

Snapshots

Quotas

Object storage systems

78 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 16. Object storage system resources that you can monitor.
Top-level resource icon Object resources Related resources

Accounts Back-end storage systems

Fabrics
Containers

GPFS clusters

Hypervisors

Servers

Switches

Switches

A switch is a network infrastructure component to which multiple nodes attach. In

IBM Spectrum Control, you can monitor Fibre Channel (FC) switches. The
following table shows the internal resources and related resources that you can
monitor for switches.
Table 17. Switch resources that you can monitor.
Top-level resource icon Internal resources Related resources

Inter-switch connections Fabrics

Blades Hypervisors

Logical switches
Servers
Parent switches
Storage systems
Ports
Switches

Discovered ports

Related tasks:
“Adding ESX and ESXi hypervisors” on page 88
Add ESX and ESXi hypervisors for monitoring by IBM Spectrum Control.
“Adding storage systems” on page 81
To monitor a storage system, configure a connection to the storage system and
schedule the collection of data.
“Adding fabrics and switches” on page 85
Add fabrics and switches for monitoring.
“Adding servers” on page 91
Add servers for monitoring. You can add a server by deploying a Storage Resource
agent, or you can add an agentless server.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 79

 Required user roles for monitoring resources
To monitor storage systems and hypervisors, you must provide a user name and
password for logging in to those resources. The role or user group that is assigned
to the user name determines the data collection and provisioning functions that
you can use with a resource.

The following roles are associated with the user names that IBM Spectrum Control
uses to log in to resources. Specify user names when you add a resource for
monitoring. These roles are different from IBM Spectrum Control roles, which are
assigned to users that log in to IBM Spectrum Control.
Table 18. Required roles for storage system and hypervisor users
Required role for
performance Required role for Required role for
Resource monitors probes provisioning
DS6000 Monitor role or Monitor role or Administrator,
greater greater Physical operator, or
DS8000 Logical operator
SAN Volume Monitor1 or Monitor Administrator
Controller Administrator

IBM Storwize family

Storwize V7000
Unified (block
storage)

FlashSystem V840
Storwize V7000 Performance Monitor Administrator, or
Unified (file storage) monitoring is not Export Administrator
available + Storage
IBM SONAS Administrator. For
more information
about roles, see
IBM Knowledge
Center for IBM
SONAS.
IBM Spectrum Any role Any role Provisioning is not
Accelerate available
IBM Spectrum Scale Any role Root or non-root2 Provisioning is not
(file storage) available

80 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Table 18. Required roles for storage system and hypervisor users (continued)
Required role for
performance Required role for Required role for
Resource monitors probes provisioning
IBM Spectrum Scale Performance The Keystone admin Provisioning is not
(object storage) monitoring is not role. available
available
Information is
collected only for the
object storage
accounts and
containers that the
user has access to. If
you want to monitor
all accounts and
containers, the user
must also be
assigned the role that
is defined in the
reseller_admin_role
configuration option
in the Swift proxy
server. The default
value for the
reseller_admin_role
option is
ResellerAdmin.
XIV Any role Any role Storage administrator
Hypervisors (such as Performance A role that has v Provisioning
ESX, ESXi, and monitoring is not permission to browse within the IBM
vCenter Servers) available through data stores. Spectrum Control:
For example: any role
Administrator role or
v Provisioning with
Virtual Machine
the vSphere Web
Power User role.
Client extension:
Storage
administrator or
Administrator
roles.
Notes:
1
v Administrator authority is required for full performance monitoring. You can also use
the Monitor role, but with that role you cannot change the frequency at which
performance data is collected. To change the frequency in that case, you must use the
SAN Volume Controller CLI with administrator authority.
2
v You can add GPFS clusters and GSS systems as a non-root user, but that user must
have privileges to run a set of specified administration commands using the sudo
command on the cluster node.

Adding storage systems

To monitor a storage system, configure a connection to the storage system and
schedule the collection of data.

To add a storage system, you must have Administrator privileges.

You can add the following types of storage systems for monitoring:

Chapter 5. Managing resources 81

 v DS4000, DS5000, or DS6000
v DS8000
v ESS
v IBM FlashSystem family
v IBM SONAS
v IBM Spectrum Accelerate
v IBM Spectrum Scale
v SAN Volume Controller
v Storwize family
v Storwize V7000 Unified
v XIV
v All others (managed by CIM agents)

SAN Volume Controller, IBM Storwize family, IBM FlashSystem V840 Enterprise
Performance Solution, and IBM FlashSystem V9000 storage systems run IBM
Spectrum Virtualize™ to virtualize their storage. In this documentation, IBM
Spectrum Virtualize is used to refer collectively to SAN Volume Controller,
Storwize, FlashSystem V840, and FlashSystem V9000 storage systems.

For a complete list of the versions of storage systems and CIM agents that you can
add, see IBM Spectrum Control interoperability matrix for storage systems at
http://www.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg27039840.
1. To add a block storage system, go to Storage > Block Storage Systems. To add
a file storage system, go to Storage > File Storage Systems. To add an object
storage system, go to Storage > Object Storage Systems.
2. Click Add Storage System.
3. Click the icon for the type of storage system that you want to add.

Tip: Click Storwize Family to add the following storage systems:

v IBM® Storwize® V3500
v Storwize V3700
v Storwize V5000
v Storwize V7000
4. Complete the connection information for the storage system and schedule the
collection of data.

The storage system is added for monitoring. A probe is automatically run to collect
status and asset information about the storage system.

Storage systems can be configured for block storage, file storage, a combination of
block and file storage, or a combination of file and object storage. The method that
a storage system uses for managing data determines the internal resources and
object resources that are monitored.

When the collection of data is complete, you can view status information and
capacity data about the storage system on the resource list page for the block, file,
or object storage system. For example, for block storage systems, you can view the
information on the Block Storage Systems page.

Enabling the default alerts for storage systems: To enable the default alerts for a
resource so that you are automatically notified when certain conditions are

82 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

detected, you must view the alert definitions for that resource. For example, to
view the alert definitions for a block storage system, go to Storage > Block Storage
Systems, right-click a storage system, and select Edit Alert Definitions. The
default alerts are automatically enabled for the storage system after you access the
Edit Alert Definitions page.

Monitoring IBM Spectrum Scale without requiring root privileges

Enable users that do not have root privileges on a GPFS™ cluster node to monitor
IBM Spectrum Scale™ storage systems.

Before you add the IBM Spectrum Scale storage system for monitoring, complete
this task.

To grant access to the user, make the following changes to the sudoers file on the
cluster node that is used for authentication:
v Add the set of administration commands that are required to monitor the
storage system.
v Associate the user with the set of administration commands.
1. Log on to the cluster node that is used for authentication with a user name that
has root privileges.
2. To edit the sudoers file, enter the following command:
visudo -f /etc/sudoers
3. Add the following command aliases to the sudoers file. The command aliases
contain the commands that the user must be able to issue to monitor the
storage system.

Important: Each command alias must be on a single line without line breaks.
Cmnd_Alias TPC_GPFS_MMCMD = /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmsdrquery, /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmlsconfig,
/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmgetstate, /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmlsnodeclass, /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmlsfs,
/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmdf, /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmlsnsd, /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmlsfileset,
/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/, /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmlsmount, /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmlssnapshot,
/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmrepquota

Cmnd_Alias TPC_GPFS_MMDSH = /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmdsh -N * /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmdiag --version,

/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmdsh -N * /lib/udev/scsi_id --whitelisted *,
/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmdsh -N * /sbin/blockdev --getsize64 *,
/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmdsh -N * /usr/bin/getconf DISK_SIZE *,
/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmdsh -f 20000 -N linuxNodes ’cat /sys/class/fc_host/*’,
/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmdsh -N * /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmces node list,
/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmdsh -N * /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmces service list -a,
/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmdsh -N * /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmces address list|grep object_database_node,
/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmdsh -N * /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmces address list
--by-node|grep object_database_node,
/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmdsh -v -N cesNodes /usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmobj config list
--ccrfile object-server.conf --section DEFAULT --property devices,
/usr/lpp/mmfs/bin/mmdsh -f 20000 -v -N * "test -e /opt/IBM/zimon/ZIMonSensors.cfg &&
(grep -w ’collectors’ -A 4 /opt/IBM/zimon/ZIMonSensors.cfg | grep -w ’host’) || true"

Cmnd_Alias TPC_GPFS_OTHER = /bin/cat *release, /usr/bin/lsb_release -a

Cmnd_Alias TPC_GPFS_CMDS = TPC_GPFS_MMCMD, TPC_GPFS_MMDSH, TPC_GPFS_OTHER

4. To enable the user to issue the commands, add the following lines after the
command aliases:
Defaults:user_name !requiretty
user_name ALL=(ALL) TPC_GPFS_CMDS

where user_name is the user name that you enter when you add the storage
system for monitoring.

The user that you added to the sudoers file can now monitor the IBM Spectrum
Scale storage system.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 83

| Verifying that probe data can be collected for IBM Spectrum
| Scale with object storage
| To probe object storage, the IBM Spectrum Control server must be able to connect
| to the OpenStack Swift and Keystone endpoints that are used to access object
| services.

| To verify that the server can access the object services, complete these steps:
| 1. List the URLs for the Keystone and Swift services by running commands on a
| GPFS cluster node that is configured for object storage. Run the following
| commands with a user name that has root privileges:
| . ~/openrc
| openstack endpoint list
| 2. Ensure that the IBM Spectrum Control server can connect to the IP addresses
| and host names that are included in the Keystone and Swift services URLs. For
| example, the URL for the Keystone service might be http://
| gpfs420proto1:5000/v3. The IBM Spectrum Control server must be able to
| connect to the gpfs420proto1 host name.

Configuring the collection of performance data for IBM Spectrum

Scale
Configure the collection of information about the performance of IBM Spectrum
Scale file storage systems.

To collect performance data, you must first configure the IBM Spectrum Scale
performance monitoring tool on the GPFS cluster. Then, use the IBM Spectrum
Control GUI to schedule the collection of performance data.
1. Configure the sensor component of the IBM Spectrum Scale performance
monitoring tool by editing the /opt/IBM/zimon/ZIMonSensors.cfg file on the
sensor nodes.
Set the host property in the collectors section of the file to the GPFS cluster
node where the collector component is running. The host property must be set
to one of the following options:
v An IP address that can be reached by the IBM Spectrum Control server
v A host name that resolves to an IP address that is reachable by the IBM
Spectrum Control server
2. Enable the following sensors on each node for which you want to collect
performance data: CPU, Memory, GPFSNode, GPFSFileSystem.
3. Start the collector component of the performance monitoring tool on a single
GPFS cluster node. The collector can run on any node.
4. Start the sensor component of the performance monitoring tool on each node
for which you want to collect performance data. By default in IBM Spectrum
Scale version 4.1.1, the sensors are started only on protocol nodes.
5. To receive data from the performance monitoring tool, ensure that the IBM
Spectrum Control server can connect to port 9084 on the GPFS cluster node
where the collector component is running.
6. Schedule the collection of performance data by creating a performance monitor
in the IBM Spectrum Control GUI. You can create performance monitors in the
GUI when you add resources for monitoring or you can create them later.

A performance monitor is created for the IBM Spectrum Scale storage system. If a
successful probe run is completed for the resource, the performance monitor runs
according to the defined interval.

84 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 To check the progress of a performance monitor, you can complete the following
actions:
v View the Performance Monitor Status column on the File Storage Systems page.
v From the File Storage Systems page, right-click a row, and select Data Collection
> Open Performance Monitor Logs.

To learn more about configuring the performance monitoring tool, see

http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/STXKQY_4.1.1/
com.ibm.spectrum.scale.v4r11.adv.doc/bl1adv_PMToverview.htm.

Configuring OpenStack access to monitor the object storage

system
Configure OpenStack access for the user name that is used to monitor the IBM
Spectrum Scale object storage system.

Before you add the IBM Spectrum Scale object storage system for monitoring,
ensure that the user name that you use to monitor the storage system has access to
object storage accounts.

Tip: The terms "account" and "project" mean the same thing. Swift, the OpenStack
object storage service, uses the term "account" and Keystone, the OpenStack
identity service, uses the term "project."
1. Set the object storage account and the domain for the user. By default, the
domain is set to Default and cannot be modified after you create the user
account. Choose one of the following actions:
a. To set the account and domain when you create a user account, use the
following command:
openstack user create --domain domainname --project projectname
--password Password username
b. To set the account and the domain for an existing user name, use the
following command:
openstack user set --project projectname username
2. Assign the admin role for an object storage account to the user name. Use the
following command:
openstack role add --user username --project projectname admin
3. To monitor all accounts on the object storage system, assign to the user name
the role that is defined in the reseller_admin_role configuration option in the
Swift proxy server. The default value for the reseller_admin_role option is
ResellerAdmin. For example, use the following command:
openstack role add --user username --project projectname ResellerAdmin

Restriction: If you do not assign the ResellerAdmin role, information is

collected only for the object storage accounts that the user has admin access to.

To learn more about configuring and assigning user roles in OpenStack, see
http://docs.openstack.org/user-guide-admin/
manage_projects_users_and_roles.html.

Adding fabrics and switches

Add fabrics and switches for monitoring.

For a Cisco switch to successfully receive and respond to queries from IBM
Spectrum Control, the following basic requirements must be met:

Chapter 5. Managing resources 85

 v IBM Spectrum Control can use SNMPv3 (preferred) or SNMPv1 for probes.
Switches that IBM Spectrum Control collects performance data from must use
the SNMPv2 or SNMPv3 protocols. Some switches are configured to use
SNMPv3 by default.
v If the switch uses an SNMP agent, the Fibre Alliance FC Management MIB (FA
MIB) and Fibre Channel Fabric Element MIB (FE MIB) must be enabled on the
switch.
v IBM Spectrum Control can use SNMP agents as data sources for switches and
fabrics, although SMI-S agents are preferred for Brocade switches and fabrics.
When SNMP agents are used, the SNMPv3 protocol is preferred, but switches
that IBM Spectrum Control probes must support the SNMPv1 protocol at least,
and switches from which IBM Spectrum Control collects performance data from
must support the SNMPv2 protocol at least.
v When using the SNMPv1 or SNMPv2 protocols, the community string that is
configured in IBM Spectrum Control must match one of the community strings
that are configured on the switch with read access. Cisco switches must
additionally have a community string match for write access. The default
community strings in IBM Spectrum Control are “public” for read access and
“private” for write access. Other community strings can be defined on the
switches, but are not used. Community strings are not relevant when using the
SNMPv3 protocol.
v SNMP access control lists must include the IBM Spectrum Control system. Some
lists automatically include all hosts while others exclude all by default.

In the web-based GUI, you can add switches and fabrics for monitoring at the
same time. You can add the following types of switches:
v Brocade
v Cisco
v Other fabric vendors
For a complete list of the switches and their versions that you can add, see the
switches and directors information in the IBM Spectrum Control interoperability
matrix at http://www.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg21386446.

Help tips in the GUI: To view descriptions of the information that you must enter
for a fabric or switch, hover the mouse pointer over the related help icons in
the wizard.
1. In the menu bar, go to Network > Switches.
2. Click Add Switch.
3. Select the vendor: Brocade, Cisco or Other.
4. Specify how you want to discover the switches and the fabrics that are
connected to the switches. For Cisco switches and fabrics, you must use SNMP
agents. For Brocade and other vendors, you can use the vendor's CIM support
as an alternative to SNMP.

86 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Type of
switch
agent Steps
SNMP For Cisco, Brocade or other vendors, do the following:
agents v Specify the version of SNMP: v3 (preferred) or v1.
v If you choose to use v3, specify the User name and associated
Authentication password. Select an Authentication protocol and an
Encryption protocol.
v If you choose to use v1, define the Read community and the Write
community.
v Identify the Host name or the IP address of each switch you want to add.
Note: For Cisco fabrics based on SNMPv3, both authentication protocol and
authentication password are mandatory. For Brocade and other fabric
vendors, authentication is not mandatory when managing or adding switches
using SNMPv3.
CIM agents For Brocade switches and fabrics, do the following:
v Select Monitor with Network Advisor to use a CIM agent on Network
Advisor. The switches that are managed by the agent are automatically
discovered. After this step, you can also specify to use Simple Network
Management Protocol (SNMP) data sources for the switches. You can use
SNMP for redundancy.
v Select Monitor without Network Advisor if you do not want to use a CIM
agent as the data source. In this case, you are prompted to add switches
and their fabrics through SNMP agents.
For other vendors:
v Select Use CIM agent as data source if you want the switches that are
managed by the CIM agent to be automatically discovered. After this step,
you can also select to use SNMP agents for the switches.
v Do not select Use CIM agent as data source if you do not want to use a
CIM agent as a data source. In this case, you are prompted to add switches
and their fabrics through SNMP agents.

5. Specify the display name and location of the switches and fabrics that are
discovered. For switches that were discovered through a CIM agent, you can
also select to monitor them through SNMP. When you add a Brocade director
switch as an SNMP data source, use the IP address or host name of the chassis,
rather than the IP address or host name of the primary or secondary core
routing blades.
6. Schedule data collection for the switches and fabric. The type of resource
determines the data collection jobs that you can schedule:
v Fabrics: probes
v Switches: probes, performance monitors
Probes collect status and asset information. Performance monitors collect
metrics that measure performance.
7. Complete the wizard.

The fabric or switch is added for monitoring . A probe is automatically run to

collect status and asset information about the resource.

When the collection of data is complete, you can view status information about the
fabric or switch on the Fabrics page or Switches page.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 87

 Enabling the default alerts for resources: To enable the default alerts for a
resource so that you are automatically notified when certain conditions are
detected, you must view the alert definitions for that resource. For example, to
view the alert definitions for a switch, go to Network > Switches, right-click a
switch, and select Edit Alert Definitions. The default alerts for the switch are
automatically enabled after you access the Edit Alert Definitions page.

Agent types for switch and fabric functions

Depending on the functions that you want to enable, you can use CIM or SNMP
agents to monitor switches and fabrics.

The vendors of switches can help you determine which agents to use.
Table 19. Agent types for switch and fabric functions.
1
Function Brocade Cisco Other
CIM agent or SNMP SNMP agent Other fabric vendor switches
Monitor performance agent cannot be used for
performance monitoring.
Recommended: CIM CIM agent or SNMP agent
Collect information agent SNMP agent
about switches and
switch ports Also supported: SNMP
agent
Recommended: CIM CIM agent or SNMP agent
Collect information agent SNMP agent
about topology
connectivity Also supported: SNMP
agent

Collect information Recommended: CIM SNMP agent CIM agent

about zoning agent
information and zone
control
CIM agent or SNMP agent
Generate alerts Recommended: CIM SNMP agent
agent

Also supported: SNMP

agent
Tips:
1. If there are Brocade virtual fabrics in your storage environment, use only CIM agents for your switches and
fabrics.

Adding hypervisors
You can add hypervisors for monitoring by IBM Spectrum Control. Hypervisors
include VMware vSphere data sources such as ESX and ESXi, and vCenter Server
systems. When you add vSphere data sources, you can then collect data, generate
reports, and manage storage that is related to those resources.

To add a hypervisor, you specify connection information for the ESX or ESXi data
source. You can add multiple hypervisors by specifying connection information for
a vCenter Server system.

Adding ESX and ESXi hypervisors

Add ESX and ESXi hypervisors for monitoring by IBM Spectrum Control.

88 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

You can add an ESX or ESXi hypervisor by specifying connection information for
that hypervisor. For a complete list of hypervisors that you can add, see the
IBM Spectrum Control interoperability matrix at http://www.ibm.com/
support/docview.wss?uid=swg21386446, and go to the Agents, Servers and Browsers
section.
1. In the menu bar, go to Servers > Hypervisors.
2. Click Add Hypervisor.
3. Select ESX/ESXi and enter connection information about the hypervisor.
4. Schedule a probe of the hypervisor.
5. Follow the instructions in the wizard to add the hypervisor.

The hypervisor is added for monitoring. A probe is automatically run to collect

status and asset information about the hypervisor.

When the collection of data is complete, you can view status information and
capacity data about the hypervisor on the Hypervisors page.

Enabling the default alerts for hypervisors: To enable the default alerts for a
resource so that you are automatically notified when certain conditions are
detected, you must view the alert definitions for that resource. For example, to
view the alert definitions for a hypervisor, go to Servers > Hypervisors, right-click
a hypervisor, and select Edit Alert Definitions. The default alerts are automatically
enabled for the hypervisor after you access the Edit Alert Definitions page.
Related tasks:
“Adding vCenter Server systems” on page 90
For IBM Spectrum Control to monitor multiple hypervisors, you must first add a
vCenter Server system.

Checking permissions to browse data stores:

Determine if the user name that you specified for a VMware data source has
permission to browse through the data stores on a hypervisor.

When you add a VMware data source in IBM Spectrum Control, the user name
that you specify must have permission to browse through the data stores on
VMware. IBM Spectrum Control must browse through the data stores to collect
information from the hypervisors. However, the "Read Only" role as defined by
VMware does not allow IBM Spectrum Control to browse the data stores. You can
use the "Virtual Machine Power User" role if you do not want to use the
Administrator role, or you can create a custom role with the required permissions.

To verify that a VMware user is assigned the correct role and privileges to monitor
VMware data sources, follow these steps:
1. Ensure that the user role has the required VMware datastore permissions by
completing the following steps:
a. Connect the vSphere Web Client to the VMware data source. The data
source can be an ESX server, a vCenter Server Appliance, or a vCenter
Server.
b. From the Inventories view, select Hosts and Clusters.
c. Select a host, and click the Related Objects tab.
d. View the datastores by clicking the Datastores tab.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 89

 e. Right-click a datastore, and select File Browser. If you can view the Files
tab for the datastore, your browse permission is working correctly.
2. Determine the role that is assigned to the user by logging in to the vSphere
Web Client by using the administrator user ID. From the Administration view,
select Roles. Verify the role name that is assigned to the user.
3. Determine the privileges that are assigned to the role by selecting the user's
role and clicking Privileges. Expand the privilege groups to view the specific
privileges.
4. Optional: If you must edit the privileges for the role, select the role and click
the Edit role action icon. Select privilege groups or expand to select specific
privileges.

For more information about VMware user roles, go to the VMware documentation
center and search for vSphere users and permissions.

Adding vCenter Server systems

For IBM Spectrum Control to monitor multiple hypervisors, you must first add a
vCenter Server system.

When you add vCenter Server version 5.1 or later, you can deploy the vSphere
Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control and register the latter as a VASA
provider. You can then provision storage, view reports, and publish alerts in the
vSphere Web Client about storage that is monitored by IBM Spectrum Control.

You can add multiple hypervisors by specifying connection information for a

vCenter Server system. For a complete list of hypervisors and vCenter Server
systems that you can add, see the IBM Spectrum Control interoperability matrix
at http://www.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg21386446, and go to the
Agents, Servers and Browsers section.
1. In the menu bar, go to Servers > Hypervisors.
2. Click Add Hypervisor.
3. Select VMware vCenter and enter connection information about the vCenter
Server system.
4. Optional: To deploy the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum
Control and register IBM Spectrum Control as a VASA provider, in the Deploy
vSphere extension page, enter your credentials. For VMware vCenter Server,
enter a user name and password for the vSphere administrator user. For IBM
Spectrum Control, enter a user name and password for a IBM Spectrum
Control user ID. You must have Administrator, Monitor, or External Application
authority to deploy the extension. If you entered a vSphere administrator user
name and password for the vCenter Server system, enter only the IBM
Spectrum Control credentials.
5. Schedule a probe for the hypervisors that were discovered.
6. Follow the instructions in the wizard to add the vCenter Server system.

After a vCenter Server system is added for monitoring, probes collect status and
asset information about its hypervisors.

When the collection of data is complete, you can view status information and
capacity data about the hypervisors on the Hypervisors page.

Enabling the default alerts for hypervisors: To enable the default alerts for a
resource so that you are automatically notified when certain conditions are

90 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 detected, you must view the alert definitions for that resource. For example, to
view the alert definitions for a hypervisor, go to Servers > Hypervisors, right-click
a hypervisor, and select Edit Alert Definitions. The default alerts are automatically
enabled for the hypervisor after you access the Edit Alert Definitions page.
Related tasks:
“Adding ESX and ESXi hypervisors” on page 88
Add ESX and ESXi hypervisors for monitoring by IBM Spectrum Control.
“Checking permissions to browse data stores” on page 89
Determine if the user name that you specified for a VMware data source has
permission to browse through the data stores on a hypervisor.

Adding servers
Add servers for monitoring. You can add a server by deploying a Storage Resource
agent, or you can add an agentless server.

Choose which type of server to add and which method you use to add the server.

To determine which type of server to add, follow these guidelines:

Table 20. Choosing the type of server to add
Deploy a Storage Resource
Condition Add an agentless server agent to a server
You want to view the X X
monitored resources to
which a server is connected.
You want to view the X X
amount of storage that the
server is assigned from other
monitored resources.
You want to view the X X
performance of the
SAN-related resources that
are connected to the server.
The restrictions within your X
organization prohibit the
deployment of agents to a
server.
You want to view X
information about the
resources that are internal to
a server. Internal resources
include controllers, disks,
volume groups, file systems,
logical volumes, shares,
exports, and directories.

You can use several methods to add one or more servers for monitoring. Use the
following information to determine the method that best meets the needs of your
environment:
Manually
Add one server by manually entering configuration information.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 91

 From a File List
Add one or more servers by importing configuration information from a
comma-delimited file.
From Discovered Servers
Add one or more servers that are members of a Windows domain. If you
select this method, the Add Server wizard automatically searches for
servers that are in the Windows domain where IBM Spectrum Control is
installed. When you select to add one server from the list of discovered
servers, you can configure more information about that server. When you
select to add multiple servers, the servers are automatically created
without additional configuration information.

Restriction: This method is available only when you add an agentless

server. You cannot use this method when you add a server by deploying a
Storage Resource agent.

Example: Server-centric monitoring of SAN resources without an

agent

In IBM Spectrum Control, you can view the connectivity of all your top-level
resources in a SAN environment. These resources include servers, hypervisors,
fabrics, switches, and storage systems. In previous releases, to get a complete view
of the connectivity between servers and other top-level resources, you were
required to deploy Storage Resource agents on all of those servers. However, in
some environments it was not always possible to deploy Storage Resource agents,
and thus a complete view of all resource relationships was not available. In IBM
Spectrum Control V5.2 and later, you can add servers without deploying Storage
Resource agents and still view the overall connectivity and performance of SAN
storage that is assigned to those servers.

When you add an agentless server for monitoring and specify its worldwide port
names, IBM Spectrum Control automatically correlates that server with the ports
on known host connections. If matches are found between the server and host
connections on monitored storage systems, the following information can be
determined:
v The amount of SAN storage that is assigned to the server.
v The storage systems that are mapping volumes to the server.
v The relationships between the server and other monitored resources.

If performance monitors collect data about the related storage systems, you can
also view the performance of the internal resources that are directly associated
with storage that is assigned to the server. For example, if a SAN Volume
Controller maps two volumes to the server, you can view the performance of those
volumes and the related managed disks.

Adding servers without Storage Resource agents

Add agentless servers for monitoring. An agentless server is a server or virtual
machine that is monitored by IBM Spectrum Control but does not have a Storage
Resource agent deployed to it.

When you add an agentless server, enter its IP address or host name and other
optional information such as its OS type, location, and ports. IBM Spectrum
Control uses this information to correlate the agentless server with the storage
systems, fabrics, and switches that are being monitored. For example, the ports that
you enter for an agentless server are compared to the ports on host connections for

92 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

monitored storage systems. If there is a match between the server and a host
connection, you can view the connectivity between the server and storage system
and the capacity of volumes that are assigned to the server.

Use any of the following methods to add agentless servers for monitoring:
v Add a server by manually entering its information.
v Add a server from a host connection on a monitored storage system.
v Add a server from a discovered port that is connected to a monitored switch.
v Add a server from a discovered port that is connected to a monitored fabric.
Add an agentless server by manually entering its information.
1. In the menu bar, go to Servers > Servers.
2. Click Add Server.
3. Ensure that the Deploy an agent for full server monitoring check box
is cleared.
4. Select a method for adding a server and complete the steps.
Add a server from a host connection on a monitored storage system.
Use this method when you want to configure a host connection to
represent a physical server. When you select a host connection, you are
specifying the internal resources (volumes, ports) that belong to that server
from the perspective of the related storage system.
To add an agentless server that is based on a known host connection,
complete the following steps:
1. In the menu bar, go to Storage > Block Storage Systems.
2. Right-click a storage system and select View Details.
3. Click Host Connections to view a list of host connections that are
mapped to a storage system.
4. Right-click a host connection and select Add Server. This action is not
available under the following conditions:
v A Storage Resource agent or agentless server is already associated
with the host connection.
v The host type of the host connection is configured for SAN Volume
Controller.
5. Enter information about the server and assign ports.
6. Complete the wizard.
Add a server from a discovered port that is connected to a monitored switch.
Discovered ports are ports on resources that are not monitored by IBM
Spectrum Control but are visible to a monitored switch. To add an
agentless server that is based on a discovered port, complete the following
steps:
1. In the menu bar, go to Network > Switches.
2. Right-click a switch and select View Details.
3. Click Discovered Ports to view a list of unmanaged ports that are
visible to the switch.
4. Right-click an unknown port and select Add Server.
5. Enter information about the server and assign ports.
6. Complete the wizard.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 93

 After the wizard is complete, the port is removed from the list of
discovered ports and added as a server to the list of related resources for
the switch.
Add a server from a discovered port that is connected to a monitored fabric.
Discovered ports are ports on resources that are not monitored by IBM
Spectrum Control but are connected to ports on a monitored fabric. To add
an agentless server that is based on a discovered port, complete the
following steps:
1. In the menu bar, go to Network > Fabrics.
2. Right-click a switch and select View Details.
3. Click Discovered Ports to view a list of unknown ports that are
connected to ports in the fabric.
4. Right-click an unknown port and select Add Server.
5. Enter information about the server or virtual machine and assign ports.
6. Complete the wizard.
After the wizard is complete, the port is removed from the list of
discovered ports and added as a server to the list of related resources for
the fabric.

Help tips in the GUI: To view descriptions of the information that you must enter
for a server, hover the mouse pointer over the related help icons in the wizard.

Restrictions:
v The host name or IP address of an agentless server can be up to 24 characters in
length and must contain valid characters. You can enter the following characters
when you enter a host name or IP address:
– A through Z (uppercase characters)
– a through z (lowercase characters)
– 0 through 9 (numeric characters)
– Special characters: - (minus) . (period)
v If the location of an agentless server exceeds 64 characters, it is truncated when
the server is added. To avoid the truncation, ensure that the location value for
an agentless server is equal to or less than 64 characters in length.

File List:

Add one or more agentless servers by importing configuration information from a

comma-delimited file. IBM Spectrum Control reads the entries in the file and
automatically adds the corresponding servers.

The input file for importing server information can contain entries for one or more
servers. Each line in the file represents a server that you want to add. Information
about each server must be organized in the following format:
host name or IP address,OS type,machine type,location,WWPN

where:
v host name or IP address is required for each server entry. An IP address can be
in an IPv4 or IPv6 format. You must include a host name or IP address for each
server that you want to add. The host name or IP address can be up to 24
characters in length and must contain valid characters. You can enter the
following characters when you enter a host name or IP address:

94 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 – A through Z (uppercase characters)
– a through z (lowercase characters)
– 0 through 9 (numeric characters)
– Special characters: - (minus) . (period)
v OS type is optional and represents the operating system of the server. The OS
type for a server must be one of the following values:
– Windows
– Linux
– AIX
– Solaris
– HP-UX
v Machine type is optional and determines if the server is a physical device or a
virtual machine. The machine type for a server must be one of the following
values:
– Physical
– Virtual
v Location is optional and represents the physical location of the server. If the
location of an agentless server exceeds 64 characters, it is truncated when the
server is added. To avoid the truncation, ensure that the location value for an
agentless server is equal to or less than 64 characters in length.
v WWPN is optional and represents the worldwide port name that is associated with
the server. You can include one or more WWPNs for each server. The value for
World Wide Port Name (WWPN) must be 16 hexadecimal characters in length. If
the WWPN for a server entry is already associated with a server that is being
monitored, that WWPN is not created for the server.
Example
host1,Windows,Virtual,San Jose,2100000056AE45B2,2100000056AE45B3 # Comment
host5,Linux,Physical,London,2100000056EC45A4,21000000565E4FB6
systemxyz.storage.widgets.com,Solaris,,Chicago,21000000567E5FB7
198.51.100.22,HPUX,Virtual,,21000000566E6FB8
2001:DB8:0:0:0:0:0:0,Windows,Physical,Tokyo,21000000569E7FB9

Tip: If you add many servers in the same input file, the adding process might
require some time to complete. To run the process in the background, click Close
on the Add Server window. If you remain on the Servers page, a message is
displayed when the servers are added. If you leave the Servers page during
processing, a message is not displayed. To confirm that the servers were added,
you must go back to the Servers page and refresh the list.

Restrictions

Keep in mind the following restrictions when you import server information from
an input file:
v Each line in the file represents one server.
v Enter a "#" at the beginning of a line to comment out a line. The server on that
line is not added when the list is imported in the add server wizard.
v If there are syntax problems in the file, then none of the servers in the file are
added.

Adding servers with Storage Resource agents

Add servers by deploying Storage Resource agents. Deploy Storage Resource
agents if you want to enable full server monitoring.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 95

 To add a server, you must have Administrator privileges.

For each installation of IBM Spectrum Control, you can deploy only one Storage
Resource agent on each server. If you attempt to deploy additional Storage
Resource agents on a server, the deployments fail.
1. In the menu bar, go to Servers > Servers.
2. Click Add Server.
3. Select Deploy an agent for full server monitoring.
4. Select a method for adding a server. You can choose one of the following
methods:
v Add a server by manually entering information about the server and the
Storage Resource agent.
v Add one or more servers by importing configuration information from a
comma-delimited file.
5. On the Deploy Agent page, configure deployment information for the Storage
Resource agents.
If you add multiple servers with different operating systems, separate
configuration pages are displayed for agents that are deployed on Windows
servers and agents that are deployed on UNIX servers.
6. On the Configure page, schedule the deployment of the Storage Resource
agents.
If you are deploying agents on multiple servers, a time span is calculated
during which the agents are deployed. The agents are deployed at regular
intervals during the time span to avoid excessive load on the IBM Spectrum
Control server.
7. Schedule the time and frequency that probes are run for the servers.
If you add multiple servers, a time span is calculated during which the servers
are probed.
8. To add the servers, click Finish.

A probe is automatically run for a server after the agent is successfully deployed.

Use Agent State on the Servers page to monitor the status of the agent
deployment.

Enabling the default alerts for servers: To enable the default alerts for a resource
so that you are automatically notified when certain conditions are detected, you
must view the alert definitions for that resource. For example, to view the alert
definitions for a server, go to Servers > Servers, right-click a server, and select Edit
Alert Definitions. The default alerts for the server are automatically enabled after
you access the Edit Alert Definitions page.

File List:

Add one or more servers with Storage Resource agents by importing the
configuration information from a comma-delimited file.

The web-based GUI guides you through the following steps for adding servers:
v Select the input file.
v Configure deployment information.
v Schedule the agent deployment and data collection for the servers.

96 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

The comma-delimited file that you use to import the configuration information for
servers can contain entries for a single server or multiple servers. Each line in the
file represents a server that you want to add. The information about each server
must be organized in the following format:
host name or IP address,OS type,location,custom tag 1,custom tag 2,custom tag 3

where:
v host name or IP address is required for each server entry. An IP address can be
in an IPv4 or IPv6 format. A host name or IP address can contain the following
characters or symbols:
– A - Z (uppercase characters)
– a - z (lowercase characters)
– 0 - 9 (numeric characters)
– Symbols: - . : _
v OS type is required and represents the operating system of the server. The OS
type for a server must be one of the following values:
– Windows
– Linux
– AIX
– Solaris
– HP-UX
v location is optional and represents the physical location of the server. The
location value can be up to 64 characters in length. If the length exceeds 64
characters, the location value is truncated when the server is added.
v custom tag 1, custom tag 2, and custom tag 3 are optional and represent any
additional information that you want to provide about the server. The custom
tag values can be up to 64 characters in length. If the length exceeds 64
characters, the custom tag value is truncated when the server is added.

Tip: The custom tags can be displayed on the Servers page or can be included
as report columns when you generate reports for the server.
Example
host1,Windows,San Jose,Accounting department
host5,Linux,London,Finance department
198.51.100.22,HP-UX,,Computing department
2001:DB8:0:0:0:0:0:0,Windows,Tokyo

Tips:
v If the comma-delimited file contains entries for multiple servers, it might take
some time to add the servers. To confirm that the servers are added, check the
Status column on the Servers page.
v To comment out a line, enter a "#" at the beginning of the line. The server on
that line is not added when the list is imported.

Example:
# host1,Windows,San Jose,Accounting department
v If there are syntax problems in the file, none of the servers in the file are added.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 97

Removing resources
Remove resources that you no longer want to monitor with IBM Spectrum Control.
1. In the menu bar, go to the type of resource that you want to remove.

Resource Menu bar

Block storage systems Storage > Block Storage Systems
File storage systems Storage > File Storage Systems
Object storage systems Storage > Object Storage Systems
Servers Servers > Servers
Hypervisors Servers > Hypervisors
Switches Network > Switches
Fabrics Network > Fabrics

2. Right-click the resource and click Remove.

Note: To remove a Cisco fabric, you must remove all the switches in that
fabric. The Cisco fabric is then automatically removed.
3. Click Remove to confirm that you want to remove the resource.

When you remove a resource, it is no longer monitored by IBM Spectrum Control.

All the data that is associated with the resource, including historical data, is
removed from the database. All the scheduled tasks and data collection jobs for the
resource are canceled.

Collecting data
Determining the data that you want to gather about storage resources is critical to
helping you implement a storage management strategy. IBM Spectrum Control
provides different jobs for collecting data. When you determine the types of data
that you want to collect about resources, schedule the corresponding data
collection jobs for those resources.
Table 21. Data collection jobs, resources, and related tasks
Data collection job Resources Related tasks
Storage systems v Schedule a probe when
Probe Use probes to collect
Servers you add a resource for
status, asset,
Hypervisors monitoring.
configuration, and
Fabrics
capacity information v Modify the schedule for a
Switches
about resources. probe at any time on the
list and details pages for a
resource. For example, to
modify the schedule for a
block storage system, go to
the Block Storage Systems
page or the details page
for the block storage
system.

Learn more...

98 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Table 21. Data collection jobs, resources, and related tasks (continued)
Data collection job Resources Related tasks
Block storage systems v Schedule a performance
Performance monitor
File storage systems monitor when you add a
Use performance
Object storage systems resource for monitoring.
monitors to collect
Switches
metrics that v Modify the schedule for a
measure the performance monitor at
performance of any time on the
resources. Performance page, and on
the list and details pages
for the resource.

Learn more...

Collecting asset and status data

Use probes to collect asset, status, and storage data about monitored resources in
your environment. Probes are also used to discover information about new or
removed disks and file systems. You can view information about probes on the
resource list and resource details pages, for example, the Block Storage Systems
page, or the Block Storage Systems details page.

Creating probes
Probes are data collection jobs that collect status and asset information about your
storage resources. You can create probes when you add resources for monitoring or
after you add the resources for monitoring.

You can create probes for one or more resources at the same time.
1. To schedule a probe for a resource, choose one of the following options from
the menu bar

Resource Menu bar

Block storage systems Storage > Block Storage Systems
File storage systems Storage > File Storage Systems
Object storage systems Storage > Object Storage Systems
Servers Servers > Servers
Hypervisors Servers > Hypervisors
Switches Network > Switches
Fabrics Network > Fabrics

Tip: For switches, probes also collect asset and topology information about the
fabrics that include those switches.
2. Locate the resources that you want to probe.
3. Select the resource rows and click Actions > Data Collection > Schedule.
4. On the Data Collection Schedule window, set the probe to Enabled.
5. Enter the time of the data collection, select the frequency, and then click Save.
If you are scheduling probes for multiple resources, a time span is calculated
during which the resources are probed. The resources are probed at different
times during the time span to avoid excessive load on the server. A message is
displayed that confirms that probe schedules are created for the resources.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 99

 Probe schedules are created for the resources that are selected. The probe jobs run
according to the modified schedule. If you disabled the probes, IBM Spectrum
Control stops collecting asset and status data for the monitored resources.

You select three storage systems, storage_system_a, storage_system_b, and

storage_system_c. A probe schedule was defined for storage_system_c, but not for
storage_system_a and storage_system_b. You set the time and frequency fields,
and set the probe to Enabled. When you click Save, probe schedules are created
for storage_system_a and storage_system_b. The probe schedule that was defined
for storage_system_c remains unchanged.

Verifying that a probe is running for a resource

Verify that a probe is running for a resource to ensure that IBM Spectrum Control
is collecting asset and status information about the resource.

To verify that a probe is running for a resource, use the resource list page in the
web-based GUI.
1. From the menu bar, go to a resource list page for a resource type. For example,
to verify that a probe is running for a storage system, go to Storage and select
the type of storage system you want to monitor.
2. Locate the resource that you want to check.
3. View the Probe Status column. A value of Successful or Running indicates that
the probe is collecting asset and status information about the resource. The Last
Successful Probe column shows the most recent date and time when the probe
successfully collected data.
4. Optional: If the Probe Status column shows a status of Failed or Warning,
right-click the resource and click Data Collection > Open Probe Logs to view
the messages in the log file.
5. Optional: If the Probe Status column shows a status of Never probed, right-click
the resource and click Data Collection > Schedule to schedule a probe for the
resource.

Modifying probes
Probes are data collection jobs that collect status and asset information about
monitored resources in your environment. To modify a probe in IBM Spectrum
Control, use the resource list page for the monitored resource in the web-based
GUI.

You can modify the schedule for multiple probes at the same time.
1. From the menu bar, go to the resource list page for a resource type. For
example, to modify a probe schedule for a storage system, go to Storage and
select the type of storage system you want to monitor.
2. Locate the resources that you want to probe.
3. Select the resource rows and click Actions > Data Collection > Schedule.
4. On the Data Collection Schedule window, modify the schedule for the probes,
and click Save.
If you are scheduling probes for multiple resources, a time span is calculated
during which the resources are probed. The resources are probed at different
times during the time span to avoid excessive load on the IBM Spectrum
Control server.
The following rules are used to determine the settings for the probe fields
when you open the Data Collection Schedule window:

100 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 v If probes are enabled for all of the selected resources, the Enabled value is
displayed. If probes are disabled for all of the selected resources, the
Disabled value is displayed. Otherwise, the state field for the probes is
blank.
v For the time and frequency fields, if the selected resources have the same
value for the field, the value is displayed. If the resources have different
values for the field, the field is blank.

The probe jobs run according to the modified schedule. If you disabled the probes,
IBM Spectrum Control stops collecting asset and status data for the monitored
resources.

The changes that you make to the probe schedule are applied to all the resources
that you select. For example, you select two servers with different probe frequency
values. Probes are disabled for both servers. When you open the Data Collection
Schedule window, the probe status field is set to Disabled and the frequency field
is blank. You set the status field to Enabled and the frequency field to Every 2
days. When you click Save, the probe is enabled with the new frequency value for
the two servers that you selected

Configuring alerts for probes

Configure the alert notifications that are generated if a probe fails to run.

You can define alerts for a resource if you want to be notified when the following
conditions occur:
v The status of its probe is error or warning. An error status occurs when a probe
did not complete and no data was collected about a resource. A warning status
occurs when a probe completes, but might not have collected a complete set of
data.
v A specified amount of time has passed since a probe collected data about a
resource. You can use this type of alert to be notified when up-to-date
configuration and status data is not being collected about a resource and its
existing data might be stale.

To define an alert for the probe that collects data about a resource, complete the
following steps:
1. To select a resource, choose one of the following options from the menu bar:

Resource Menu bar

Block storage systems Storage > Block Storage Systems
File storage systems Storage > File Storage Systems
Object storage systems Storage > Object Storage Systems
Servers Servers > Servers
Hypervisors Servers > Hypervisors
Switches Network > Switches
Fabrics Network > Fabrics

2. Right-click a resource in the list and click Edit Alert Definitions.

3. To enable the Probe Status alert for an attribute, click the corresponding switch
icon and select a status to be alerted on. You can use this alert to be
notified when a probe is only collecting partial data about a resource or not
collecting any data.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 101

 4. To enable the Last Successful Probe alert for an attribute, click the
corresponding switch icon and specify how much time can pass before an
alert is generated. You can use this alert to be notified when up-to-date
configuration and status data is not being collected about a resource and its
existing data might be stale.
5. Click Save.

Starting probes
To immediately collect data about resources, use the Start Probe action in the
web-based GUI.

If a probe job is not defined for the resource, use the Schedule action to create a
probe.

You can start probes for multiple resources at the same time.

Tip: When you start a probe for a switch, the probe gathers statistics about the
fabric that the switch is a part of.
1. From the menu bar, go to the resource list page for a resource type. For
example, to start a probe for a storage system, go to Storage and select the type
of storage system you want to monitor.
2. Locate the resources that you want to probe.
3. Select the resource rows and click Actions > Data Collection > Start Probe.
The Start Probe action is available for the resources that you select if at least
one of the resources meets the following criteria:
v A probe job is defined for the resource.
v The probe job is enabled.
v The probe job is not currently running.

The probe status changes to Running.

Probes are started for all the resources that meet the criteria. For example, you
select two storage systems, Storage_System_a and Storage_System_b. Probes are
enabled for both of the storage systems and a probe is running for
Storage_System_a. The probe is started for Storage_System_b when you select Start
Probe. Storage_System_a is not affected by the action because a probe is already
running for the resource.

Viewing probes for a specific resource

You can view information for specific resources on the resource details pages. For
example, use the Storage Systems details page to view the date and time when
data was last collected.
1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to a type of top-level resource. For
example, if you want to view the resource information for a storage system, go
to Storage and select the type of storage system you want to monitor.
2. Locate the resource that you want to view information for.
3. Right-click the resource row and select View Details.
4. In the General section of the resource details page, click Data Collection.

The Data Collection pane is displayed, which contains information about the data
collection jobs that are defined for the resource.

102 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Viewing probe logs
A probe log file is created for each run of a probe on a storage resource. Probe logs
include detailed information about the status, actions, and progress of a probe.
1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to a resource list page for a resource
type. For example, to view the probe logs for a storage system, go to Storage
and select the type of storage system you want to monitor
2. Locate the resource that you want to view.
3. Right-click the resource row, and select Data Collection > Open Probe Logs.

Restriction: If you select multiple rows, the Open Probe Logs action is not
available.
The Logs page opens and shows log entries for the most recent run of the
probe.
4. Optional: On the Logs page, to view a previous probe log, select a log from the
Select a log list.
5. Optional: To view only the log entries that have a Warning or Error status,
select an option from the Show all list. You can choose to view only entries
that have the following statuses:

v Only error entries

v Only warning entries

v Error and warning entries

6. Optional: To view an explanation of the message that is associated with a log
entry, click the link in the ID column.

You can view the following information on the Logs page:

v The overall status of a probe. The icon that is shown in the Select a log list
represents the most critical status that was generated by an action in the job run.
v The status for each probe action.
v The date and time when an action was completed. The date, time, and time zone
of an action is shown in the Date and Time column.
v The description of an action.

Collecting performance data

Before you can monitor the performance of the resources in your environment, you
must collect data about those resources. IBM Spectrum Control uses performance
monitors to collect metrics for measuring the performance of storage systems and
switches. Use the Performance Monitors page to view and manage performance
monitors and to track threshold violations.

You must schedule and run performance monitors before you can complete other
tasks, such as optimizing storage tiering, balancing pools, and running
performance reports.

Before you can view performance information for resources, you must complete
the following tasks:
v Add the storage system or switch for monitoring by IBM Spectrum Control.
v Schedule a performance monitor to collect performance data about the resource.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 103

 v Define a performance alert so that you are notified when the performance of a
resource might represent a potential problem. For example, you can define an
alert threshold that notifies you when the total I/O port rate for a storage
system falls outside a specified range.

The performance information that is gathered by IBM Spectrum Control includes

metrics that measure the performance of volumes, ports, and disks. You can view
performance metrics on resource list and detail pages for switches and storage
systems. For example, you can view performance metrics that are related to
switches in the Performance tab on the Switches page.

Creating performance monitors

Performance monitors are data collection jobs that collect metrics for measuring the
performance of storage systems and switches. You can create performance monitors
in the web-based GUI when you add resources for monitoring or at a later time.

To create performance monitors, you must have Administrator privileges.

To create performance monitors for resources in your environment, you can use the
list and detail pages for the resources. For example, to create performance monitors
for switches, use the Switches page. You can create performance monitors for
multiple resources at the same time.

Restrictions:
v You can define only one performance monitor for a resource.
v You can create performance monitors for the following resources only:
– Storage systems
– Switches that are managed by a CIM agent
1. From the menu bar, go to a resource list page for a resource type. For example,
to create performance monitors for storage systems, go to Storage and select
the type of storage system you want to monitor.
2. Locate the resources that you want to monitor.
3. Select the resource rows and click Actions > Data Collection > Schedule.
4. On the Data Collection Schedule window, set the performance monitors to
Enabled. You can set a performance monitor to Enabled only if the probe is set
to Enabled.
5. Select the interval for the performance monitors, and click Save. The interval
represents the number of minutes over which samples of performance data are
averaged. If you are creating performance monitors for multiple resources, the
interval list displays the performance monitor intervals that are common to all
resources. For example, you select two storage systems. Storage_System_a
specifies performance monitor intervals of 5 minutes, 10 minutes, and 15
minutes. Storage_System_b specifies intervals of 10 minutes, 15 minutes, and 20
minutes. The interval list displays intervals of 10 minutes and 15 minutes.

Restrictions:

Note the following restrictions when you create performance monitors:

a. If you specify a 1-minute interval for performance monitors, data collection
samples might be inconsistent lengths. The inconsistent lengths occur
because it might take longer than 1 minute to collect the data on some
systems. The inconsistent lengths can cause the data in the historical line
chart to be misleading. This problem can also occur for the 5-minute
summary chart when a 1-minute interval was specified for data collection.
104 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
 Check the messages in the job log to determine the length of time that data
collection takes for a resource. If the data collection takes longer than 1
minute, consider changing the interval to 5 minutes. You can use a 1-minute
interval when you want to troubleshoot a resource.
b. If you specify a 1-minute interval, the amount of data that is stored in the
database repository increases significantly. IBM Spectrum Control stores
only 7 days of sample data that is collected at 1-minute intervals.

Performance monitors are created for the resources that are selected, and that meet
the criteria. For example, you select three storage systems, Storage_System_a,
Storage_System_b, and Storage_System_c. You enable the performance monitors
and set the interval field. When you click Save, performance monitors are created
for Storage_System_a and Storage_System_b. Storage_System_c is not affected by
the action because you cannot configure performance monitors for that storage
system.

If a successful probe run is completed for a resource, the performance monitor

runs according to the defined interval.

To check the progress of a performance monitor, you can complete the following
actions:
v From the resource list page, right-click a resource row, and select Data
Collection > Open Performance Monitor Logs. You can view detailed
informational, warning, and error messages that are related to the performance
monitor. Use this information to troubleshoot any errors that might occur when
the performance monitor runs.
v View the Performance Monitor Status column on the resource list page.

Verifying that a performance monitor is running for a resource

Verify that a performance monitor is running for a resource to ensure that IBM
Spectrum Control is collecting performance metrics about the resource. Use
performance monitors to collect metrics about the performance of storage systems
and switches.

To verify that a performance monitor is running for a resource, use the resource list
page in the web-based GUI.
1. From the menu bar, go to a resource list page for a resource type. For example,
to verify that a performance monitor is running for a storage system, go to
Storage and select the type of storage system you want to monitor.
2. Locate the resource that you want to check.
3. View the Performance Monitor Status column. A value of Completed or
Running indicates that the performance monitor is collecting performance
metrics about the resource. The Last Successful Monitor column shows the
most recent date and time when the performance monitor successfully collected
data.
4. Optional: If the Performance Monitor Status column shows a status of Running
with problems, Completed with warnings, Failed, or Canceled, you can view
the logs to troubleshoot the error or warning messages. To view the
performance monitor logs, right-click the resource row and click Data
Collection > Open Performance Monitor Logs.
5. Optional: If the Performance Monitor Status column shows a status of Disabled,
to enable the performance monitor for the resource, right-click the resource row
and click Data Collection > Schedule. On the Data Collection Schedule page,
select Enabled.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 105

 Tip: You can set the performance monitor to Enabled only if the probe is set to
Enabled. If a probe is set to Disabled, the performance monitor cannot run.

Modifying performance monitors

To modify all of the performance monitors that are used by IBM Spectrum Control,
use the Performance Monitors page in the web-based GUI. To modify performance
monitors for specific resources, use the resource list and resource detail pages.

To modify performance monitors, you must have Administrator privileges.

You can modify the schedule for multiple performance monitors at the same time.

You can enable or disable performance monitors and modify the interval. The
interval represents the number of minutes over which samples of performance data
are averaged.
1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to Home > Performance Monitors.
Detailed information about all performance monitors is shown in the
Performance Monitors tab.
2. Locate the performance monitors that you want to modify.
3. Select the performance monitor rows and click Actions > Schedule.
4. On the Data Collection Schedule window, modify the schedule for the
performance monitors.
If you select multiple performance monitors, the following rules are used to
determine the field settings when you open the Data Collection Schedule
window:
v If all of the performance monitors that you select are enabled, the Enabled
value is displayed. If all of the performance monitors are disabled, the
Disabled value is displayed. Otherwise, the state field for the performance
monitors is blank.
v If the performance monitors have different interval values, the interval field
is blank. If the performance monitors have the same interval value, the value
is displayed.
Intervals that are common to all performance monitors that you select are
displayed in the interval list. For example, you select performance monitors
for two storage systems. Storage_System_a specifies performance monitor
intervals of 5 minutes, 10 minutes, and 15 minutes. Storage_System_b
specifies intervals of 10 minutes, 15 minutes, and 20 minutes. The interval list
displays intervals of 10 minutes and 15 minutes.
5. Click Save.

The changes are applied to all the performance monitors that are selected. The
performance monitors run according to the modified schedule. If you disabled a
performance monitor, IBM Spectrum Control stops collecting performance metrics
for the storage system or switch.

To check the progress of the performance monitors, you can complete the
following actions on the Performance Monitors page:
v View information such as the status of the performance monitor and the most
recent date and time when performance data was collected about a resource.
v Right-click the performance monitor row, and select Open Logs. You can view
detailed informational, warning, and error messages that are related to the
performance monitor job. Use this information to troubleshoot any errors that
might occur when the job runs.

106 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Configuring alerts for performance monitors
Configure the alert notifications that are generated if a performance monitor fails
to run.

You can define alerts for a storage system or switch if you want to be notified
when the following conditions occur:
v The status of its performance monitor is error or warning. An error status occurs
when a performance monitor did not complete and no performance data was
collected about a resource. A warning status occurs when a performance monitor
completes, but might not have collected a complete set of performance data.
v A specified amount of time has passed since a performance monitor collected
data about a resource. You can use this type of alert to be notified when
up-to-date performance data is not being collected about a resource and its
existing data might be stale.

To define an alert for the probe that collects data about a resource, complete the
following steps:
1. To select a resource, choose one of the following options from the menu bar:

Resource Menu bar

Block storage systems Storage > Block Storage Systems
File storage systems Storage > File Storage Systems
Switches Network > Switches

2. Right-click a resource in the list and click Edit Alert Definitions.

3. To enable the Performance Monitor Status alert for an attribute, click the
corresponding switch icon and select a status to be alerted on. You can
use this alert to be notified when a performance monitor is only collecting
partial data about a resource or not collecting any data.
4. To enable the Last Successful Monitor alert for an attribute, click the
corresponding switch icon and specify how much time can pass before an
alert is generated. You can use this alert to be notified when up-to-date
performance data is not being collected about a resource and its existing data
might be stale.
5. Click Save.

Starting and stopping performance monitors

To start or stop performance monitors for storage systems and switches, use the
Performance Monitors page in the web-based GUI.

To start or stop performance monitors, you must have Administrator privileges.

You can start or stop performance monitors for multiple resources at the same
time.

Restriction: A successful probe must be completed on the resource before a

performance monitor can start. If a successful probe is not run, you cannot start
the performance monitor for the resource.
1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to Home > Performance Monitors.
2. Click the Performance Monitors tab.
3. Locate the performance monitors that you want to start or stop.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 107

 4. Select the performance monitor rows and click Actions > Start or Actions >
Stop.

Performance monitors are started or stopped for all the resources that meet the
criteria. For example, you select two storage systems, Storage_System_a and
Storage_System_b. Performance monitors are enabled for the storage systems and
both resources are probed. A performance monitor is running for Storage_System_a
but not for Storage_System_b. The performance monitor is started for
Storage_System_b when you select Start. Storage_System_a is not affected by the
action because a performance monitor is already running for the resource.

Starting or stopping a performance monitor has the following effects:

Start Starting a performance monitor starts the immediate collection of data
from the monitored resource. The status of the performance monitor
changes to Running.
Stop Stopping a performance monitor stops the collection of performance data
from the resource. If a performance monitor is running, it stops.
Performance data is not collected from the resource until you restart the
performance monitor. The status of the performance monitor changes to
Canceled.

To check the progress of the performance monitor, you can complete the following
actions on the Performance Monitors page:
v View information such as the status of the performance monitor and the total
number of threshold violations that were detected during the last sampled time
of the performance monitor.
v Right-click the performance monitor row, and select Open Logs. You can view
detailed informational, warning, and error messages that are related to the
performance monitor. Use this information to troubleshoot any errors that might
occur when the performance monitor runs.

Viewing performance monitors

To view all of the performance monitors that IBM Spectrum Control uses to collect
metrics for measuring the performance of resources, use the Performance Monitors
page. To view the performance monitors for specific resources, use resource list
and resource details pages.

Viewing all performance monitors:

To view all of the performance monitors that IBM Spectrum Control uses to collect
metrics for measuring the performance of storage systems and switches, use the
Performance Monitors page in the web-based GUI.

The Performance Monitors page displays one row for each storage system or
switch that IBM Spectrum Control is monitoring. If a performance monitor is not
scheduled for a resource, the status column is set to Disabled for the performance
monitor row.

Before IBM Spectrum Control can collect performance metrics for a resource, the
resource must fulfill the following conditions:
v A probe must be run for the resource.
v For switches, the switch must be managed by a CIM agent.
1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to Home > Performance Monitors.
On the Performance Monitors tab, the information about performance monitors

108 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 is organized into columns. These columns include the status of performance
monitors, the names of the monitored resources, and the most recent dates and
times when data was successfully collected.
2. Optional: View the status icons at the top of the page to view a summary of
performance monitor statuses. This summary includes the number of
performance monitors that have a Running, Running with problems, Failed, or
Not Running status.

Viewing performance monitors for specific resources:

To view the performance monitors for specific storage systems and switches, use
the resource detail pages in the web-based GUI. For example, use the Storage
Systems detail page to view performance monitor information for a specific storage
system.

If performance monitor information is not displayed on the resource detail page,

this indicates that the resource does not support the collection of performance
metrics by IBM Spectrum Control.
1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to a type of top-level resource. For
example, if you want to view the performance monitor for a storage system, go
to Storage and select the type of storage system you want to monitor.
2. Right-click a resource in the list, and select View Details. The resource detail
page is displayed.
In the General section, the number next to Data Collection represents the
number of data collection jobs that are associated with the resource. For
example, Data Collection (2) indicates that you can view a performance
monitor and a probe for the resource.
The icon next to the Data Collection link represents the most critical status of
the data collection jobs that are associated with the resource. For example, if a
job failed, the following icon is shown:

Data Collection (2)

3. In the General section, click Data Collection to view information about the
performance monitor for the switch or storage system. On the Data Collection
pane, you can view information such as the status of the most recent run of a
performance monitor, the performance monitor interval, and the most recent
data and time that data was successfully collected.

Tip: You can use the columns on the resource list pages to view information
about the performance monitors that are defined for storage systems or
switches. For example, use the Storage Systems page to view performance
monitor information for storage systems.

Viewing performance monitors logs:

Use performance monitor logs to view detailed information about the status,
actions, and progress of a performance monitor. You can use this information to
troubleshoot any errors that might occur when a performance monitor is running.

Performance monitor logs contain informational, warning, and error messages that
are related to each action that is taken during the processing of a performance
monitor.
1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to Home > Performance Monitors.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 109

 2. In the Performance Monitors tab, locate the performance monitor that you
want to view.
3. Right-click the performance monitor row, and select Open Logs.

Restriction: If you select multiple rows, the Open Logs action is not available.
The Logs page opens and shows log entries for the most recent performance
monitor log. A new log file is created when you stop and restart a performance
monitor.
4. Optional: On the Logs page, to view a previous performance monitor log, select
a log from the Select a log list.
5. Optional: To view only the log entries that have a Warning or Error status,
select an option from the Show all list. You can choose to view only entries
that have the following statuses:

v Only error entries

v Only warning entries

v Error and warning entries

6. Optional: To view an explanation of the message that is associated with a log
entry, click the link in the ID column.

The information on the Logs page is automatically updated every 30 seconds. New
entries are added to the end of a log. You can view the following information on
the Logs page:
v The overall status of a performance monitor. The icon that is shown in the Select
a log list represents the most critical status that was generated by an action in
the job run.
v The status for each performance monitor action.
v The date and time when an action was completed. The date, time, and time zone
of an action is shown in the Date and Time column.
v The ID of the message that is associated with an action. You can click the value
in the ID column to view more information about a message.
v The description of an action.

Tip: You can use the navigation and search functions of the web browser to locate
information on the page.

Collecting information about shares on storage systems

To collect information about shares in file systems, you must modify the
TPCD.config file. When you provision shares, you can then view such information
as the name of the share, the name of the file system, and the protocols that are
used to share files.

Set the saveNonRoot parameter to saveNonRoot=1 in the TPCD.config file to view the
information that is collected about shares in the web-based GUI.
1. Open the TPCD.config file.
For Windows operating systems:
By default, the TPCD.config file is in the TPC_installation_directory\
data\config\ directory.

110 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 For Linux or UNIX operating systems:
By default, the TPCD.config file is in the TPC_installation_directory/
data/config/ directory.

Where TPC_installation_directory is where IBM Spectrum Control is installed.

2. In the [server] section of the TPCD.config file, change the value of the
saveNonRoot parameter to 1 as shown in the following example:
saveNonRoot=1
3. Save the TPCD.config file.
4. Restart the Data server.

When you provision new shares, you can view information about the shares on the
Provisioning task page in the web-based GUI. On the Shares page, you can view
more information about shares, such as the servers that have access to the share.

Alerting and event processing

Determining when and how you are alerted to configuration and performance
conditions within your storage environment is important to helping you maintain
and administer storage resources. Many conditions can trigger alerts. You can set
up IBM Spectrum Control so that it examines the attributes, capacity, and
performance of a resource and notifies you when changes or violations are
detected.

Conditions that generate alerts are detected during data collection and event
processing. For some storage systems such as IBM Spectrum Accelerate and the
XIV, events are polled every minute from the resource. For IBM Spectrum Scale,
status change events are polled frequently, typically within minutes. For other
resources, events are subscription-based, where the resource itself or a data source
such as a CIM agent sends the events to IBM Spectrum Control when conditions
change on the resource.

Examples of storage systems that use subscription-based event processing include

SAN Volume Controller, Storwize V7000, Storwize V7000 Unified, FlashSystem
V840, and FlashSystem V9000. For these storage systems, a probe is automatically
run when many events are received from the storage system in a short time
period. To avoid performance bottlenecks, probes are run only every 20 minutes.

The conditions that trigger alert notifications depend on the type of resource that
you are monitoring. In general, the following types of conditions can trigger alerts:
v An attribute or configuration of a resource changed
v The capacity of a resource fell outside a specified range
v The performance of a resource fell outside a specified range
v The storage infrastructure was changed, such as a new or removed resource
v Data is not being collected for a resource

For a list of conditions that can trigger alerts, see “Triggering conditions for alerts”
on page 252.

Defining alerts

To set up alert definitions so that you are notified when certain conditions are
detected on monitored resources, you must complete the following tasks:

Chapter 5. Managing resources 111

Tasks Learn more
Adding resources for monitoring by IBM Spectrum “Adding resources” on page 75
Control.
Enabling the default alert definitions for a resource. To enable the default alerts for a resource so that you are
automatically notified when certain conditions are
detected, you must view the alert definitions for that
resource. For example, to view the alert definitions for a
block storage system, go to Storage > Block Storage
Systems, right-click a storage system, and select Edit
Alert Definitions. The default alerts are automatically
enabled.
Specifying the conditions that trigger alerts. “Defining alerts” on page 113
Configuring how you are notified when alert conditions “Viewing and modifying alert notification settings” on
are detected. page 124
Collecting data about resources. Some alerts are triggered when conditions are detected
during data collection. To detect when the status,
configuration, or capacity of a resource changes, run
probes. To detect when the performance of a resource
falls outside a specified range, run performance
monitors.

“Collecting data” on page 98

Tip: Probes and performance monitors can be scheduled

when you add resources for monitoring.

Viewing and managing alerts and alert definitions

After alert definitions are set up and alerts are being triggered, you can complete
the following tasks to manage those alert definitions and triggered alerts:

Tasks Learn more

Viewing, acknowledging, exporting, and removing alerts. v “Viewing all alerts” on page 127
For alerts that are triggered by performance threshold
v “Removing alerts” on page 130
violations, you can view a chart of the historical
performance of the resource that violated a threshold. v “Acknowledging alerts” on page 129
Disabling alert definitions. You can disable an alert definition so that the associated
condition no longer generates alerts when it is detected.
For example, to disable an alert for a block storage
system, go to the Storage > Block Storage Systems page,
right-click a storage system, and select Edit Alert
Definitions. Click the switch icon next to a definition to
disable it: . For more information, see “Disabling or
enabling alert definitions” on page 122.

Related tasks:
“Adding resources” on page 75
You must add resources to IBM Spectrum Control before you can collect data,
generate reports, and manage storage that is related to those resources.
Related reference:

112 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 “Triggering conditions for alerts” on page 252
Define alerts so that IBM Spectrum Control automatically notifies you when certain
conditions or events are detected on monitored resources. Such conditions are the
triggering conditions for the alert. The specific conditions that can trigger alerts
depend on the type of resource that is being monitored.

Alert severities
IBM Spectrum Control determines the severity of alert conditions that it detects on
monitored resources. Use the severity level to help determine the priority in which
you resolve alerts.

Each severity is represented by an icon in the web-based GUI.

Icon Status Description

Critical An alert with a Critical severity represents a serious
problem on a resource or on its internal resources. Resolve
these problems as soon as possible. Review the condition
that triggered an alert for more information about the
problem.
Critical - An alert with a Critical severity was acknowledged. A
Acknowledged Critical - Acknowledged severity indicates that an alert was
reviewed and is either resolved or can be ignored.
Warning An alert with a Warning severity represents potential
problems on a resource or on its internal resources. Resolve
these problems after you fix any critical alerts. Review the
condition that triggered an alert for more information about
the problem.
Warning - An alert with a Warning severity was acknowledged. A
Acknowledged Warning - Acknowledged severity indicates that an alert
was reviewed and is either resolved or can be ignored.
Informational An alert with an Informational severity does not represent
a problem, but is intended to provide information about
actions related to a resource.
Informational - An alert with an Informational severity was acknowledged.
Acknowledged An Informational - Acknowledged severity indicates that an
alert was reviewed and can be ignored.

Defining alerts
Define how and when you are alerted to changes in the configuration, attributes,
and performance of monitored resources.

Defining alerts for attribute and capacity changes

You can define alerts that are triggered when the attributes or capacity of a
resource changes. Attributes represent the key properties and configuration of a
resource, such as status, versions, removals, discoveries, and data collection status.
Capacity represents storage statistics such as available and used space, total space
for disk, file systems, volumes, and pools, and reserved space.
1. To select a resource, choose one of the following options from the menu bar:

Resource Menu bar

Block storage systems Storage > Block Storage Systems
File storage systems Storage > File Storage Systems

Chapter 5. Managing resources 113

 Resource Menu bar
Object storage systems Storage > Object Storage Systems
Servers Servers > Servers
Hypervisors Servers > Hypervisors
Switches Network > Switches
Fabrics Network > Fabrics

2. Right-click a resource in the list and click Edit Alert Definitions.

3. Click the type of resource that you want to alert on. You can alert on one or
more attributes of the resource itself, its internal resources, or a combination of
both. For example, for a switch, you can alert on the attributes of the switch
itself, and on the attributes of its blades, inter-switch connections, and ports.
4. Click the category of the attributes that you want to alert on.

Category Description
General Attributes for the key properties of a
resource, such as status, version changes,
removals, discoveries, state, and data
collection status.
Capacity Attributes for capacity statistics of a
resource, such as available and used space,
total space for disk, file systems, volumes,
and pools, and reserved space.
Performance Attributes for the performance of storage
systems and switches, such as I/O rates,
data rates, response times, and port frame
rates.

5. To enable the alert for an attribute, click the corresponding switch icon .

Tip: To disable the alert for an attribute, click the switch icon again.
When you disable an alert, notifications are not generated for that attribute.
6. Specify the criteria for generating an alert. Use criteria such as greater than or
equal to, less than or equal to, storage values, and time measurements to
customize the conditions under which attributes generate alerts. For example,
for a capacity attribute such as Available Disk Space, you can specify that an
alert is generated when the amount of available space on a resource's disks is
less than or equal to 50 GiB. The operator (less than or equal to) + a specified
amount of space (50) + the unit of measurement (GiB) is the criteria that
determines if an alert is generated.

Tips:
v Not all attributes require criteria for generating alerts. The category and
type of an attribute determines whether you can specify criteria and the
options that you can select.
v Some attributes can use the operators such as is, is not, and contains. For
example, for the Firmware attribute on a DS8000 storage system, select the
operator contains. Then, in the value field, type R5 to be notified if the
firmware is at the R5 level rather than at a later version such as R6.3, R6.2,
or R6.3. This alert definition might be useful if you want to be notified
when the firmware for a storage system was reverted to a previous version
for some reason.

114 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 7. Assign a severity to an alert. Assigning a severity can help you more quickly
identify and address the critical conditions that are detected on resources. The
severity that you assign depends on the guidelines and procedures within
your organization. Default assignments are provided for each alert.

Option Description
Assign this severity to alerts that might not
require any action to resolve and are
primarily for informational purposes. For
example, assign an informational severity to
alerts that are generated when a new pool is
added to a storage system.
Assign this severity to alerts that are not
critical, but represent potential problems. For
example, assign a warning severity to alerts
that notify you when the status of a data
collection job is not normal.
Assign this severity to alerts that are critical
and need to be resolved. For example, assign
a critical severity to alerts that notify you
when the amount of available space on a file
system falls below a specified threshold.

8. Specify how you are notified of alert violations and if you want a script
to be run.

9. Specify how often you are notified of alerts.

Option Description
Do not suppress alerts Receive alert notifications whenever an alert
violation is detected.
Only alert once until problem clears Receive one notification for an alert
violation, even if the condition is violated
multiple times.
Only generate alerts every Receive one notification when an alert is
initially violated. The alert is suppressed and
no notifications are sent until both the
specified time has passed and the alert is
triggered again.
Do not alert until the condition is violated Do not receive notifications for an alert
for more than unless the violation is not cleared for longer
than the specified time.

10. Optional: Duplicate an alert. Use this action when you want to define
another alert for the same attribute but with different criteria and settings.
Duplicating alerts can be helpful in the following situations:
v When you want to generate separate warning alerts and critical alerts for
different conditions on the same attribute.
For example, for a capacity attribute such as Available Disk Space, you
might want to define the following alerts:

– Define a warning alert to be generated when the amount of

available space on a resource's disks is less than or equal to 50 GiB.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 115

 – Duplicate the alert, but this time, specify a critical severity when the
amount of available space on a resource's disks is less than or equal to 10
GiB.
v When you want to send alert notifications to different people based on the
severity of an alert.
In the previous example for the Available Disk Space attribute, you can
configure the notification settings so that warning alerts are sent to
junior administrators, while critical alerts are sent to more senior
administrators to resolve.
11. Click Save.

Conditions that generate alerts are detected during data collection and event
processing. For some storage systems such as IBM Spectrum Accelerate and the
XIV, events are polled every minute from the resource. For IBM Spectrum Scale,
status change events are polled frequently, typically within minutes. For other
resources, events are subscription-based, where the resource itself or a data source
such as a CIM agent sends the events to IBM Spectrum Control when conditions
change on the resource.

You can view information about alert violations at the following locations in the
GUI:
Table 22. Locations where you can view alert violations for attribute and capacity alerts.
Task Location in GUI
View all alerts In the menu bar, select Home > Alerts.
View all the alerts that were 1. In the menu bar, select one of the following options:
generated for storage systems
v Storage > Block Storage Systems
v Storage > File Storage Systems
v Storage > Object Storage Systems
2. Click the Alerts tab.
View the alerts for a specific 1. In the menu bar, choose one of the following options:
storage system
v Storage > Block Storage Systems
v Storage > File Storage Systems
2. Double-click a storage system.
3. Click Alerts in the General section.
View all the alerts that were 1. In the menu bar, select Network > Switches.
generated for switches
2. Click the Alerts tab.
View the alerts for a specific 1. In the menu bar, select Network > Switches.
switch
2. Double-click a switch.
3. Click Alerts in the General section.
View all the alerts that were 1. In the menu bar, select Network > Fabrics.
generated for fabrics
2. Click the Alerts tab.
View the alerts for a specific 1. In the menu bar, select Network > Fabrics.
fabric
2. Double-click a fabric.
3. Click Alerts in the General section.
View all the alerts that were 1. In the menu bar, select Servers > Hypervisors.
generated for hypervisors
2. Click the Alerts tab.

116 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 22. Locations where you can view alert violations for attribute and capacity
alerts (continued).
Task Location in GUI
View the alerts for a specific 1. In the menu bar, select Servers > Hypervisors.
hypervisor
2. Double-click a hypervisor.
3. Click Alerts in the General section.
View all the alerts that were 1. In the menu bar, select Servers > Servers.
generated for servers
2. Click the Alerts tab.
View the alerts for a specific 1. In the menu bar, select Servers > Servers.
server
2. Double-click a server.
3. Click Alerts in the General section.

Defining alerts for performance metrics

You can define alerts that are triggered when the performance of a storage system
or switch falls outside a specified threshold.

To define a performance alert, select a metric that you want to measure and specify
a threshold value. When the performance of that resource falls outside the
threshold, an alert is generated. For example, you can define an alert that notifies
you when the back-end response times for managed disks on a SAN Volume
Controller exceed 35 milliseconds per read operation. The Overall Back-end
Response Time is a metric that measures the average number of milliseconds that
it takes to service each read operation on a managed disk.

Tip: You cannot apply different thresholds to internal resources of the same type.
For example, a storage system has two ports, Port A and Port B. You cannot set
different threshold values for each port on the storage system. When you define a
performance alert for ports, its threshold value is applied to all of the ports on the
storage system.
1. To select a resource, choose one of the following options from the menu bar:

Resource Menu bar

Block storage systems Storage > Block Storage Systems
File storage systems Storage > File Storage Systems
Switches Network > Switches

2. Right-click a resource in the list and click Edit Alert Definitions.

3. Click the type of resource that you want to alert on. You can alert on the
performance of the resource itself, its internal resources, or a combination of
both. For example, for a switch, you can alert on the performance of the
switch itself, and on the performance of its inter-switch connections and ports.
4. Click Performance.
5. Click Add Metrics.
6. Select one or more metrics to alert on and click OK. Metrics are available for
measuring and alerting on the performance of volumes, ports, and disks. The
type of storage system or switch determines the metrics that you can select.
7. To enable the alert for a performance metric, click the corresponding switch
icon .

Chapter 5. Managing resources 117

 Tip: To disable the alert for a performance metric, click the switch icon
again. When you disable an alert, notifications are not generated for that
metric.
8. Specify the criteria for generating an alert. Criteria includes an operator and a
threshold value.
a. Select an operator. An operator determines if an alert is triggered when the
performance of a resource is greater than or equal to or less than or
equal to the specified threshold value.
b. Enter a threshold value. For example, to trigger an alert if the Total I/O
Rate for a storage system is greater than or equal to 500 ops/s, enter the
value 500.

Tips for threshold values:

v IBM Spectrum Control provides recommended values for threshold
values that do not vary much between environments. For example, the
default threshold values for Port Send Bandwidth Percentage are greater
than or equal to 75% for warning alerts, and greater than or equal to
85% for critical alerts.
However, for metrics that measure throughput and response times,
thresholds can vary because of workload, model of hardware, amount of
cache memory, and other factors. In these cases, there are no
recommended values. To help determine threshold values for a resource,
collect performance data over time to establish a baseline of the normal
and expected performance behavior for that resource. After you
determine a set of baseline values, define alerts to trigger if the
measured performance behavior falls outside the normally expected
range.
v For some metrics, lower values might indicate more stress and higher
values might indicate idle behavior. For example, a lower threshold
value for the Cache Holding Time Threshold metric might indicate a
performance problem.
9. Assign a severity to an alert. Assigning a severity can help you more quickly
identify and address the critical performance conditions that are detected on
resources. The severity that you assign depends on the guidelines and
procedures within your organization. Default assignments are provided for
each alert.

Option Description
Assign this severity to alerts that might not
require any action to resolve and are
primarily for informational purposes.
Assign this severity to alerts that are not
critical, but represent potential problems. For
example, assign a warning severity to alerts
that notify you when the Port Send
Bandwidth Percentage is greater than or
equal to 75% but less than 85%.
Assign this severity to alerts that are critical
and need to be resolved. For example, assign
a critical severity to alerts that notify you
when the Port Send Bandwidth Percentage
is greater than or equal to 85%.

118 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

10. Evaluate the current and historical performance of a resource to help
determine the threshold value for an alert. In the performance chart, a yellow
horizontal line represents the threshold value for warning alerts; a red
horizontal line represents the threshold value for critical alerts.
a. To customize the chart, click Top 10 or Bottom 10 to show resources
according to their performance, click a time period, and change the start
and end dates for the data that is displayed.
b. To filter any violations when a performance threshold for a related alert is
reached, select the check box to ignore that condition. Specify a threshold
value for the related alert.
11. Click Done.

12. Specify how you are notified of alert violations and if you want a script
to be run.

13. Specify how often you are notified of alerts.

Option Description
Do not suppress alerts Receive alert notifications whenever an alert
violation is detected.
Only alert once until problem clears Receive one notification for an alert
violation, even if the condition is violated
multiple times.
Only generate alerts every Receive one notification when an alert is
initially violated. The alert is suppressed and
no notifications are sent until both the
specified time has passed and the alert is
triggered again.
Do not alert until the condition is violated Do not receive notifications for an alert
for more than unless the violation is not cleared for longer
than the specified time.

14. Optional: Duplicate an alert. Use this action when you want to define
another alert for the same metric but with different criteria and settings.
Duplicating alerts can be helpful in the following situations:
v When you want to generate separate warning alerts and critical alerts for
different thresholds on the same metric.
For example, for the CRC Error Rate metric for ports, you might want to
define the following alerts:

– Define a warning alert to be generated when the number of frames

per second that are received with cyclic redundancy check (CRC) errors
is greater than or equal to .01 counts per second.

– Duplicate the alert, but this time, specify a critical severity when the
CRC error rate is greater than or equal to .033 counts per second.
v When you want to send alert notifications to different people based on the
severity of an alert.
In the previous example for the CRC Error Rate metric, you can configure
the notification settings so that warning alerts are sent to junior
administrators, while critical alerts are sent to more senior administrators to
resolve.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 119

 15. Click Save.

To determine whether alerts are generated, the performance metrics that are
collected for resources are compared with the threshold values that you defined for
those alerts. You can view information about alert violations at the following
locations in the GUI:
Table 23. Locations where you can view alert violations for performance metrics.
Task Location in GUI
View all the alerts that were 1. In the menu bar, choose one of the following options:
generated for storage systems
v Storage > Block Storage Systems
v Storage > File Storage Systems
2. Click the Alerts tab.
View all the alerts that were 1. In the menu bar, select Network > Switches.
generated for switches
2. Click the Alerts tab.
View the alerts for a specific 1. In the menu bar, choose one of the following options:
storage system
v Storage > Block Storage Systems
v Storage > File Storage Systems
2. Double-click a storage system.
3. Click Alerts in the General section.
View the alerts for a specific 1. In the menu bar, select Network > Switches.
switch
2. Double-click a switch.
3. Click Alerts in the General section.
View all performance alerts 1. In the menu bar, select Home > Alerts.
2. Click the performance icon on the summary chart.

Tip: If a performance monitor is already collecting data about a resource when

you add, modify, or remove a performance alert for that resource, changes are
applied dynamically. You do not have to stop and restart the performance monitor
to apply the changes. A confirmation message is recorded in the log of the
performance monitor when the alert is updated.

Suppressing alerts
Use suppression options to determine how often you receive alerts.

To specify a suppression option for an alert definition, complete the following

steps:
1. To select a resource, choose one of the following options from the menu bar:

Resource Menu bar

Block storage systems Storage > Block Storage Systems
File storage systems Storage > File Storage Systems
Object storage systems Storage > Object Storage Systems
Servers Servers > Servers
Hypervisors Servers > Hypervisors
Switches Network > Switches
Fabrics Network > Fabrics

120 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 2. Right-click a resource in the list and click Edit Alert Definitions.

3. To suppress notifications for an alert, click the suppression icon . Specify

how often you are notified of alerts.

Option Description
Do not suppress alerts Receive alert notifications whenever an alert
violation is detected.
Only alert once until problem clears Receive one notification for an alert
violation, even if the condition is violated
multiple times.
Only generate alerts every Receive one notification when an alert is
initially violated. The alert is suppressed and
no notifications are sent until both the
specified time has passed and the alert is
triggered again.
Do not alert until the condition is violated Do not receive notifications for an alert
for more than unless the violation is not cleared for longer
than the specified time.

4. Click Done.
5. Click Save.

Tip: If a performance monitor is already collecting data about a resource when

you add, modify, or remove a performance alert definition for that resource,
changes are applied dynamically. You do not have to stop and restart the
performance monitor to apply the changes. A confirmation message is recorded
in the log of the performance monitor when the alert is updated.

Viewing and modifying alert definitions

View and modify the attributes and conditions that trigger alerts for resources and
the notification settings for those conditions.

Viewing alert definitions for a resource

View the attributes, triggering conditions, notification settings, suppression
settings, and threshold values that are defined in alerts.

To view an alert definition, complete the following steps:

1. To select a resource, choose one of the following options from the menu bar:

Resource Menu bar

Block storage systems Storage > Block Storage Systems
File storage systems Storage > File Storage Systems
Object storage systems Storage > Object Storage Systems
Servers Servers > Servers
Hypervisors Servers > Hypervisors
Switches Network > Switches
Fabrics Network > Fabrics

2. Right-click a resource in the list and click Edit Alert Definitions.

3. Click a category to view the alert definitions for that category. For example,
click Performance or Capacity to view the performance and capacity alerts that

Chapter 5. Managing resources 121

 are defined for a resource. Click a resource category, such as Volumes, to view
all the alerts that are defined for that resource.

4. Optional: View how you are notified of alert violations and if a script is
specified.
5. Optional: Evaluate the current and historical performance of a resource. In
the performance chart, a yellow horizontal line represents the threshold value
for warning alerts; a red horizontal line represents the threshold value for
critical alerts.

6. Optional: View how often you are notified of alerts.

Option Description
Do not suppress alerts Receive alert notifications whenever an alert
violation is detected.
Only alert once until problem clears Receive one notification for an alert
violation, even if the condition is violated
multiple times.
Only generate alerts every Receive one notification when an alert is
initially violated. The alert is suppressed and
no notifications are sent until both the
specified time has passed and the alert is
triggered again.
Do not alert until the condition is violated Do not receive notifications for an alert
for more than unless the violation is not cleared for longer
than the specified time.

Disabling or enabling alert definitions

Disable an alert definition so that IBM Spectrum Control does not generate
notifications for its specified condition. You can re-enable alert definitions at any
time.
1. In the menu bar, select the resource that contains the alert definition to disable.
For example, to disable the alert definition for a block storage system, select
Storage > Block Storage Systems.
2. Right-click the resource that contains the alert definition and select Edit Alert
Definitions.
3. Locate the alert definition that you want to disable.
4. Click the switch icon next to the definition so that it appears like this: .

Tip: To enable the definition again, click the icon so that it appears like this:
.
5. Click Save.

Modifying alert definitions

Modify an alert definition to change its triggering conditions, notification settings,
threshold values, and suppression settings.

To edit an alert definition for a resource, complete the following steps:

1. To select a resource, choose one of the following options from the menu bar:

Resource Menu bar

Block storage systems Storage > Block Storage Systems

122 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Resource Menu bar
File storage systems Storage > File Storage Systems
Object storage systems Storage > Object Storage Systems
Servers Servers > Servers
Hypervisors Servers > Hypervisors
Switches Network > Switches
Fabrics Network > Fabrics

2. Right-click the resource that contains the alert definition and select Edit Alert
Definitions.
3. Locate the alert definition that you want to edit.
4. To enable or disable an alert definition, click the corresponding switch icon:
v The alert is enabled.
v The alert is disabled.
5. Edit the criteria for generating an alert. Criteria includes operators such as
greater than or equal to, less than or equal to, is, is not, and contains, and it
can include values for storage space, performance metrics, and time
measurements.
6. Change the severity for the alert. Assigning a severity can help you more
quickly identify and address the critical conditions that are detected on
resources. The severity that you assign depends on the guidelines and
procedures within your organization. Default assignments are provided for
each alert.
7. For performance alerts, edit the threshold value by evaluating the current
and historical performance of a resource. In the performance chart, a yellow
horizontal line represents the threshold value for warning alerts; a red
horizontal line represents the threshold value for critical alerts.

8. Change how you are notified of alerts and if you want a script to be
run.

9. Specify how often you are notified of alerts.

Option Description
Do not suppress alerts Receive alert notifications whenever an alert
violation is detected.
Only alert once until problem clears Receive one notification for an alert
violation, even if the condition is violated
multiple times.
Only generate alerts every Receive one notification when an alert is
initially violated. The alert is suppressed and
no notifications are sent until both the
specified time has passed and the alert is
triggered again.
Do not alert until the condition is violated Do not receive notifications for an alert
for more than unless the violation is not cleared for longer
than the specified time.

10. Click Save when you are done editing the definition.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 123

 Tip: If a performance monitor is already collecting data about a resource
when you add, modify, or remove a performance alert for that resource,
changes are applied dynamically. You do not have to stop and restart the
performance monitor to apply the changes. A confirmation message is
recorded in the log of the performance monitor when the alert is updated.

Viewing and modifying alert notification settings

View and modify the alert notification settings to determine the actions that are
taken when alert conditions are detected for resources. The settings are applied to
all of the conditions that are specified for the resources. You can view and modify
the alert notification settings for a single resource or for multiple resources.

Viewing the alert notification settings for a resource

View the notification settings that determine the actions that are taken when alert
conditions are detected for a resource. The settings are applied to all of the alert
definitions that are enabled for the resource.
1. To select a resource, choose one of the following options from the menu bar:

Resource Menu bar

Block storage systems Storage > Block Storage Systems
File storage systems Storage > File Storage Systems
Object storage systems Storage > Object Storage Systems
Servers Servers > Servers
Hypervisors Servers > Hypervisors
Switches Network > Switches
Fabrics Network > Fabrics

2. To view the alert notification settings for a resource, choose one of the
following options:

Option Description
Right-click the resource in the list and click Use this option to view the notification
Edit Alert Notification Settings. settings for an alert from the resource list
page.
Right-click the resource and click View Use this option to view the notification
Details. The resource page is displayed. In settings for an alert from the resource page.
the General section, click Alerts, and then
click the Notification Settings tab.

3. View the notification settings that apply to all of the alert definitions that are
enabled for the resource.
4. To close the Notification Settings page, click Cancel.

Viewing the alert notification settings for multiple resources

View the notification settings that determine the actions that are taken when alert
conditions are detected for multiple resources. The settings are applied to all of the
alert definitions that are enabled for the resources.

When you select multiple resources, the check box choice for each notification
setting indicates how the setting is applied to the resources:

124 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Icon Status of the alert notification
The notification setting applies to all of the
selected resources.
The notification setting does not apply to
any of the selected resources.
The notification setting has different values
for the selected resources.

1. To select a resource, choose one of the following options from the menu bar:

Resource Menu bar

Block storage systems Storage > Block Storage Systems
File storage systems Storage > File Storage Systems
Object storage systems Storage > Object Storage Systems
Servers Servers > Servers
Hypervisors Servers > Hypervisors
Switches Network > Switches
Fabrics Network > Fabrics

2. To view the alert notification settings for multiple resources, press Ctrl and
right-click each resource. Click Edit Alert Notification Settings.
3. To close the Notification Settings page, click Cancel.

Modifying the alert notification settings for a resource

You can modify the alert notification settings to determine the actions that are
taken when alert conditions are detected for a resource. The settings are applied to
all of the alert definitions that are specified for the resource.

Configure IBM Spectrum Control to send alert notifications by using email, SNMP
traps, or a Tivoli Netcool/OMNIbus server.
1. To select a resource, choose one of the following options from the menu bar:

Resource Menu bar

Block storage systems Storage > Block Storage Systems
File storage systems Storage > File Storage Systems
Object storage systems Storage > Object Storage Systems
Servers Servers > Servers
Hypervisors Servers > Hypervisors
Switches Network > Switches
Fabrics Network > Fabrics

2. To modify the alert notification settings for a resource, choose one of the
following options:

Option Description
Right-click the resource in the list and click Use this option to edit the notification
Edit Alert Notification Settings. settings for an alert from the resource list
page.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 125

 Option Description
Right-click the resource and click View Use this option to edit the notification
Details. The resource page is displayed. In settings for an alert from the resource page.
the General section, click Alerts, and then
click the Notification Settings tab. Click
Edit.

3. Specify the email addresses that you want to notify when an alert is generated.
The email addresses that you specify override the addresses that were defined
at Settings > Alert Notifications.

Tip: The email addresses that you define are applied to all the alert definitions
for a resource, unless overridden. To override these settings, edit the
notification settings for a specific alert definition.
4. Optional: Send alert notifications to a Tivoli Netcool/OMNIbus server.
5. Optional: Send SNMP trap messages when an alert is generated.
6. Optional: Write alert messages to the OS log and select their level of severity.
7. Click Save.

Modifying the alert notification settings for multiple resources

Modify the alert notification settings to determine the actions that are taken when
alert conditions are detected for multiple resources. The settings are applied to all
of the alert definitions that are enabled for the selected resources.

Configure IBM Spectrum Control to send alert notifications by using email, SNMP
traps, or a Tivoli Netcool/OMNIbus server.

When you select multiple resources, the check box choice for each notification
setting indicates how the setting is applied to the resources:

Icon Status of the alert notification

The notification setting applies to all of the
selected resources.
The notification setting does not apply to
any of the selected resources.
The notification setting has different values
for the selected resources.

1. To select a resource, choose one of the following options from the menu bar:

Resource Menu bar

Block storage systems Storage > Block Storage Systems
File storage systems Storage > File Storage Systems
Object storage systems Storage > Object Storage Systems
Servers Servers > Servers
Hypervisors Servers > Hypervisors
Switches Network > Switches
Fabrics Network > Fabrics

2. To modify the alert notification settings for multiple resources, press Ctrl and
right-click each resource. Click Edit Alert Notification Settings.

126 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 3. Specify the email addresses that you want to notify when an alert is generated.
The email addresses that you specify override the addresses that were defined
at Settings > Alert Notifications.

Tip: The email addresses that you define are applied to all the alert definitions
for the selected resources, unless overridden. To override these settings, edit the
notification settings for a specific alert definition.
4. Optional: Send alert notifications to a Tivoli Netcool/OMNIbus server.
5. Optional: Send SNMP trap messages when an alert is generated.
6. Optional: Write alert messages to the OS log and select their level of severity.
7. Click Save.

Viewing alerts
View the alerts that were detected on monitored resources.

Viewing all alerts

Use the Alerts page in the GUI as a central location to view and manage all the
alerts that were detected by IBM Spectrum Control.

The Alerts page is organized into two sections:

Alerts summary chart

The summary chart at the top of the page is a visual representation of the
alerts that were detected on monitored resources. The chart consists of
stacked bars with the number and severity of current alerts on the y-axis
and the resource type on the x-axis. The y-axis labeling scales dynamically
according to the highest number of alerts in any of the categories.
Alerts list
The alerts list shows information about all the alerts that were detected on
monitored resources. Information in the list is organized into columns.
These columns include information about the condition that was detected,
the severity of the alert, when the alert was detected, and the names of the
resources where the alert condition was detected.

The version of IBM Spectrum Control that detected an alert determines where
information about the alert is displayed. Alerts that were generated in versions of
the product before Tivoli Storage Productivity Center version 5.1 are only
displayed on the Alerts page. Alerts that were generated in Tivoli Storage
Productivity Center version 5.1 or later are displayed on the Alerts page and in the
Alerts tab on the pages for the related resources.
1. In the menu bar in the GUI, go to Home > Alerts. Information about alerts is
shown in the list of alerts.

Tip: Hover the mouse pointer over a condition to view a summary of the
event that triggered the alert.
2. Optional: To view the number of alerts for a specific type of resource, hover the
mouse pointer over the related icon in the summary chart. For example, if you
want to view the number of Critical, Warning, and Informational alerts that
were triggered by hypervisors, hover the mouse pointer over the Hypervisors
icon .

Chapter 5. Managing resources 127

 3. Optional: To filter the list of alerts for a specific type of resource, click the icon
for that resource in the summary chart. For example, if you only want to view
a list of alerts for hypervisors, click the Hypervisors icon .

Tip: To view descriptions of the icons and columns on the Alerts page, click
the Help icon in the upper-right corner of the page.

Viewing alerts for a type of resource

Use resource list pages in the IBM Spectrum Control GUI to view only the alerts
for a specific type of top-level resource. Each resource list page has an Alerts tab
that lists only the alerts for monitored storage systems, servers, hypervisors,
switches, or fabrics. For example, you can use the list page for block storage
systems to view only the alerts that were detected on monitored block storage
systems.
1. In the menu bar in the GUI, go to a type of top-level resource. For example, if
you want to view the alerts that are related to block storage systems, go to
Storage > Block Storage Systems.
2. Click the Alerts tab to view a list of all the alerts for the monitored resources of
that type.
The information about alerts is organized into columns. These columns include
information about the condition that was detected, the severity of the alert,
when the alert was detected, and the names of the resources where the alert
condition was detected. Hover the mouse pointer over a condition to view a
summary of the event that triggered the alert.

Tip: The icon on the Alerts tab represents the most severe alert condition that
was detected on the monitored resources. For example, if one of the jobs for
storage systems failed, the following icon is shown on the tab:

Alerts.
3. Optional: View the icons at the top of the Alerts tab for a summary of alert
severities. This summary includes the number of alerts that have a Critical,
Warning, Informational, or Acknowledged status.

Tip: To view descriptions of the icons and columns on the Alerts tab, click the
Help icon in the upper-right corner of the page.

Viewing alerts for a specific resource

Use resource detail pages in the IBM Spectrum Control GUI to view only the alerts
for a specific top-level resource. Each resource details page has an Alerts link that
lists only the alerts for a monitored storage system, server, hypervisor, switch, or
fabric. For example, you can use the details page for a storage system to view only
the alerts that were detected for that storage system.
1. In the menu bar in the GUI, go to a type of top-level resource. For example, if
you want to view the alerts that are related to storage systems, go to Storage
and select the type of storage system you want to monitor.
2. Right-click a resource in the list and select View Details. In the General
section, the number next to Alerts represents the number of alert conditions
that were detected on the resource. For example, Alerts (25) indicates that 25
alerts were detected on the resource.

128 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 The icon next to the Alerts link represents the most severe alert condition that
was detected on the resource. For example, if alerts with a Warning severity
were detected the following icon is shown:

Alerts (25)
3. Click the Alerts link in the General section to view a complete list of the alerts
that were detected on the resource.
The information about alerts is organized into columns. These columns include
information about the condition that was detected, the severity of the alert,
when the alert was detected, and the names of the resources where the alert
condition was detected. Hover the mouse pointer over a condition to view a
summary of the event that triggered the alert.

Tip: To view descriptions of the icons and columns that are shown for alerts,
click the Help icon in the upper-right corner of the page.
4. Optional: View the icons at the top of the page for a summary of alert
severities that were detected. This summary includes the number of alerts that
have a Critical, Warning, Informational, or Acknowledged status.

Acknowledging alerts
Some alerts in IBM Spectrum Control are triggered by conditions that commonly
occur and can be ignored. In such cases, you acknowledge these alerts to indicate
that they were reviewed and do not require immediate resolution. By
acknowledging alerts, you can more quickly identify the other alerts in lists that
must still be reviewed and resolved.

Tip: Acknowledging alerts does not affect the status of resources. The status of a
resource is determined by its consolidated status and the propagated status of its
internal resources, not by alerts that are generated. For information about how to
acknowledge the status of a resource, see “Acknowledging the condition and status
of resources” on page 146.

To acknowledge an alert, complete the following steps:

1. In the IBM Spectrum Control GUI, go to a list of alerts that includes the alerts
that you want to acknowledge. For example, if you want to acknowledge the
alerts for a specific server, complete the following steps.
a. In the menu bar, go to Servers > Servers..
b. Right-click the server that has alerts you want to acknowledge and select
View Details.
c. Click the Alerts link.
2. Right-click the alert that you want to acknowledge and select Acknowledge
alerts. The severity of the alert is changed to Acknowledged on the Alerts page,
resource list page, and resource details page.
For example, if you acknowledge a server alert that has a Warning severity, it is
shown on the Alerts page, Servers page, and Server details page with the
following severity:

Warning - Acknowledged
3. Optional: To acknowledge multiple alerts at the same time, press Ctrl and click
each alert. To select a series of alerts, select the first alert, and then press Shift
and click the last alert. When the alerts are selected, right-click a row in the list
and select Acknowledge alerts.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 129

 4. Optional: To acknowledge all the alerts that are shown in a list, select
Acknowledge all alerts from the Actions menu.
5. Optional: To acknowledge all the alerts with an Informational severity in a list,
select Acknowledged informational alerts from the Actions menu. You might
want to acknowledge all Informational alerts when you want to view only
alerts that represent potential or serious problems that require action to resolve.

Removing alerts
Remove alerts when you no longer require to view them.

By default, alerts are automatically removed based on retention settings that are
defined on the History Retention page in the IBM Spectrum Control GUI.
However, you can use the following procedure to manually remove alerts at any
time.
1. In the GUI, go to a list of alerts that includes the alerts that you want to
remove. For example, if you want to remove alerts for all different types of
top-level resources, go to Home > Alerts. If you want to remove alerts for a
specific type of resource such as storage systems, go to Storage and select the
type of storage system you want to monitor, and click the Alerts tab.
2. Right-click the alert that you want to remove and select Remove alerts.
3. Click Remove to remove the alert. When you remove an alert, it is no longer
shown on the Alerts page or in the Alerts tabs on the related resource list and
resource detail pages.
For example, if you remove an alert for a fabric, that alert is removed from the
Alerts page, Fabrics page, and Fabric details page.
4. Optional: To remove all the alerts that are shown in a list, select Remove all
alerts from the Actions menu.
5. Optional: To remove all the acknowledged alerts that are shown in a list, select
Remove acknowledged alerts from the Actions menu.

Viewing information about resources

You can view detailed information about the resources that are monitored by IBM
Spectrum Control. Resources include storage systems, volumes, pools, servers,
hypervisors, fabrics, and switches. You can also view information about internal
and related resources.

Remember: Data collection jobs retrieve information about monitored resources.

To ensure that the latest information about resources is available in the web-based
GUI, run data collection jobs regularly. To learn about how to collect data, see
“Collecting data” on page 98.

How information is organized

Information about monitored resources is organized into different pages in the
web-based GUI. You can use the pages to view summary information about all
types of monitored resources, such as storage systems, fabrics, and switches. You
can see what resources are consuming storage and the alerts that are being
detected on those resources. You can also view a chart of the most active storage
systems in your environment.

130 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Dashboard view

The dashboard is view displayed when you start a new session of IBM Spectrum
Control or when you go to Home > Dashboard in the menu bar. Use the
dashboard to view the following summary information about a storage
environment:
v Condition of storage: block, file, and object storage systems
v Condition of storage consumers: hypervisors, servers, departments, and
application
v Condition of network resources: fabrics and switches
v Number error, warning, and information alerts that are generated on resources
v Most active storage systems in your environment.
You can click on resource icons in the dashboard to add more resources for
monitoring and to see detailed information about resources that IBM Spectrum
Control is currently monitoring. Position the mouse pointer over the lines in the
Most Active Storage Systems chart to see performance information about specific
resources. For more information about the dashboard, see “Dashboard view” on
page 133.

Resource list pages

Use a resource list page as a central location for viewing information about the
top-level resources of a specific type. For example, use the File Storage Systems
page to view a list of the file storage systems that are monitored by IBM Spectrum
Control. Each resource list page corresponds to a specific type of resource, which
includes block storage systems, file storage systems, object storage systems,
volumes, pools, servers, hypervisors, switches, and fabrics. You can view the
following information on resource list pages:
v Overall condition of the resources
v Key information about the resources
v Alerts that were generated for the resources
v Jobs that were run for the resources
To learn about how to access the list pages for resources, see “Viewing information
about top-level resources” on page 137.

Note: Volumes and pools are internal resources of storage systems, but have their
own resource list pages so that you can view them all in a central location.

Resource detail pages

Use resource details pages to view information about resources that are internal or
related to a top-level resource. For example, use the File Storage System details
page to view detailed information about a specific file storage system. You can
view the following information on resource details pages:
v The overall capacity and storage usage for a resource
v The status of resources
v Key information about a resource
v Alerts that were generated for a resource
v Data collection that was run for a resource
v Information about components that exist in top-level resources
v Information about the resources that are related to another resource

Chapter 5. Managing resources 131

 To learn about how to access detail pages for resources, see “Viewing information
about internal, object, and related resources” on page 138.

Alerts page

Use the Alerts page to view and manage the alert conditions that were detected on
monitored resources. Specifically, you can complete the following actions:
v View the overall number of alerts that were detected on monitored resources.
This information is presented in a bar chart for the following types of alerts:
– Database
– Fabric
– Hypervisor
– Other
– Performance
– Server
– Storage system
– IBM Spectrum Control
v View information about specific alerts, including severity, last occurrence, and
the resources where they were detected.
v Acknowledge alerts that were reviewed but are not yet resolved.
v Unacknowledge alerts.
v Remove alerts from the page.
To access the Alerts page, go to Home > Alerts in the menu bar.

Performance Monitors page

IBM Spectrum Control can collect information about the performance of monitored
storage systems and switches. This information includes key performance metrics.
On the Performance Monitors page, you can view detailed information about
performance monitors that are collecting data. Use this information to identify
performance monitors that are encountering problems when they run. You can also
view the metrics that are collected by a performance monitor for a resource.

To access the Performance Monitors page, select Home > Performance Monitors.

Tasks page
Use the Tasks page to view and manage the tasks that IBM Spectrum Control uses
to optimize resources and provision storage. Tasks are created when you complete
any of the following actions:
v Assign storage to servers, hypervisors, or a cluster by using the Provision
Storage wizard.
v Move volumes to higher or lower tiers by using the Analyze Tiering wizard.
v Move or convert volumes by using the Transform Storage wizard.
v Distribute the workload of volumes across pools on the same tier by using the
Balance Pools wizard.
To access the Tasks page, go to Home > Tasks in the menu bar.

132 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 System Management page

Use the System Management page to view information about the overall condition
of IBM Spectrum Control. You can view information about the servers on which
IBM Spectrum Control is installed. This information includes component server
and database status, certain server alerts and database connection alerts, server
file-system capacity information, and remote volume-performance information.

To access the System Management page, go to Home > System Management in

the menu bar.

Reporting

Use the optional Cognos Business Intelligence reporting tool in the web-based GUI
to view detailed reports about resources. The following reports are available:
Predefined reports
These reports are included with IBM Spectrum Control. The following
types of predefined reports are available:
v Capacity and relationships of resources
v Performance
v Historical space
v Storage tiering
Custom reports
Unlike predefined reports, you can select the information that you want to
include in custom reports. Custom reports can contain detailed information
about the relationships between monitored resources, the properties of
monitored resources, and detailed information about the performance of
monitored resources.

To learn about how to use the Cognos Business Intelligence reporting tool, see
Reporting in IBM Spectrum Control.

Dashboard view
Use the dashboard to monitor the overall condition of monitored resources and
identify potential problem areas in a storage environment. You can also view the
condition of the applications, groups, and other entities that consume storage on
resources. The dashboard also displays alerts, as well as a chart showing the most
active storage systems.

Viewing the status of monitored resources

The dashboard provides status information for the resources that IBM Spectrum
Control is monitoring.
The overall status for each resource type
A status symbol and number are shown below each resource icon on the
dashboard. This symbol represents the most critical status that was
detected on the internal resources for a resource type. For example, if 20
storage systems are monitored, and an error was detected on a volume for

one of those storage systems, a 1 status is shown below the storage

systems icon or label in the dashboard. If no errors, warnings, or
unreachable statuses were detected on the monitored resources, then a
green symbol is shown without a number.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 133

 Use the status to quickly determine the condition of your monitored
resources and if any actions must be taken. On the dashboard, the
following statuses might be shown for a resource type:

Error (red)
An error status was detected on one or more of the monitored
resources for a resource type. Error statuses represent serious
problems on a resource. Resolve these problems as soon as
possible. View the details of a resource to learn more about the
status of its internal resources.

Unreachable (orange)
One or more of the monitored resources for a resource type are not
responding. This status might be caused by a problem in the
network or by a Storage Resource agent that is no longer running
and did not communicate that it was shutting down.

Warning (yellow)
A warning status was detected on one or more of the monitored
resources for a resource type. Warning conditions are not critical,
but represent potential problems. View the details of a resource to
learn more about the status of its internal resources.

Normal (green)
No warnings or errors were detected on the monitored resources
for a resource type.

Unknown status (gray)

One or more of the monitored resources for a resource type have
an unknown status. This status might occur if no data was
collected about a resource. To change an unknown status, use a
data collection job to collect status information about the resource.
For information about how status is determined, see “How the condition of
a resource is determined” on page 141.
The number of statuses that were detected and acknowledged for each resource
type To view the total number of statuses for a resource type, move the mouse
pointer over the related status symbol. Hover help shows the total number
of occurrences for each status, and the number of statuses that were
acknowledged by a IBM Spectrum Control user. An acknowledged status
indicates that a status was reviewed and is either resolved or can be
ignored.

Viewing the status of monitored storage systems

Storage systems can be configured for block storage, file storage, a combination of
block and file storage, or a combination of file and object storage. The top left
section of the dashboard shows the type, number, and status of the storage systems
that IBM Spectrum Control is monitoring. The number in the circle next to the
storage system type shows how many storage systems of that type are being
monitored. The status icon below each storage system type shows the status of the
monitored systems. Click the storage system type, for example Block Storage
Systems, to see more detailed status and information about those storage systems.

134 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Use the information in the horizontal bar charts to view details about the used and
free space of the monitored storage systems in your environment:
Storage systems that are configured for block data
The following information is shown for monitored storage systems that are
configured for block data:
Used Block Storage Space
Amount of space that is being used for block data on all the
storage systems that are configured for block data.
Available Block Storage Space
Amount of unused space on all the storage systems that are
configured for block data.
Storage systems that are configured for file data
The following information is shown for monitored storage systems that are
configured for file data:
Used File System Space
Amount of file system space that is being used by files and
directories on the storage systems and filers that are configured for
file data.
Available File System Space
Amount of unused storage space on the storage systems and filers
that are configured for file data.
Storage systems that are configured for object data
The following information is shown for monitored storage systems that are
configured for object data:
Used Object Storage Space
Amount of file system space on the GPFS object clusters that is
being used by object data.
Available Object Storage Space
Amount of file system space on the GPFS object clusters that is
available for object data.

Viewing the status of monitored resources that are consuming

storage

The diagram in the top middle section of the dashboard provides a visual
representation of the monitored resources that are consuming storage. You can
click the icons in this section to add resources of that type or to see detailed
information about the resources you have already added. The number next to each
icon shows the number of those resources that are being monitored by IBM
Spectrum Control. If IBM Spectrum Control is monitoring resources of a particular
type, such as departments, you will see a status icon that shows the overall status
of those types of resources.
The types of resources that are consuming storage
Each type of resource in the diagram is represented by an icon. To learn
more detailed information about the individual resources that are
monitored, click the icon in the diagram. For example, if you click the
departements icon, a new page shows detailed information about the
individual departments that are being monitored.
The number of resources that are monitored for each resource type
A number in a circle is shown next to each resource icon. This number

Chapter 5. Managing resources 135

 represents the number of monitored resources for each resource type. For
example, if 4 file storage systems are monitored, the value is shown.
This number excludes resources that are not monitored by IBM Spectrum
Control.

Tip: If no resources are being monitored for a resource type, click its icon
on the dashboard to add a resource of that type. For example, if the
dashboard shows a 0 next to the departments icon, you can click the icon
or the circle for departments to add a department. The GUI guides you
though the process for adding the resource for monitoring. For more
information about adding resources, see “Adding resources” on page 75.

Viewing the status of monitored network fabrics and switches

The top right section of the dashboard shows the number and status of the fabrics
and switches that IBM Spectrum Control is monitoring. The number in the circle
next to the fabric or switch icon shows how many fabrics and switches are being
monitored. The status icon below the fabric or switch shows the status of those
entities. Click the icon to see more detailed status and information about those
fabrics and switches. The dashboard shows the following information for the
monitored fabrics and switches in your environment:
Fabrics
v The number of fabrics that are being monitored.
v The most critical status of the monitored fabrics. If more than one fabric
is monitored, the dashboard shows the most critical status level of those
fabrics.
Switches
v The number of switches that are being monitored.
v The most critical status of the monitored switches. If more than one
fabric is monitored, the dashboard shows the most critical status level of
those switches.

Viewing the status of alerts that were detected on monitored

resources

Alerts are generated when IBM Spectrum Control detects certain conditions or
events on monitored resources. The Alerts section of the dashboard shows a status
summary of the alerts that were detected in your environment during a specified
time period. This summary includes the number of alerts that have the following
statuses: Critical, Warning, and Informational.

Use the following actions to manage the display of statuses for alerts:
v To select the time period in which you want to view alert statuses, click the
down arrow and select a time period. You can view the status of all alerts that
were detected in the last hour, last day, or last week.
v To view more detailed information about alerts, click View all alerts to access
the Alerts page.

Viewing the most active storage systems in your environment

The Performance chart provides information about the most active storage systems
in your storage environment. Position your cursor over a data point in the chart to
see the total I/O rate for a particular storage system. The I/O rate is displayed in

136 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 operations per second (ops/s) on the left vertical axis, and in milliseconds per
operation (ms/ops) on the right vertical axis. The horizontal axis shows the time of
the performance data in hourly increments.

Viewing information about top-level resources

Use a resource list page as a central location for viewing information about all the
monitored resources of a specific type. Resources that have a list page include
storage systems, volumes, pools, shares, servers, hypervisors, switches, and fabrics.
1. In the menu bar, hover the mouse pointer over the menu item for the type of
resource that you want to view. You can access the following types of resources:
v Storage: block storage systems, file storage systems, object storage systems,
volumes, pools, shares
v Servers: servers, hypervisors
v Network: switches, fabrics
2. Select the type of resource that you want to view. For example, if you want to
view information about servers, go to Servers > Servers. A list of monitored
servers is displayed on Servers page.
3. Locate the resource that you want to view in the list. Each column in the list
shows information about the resource.
4. Optional: To view key attributes of a specific top-level resource without leaving
the page, right-click the resource and select View Properties. A properties
notebook is displayed. Information in a properties notebook can include storage
statistics, hardware attributes, volume assignments, disk assignment, and
performance metrics.
5. Optional: To view more detailed information about a specific top-level resource,
including its internal and related resources, right-click the resource and select
View Details. A resource details page is displayed. This page includes
information about storage statistics, alerts, jobs, internal resources, and related
resources.

A resource list page shows information about the monitored resources for the
selected type. You can view the following information on this page:
v The overall status of the resources for a specific type
v Key information about the resources
v Alerts that were generated for the resources
v Jobs that were run for the resources

Tip: To view descriptions of the information that is available on a resource list

page, click the Help icon in the upper-right corner of the page.
Related reference:
“Resources that you can monitor” on page 75
You can use IBM Spectrum Control to monitor storage systems, servers,
hypervisors, fabrics, and switches. Information about these top-level resources
includes information about their internal resources and related resources. Internal
resources are components that exist in a top-level resource. Related resources are
external to a top-level resource, but are related to it through assigned storage, a
network connection, or virtual hosting.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 137

 Viewing information about internal, object, and related
resources
Use resource details pages to view information about a specific top-level resource
and its internal, object, and related resources.
1. In the menu bar, hover the mouse pointer over the menu item for the type of
resource that you want to view. You can access the following types of resources:
v Storage: block storage systems, file storage systems, object storage systems,
volumes, pools, shares
v Servers: servers, hypervisors
v Network: switches, fabrics
2. Select the type of the resource that you want to view. A resource list page
shows the monitored resources for the selected type. For example, if you want
to view a block storage system, go to Storage > Block Storage Systems. A list
of monitored block storage systems is displayed.
3. In the list of resources, right-click the resource that you want to view and select
View Details. A resource details page is displayed. This page includes
information about storage statistics, alerts, jobs, internal resources, object
resources, and related resources.
4. To view information about the internal resources of the top-level resource, click
the name of the internal resource in the Internal Resources section. A list of the
internal resources is displayed. Each column in the list shows information
about the resources. For example, on the details page for a server, click
Controllers to view a list of the controllers that are associated with the server.
5. Optional: To view key attributes of a specific internal resource without leaving
the page, right-click the resource and select View Properties.
6. To view information about the object resources in an object storage system,
click the name of the object resource in the Object Resources section. Object
resources are associated only with object storage systems, such as IBM
Spectrum Scale that is configured for object storage.
7. To view information about resources that are related to the top-level resource,
click the name of the related resource in the Related Resources section. A list of
the related resources is displayed. For example, on the server details page, click
Block Storage Systems to view a list of the block storage systems that have at
least one disk (volume) assigned to the server.
8. Optional: To view key attributes of a specific related resource without leaving
the page, right-click the resource and select View Properties.
9. Optional: To view the resource details page for a related resource, right-click
the resource and select View Details.

A resource details page shows information about a top-level resource. The

information is available in the following links and sections on the page:
v Overview: The overall capacity and storage usage for a resource.
v Properties: Key information about a resource.
v Alerts: Alerts that were generated for a resource.
v Tasks: Jobs that were run for a resource.
v Internal Resources: Information about the components that exist in a
higher-level resource.
v Object Resources: Information about the resources in a GPFS cluster, such as
accounts and containers, that enable the GPFS cluster to be used as an object
storage system.

138 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 v Related Resources: Information about the resources that are related to another
resource. A related resource is external to a higher-level resource, but is related
to it through assigned storage, a network connection, or virtual hosting.

Tip: To view descriptions of the information that is available on a resource details

page, click the Help icon in the upper-right corner of the page.
Related reference:
“Resources that you can monitor” on page 75
You can use IBM Spectrum Control to monitor storage systems, servers,
hypervisors, fabrics, and switches. Information about these top-level resources
includes information about their internal resources and related resources. Internal
resources are components that exist in a top-level resource. Related resources are
external to a top-level resource, but are related to it through assigned storage, a
network connection, or virtual hosting.

Monitoring the status and condition of resources

Monitor the operational condition of storage systems, servers, hypervisors, fabrics,
and switches and the status of their internal resources. Use this information to
identify potential problem areas in a storage environment.
Table 24. Monitoring the status and condition of resources
Explanation Steps to view status or condition
Status The status of a resource that is 1. In the menu bar, go to the
reported by its own hardware to IBM resource type that you want to
Spectrum Control. For example: view. For example, if you want to
v If the cooling fans in a storage view the status of switches, go to
system are stopped and the Network > Switches.
internal temperature is too high, an 2. Right-click a resource and select
View Details. A status icon is
error status is reported by
shown next the image of the
that storage system.
resource and its internal
v If a disk on a storage system is resources.

starting, a warning status is

reported for that disk by the
storage system.
Tip: The status of internal resources
is used to determine the operational
condition of the associated top-level
resources.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 139

 Table 24. Monitoring the status and condition of resources (continued)
Explanation Steps to view status or condition
Condition The overall operational condition of a
Dashboard view
storage system, server, hypervisor,
In the menu bar, go to
fabric, or switch. This condition
Home > Dashboard. The
represents the most critical status that
icons that show overall
was detected on the resource itself
condition are shown next to
and on its internal resources.
the image of a resource type.
For example, if an error status was Resource list pages
detected on a storage system pool, an In the menu bar, go to the
resource type that you want
error icon is shown for the
to view. For example, if you
overall condition of the storage
want to view the condition
system. If no errors, warnings, or
of switches, go to Network
unreachable statuses were detected
> Switches.
on a resource or on its internal
resources, then a green symbol is The overall condition of a
shown for the condition of the resource is shown in the
storage system. Condition column, and
aggregated in the condition
icons at the top of the page.

IBM Spectrum Control provides a number of different icons to help you quickly
determine the health of resources.
Table 25. Possible statuses and conditions of resources
Icon Health Explanation
Error A serious problem was detected on a resource or on its
internal resources. Resolve these problems as soon as
possible.
Error - An Error status was detected and acknowledged. An Error
Acknowledged - Acknowledged status indicates that a status was reviewed
and is either resolved or can be ignored.

An acknowledged status is not used when determining the

condition of related, higher-level resources. For example, if
the status of a volume is Error, the condition of the
associated storage system is also Error. If the Error status of
the volume is acknowledged, its status is not used to
determine the overall condition of the storage system.
Unreachable A resource is not responding to requests from the IBM
Spectrum Control server. This status might be caused by a
problem in the network or by a Storage Resource agent that
is no longer running and did not communicate that it was
shutting down.
Unreachable - An Unreachable status was detected and acknowledged. An
Acknowledged Unreachable - Acknowledged status indicates that a status
was reviewed and is either resolved or can be ignored.

An acknowledged status is not used when determining the

condition of related, higher-level resources. For example, if
the status of a controller is Unreachable, the condition of
the associated server is also unreachable. If the Unreachable
status of the controller is acknowledged, its status is not
used to determine the overall condition of the server.

140 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Table 25. Possible statuses and conditions of resources (continued)
Icon Health Explanation
Warning A Warning status represents potential problems on a
resource or on its internal resources. This status is not
critical.
Warning - A Warning status was detected and acknowledged. An
Acknowledged Warning - Acknowledged status indicates that a status was
reviewed and is either resolved or can be ignored.

An Warning - Acknowledged status is not used when

determining the condition of related, higher-level resources.
For example, if the status of a controller is Warning, the
condition of the associated server is also Warning. If the
Warning status of the controller is acknowledged, its status
is not used to determine the overall condition of the server.
Normal No warnings or errors were detected on a monitored
resource.

Unknown A resource is known to IBM Spectrum Control but is not

monitored. To change an Unknown status, run a probe to
collect status information about the resource.

How the condition of a resource is determined

The operational condition of a resource represents the most critical status that was
detected on the resource itself and on its internal resources.

To determine the condition of top-level resources (storage systems, servers,

hypervisors, fabrics, and switches), IBM Spectrum Control uses the status of those
resources and the status of their internal resources. The statuses of the following
internal resources are used to calculate the overall condition of a top-level resource.
Table 26. Internal resources that are used to determine the condition of top-level resources
Internal resources that are used to determine the condition of a
Top-level resource top-level resource
Fabric
Ports

Switches

Switch
Blades

Inter-switch connections

Logical switches

Ports
Hypervisor Disks

Virtual machines

VMDKs

Chapter 5. Managing resources 141

 Table 26. Internal resources that are used to determine the condition of top-level
resources (continued)
Internal resources that are used to determine the condition of a
Top-level resource top-level resource
Server Controllers

Disks

Block storage system Disks

External disks

Host connections

I/O groups

Managed disks

Modules

, Nodes

Pools

Ports

RAID arrays

Volumes
File storage system Network shared disks

Nodes

Object storage system Network shared disks

Nodes

The following statuses of internal resources are used to help calculate the condition
of top-level resources:

142 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

v Normal
v Warning
v Error

Tip: Statuses that are acknowledged are not used to calculate the overall condition
of a top-level resource.

Internal resources for a top-level resource might have different statuses. IBM
Spectrum Control uses the most critical status of an internal resource to help
determine the overall condition of a top-level resource. For example, in a storage
system, a port might have an Error status, a pool might have a Warning status,
and multiple controllers might have an Unknown status. In this case, if the storage
system itself has a normal status, its overall condition is Error because it is the
most critical status that was detected on internal resources.

The following table shows some of the possible combinations of statuses and the
resulting, overall condition for a top-level resource.
Table 27. Propagation of the statuses for resources
Unreachable
1
Error Warning Normal Unknown 2
Resulting
condition for a
top-level resource
X
Unknown
X
Normal
X X
Normal
X
Warning
X X
Warning
X X X
Warning
X
Unreachable
X X
Unreachable
X X X
Unreachable
X X X X
Unreachable
X
Error
X X
Error
X X X
Error

Chapter 5. Managing resources 143

 Table 27. Propagation of the statuses for resources (continued)
Unreachable
1
Error Warning Normal Unknown 2
Resulting
condition for a
top-level resource
X X X X
Error
X X X X X
Error
Note:
1. The Unreachable status applies only to top-level resources.
2. The Unknown status of an internal resources is not used to determine the condition of
a top-level resource.

Viewing the overall condition of resources

Use the dashboard to view the overall, operational condition of resources, and
identify potential problem areas in a storage environment. The dashboard shows
the total number of different conditions on storage systems, servers, hypervisors,
fabrics, switches, and on the resources in departments and applications.

The condition of a resource represents the most critical status that was detected on
that resource or on its internal resources. For example, if an error status was
detected on a storage system pool, the overall condition of the storage system is

error .
1. In the menu bar, go to Home > Dashboard.
2. View the condition icons that are shown with each resource type.
For example, if 20 block storage systems are monitored, but 10 storage systems
have internal resources with an error status, 2 storage systems are unreachable,
and 4 storage systems have internal resources with a warning status, the
following conditions icons are shown for block storage systems:
Block Storage Systems

10 2 4
If no Error or Warning statuses were detected on the internal resources for

block storage systems, the normal condition icon is shown.

Related reference:
“How the condition of a resource is determined” on page 141
The operational condition of a resource represents the most critical status that was
detected on the resource itself and on its internal resources.

Viewing the condition of specific types of resources

Use resource list pages as a central location for viewing the condition of storage
systems, servers, hypervisors, switches, and fabrics.
1. In the menu bar, go to the type of top-level resource that you want to view. For
example, if you want to view the condition of switches, go to Network >
Switches.
2. To view the total number of different conditions that were detected for the type
of resource, check the condition icons at the top of the resource list page. The

144 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 number next to the icon represents how many occurrences of each condition
were detected. For example, if 15 switches are monitored, but 5 switches have
internal resources with a warning status, 2 switches have internal resources
with an unreachable status, and 3 switches have internal resources with an
error status, and the following condition information is displayed at the top of
the page:

5 Normal

5 Warning

2 Unreachable

3 Error
3. To view the condition for specific resources, check the Condition column in the
list of resources.
4. Optional: Click the Search icon to filter the list so that only resources with a
specified condition are shown. You can use filtering to identify the resources
with the most serious conditions in your environment.
5. Optional: Select Condition.
6. Optional: In the Choose Value list, select the condition on which you want to
filter. The list of resources is automatically refreshed and only resources with

the filtered status are shown. For example, select Warning to view only
the resources with a Warning condition.

Viewing the status of resources

Use detail pages to view the status of storage systems, servers, hypervisors,
switches, and fabrics and the status of their internal resources. The status of a
resource is reported to IBM Spectrum Control by its hardware.

The status of a resource is different than the operational condition that is

calculated by IBM Spectrum Control for top-level resources:
v Condition is determined by propagating the statuses of resources and is only
shown for top-level resources.
v Status represents the status of a resource as reported by its hardware and is
shown for top-level resources and internal resources. The following examples
illustrate statuses that might be reported by a resource:
– If the cooling fans in a storage system are stopped and the internal

temperature is too high, an error status is reported by that storage

system.

– If a disk on a storage system is starting, a warning status is reported for

that disk by the storage system.

Tip: View condition to identify which top-level resources might be encountering

problems. View status to identify the specific resources that are causing the
problems in a top-level resource.
1. In the menu bar, go to the resource type that you want to view. For example, if
you want to view the status of block storage systems and their internal
resources, go to Storage > Block Storage Systems.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 145

 2. Right-click a resource and select View Details.
3. To view the status of the top-level resource, view the status icon that is
displayed next to its image in the upper-left corner of the page.
4. To view the aggregated status of an internal resource, view the status icon that
is displayed next to its image in the Internal Resources section. If a resource
has a status other than normal, an icon is displayed for the most critical status.
For example, if a server has three controllers with an error status and two
controllers with a warning status, the error status icon is shown for controllers
in the Internal Resources section:

Controllers (5)
5. To view the status of a specific internal resource, click the name of that internal
resource in the Internal Resources section. A list of the monitored internal
resources is displayed. For example, on the details page for a server, click
Controllers (5) to view a list of the five controllers that are associated with the
server.
6. Check the Status column to view the status for each internal resource.

Tip: When you view information about some internal resources, the Status
column might show values that are more specific than Error, Unreachable,
Warning, Unreachable, Unknown, and Normal. Use this additional status to
determine the cause of the problem for an internal resource.

For example, in the Internal Resources section on the details page for a storage
system, an error status might be shown for managed disks:

Managed Disks (5)

When you view the list of managed disks, the Status column might show an
Offline status for a specific managed disk. When a managed disk is reported as

offline, IBM Spectrum Control uses an error status icon to reflect that
status.

Acknowledging the condition and status of resources

Sometimes the status of resources might represent problems that commonly occur
but can be ignored. In such cases, you can acknowledge those statuses so that they
are not used when determining the overall condition of storage systems, servers,
hypervisors, fabrics, and switches.

Acknowledging the condition of top-level resources

A summary of the conditions for storage systems, servers, hypervisors, fabrics, and
switches is available in the Dashboard view and on resource list pages. You can
acknowledge the condition of a top-level resource so that its condition is not
shown as Error, Unreachable, or Warning on those pages.
1. In the menu bar, go to the type of resource that has a condition you want to
acknowledge. For example, if you want to acknowledge the condition of a
switch, go to Network > Switches.
2. In the list of resources, locate the resource with the Error, Unreachable, or
Warning condition that you want to acknowledge.
3. Right-click the resource and select Acknowledge condition. A window shows
that the condition for the specified resource was acknowledged.

146 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

4. Optional: To acknowledge the condition of multiple resources at the same time,
press Ctrl and click each resource. To select a series of resources, select the first
resource, and then press Shift and click the last resource. When the resources
are selected, right-click a row in the list and select Acknowledge condition.
5. Click Close.

When you acknowledge the condition of a top-level resource, the following actions
are taken:
Dashboard view
v The condition of the acknowledged resource is not used to determine the
condition icon that is displayed for that resource type on the Dashboard
view. For example, if you acknowledge the unreachable condition for a
switch, the condition of that switch is not used to determine the number
of unreachable conditions that is shown for switches on the Dashboard
view.
v The acknowledged condition is shown as Acknowledged for a resource
on the Dashboard view. For example, if 10 switches have Unreachable
conditions and you acknowledge the condition for one of them, the
following information is shown for switches:

9 Unreachable (1 Acknowledged)
Resource details page
v The condition icons at the top of the page are updated. For example, if
10 switches have Unreachable conditions, and you acknowledge one of
them, the total number Unreachable conditions decreases by one and the
number of Unreachable - Acknowledged conditions increases by one.
The following information is updated at the top of the Switches page:

9 Unreachable 1 Unreachable - Acknowledged

v The value in the Condition column for the resource is updated to show
an acknowledged condition. For example, if you acknowledge the
Unreachable condition for a switch, the following value is shown in the
Condition column:

Unreachable
Related reference:
“Resources that you can monitor” on page 75
You can use IBM Spectrum Control to monitor storage systems, servers,
hypervisors, fabrics, and switches. Information about these top-level resources
includes information about their internal resources and related resources. Internal
resources are components that exist in a top-level resource. Related resources are
external to a top-level resource, but are related to it through assigned storage, a
network connection, or virtual hosting.
“How the condition of a resource is determined” on page 141
The operational condition of a resource represents the most critical status that was
detected on the resource itself and on its internal resources.

Acknowledging the status of internal resources

The statuses of internal resources are used to determine the condition of the
associated storage systems, servers, hypervisors, fabrics, and switches. Sometimes
these statuses might represent problems that commonly occur or are known, but
can be ignored. In such cases, you can acknowledge the status of an internal
resource so that it is not used to determine the condition of a top-level resource.
Chapter 5. Managing resources 147
 For example, if the status of a volume is Error, the condition of the associated
storage system is also Error. If the Error status of the volume is acknowledged, its
status is not used to determine the overall condition of its storage system. In this
case, if the other internal resources of the storage system are Normal, then the
condition of the storage system is also Normal.
1. In the menu bar, go to the type of resource in which the internal resource is
located. For example, if you want to acknowledge the status of internal
resources for a switch, go to Network > Switches.
2. Right-click a resource and select View Details. For example, if you want to
acknowledge the status of a port on a switch, right-click that switch and select
View Details.
3. In the Internal Resources section of the resource details page, click the name of
the internal resource. For example, if you want to acknowledge the status of a
port on a switch, click Ports.
4. Right-click the resource and select Acknowledge status. A window shows that
the status for the specified resource was acknowledged. For example, if you
want to acknowledge the status of a port, right-click the port and select
Acknowledge status.
5. Optional: To acknowledge multiple resources at the same time, press Ctrl and
click each resource. To select a series of resources, select the first resource, and
then press Shift and click the last resource. When the resources are selected,
right-click a row in the list and select Acknowledge status
6. Click Close. The status of the related, top-level resource might take several
minutes to update.

When you acknowledge the status of an internal resource, the following actions
occur:
v The status of the internal resource is no longer used to determine the condition
of the associated top-level resource.
v The status icons at the top of the page for the internal resource are updated.
For example, if you acknowledge the Error status for a controller on a server, the
total number of Error statuses decreases by one and the number of Error -
Acknowledged statuses increases by one on the Controllers page. If originally
there were five controllers with Error statuses, the following updated status
information is shown:

4 Error 1 Error - Acknowledged

Related reference:
“Resources that you can monitor” on page 75
You can use IBM Spectrum Control to monitor storage systems, servers,
hypervisors, fabrics, and switches. Information about these top-level resources
includes information about their internal resources and related resources. Internal
resources are components that exist in a top-level resource. Related resources are
external to a top-level resource, but are related to it through assigned storage, a
network connection, or virtual hosting.
“How the condition of a resource is determined” on page 141
The operational condition of a resource represents the most critical status that was
detected on the resource itself and on its internal resources.

148 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Monitoring the performance of resources
IBM Spectrum Control can collect information about the performance of storage
systems and switches. This information includes key performance metrics that can
help you measure, identify, and troubleshoot performance issues and bottlenecks in
your storage.

You can use the performance monitoring to complete the following tasks:
v Measure, compare, and troubleshoot the performance of switches, storage
systems, and their internal resources.
v Review the alerts that were triggered when the performance if a resource fell
outside of a specific range.
v Customize views of performance so that you can analyze specific resources and
metrics during time ranges that you specify.
v View performance information in a chart or table format to help you quickly
identify where and when performance issues are occurring. The chart is a visual
representation of how the performance of resources trend over time.
v Drill down into resources to view detailed information about the performance of
internal and related resources. For example, if a SAN Volume Controller is
shown in the chart, you can quickly view and compare the performance of its
internal and related resources, such as disks, volumes, ports, managed disks,
and back-end storage.
v Implement server-centric monitoring of SAN resources without requiring a
Storage Resource agent. When you add an agentless server, IBM Spectrum
Control correlates the server with the known host connections on monitored
storage systems. If matches are found, you can view the amount of storage that
is assigned to the server, and trace that storage back to the storage system. You
can then view details about the internal resources of the related storage system,
including performance information.
v Export performance information to a CSV file. A CSV file is a file that contains
comma-delimited values and can be viewed with a text editor or imported into a
spreadsheet application.

Before you begin

Before you can view performance information for resources, you must complete
the following tasks:

Task Learn more

Add storage systems and switches for monitoring by For information about how to add these resources, see
IBM Spectrum Control. the following topics:
v “Adding storage systems” on page 81
v “Adding fabrics and switches” on page 85
Ensure that performance data is being collected for a For information about verifying data collection and
resource. Typically, data collection is scheduled when scheduling performance monitors, see the following
resources are added for monitoring. topics:
v “Verifying that a performance monitor is running for a
resource” on page 105
v “Creating performance monitors” on page 104
.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 149

Task Learn more
Define performance alerts to be notified if the For information about how to define performance alerts,
performance of a resource falls outside a specified range see “Defining alerts for performance metrics” on page
and might represent a potential problem. 117.

When you define a performance alert for a resource,

select a specific metric that you want to measure. For
example, you can define a threshold that notifies you
when the total I/O port rate for a storage system falls
outside a specified range.

Related reference:
“Performance metrics” on page 283
IBM Spectrum Control can collect information about the performance of storage
systems and switches. This information includes metrics that measure the
performance of volumes, ports, and disks. You can view performance information
or specify alerts for when the performance of a resource falls outside a specified
range.

Viewing performance information

View the performance of storage systems, switches, and their internal resources.
You can also view the performance of resources that violated a performance
threshold and generated an alert.

Before you view the performance of resources, ensure that performance data was
collected for those resources during the time ranges that you want to analyze. IBM
Spectrum Control uses performance monitors to collect metrics for measuring the
performance of storage systems and switches. For information about how to verify
that performance monitors were run, see “Verifying that a performance monitor is
running for a resource” on page 105.

You can access the performance view for a resource from different locations in the
web-based GUI:

150 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Accessing the performance view in the
Task web-based GUI
View the performance of specific storage 1. In the menu bar, go to the type of
systems, switches, and their internal resource that you want to view. For
resources. storage systems, depending on the type
of storage system that you want to view,
go to Storage > Block Storage Systems,
Storage > File Storage Systems, or
Storage > Object Storage Systems. For
switches, go to Network > Switches.
2. Right-click a resource and select View
Performance. By default, the following
information is displayed in a chart for
each type of resource:
v For storage systems, the top 5 storage
systems with the highest total I/O rate
are shown.
v For switches, the top 5 switches with
the highest total port data rate are
shown.
3. To view the performance of an internal
resource, right-click the top-level
resource in the chart legend and select
the option for the internal resource that
you want to view. For example, for a
SAN Volume Controller, right-click its
name in the chart legend and select
MDisk Performance to view the
performance of its managed disks.
For managed disks, the top 5
contributors to the storage system
workload are shown on the chart. The
default metrics are total back-end I/O
rate and total back-end response time.
Tips:
v To add or change the metrics that are
displayed for a resource, click the select
metrics icon and select the metrics to
display.
v You can also view the performance of
internal resources on the details page for
the related, top-level resource. For more
information, see Table 28 on page 153.
v To view the performance of multiple
resources at the same time, press Shift or
Ctrl and click the resources that you want
to view. Press Shift and click to select
consecutive rows in the list of resources;
press Ctrl and click to select
non-consecutive rows. Then, right-click
any of the selected resources and select
View Performance. Each resource is
represented by a separate line in the
performance chart and separate rows in
the table view.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 151

 Accessing the performance view in the
Task web-based GUI
View the overall performance of resources of 1. In the menu bar, go to the type of
the same type. resource that you want to view. For
storage systems, depending on the type
of storage system that you want to view,
go to Storage > Block Storage Systems,
Storage > File Storage Systems, or
Storage > Object Storage Systems. For
switches, go to Network > Switches.
2. Click the Performance tab. By default,
the following information is displayed in
a chart:
v For storage systems, the top 5 storage
systems with the highest total I/O rate
are shown.
v For switches, the top 5 switches with
the highest total port data rate are
shown.
Tip: To add or change the metrics that are
displayed for a resource, click the select
metrics icon and select the metrics to
display.

1. Depending on the type of storage system

View the real-time performance of a SAN
that you want to view, go to Storage >
Volume Controller or Storwize storage
Block Storage Systems, Storage > File
system.
Storage Systems, or Storage > Object
Storage Systems.
2. Right-click a storage system and select
View Real-Time Performance. A
graphical representation of the processor
usage of the system, and the bandwidth
of the volumes, interfaces, and MDisks of
the system is displayed.

You can view the real-time performance of a

storage system when the following
conditions apply:
v The storage system is a SAN Volume
Controller, Storwize V3500, Storwize
V3700, Storwize V5000, Storwize V7000,
or Storwize V7000 Unified system.
v The storage system must be at microcode
level 7.3 or later.
v The storage system is running. To test the
connection, right-click the storage system,
and select Connections > Test
Connection.
v The storage system must be available to
the system where the browser is running,
through the local area network. To check
if the storage system is available,
right-click the storage system and click
Open Storage System GUI.

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 Accessing the performance view in the
Task web-based GUI
View the alerts that were generated by For information about how to view
threshold violations and the performance of performance alerts, see “Viewing
the resources where the violation occurred. performance alerts and threshold violations”
on page 164.
View the performance of a resource that is 1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI,
included in a specific performance monitor. go to Home > Performance Monitors.
2. In the Name column, locate the name of
the resource that you want to view.
3. Right-click the performance monitor and
select View Performance.
View predefined reports and create custom 1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI,
reports that show the performance of go to Cognos > View predefined
resources. In the optional Cognos Business reports.
Intelligence reporting tool, you can view
2. To view predefined reports, navigate to
reports about storage systems, components
the performance report that you want to
of storage systems, switches, and switch
view and click the name of the report.
ports.
To create a custom report about the
performance of resources, in the menu
bar, go to Cognos > Create performance
reports.

In the web-based GUI, you can also view the performance of internal resources on
the details pages for the related, top-level resources. For example, you can view the
performance of the controllers for a storage system on the details page for that
storage system. To access the performance view for an internal resource on a
details page, select the type of internal resource and click the Performance tab.

The following information summarizes the internal resources and locations where
you can access a performance view.
Table 28. Internal resources and locations where you access the performance view
Locations in the GUI where you can access the
Internal resource performance view
Pools v Storage > Pools
v Click Storage, and then click Block Storage Systems,
File Storage Systems, or Object Storage Systems,
depending on the storage system that you require.
Right-click the storage system, click View Details, and
click Pools

Available only for pools that are associated with the

following storage systems and virtualizers: System Storage
DS series, ESS, SAN Volume Controller, the IBM Storwize
family, IBM Spectrum Accelerate, and XIV systems.
Volumes v Storage > Volumes
v Click Storage, and then click Block Storage Systems,
File Storage Systems, or Object Storage Systems,
depending on the storage system that you require.
Right-click the storage system, click View Details, and
click Volumes

Chapter 5. Managing resources 153

 Table 28. Internal resources and locations where you access the performance
view (continued)
Locations in the GUI where you can access the
Internal resource performance view
Controllers Click Storage, and then click Block Storage Systems, File
Storage Systems, or Object Storage Systems, depending on
the storage system that you require. Right-click the storage
system, click View Details, and click Controllers
Disks Click Storage, and then click Block Storage Systems, File
Storage Systems, or Object Storage Systems, depending on
the storage system that you require. Right-click the storage
system, click View Details, and click Disks

Available only for disks that are associated with storage

virtualizers such as SAN Volume Controller and the IBM
Storwize family.
Host Connections Click Storage, and then click Block Storage Systems, File
Storage Systems, or Object Storage Systems, depending on
the storage system that you require. Right-click the storage
system, click View Details, and click Host Connections

Available only for host connections that are associated with

the following storage systems and virtualizers: System
Storage DS series, ESS, SAN Volume Controller, the IBM
Storwize family, and XIV systems.
I/O Group Click Storage, and then click Block Storage Systems, File
Storage Systems, or Object Storage Systems, depending on
the storage system that you require. Right-click the storage
system, click View Details, and click I/O Groups
Modules Click Storage, and then click Block Storage Systems, File
Storage Systems, or Object Storage Systems, depending on
the storage system that you require. Right-click the storage
system, click View Details, and click Modules
Nodes Click Storage, and then click Block Storage Systems, File
Storage Systems, or Object Storage Systems, depending on
the storage system that you require. Right-click the storage
system, click View Details, and click Nodes
Managed Disks Click Storage, and then click Block Storage Systems, File
Storage Systems, or Object Storage Systems, depending on
the storage system that you require. Right-click the storage
system, click View Details, and click Managed Disks

Available only for nodes that are associated with storage

virtualizers such as SAN Volume Controller and the IBM
Storwize family.
Ports on storage systems Click Storage, and then click Block Storage Systems, File
Storage Systems, or Object Storage Systems, depending on
the storage system that you require. Right-click the storage
system, click View Details, and click Ports
Ports on switches Network > Switches, and click Ports

154 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 28. Internal resources and locations where you access the performance
view (continued)
Locations in the GUI where you can access the
Internal resource performance view
RAID Arrays Click Storage, and then click Block Storage Systems, File
Storage Systems, or Object Storage Systems, depending on
the storage system that you require. Right-click the storage
system, click View Details, and click RAID Arrays

Available only for RAID arrays that are associated with

System Storage DS series and ESS storage systems.

Related information:
Performance statistics (for SAN Volume Controller systems)
Real-time performance statistics provide short-term status information for the SAN
Volume Controller system. The statistics are shown as graphs in the management
GUI.
Performance statistics (for Storwize V7000 Unified systems)
Real-time performance statistics provide short-term status information for the
Storwize V7000 Unified system. The statistics are shown as graphs in the
management GUI.

How performance information is displayed

The performance view is displayed when you view the performance of resources,
which includes resources in threshold violations, alerts, and performance monitors.
Information in the performance view is organized into two main sections: a chart
or table and a legend.
Performance chart
The top section of the performance view shows information about the
selected resources. You can view this information in the following formats:

Chart
The chart shows a visual representation of how the performance of
a resource trends over time. Each line on the chart represents a
metric and a resource. For example, if you select two metrics and
three resources, six lines are shown on the chart. The y-axis shows
the unit of measurement for a metric. If more metrics were selected
with a different unit of measurement, an extra y-axis is shown on
the right side of the chart window.
Table
The table shows performance and asset information that is
formatted into rows and columns. Each row represents a resource
and a time stamp from the chart; each column represents a metric
from the chart. For example, if two metrics and three resources are
displayed on a chart, and each of the lines on the chart have 10
data points, 30 rows and 2 columns are shown in the table.
To view other metrics and asset information for a resource,
right-click anywhere in the header row of the table and select extra
columns. The type of resource determines the metrics and
information that is available.
Performance chart legend
The bottom section of the performance view shows more information
about the resources in the chart. The information is formatted into rows

Chapter 5. Managing resources 155

 and columns. Each row represents a resource that was selected for the
view. Each column provides asset and performance information about a
resource.
Each metric on the chart is represented by two columns in the legend. The
first column includes the weighted average of the metric for each resource
in the selected time range. The second column represents the peak data
point of the metric for each resource in the selected time range. For
example, if a metric in the chart is Total I/O Rate, the following columns
are displayed in the legend: Avg Total I/O Rate, Worst Total I/O Rate. The
worst value can be the minimum or the maximum number, depending on
the metric. For example, the worst value for an I/O rate metric is a
maximum number, while the worst value for the Cache Hit Percentage
metric is a minimum number.
You can also view information about the resources that are related to the
resources in the legend. For example, if a SAN Volume Controller is listed
in the legend, right-click it to view the performance of its internal and
related resources, such as disks, volumes, ports, managed disks, and
back-end storage. For more information about the resources that you can
view in the chart legend, see “Resources in the chart legend” on page 160.

Tip:
v If you hide a resource in the performance chart, the row for that
resource remains visible in the chart legend.
v In the chart legend, information about a resource represents the state of
that resource during the selected time range. Specifically, this
information does not represent the current state of a resource, but
instead shows the final state of the resource during the selected time
range.
For example, if the current date is January 1, and you view a volume
with the time range set to December 1 to December 7, the legend shows
the capacity of that volume on December 7. If the capacity of the volume
was changed between December 7 and January 1, this historical capacity
is different from the current capacity of the volume on January 1.
Related concepts:
“Customizing lists of resources, tasks, and alerts” on page 233
The web-based GUI uses lists to show information about resources, tasks, and
alerts. The information in each list is organized into columns and rows. You can
customize these lists by filtering information, sorting rows, and showing, hiding,
and reordering columns.

Controls:

Each performance view includes controls for customizing how information is

displayed. The type of view and the resources that you are viewing determine
which controls are available.

View chart
View performance information in a chart format. The chart shows a visual
representation of how resource performance trends over time. Each line on
the chart represents a metric and a resource. The y-axis shows the unit of

156 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 measurement for a metric. If more metrics were selected with a different
unit of measurement, an extra y-axis is shown on the right side of the chart
window.
Hover the mouse pointer over points on a line to view a snapshot of
performance information at a specific time.

View table
View performance information in a table format. Each row represents a
resource and a time stamp. Each column represents a metric. You can view
other metrics and information for a resource by right-clicking anywhere in
the header row for the table and selecting more columns. The type of
resource determines the metrics and information that is available.
For information how to filter, sort, and customize the columns in a table,
see “Customizing lists of resources, tasks, and alerts” on page 233.

Metrics
Add metrics to the performance chart. On the Select Chart Metrics
window, metrics are organized into three tabs: Volume Metrics, Disk
Metrics, and Port Metrics. The metrics and tabs that are available depend
on the type of resource that is being shown in the chart. The number next
to the name of the tab represents the number of metrics that are currently
selected from that tab.
You can select multiple metrics at the same time and from different tabs,
but you cannot include more than two unit types in the same view. For
example, if you select metrics that use % and ops/s as units of
measurement, you cannot select more metrics that use different units of
measurement such as KiB/op or MiB/s.
For a list of metrics that you can view for resources, see “Performance
metrics” on page 283.

Hide and show resources

When the chart includes multiple resources, you can click the icon next to
a resource to show only the line for that resource. Each icon is shown in a
different color to match the color of line for the resource.
You can also show and hide resources in the chart by selecting resources in
the chart legend. To select multiple resources at the same time, press Shift
or Ctrl and click those resources. Press Shift and click to select consecutive
rows in the legend; press Ctrl and click to select non-consecutive rows.
You can show up to 10 resources in a chart at the same time.

Specify granularity
Determine the granularity of the data that is shown in a performance view.
Granularity determines the points that are shown on the y-axis of a chart,
the points on the lines in a chart, and the rows in a table. When you first

Chapter 5. Managing resources 157

 view performance information, the default time range is the last 12 hours
and the granularity matches the frequency of data collection by the
performance monitor (sample).
To change the granularity of chart or table, select one of the following
options from the granularity menu:

(daily)
Set the granularity to show 1-day increments for performance
information that is shown on the chart and table.
This granularity is only available if the time range of the chart is
more than 1 day.

(hourly)
Set the granularity to show one-hour increments for performance
information that is shown on the chart and table.
This granularity is only available if the time range of the chart is
more than 1 hour.

(Sample)
Set the granularity to match the frequency of data collection by a
performance monitor. For example, if a performance monitor is
scheduled to collect sample data every 15 minutes, each point on
the chart is shown in 15-minute increments.
This granularity is only available if the time range of the chart is
less than 2 weeks.
If the performance monitor collects sample data at 1-minute
intervals, data is displayed as 1-minute intervals in the chart only
when data is available for all of the selected time range. If data is
not available at 1-minute intervals for any portion of the selected
time range, the data is displayed in 5-minute intervals.
For example, the performance monitor for a resource collects
sample data every 5 minutes. Six hours ago, the performance
monitor was changed to start collecting data every minute. You
want to view sample data for the resource for the last 12 hours.
However, the performance monitor did not collect sample data
every minute for 6 of the last 12 hours. Therefore, the data is
displayed in 5-minute intervals rather than 1-minute intervals.

Restriction: Each granularity has a maximum time range for displaying

data. This time range is dynamically calculated based on the resources and
metrics that are shown on the chart, and the data points per line. When the
maximum range is exceeded, the granularity icon is disabled and a
message indicates that there are too many lines on the chart. To avoid this
problem, reduce the time range or the number of resources or metrics that
are selected.
Specify a time range
The time range of the performance information is shown below the chart.
You can change this range to display information for different times when
data was collected. When you first access the performance view, the
default time range is the last 12 hours.

158 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Ensure that performance data was collected during the time range that you
select. If data was not collected during the time range, the chart and table
are blank. If data collection was interrupted during the time range, the
chart and table show gaps for the time increments when data was not
collected.
For example, if you select a time range for the last 7 days, but data was
not collected on days 4 and 5, the lines in the chart do not show data for
days 4 and 5.

Hide and show chart controls

The performance view lists the names of resources that are being shown in
the chart and the controls for customizing that chart. Click the left arrow
icon to hide the controls and display the chart in the entire window. Click
the right arrow icon again to show the controls.

Export information about the chart to a file

Export information on a performance view to a CSV file.

Open the performance view in a separate web browser window

Open a duplicate of the current performance view in a separate web
browser window. You can change the information that is displayed in this
separate window while retaining the original performance view for
comparison.

Synchronize the time range across all the open performance views
Synchronize the time range across all the performance views that are
displayed in separate browser windows. Use this action when you change
the time range in a performance view and want to apply the same time
range to the other performance views.

Restriction: This action affects only the performance views that are
displayed in separate browser windows. The time range of the
performance view that is shown as part of the main window for the GUI is
not affected.
For example, you can view the storage system volumes that are assigned
to a server. You can then open separate browser windows for the host
connections, pools, and managed disks that are related to one of the
volumes. If you change the time range in the performance view for host
connections, click the synchronize button to apply the same time range to
the views for pools and managed disks. The performance view of the
original volume is not changed.
Actions for managing the resources in the chart legend
The chart legend in bottom section of the view shows more information
about the selected resources. This information is organized into rows and
columns, where each row represents a resource.
When you select one or more resources in the legend, the following actions
are available in the Actions menu:

Chapter 5. Managing resources 159

 View Properties
View key details about a resource, including asset, status,
configuration, capacity, and performance information.
View resource Performance
View the performance of resources that are internal or related to a
resource in the chart legend. For example, when you view the
performance of a SAN Volume Controller, you can right-click it
and view the performance of its internal resources, such as disks,
volumes, ports, managed disks, and back-end storage.
Information about an internal or related resource is shown in a
separate web browser window. This window uses the same time
range as the performance view in the main window of the GUI.

Restriction: If performance data was not collected for an internal

or related resource, that resource is not shown in the view. For
example, if you right-click a storage system and select Volume
performance, only the volumes for which performance data was
collected are shown.
For more information about the resources that you can view in the
chart legend, see “Resources in the chart legend.”
Key Metrics View
View a set of predefined metrics for resources in the chart legend.
Custom View
Customize the set of metrics that are shown for resources in the
chart legend.

Resources in the chart legend:

In the performance view, performance metrics and related information for

resources are shown in a chart and in the chart legend. For resources in the chart
legend, you can open separate performance views for their internal or related
resources. The separate performance views use the same time range as the
performance view in the main window of the GUI.

For example, when you view the performance of a SAN Volume Controller, you
can right-click it in the chart legend to open a performance view for its internal
and related resources, such as disks, volumes, ports, managed disks, and back-end
storage.

The type of resource determines the internal and related resources that you can
view. The following tables show the internal and related resources that are
available when you right-click a resource in the chart legend.
Table 29. Resources that you can view for DS6000, DS8000, and ESS storage systems in
the chart legend
Right-click the resource in Right-click the resource in
the chart legend to view the the chart legend to view the
performance of the performance of the
Resource in the chart legend following resources following related resources
Storage system Volume, RAID array, pool, Storage virtualizer, switch
controller, host connection,
port

160 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 29. Resources that you can view for DS6000, DS8000, and ESS storage systems in
the chart legend (continued)
Right-click the resource in Right-click the resource in
the chart legend to view the the chart legend to view the
performance of the performance of the
Resource in the chart legend following resources following related resources
Volume Storage system, RAID array, Managed disk
pool, controller, host
connection
RAID array Storage system, volume, None
pool, controller, host
connection
Pool Storage system, volume, None
RAID array, controller, host
connection
Controller Storage system, volume, None
RAID array, pool, host
connection
Host connection Storage system, volume, None
RAID array, pool, controller
Storage system port Storage system Switch port

Table 30. Resources that you can view for SAN Volume Controller, Storwize V3500,
Storwize V3700, Storwize V7000, and Storwize V7000 Unified storage systems in the chart
legend
Right-click the resource in Right-click the resource in
the chart legend to view the the chart legend to view the
performance of the performance of the
Resource in the chart legend following resources following related resources
Storage system Volume, pool, node, I/O Back-end storage system,
group, disk, managed disk, storage virtualizer, switch
host connection, port
Volume Storage system, pool, node, None
I/O group, disk, managed
disk, host connection
Pool Storage system, volume, None
node, I/O group, disk,
managed disk, host
connection
Node Storage system, volume, None
pool, I/O group, disk,
managed disk, host
connection, port
I/O group Storage system, volume, None
pool, node, disk, managed
disk, host connection, port
Disk Storage system, volume, None
pool, I/O group, node,
managed disk, host
connection
Managed disk Storage system, volume, Back-end volume
pool, node, I/O group, disk,
host connection

Chapter 5. Managing resources 161

 Table 30. Resources that you can view for SAN Volume Controller, Storwize V3500,
Storwize V3700, Storwize V7000, and Storwize V7000 Unified storage systems in the chart
legend (continued)
Right-click the resource in Right-click the resource in
the chart legend to view the the chart legend to view the
performance of the performance of the
Resource in the chart legend following resources following related resources
Host connection Storage system, volume, None
pool, node, I/O group, disk,
host connection
Storage system port Storage system, I/O group, Switch port
node

Table 31. Resources that you can view for IBM Spectrum Scale in the chart legend
Right-click the resource in Right-click the resource in
the chart legend to view the the chart legend to view the
performance of the performance of the
Resource in the chart legend following resources following related resources
Storage system File system, node None
File system Storage system, node None
Node Storage system, file system None

Table 32. Resources that you can view for IBM Spectrum Accelerate in the chart legend
Right-click the resource in Right-click the resource in
the chart legend to view the the chart legend to view the
performance of the performance of the
Resource in the chart legend following resources following related resources
Storage system Module, pool, volume, host Storage virtualizer, switch
connection, port
Module Storage system, pool, None
volume, host connection,
port
Pool Storage system, module, None
volume, host connection
Volume Storage system, module, Managed Disk
pool, host connection

Table 33. Resources that you can view for XIV systems in the chart legend
Right-click the resource in Right-click the resource in
the chart legend to view the the chart legend to view the
performance of the performance of the
Resource in the chart legend following resources following related resources
Storage system Module, pool, volume, host Storage virtualizer, switch
connection, port
Module Storage system, pool, None
volume, host connection,
port
Pool Storage system, module, None
volume, host connection
Volume Storage system, module, Managed Disk
pool, host connection

162 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 33. Resources that you can view for XIV systems in the chart legend (continued)
Right-click the resource in Right-click the resource in
the chart legend to view the the chart legend to view the
performance of the performance of the
Resource in the chart legend following resources following related resources
Host connection Storage system, module, None
pool, volume
Storage system port Storage system, module Switch port

Table 34. Resources that you can view for IBM Spectrum Accelerate in the chart legend
Right-click the resource in Right-click the resource in
the chart legend to view the the chart legend to view the
performance of the performance of the
Resource in the chart legend following resources following related resources
Storage system Module, pool, volume, host Storage virtualizer, switch
connection, port
Module Storage system, pool, None
volume, host connection,
port
Pool Storage system, module, None
volume, host connection
Volume Storage system, module, Managed Disk
pool, host connection

Table 35. Resources that you can view for SMI-S BSP systems in the chart legend
Right-click the resource in Right-click the resource in
the chart legend to view the the chart legend to view the
performance of the performance of the
Resource in the chart legend following resources following related resources
Storage system Volume, port Storage virtualizer, switch
Volume Storage system Managed disk
Storage system port Storage system Switch port

Table 36. Resources that you can view for switches in the chart legend
Right-click the resource in Right-click the resource in
the chart legend to view the the chart legend to view the
performance of the performance of the
Resource in the chart legend following resources following related resources
Switch Port Storage system, switch
Port Switch Storage system port, switch
port

Chapter 5. Managing resources 163

 Table 37. Resources that you can view for servers in the chart legend
Right-click the resource in Right-click the resource in
the chart legend to view the the chart legend to view the
performance of the performance of the
Resource in the chart legend following resources following related resources
Server None Storage system, volume,
pool, controller, module,
node, I/O group, disk,
managed disk, host
connection, switch, storage
system port, switch port

Saving URLs for performance views

You can create a bookmark or a favorite for a performance view.

The link in the bookmark or favorite stores details of the performance view, such
as the resources, metrics, interval, and other details. The link also stores the time
period that is specified in the time selector at the top of the chart.

You can also copy the URL from the address bar if you want to share the URL
with colleagues.

Do one of the following steps:

v In Firefox, right-click in the performance view and click Bookmark This Page.
v In Internet Explorer, right-click in the performance view and click Add to
favorites.

Viewing performance alerts and threshold violations

View the alerts that were generated when the measured value of a metric falls
outside of the specified threshold for a resource.

To view violations of performance thresholds, you must collect performance data

and define performance alerts for that resource. For information about how to
collect performance data, see “Creating performance monitors” on page 104. For
information about how to define performance alerts, see “Defining alerts for
performance metrics” on page 117.
1. Complete one of the following tasks to view performance alerts:

Task Steps
View the performance alerts for a specific 1. In the menu bar, choose one of the
storage system following options:
v Storage > Block Storage Systems
v Storage > File Storage Systems
2. Double-click a storage system.
3. Click Alerts in the General section.
View all the performance alerts that were 1. In the menu bar, select Network >
generated for switches Switches.
2. Click the Alerts tab.

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 Task Steps
View the performance alerts for a specific 1. In the menu bar, select Network >
switch Switches.
2. Double-click a switch.
3. Click Alerts in the General section.

2. Right-click the performance alert that you want to view and select View Alert.
In this view, a chart shows the performance of the resource that violated the
threshold and generated the alert. The time range of the chart is 2 hours before
and 2 hours after the violation occurred. The lines on the chart represent the
following values:
v The blue line represents the performance of the resource for the selected
metric.
v The red line represents the threshold that was violated.
v The dotted line represents the time when the violation occurred.
For certain storage systems, a ranked list of the 25 volumes that were the top
contributors to the workload on the resource where the threshold violation
occurred might be displayed below the chart. This list is shown under the
following conditions:
v The performance threshold was violated on an internal resource other than a
port.
v The performance threshold was violated on any of the following storage
systems:
– DS6000
– DS8000
– XIV
– IBM Spectrum Accelerate
– ESS
– SAN Volume Controller
– Storwize V3500
– Storwize V3700
– Storwize V7000
– Storwize V7000 Unified
You can also view the servers or hosts to which those volumes are assigned.
3. Optional: To access the full performance view of a resource that violated the
threshold, click the open performance view icon on the chart.

Monitoring and administering applications and departments

You create applications to monitor the storage capacity, space usage, and
performance of applications, and you create departments to monitor the space
usage of the applications in the department. You can structure your applications
and departments hierarchically to match the structure of your business
organization.

You can map the application to the storage resources that the application uses to
do capacity trending, health monitoring, and performance troubleshooting tasks.
For example, a department might use 15 applications and be part of another five
departments. Also a department might share storage resources with another
department, subdepartment or application even if they do not belong in the same

Chapter 5. Managing resources 165

 business hierarchy. Another example, might be if you are contacted because an
application within a department is experiencing a performance issue. You carry out
tasks like capacity reporting or trending on the behalf of the application.

Application administration

Go to the pages for creating and administering the applications that you want to
monitor.
Table 38. Create and administer applications and subcomponents
Actions Navigation
Create applications and assign storage 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
resources directly to the application. Applications.
2. On the Applications page, click Create
Application.
3. On the Select a Method page, click
Assign storage resources to the
application.
Create subcomponents that can have its own 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
storage resources. Applications.
2. On the Applications page, click Create
Application.
3. On the Select a Method page, click
Create a subcomponent that can have
its own set of storage resources.
Create a filter to use in assigning resources. 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
Applications.
2. On the Applications page, right-click a
row in the Applications list and click
View Details.
3. In the General section, click Filters.
4. On the Filters page, click Create Filter.
Add applications as subcomponents to an 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
application. Applications.
2. Right-click the applications that you
want to add as subcomponents, and then
click Add to.. > Application.
3. On the Add to Application page, select
the applications and click Save.
Add applications to departments. 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
Applications.
2. On the Applications page, select one or
more applications, right-click and then
click Add to.. > Department.
3. On the Add to Department page, select
the applications that you want to add as
members and click Save.

166 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 38. Create and administer applications and subcomponents (continued)
Actions Navigation
Add applications to subdepartments. 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
Departments.
2. Right-click the department, and then
click View Details.
3. In the General section, click
Subdepartments.
4. Right-click the subdepartment, and click
View Details.
5. In the General section, click
Applications.
6. Click Create Application.
Remove applications and subcomponents 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
that you do not want to monitor. Applications.
2. On the Applications page, select one or
more applications, and click Remove.
3. If you select Remove Subcomponents,
the subcomponents that belong only to
the application are removed.
Remove subcomponents within the direct 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
context of an application that you do not Applications.
want to monitor.
2. Right-click the application and click
View Details.
3. In the General section, click
Subcomponents.
4. Right-click the subcomponent, and click
Remove from Application.
Remove resources within the direct context 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
of an application. Applications.
2. Right-click the application and click
View Details.
3. In the Related Resources section, click
an eligible resource.
4. On the resource page, right-click the
resource, and click Remove from
Application.

Department administration
Go to the pages for creating and administering the departments that you want to
monitor.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 167

 Table 39. Create and administer departments and subdepartments
Actions Navigation
Create departments and associate members 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
(applications and departments) to create a Departments.
hierarchal structure.
2. On the Departments page, click Create
Department.
3. On the Add Members page, click Add
one or more applications or Create
subdepartment.
Add departments as subdepartments to a 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
department. Departments.
2. On the Departments page, right-click the
departments that you want to add as
subdepartments, and then click Add to
Department.
Add applications to departments. 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
Departments.
2. Right-click the department, and then
click View Details.
3. In the General section, click
Applications.
4. Click Create Application.
Add applications to subdepartments. 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
Departments.
2. Right-click the department, and then
click View Details.
3. In the General section, click
Subdepartments.
4. Right-click the subdepartment, and click
View Details.
5. In the General section, click
Applications.
6. Click Create Application.
Remove departments, subdepartments, and 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
applications, that are members of the Departments.
department.
2. On the Departments page, right-click one
or more departments and click Remove.
3. If you select Remove subdepartments
and applications, the subdepartments
and applications that belong only to the
department, that is being removed, are
removed.

168 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Table 39. Create and administer departments and subdepartments (continued)
Actions Navigation
Remove applications from a subdepartment. 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
Departments.
2. Right-click the department, and then
click View Details.
3. In the General section, click
Subdepartments.
4. Right-click the subdepartment, and click
View Details.
5. In the General section, click
Applications.
6. Select and right-click the applications,
and then click Remove.
Remove subdepartments within the direct 1. In the menu bar, go to Groups >
context of a department that you do not Departments.
want to monitor.
2. Right-click the department, and then
click View Details.
3. In the General section, click
Subdepartments.
4. Right-click the subdepartments that you
want to remove, and then click Remove
from Department.

Related tasks:
“Monitoring capacity usage at different levels of a business hierarchy” on page 64
The monitoring and management of applications and departments enables you to
monitor storage capacity usage, recognize trends, monitor health status, and
troubleshoot performance of the storage resources in your business organization.
“Comparing storage usage in each department” on page 66
In this scenario, you compare the storage usage in each department within your
organization to spot a potential storage usage issue.
“Using applications and subcomponents to monitor capacity and space usage” on
page 68
To monitor the performance, capacity, and space usage of the applications in your
business organization, create applications and subcomponents. You can also add
applications to departments so that storage capacity and usage can be monitored in
an overall business hierarchal manner.
“Viewing storage capacity and usage trends” on page 69
You can view the capacity and usage trends of storage resources used by an
application and subcomponents to diagnose how much storage a particular
application is using in relation to the other applications and departments in the
business hierarchy.

Applications
View information about storage area network resources that you can model by
using applications in your business environment. The monitoring and management
of applications enables you to perform capacity trending, health monitoring, and
performance troubleshooting tasks.

An application can be part of a department and have subcomponents (member

applications) that can contain a five level deep hierarchy. Applications that are

Chapter 5. Managing resources 169

 grouped together can range from large line of business systems to specialized
software, in a department that runs on either client computers or servers. For
example, an application might be an automated billing system in the Finance
department, VMware running in the Information Technology department or an
email marketing system that is part of the Marketing department.

Another example might be an application named Database and the database

contains logs and data, and a best practice is to place the logs and data on separate
volumes. You might create subcomponents for the logs and data and these
subcomponents become part of the Database application.

A storage administrator can use applications for planning purposes to diagnose

how much storage a particular application is consuming in relation to the other
applications in the business hierarchy. Another applicable usage for applications
might be troubleshooting performance issues. The administrator checks the related
resources that make up the application to see if there is a health status issue or can
examine the performance of volumes that are used by the application, and, then
troubleshoot along a particular data path.

The Applications page shows capacity information about the applications that are
monitored by IBM Spectrum Control and the actions that you can use to view and
manage them. To see more detailed information, view properties and details for
the application. If the application is associated with a department, information
about that department is also shown.

The following information shows the resources and objects that can be added to
the application.
Table 40. Resources and objects that can be added to the application
Resources or objects that can be added to the
Object application

v Applications
v Servers
v Hypervisors
v Volumes
v Data Stores
Application v Shares
v File Systems (Only server file systems that are
monitored through a Storage Resource Agent.)
v Filesets
v Volume Groups
v Virtual Machines (Can only be added with the CLI
modifyappgroup command)

Creating an application hierarchy

To monitor, the capacity, space usage, and performance of the storage resources
that your applications use, create application models.

In this scenario, you want to monitor the capacity, space usage, and performance
of a DB2 application.

The DB2 application has two subcomponents, which you want to monitor
separately:

170 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

v logs
v data
To monitor the DB2 applications and the data and logs subcomponents, complete
these tasks:
v Create an application that is named DB2.
v Create applications that are named data and logs
v Associate storage resources with the data and logs applications. For example, in
this case, associate the volumes that the data application uses, type data_vol*.
For the logs application, type logs_vol* in the Volumes field of A selection of
volumes that match a pattern filter. Then click Belonging to and click Storage
System. Type the name of the storage system or the pattern that matches the
name of the storage system.
v Add the data application and the logs application as subcomponents to the DB2
application.

Tip:

When you create complex application models for applications, it is not necessary to
create a filter to associate storage resources with the application because the
application inherits the storage resources that are associated with its
subcomponents. However, if you want to monitor storage resources that are not
associated with the subcomponents, you must create a filter that associates the
additional storage resources that you want to monitor with the application.

You can now view information about the capacity, space usage, and performance
of the storage resources on the Overview page for the application and
subcomponents.

You can create departments and add applications to the departments.

Related concepts:
“Application and department hierarchies” on page 184
The interactive breadcrumb on the Overview page provides a visual representation
of the hierarchical relationships for applications and departments and enables you
to navigate quickly between the elements in the hierarchy.

Creating applications:

To monitor storage capacity, troubleshoot performance, and view storage area

network dependencies for applications, you can create applications for monitoring
in IBM Spectrum Control.

Use the GUI to create applications, assign resources, and subcomponents for
monitoring by IBM Spectrum Control.

To determine the storage capacity usage by the storage resources that the
applications use, you create a data model of the applications for your storage
environment.

To create an application, complete these steps:

1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Applications.
2. On the Applications page, click Create Application.
3. On the Create Application page, enter information about the application.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 171

 Note: You cannot have a duplicate application name on the same level in your
application hierarchy. For example, you create an application named Finance
and create a subcomponent named Business. You can create another application
named Business as a top level application, but you cannot add the new Business
application as a subcomponent of the Finance application.
You can customize the icon for your application by clicking the existing icon on
the Create Application page and selecting another icon from the Customize
Icon page.
4. Click Create.
5. Optional: On the Select a Method page, select Assign storage resources to the
application that was created and follow the instructions to add the resources
directly to the application.
6. Click Preview to see a list of filter matches before you finalize your filtering
criteria, otherwise, click Save.
7. Optional: Select Create a subcomponent that can have its own set of storage
resources and follow the instructions to create a subcomponent of the
application.
8. Click Create.

When the application creation is created, you can view status information, block
and file capacity and additional data on the Applications page and in properties.
For a detailed view of the application and related resources, on the Applications
page, right-click the application and select View Details. To see the subcomponents
for the application, click Subcomponent on the application details page.
Related tasks:
“Adding subcomponents” on page 175
You created a new application and a subcomponent, with their own set of
resources and added it to your business hierarchy. You now want to add another
level to your business hierarchy.
“Using filters to assign resources to applications”
Instead of manually adding the resources that you want to assign to new or
existing applications, you can create filters to assign resources based on name
pattern matching.
“Viewing information about applications” on page 176
You can view information about the application that you created as related
resources, filters that are used to populate the application with resources, any
subcomponents, capacity trending and performance information.

Using filters to assign resources to applications:

Instead of manually adding the resources that you want to assign to new or
existing applications, you can create filters to assign resources based on name
pattern matching.

When you create a filter to assign storage resources to applications, the resources
that match the criteria that are defined in the filter are automatically added to the
application or subcomponent (member application).

The use of wildcard characters enables you to customize and expand your search
to add related resources. The asterisk (*) and the question mark (?) can be used as
wildcard characters. The asterisk matches one or more characters. The question
mark matches a single character. Use a comma-separated list to add multiple
resources. As new resources are added or modified and they match the existing

172 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

filter, they automatically become part of the application. For example, a new server
is added, a volume is renamed or a share is mounted on a server.

If you edit a filter, the resources that no longer match the filter are removed from
the application and the resources that now match the filter are added to the
application.

If you remove the filter, all storage resources that match the filter criteria are
removed from the application.

Filtering is extremely useful in storage environments where resources are

predefined and named in a consistent format. Instead of adding each resource
separately, you create filtering criteria that matches your naming format in your
environment. You can use filtering when you create a new application or directly
from the details page for an existing application.

You can only select one resource type filter at a time during the creation workflow,
but you can create multiple filters for applications.

The filters are divided into the following categories:

All storage that belongs to a set of servers/hypervisors
You can add servers or hypervisors to the application or subcomponent
(member application).
For example, in the Define Name Patterns section, enter *blade, in the
Server/Hypervisor field and click Save. The filter adds all known servers
or hypervisors that have a name that ends with blade to the application.
If you enter server???.abc.com, in the Server/Hypervisor field, the filter
adds all servers, in the domain with names that begin with server
followed by three characters and ends with .abc.com to the application. If
you enter, accounting*.*, the filter adds all servers with names that begin
with accounting regardless of the domain the system belongs to.
If you enter cs-blade47.lab.abc.com, cs-blade49.lab.abc.com or
cs-blade47*, cs-blade49*, the filter adds multiple servers to the
application.
A selection of volumes that match a pattern
You can add volumes of a certain name format, volumes that belong to a
server or hypervisor, volumes from a specific storage system or volumes
from a pool to the application or subcomponent. You can only select one
resource option per filter creation.
For example, in the Define Name Patterns section, if you enter *vol, in the
Volumes field, mark the Belonging to box, click Server/Hypervisor , enter
*.lab.abc.com and click Save. The filter adds all volumes that have a
name that ends with vol and are mapped to servers that have a name that
ends with .lab.abc.com to the application.
If you enter *vol, in the Volumes field, mark the Belonging to box, click
Storage System, and enter ds8000. The filter adds all volumes that have a
name that ends with vol that belong to the ds8000 storage system.
A selection of shares that match a pattern
You can add shares and exports that are mounted on a server or
hypervisor, or shares and exports that are exported from a specific storage
system to the application or subcomponent. You can select only one
resource option per filter creation.

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 For example, in the Define Name Patterns section, if you enter *share in
the Shares field, mark the Belonging to box, click Server/Hypervisor, enter
*.lab.abc.com and click Save. The filter adds shares that have a name that
ends with share that are mounted on servers that have a name that ends
with .lab.abc.com .
If you enter share3 in the Shares field, mark the Belonging to box, click
Storage System and enter SONAS, the filter adds all the shares that are
named share3 and are exported from the SONAS storage system.
A selection of filesets that match a pattern
You can add filesets that are associated with file systems, from a storage
system to the application or subcomponent. You can select only one
resource option per filter creation.
For example, in the Define Name Patterns section, if you enter * in the
Filesets field, mark the Belonging to box, click Storage System, enter
SONAS* and click Save, the filter adds all the filesets that are exposed by
storage systems that have names that begin with SONAS to the application.
If you enter * in the Filesets field, mark the Belonging to box, click File
System and enter fs1, the filter adds all the filesets that are associated with
the file systems named fs1 to the application.

To create a filter, complete these steps:

1. In the menu bar, go to Groups>Applications.
2. On the Applications page, right-click a row in the Applications list and click
View Details.
3. In the General section, click Filters.
4. On the Filters page, click Create Filter.
5. On the Create Filter page, select a resource type filter and enter the necessary
information.
6. Click Preview to see a list of filter matches before you finalize your filtering
criteria.
7. On the Filter Matches page, click Save to create the filter.

The General section of the details page shows the number of filters that you
created, for example, Filters (6). Click Filters to access the Filters page and see the
filters that were created. For example, The number of matches: 26, which indicates
there are 26 matches for the filter criteria. Click the link to see the resources for the
filter matches that are available.

Tip: To view a description of a field on the Create Filter page, hover the mouse
pointer over the help icon for that field.
Related tasks:
“Creating applications” on page 171
To monitor storage capacity, troubleshoot performance, and view storage area
network dependencies for applications, you can create applications for monitoring
in IBM Spectrum Control.
“Adding subcomponents” on page 175
You created a new application and a subcomponent, with their own set of
resources and added it to your business hierarchy. You now want to add another
level to your business hierarchy.

174 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Adding subcomponents:

You created a new application and a subcomponent, with their own set of
resources and added it to your business hierarchy. You now want to add another
level to your business hierarchy.

To create a subcomponent for an existing application, complete these steps:

1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Applications.
2. On the Applications page, select one or more applications, right-click and then,
click Add to.. > Application.
3. On the Add to Application page, choose the applications that you want to
become subcomponents of your selected applications. The Hierarchy column
shows the path of only the ancestor applications; it does not show departments.
4. Click Save.
5. Optional: On the details page for the application, click Subcomponents.
6. On the Subcomponents page, click Create Subcomponent.
7. On the Create Subcomponent page, enter information including name,
description, type, and subtype.
8. Click Create.

After the subcomponent is created, you can view the results on the Subcomponent
page and in the properties. For a more detailed view of the subcomponent, select
the subcomponent from the Subcomponent page and click Actions > View Details.

Adding resources manually to applications

You can add resources directly from a resource page to your applications.

Only the following resources can be added directly to applications:

v Servers
v Hypervisors
v Volumes
v Volume groups
v Data stores
v Shares
v File systems (Only server file systems that are monitored through a Storage
Resource Agent.)
v Filesets

To add a resource directly to an application, complete these steps:

1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Servers.
2. On the Servers page, select a server from the Servers list, right-click and click
Add to Application.
3. On the Add to Application page, select one or more applications to assign the
server to.
4. Click Save.

The resource is added to the application and is displayed on the Applications page.
Related tasks:
“Using filters to assign resources to applications” on page 172
Instead of manually adding the resources that you want to assign to new or
existing applications, you can create filters to assign resources based on name
Chapter 5. Managing resources 175
 pattern matching.

Adding resources with the command line interface

You can use the modifyappgroupviafile command-line interface (CLI) command to
automate your bulk assignment of eligible storage resources to applications. To add
a single resource to an application, use the modifyappgroup command.
Related information:
modifyappgroupviafile command
modifyappgroup command

Viewing information about applications

You can view information about the application that you created as related
resources, filters that are used to populate the application with resources, any
subcomponents, capacity trending and performance information.

To view the details of an application, use these steps:

1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Applications.
2. On the Applications page, right-click an application and select View Details.

The application details shows information about the specific application. The
information is available from the following sections on the page:
v Overview: The overall capacity trending about the application and performance
information. An interactive breadcrumb that shows the hierarchy of applications
and departments and a list of all the top level applications.
v Properties: The key information about the application.
v Filters: The number of filters created and the filtering criteria used for the
resources that were added to the application.
v Subcomponents: The number of subcomponents that are a members of the
selected application. If there is more than one subcomponent, the number of
subcomponents is displayed.
v Related Resources: The information about the resources that are related to the
application.

Tip: To view descriptions of the information that is available on an application

details page, click the Help icon in the upper-right corner of the page.
Related concepts:
“Application and department hierarchies” on page 184
The interactive breadcrumb on the Overview page provides a visual representation
of the hierarchical relationships for applications and departments and enables you
to navigate quickly between the elements in the hierarchy.
Related tasks:
“Creating an application hierarchy” on page 170
To monitor, the capacity, space usage, and performance of the storage resources
that your applications use, create application models.

Removing applications and subcomponents

You can remove applications and their subcomponents. The data that was collected
to monitor the applications is also removed from the database repository.

To remove applications and subcomponents from a level of the business hierarchy,

complete the following steps:
1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Applications.
176 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
2. On the Applications page, select one or more applications, and click Remove.
a. If you select Remove Subcomponents, the subcomponents that belong only
to the application are removed.
b. If you do not select Remove Subcomponents, any subcomponents of the
application, that is being removed, then become members of the parent
application or department. If the application is a top level application, and,
the subcomponents are not members of any other application, the
subcomponents become top level applications.

The applications and subcomponents are removed and are no longer displayed on
the Applications page.

To remove subcomponents from within the direct context of the application, use
these steps:
1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Applications.
2. On the Applications page, select an application from the Application list and
right-click View Details.
3. Optional: Select a application from the Applications page and right-click View
Properties.
a. Click the Subcomponents tab and continue with steps 5-6.
4. On the application details page, click Subcomponents in the General section.
5. On the Subcomponents page, select the subcomponent and right-click Remove
from Application.
6. Confirm that you want to remove the subcomponent and click Remove.

Removing resources from applications

Related resources within the context of an application can be removed from
applications. The action is only available when viewing the related resources that
belong to an application on the details page.

The following resources can be removed from an application:

v Volumes
v Shares
v Servers
v File systems (Only server file systems that are monitored through a Storage
Resource Agent.)
v Filesets
v Volume Groups
v Hypervisors
v Data Stores

Resources that were added through a filter match are removed if the filter is
modified and no longer includes the resource that was removed from the
application, the filter is removed from IBM Spectrum Control, or the resource is
removed from IBM Spectrum Control. Resources can be added back to the
application if the filter is modified and includes the resource that was originally
removed, a new filter is created that matches the resource, the resources are added
to IBM Spectrum Control, or you use the Add to Application action.

For example, a server named, abc.xyz.com is added to an application named,

ApplicationABC because it matched the server name filter, abc*. You decide to
remove theabc.xyz.com server from the ApplicationABC application and remove

Chapter 5. Managing resources 177

 the abc.xyz.com server from IBM Spectrum Control. Later you want to add the
abc.xyz.com server back to IBM Spectrum Control. The abc.xyz.com server is
added to the ApplicationABC application because the name matches the server
resource filter that you originally created for the ApplicationABC application. If
you do not want the resource added back to the application, you can further refine
your filters. Click the View Filters link on the confirmation dialog to make any
adjustments to the filtering criteria before creation.

Resources that are automatically added to an application because they are related
to resources that were explicitly added to the application are not removed from the
application. The resources are automatically removed when the corresponding
related resource that was added to the application, is also removed from the
application.

For example, you add a server to the application that has one volume from a
storage system. The volume is added as a related resource of that server in the
application. If you attempt to remove the volume from the application, the volume
is not removed since it is a related resource. The volume is only removed when the
server, that was explicitly added to the application, is removed.

To remove resources directly from an application, use these steps

1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Applications.
2. On the Applications page, select an application from the Application list and
right-click View Details.
3. On the application details page, click an eligible resource in the Related
Resource section.
4. On the resource page, select the resource from the list, and right-click Remove
from Application.
5. Confirm that you want to remove the resource.
6. Click Remove.

The resources that were added to the application are removed from the
application.
Related tasks:
“Using filters to assign resources to applications” on page 172
Instead of manually adding the resources that you want to assign to new or
existing applications, you can create filters to assign resources based on name
pattern matching.

Departments
View information about departments and structure the hierarchy to mirror your
business organization. Monitor the detailed information about capacity and space
usage that is collected for departments and subdepartments, and monitor the
performance of the applications and the application subcomponents that are added
to departments and subdepartments.

A department can be hierarchical in its organizational layout. For example, a

department might use 15 applications and be part of another five departments. A
department might share storage resources with another department,
subdepartment or application even if they do not belong in the same hierarchy. For
example, in a collaboration scenario, a single IBM SAN Volume Controller might
be shared by multiple departments. You can provide reports on the storage

178 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

capacity that is used at different levels of your business hierarchy to regulate and
compare the capacity storage, and in turn, track the trending of storage usage by
specific departments.

The Departments page shows storage capacity information about the top level
departments, the subdepartments and any applications that belong to the
department that are monitored by IBM Spectrum Control and the actions that you
can use to view and manage the resources that are defined to them. To see more
detailed information, view properties and details for the department.

The following information shows the objects that you can add using the Add to
Department function.
Table 41. Objects that can be added to the department
Object Objects that can be added to the department

v Applications
v Departments

Department

Creating a department hierarchy

To monitor the capacity and space usage of the department, you want to create a
department hierarchy and associate applications with the department hierarchy.
You can also monitor the performance of the storage resources that are associated
with the applications that you add to the department hierarchy.

In this scenario, you want to monitor the capacity and space usage of departments
in a business organization that sells books. You also want to monitor the
performance of the storage resources that are associated with the applications or
application subcomponents that are used by the departments.

The sales department of the organization, Book Sales, has these subdepartments:
v Wholesale
v Retail
v Online

To monitor the storage resources that the Books Sales department uses and that
each of its subdepartments use, complete these tasks:
v
v Create a department for Book Sales.
v Create the Wholesale, Retail, and Online subdepartments that you want to add
to the department:
– Create the subdepartments as departments.
– Add the departments as subdepartments to the department.
– Add the applications to the subdepartments.

You can now view charts and information about the capacity and space usage of
the department and each of the subdepartments on the Departments page and the
Subdepartments page. You can also view charts and information about the

Chapter 5. Managing resources 179

 performance of the storage resources that are associated with the applications or
application subcomponents that the departments and subdepartments use.

Tip: In the Subdepartments column for the department on the Departments page,
the name of the subdepartment is shown. If you add two or more departments to a
subdepartment, the number of subdepartments is shown. To view information
about the subdepartments, click the name of the subdepartment or the number.

You can view the total capacity and space usage for the department and the
capacity and space usage for each of the subdepartments. You can add to your
department hierarchy by adding more applications and departments.

Creating departments:

To model the storage capacity that is consumed in a department for your business
environment, in accordance with other department and application members,
create departments for monitoring in IBM Spectrum Control.

Use the web-based GUI to create departments, subdepartments (member

departments) and add applications for monitoring different levels of a business
hierarchy.

To create a department, complete these steps:

1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Departments.
2. On the Departments page, click Create Department.
3. On the Create Department page, enter information about the department. You
cannot have a duplicate department name on the same level in your
department hierarchy. For example, you create a department named Finance
and create a subdepartment named Business. You can create another department
named Business as a top level department, but if you want to make your new
Business department a subdepartment of the Finance department, you see a
message that indicates there is already a department named Business that is a
member of the Finance department; your department creation is denied.
You can customize the icon for your department by clicking the existing icon
on the Create Department page and selecting another icon from the Customize
Icon page.
4. Click Create and then Close.
5. Optional: On the Add Members page, click Add one or more applications .
a. On the populate page, select the applications that to add to your
department. If you do not want to add any of the applications that are
listed, click Create Application to create a new application to add to the
department.
b. Click Finish.
6. Optional: On the Add Members page, click Create subdepartment .
a. On the Create Subdepartment page, enter your information.
b. Click Create.

To view the newly created department, go to the Departments page.

To see the applications that you added to your department, see the details page
and click Applications.

180 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

To see the subdepartment you created, see the Subdepartments column on the
Departments page or see the details page and click Subdepartments.

Continue to add to your department hierarchy by adding applications and

departments.
Related tasks:
“Adding and creating subdepartments”
To further enhance your data modeling at the department level and to add to your
overall business hierarchy for monitoring, add an existing subdepartment or create
a new subdepartment.
“Adding applications to departments” on page 182
To further enhance the data storage modeling in a business environment and see
the storage capacity that is used at the different levels of your business hierarchy,
add applications to departments. The departments you select from the Add to
Department page become parents of the selected applications.

Adding and creating subdepartments:

To further enhance your data modeling at the department level and to add to your
overall business hierarchy for monitoring, add an existing subdepartment or create
a new subdepartment.

To add a subdepartment to the department level hierarchy, use these steps:

1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Departments.
2. On the Departments page, select one or more departments, right-click and click
Add to Department.
3. On the Add to Department page, select one or more departments from the list
and click Save. The department or departments you select from the Add to
Department page become parents of the selected department. The Hierarchy
column shows the longest ancestry path of the department. You can also view
the applications that are members of the department on the Departments page.
4. Optional: Create a new subdepartment:
a. Click Create Department to open the Create Department page.
b. Enter information about the department.
c. Click Create.
d. On the Add Members page, click Create a subdepartment.
e. On the Create Subdepartment page, enter your information.
f. Click Create.
5. Optional: Create a new subdepartment from the details page of the existing
department:
a. In the General section, click Subdepartments to open the Subdepartments
page.
a. Click Create Subdepartment to open the Create Subdepartment page.
b. Enter information about the subdepartment.
c. Click Create.

To see the subdepartment you created, see the Subdepartments column on the
Departments page or click Subdepartments on the details page.

You can continue to create or add subdepartments to the department or add

applications to the department.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 181

 Related tasks:
“Creating departments” on page 180
To model the storage capacity that is consumed in a department for your business
environment, in accordance with other department and application members,
create departments for monitoring in IBM Spectrum Control.
“Adding applications to departments”
To further enhance the data storage modeling in a business environment and see
the storage capacity that is used at the different levels of your business hierarchy,
add applications to departments. The departments you select from the Add to
Department page become parents of the selected applications.

Adding applications to departments:

To further enhance the data storage modeling in a business environment and see
the storage capacity that is used at the different levels of your business hierarchy,
add applications to departments. The departments you select from the Add to
Department page become parents of the selected applications.

To add applications to departments, complete these steps:

1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Applications.
2. On the Applications page, select one or more applications, right-click and then,
click Add to.. > Department.
3. On the Add to Department page, select one or more departments to add to the
selected application or applications. The Hierarchy column shows the longest
ancestry path of the department.
4. Click Save.
5. Optional: On the Create Department page, enter information about the
department.
6. Click Create.
7. On the Add Members page, click Add one or more applications.
8. On the populate page, select the applications that to add to your department. If
you do not want to add any of the applications that are listed, click Create
Application to create a new application to add to the department.
9. Click Finish.

View the added department or departments in the Departments column on the

Applications page or the Departments tab of the application properties.
Related tasks:
“Creating applications” on page 171
To monitor storage capacity, troubleshoot performance, and view storage area
network dependencies for applications, you can create applications for monitoring
in IBM Spectrum Control.
“Creating departments” on page 180
To model the storage capacity that is consumed in a department for your business
environment, in accordance with other department and application members,
create departments for monitoring in IBM Spectrum Control.

Viewing information about departments

You can view detailed information about departments for use in storage capacity
monitoring and performance troubleshooting. You can view additional information
on the applications and subdepartments that are used to establish a hierarchal
business structure.

182 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

To view the details of a department, use these steps:
1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Departments.
2. On the Departments page, right-click a department in the list and select View
Details.

The department details page shows information about the specific department. The
information is available in the following sections on the page:
v Overview: The overall capacity trending and performance information about the
department. An interactive breadcrumb that shows the hierarchy of the
departments and applications and a list of all the top level departments.
v Properties: The key information about the department.
v Applications: The applications that belong to the department. If there is more
than one application, the number of applications is displayed.
v Subdepartments: The subdepartments that belong to the department. If there is
more than one subdepartment, the number of subdepartments is displayed.
v Related Resources: Information about related resources in the storage
environment that the applications, which belong to the department, are using or
are connected to.

Tip: To view descriptions of the information that is available on a department

details page, click the Help icon in the upper-right corner of the page.
Related concepts:
“Application and department hierarchies” on page 184
The interactive breadcrumb on the Overview page provides a visual representation
of the hierarchical relationships for applications and departments and enables you
to navigate quickly between the elements in the hierarchy.
Related tasks:
“Creating a department hierarchy” on page 179
To monitor the capacity and space usage of the department, you want to create a
department hierarchy and associate applications with the department hierarchy.
You can also monitor the performance of the storage resources that are associated
with the applications that you add to the department hierarchy.

Removing departments and subdepartments

You can remove departments, subdepartments and applications that are members
of the department. The data that is collected about the departments,
subdepartments and applications is removed from the database repository.

To remove departments, subdepartments, and applications, that are members of

the department, from a level of the business hierarchy, complete these steps:
1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Departments.
2. On the Departments page, select one or more departments, right- click and
click Remove.
3. Confirm the information and click Remove.
a. If you select Remove subdepartments and applications, the
subdepartments and applications that belong only to the department, that is
being removed, are removed.
b. If you do not select Remove subdepartments and applications, the
subdepartments and applications of the department that are being removed
become members of the parent department. If the department is a top level
department, and the subdepartments are not members of any other
department, they become top level departments.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 183

 The departments, subdepartments and applications are removed from the business
level hierarchy and are no longer displayed on the Departments page.

To remove subdepartments from within the direct context of a department, use

these steps:
1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Departments.
2. On the Departments page, select a department from the list and right-click
View Details.
3. Optional: Select a department from the Departments page and right-click View
Properties.
a. Click the Subdepartments tab and continue with steps 5-6.
4. On the department details page, double-click Subdepartments in the General
section.
5. On the Subdepartments page, select the subdepartment and right-click Remove
from Department.
6. Reply to the confirmation message and click Remove.

Removing applications from a department

You can remove an application from within a department. This action is only
available from the department detail page or the properties for the department.

To remove applications from within the context of a department, use these steps:
1. In the menu bar, go to Groups > Departments.
2. On the Departments page, select a department from the list and right-click
View Details.
3. Optional: Select a department from the Departments page and right-click View
Properties.
a. Click the Applications tab and continue with steps 5-6.
4. On the department details page, click Applications from the General section.
5. On the Applications page, select the application and right-click Remove from
Department.
6. Confirm the information.
7. Click Remove.

The applications that were added within the context of a department are eligible
for removal from within department.
Related tasks:
“Viewing information about departments” on page 182
You can view detailed information about departments for use in storage capacity
monitoring and performance troubleshooting. You can view additional information
on the applications and subdepartments that are used to establish a hierarchal
business structure.

Application and department hierarchies

The interactive breadcrumb on the Overview page provides a visual representation
of the hierarchical relationships for applications and departments and enables you
to navigate quickly between the elements in the hierarchy.

The breadcrumb uses default or customized icons to represent the related

applications and departments. The greater-than sign (>) serves as the hierarchy

184 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 separator and ends with the name of the selected application or department. Only
the ancestor names of the selected application are shown.

When you move your mouse pointer over an icon in the breadcrumb, you see the
siblings for that application or department. If you move your mouse pointer, for
example, over the Data subcomponent, the related application and department
elements are shown.

The visual representation of the hierarchy stops when either there are no
additional parents or multiple parents are encountered from the selected
application or department. When multiple parents are encountered, the number of
parents are shown in parenthesis. For example, Multiple (2). Moving the mouse
pointer over Multiple shows a list of the parents. The siblings of multiple parents
are not shown.

Move your mouse pointer over a sibling in the breadcrumb and it becomes a name
link. Click the application or department name link to navigate to the details for
that application or department and view the breadcrumb if it exists.

You can add resources directly on the Overview page for applications from the
breadcrumb. For example, in this case, you create an application named DB2 and
create two subcomponents, Logs and Data. On the Overview page for the Logs
subcomponent, click the Logs subcomponent name link in the breadcrumb and
click Filters to create a resource filter for that subcomponent. Then, click the Data
subcomponent name link and create a resource filter for that application
subcomponent. To see a visual representation of the hierarchy for applications,
subcomponents, departments, and subdepartments click View Details.
Related tasks:
“Creating an application hierarchy” on page 170
To monitor, the capacity, space usage, and performance of the storage resources
that your applications use, create application models.
“Creating a department hierarchy” on page 179
To monitor the capacity and space usage of the department, you want to create a
department hierarchy and associate applications with the department hierarchy.
You can also monitor the performance of the storage resources that are associated
with the applications that you add to the department hierarchy.

Exporting information about applications and departments

You can save information about applications and departments to a PDF, CSV, or
HTML file. Information that you can export from the GUI includes all the values
that are being shown in the columns for a list of applications and departments.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 185

 The information that you export to a file is organized according to the sorting,
filtering, and column order that is defined for a list. Before you export information,
complete the following tasks to configure a list:
v Change the order of columns in the list as you want them to appear in the
generated file.
v Hide columns in the list that you do not want to include in the generated file.
Information in hidden columns is not exported.
v Sort the rows in the list as you want them to appear in the generated file. Each
list in the GUI has a column or set of columns that determines the order of its
rows.
v Filter the list to show only the applications and departments that you want to
export. Use filtering to limit the rows that are shown in a list based on value in
a specific column or set of default columns.

You can export information that is shown on the application and department list
and detail pages.
Applications and departments list and detail pages
You can export information about the top level applications and
departments and the related resources that are shown on application and
department list and detail pages.
For example, you can export information about monitored applications and
their subcomponents and departments on the Applications page. When
you select the export action, the generated file includes the column values
for each monitored application in the list.
For example, you can export information about the servers that are
associated with an application on the details page.
1. In the GUI, go to the Applications or Departments page and select applications
or departments for which you want to export information.
2. Click Actions and select Export > file_format, where file_format represents the
format that you want to use for a file. The following formats are available:
CSV (comma-separated values)
A CSV file is a file that contains comma-delimited values and can be
viewed with a text editor or imported into a spreadsheet application.
The information in a CSV file has the following format:
"Column_name","Column_name","Column_name","Column_name","Column_name","Column_name"
"data","data","data","data","data","data"

where Column_name represents the name of a column in a table and data

represents the data that is associated with a column.
PDF You can view a PDF file with Acrobat reader. The information that you
export to a PDF file is formatted into a table.

Tip: When you export a table of data that contains many columns, the
rows in that table might span multiple pages in the resulting PDF. For
example, if a table contains 20 columns, then the row for a specific
resource might be shown on more than one page (10 columns on the
first page and 10 columns on the second page).

To reduce the number of pages that a table spans, before you select the
export action, hide the columns that you do not want to include in the
PDF. Continue hiding columns until the table no longer spans multiple
pages.

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 HTML
You can view an HTML file with a web browser. The information that
you export to an HTML file is formatted into a table.
3. Optional: Depending on how your web browser is configured, you can specify
the name and location of the generated file.
4. Click the save option to export the information to a file.
Related concepts:
“Customizing lists of resources, tasks, and alerts” on page 233
The web-based GUI uses lists to show information about resources, tasks, and
alerts. The information in each list is organized into columns and rows. You can
customize these lists by filtering information, sorting rows, and showing, hiding,
and reordering columns.

Viewing the data paths of resources

A data path shows the connectivity between host connections, servers, hypervisors,
virtual machines, storage systems, and the fabrics through which they share
storage. You can use the data path view to monitor status and pinpoint problem
areas in selected data paths. This view includes graphical and tabular
representations of the top-level resources in a data path.

If a resource does not map storage to other resources, or the resource is not
assigned storage from other resources, the data path view is not available.

To view the data path for a resource, complete these steps:

1. In the menu bar, select the type of resource that you want to view. For
example, if you want to view the data path for a server, go to Servers >
Servers.
2. The type of resource that you select determines how to view a data path:
v On the Servers page, right-click a server and select View Data Path.
v On the Block Storage Systems page, File Storage Systems page, or Object
Storage Systems page, right-click a storage system and select View Details.
On the details page, click Data Path in the General section.

Depending on how resources are configured, a data path can show between three
to six types of top-level resources. For example, a data path with three types of
top-level resources might show the following relationships:
server <> fabric <> storage system

A data path with six types of top-level resources might show the following
relationships:
virtual machine <> hypervisor <> fabric <>
storage virtualizer <> fabric <> storage system

Before you can view a data path, you must complete the following tasks:
v Add the resource that has the data path you want view. For information about
how to add a resource, see “Adding resources” on page 75.

Tip: Resources that are not monitored by IBM Spectrum Control are also shown
in a data path view. However, detailed information about their status and
internal resources is not available.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 187

 v Schedule a probe to collect data about your monitored resources to ensure that
the most recent information is shown for a data path. For information about
probes, see “Collecting asset and status data” on page 99.

You can use the data path view to complete the following actions:
v View the path of data that is shared between resources. The data path view
shows only the resources that have storage mapped between them. For example,
if you view the data path for a storage system, only the host connections that
are assigned volume space from that storage system are shown. Host
connections that are connected to the storage system, but do not have storage
assigned storage to them, are not shown.
v View the fabrics through which resources in a data path are communicating.
v View the propagated status of the top-level resources that are in a data path.
v View the status of the internal resources for top-level resources that are in a data
path.
v Customize the appearance of the data path view to suit the needs of your
environment.
v Export the data paths view as an image or CSV file.
Information about a data path is organized into two views: a topology view and a
table view. The topology view shows icons for connected resources and uses lines
to represent the path of data through them. The table view includes a row for each
resource in a data path. The row is divided into columns that contain information
about the resource.

Resources that you can view in a data path

The Topology View tab in the data path view includes a visual representation of
the data path for a top-level resource. In a data path, icons represent the connected
resources and lines represent the path of data through them. For example,
resources that are storage systems are shown with an icon that resembles a storage
system.

The following table shows the icons for each type of resource that can be shown in
a data path.
Table 42. Resource icons in a data path
Resource Icon
Server (with agent)

Server (without agent)1

188 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 42. Resource icons in a data path (continued)
Resource Icon
Hypervisor

Virtual machine

Fabric

Virtual fabric

DS8000

DS6000

SAN Volume Controller

Storwize V70002

XIV

Chapter 5. Managing resources 189

 Table 42. Resource icons in a data path (continued)
Resource Icon
ESS

Other storage systems

Unmanaged host connections

Tips and restrictions:

1
v When agentless servers and servers with agents are grouped together, the icon for
servers with agents is used to represent that group.
2
v If a Storwize V7000 is not monitored by IBM Spectrum Control, but is connected to a
monitored hypervisor, it is shown in the data path with the icon for a SAN Volume
Controller.
For example, when a virtual machine is monitored, a probe collects information about its
disks. If the disks are attached to a SAN-attached storage system that is not monitored,
IBM Spectrum Control uses the probe information to determine the type of storage
system. If the storage system is a Storwize V7000, the icon for SAN Volume Controller is
shown instead of the icon for a Storwize V7000.
v Only the resources that are sharing storage in a data path are shown.
v Servers and hypervisors that are not monitored by IBM Spectrum Control, but are
assigned storage from a monitored storage system, are shown as unmanaged host
connections. For example, if a storage system has a volume that is mapped to an
unknown server, the server is represented by an unmanaged host connection in the view.
v For storage systems with multiple host connections, the host connections are included in
the same resource box if they communicate with the storage system through the same
fabric. For example, if a storage system has volumes that are mapped to 20 host
connections that use the same fabric, a single resource box represents the 20 host
connections.
v Storage systems can have volumes that are provisioned to more than one server in a
clustered environment. Because all the clustered servers can be part of the data path,
each server is shown in the view.

The status of resources

Each resource in a data path is represented by a resource box. A resource box

contains an icon that represents the overall status of a resource. This status is
determined by the propagated status of the internal resources for the resource. For
example, in a storage system, a port might have an Error status and a pool might

190 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 have a Warning status. In this case, the Error icon is shown on the resource box for
the storage system because the Error condition is the most severe status that was
detected on its internal resources.

Some resources in a data path might be shown with an unknown status. Resources
can have an unknown status if they not monitored by IBM Spectrum Control, but
are connected to other, monitored resources. IBM Spectrum Control uses the
information that it collects about monitored resources to determine basic
information about the connected resources that are not monitored.

For example, if a host connection is assigned volumes, but IBM Spectrum Control
is not monitoring the fabric through with the host connection communicates with
the storage system, the fabric is shown with an unknown status.

Navigating in a data path

A data path might contain more resources that can be fit in the view at the same
time. In these cases, you can scroll the view to show different parts of a data path.

1. In the Topology View tab, click the Pointer button .

2. Click an empty area in the view and drag the mouse pointer to scroll to
different areas of a data path.
3. Optional: To view where you are in the overall topology of a data path, click
the Topology overview button in the upper-right corner of the topology
view. The red box shows the visible area within the overall topology view, and
status icons are displayed for the resources in the data path.

Viewing information about top-level resources

You can view detailed information about the top-level resources in a data path.
Top-level resources that can be shown in a data path include storage systems,
servers, hypervisors, and fabrics.
1. To view key attributes of a specific top-level resource without leaving the
Topology View tab, right-click the resource and select View Properties. A
properties notebook is displayed. Information in a properties notebook can
include storage statistics, hardware attributes, volume assignments, disk
assignment, and performance metrics.
2. To view more detailed information about a specific top-level resource, including
its internal and related resources, right-click the resource and select View
Details. A resource details page is displayed and includes information about
storage statistics, alerts, jobs, internal resources, and related resources.

Viewing information about internal resources

You can view information about the internal resources that are associated with the
top-level resources in a data path. Internal resources are components that exist in a
top-level resource.
1. In the Topology View tab, hover the mouse pointer over a top-level resource in
the data path.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 191

 2. View the following information about internal resources:
v The number of internal resources that are associated with a top-level
resource. For example, if a server has 20 disks, the value Disks (20) is
shown.
v The overall status of the internal resources. For information about how the
overall status of internal resources is determined, see “How the condition of
a resource is determined” on page 141.

Zooming in
You can use the zoom buttons in the toolbar or the mouse to magnify areas in a
data path.
1. To zoom in on a specific area in a data path, click the Zoom to selected button
and click and drag the mouse pointer over the area.
2. Optional: To use the mouse to zoom in on a specific area in a data path, move
the mouse pointer over the area where you want to zoom in and scroll the
middle mouse button forward.
3. Optional: To zoom in on the area that is in the center of the view, click the
Zoom in button .
4. Optional: To adjust the zoom level of the view so that all the resources in a
data path are shown at the same time, click the Fit to view button .

Zooming out
You can use the zoom out button in the toolbar or the mouse to zoom out in the
view.
1. To zoom out from the area that is in the center of the view, click the zoom out
button .
2. Optional: To use the mouse to zoom out from a specific area in a data path,
move the mouse pointer over the area where you want to zoom out and scroll
the middle mouse button backward.
3. Optional: To adjust the zoom level of the view so that all the resources in a
data path are shown at the same time, click the Fit to view button .

Changing the layout

You can change the layout of the resources in a data path. The layout determines
how resources are arranged in the view.
1. Click the Layout button in the toolbar. The icon that is displayed for the Layout
button represents the current layout of the data path.
2. Select one of the following layouts:

Hierarchical
Organize resources in a vertical format. Resources that use storage are
shown at the top of the view. Resources that provide storage are shown
at the bottom of the view.

Tree
Organize resources in a vertical and horizontal layout.

192 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Customize
Customize the layout of a data path. When you customize a layout, use
the hierarchical or tree layouts as the base and specify values for the
associated options.
3. Optional: If you selected Customize, click OK to apply your settings.

Saving the display settings

You can save the display settings that are defined for a data path view. The next
time that you view the data path for the resource, the same display settings are
applied.

1. In the Topology View tab, click the Save button .

2. Optional: To use the keyboard to save the display settings, press Ctrl+S.
3. Click Save Customizations.

Printing a view
You can print the current view of a data path in the Topology View tab. The
printing capability is not available in the Table View tab.

1. Click the Print button .

2. Specify the following options when printing:
v In the Page margin field, enter the amount of space between the edges of the
page and the view. The default setting is 1 inch.
v In the Maximum pages in width or height field, specify the number of
pages across which the content of a view is printed. This number determines
the maximum number of pages that are printed. For example, if you enter 1,
the content of a view is printed on one page. If you enter 2, the view is
printed across four pages: two pages horizontally and two pages vertically.
3. Click OK.
4. Select the printer settings and click OK to print the view.

Exporting a data path to a file

You can save the contents of a data path to an image file or CSV file for offline
viewing.
1. In the Topology View tab, right-click on an empty area in the data path.
2. Complete one of the following actions to select an output format for the file:
v Select Export as Image to save the data path as a JPEG or PNG file.
v Select Export to save the data path to a CSV file. A CSV file is a file that
contains comma-delimited values and can be viewed with a text editor or
imported into a spreadsheet application. The information for a data path is
organized into the following column in the CSV files: Name, Type, From,
RelType, To.
3. Specify the location and name of the file.
4. Save the file.

Provisioning storage
You can assign storage to servers, hypervisors, and clusters on servers and
hypervisors in the GUI. You can assign storage to hypervisors with the vSphere
Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 193

 You can assign the following types of storage to servers, hypervisors, and clusters
on servers and hypervisors:
v Volumes
v NAS file shares

When you assign storage, you must associate the storage with a service class. You
can associate the storage with a default service class such as gold, silver, or bronze,
or you can create a user-defined service class. You can also create capacity pools to
restrict the provisioning of storage to a defined set of storage resources such as
pools on a storage system in a particular location.

Configuring IBM Spectrum Control for provisioning

Before you can use the simplified provisioning capabilities that are provided with
IBM Spectrum Control, you must configure your environment.

To provision storage, you are required to specify only the storage capacity and
storage quality that is required. After volumes are created, IBM Spectrum Control
can analyze and optimize volume performance.

To configure IBM Spectrum Control for provisioning, complete the following tasks:
1. Assign storage pools to tiers by setting the tier level of each storage pool. The
tier levels are number tags that can reflect any tier structure in the
environment.
You must assign storage pools to tiers to later provision volumes that require a
certain tier level and to optimize the placement of volumes. Storage pools do
not need to be assigned to tiers to provision volumes that do not require a tier
level, or to provision file shares.
2. Create service classes. A service class is a set of properties that describe
capabilities and characteristics of storage resources. A service class typically
describes a particular quality of service, and is used during provisioning to
describe storage requirements. For example, a block-storage service class
specifies properties such as a required RAID level, and whether storage
resources must be able to encrypt or thin provision volumes.
3. Optional: Create capacity pools. You can restrict provisioning requests to a
capacity pool. Capacity pools are groups of storage resources. You can use
capacity pools to separate storage resources in any way that serves the needs of
your environment or business. For example, a capacity pool might contain the
storage resources that are allocated to a particular department or division of
your business, or to a particular application.

Configuring service classes

Configure service classes to represent the different levels or types of storage quality
that you want to provision. When you are configuring service classes for your
installation, consider whether certain storage requests must always be satisfied
from a particular set of resources. Also, consider whether you want to allow users
without administrator privileges to provision storage, and whether you want their
provisioning requests to require administrator approval.

Creating service classes:

Create service classes to specify storage requirements for future provisioning

requests. A service class describes attributes and capabilities of block storage or file
storage resources, and typically describes particular quality of service.

194 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

You must have Administrator privileges to create a service class.

The Create Service Class wizard guides you through the steps to create a service
class. When you provision a volume or share, you define storage requirements by
specifying a service class. A block-storage service class specifies the requirements
for the block-storage resource from which a new volume is allocated. A file-storage
service class defines requirements for the file storage resources from which a new
share is allocated.

You can associate a service class with one or more capacity pools. If you do, future
provisioning requests can be satisfied only by storage resources in the specified
capacity pools.

You can selectively grant users who do not have administrator privileges
permission to provision storage by using the service class.

Restrictions:
v To create a block-storage service class, you must have the IBM Spectrum Control
Advanced Edition license.
v To associate the service class with a capacity pool, one or more capacity pools
must be defined in the IBM Spectrum Control database. If no capacity pool is
defined, the Specify Capacity Pool page of the wizard is not displayed.

Start this task at the Service Classes page. To open the Service Classes page, select
Advanced Analytics > Cloud Configuration > Work With Service Classes. To
create a service class, complete the following steps:
1. From the Service Classes page, click Create Service Class. The Create Service
Class wizard opens.
2. Select the type of service class that you want to create:
v To create a block-storage service class, click the Block icon.
v To create a file-storage service class, click the File icon.
3. In the Define Properties page, complete the following steps:
a. Specify a name for the service class.
b. Optional: Specify a service class description. Descriptions are displayed in
the table of service classes on the Service Classes page.
c. Specify the general attributes of the service class. Most of the general
properties specify requirements for provisioning. Some of the general
properties specify configuration instructions for the storage resources or for
the volumes or shares that are provisioned from them.

Tip: To display help information about a service class property, move the
mouse pointer over the field or control. Then, move the mouse pointer over
the question mark icon displayed next to the field.
4. Optional: Specify or modify the advanced properties of the service class.
a. From the Define Properties page, click Advanced.
b. If you are creating a block-storage service class, and thin provisioning is
enabled for the service class, specify configuration instructions for thin
provisioning.
c. If you are creating a block-storage service class, select how the multipath
driver on the host is configured. For hypervisors, the multipath driver is
configured only if provisioning is initiated from the vSphere Web Client
extension for IBM Spectrum Control.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 195

 d. Create custom requirements for the service class by specifying up to three
custom tags. To provide the service class, storage resources must have all
the same tags that are specified in the service class.
5. Optional: In the Specify Capacity Pool page, associate the service class with one
or more capacity pools. If capacity pools are associated with the service class,
future provisioning requests that specify the service class can be satisfied only
by storage resources in the capacity pools.
6. Optional: Grant permission to individual users, who do not have administrator
privileges, to provision storage by using the service class. By default, users
must be assigned to the Administrator role to provision storage. However, you
can selectively grant users who are limited to the Monitor or External
Application role permission to provision by using this service class. You can
also specify whether administrator approval is required to run provisioning
tasks that are created by these users.
7. Click Finish The new service class is listed in the table of service classes on the
Service Classes page, and can be specified in future provisioning requests.

Viewing the details of service classes:

You can view the provisioning requirements and storage constraints that a service
class defines. You can also view the volumes or shares that were provisioned by
using the service class.

From the Service Classes page, you can open a properties page to view the
following information for a service class:
v The properties of a service class, such as the required RAID level or storage tier
for a block-storage service class.
v The storage constraints that are imposed by the service class. The service class
can allow provisioning from all available storage, or can limit provisioning to
one or more capacity pools.
v The users who can provision storage by using the service class.
v The volumes or shares that were provisioned by using the service class.
v The candidate storage for the service class. The candidate storage is the set of
storage resources that can provide the service class.

To open the service class properties window from the Service Classes page,
complete the following steps:
1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to Advanced Analytics > Cloud
Configuration, and click Work With Service Classes. The Service Classes page
is displayed.
2. From the list of service classes, select the service class, and then select Actions
> View / Modify. The service class properties window is displayed.

Modifying service classes:

You can modify the attributes of a service class to change the provisioning
requirements, capacity pool storage constraints, user permissions, and service class
name.

You must have Administrator privileges to modify a service class.

Important: When volumes or shares are provisioned by specifying a service class,

they are associated with the service class. The Volumes page and the Shares page
in the web-based GUI can display the name of the service class that was used to

196 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

provision the volume or share. If you modify a service class, the volumes or shares
are still associated with the service class, but might be on storage resources that no
longer satisfy the requirements of the service class. Depending on your changes to
the service class, users might incorrectly assume that the new volumes or shares
have attributes that they do not possess.

Start this task at the Service Classes page. To open the Service Classes page, select
Advanced Analytics > Cloud Configuration > Work With Service Classes. To
modify a service class, complete the following steps:
1. From the list of service classes, select a service class and then select Actions >
View / Modify. The service class properties window is displayed.
2. Optional: Click the General tab to modify the general attributes of the service
class. Most of the general properties specify requirements for provisioning.
Some of the general properties specify configuration instructions for the storage
resources or for the volumes or shares that are provisioned from them.

Tip: To display help information about a service class property, move the
mouse pointer over the field or control. Then, move the mouse pointer over the
question mark icon displayed next to the field.
3. Optional: Specify or modify the advanced properties of the service class.
a. From the General tab, click Advanced.
b. If you are modifying a block-storage service class, and thin provisioning is
enabled for the service class, specify configuration instructions for thin
provisioning.
c. If you are modifying a block-storage service class, select how the multipath
driver on the host is configured. For hypervisors, the multipath driver is
configured only if provisioning is initiated from the vSphere Web Client
extension for IBM Spectrum Control.
d. Create custom requirements for the service class by specifying up to three
custom tags. To provide the service class, storage resources must have all
the same tags that are specified in the service class.
4. Optional: Modify storage constraints. If one or more capacity pools are defined
in the IBM Spectrum Control database, you can associate the service class with
one or more capacity pools. If capacity pools are associated with the service
class, future provisioning requests that specify the service class can be satisfied
only by storage resources in the capacity pools. If a capacity pool was
previously associated with the service class, you can disassociate it from the
service class.
5. Optional: Modify user permissions. By default, users must be assigned to the
Administrator role to provision storage. However, you can selectively grant
users who are limited to the Monitor or External Application role permission to
provision by using this service class. You can also specify whether
administrator approval is required to run provisioning tasks that are created by
these users.
If users in the Monitor or External Application roles have permission to
provision by using the service class, you can revoke that permission. You can
specify that only administrators can provision by using the service class, or you
can selectively remove users. To remove a user, right-click the user name in the
table and then select Remove from the context-sensitive menu.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 197

 Deleting service classes:

You can delete a service class that is no longer needed.

You must have Administrator privileges to delete a service class.

Deleting a service class does not affect the storage volumes or NAS shares that are
already provisioned by using the service class. However, the storage volumes or
NAS shares are no longer associated with any service class. When a volume that is
not associated with a service class is optimized by the Optimization wizard, the
volume can be migrated to any available storage pool. The storage pool to which
the volume is migrated might not satisfy the requirements of the service class that
was specified when the volume was provisioned.

You delete a service class from the Service Classes page.

1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to Advanced Analytics > Cloud
Configuration, and click Work With Service Classes. The Service Classes page
is displayed.
2. From the list of service classes, select the service class, and then select Actions
> Delete.

Tagging resources to satisfy custom requirements:

A service class can specify tags to create custom requirements for provisioning.
Add the same tags to storage resources that satisfy the custom requirements. When
the service class is specified during provisioning, only the tagged resources are
candidates for provisioning.

You must have Administrator privileges to tag storage resources.

When you provision storage, you indicate your storage requirements by specifying
a service class. Certain properties of the service class describe capabilities that
storage resources must have to be a candidate for provisioning. In addition to the
default properties, a service class can define custom requirements by specifying up
to three custom tags. To provide the service class, a storage resource must have all
the same tags as the service class. The ability to define custom requirements by
tagging service classes and storage resources gives you more control over the
selection of storage resources during provisioning. By using tags, you can filter the
candidates for provisioning by using any criteria that you choose.

When you provision volumes, you specify the requirements by using a

block-storage service class. Based on the requirements of the service class, IBM
Spectrum Control identifies a storage pool for the volume. If the service class
specifies tags, only pools that have all the same tags are candidates for
provisioning. If a pool is not tagged, any tags on the containing storage system
also apply to the pool.

When you provision shares, you specify the requirements by using a file-storage
service class. Based on the requirements of the service class, IBM Spectrum Control
identifies a file system or Network Shared Disk (NSD) for the share. If the service
class specifies tags, only file systems and NSDs that have all the same tags are
candidates for provisioning. If a file system or NSD is not tagged, any tags on the
containing storage system also apply to the internal resource.

198 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Tag only the storage resources that satisfy the intended custom requirements of the
service class. During provisioning, only the tagged resources can provide the
service class.
1. Open the resource list page for the type of storage resource that you want to
tag. To satisfy the custom tag requirements of a block-storage service class, you
can tag a storage pool or its containing block storage system. To satisfy the
custom tag requirements of a file-storage service class, you can tag a file system
or NSD, or the containing file storage system.

Important: The tags on a containing storage system apply to an internal pool,

file system, or NSD resource only if the internal resource is not tagged.
v If you are tagging a storage pool, from the menu bar, go to Storage > Pools.
v If you are tagging the block storage system that contains the pools, complete
the following steps:
a. In the menu bar, go to Storage > Block Storage Systems.
b. Click the Block Storage tab.
v If you are tagging a file system or NSD, complete the following steps:
a. In the menu bar, go to Storage > Block Storage Systems.
b. Click the File Storage tab.
c. From the list of storage systems, select the storage system that contains
the file system or NSD, and then select View Details. Alternatively, you
can select Actions > View Details.
d. In the Internal Resources area, click File Systems or Network Shared
Disks.
v If you are tagging the file storage system that contains the file systems or
NSDs, complete the following steps:
a. In the menu bar, go to Storage > Block Storage Systems.
b. Click the File Storage tab.
2. In the table of storage systems, pools, file systems, or NSDs, select the storage
resource that you want to tag, and then select View Properties. Alternatively,
you can select Actions > View Properties.
3. In the properties notebook for the storage system, pool, file system, or NSD,
click Edit.
4. In the custom tag fields of the properties notebook, specify tags that match the
tags that are specified in the service class. To provide the service class, the
resource must have all of the same tags.
5. In the properties notebook, click Save.

Setting access path host replacements:

If you are going to use the VMware vSphere Web Client extension to provision file
shares, verify whether you must provide IBM Spectrum Control with an access
path host replacement.

You need to provide an access path host replacement if the cluster name of an IBM
SONAS or Storwize V7000 Unified is not a valid host name that is registered with
a Domain Name System (DNS) server.

Complete the following steps to verify cluster host names and to provide access
host name replacements where necessary:
1. In the menu bar, go to Storage > Block Storage Systems.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 199

 2. Click the File Storage tab.
3. For each IBM SONAS and Storwize V7000 Unified system, complete the
following steps to determine whether you must specify a replacement host
name.
a. From the File System tab of the Storage System page, select the storage
system, and then select Actions > View Details.
b. From the list of File Internal Resources, click Clusters.
c. Determine whether the cluster name is a valid host name that is registered
with a DNS server. If the cluster name is registered with a DNS server, the
access path that is returned by the IBM Spectrum Control will be valid. If
the cluster name is not valid, the VMware vSphere Web Client extension
will not be able to access the share unless you specify a host name
replacement for the access path.
4. For each IBM SONAS and Storwize V7000 Unified system that requires a host
name replacement, complete the following steps:
a. From the File Storage tab of the Storage Systems page, select the storage
system, and then select Actions > View Properties.
b. In the properties notebook for the storage system, click Edit.
c. In either the Custom Tag 1, Custom Tag 2, or Custom Tag 3 field, enter a
fully qualified host name that is mapped to one or more interface nodes of
the storage system.

Requirement: For all storage systems that require a replacement host

name, ensure that you set the replacement host name by using the same
custom tag. For all IBM SONAS and Storwize V7000 Unified systems that
do not require a replacement host name, ensure that the custom tag is
empty.
5. When you are creating or modifying file-storage service classes that might be
used by the VMware vSphere Web Client extension, set the access host
replacement to the custom tag that is set on the file storage systems. To set the
access host replacement, complete these steps:
a. From the list of general properties in the Create Service Class wizard or the
service class properties window, click Advanced.
b. On the General tab of the Advanced Properties window for the file-storage
service class, set the access path host replacement to the custom tag that
specifies the replacement host name. When the share is provisioned, the
access path that is returned by IBM Spectrum Control includes the
replacement host name if one is specified on the custom tag for the storage
system. If the storage system does not specify a value for the custom tag,
the cluster name is used in the access path.

Configuring capacity pools

Configure capacity pools to track the used and available space for block and file
storage on any set of storage resources. Provisioning requests can also be restricted
to resources in a capacity pool.

Adding resources to capacity pools:

Divide storage resources into capacity pools to later restrict provisioning or

optimization to a specific set of resources. You can also use capacity pools to track
the used and available space for block and file storage on any set of storage
resources. You can add resources to an existing capacity pool, or you can create a
new capacity pool.

200 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

You must have Administrator privileges to perform this task.

You can add storage resources to a capacity pool from resource list pages such as
the Storage Systems page and the Pools page.

You can add the following resource types to a capacity pool:

v Storage systems
v Storage pools
v File systems of file storage systems
v IBM SONAS Network Shared Disks (NSDs)

When you add a storage system to a capacity pool, any storage pool, file system,
or IBM SONAS NSD that is an internal resource of that storage system is also
indirectly assigned to the capacity pool.

Restriction: A resource can be assigned to only one capacity pool. When you
attempt to add one or more resources to a capacity pool that are already assigned
to different capacity pool, IBM Spectrum Control displays a message that lists the
resources and their capacity pool assignments. When a message is displayed,
ensure that you want to change the capacity pool assignments for the listed
resources.

To add one or more resources to a capacity pool, complete these steps:

1. Open the appropriate list page for the resource you want to add. You can add
an entire storage system, or you can add individual pools, file systems, or IBM
SONAS NSDs.
v To add a storage system, in the menu bar, go to Storage > Block Storage
Systems or Storage > File Storage Systems.
v To add a storage pool, in the menu bar, go to Storage > Pools.
v To add a file system or IBM SONAS NSD, complete the following steps:
a. In the menu bar, go to Storage > File Storage Systems.
b. Select the storage system that contains the file system or IBM SONAS
NSD, and then select View Details from the context-sensitive menu.
c. From the Internal Resources list, click File Systems or Network Shared
Disks.
2. To add one or more resource to a capacity pool, select the resources in the list,
and then select Actions > Add to Capacity Pool. If one or more capacity pools
are defined, a list of capacity pools is displayed. If no capacity pools are
defined, the Create Capacity Pool window is displayed so that you can add
resources to a new capacity pool.

Tip: The list of capacity pools and the Create Capacity Pool window shows
capacity information. For the list of capacity pools, the Capacity column shows
a bar that summarizes the used and free space in each capacity pool. In the
Create Capacity Pool window, a capacity bar summarizes the used and free
space of the resources that are being added to the new capacity pool. Move the
mouse pointer over the bar to display a text summary and details of the
capacity usage.
3. Take one of the following actions:
v If the Create Capacity Pool window is displayed, go to step 4 on page 202.
v If a list of capacity pools is displayed, add the selected resources to an
existing capacity pool or to a new capacity pool.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 201

 – To add the selected resource or resources to an existing capacity pool,
select the appropriate row in the list of capacity pools, and click Save.
– To add the selected resource to a new capacity pool, click Create Capacity
Pool. The Create Capacity Pool window is displayed.
4. In the Create Capacity Pool window, specify a name for the capacity pool.
5. Optional: Specify a capacity pool description. Capacity pool descriptions appear
in the list of capacity pools on the Capacity Pools page.
6. Optional: Specify custom tags to associate any significant information with the
capacity pool. You can specify up to three custom tags. The custom tags can be
displayed in the list of capacity pools on the Capacity Pools page.
7. Save the new capacity pool by clicking OK.

Viewing the details of capacity pools:

You can view details of a capacity pool, such as its total capacity, used and
available space, and member resources.

The Capacity Pools page lists all of the capacity pools that are defined in IBM
Spectrum Control. For any capacity pool in the list, you can open a window to
view more details about the capacity pool and its storage resources.

To view details of a capacity pool, complete these steps:

1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to Advanced Analytics > Cloud
Configuration, and click Work With Capacity Pools. The Capacity Pools page
is displayed.
2. From the list of capacity pools, select the capacity pool, and then select Actions
> View / Modify. A window is displayed, showing the following details:
v A bar summarizing the used and free space in the capacity pool in gibibytes.
The bar represents the total capacity of the capacity pool. The bar is divided
into sections that represent the following measurements:
– The amount of space that is used for file storage
– The amount of available space for file storage
– The amount of space that is used for block storage
– The amount of block storage space that is not used for volumes, and is
not reserved by pending or scheduled provisioning tasks.
– The amount of block storage space that is reserved by pending or
scheduled provisioning tasks
Move the mouse pointer over the bar to display a text summary and details
of the capacity usage, and a legend for interpreting the colors on the bar.
v A table that lists the storage systems, storage pools, file systems, and IBM
SONAS Network Shared Disks (NSDs) that are in the capacity pool. To view
details of any of these resources, select the resource, and then select Actions
> View Properties.

Modifying capacity pools:

You can modify the attributes of a capacity pool such as its name and description,
and you can remove storage resources from a capacity pool.

You must have Administrator privileges to perform this task.

To modify a capacity pool, complete these steps:

202 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to Advanced Analytics > Cloud
Configuration, and click Work With Capacity Pools. The Capacity Pools page
is displayed.
2. From the list of capacity pools, select the capacity pool, and then select Actions
> View / Modify. A window that shows details of the capacity pool is
displayed. A table lists the storage systems, storage pools, file systems, and IBM
SONAS Network Shared Disks (NSDs) that are in the capacity pool.
3. Optional: Modify attributes of the capacity pool.
4. Optional: Remove one or more resources from the capacity pool. Removing a
storage resource from a capacity pool does not delete the storage resource, but
does remove its capacity from the capacity pool. To remove resources, select the
appropriate resources in the list, and then select Actions > Remove. The
resources are removed from the list, but are not removed from the capacity
pool until you save your changes.
5. Click Save.

Deleting capacity pools:

You can delete a capacity pool that is no longer needed.

You must have Administrator privileges to perform this task.

When you delete a capacity pool, the storage resources that were added to the
capacity pool are no longer members of any capacity pool. Deleting a capacity pool
does not affect any volumes or NAS shares that were provisioned from the
capacity pool. However, the volumes or NAS shares are no longer associated with
a capacity pool.

To delete a capacity pool, complete the following steps:

1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to Advanced Analytics > Cloud
Configuration, and click Work With Capacity Pools. The Capacity Pools page
is displayed.
2. From the list of capacity pools, select the capacity pool, and then select Actions
> Delete
3. In the confirmation window, click Delete.

Block storage: Calculating available space and determining the

placement of volumes
For each block-storage service class, IBM Spectrum Control calculates the amount
of available space for volumes of that service class. When you request volumes of
a particular service class, IBM Spectrum Control recommends the best location for
the volumes from the available space.

The Service Classes page in the web-based GUI displays the available space for
each block-storage service class. The available space is the amount of space that is
available across storage pools for new volumes of the service class. Typically, not
all pools are used in the available-space calculation. Some pools might be
eliminated because of the consolidated status of the pool or its storage system.
Other pools might be eliminated because they do not satisfy the requirements of
the service class. The set of storage pools that are used to calculate the available
space are also the candidates for provisioning by using the service class.

When you request storage volumes by using the Provision Storage wizard, you
specify the capacity that is required for one or more volumes, and you specify a

Chapter 5. Managing resources 203

 service class. You can also specify a capacity pool from which the volumes must be
provisioned. Based on the volume size that is requested and if a capacity pool is
specified, the candidates for provisioning are further refined to include only the
pools that have enough available space and are in the specified capacity pool.
From the remaining candidates for provisioning, IBM Spectrum Control creates a
provisioning task that identifies the best location for the new volumes.

How available space for a block-storage service class is calculated

For each block-storage service class, IBM Spectrum Control calculates the available
space for volumes of that service class. Only storage pools that are candidates for
provisioning by using the service class are used to calculate the available space.

Identifying candidates for provisioning is a filtering process. For example, if the

service class specifies that RAID 10 is required, then any storage pool that is not
configured at RAID 10 is eliminated as a candidate for provisioning. IBM Spectrum
Control filters the set of available storage resources against certain properties of the
service class until only the storage resources that can satisfy all of the requirements
remain. These remaining storage resources are the candidates for provisioning.
Only certain properties of a service class are used to identify candidates for
provisioning. More advanced properties contain configuration instructions, and are
not used to identify candidates for provisioning.

The candidates for provisioning are identified by eliminating storage pools that
cannot provide the service class, as follows:
v If a storage pool is a primordial pool or if it is formatted for count key data
(CKD) volumes, it is not a candidate for provisioning.
v If a storage system has a condition of Error or Unreachable, none of its internal
storage pools are candidates for provisioning. If a storage pool has a status of
Error, it is not a candidate for provisioning.

Remember: Status is different from condition. Status is the status reported by a

storage resource without considering the status of its internal resources.
Condition is the combined status of the monitored, internal resources for the
higher-level resource, and the status of the higher-level resource itself. The
condition of a storage system is shown on the Storage Systems page and the
condition for a pool is shown on the Pools page. The condition of a resource
might not have the same value as the status, which is used to eliminate pools as
candidates for provisioning.

Although the condition of a resource might not have the same value as its
status, the condition is always at least as severe as the status. The condition
reflects the most severe status of any internal resource or the status of the
resource itself. If the condition of a resource is Normal, then its status is also
Normal.

Tip: The Service Classes page in the web-based GUI displays both the available
space and the unavailable space for a service class. The Unavailable Space
column shows the amount of storage that satisfies the requirements of the
service class, but is unavailable because of the consolidated status of the storage
system or its internal resources.
v If a service class allows provisioning only from certain capacity pools, any
storage pool that is not in a specified capacity pool is eliminated as a candidate
for provisioning.

204 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Tip: You can see whether a service class restricts provisioning to one or more
capacity pools from the Service Classes page. On the Service Classes page, show
the Capacity Pools column, which is hidden by default.
v A storage pool must satisfy the requirements of every service class property in
the following table to be a candidate for provisioning. Other properties of a
service class are instructions for provisioning and do not affect whether the
storage pool is a candidate for provisioning.
Table 43. Filtering candidates for provisioning based on service class properties
Service class
property: Candidates for provisioning:
Storage tier If specified in the service class, storage pools that are assigned to any
storage tier within the specified range are candidates for
provisioning.
RAID level If a RAID level is specified, only storage pools that are configured at
the specified RAID level are candidates for provisioning.
Exception: The IBM XIV Storage System uses a nontraditional
approach to data redundancy and does not support any of
conventional RAID levels. IBM Spectrum Control always considers
XIV storage pools to be configured at RAID 10.
Restriction: Storage pools that support multiple RAID levels are not
candidates for provisioning when a service class specifies a RAID
level. Storage pools that support multiple RAID levels are not
candidates even when the specified RAID level is one of the RAID
levels that are supported by the storage pool. Storage pools that
support multiple RAID levels are only candidates for provisioning
when the service class specifies that any RAID level is allowed.
Virtualization If virtualization is required by the service class, only storage pools on
IBM storage virtualizers are candidates for provisioning. The IBM
storage virtualizers are SAN Volume Controller, Storwize V7000, and
Storwize V7000 Unified

If virtualization is not allowed by the service class, only storage pools

that are not on IBM storage virtualizers are candidates for
provisioning.
Encryption If encryption is required by the service class, only storage pools on
DS8000 storage systems that are encrypted and configured to use the
encryption group that is specified in the service class are candidates
for provisioning.

If encryption is not allowed by the service class, only pools that are
not encrypted are candidates for provisioning.
Thin provisioning If thin provisioning is required by the service class, only storage
pools that are configured for thin provisioning are candidates for
provisioning. Thin provisioning is supported by the XIV, DS8000,
SAN Volume Controller, Storwize V7000, and Storwize V7000 Unified.
During provisioning, a thin-provisioned volume is created.

If thin provisioning is not allowed by the service class, any storage

pool that is not thin provisioned is a candidate for provisioning. In
addition, any DS8000, SAN Volume Controller, Storwize V7000, or
Storwize V7000 Unified storage pool is a candidate for provisioning,
regardless of whether it is configured for thin provisioning. During
provisioning, the volume that is created is not thin provisioned.
Compression If compression is required by the service class, at least one I/O group
of an IBM storage virtualizer must be enabled for compression. Only
pools of the IBM storage virtualizer are candidates for provisioning.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 205

 Table 43. Filtering candidates for provisioning based on service class properties (continued)
Service class
property: Candidates for provisioning:
Overallocation limit If thin provisioning is required by the service class, IBM Spectrum
Control identifies the storage pools that can thin provision volumes
as candidates for provisioning. If an overallocation limit is specified,
IBM Spectrum Control refines that list to include only the storage
pools that have an overallocation percentage that does not exceed the
overallocation limit.

The overallocation percentage for a pool is determined by using the

following measurements, as shown on the Pools page:
v For an XIV storage pool, the Soft Space divided by the Capacity.
v For other storage system pools, the Virtual Allocation.
Resource Tags Resource tags further refine the candidates for provisioning. A service
class can specify up to 3 resource tags. If resource tags are specified
for the service class, only pools that have all the same tags are
candidates for provisioning. If a pool is not tagged, any tags on the
containing storage system also apply to the pool.

After the storage pools that can provide the service class are identified, IBM
Spectrum Control calculates the amount of space that is available for provisioning
new volumes of the service class. The calculated volume capacity is shown in the
Available Space column on the Service Classes page.

The available-space calculation differs depending on whether the block-storage

service class requires thin provisioning, as follows:
v If thin provisioning is not allowed, the available space is the sum of the
following measurements, as shown on the Pools page:
– For each XIV System pool, the Available Soft Space minus any Reserved Pool
Space
– For other storage system pools, the Available Pool Space minus any Reserved
Pool Space.
v If thin provisioning is required, the available space is the total of the following
measurements, as shown on the Pools page, and calculations:
– For each XIV System pool, the Available Soft Space minus any Reserved Pool
Space
– For other storage system pools, the pool Capacity multiplied by the
overallocation limit that is specified in the service class, minus the Total
Volume Capacity. Any Reserved Pool Space is subtracted from the result. For
DS8000 storage pools, any space that is used by Track Space Efficient (TSE)
volumes is subtracted from the calculated available space.

How the recommended placement of storage volumes is determined

When you request one or more new volumes by using the Provision Storage
wizard, the candidates for provisioning are further refined and a provisioning task
is created which shows the recommended placement of the new volumes. The
same filtering that was used to determine the available space for the service class
is used, and is refined further as follows:
v A provisioning request specifies the set of storage pools from which the storage
can be provisioned. This set can be all the storage pools that are known to IBM
Spectrum Control, or can be limited to the storage pools in a particular capacity

206 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 pool. Only the storage pools in the specified set are candidates for provisioning.
This set might be more restrictive than the set used to calculate the available
space for the service class.
v Any storage pool that cannot provide the requested volume capacity is
eliminated as a candidate for provisioning.
v If virtualization and VDisk mirroring are specified by the service class, then a
VDisk copy of the volume must be made in a second storage pool on the same
IBM storage virtualizer. If the storage pools on the IBM storage virtualizer
cannot provide the requested capacity for both the volume and its mirrored
copy, the pools are eliminated as candidates for provisioning.
v If an overallocation limit is specified in the service class, only the storage pools
that will not exceed the limit after the new volume or volumes are provisioned
are candidates for provisioning.

Remember: Storage pools that have an overallocation percentage that does not
exceed the overallocation limit, are included in the available-space calculation.
However, if the overallocation percentage would exceed the overallocation limit
after the requested volume space is included, the pools are not candidates for
provisioning.

After the storage pools that can satisfy the provisioning request are identified, IBM
Spectrum Control finds the best location for the storage. The best location for the
storage is based on the unallocated volume space in the pool and performance
data. Preference is first given to storage pools and systems that already contain
volumes for the selected server or hypervisor. Preference is given to systems that
have available performance data.

File storage: Calculating available space and determining the

placement of shares
For each file-storage service class, IBM Spectrum Control calculates the amount of
available space for NAS file shares of that service class. When you request file
shares of a particular service class, IBM Spectrum Control recommends the best
location for the shares from the available space.

For each file-storage service class, IBM Spectrum Control calculates the amount of
available space for NAS file shares of that service class. When you request file
shares of a particular service class, IBM Spectrum Control recommends the best
location for the shares from the available space.

The Service Classes page displays the available space for each file-storage service
class. The available space is the amount of space that is available across all IBM
SONAS and IBM Storwize V7000 Unified file systems and unused IBM SONAS
system NSDs that are known to IBM Spectrum Control, and that can satisfy the
requirements of the service class. The set of file storage resources that are used to
calculate the available space are also the candidates for provisioning by using the
service class.

When you request a file share by using the Provision Storage wizard, you specify
the capacity that is required for the share, and you specify a service class. You can
also specify a capacity pool from which shares must be provisioned. Based on the
requested size of the share and whether a capacity pool is specified, the candidates
for provisioning are further refined to include only the file storage resources that
have enough available space and are in the specified capacity pool. From the
remaining candidates for provisioning, IBM Spectrum Control creates a
provisioning task that identifies the best location for the new share.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 207

 How available space for a file-storage service class is calculated

For each file-storage service class, IBM Spectrum Control calculates the available
space for file shares of the service class. Only the file storage resources that are
candidates for provisioning by using the service class are used to calculate the
available space.

Identifying candidates for provisioning is a filtering process. For example, if the

service class requires dedicated storage, then the share must be created on an
unused NSD within an IBM SONAS system. File systems that could be candidates
for provisioning if shared storage is allowed are eliminated as candidates for
provisioning when dedicated storage is required. IBM Spectrum Control filters the
set of available storage resources against each attribute of the service class until
only the storage resources that can satisfy all of the requirements remain. These
remaining storage resources are the candidates for provisioning.

The candidates for provisioning are identified by eliminating storage resources that
cannot provide the service class, as follows:
v Only IBM SONAS and IBM Storwize V7000 Unified systems are supported for
provisioning file shares. No other storage system type is a candidate for
provisioning file shares.
v If a storage system has a consolidated status of Error or Unreachable, none of its
internal NSDs or file systems are included in the available-space calculation.
v If an NSD or file system has a consolidated status of Error, it is not included in
the available-space calculation.

Tip: The status of file systems is not displayed n the web-based GUI. View the
status on the NSD on which a file system resides to determine the file system
status.
v If the storage volume or NSD on which a file system resides has a consolidate
status of Error, the file system is not included in the available-space calculation.

Remember: Status is different from condition. Status is the status reported by a

storage resource without considering the status of its internal resources.
Condition is the combined status of the monitored, internal resources for the
higher-level resource, and the status of the higher-level resource itself. The
condition of a storage system is shown on the Storage Systems page, the
condition of a volume is shown on the Volumes page, and the condition of an
NSD is shown on the storage system details page. The condition might not have
the same value as the status, which is used to eliminate file storage resources as
candidates for provisioning.

Although the condition of a resource might not have the same value as its
status, the condition is always at least as severe as the status. The condition
reflects the most severe status of any internal resource or the status of the
resource itself. If the condition of a resource is Normal, then its status is also
Normal.

Tip: The Service Classes page in the web-based GUI displays both the available
space and the unavailable space for a service class. The Unavailable Space
column shows the amount of storage that satisfies the requirements of the
service class, but is unavailable because of the consolidated status of the storage
system or its internal resources.

208 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

v If a service class allows provisioning only from certain capacity pools, any
storage resource that is not in a specified capacity pool is eliminated as a
candidate for provisioning.

Tip: You can see whether a service class restricts provisioning to one or more
capacity pools from the Service Classes page. On the Service Classes page, show
the Capacity Pools column, which is hidden by default.
v A file system or NSD must satisfy the requirements of every service class
property in the following table to be a candidate for provisioning. Other
properties of a service class are instructions for provisioning and do not affect
the storage placement determination.
Table 44. Filtering candidates for provisioning based on service class properties
Service class
attribute: Candidates for provisioning:
Shared storage / If the service class specifies dedicated storage, the share can be
Dedicated storage created only on an unused NSD within an IBM SONAS system. File
systems and other file storage resources are eliminated as candidates
for provisioning.
Resource tags Resource tags further refine the candidates for provisioning. A service
class can specify up to 3 resource tags. If resource tags are specified
for the service class, only file systems and NSDs that have all the
same tags are candidates for provisioning. If a file system or NSD is
not tagged, any tags on the containing storage system also apply to
the internal resource.

After the file storage resources that can provide the service class are identified,
IBM Spectrum Control calculates the amount of space that is available for
providing new files shares of the service class.

The available-space calculation differs depending on whether the file-storage

service class requires dedicated storage or allows shared storage, as follows:
v If the file-storage service class requires dedicated storage, the available space is
the total available space on unused NSDs within each IBM SONAS system. You
can verify that an NSD is unused, and view its available space, from the details
page of an IBM SONAS system. To view information about the NSDs that are
associated with an IBM SONAS system, click Network Shared Disks. If the
NSD is unused, the File Systems column shows 0. The Available Space column
shows the amount of space on the NSD, which is the measurement that is used
in the available-space calculation for the service class.
v If the file-storage service class allows shared storage, the file system in which the
NAS share is provisioned can contain other NAS shares. In this case the
available space is the total of the following measurements:
– The available space on unused NSDs within each IBM Scale Out Network
Attached Storage (IBM SONAS) system.
– The available space for each file system within each IBM SONAS and IBM
Storwize V7000 Unified storage system. You can view the file system available
space from the details page of a file storage system. To view information
about the file systems that are in a storage system, click File Systems. The
Available Space column shows the amount of available space on each file
system, which is the measurement that is used in the available-space
calculation for the service class.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 209

 How the recommended placement of file shares is determined

When you request a file share by using the Provision Storage wizard, the
candidates for provisioning are further refined and a provisioning task is created
which shows the recommended placement of the new share. The same filtering
that was used to determine the available space for the service class is used, and is
refined further as follows:
v A provisioning request specifies the set of file storage resources from which the
storage can be provisioned. This set can be all the storage resources that are
known to IBM Spectrum Control, or can be limited to the storage resources in a
particular capacity pool. Only the storage resources in the specified set are
candidates for provisioning. This set might be more restrictive than the set used
to calculate the available space for the service class.
v Any storage resource that cannot provide the requested capacity for the share is
eliminated as a candidate for provisioning.

The shares are created on file systems or IBM SONAS NSDs. After the file systems
and NSDs that can satisfy the provisioning request are identified, IBM Spectrum
Control identifies the best location for the storage. The best location for the storage
is based on the available space on the file system or NSD.

Changing the default host definition for provisioned storage

Use the setdscfg command to change the default host definition for fibre-channel
ports when provisioning storage from IBM Spectrum Virtualize devices.

You must have Administrator authority to use the setdscfg command.

When you provision storage from a SAN Volume Controller, IBM Storwize, or IBM
FlashSystem family V840 or V9000 device, which does not have an existing host
definition for the fibre-channel ports, IBM Spectrum Control creates a new host
definition during the provisioning task. The new host definition can access only
one I/O group on the source device that you specified when you created the
provisioning task. To allow the new host definition to access any I/O group on the
source device, use the management application for the source device or use the
IBM Spectrum Control setdscfg command.

To change the host definition to allow access to any I/O groups on the source
device:
1. Start the IBM Spectrum Control CLI by issuing the tpctool command.
2. Issue the setdscfg command with the following values for the -property and
-context parameters:
a. Specify Configuration.RestrictNewHostsToIogroup as the property value.
b. Specify DiskManager as the context value and specify false as the context
parameter.
For example, to allow the new host definition to access any I/O groups on the
source device of the provisioning task:
tpctool setdscfg -url localhost:9550 -user ***** -pwd *****
-property Configuration.RestrictNewHostsToIogroup -context DiskManager false

The value of Configuration.RestrictNewHostsToIogroup is set to false in the IBM

Spectrum Control database. This removes the default restriction on the new host
definition and allows access to any I/O groups on the provisioning source device.

210 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Tip: To verify that the host definition restriction is changed, enter the following
command:
tpctool getdscfg -url localhost:9550 -user ***** -pwd *****
-property Configuration.RestrictNewHostsToIogroup -context DiskManager

Provisioning storage with the IBM Spectrum Control GUI

You can provision volumes or shares to servers, hypervisors, and clusters with the
GUI.

The prerequisites for provisioning storage are as follows:

v You must have the IBM Spectrum Control Advanced Edition license.
v You must have Administrator privileges or permission to use one or more of the
service classes that are created for block-storage or file-service provisioning.
v You must add and probe block-storage or file-storage resources, or both.

The following restrictions apply to volume provisioning:

v If the service class that is associated with the provisioning request requires
multipathing or if automatic zoning is enabled, the fabrics and switches must be
managed by IBM Spectrum Control. If the fabric is not managed by IBM
Spectrum Control, the fabric-related configuration options are ignored when the
provisioning task is executed.
v If you provision volumes to physical servers and servers that are virtual
machines, you must create separate provisioning tasks using the GUI.
v If you provision multiple servers with storage volumes, the servers must all run
on the same operating system. If the servers are virtual machines, the
hypervisors that manage the servers must all run on the same operating system.
v If the provisioning request involves assigning multiple volumes to a resource,
the volumes are sourced from pools in the same storage system.

NAS file shares can be provisioned only from IBM SONAS or Storwize V7000
Unified storage systems.

Specify the capacity that is required and the service class that you want to
associate with the provisioning task. For shares, you must also specify at least one
file access protocol. IBM Spectrum Control identifies the storage resources that can
provide the storage capacity and that meet the criteria that are specified for the
service class. From the set of storage resources that can provide the capacity and
service class, IBM Spectrum Control identifies the best location for the storage and
creates a provisioning task. Depending on the privileges that are associated with
your role, you can save, execute, or schedule the provisioning task.

Provisioning volumes to servers

You can provision volumes to one or more servers. The GUI guides you through
the steps of requesting capacity and specifying requirements by using a service
class.

You can provision volumes to one or more servers. If a server is a virtual machine,
the storage is provisioned to the hypervisor that is managing the server.
1. In the menu bar, go to Servers > Servers..

Tip: Alternatively, you can go to Advanced Analytics > Provisioning, and

click Provision to Servers.
2. Select one or more servers, and then select Actions > Provision Storage.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 211

 3. Follow the instructions to assign the storage volumes.

The GUI enables you to create a provisioning task.

Related tasks:
“Provisioning storage with the IBM Spectrum Control GUI” on page 211
You can provision volumes or shares to servers, hypervisors, and clusters with the
GUI.

Provisioning volumes to hypervisors

You can provision volumes to one or more hypervisors. To provision volumes, the
GUI guides you through the steps of requesting capacity and specifying
requirements by using a service class.

Restriction: The multipath driver is configured only if provisioning is initiated

from the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control.

You can provision volumes to one or more hypervisors.

1. Servers > Hypervisors

Tip: Alternatively, you can go to Advanced Analytics > Provisioning, and

click Provision to Hypervisors.
2. Select one or more hypervisors, and then click Actions > Provision Storage.
3. Follow the instructions to assign the storage volumes.

The GUI enables you to create a provisioning task.

Related tasks:
“Provisioning block storage” on page 216
Use the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control to provision block
storage on IBM Spectrum Control. You can also have a data store created on the
storage volume.
“Provisioning storage with the IBM Spectrum Control GUI” on page 211
You can provision volumes or shares to servers, hypervisors, and clusters with the
GUI.

Provisioning volumes to a server cluster

You can assign volumes to a cluster of servers with the GUI.

If the cluster is on servers that are virtual machines, the storage is assigned to the
hypervisors that manage the servers. The volumes are assigned to all of the nodes
in the cluster.
1. In the menu bar, go to Servers > Servers, and click Clusters.

Tip: Alternatively, you can go to Advanced Analytics > Provisioning, click

Provision to Servers, and click Clusters.
2. Select a cluster, and then click Actions > Provision Storage.
3. Follow the instructions to assign the storage volumes.

The GUI enabled you to create a provisioning task.

Related tasks:
“Provisioning storage with the IBM Spectrum Control GUI” on page 211
You can provision volumes or shares to servers, hypervisors, and clusters with the
GUI.

212 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Provisioning volumes to a hypervisor cluster
You can assign volumes to a cluster of hypervisors.

Restriction: The multipath driver is configured only if provisioning is initiated

from the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control.

The volumes are assigned to all of the nodes in the hypervisor cluster.
1. In the menu bar, go to Servers > Hypervisors, and click Clusters.

Tip: Alternatively, you can go to Advanced Analytics > Provisioning, click

Provision to Hypervisors and click Clusters.
2. Select a cluster, and then click Actions > Provision Storage.
3. Follow the instructions to assign the storage volumes.

The GUI enabled you to create a provisioning task.

Related tasks:
“Provisioning block storage” on page 216
Use the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control to provision block
storage on IBM Spectrum Control. You can also have a data store created on the
storage volume.
“Provisioning storage with the IBM Spectrum Control GUI” on page 211
You can provision volumes or shares to servers, hypervisors, and clusters with the
GUI.

Provisioning shares to servers

You can provision a network-attached storage (NAS) file share to one or more
servers. The GUI guides you through the steps of requesting capacity, specifying
requirements by using a service class, and providing information about how to
export the share.

You can provision a NAS file share to one or more servers. The share is made
available to the selected servers, but is not automatically mounted from the
selected servers.
1. In the menu bar, go to Servers > Servers..

Tip: Alternatively, you can go to Advanced Analytics > Provisioning, and

click Provision to Servers.
2. Select one or more servers, and then select Actions > Provision Storage.
3. Follow the instructions to assign the share.

The GUI enabled you to create a provisioning task.

Related tasks:
“Provisioning storage with the IBM Spectrum Control GUI” on page 211
You can provision volumes or shares to servers, hypervisors, and clusters with the
GUI.

Provisioning shares to hypervisors

You can provision a network-attached storage (NAS) file share to one or more
hypervisors. The GUI guides you through the steps of requesting capacity,
specifying requirements by using a service class, and providing information about
how to export the share.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 213

 You can provision a NAS file share to one or more hypervisors. The share is made
available to the selected hypervisors, but is not automatically mounted from the
selected hypervisors.
1. In the menu bar, go to Servers > Hypervisors.

Tip: Alternatively, you can go to Advanced Analytics > Provisioning, and

click Provision to Hypervisors.
2. Select one or more hypervisors, and then select Actions > Provision Storage.
3. Follow the instructions to assign the share.

The GUI enabled you to create a provisioning task.

Related tasks:
“Provisioning file storage” on page 217
Use the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control to provision file
storage on IBM Spectrum Control.
“Provisioning storage with the IBM Spectrum Control GUI” on page 211
You can provision volumes or shares to servers, hypervisors, and clusters with the
GUI.

Provisioning shares to a server cluster

You can assign a network-attached storage (NAS) file share to a server cluster
using the GUI.

You can provision a NAS file share to a server cluster. The share is made available
to the servers in the cluster, but is not automatically mounted from the selected
servers.

To provision a NAS file share to a server cluster, follow these steps:

1. In the menu bar, go to Servers > Servers, and click Clusters.

Tip: Alternatively, you can go to Advanced Analytics > Provisioning, click

Provision to Servers, and click Clusters.
2. Select a cluster, and then select Actions > Provision Storage.
3. Follow the instructions to assign the share.

A provisioning task was created for a server cluster.

Related tasks:
“Provisioning storage with the IBM Spectrum Control GUI” on page 211
You can provision volumes or shares to servers, hypervisors, and clusters with the
GUI.

Provisioning shares to a hypervisor cluster

You can assign a network-attached storage (NAS) file share to a hypervisor cluster.

You can provision a NAS file share to a hypervisor cluster. The share is made
available to the hypervisors in the cluster, but is not automatically mounted from
the selected hypervisors.

To provision a NAS file share to a hypervisor cluster, follow these steps:

1. In the menu bar, go to Servers > Hypervisors, and click Clusters.

Tip: Alternatively, you can go to Advanced Analytics > Provisioning, click

Provision to Hypervisors and click Clusters.

214 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

2. Select a cluster, and then select Actions > Provision Storage.
3. Follow the instructions to assign the share.

A provisioning task was created for a hypervisor cluster.

Related tasks:
“Provisioning storage with the IBM Spectrum Control GUI” on page 211
You can provision volumes or shares to servers, hypervisors, and clusters with the
GUI.

Provisioning with zone control

When you provision storage, you can set a zoning policy to enable automatic
zoning. When automatic zoning is enabled, IBM Spectrum Control can create zones
during storage provisioning to connect a server to a storage system.

When IBM Spectrum Control creates a provisioning task, it identifies the best
location for the new storage that satisfies the requirements of the service class. If
automatic zoning is enabled, then, during provisioning, existing zones are used if
the server already has connectivity to the storage system. Otherwise, one or more
zones are created between a host initiator port and a controller, node, or module
port.

IBM Spectrum Control provides the following support for zone control and
management of Cisco switches and fabrics:
v the standard Cisco zone control capabilities
v the Cisco Enhanced Zoning features.
For Cisco zone control and management, SNMP agents must be configured for the
Cisco fabrics and switches. SNMPv3 is the preferred version.

When you use IBM Spectrum Control for zone control and management of Brocade
switches and fabrics, follow these guidelines:
v For Brocade fabrics, information is typically collected through Storage
Management Initiative (SMI) agents, also referred to as CIM agents.
v For zone discovery for any fabrics with Brocade switches or vendor Brocade
switches, you must have an SMI agent configured for the fabric.

To set or modify the zoning policy, complete the following steps:

1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to Advanced Analytics >
Provisioning, and click Set Zoning Policy.
2. Enable or disable automatic zoning:
v Enable automatic zoning to allow IBM Spectrum Control to create zones
during storage provisioning. The naming convention for new zones is
host_storage-system_suffix-number. When you enable automatic zoning, you
can specify the following options:
Zone name prefix
If you specify a zone name prefix, all zones that are automatically
created by IBM Spectrum Control are prefixed with a string you
specify. This prefix can help you identify which zones were
automatically created, and which were created manually.
Make changes to the active zone set
Whether changes are made to the active zone set, or to a new
inactive active zone set. If this check box is selected, changes are

Chapter 5. Managing resources 215

 made to the active zone set. If the check box is cleared, changes are
made to the inactive zone set. The new inactive zone will contain
only the new zones.
v Disable automatic zoning if you want IBM Spectrum Control to use only
existing zones.
3. Click Save.

Provisioning storage with the vSphere Web Client extension

You can use the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control to
manage and monitor your virtual environment and storage devices.

You can provision block and file storage to hypervisors from storage devices that
are monitored by IBM Spectrum Control. You can monitor the progress of your
storage provisioning activities in task information in the vSphere Web Client.

Provisioning block storage

Use the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control to provision block
storage on IBM Spectrum Control. You can also have a data store created on the
storage volume.

Ensure that you complete the following tasks in IBM Spectrum Control:
v If you want to provision storage by using service classes to describe
performance and storage requirements and to implement multipathing policies,
ensure that the service classes are created in IBM Spectrum Control. IBM
Spectrum Control provides a number of predefined service classes, which you
can use, modify, or delete.
v If you want to provision storage by using capacity pools to specify your storage
requirements, ensure that the capacity pools are created in IBM Spectrum
Control.
v Before you provision storage to a hypervisor, ensure that the hypervisor is
added into IBM Spectrum Control. If the hypervisor belongs to a cluster, all the
hypervisors on that cluster must be managed by IBM Spectrum Control.
v Ensure that the hypervisor has fabric connectivity. If automatic zoning is
enabled, the fabrics and switches must be managed by IBM Spectrum Control.
For more information about configuring for storage cloud provisioning, see
http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/SS5R93_5.2.9/
com.ibm.spectrum.sc.doc/fqz0_c_cloud_config.html.

Start the vSphere Web Client.

1. From the vSphere Web Client Inventories view, select Hosts and Clusters.
2. Select the hypervisor for which you want to provision storage.
3. Click Actions and select All TPC Actions.
4. Select Provision Block Storage....
5. Enter a size for the total usable storage space on the volume, and select the
unit of measurement from the list.
6. Select the service class for the block storage that you want to associate with
the volume. You can select only service classes with available capacity that
you are authorized to use.
7. Select the capacity pool from which you want the volume to be provisioned.
You can select only capacity pools with available capacity.

216 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 8. Optional: If you want to create a data store on the storage volume when it is
provisioned, select the Create datastore check box, and enter a name for the
data store. The minimum volume size for creating a data store is 2 GiB.
9. Click OK to provision the volume.
10. To monitor the progress of the provisioning task, click the Monitor tab, and
click the Tasks tab.
11. You can monitor the progress of the creation of the data store by clicking the
Monitor tab and then clicking the Tasks tab. The data store creation task is
called Create VMFS datastore.
12. You can monitor the progress of the multipathing task by clicking the
Monitor tab and clicking the Tasks tab. The multipathing task is called Set
logical unit policy.
Related concepts:
“Service classes” on page 37
A service class is a set of properties that describe capabilities and characteristics of
storage resources. A service class typically describes a particular quality of service,
and is used during provisioning to describe storage requirements. For example, a
block-storage service class specifies properties such as a required RAID level, and
whether storage resources must be able to encrypt or thin provision volumes.
“Capacity pools” on page 41
Capacity pools are groups of storage resources. You can use capacity pools to
separate storage resources in any way that serves the needs of your environment
or business. Configure capacity pools to track the used and available space for
block and file storage on any set of storage resources. Provisioning requests can
also be restricted to resources in a capacity pool.
Related tasks:
“Provisioning file storage”
Use the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control to provision file
storage on IBM Spectrum Control.

Provisioning file storage

Use the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control to provision file
storage on IBM Spectrum Control.

Ensure that you complete the following tasks in IBM Spectrum Control:
v If you want to provision storage by using service classes to describe
performance and storage requirements, ensure that the service classes are created
in IBM Spectrum Control. IBM Spectrum Control provides a number of
predefined service classes, which you can use, modify, or delete.
v If you want to provision storage by using capacity pools to specify your storage
requirements, ensure that the capacity pools are created in IBM Spectrum
Control.
v Before you provision storage to a hypervisor, ensure that the hypervisor is
added into IBM Spectrum Control. If the hypervisor belongs to a cluster, all the
hypervisors on that cluster must be managed by IBM Spectrum Control.
v Determine whether you must set access path host name replacements. For more
information, see “Special consideration for provisioning by using the VMware
vSphere Web Client extension” on page 41.
For more information, see “Cloud configuration” on page 37.

Start the vSphere Web Client.

1. From the vSphere Web Client Inventories view, select Hosts and Clusters.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 217

 2. Select the hypervisor for which you want to provision storage.
3. Click the Actions menu item, and select All TPC Actions.
4. To open the Provision File Storage wizard, select Provision File Storage....
5. In the Share Requirements page of the wizard, enter a name for the share.
6. Enter a size for the total usable storage space on the share, and select the unit
of measurement from the list.
7. Select the service class for the file storage that you want to associate with the
share. You can select only service classes with available capacity that you are
authorized to use.
8. Select the capacity pool from which you want the share to be provisioned. You
can select only capacity pools with available capacity.
9. Enter the name of the data store that you want to associate with the file
system.
10. Click Next to continue.
11. In the Share Permissions page of the wizard, specify the user and group with
permission to mount the share on the hypervisor.
12. Select the Read-only check box if you want to limit the user or group to
viewing files on the share.
13. Select the Secure check box to create the share with the secure flag set.
14. Click OK to provision the share.
15. To monitor the progress of the provisioning task, click the Monitor tab, and
click the Tasks tab.
16. You can also monitor the progress of the creation of the data store by clicking
the Monitor tab and then clicking the Tasks tab. The data store creation task
is called Create NAS datastore.
Related concepts:
“Service classes” on page 37
A service class is a set of properties that describe capabilities and characteristics of
storage resources. A service class typically describes a particular quality of service,
and is used during provisioning to describe storage requirements. For example, a
block-storage service class specifies properties such as a required RAID level, and
whether storage resources must be able to encrypt or thin provision volumes.
“Capacity pools” on page 41
Capacity pools are groups of storage resources. You can use capacity pools to
separate storage resources in any way that serves the needs of your environment
or business. Configure capacity pools to track the used and available space for
block and file storage on any set of storage resources. Provisioning requests can
also be restricted to resources in a capacity pool.
Related tasks:
“Setting access path host replacements” on page 199
If you are going to use the VMware vSphere Web Client extension to provision file
shares, verify whether you must provide IBM Spectrum Control with an access
path host replacement.
“Provisioning block storage” on page 216
Use the vSphere Web Client extension for IBM Spectrum Control to provision block
storage on IBM Spectrum Control. You can also have a data store created on the
storage volume.

218 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Optimizing storage tiering
To optimize the placement of volumes on storage tiers, analyze the tiering of
volumes in your storage environment.

Before you analyze tiering, complete the following tasks:

v Probe the storage virtualizers
v Collect performance data
v Set the tier level of the storage pools that you analyze and that you select as
target pools

The purpose of analyzing tiering is to tier volumes based on the I/O rate or I/O
density thresholds that you set. Depending on the conditions that are set,
recommendations are generated.

Storage costs can be reduced, for example, by moving volumes with low
workloads from higher and more expensive tiers to lower and less expensive tiers.
Storage performance can be improved and used more efficiently by moving
volumes with heavy workloads to the tiers that meet the workload requirements of
the volumes. When you implement the recommendations, you ensure that the
volumes are placed on the tiers that best match the workload requirements of the
volumes.

You can optimize the placement of volumes on the following storage virtualizers:
v SAN Volume Controller
v Storwize V7000
v Storwize V7000 Unified block storage
v FlashSystem V9000 and FlashSystem V840

Learn more: For information about the components that can be used with IBM
Spectrum Control Version 5.2 (or later), see IBM Spectrum Control
interoperability matrix at http://www.ibm.com/support/
docview.wss?uid=swg21386446.

Volumes can be moved to tiered storage pools on the same storage virtualizer, but
volumes cannot be moved from one storage virtualizer pool to another storage
virtualizer pool.

Optimizing volumes with service classes: Recommendations are not generated to

move volumes that are assigned a service class to a destination pool that does not
meet the requirements of the service class.
Related tasks:
“Analyzing and re-tiering volumes in pools on tier 1” on page 61
In this scenario, you analyze the current placement of volumes in pools on tier 1 so
that you can move volumes with low workloads from tier 1 to tier 2 or tier 3
pools.
“Collocating volumes” on page 63
In this scenario, you want to minimize the exposure of servers to multiple
back-end storage systems by collocating volumes that are assigned to the same
hypervisor or server. You can enforce the collocation of volumes when you enter
the criteria for analyzing tiering and balancing pools.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 219

 Setting the tier level of storage pools
To analyze tiering and to balance pools, you must set the tier level of storage
pools.

Before you analyze tiering or balance pools, you must set the tier level of pools.

To analyze tiering, you must set the tier level of the source pools and the target
pools. The source pools are the pools that you select for analysis. The target pools
are the pools that are used to relocate volumes to lower or higher tiers of storage.

Tip: You can also set or modify the tier level of pools on the General tab of the
View Properties page for the storage pool.

Child pools have the same tier level as the parent pool. So if you change the tier
level of the parent pool or of the child pool, all of the pools in the parent-child
relationship are set to the same tier level.

You can assign tier levels to storage systems that are not storage virtualizers.
However, you cannot balance the pools or analyze the tiering of pools other than
storage virtualizer pools.
1. From the Storage menu, click Pools.
2. On the Pools page, select one or more storage pools.
3. Click Set > Tier, and then select a tier level. To remove the tier level, click
None.

The tier level that you selected for the storage pools is shown in the Tier column.

Analyzing tiering by servers

Optimize tiering by analyzing the tiering of volumes on storage virtualizers that
are connected to servers.

The servers that you select must be connected to one or more storage virtualizers.
1. From the Servers menu, click Servers.
2. Right-click one or more servers, and then click Analyze Tiering. Alternatively,
you can click Actions > Analyze Tiering.

Analyzing tiering by hypervisors

Optimize tiering by analyzing the tiering of volumes on storage virtualizers that
are connected to hypervisors.

The hypervisors that you select must be connected to one or more storage
virtualizers.
1. From the Servers menu, click Hypervisors.
2. Right-click one or more hypervisors, and then click Analyze Tiering.
Alternatively, you can click Actions > Analyze Tiering.

Analyzing tiering by storage virtualizers

Optimize tiering by analyzing the tiering of volumes on storage virtualizers.
1. From the Storage menu, click Storage Systems.
2. Right-click one or more storage virtualizers, and then click Analyze Tiering.
Alternatively, you can click Actions > Analyze Tiering.

220 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Analyzing tiering by storage pools
Optimize tiering by analyzing the tiering of volumes in storage pools.
1. From the Storage > Pools menu, click Pools.
2. Right-click one or more storage pools, and then click Analyze Tiering.
Alternatively, you can click Actions > Analyze Tiering.

Analyzing tiering by volumes

Optimize tiering by analyzing the tiering of volumes on storage virtualizers.
1. From the Storage menu, click Volumes.
2. Right-click one or more volumes, and then click Analyze Tiering. Alternatively,
you can click Actions > Analyze Tiering.

Tiering volumes by I/O density and I/O rate

Set thresholds for tiering volumes by I/O rate or I/O density.
1. Select the resources that you want to analyze. The source storage pools that are
related to the resources that you selected are analyzed to determine whether
they meet the workload requirements of the volumes. If the workload
requirements of the volume in its current tier are not met, the volume is a
candidate for relocation.
2. Select the target storage pools.
3. Include or exclude volumes in mirrored volume relationships from the analysis.

Mirrored volumes: If you want to optimize mirrored volumes, select one or

more target pools that do not contain either the primary volume or the
secondary volume. Primary volumes and secondary volumes cannot be placed
in the same destination pool.
4. On the Optimize the Placement of Volumes page, specify the number of days
for analyzing the resources.
5. Specify whether volumes that are in the same source storage pool and that are
assigned to the same server or hypervisor must be placed in the same
destination storage pool. Recommendations are only generated to move one or
more of the related volumes when all of the related volumes can be placed in
the same destination storage pool.

Multiple host connections to the same hypervisor or server: If the volumes in

the source pool that are assigned to the same hypervisor or server are assigned
to different host connections, the collocation of the volumes is affected. In such
cases, if volumes require optimization, the volumes that are assigned to the
same host connection are kept together. To view information about the host
connection for the volume, right-click the volume, select View Details, and
then click the Host Connections tab.
6. Specify the type of threshold and the threshold values for moving volumes to
higher and lower tiers.
7. Click Analyze.

When you complete entering the information to analyze the tiering of the volumes,
recommendations for tiering are shown on the Tiering Analysis page. You can
create a schedule to run the analysis that is based on the analysis criteria that you
entered.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 221

 Modifying the criteria for analyzing tiering
When a task is created after you run the tiering analysis, you can modify the
criteria for tiering the volumes.

You must run the tiering analysis to create a tiering analysis task.

The criteria that you modify are used to analyze the source volumes and target
volumes that were selected when you created the tiering analysis.
1. From the Home menu, click Tasks.
2. Right-click a tiering analysis task, and click Edit.
3. Modify the tiering thresholds, and then click Analyze.

The source volumes are analyzed to determine whether one or more of the
volumes require re-tiering based on the criteria that you specified. If one or more
of the volumes require re-tiering, recommendations are generated to move the
volumes to the destination pools that meet the criteria that you specified.

Optimizing storage pools

Analyze the activity of pools and resolve performance hot spots by redistributing
volumes across each storage tier.

Before you balance pools, complete the following tasks:

v Probe the storage virtualizer. You must probe the storage virtualizer to collect
information about the logical devices, such as volumes and virtual disks, that are
associated with the storage virtualizer.
v Collect performance data. To gauge the average activity level of the volumes and
pools, you must collect sufficient performance data for the storage virtualizer.
v Assign a tier level to the pools that you want to balance.

You can balance the workload of volumes in pools on the same tier on the
following storage virtualizers:
v SAN Volume Controller
v Storwize V7000
v Storwize V7000 Unified block storage
v FlashSystem V9000 and FlashSystem V840

Learn more: For information about the components that can be used with IBM
Spectrum Control Version 5.2 (or later), see IBM Spectrum Control
interoperability matrix at http://www.ibm.com/support/
docview.wss?uid=swg21386446.

To balance pools, you must select two or more pools on the same tier level and on
the same storage virtualizer. For example, you select three tier 1 pools, and four
tier 3 pools. The pools on tier 1 are analyzed and balanced, and the pools on tier 3
are analyzed and balanced.

Optimizing volumes with service classes: Recommendations are not generated to

move volumes that are assigned a service class to a destination pool that does not
meet the requirements of the service class.
Related tasks:

222 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 “Setting the tier level of storage pools” on page 220
To analyze tiering and to balance pools, you must set the tier level of storage
pools.
“Redistributing volume workloads to balance pools” on page 60
In this scenario, you identify performance hot spots and then run the balance pools
analysis to help resolve them.

Balancing pools
You balance pools to distribute the workload of volumes across pools on the same
tier and on the same storage virtualizer. To improve the performance of the pools,
recommendations are generated to move volumes to other pools on the same tier
and on the same storage virtualizer.
1. From the Storage menu, click Pools.
2. Right-click two or more pools on the same tier level and on the same storage
virtualizer, and then click Balance Pools.

Tip: If you want to analyze pools that contain volumes in mirrored volume
relationships, select one or more pools that do not contain either the primary
volume or the secondary volume. The primary volume and the secondary
volume cannot be placed in the same destination pool.
3. Choose whether to analyze volumes in mirrored volume relationships. These
options are only available if you select one or more volumes with mirrored
volumes.
4. Specify the number of days that are used to analyze the pools. By default, the
value for the activity level of pools is estimated based on the performance data
that was collected on the previous seven days.
5. Specify the placement of optimized volumes in capacity pools. These options
are only available if you select one or more volumes in capacity pools.
6. Specify whether volumes that are in the same source storage pool and that are
assigned to the same server or hypervisor must be placed in the same
destination storage pool.
7. Click Analyze.

When you finish entering the information for balancing the pools, a task is created
that shows the recommendations on the Balance Analysis page. You can implement
the recommended changes, or you can create a schedule to implement the changes
later.

Analyzing volumes with service classes: Recommendations are not generated to

move volumes that are assigned a service class unless the destination pool can
meet the requirements of the service class.
Related tasks:
“Redistributing volume workloads to balance pools” on page 60
In this scenario, you identify performance hot spots and then run the balance pools
analysis to help resolve them.

Modifying the criteria for balancing pools

When a task is created after you run the analysis for balancing pools, you can
modify the criteria that determine which pools are balanced.

To create a balance analysis task, you must run the analysis for balancing the
pools.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 223

 The criteria that you modify are used to analyze the storage pools that you
selected when you entered the criteria for balancing the pools.
1. From the Home menu, click Tasks.
2. Right-click a balance analysis task, and click Edit.
3. Make your changes, and then click Analyze.

Based on the criteria that you specified, the pools are analyzed to determine
whether the pools require balancing. If one or more pools require balancing,
recommendations are generated to redistribute the volumes to pools on the same
tier of storage.

Criteria for identifying the pools that require balancing

To identify the pools that require balancing, performance data is collected to
determine the relative activity of pools on the same tier. The performance
capability of pools is preserved by setting an activity limit for each tier of storage.

To determine the relative activity of pools on the same tier and on the same
back-end storage system, the following values are calculated:
v The current activity level of the pool is calculated.
v The activity deviation percentage of the pool is calculated.

Tip: On the Pools page, the activity level of the pool is shown in the Activity
column. The difference between the activity level of the pool and all of the other
pools on the same tier and storage system is shown in the Activity Deviation
(%) column.

The following formulas are used to calculate the activity level and the activity
deviation percentage for pools.
Table 45. Formulas for calculating the activity level and activity deviation percentage values
for pools
Value calculated Formula that is used in the calculation
Activity level of the pool [Read I/O Rate × (1− Read I/O Cache Hit
%) + Write I/O Rate] ÷ Total Pool Capacity
Activity level of the pool on XIV systems (Total I/O Rate ÷ Total Capacity)
Activity deviation percentage of the pool [(Pool Activity Level − Average Activity
Level) ÷ Average Activity Level] × 100

A positive value indicates that the relative

activity level of the pool is above average. A
negative value indicates that the relative
activity level of the pool is below average.

If the activity deviation percentage of the pool lies within the range of <−10% to
>10%, the pool is considered to be balanced. If the activity deviation percentage of
the pool exceeds the deviation threshold of 10%, the pool is a candidate for
balancing.

For example, you want to identify the tier-1 pools that require balancing on a
storage environment that consists of a Storwize V7000 Unified storage virtualizer
with one DS8000 storage system. You open the Pools page and view the activity
deviation percentage values for the tier-1 pools.

224 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 The Pools page shows that three tier-1 pools have the following activity levels and
activity deviation percentages.
Table 46. Tier-1 pools activity and activity deviation percentages
Activity deviation
Pool Activity percentage
pool_1 110 −3%
pool_2 90 −20%
pool_3 140 24%

The pool_3 pool is a candidate for balancing because the activity deviation value
for the pool is 14% higher than the deviation threshold of 10%.

The pool_1 pool is considered to be balanced because the activity deviation

percentage of the pool lies within the range for balanced pools. The pool_1 pool
and the pool_2 pool, are potential target pools for the volumes that must be moved
from the pool_3 pool.

Reclaiming storage
You can view the amount of storage that can be reclaimed in your data center and
for each of the block storage systems that are monitored. Based on volume
reclamation recommendations, you can reclaim the unused space and more
effectively allocate volume space on your storage systems.

Viewing storage reclamation

Use the storage reclamation analysis to see information about the reclaimable
capacity in your data center. You can see the savings that can be made by
reclaiming capacity for tiered and non-tiered storage and view a list of the
reclaimable volumes.

Before you view recommendations for reclaiming storage, complete the following
tasks:
v Add the storage systems for monitoring and schedule a storage systems probe.
v If your storage environment is configured for storage tiers, ensure that the
amount of unused space on tier one is minimal.

By default, the period for analyzing performance data, which is used for
generating reclamation recommendations, is set to 14 days. For a more thorough
analysis, you can change this period.

View information about volumes that are analyzed and recommended for
reclamation.
1. From the Advanced Analytics menu, click Reclamation.
2. On the View by Reclaimable Capacity page, view the charts and tables for
information about reclaimable storage space, volumes that are recommended
for reclamation, and volumes that are excluded from analysis.

On the reclamation donut chart, you can view the amount of storage space that is
used and the amount of storage space that can be reclaimed. You can also see an
estimate of the storage space that can be saved when the volumes that are listed in
the table are reclaimed.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 225

 On the reclamation by tier bar charts, view the amount of storage space that can be
reclaimed on each tier of storage that is defined in your data center.

On the Recommendations tab, view the volumes that are identified as potential
candidates for reclamation.

On the Excluded tab, view the volumes that are excluded from the analysis for
reclamation recommendations.

Viewing storage reclamation by storage system

Use the reclamation view of storage systems for detailed information about the
reclaimable capacity in your data center. You can see the savings that can be made
by reclaiming capacity for tiered and non-tiered storage and view information
about the storage systems that contain the reclaimable volumes.

Before you view recommendations for reclaiming storage, complete the following
tasks:
v Add the storage systems for monitoring and schedule a storage systems probe.
v If your storage environment is configured for storage tiers, ensure that the
amount of unused space on tier one is minimal.

By default, the period for analyzing performance data, which is used for
generating reclamation recommendations, is set to 14 days. For a more thorough
analysis, you can change this period.

View reclamation information about storage systems that contain volumes that are
analyzed and recommended for reclamation.
1. From the Advanced Analytics menu, click Reclamation.
2. On the View by Storage Systems page, view the charts and table for
information about reclaimable storage space and for information about the
storage systems that contain the reclaimable volumes.

On the reclamation donut chart, you can view the amount of reclaimable space and
the non-reclaimable allocated space. If you defined storage tiers, you can view the
amount of storage that can be saved for each tier. You can also see an estimate of
the storage space that can be saved when the volumes of the storage systems that
are listed in the table are reclaimed.

On the reclamation bar chart, view the amount of storage space that can be
reclaimed on each storage system in your data center.

In the table, view space, capacity, and reclamation information about each storage
system.

Excluding volumes from reclamation analysis

You can select volumes to not include them in the analysis for reclamation
recommendations. The volumes are excluded from the reclamation charts.

On the View by Reclaimable Capacity page, you can select a volume or multiple
volumes for exclusion from the analysis for reclamation recommendations.
1. From the Advanced Analytics menu, click Reclamation.

226 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 2. On the View by Reclaimable Capacity page, to exclude a volume from the
analysis, right-click the volume on the Recommendations table, and select
Exclude from Analysis.

The volume is removed from the Recommendations table and added to the
Excluded table, and the charts are refreshed.

Tip: To include a volume in the analysis, on the Excluded table, right-click the
volume and select Include in Analysis. The volume is removed from the Excluded
table and added to the Recommendations table, and the charts are refreshed.

Transforming and migrating volumes

You can transform fully allocated volumes to compressed or thin-provisioned
volumes, or transform compressed or thin-provisioned volumes to fully allocated
volumes. You can move volumes to other pools or to pools that are enabled for
Easy Tier.

Before you transform storage, you must probe the storage virtualizers. The probe
collects information about the logical devices, such as volumes and virtual disks,
that are associated with the storage virtualizer.

You can convert or move volumes in pools on the following storage virtualizers:
v SAN Volume Controller
v Storwize V7000
v Storwize V7000 Unified
v FlashSystem V9000 and FlashSystem V840

For volumes in mirrored volume relationships, you can convert the primary
volume, the secondary volume, or both volumes.

Restrictions: The restrictions for converting or moving volumes are as follows:

v To move volumes, the destination pool must be on the same storage virtualizer.
You cannot move a volume from a pool on one storage virtualizer to a pool on
another storage virtualizer.
v To convert or move volumes, image mode volumes must be converted to
managed mode volumes.
v To convert fully allocated volumes to compressed volumes, you must have the
IBM Real-time Compression™ license.

Migrating volumes with service classes: A warning is generated when you move
one or more volumes that are assigned a service class to a destination pool that
does not meet the requirements of the service class.
1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to Storage > Volumes.
2. Click one or more storage volumes, and then select Transform Storage from the
context-sensitive menu. Alternatively, you can click Actions > Transform
Storage.

When you complete entering criteria for transforming storage, the Transform Plan
page is opened. A task is created which you can run to implement the
recommendations.
Related tasks:

Chapter 5. Managing resources 227

 “Modifying the period for analyzing performance data”
To change the default period for analyzing performance data in storage virtualizer
pools, issue the setdscfg command. You can extend or shorten the default period
for a more accurate analysis.

Modifying the period for analyzing performance data

To change the default period for analyzing performance data in storage virtualizer
pools, issue the setdscfg command. You can extend or shorten the default period
for a more accurate analysis.

You must have Administrator authority to use the setdscfg command.

By default, the period for analyzing performance data is set to 14 days. When you
change the number of days, the period for analyzing performance data is modified
for the advanced analytics about storage, that is, tiering, balancing, transforming,
and reclamation.

When you transform storage, the performance data that is collected about the
pools on storage virtualizers is analyzed. The period that is set for analyzing
performance data is used to calculate the average workload activity of the volumes
that are selected for analysis. To provide a more accurate analysis of the workload
activity of the volumes in your storage environment, you can extend or shorten the
period.

For reclamation, the performance data that is collected for the analysis period
about all block storage pools is analyzed, regardless of whether the storage is
virtualized.

To change the analysis period, complete the following steps:

1. To start the IBM Spectrum Control CLI, issue the tpctool command.
2. Issue the setdscfg command, and then set the following values by using the
-property and the -context parameters:
a. Specify tiering_pm_days as the property value.
b. Specify tiering as the context value, and then specify the number of days for
the analysis period.
For example, to change the analysis period from the default value of 14 days to
28 days, issue the following command:
tpctool setdscfg -url localhost:9550 -user ***** -pwd *****
-property tiering_pm_days -context tiering 28

The default value is changed to the number of days that you specified, for example
28.

Tip: To verify that the analysis period is changed, you enter the following
command:
tpctool getdscfg -url localhost:9550 -user ***** -pwd ***** -context tiering

Modifying the properties of resources

In the web-based GUI, you can modify the properties of the resources that are
monitored by IBM Spectrum Control.

228 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

The following information summarizes the resources and properties that you can
modify, and the steps for modifying each type of resource.

Properties that can be

Resource modified Steps
Storage systems v Name (label) 1. Depending on the type of
v Location storage system that you
want to modify, go to
v Custom tags (3)
Storage > Block Storage
Systems, Storage > File
Storage Systems, or
Storage > Object Storage
Systems.
2. Right-click the storage
system that you want to
modify and select View
Properties.
3. On the properties
notebook, click Edit.
4. Modify the properties
and click Save.
Pools v Tier 1. In the menu bar in the
v Back-end storage system web-based GUI, go to
type Storage > Pools.
v Back-end storage RAID 2. Right-click the pool that
level you want to modify and
select View Properties.
v Back-end storage disk type
3. On the properties
v Back-end storage disks
notebook, click Edit.
Tip: You can edit the 4. Modify the properties
back-end values if the and click Save.
back-end storage system for
the related storage virtualizer
was not probed and the
values for the pool are
unknown. If you manually
enter values for these
properties, IBM Spectrum
Control uses the values to
help calculate the
approximate read I/O
capability of the pool.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 229

 Properties that can be
Resource modified Steps
Servers 1. In the menu bar, go to
Servers with Storage
Resource agents Servers > Servers.
You can modify the 2. Right-click the server that
following properties you want to modify and
for servers where select View Properties.
agents are deployed: 3. On the properties
v Location notebook, click Edit.
v Custom tags (3) 4. Modify the properties
v Fabric functions and click Save.
v Agent trace
v Trace level
v Number of trace
files
v Trace file size
v Run scripts on
agent
Servers without Storage
Resource agents (agentless)
You can modify the
following properties
for agentless
servers:
v Name (label)
v OS type
v IP address
v Virtual machine
v Location
v Custom tags (3)

Hypervisors v Location 1. In the menu bar, go to

v Custom tags (3) Servers > Hypervisors.
2. Right-click the hypervisor
that you want to modify
and select View
Properties.
3. On the properties
notebook, click Edit.
4. Modify the properties
and click Save.
Switches v Name (label) 1. In the menu bar, go to
v Location Network > Switches.
v Custom tags (3) 2. Right-click the switch
that you want to modify
and select View
Properties.
3. On the properties
notebook, click Edit.
4. Modify the properties
and click Save.

230 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Properties that can be
Resource modified Steps
Fabrics v Name (label) 1. In the menu bar, go to
v Location Network > Fabrics.
v Custom tags (3) 2. Right-click the fabric that
you want to modify and
select View Properties.
3. On the properties
notebook, click Edit.
4. Modify the properties
and click Save.

Tip: To view the description of a property that you can modify for a resource,
hover the mouse pointer over the hover icon for that property in the
web-based GUI.

Opening the management GUI for a resource

Resources such as storage systems and switches can have their own management
GUIs or element managers. In IBM Spectrum Control, you can open the start page
in these GUIs from resource list pages, such as the Storage Systems page and
Switches page.

The action for opening a management GUI is available for storage systems and
switches under the following conditions:
v The resource is monitored by IBM Spectrum Control.
v The resource has a management GUI that is web-based
1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to a type of top-level resource. For
example, if you want open the GUI for a block storage system, go to Storage >
Block Storage Systems. If you want open the GUI for a switch, go to Network
> Switches.
2. Right-click the resource and select the action to open the GUI. For storage
systems, select Open Storage System GUI. For a switch, select Open Switch
GUI. The start page for the management GUI is opened in a separate web
browser window.

Opening the DS Storage Manager GUI for a DS8000

If the firmware level for a DS8000 is earlier than R6.2, you must complete extra
configuration steps before you can open its management GUI. To determine the
firmware version of a DS8000 and enable the ability to open its management GUI,
complete the following steps:
1. Start IBM Spectrum Control.
2. In the menu bar, go to Storage > Block Storage Systems.
3. Right-click the DS8000 and select View Properties.
4. Check the version in the Firmware field. If the firmware version is earlier than
R6.2, continue to the next step. If the version is R6.2 or later, you do not need
to complete this procedure.
5. Download and start the PuTTY utility. PuTTY is a free implementation of Telnet
and SSH for Windows and UNIX. You can download PuTTY from
http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/download.html.
6. On the Session page in the PuTTY tool, complete the following actions:

Chapter 5. Managing resources 231

 a. In the Host Name (or IP address field), enter the IP address of the
Hardware Management Console (HMC) for the DS8000. You can determine
this IP address by viewing the properties of the DS8000 in the IBM
Spectrum Controlweb-based GUI.
b. Select SSH for a Connection type.
c. Click Open.
7. Enter the user name and password for logging in to the HMC.
8. Run the following command: touch /opt/esshmc/data/config/ntvbrsen
9. In the web-based GUI, right-click the DS8000 and select Open Storage System
GUI.

Exporting information to a file

You can save information about resources, jobs, or alerts to a PDF, CSV, or HTML
file. Information that you can export from the web-based GUI includes all the
values that are being shown in the columns for a list of resources, jobs, or alerts.

The information that you export to a file is organized according to the sorting,
filtering, and column order that is defined for a list. Before you export information,
complete the following tasks to configure a list:
v Change the order of columns in the list as you want them to appear in the
generated file.
v Hide columns in the list that you do not want to include in the generated file.
Information in hidden columns is not exported.
v Sort the rows in the list as you want them to appear in the generated file. Each
list in the web-based GUI has a column or set of columns that determine the
order of its rows.
v Filter the list to show only the resources, jobs, or alerts that you want to export.
Use filtering to limit the rows that are shown in a list based on value in a
specific column or set of default columns.

You can export information that is shown on the following pages:

Resource list and resource details pages
You can export information about the top-level resources, internal
resources, or related resources that are shown on resource list pages and
resource details pages. For top-level resources, you can also export
information about related jobs or alerts.
For example, you can export information about monitored switches on the
Switches page. When you select the export action, the generated file
includes the column values for each monitored switch in the list. In the
Jobs or Alerts tabs on the Switches page, you can export information
about all the jobs or alerts that are related to switches.
The Alerts page
On the Home > Alerts page, you can export information about all the
alerts that were detected for monitored resources. Information that you can
export includes all the values that are being shown in the columns for the
list of alerts.
The Jobs page
On the Home > Jobs page, you can export information about all the jobs
that are associated with monitored resources. Information that you can
export includes all the values that are being shown in the columns for the
list of jobs.

232 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 1. In the web-based GUI, go to a list of resources, jobs, or alerts for which you
want to export information.
2. Right click any row in the table and select Export > <file_format>, where
<file_format> represents the format that you want to use for a file. The
following formats are available:
CSV (comma-separated values)
A CSV file is a file that contains comma-delimited values and can be
viewed with a text editor or imported into a spreadsheet application.
The information in a CSV file has the following format:
"Column_name","Column_name","Column_name","Column_name","Column_name","Column_name"
"data","data","data","data","data","data"

where Column_name represents the name of a column in a table and data

represents the data that is associated with a column.
PDF You can view a PDF file with Acrobat reader. The information that you
export to a PDF file is formatted into a table.

Tip: When you export a table of data that contains many columns, the
rows in that table might span multiple pages in the resulting PDF. For
example, if a table contains 20 columns, then the row for a specific
resource might be shown on more than one page (10 columns on the
first page and 10 columns on the second page).

To reduce the number of pages that a table spans, before you select the
export action, hide the columns that you do not want to include in the
PDF. Continue hiding columns until the table no longer spans multiple
pages.
HTML
You can view an HTML file with a web browser. The information that
you export to an HTML file is formatted into a table.
3. Optional: Depending on how your web browser is configured, you can specify
the name and location of the generated file.
4. Click the save option to export the information to a file.
Related concepts:
“Viewing information about resources” on page 130
You can view detailed information about the resources that are monitored by IBM
Spectrum Control. Resources include storage systems, volumes, pools, servers,
hypervisors, fabrics, and switches. You can also view information about internal
and related resources.
“Customizing lists of resources, tasks, and alerts”
The web-based GUI uses lists to show information about resources, tasks, and
alerts. The information in each list is organized into columns and rows. You can
customize these lists by filtering information, sorting rows, and showing, hiding,
and reordering columns.

Customizing lists of resources, tasks, and alerts

The web-based GUI uses lists to show information about resources, tasks, and
alerts. The information in each list is organized into columns and rows. You can
customize these lists by filtering information, sorting rows, and showing, hiding,
and reordering columns.
Related reference:

Chapter 5. Managing resources 233

 “How performance information is displayed” on page 155
The performance view is displayed when you view the performance of resources,
which includes resources in threshold violations, alerts, and performance monitors.
Information in the performance view is organized into two main sections: a chart
or table and a legend.

Filtering lists
You can filter the items that are shown in a list. Use filtering when you want to
limit the rows that are shown in a list based on values in a specific column or set
of columns. For example, when viewing alerts, you can filter the list so that only
alerts with a value of Warning in the Severity column are shown.
1. In the web-based GUI, go to a list of resources, jobs, or alerts that you want to
filter.
2. Click the Filter icon to determine how to filter the list. The following
options are available:
Filter by Default Columns
Select this option to apply the filter to the set of the default columns in
a list. Each list contains a set of default columns on which you can
filter.
For example, in the lists of alerts on the Home > Alerts page, select this
option to apply filter text to the following columns at the same time:
Condition, Severity, Alert Category, Resource, Internal Resource,
Total Occurrences, Alert Name.
Filter by a Specific Column
Select this option to apply filter text to a specific column in a list. For
example, on the Home > Alerts page, select the Condition column if
you want to apply filter text to values in that column only.

Restriction: Some columns in lists cannot be used for filtering and are not
shown under the Filter by a Specific Column option.

3. In Filter text box , type the text for filtering a list. You can
type letters, whole words, partial words, and numbers. When filtering on
certain columns, you can select from a list of values rather than typing in filter
text.
For example, when filtering on the Status column, you can select one of the
following values as the filter text: Error, Unreachable, Warning, Normal,
Unknown.
4. Press Enter to apply the filter to the list. Only rows with values that match or
partially match the filter text are shown.
For example, on the Home > Alerts page, if you select to filter on the Severity
column and type critical as the filter text, only alerts that have a severity of
critical and critical - acknowledged are shown in the list.

Tip: The name of a column to which a filter applies is shown next to the Filter
icon .
5. Optional: To remove the filtering for a list, click Reset.

Sorting lists
Each list of resources in the web-based GUI has a column or set of columns that
determines the order of its rows. You can sort the columns in a list to organize the
rows according to your requirements.
234 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
 For example, the list of ports on a fabric is ordered by switch name, blade slot, and
port number, in that order. You can change the sort order of these columns to
organize a list of resources according to your requirements.

Tip: A visual indicator is shown next to the primary column that determines
the sort order of a list.
1. In the web-based GUI, go to a list of resources, jobs, or alerts that you want to
sort.
2. Complete the following tasks to sort the rows in the list:
v To change whether the rows in a list are sorted by ascending or descending
order, click the name of the primary column in the heading row. Click the
name of the column again to reverse the sort order.
v To change the column that determines the sort order of resources, click the
name of that column. For example, click the Name column to sort the list of
resources alphabetically, or click the Status column to sort the list according
to the status of resources.

Tip: When you click a column other than the primary sort column, that
column becomes the new primary sort column. However, the previous
primary column maintains its sort order (ascending or descending).

For example, if a list of resources is ordered by the Name column in

ascending order and you click the Status column, the rows are sorted
according to the statuses of resources. At the same time, the resources for
each type of status are still sorted in ascending order by the Name column.
There is a maximum of three columns that can be sorted upon at the same
time.
3. Optional: To reset the order of the rows for a column to the default setting,
right-click the heading row in the list and select Reset Table Preferences.

Showing, hiding, and reordering columns in lists

Each list in the web-based GUI has a set of columns that contain information about
resources, jobs, or alerts. You can change the order of columns, show columns that
are hidden, and hide columns that are shown in these lists.
1. In the web-based GUI, go to a list of resources, jobs, or alerts that you want to
customize.
2. Complete the following tasks to customize the columns in the list:
v To show or hide the columns in a list, right-click any of the column headings
and select or clear the check box next to a column name.
v To change the order of columns, click a column heading and drag it to a new
position in the list.

Tip: The changes that you make to column settings are saved from session to
session.
3. Optional: To reset the order and display of columns to the default setting,
right-click any of the column headings and select Restore Default View.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 235

Managing tasks
Tasks are used to provision storage and optimize resources in your storage
environment. Use the Tasks page to manage all the tasks that are used by IBM
Spectrum Control to provision storage and optimize resources. Use resource list
and resource details pages to manage the tasks for specific resources and resource
types.

Tasks are created when you take any of the following actions in the web-based
GUI:
v Assign storage to servers or hypervisors by using the Provision Storage wizard.
v Move volumes to higher or lower tiers by using the Analyze Tiering wizard.
v Move or convert volumes by using the Transform Storage wizard.
v Distribute the workload of volumes across pools on the same tier by using the
Balance Pools wizard.

Use the following actions to manage tasks:

v View the status of tasks in a central location.
v Identify all the tasks that are related to a specific resource or a type of resource.
v Identify all the tasks that are encountering problems when the tasks are running.
v Administer the tasks. The actions that are available depend on the type of task
that you select. For example, you can run or rename a tiering-analysis task, or
export provisioning task details to a text file.
v Change the number of task runs that are displayed.

Tip: A task run is a single invocation of a task.

Viewing tasks
Use the Tasks page in the web-based GUI to view all the tasks that are used by
IBM Spectrum Control to provision storage and optimize resources. Use resource
list and resource details pages to view the tasks for specific resources and resource
types.

Viewing all tasks

Use the Tasks page as a central location to view the tasks that IBM Spectrum
Control is using to provision storage and optimize resources. You can view all the
tasks for resources that are monitored by IBM Spectrum Control.
1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to Home > Tasks. The information
about tasks is organized into columns. These columns include information
about the status of tasks, the date and time of the last run for tasks, and the
schedule for tasks.
2. Optional: View the status icons at the top of the page to view a summary of
task statuses. This summary includes the number of tasks that have a Failed,
Warning, Successful, or Running status.

Tip: To view descriptions of the icons and columns on the Tasks page, click the
Help icon in the upper-right corner of the page.

Viewing pending tasks

Some tasks might be pending because they can be run or scheduled only by an
administrator. If tasks are pending, the number of pending tasks is displayed in
the title bar of the web-based GUI.

236 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

You must be assigned to the Administrator role to view the number of pending
tasks in the title bar of the web-based GUI.

Pending tasks are tasks that were not run and are not scheduled to run. Pending
tasks might be created by a user who is not authorized to run or schedule the task.
For example, users who are assigned to the Monitor or External Application role
can have permission to create provisioning tasks by using a service class. However,
if the service class specifies that administrator approval is required, these users can
only create the provisioning task. The provisioning task is pending until an
administrator runs or schedules it.

To view pending tasks, complete the following steps:

1. In the title bar of the web-based GUI, look for the pending task count. If there
are any pending tasks, the number of pending tasks is shown in the title bar of
the web-based GUI. If no number appears in the title bar, there are no pending
tasks.
2. To open a Tasks page that shows only the pending tasks, click the number of
pending tasks in the title bar.

Viewing tasks for a type of resource

Use resource list pages to view only the tasks for a specific type of top-level
resource. Each resource list page has a Tasks tab that lists only the tasks for that
type of resource. For example, you can use the list page for storage systems to
view only the tasks that are associated with storage systems.
1. In the menu bar, select a type of top-level resource. For example, to view the
tasks that are related to storage systems, go to Storage and select the type of
storage system you want to monitor.

Exception: Provisioning tasks that provision network-attached storage (NAS)

file shares to servers or hypervisors are not shown on the resource list pages
for servers or hypervisors. You must use the Tasks page to view these tasks.
2. Click the Tasks tab to view a list of all the tasks for the monitored resources of
that type.
The information about tasks is organized into columns. These columns include
information about the status of tasks, the most recent date and time when tasks
ran, and the schedule for tasks.

Tip: The status icon on the Tasks tab represents the most critical status of the
tasks that are associated with the monitored resources. For example, if one of
the tasks for storage systems failed, the following icon is shown on the tab:

Tasks
3. Optional: View the status icons on the Tasks page for a summary of task
statuses. This summary includes the number of tasks that have a Failed,
Warning, Successful, or Running status.

Tip: To view descriptions of the icons and columns on the Tasks page, click the
Help icon .

Viewing tasks for a specific resource

Use resource detail pages to view only the tasks for a specific monitored resource.
Each resource detail page has a Tasks link that lists only the tasks for the
associated storage system, server, hypervisor, switch, or fabric.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 237

 1. In the menu bar, select a type of top-level resource. For example, if you want to
view the tasks for a storage system, go to Storage and select the type of storage
system you want to monitor.
2. Right-click a resource in the list and select View Details. The resource detail
page is displayed. In the General section, the number next to Tasks represents
the number of tasks that are associated with the resource. For example, Tasks
(3) indicates that you can view three tasks.
The icon next to the Tasks link represents the most critical status of the tasks
that are associated with the resource. For example, if a task failed, the following
icon is shown:

Tasks (3)
3. Click Tasks in the General section to view the tasks for the resource. The
information about tasks is organized into columns. These columns include
information about the status of tasks, the most recent date and time when tasks
ran, and the schedule for tasks.
4. Optional: View the status icons on the Tasks pane to view a summary of task
statuses. This summary includes the number of tasks that have a Failed,
Warning, Successful, or Running status.

Tip: To view descriptions of the icons and columns on the Tasks pane, click the
Help icon .

Viewing task details

Use task detail pages to view detailed information about the tasks that IBM
Spectrum Control uses to optimize resources and provision storage. You can use
this information to troubleshoot the reason why a task failed, analyze details of a
task before you implement task recommendations, or schedule future task runs.

On all the task detail pages, you can view information such as the task status, the
duration and completion date of task runs, and the actions that you can take to
manage the task. For tasks such as tiering analysis, balance analysis, and transform
plan, you can view information about the recommendations that are generated by
the most recent or earlier task runs. For provisioning tasks, you can view the status
of the actions that the provisioning task completes for each of the resources that
are configured in the task.
1. From the menu bar, go to the Tasks page, a resource list page for a resource
type, or a resource detail page for a specific resource. For example, to view the
tasks that are related to storage systems, go to Storage and select the type of
storage system you want to monitor, and click the Tasks tab.
2. Locate the task that you want to view in more detail.
3. Right-click the task row and select View Details. The task details page opens in
a separate window. For example, the Tiering Analysis page opens if you select
a tiering-analysis task row.
4. Optional: To view task logs, click Open Logs. You can use the information in
the log file to troubleshoot any errors that might occur when a task is run.
5. Optional: For provisioning tasks, you can export information about the
provisioning task to a text file for offline viewing. To export information, click
the icon at the top of the Provisioning page.

Viewing task logs

Task logs include detailed information about the status, actions, and progress of a
task. Status information includes informational, warning, and error messages that

238 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

are related to each action in a task that is taken during processing. You can use this
information to troubleshoot any errors that might occur when a task is run.

The following examples show the type of information that you can view in the
task logs:
v View the number of recommendations that are generated by tiering-analysis,
balance-analysis, or transform-plan task runs.
v View the options that you select when you use wizards, such as the Transform
Storage, Analyze Tiering, or Balance Pools wizards. For example, when you use
the Analyze Tiering wizard, a tiering-analysis task is generated and the options
that you choose in the wizard are recorded in the task log.
v View error messages that are related to task processing.
1. From the menu bar, go to the Tasks page, a resource list page for a resource
type, or a resource detail page for a specific resource. For example, to view the
tasks that are related to storage systems, go to Storage and select the type of
storage system you want to monitor, and click the Tasks tab.
2. Locate the task that has a log file that you want to view.
3. Right-click the task row and select Open Logs. The Logs page shows log
entries for the most recent task run.
4. Optional: On the Logs page, to view the log for a previous task run, select a
task run from the Select a log list.
5. Optional: To view only the actions in a task run that have a Warning or Error
status, select an option from the Show all list. You can choose to view only
actions that have the following statuses:

v Only error entries

v Only warning entries

v Error and warning entries

6. Optional: To view an explanation of the message that is associated with an
action, click the link in the ID column.

The information on the Logs page is automatically updated every 30 seconds. New
entries are added to the end of a log. You can view the following information on
the Logs page:
v The overall status of a task. The icon that is shown in the Select a log list
represents the most critical status that was generated by an action in the task
run.
v The status for each action in a task.
v The date and time when an action was completed. The date, time, and time zone
of the action is shown in the Date and Time column.
v The ID of the message that is associated with an action. You can click the value
in the ID column to view more information about a message.
v The description of an action.

Tip: You can use the navigation and search functions of the web browser to locate
information on the page.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 239

 Setting the number of task runs that are displayed
You can change the number of task runs that are shown in the web-based GUI by
configuring the settings on the History Retention page. By default, the information
for the last five runs of a task is shown.
1. In the menu bar in the web-based GUI, go to Settings > History Retention.
2. Click Edit.
3. In the Job logs field, enter the number of runs that you want to retain for
display.
4. Click Save to save your changes.

After you update the value for job logs, the list of task runs in the web-based GUI
is automatically updated within a few minutes.

Managing tasks for provisioning

Provisioning tasks are used to create storage volumes and assign the volumes to
servers or hypervisors. Provisioning tasks are also used to create network-attached
storage (NAS) file shares. Use the Tasks page in the web-based GUI to manage all
the tasks that are used by IBM Spectrum Control to provision storage. Use resource
list and resource details pages to manage the provisioning tasks for specific
resources and resource types.

Use the web-based GUI to complete the following provisioning actions:

v Create provisioning tasks by using the Provision Storage wizard
v Run provisioning tasks immediately
v Schedule provisioning tasks to run at a specified date and time
v Export information about provisioning tasks to text files
v Delete provisioning tasks
Related concepts:
“Provisioning storage” on page 42
The Provision Storage wizard simplifies the steps for submitting provisioning
requests. When you use the Provision Storage wizard, you concern yourself only
with which service class is needed for the new volumes or shares, and how much
capacity you require.

Creating provisioning tasks

You can create provisioning tasks with the GUI and assign storage volumes or
NAS file shares to servers or hypervisors.

You must have Administrator privileges to create provision tasks.

Related tasks:
“Provisioning storage with the IBM Spectrum Control GUI” on page 211
You can provision volumes or shares to servers, hypervisors, and clusters with the
GUI.
“Collecting information about shares on storage systems” on page 110
To collect information about shares in file systems, you must modify the
TPCD.config file. When you provision shares, you can then view such information
as the name of the share, the name of the file system, and the protocols that are
used to share files.

Running provisioning tasks

Use the Tasks page to run provisioning tasks. You can run provisioning tasks
immediately or you can schedule tasks to run at a date and time that you specify.

240 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

When you run a provisioning task, the configuration changes that are contained in
the task are implemented. For example, storage volumes are created and assigned
to servers.

To run provisioning tasks, you must be the owner of the task or have
Administrator privileges.

Provisioning tasks can run only once. You can run the task when you complete the
steps of the Provision Storage wizard or you can save the provisioning task and
run the task later.

The Run Now and Schedule actions are available for a provisioning task when the
task is not running, and was not previously run.
1. From the menu bar, go to the Tasks page, a resource list page for a resource
type, or a resource detail page for a specific resource. For example, to view the
provisioning tasks that are related to servers, go to Servers > Servers, and click
the Tasks tab.
2. Locate the provisioning task that you want to run.
3. Depending on when you want the provisioning task to run, choose one of the
following options:
v To run the provisioning task immediately, right-click the task row and select
Run Now. The task status changes to Running and the provisioning task
runs immediately.
v To schedule the provisioning task to run at a specific date and time, complete
the following steps:
a. Right-click the task row and select Schedule.
b. From the Schedule page, select a future date and time from the Provision
lists, and click Save.
You can also run or schedule the provisioning task from the Provisioning detail
page. On the Provisioning detail page, click Execute to run the task
immediately or click Schedule to schedule the task to run at a specific date and
time.

The provisioning task runs immediately or on the scheduled date and time. To
check the progress of the task, you can take the following actions:
v View the task status on the Tasks page.
v View detailed information about the progress of the task on the Provisioning
detail page. You can view the task duration and the status of the actions that the
provisioning task completes for each of the resources that are configured in the
task.
v View the task logs from the Tasks page or from the Provisioning detail page.
You can view detailed informational, warning, and error messages that are
related to the task. You can use this information to troubleshoot any errors that
might occur when a task is run.

Exporting provisioning task information

Use the Provisioning detail page to export details of a provisioning task to a text
file. The task details that are shown on the Provisioning page are saved to the
generated text file.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 241

 If you do not have authority to provision storage, you can export the provisioning
task details to a file and email the file to a user with Administrator privileges. The
administrator can run or schedule the provisioning task if they approve the task
details.
1. From the menu bar, go to the Tasks page, a resource list page for a resource
type, or a resource detail page for a specific resource. For example, to view the
provisioning tasks that are related to servers, go to Servers > Servers, and click
the Tasks tab.
2. Locate the provisioning task that you want to export.
3. Right-click the task row and select View Details.
4. From the Provisioning page, to start the export, click the icon in the
upper-right corner of the page.
5. Save the generated text file. Depending on how your web browser is
configured, you can specify the file name and the location where the file is
saved.

The provisioning task information is exported to a text file. The generated file
includes all the provisioning task details that are listed on the Provisioning page.
Columns that are hidden on the Provisioning page are included in the generated
file. The information in the file is organized according to a default order and is not
affected by the column order that is defined on the Provisioning page.

Managing tasks for tiering storage, balancing pools, and

transforming storage
To optimize the resources in your storage environment, use tiering storage,
balancing pools, and transforming-storage tasks. Use the Tasks page in the
web-based GUI to manage all the tasks that are used by IBM Spectrum Control to
optimize storage. Use resource list and resource detail pages to manage the
optimization tasks for resource types and for specific resources.

To schedule, run, edit, or delete tiering storage, balancing pools, and

transforming-storage tasks, you must have Administrator privileges.

To complete any of the optimization tasks, such as balancing pools, you must
complete the following steps:
1. Create the analysis task. Use a IBM Spectrum Control wizard to create the
optimization analysis task. For example, use the Balance Pools wizard to create
a balance-analysis task.
2. Run the analysis task to generate the optimization recommendations. For
example, run the balance-analysis task to generate the recommendations to
move volumes.
3. Edit analyze tiering and balancing pool tasks. You can modify the thresholds
that were set in the Analyze Tiering and Balance Pools wizards.
4. Implement the recommendations to optimize storage. For example, implement
the recommendations to balance pools by running the analysis-execution task.

Use the Tasks, resource list, and resource detail pages in the web-based GUI to
take the following actions for optimization tasks:
v Run the optimization analysis immediately to generate optimization
recommendations.
v Schedule the optimization analysis to run at a specified date and time.
v Implement optimization recommendations immediately.

242 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

v Schedule the implementation of optimization recommendations for a specified
date and time.
v Pause, cancel, and resume the implementation of optimization recommendations.
v Delete optimization tasks.
v View task logs.
Related tasks:
“Modifying the criteria for analyzing tiering” on page 222
When a task is created after you run the tiering analysis, you can modify the
criteria for tiering the volumes.
“Modifying the criteria for balancing pools” on page 223
When a task is created after you run the analysis for balancing pools, you can
modify the criteria that determine which pools are balanced.

Creating analysis tasks

To create tasks for optimizing resources in your storage environment, use IBM
Spectrum Control wizards.

To use the wizards, you must have Administrator privileges.

Storage optimization tasks are created when you take any of the following actions
in the web-based GUI:
Tier storage
Move volumes to higher or lower tiers by using the Analyze Tiering
wizard. A tiering-analysis task is created.
Balance pools
Distribute the workload of volumes across pools on the same tier by using
the Balance Pools wizard. A balance-analysis task is created.
Transform storage
Move or convert volumes by using the Transform Storage wizard. A
transform-plan task is created.
Related tasks:
“Tiering volumes by I/O density and I/O rate” on page 221
Set thresholds for tiering volumes by I/O rate or I/O density.
“Balancing pools” on page 223
You balance pools to distribute the workload of volumes across pools on the same
tier and on the same storage virtualizer. To improve the performance of the pools,
recommendations are generated to move volumes to other pools on the same tier
and on the same storage virtualizer.
“Transforming and migrating volumes” on page 227
You can transform fully allocated volumes to compressed or thin-provisioned
volumes, or transform compressed or thin-provisioned volumes to fully allocated
volumes. You can move volumes to other pools or to pools that are enabled for
Easy Tier.

Running analysis tasks

To run tiering analysis, balance analysis, and transform-plan tasks, use the Tasks
page. When you run the analysis for any of these optimization tasks,
recommendations are generated to optimize the storage resources that are
configured in the task. For example, when you run a tiering-analysis task,
recommendations are generated to tier volumes based on the criteria that you set
in tiering policies.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 243

 To run tiering analysis, balance analysis, and transform-plan tasks, you must have
Administrator privileges.

You can run tasks immediately or schedule tasks to run at a future date and time.

Tip: The Run Now action is available when the task is enabled and the task is not
running.
1. From the menu bar, go to the Tasks page, a resource list page for a resource
type, or a resource detail page for a specific resource. For example, to view the
tiering-analysis tasks that are related to servers, go to Servers > Servers, and
click the Tasks tab.
2. Locate the tiering analysis, balance analysis, or transform-plan task that you
want to run.
3. Right-click the task row and select Run Now. The task status changes to
Running.
4. Optional: To schedule future task runs for tiering analysis or balance-analysis
tasks, right-click the task row and select Schedule Analysis. On the Schedule
Analysis page, select the time that the task is run and how often the task is
run.

Restriction: You cannot schedule future task runs for transform-plan tasks.
5. Optional: To enable or disable a tiering analysis or balance-analysis task, select
Enabled or Disabled on the Schedule Analysis page. When the task is enabled,
the task runs according to the defined schedule. If the task is disabled, you can
modify the task schedule but the task cannot run at the scheduled time.

When the task run completes, you can view the recommendations that are
generated on the task detail page. For example, you can view the
recommendations that are generated for a tiering-analysis task on the Tiering
Analysis page. To check the progress of the task run, you can take the following
actions:
v View the task status on the Tasks page.
v View information about the progress of the task on the task detail page. You can
view the duration of the task run, and the date and time that the task run
completed.
v View the task logs from the Tasks page or from the task detail page. You can
view detailed informational, warning, and error messages that are related to the
task. You can use this information to troubleshoot any errors that might occur
when a task is run.
Related tasks:
“Modifying the criteria for analyzing tiering” on page 222
When a task is created after you run the tiering analysis, you can modify the
criteria for tiering the volumes.

Implementing recommendations to optimize storage

Use the Tasks page and task detail pages to implement optimization
recommendations to tier storage, balance pools, and transform storage. You can
implement recommendations immediately or you can schedule the implementation
of the recommendations for a future date and time.
Related tasks:
“Modifying the criteria for analyzing tiering” on page 222
When a task is created after you run the tiering analysis, you can modify the
criteria for tiering the volumes.

244 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Implementing recommendations immediately:

To implement optimization recommendations to tier storage, balance pools, and

transform storage, use the task detail pages. For example, use the Balance Analysis
page to implement the recommendations to balance pools.

To implement storage optimization recommendations, you must have

Administrator privileges.

IBM Spectrum Control uses analysis-execution tasks to implement optimization

recommendations. When you implement recommendations for a tiering analysis,
balance analysis, or transform-plan task, the following process takes place:
v An analysis-execution task is automatically created so that the recommendations
can be implemented.
v The analysis-execution task runs immediately and the optimization
recommendations are implemented. For example, volumes are moved to higher
or lower tiers when storage-tiering recommendations are implemented.

You can view analysis-execution tasks on the Tasks page. The Related Task column
shows the related tiering analysis, balance analysis, or transform-plan task.

The Execute action is available under the following conditions:

v Recommendations were generated by the latest run of the tiering analysis,
balance analysis, or transform-plan task.
v An analysis-execution task was not already run for the latest set of
recommendations.
v An analysis-execution task is not running or paused.
1. From the menu bar, go to the Tasks page, a resource list page for a resource
type, or a resource detail page for a specific resource. For example, to view the
analysis-execution tasks that are related to servers, go to Servers > Servers, and
click the Tasks tab.
2. Locate the tiering analysis, balance analysis, or transform-plan task that you
want to implement.
3. Right-click the task row and select View Details. For example, the Balance
Analysis page opens if you select a balance-analysis task.
4. Click Execute. An analysis-execution task is created and immediately
implemented.

The analysis-execution task runs immediately. To check the progress of the task,
you can take the following actions:
v View the task status on the Tasks page.
v View the status of individual task recommendations on the Analysis Execution
page.
v View the task logs from the Tasks page or from the Analysis Execution page.
You can view detailed informational, warning, and error messages that are
related to the task. You can use this information to troubleshoot any errors that
might occur when a task is run.

Scheduling the implementation of recommendations:

To schedule the implementation of optimization recommendations to tier storage,

balance pools, and transform storage, use the Tasks page.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 245

 To schedule the implementation of storage optimization recommendations, you
must have Administrator privileges.

The Schedule Execution action is available under the following conditions:

v Recommendations were generated by the latest run of the tiering analysis,
balance analysis, or transform-plan task.
v An analysis-execution task is not running or paused.
v An analysis-execution task was not already run for the latest set of analysis
recommendations. For each run of the tiering analysis, balance analysis, or
transform-plan task, you can complete only one run of the analysis-execution
task.

When you define the schedule, an analysis-execution task is created for the
implementation of the optimization recommendations.

Tip: The analysis-execution task implements the recommendations that were

current when the analysis-execution task was defined. For example, you define a
tiering-analysis task that runs daily. You review the recommendations every day
and, on a Tuesday, you schedule an analysis-execution task to run on the following
Friday. When the analysis-execution task runs on Friday, the recommendations that
were current on Tuesday are implemented, even if more recent recommendations
are available.
1. From the menu bar, go to the Tasks page, a resource list page for a resource
type, or a resource detail page for a specific resource. For example, to view the
tiering analysis tasks that are related to servers, go to Servers > Servers, and
click the Tasks tab.
2. Locate the tiering analysis, balance analysis, or transform-plan task that you
want to schedule.
3. Right-click the task row and select Schedule Execution.
4. On the Schedule Execution page, select the date and time that the
recommendations are implemented and click Save.

An analysis-execution task is created that you can monitor on the Tasks page. The
name of the analysis-execution task is based on the name of the related tiering
analysis, balance analysis, or transform-plan task. The Related Task column shows
the related tiering analysis, balance analysis, or transform-plan task.

When the analysis-execution task runs on the scheduled date, the optimization
recommendations are implemented. For example, volumes are moved to higher or
lower tiers when storage-tiering recommendations are implemented.

Pausing, resuming, and canceling the implementation of

recommendations
IBM Spectrum Control uses analysis-execution tasks to implement optimization
recommendations to tier storage, balance pools, and transform storage. To pause,
resume, and cancel analysis-execution tasks, use the Tasks page.

To pause, resume, or cancel analysis-execution tasks, you must have Administrator

privileges.
1. From the menu bar, go to the Tasks page, a resource list page for a resource
type, or a resource detail page for a specific resource. For example, to view the
analysis-execution tasks that are related to servers, click Servers > Servers, and
click the Tasks tab.
2. Locate the analysis-execution task that you want to pause, resume, or cancel.

246 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 3. Right-click the task row and select Pause, Resume, or Cancel.
The Pause action is only available when the analysis-execution task is running.
The Resume action is only available when the analysis-execution task is
paused.
The Cancel action is available when the task is running or paused.

When you pause, resume, or cancel analysis-execution tasks, the following

processing occurs:
Pause The status of the analysis-execution task changes to Paused and the
recommendations that are being implemented are suspended.
Resume
The status of the analysis-execution task changes to Running and the
recommendations are resumed.
Cancel
The status of the analysis-execution task changes to Canceled and the
recommendations that are being implemented are stopped. Any
recommendations that are already implemented for this analysis-execution
task are not rolled back. For example, a recommendation is generated to
move a volume from pool_a to pool_b. If this recommendation is already
implemented before the task is canceled, the volume remains in pool_b.
Use the Analysis Execution page to determine which recommendations
were implemented for the task before the task was canceled.
You cannot restart an analysis-execution task that is canceled. If you want
to implement the same set of recommendations again, you must complete
the following steps:
1. Delete the analysis-execution task that you canceled.
2. Use the Schedule Execution action for the tiering analysis, balance
analysis, or transform-plan task to create an analysis-execution task.

Restriction: The implementation of recommendations for optimizing the

volumes is canceled except for the recommendations to optimize the
volumes with mirrored volume copies. The implementation of
recommendations for optimizing volumes with mirrored volume copies
cannot be canceled.

Renaming tasks
You can change the name of a task by using the task detail page. For example, use
the Provisioning page to change the name of a provisioning task. A task name is
automatically generated when the task is created. If the original name is
ambiguous or is not clear enough, you can change the task name to a unique task
name that you provide.

You must have the following privileges to rename the different task types:
Provisioning
To rename provisioning tasks, you must be the owner of the task or have
Administrator privileges.
Other task types
To rename all other tasks, such as tiering analysis, balance analysis,
transform plan, and analysis-execution tasks, you must have Administrator
privileges.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 247

 1. From the menu bar, go to the Tasks page, a resource list page for a resource
type, or a resource detail page for a specific resource. For example, to view the
tasks that are related to servers, go to Servers > Servers, and click the Tasks
tab.
2. Locate the task that you want to rename.
3. Right-click the task row and select View Details. The task detail page opens in
a separate window. For example, the Provisioning page opens if you select a
provisioning task.
4. Type the new name in the task name field. The naming conventions for task
names are:
v The maximum length is 64 characters.
v Uppercase and lowercase letters are allowed.
v Spaces and numbers are allowed.
v The following special characters are allowed:
!#%&*+-/=?^_{}()
5. Click Rename.

The task is renamed. You can view the renamed task on the Tasks page.

Deleting tasks
Use the Tasks page to delete tasks, such as provisioning, tiering analysis, balance
analysis, transform plan, and analysis-execution tasks.

You must have the following privileges to delete the different task types:
Provisioning
To delete provisioning tasks, you must be the owner of the task or have
Administrator privileges.
Other task types
To delete all other tasks, such as tiering analysis, balance analysis,
transform plan, and analysis-execution tasks, you must have Administrator
privileges.

The following conditions apply for the different task types:

Analysis-execution
You can delete analysis-execution tasks that were canceled, already run, or
scheduled to run in the future. You cannot delete tasks that are running or
paused.
Other task types
You can delete all other tasks if the tasks were already run or if the tasks
are scheduled to run in the future. For example, you can delete
provisioning, tiering analysis, balance analysis, and transform-plan tasks
that were already run. You cannot delete tasks that are running.
1. From the menu bar, go to the Tasks page, a resource list page for a resource
type, or a resource detail page for a specific resource. For example, to view
tasks that are related to servers, go to Servers > Servers, and click the Tasks
tab.
2. Locate the task that you want to delete.
3. Right-click the task row and select Delete. Alternatively, you can delete the task
by clicking Delete on the task detail page. The Delete page opens in a separate
window.

248 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

4. If you are deleting a provisioning task that was not yet run, enter the reason
that you are deleting the task.
5. Click Delete. To exit the window without deleting the task, click Cancel.

Chapter 5. Managing resources 249

250 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
Appendix A. Reference
View reference information that is related to IBM Spectrum Control. Topics include
information about alerts, fabrics, commands, configuration and log files,
performance metrics, protocols, standards, and accessibility features.

Alerts
Determining when and how you are alerted to configuration and performance
conditions within your storage environment is important to helping you maintain
and administer storage resources. Many conditions can trigger alerts. You can set
up IBM Spectrum Control so that it examines the attributes, capacity, and
performance of a resource and notifies you when changes or violations are
detected.

Conditions that generate alerts are detected during data collection and event
processing. For some storage systems such as IBM Spectrum Accelerate and the
XIV, events are polled every minute from the resource

For other resources, events are subscription-based, where the resource itself or a
data source such as a CIM agent sends the events to IBM Spectrum Control when
conditions change on the resource. Examples of storage systems that use
subscription-based event processing include SAN Volume Controller, Storwize
V7000, Storwize V7000 Unified, FlashSystem V840, and FlashSystem V9000. For
these storage systems, a probe is automatically run when many events are received
from the storage system in a short time period. To avoid performance bottlenecks,
probes are run only every 20 minutes.

Triggering conditions for alerts

The conditions that trigger alert notifications depend on the type of resource that
you are monitoring. In general, the following types of conditions can trigger alerts:
v An attribute or configuration of a resource changed
v The capacity of a resource fell outside a specified range
v The performance of a resource fell outside a specified range
v The storage infrastructure was changed, such as a new or removed resource
v Data is not being collected for a resource

For example, you can use performance thresholds to be notified when the total I/O
rate for storage systems falls outside a specified range. This information can help
you identify areas in your storage infrastructure that are over used or under used.
IBM Spectrum Control provides many metrics for measuring performance and
determining violations of the thresholds that you specify.

Alert notifications and triggered actions

When an event occurs and triggers an alert, the alert is written to a log. You can
also select one or more other ways to be notified of the event. These alert
notifications include SNMP traps, IBM Tivoli Netcool/OMNIbus events, login
notifications, entries in Windows event log or UNIX syslog, and emails.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 251

 Additionally, if a Storage Resource agent is deployed on a monitored server, you
can run a script or start an IBM Tivoli Storage Manager job in response to the alert.

Acknowledging alerts: Some alerts are triggered by conditions that commonly

occur and can be ignored. In such cases, you acknowledge these alerts to indicate
that they were reviewed and do not require immediate resolution. By
acknowledging alerts, you can more quickly identify other alerts that must be
reviewed and resolved.

Prerequisites for using alerts

The following conditions must be met to successfully use alerts:

v Data collection schedules are configured and scheduled to run regularly. For
example, to detect violations of performance thresholds, you must run
performance monitors to collect performance data about resources. Running
performance monitors regularly also helps to establish a history of performance
for trending analysis.
v If you want to be notified about an alert in some way other than an entry in the
log file, such as using SNMP traps, IBM Tivoli Netcool/OMNIbus events, or
email, you must configure those alert destinations before you use the alert.
v If an alert is triggered based on an SNMP trap from the monitored resource, you
must properly configure the SNMP server of the monitor resource to enable IBM
Spectrum Control to listen to SNMP traps. The default port number is 162, and
the default community is public.
Related concepts:
“Alerting and event processing” on page 111
Determining when and how you are alerted to configuration and performance
conditions within your storage environment is important to helping you maintain
and administer storage resources. Many conditions can trigger alerts. You can set
up IBM Spectrum Control so that it examines the attributes, capacity, and
performance of a resource and notifies you when changes or violations are
detected.
Related tasks:
“Acknowledging alerts” on page 129
Some alerts in IBM Spectrum Control are triggered by conditions that commonly
occur and can be ignored. In such cases, you acknowledge these alerts to indicate
that they were reviewed and do not require immediate resolution. By
acknowledging alerts, you can more quickly identify the other alerts in lists that
must still be reviewed and resolved.

Triggering conditions for alerts

Define alerts so that IBM Spectrum Control automatically notifies you when certain
conditions or events are detected on monitored resources. Such conditions are the
triggering conditions for the alert. The specific conditions that can trigger alerts
depend on the type of resource that is being monitored.
Related concepts:
“Alerting and event processing” on page 111
Determining when and how you are alerted to configuration and performance
conditions within your storage environment is important to helping you maintain
and administer storage resources. Many conditions can trigger alerts. You can set
up IBM Spectrum Control so that it examines the attributes, capacity, and
performance of a resource and notifies you when changes or violations are
detected.

252 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Related tasks:
“Adding resources” on page 75
You must add resources to IBM Spectrum Control before you can collect data,
generate reports, and manage storage that is related to those resources.

Triggering conditions for storage system alerts

You can set up IBM Spectrum Control so that it examines the attributes, capacity,
and performance of a storage system and notifies you when changes or violations
are detected.

Alerts can notify you of general changes and performance issues on the following
resources:
v “Storage Systems (performance)” on page 254
v “Storage Systems (general changes)” on page 254
v “Internal resources (common conditions)” on page 257
v “Clusters” on page 258
v “Disks” on page 258
v “Filesets” on page 258
v “File Systems” on page 259
v “File System Pools” on page 259
v “Host Connections” on page 259
v “I/O Groups” on page 259
v “Managed Disks” on page 259
v “Modules” on page 260
v “Network Shared Disks” on page 260
v “Nodes” on page 260
v “Pools” on page 261
v “Ports” on page 263
v “Quotas” on page 263
v “RAID Arrays” on page 264
v “Shares” on page 264
v “Volumes” on page 264

Important: Not all the attributes upon which you can alert are listed here. A
number of other attributes are available for alerts and are based on the key
properties of a storage system. To view a complete list of attributes upon which you
can alert, go to the Block Storage Systems page, File Storage Systems page, or Object
Storage Systems page, right-click the storage system, and select Edit Alert
Definitions.

Attributes that are automatically configured for alerts are marked with an asterisk
(*).
Tips:
v The type of storage system determines which attributes and performance
conditions are available for alerts. For example, triggering conditions for shares
are available only for storage systems that are configured for file storage, such as
Storwize V7000 Unified.
v For capacity attributes, you can generate alerts when the amount of storage is
greater than, less than, or equal to a specified value. You can also determine the
unit of measurement for the attribute, such as KiB, MiB, GiB, or TiB.

Appendix A. Reference 253

 Storage Systems (performance)

Define alerts that notify you when the performance of a storage system falls
outside a specified threshold. In alerts, you can specify conditions based on metrics
that measure the performance of volumes, disks, ports, ports, and nodes. By
creating alerts with performance conditions, you can be informed about potential
bottlenecks in your storage infrastructure.

For example:
v You can define an alert to be notified when the average number of I/O
operations per second for read and write operations on a storage system's
volumes is greater than or equal to a specified threshold. Use this alert to be
notified when the workload of a volume is high and you might need to balance
that load across other volumes to improve overall performance.
v You can define an alert to be notified when the percentage of the average
response time that can be attributed to delays from host systems is greater than
or equal to a specified threshold. Use this alert to be notified of slow hosts and
fabrics that might not be working efficiently.

You can also define an alert that notifies you when a metric is less than a specified
threshold, such as if you want to identify volumes that might be under used.

The type of storage system determines the metrics that can be alerted upon. For a
list of the metrics that are available for each type of storage system, see
“Performance metrics” on page 283.

Tips for peformance conditions:

v A performance monitor must collect data about a resource before IBM Spectrum
Control can determine whether a threshold is violated and an alert is generated
for a performance condition.
v When you set thresholds for performance conditions, try to determine the best
value so you can derive the maximum benefit without generating too many false
alerts. Because suitable thresholds are highly dependent on the type of workload
that is being run, hardware configuration, the number of physical disks, exact
model numbers, and other factors, there are no easy or standard default rules.
A recommended approach is to monitor the performance of resources for a
number of weeks and by using this historical data, determine reasonable
threshold values for each performance condition. After that is done, you can
fine-tune the condition settings to minimize the number of false alerts.

Storage Systems (general changes)

Table 47. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on storage systems
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
The firmware version of the microcode on a storage system. For the DS-series of
Firmware storage systems, this value represents the SEA version of the firmware.

To view information about the code bundles for the firmware versions of the
DS-series, go to the IBM support site at http://www.ibm.com/support/entry/
portal/Overview and search for code bundle information. An internet connection
is required to access the support site.

254 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 47. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on storage systems (continued)
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes

Last Successful Probe A specified amount of time has passed since a probe or performance monitor was
able to collect data about a storage system. You can use this alert to be notified
Last Successful Monitor when up-to-date configuration, status, or performance data is not being collected
about a storage system and its existing data might be stale. This situation might
occur if the resource, network, or IBM Spectrum Control server is unavailable.

Performance Monitor Status* One of the following statuses is detected for a performance monitor:
Not Normal
An error or warning occurred during data collection. This status
indicates that a performance monitor did not collect any data, or only
collected a partial set of data about a resource.
Warning
A performance monitor completed, but did not collect a complete set of
performance data. This status might occur if the resource was rebooted
during data collection, no valid performance data was provided by the
resource, or a communication error occurred with the resource or its
associated agent.
Error A performance did not complete when it attempted to collect
performance data about the resource. This status might occur if the
resource cannot be reached during data collection, or if no configuration
data is available for the resource.
For details about why a specific status occurred, check the log for the
performance monitor. To check the log, go to the details page for a resource, click
Data Collection, and select Actions > Open Logs in the Performance Monitor
section on the Data Collection page.
Probe Status* One of the following statuses is detected for a probe:
Not Successful
An error or warning occurred during data collection. This status
indicates that a probe did not collect any data, or only collected a partial
set of data about a resource.
Warning
A probe completed, but might not have collected a complete set of data.
This status might occur if data cannot be collected about one or more of
the internal resources of a resource.
Error (default)
A probe did not complete when it attempted to collect asset data about
the resource. This status might occur if the resource cannot be reached
during data collection.
For details about why a specific status occurred, check the log for the probe. To
check the log, go to the details page for a resource, click Data Collection, and
select Actions > Open Logs in the Probe section on the Data Collection page.
Status One of the following statuses is detected for a storage system:
Not Normal
An error or warning status was detected for a storage system.
Warning
A warning status was detected for a storage system. This status might
occur if a storage system comes online or if its version changes.
Error An error status was detected for a storage system. This status might
occur if the cooling fans in a storage system are stopped and the internal
temperature is too high or if a storage system goes offline.

Appendix A. Reference 255

Table 48. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on storage systems.
Capacity Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes

Assigned Volume Space The total volume space in the storage system that is mapped or assigned to host
systems, including child pool capacity.

Available Pool Space The total amount of the space in the pools that is not allocated to the volumes in
the pools. To calculate available space, the following formula is used:
(pool capacity - allocated space)

For XIV systems, pool capacity is the physical capacity of the pools and does not
include the virtual capacity of the pools. For other storage systems, pool capacity
might also include the overhead space for the pools that are not formatted.

Free Capacity The amount of space in the pools on the storage system that is available for
creating volumes.

Physical Allocation The percentage of physical space in pools that is allocated to volumes, including
child pools. The value is always less than or equal to 100% because you cannot
allocate more physical space to the volumes than is available in the pools. This
value is determined by the formula, Allocated Space ÷ Capacity × 100. For example,
if the space that is reserved for volumes is 50 GiB for a volume size of 200 GiB,
physical allocation is 25%.

Pool Shortfall The difference between the amount of virtual space that is committed to the
volumes in the pools and the actual physical space that is available in the pools,
which is expressed as a percentage. As the virtual space is allocated to the
thin-provisioned and compressed volumes, the shortfall increases and becomes
more critical.

This value is determined by the formula, Unallocatable Volume Space ÷ Unallocated

Volume Space × 100.

A pool shortfall occurs when you commit more space to the volumes in the pools
than is physically available to the pools. If the physical space available to the
pools is less than the committed virtual space, then the pools do not have
enough space to fulfill the commitment to the virtual space.

For example, the physical capacity of the pools is 70 GiB, but 150 GiB of virtual
space was committed to the thin-provisioned volumes. If the volumes are using
50 GiB, then there is still 100 GiB committed to those volumes (150 GiB − 50 GiB)
with only 20 GiB of available pool space (70 GiB − 50 GiB). Because only 20 GiB
of the pool space is available, 80 GiB of the committed space cannot be allocated
(100 GiB - 20 GiB). In this case, the percentage of committed space that is
unavailable is 80% [(80 GiB ÷ 100 GiB × 100].

Pool Space The amount of space in pools that are on the storage system.

Raw Disk Capacity The total unformatted disk capacity of a storage system. When this value is
calculated, IBM Spectrum Control does not include the capacity of storage system
disks that become missing after data collection.

Remaining Unallocated Volume The amount of the total volume capacity in the storage pool that is not allocated.
Space

256 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 48. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on storage systems (continued).
Capacity Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes

Reserved Pool Space The amount of unallocated space in the pool that is reserved for provisioning and
optimization tasks.

Pool space is reserved when a provisioning or optimization task is created, and

allocated when the task is run.

Shortfall The difference between the amount of virtual space that is committed to the
volumes in the pools and the actual physical space that is available in the pools.
As the virtual space is allocated to the thin-provisioned and compressed volumes,
the shortfall increases and becomes more critical.

This value is determined by the formula, Unallocatable Space ÷ Committed but

Unallocated Space

For example, the physical capacity of the pools is 70 GiB, but 150 GiB of virtual
space was committed to the thin-provisioned volumes. If the volumes are using
50 GiB, then there is still 100 GiB committed to those volumes (150 GiB − 50 GiB)
with only 20 GiB of available pool space (70 GiB − 50 GiB). Because only 20 GiB
of the pool space is available, 80 GiB of the committed space cannot be allocated
(100 GiB - 20 GiB).

Snapshot Space The amount of space that is used by all of the snapshots of the file systems that
are associated with the GPFS cluster.

Total File System Capacity The total amount of storage space on all of the file systems on the storage system
or filer.

Unassigned Volume Space The total volume space in the storage system that is not mapped or assigned to
host systems.

Used Capacity The amount of space in the pools on the storage system that is used by volumes.

Used Pool Space The amount of space in the pool that is allocated to and used by volumes.

Used Volume Space The amount of space in the storage system that is allocated to and used by
volumes.

Volume Capacity The total storage space on all the volumes in pools. For thin-provisioned and
compressed volumes, this value includes virtual space. For volumes with parent
pools, this value includes child pool capacity.

Internal resources (common conditions)

There are a number of alert conditions that are common to many of the internal
resources in a storage system. These common conditions represent key changes in
your storage infrastructure. For example, you can specify conditions that generate
alerts when specific internal resources are added to or deleted from a storage
system, or when current data isn't being collected about resources.
Table 49. Triggering attributes and conditions that are common to internal resources
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
New resource A resource is detected for the first time. Use this alert to be notified when new
physical and logical resources are added to a storage system.

Appendix A. Reference 257

Table 49. Triggering attributes and conditions that are common to internal resources (continued)
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Removed physical resource A previously monitored resource can no longer be found. Historical data about
the resource is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use these alerts to
Deleted logical resource be notified if a physical or logical resource is removed, deleted, or becomes
unavailable.

Physical resources include disks, RAID arrays, I/O groups, ports, nodes, host
connections, clusters, and file systems. Logical resources include volumes, pools,
filesets, and shares.

Clusters
Table 50. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on clusters
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
New Cluster A cluster is detected for the first time.
Removed NAS Cluster A previously monitored NAS cluster can no longer be found. Historical data
about the cluster is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert
to be notified if a cluster is removed or becomes unavailable.

Disks
Table 51. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on storage system disks
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
New Disk A disk is detected for the first time.
Removed Disk A previously monitored disk can no longer be found. Historical data about the
disk is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if a disk is removed or becomes unavailable.

Table 52. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on disks.
Capacity Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes

Available Disk Space The amount of storage space that is available (not allocated) on the disk.

Disk Capacity The total amount of storage space that is on the disk.

Filesets
Table 53. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on filesets
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Deleted NAS Fileset A previously monitored NAS fileset can no longer be found. Historical data
about the fileset is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert
to be notified if a fileset is deleted or becomes unavailable.
New Fileset A fileset is detected for the first time.
State A fileset is linked to a file system, unlinked from a file system, or deleting.

258 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 File Systems
Table 54. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on file systems
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
New File System A file system is detected for the first time.
Removed NAS File System A previously monitored NAS file system can no longer be found. Historical data
about the file system is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this
alert to be notified if a file system is deleted or becomes unavailable.

File System Pools

Table 55. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on file system pools
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Deleted Pool A previously monitored NAS pool can no longer be found. Historical data about
the pool is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if a pool is deleted or becomes unavailable.
New Pool A NAS pool is detected for the first time.

Host Connections
Table 56. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on host connections
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
New Host Connection A host connection is detected for the first time.
Removed Host Connection A previously monitored host connection can no longer be found. Historical data
about the host connection is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use
this alert to be notified if a host connection is removed or becomes unavailable.

I/O Groups
Table 57. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on I/O groups
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
New I/O Group A new I/O group was detected for the first time.
Removed I/O Group A previously monitored I/O group can no longer be found. Historical data about
the I/O group is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to
be notified if an I/O group is removed or becomes unavailable.

Managed Disks
Table 58. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on managed disks
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Managed Disk Status One of the following statuses is detected for a managed disk:
Not Normal
An error or warning status was detected on a managed disk.
Warning
A warning status was detected on a managed disk.
Error An error status was detected on a managed disk.
New Managed Disk A new managed disk was detected for the first time.

Appendix A. Reference 259

Table 58. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on managed disks (continued)
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Removed Managed Disk A previously monitored managed disk can no longer be found. Historical data
about the managed disk is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use
this alert to be notified if a managed disk is removed or becomes unavailable.

Table 59. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on managed disks.
Capacity Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes

Available Space The amount of unused storage space on the managed disk.

Total Space The total amount of storage space that is on the managed disk on the storage
system. This attribute is only available for Storwize V7000 storage systems that
are configured as back-end storage.

Modules
Table 60. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on modules
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Deleted Module A previously monitored module can no longer be found. Use this alert to be
notified if a module is removed or becomes unavailable.

Network Shared Disks

Table 61. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on NSDs
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
New NSD A newNSD was detected for the first time.
Removed NSD A previously monitored NSD can no longer be found. Historical data about the
NSD is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if an NSD is removed or becomes unavailable.
Status One of the following statuses is detected for an NSD:
Not Normal
An error or warning status was detected on an NSD.
Warning
A warning status was detected on an NSD. This status might occur if a
storage system comes online or if its version changes.
Error An error status was detected on an NSD.

Nodes
Table 62. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on nodes
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
New Node A new node was detected for the first time.
Removed Node (Block storage) A previously monitored node can no longer be found. Historical data about the
node is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if a node is removed or becomes unavailable.
Removed NAS Node (File A previously monitored NAS node can no longer be found. Historical data about
storage) the node is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if a node is removed or becomes unavailable.

260 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Pools
Table 63. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on pools
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Deleted Pool A previously monitored pool can no longer be found. Historical data about the
pool is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if a pool is deleted or becomes unavailable.
New Storage Pool A new pool was detected for the first time.
Status One of the following statuses is detected for a pool:
Not Normal
An error or warning condition is detected on a pool.
Warning
A warning condition is detected on a pool. This condition might occur if
a pool goes offline.
Error An error condition is detected on a pool. This condition might occur
under the following conditions:
v The percentage of remaining, unallocated volume space in a pool that
is not available to be allocated is too high.
v The available space in a pool that is not reserved for volumes is too
low.
v The pool virtual allocation exceeds the warning or critical threshold
boundary value.

Table 64. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on pools.
Capacity Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes

Allocated Space The amount of space that is reserved for all the volumes in a pool.

Assigned Volume Space The amount of space on all the volumes in a pool that are mapped or assigned to
host systems.

For a thin-provisioning pool, this value includes the virtual capacity of

thin-provisioned volumes, which might exceed the total space in the pool. For
Hitachi VSP non-thin provisioning pool space, this value is the sum of assigned
regular host-accessible volumes. Volumes that are used for thin-provisioning
(pool volumes) are not included.

Available Repository Space The amount of available, unallocated storage space on all extents in the
repository of a pool for Track Space-Efficient (TSE) thin-provisioning. This
attribute applies only to the DS8000 storage systems.

You can use this alert to be notified about space-efficient volumes.

Available Virtual Capacity The amount of virtual capacity in a thin-provisioned pool that is not used by
volumes.

Physical Allocation The percentage of physical space in a pool that is reserved for volumes. This
value is determined by the formula, Allocated Space ÷ Capacity × 100. For example,
if the space that is reserved for volumes is 50 GiB for a volume size of 200 GiB,
physical allocation is 25%.

Appendix A. Reference 261

Table 64. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on pools (continued).
Capacity Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes

Pool Shortfall The difference between the amount of virtual space that is committed to the
volumes in the pools and the actual physical space that is available in the pools,
which is expressed as a percentage. As the virtual space is allocated to the
thin-provisioned and compressed volumes, the shortfall increases and becomes
more critical.

This value is determined by the formula, Unallocatable Volume Space ÷ Unallocated

Volume Space × 100.

A pool shortfall occurs when you commit more space to the volumes in the pools
than is physically available to the pools. If the physical space available to the
pools is less than the committed virtual space, then the pools do not have
enough space to fulfill the commitment to the virtual space.

For example, the physical capacity of the pools is 70 GiB, but 150 GiB of virtual
space was committed to the thin-provisioned volumes. If the volumes are using
50 GiB, then there is still 100 GiB committed to those volumes (150 GiB − 50 GiB)
with only 20 GiB of available pool space (70 GiB − 50 GiB). Because only 20 GiB
of the pool space is available, 80 GiB of the committed space cannot be allocated
(100 GiB - 20 GiB). In this case, the percentage of committed space that is
unavailable is 80% [(80 GiB ÷ 100 GiB × 100].

Repository Space The amount of space on all extents in the repository of a pool. This attribute
applies only to the DS8000 storage systems.

Reserved Pool Space The amount of unallocated space in a pool that is reserved for provisioning and
optimization tasks.

Pool space is reserved when a provisioning or optimization task is created, and

allocated when the task is run.

Shortfall The difference between the amount of virtual space that is committed to the
volumes in the pools and the actual physical space that is available in the pools.
As the virtual space is allocated to the thin-provisioned and compressed volumes,
the shortfall increases and becomes more critical.

This value is determined by the formula, Unallocatable Space ÷ Committed but

Unallocated Space

For example, the physical capacity of the pools is 70 GiB, but 150 GiB of virtual
space was committed to the thin-provisioned volumes. If the volumes are using
50 GiB, then there is still 100 GiB committed to those volumes (150 GiB − 50 GiB)
with only 20 GiB of available pool space (70 GiB − 50 GiB). Because only 20 GiB
of the pool space is available, 80 GiB of the committed space cannot be allocated
(100 GiB - 20 GiB).

Total Reserved Capacity The total amount of space on the pool that is reserved for provisioning and
optimization tasks. Pool space is reserved when a provisioning or optimization
task is created, and allocated when the task is run.

Unused Space The amount of space that is allocated to the volumes in a pool and is not yet
used. This value is determined by the formula, Allocated Space − Used Space.

262 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 64. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on pools (continued).
Capacity Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes

Used Repository Space The amount of used space on all extents in the repository of a pool. This attribute
applies only to the DS8000 storage systems.

You can use this alert to be notified about space-efficient volumes.

Used Volume Space The amount of space on the storage system that is used by volumes.

User Reserved Capacity The amount of space in the pools on the storage system that is reserved for
user-defined purposes.

Virtual Allocation The percentage of physical space in a pool that is committed to the total virtual
capacity of the volumes in the pool.

You can use this alert to be notified about space-efficient volumes.

Virtual Capacity Limit The maximum amount of virtual storage space available to allocate to volumes in
the storage pools that are associated with the storage system.

You can use this alert to be notified about space-efficient volumes.

Virtual Volume Space The total amount of physical space in a pool that is committed to the total virtual
capacity of the volumes in the pool.

You can use this alert to be notified about space-efficient volumes.

Ports
Table 65. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on ports
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
New Port A new port was detected for the first time.
Removed Port A previously monitored port can no longer be found. Historical data about the
port is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if a port is deleted or becomes unavailable.
Status One of the following statuses is detected for a port:
Not Normal
An error or warning condition is detected on a port.
Warning
A warning condition is detected on a port.
Error An error condition is detected on a port.

Quotas
Table 66. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on quotas
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Deleted Quota A previously monitored quota can no longer be found. Historical data about the
quota is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if a quota is deleted or becomes unavailable.
New Quota A new quota was detected for the first time.

Appendix A. Reference 263

 RAID Arrays
Table 67. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on RAID arrays
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
New RAID Array A new RAID array was detected for the first time.
Removed RAID Array A previously monitored RAID array can no longer be found. Historical data
about the RAID array is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this
alert to be notified if a RAID array is removed or becomes unavailable.
Status One of the following statuses is detected for a RAID array:
Not Normal
An error or warning condition is detected on a RAID array.
Warning
A warning condition is detected on a RAID array.
Error An error condition is detected on a RAID array.

Table 68. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on RAID arrays.
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes

RAIDArrayFreeSpace The amount of unused storage space in the RAID array.

Total Space The total amount of storage space in the RAID array.

Shares
Table 69. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on shares
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
New Share A new share was detected for the first time.
Deleted Share A previously monitored share can no longer be found. Historical data about the
share is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if a share is deleted or becomes unavailable.

Volumes
Table 70. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on volumes
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Deleted Volume A previously monitored volume can no longer be found. Historical data about
the volume is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if a volume is deleted or becomes unavailable.
New Volume A new volume was detected for the first time.
Status One of the following statuses is detected for a volume:
Not Normal
An error or warning condition is detected on a RAID array.
Warning
A warning condition is detected on a RAID array.
Error An error condition is detected on a RAID array.

264 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Table 71. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on volumes.
Capacity Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes

| Allocated Space The total amount of storage space on a pool that is physically allocated to a
| volume.

| Real Capacity The total amount of storage space that is physically allocated to a volume. For
| thin-provisioned volumes, this value is less than the virtual capacity of the
| volume. In an XIV and IBM Spectrum Accelerate, this value represents the
| physical ("hard") capacity of the volume, not the virtual ("soft") capacity. For
| other storage systems, this value might also include overhead space if the pool is
| unformatted.

Remaining Managed Space The amount of storage space that is available on a managed disk. This value is
only available for Storwize V7000 storage systems that are configured as
back-end storage.

Space The amount of space in a pool that is allocated to a volume.

Unallocatable Space The amount of space by which the capacity of a volume exceeds the physical
capacity of the associated pool. In thin-provisioned environments, it is possible to
over commit (over provision) storage in a pool by creating volumes with more
virtual capacity than can be physically allocated in the pool. This value
represents the amount of volume space that cannot be allocated based on the
current capacity of the pool.

| Unallocated Space The amount of space in a pool that is not reserved for a volume. This value is
| determined by the formula: Capacity − Allocated Space.

| The value for Unallocated Space is available only for thin provisioned volumes.

Uncompressed Used Capacity The amount of storage space that is used if the compressed volume space is
uncompressed. For example, if 100 GiB of uncompressed data is compressed, and
the size of the compressed data is 20 GiB, the value is 100.

| Unused Space The amount of space that is allocated to a volume and is not yet used. This value
| is determined by the formula, Allocated Space − Used Space .

| The value for Unused Space is available only for SAN Volume Controller and
| Storwize family storage systems that are configured with block storage.

Used Space The amount of allocated space that is used by a volume. For SAN Volume
Controller and Storwize family storage systems that are configured with block
storage, you can pre-allocate thin-provisioned volume space when the volumes
are created. In these cases, the Used Space might be different from the Allocated
Space. For compressed volumes on SAN Volume Controller and Storwize family
storage systems that are configured with block storage, the Used Space reflects
the size of compressed data that is written to disk. As the data changes, the Used
Space might at times be less than the Allocated Space. For volumes that are not
thin provisioned in SAN Volume Controller, Storwize family storage systems that
are configured with block storage, and other storage systems, the values for Used
Space and Allocated Space are equal. This value is accurate as of the most recent
time that data was collected about a volume. Data collection is run on a set
schedule and the used space on a volume can change rapidly.

Appendix A. Reference 265

 Triggering conditions for hypervisor alerts
You can set up IBM Spectrum Control so that it examines the attributes and
capacity of a hypervisor and notifies you when changes are detected.

Alerts can notify you of general changes and capacity changes on the following
resources:
v “Hypervisors”
v “Controllers” on page 267
v “Data Stores” on page 267
v “Disks” on page 268
v “Paths” on page 268
v “Virtual Machines” on page 269
v “VMDKs” on page 269

Important: Not all the attributes upon which you can alert are listed here. A
number of other attributes are available for alerts and are based on the key
properties of a hypervisor. To view a complete list of hypervisor attributes upon
which you can alert, go to Servers > Hypervisors, right-click the hypervisor, and
select Edit Alert Definitions.

Attributes that are automatically configured for alerts are marked with an asterisk
(*).
Tip: For capacity attributes, you can generate alerts when the amount of storage is
greater than, less than, or equal to a specified value. You can also determine the unit
of measurement for the attribute, such as KiB, MiB, GiB, or TiB.

Hypervisors
Table 72. Triggering attributes and conditions for general hypervisor changes.
General Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Last Successful Probe A specified amount of time has passed since a probe was able to collect data
about a hypervisor. You can use this alert to be notified when up-to-date
configuration and status data is not being collected about a hypervisor and its
existing data might be stale. Data collection might be interrupted or not occur if
the resource, network, or IBM Spectrum Control server is unavailable.
Probe Status* One of the following statuses is detected for a probe:
Not Successful
An error or warning occurred during data collection. This status
indicates that a probe did not collect any data, or only collected a partial
set of data about a resource.
Warning
A probe completed, but might not have collected a complete set of data.
This status might occur if data cannot be collected about one or more of
the internal resources of a resource.
Error (default)
A probe did not complete when it attempted to collect asset data about
the resource. This status might occur if the resource cannot be reached
during data collection.
For details about why a specific status occurred, check the log for the probe. To
check the log, go to the details page for a resource, click Data Collection, and
select Actions > Open Logs in the Probe section on the Data Collection page.

266 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 72. Triggering attributes and conditions for general hypervisor changes (continued).
General Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Status One of the following statuses is detected on a hypervisor:
Not Normal
An error or warning status was detected on the hypervisor or its
internal resources.
Warning
A warning status was detected on the hypervisor or its internal
resources.
Error (default)
An error status was detected on the hypervisor or its internal resources.
For example, an error status might occur when a hypervisor goes offline,
or a server disk is disconnected or partially disconnected if it has
multiple paths and one of the paths is disconnected.
Unreachable
One or more of the monitored resources for a hypervisor are not
responding. This status might be caused by a problem in the network.

Controllers
Table 73. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on controllers.
Controller Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
New Disk Controller A disk controller is detected for the first time. Use this alert to be notified of
hardware additions on servers.
Removed Disk Controller A previously monitored disk controller can no longer be found. Historical data
about the controller is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this
alert to be notified if a controller is removed or becomes unavailable.

Data Stores
Table 74. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on data stores.
Data Store Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Deleted Logical Volume A previously monitored logical volume on a data store can no longer be found.
Historical data about the volume is retained, but no current data is being
collected. Use this alert to be notified if a volume is deleted or becomes
unavailable.
New Logical Volume A logical volume on the data store is detected for the first time.
VMDKs You can use a number of operators to determine when you are notified of the
number of virtual machine disk files (VMDKs) on the data store. For example,
you can select to be notified when the number of VMDKs changes, or when the
number is or is not a specific number, or when the number lies outside a specific
range.

Table 75. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on data stores.
Capacity Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions

Available Data Store Space The amount of unused storage space on the hypervisor data store.

Available File System Space The total amount of unused storage space on a file system.

Data Store Capacity The total amount of storage space that is assigned to a data store.

Appendix A. Reference 267

Table 75. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on data stores (continued).
Capacity Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions

Total File System Capacity The total amount of storage space on a file system.

Used File System Space The amount of used storage space on the hypervisor file system.

Used Space The percentage of storage space that is used on the hypervisor data store.

Disks
Table 76. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on disks.
General Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Firmware The version of the Licensed Internal Code on the disk changes. You can use a
number of operators to determine when you are notified of a firmware change,
such as when the firmware is, or is not, a specific version, or when the version
number contains a specific value.
Multipathing Policy The multipathing policy that is in effect for a disk. For example, you can be
notified when the policy changes, or when the policy is Round Robin, Load
Balancing, Failover Only, or other another policy.
New Disk A disk is detected for the first time. Use this alert to be notified of hardware
changes on servers or hypervisors.
Paths The number of access paths that are associated with the disk falls outside a
specified range, or is equal to or not equal to a specified value.
Removed Disk A previously monitored disk can no longer be found. Historical data about the
disk is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if a disk is removed or becomes unavailable.
Status* One of the following statuses is detected on a disk:
Not Normal
An error or warning status was detected on the disk.
Warning
A warning status was detected on the disk.
Error (default)
An error status was detected on the disk.

Table 77. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on disks.
Capacity Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Available Disk Space The amount of unused storage space on a hypervisor disk.
Capacity The total amount of storage space assigned to a hypervisor disk.
Used Space The amount of used storage space on a hypervisor disk .

Paths
Table 78. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on paths.
Path Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Deleted Path A previously monitored access path for a server disk can no longer be found.
This change might or might not affect the availability of the disk because there
might be more than one path available.
New Path An access path for a disk is detected for the first time.

268 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 78. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on paths (continued).
Path Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Status* One of the following statuses is detected on a path:
Not Normal
An error or warning status was detected on the path.
Warning
A warning status was detected on the path.
Error (default)
An error status was detected on the path.

Virtual Machines
Table 79. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on virtual machines.
Virtual Machine Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Deleted Virtual Machine A previously monitored access path for a virtual machine can no longer be
found. Historical data about the virtual machine is retained, but no current data
is being collected. Use this alert to be notified if a virtual machine is deleted or
becomes unavailable.
New Virtual Machine A virtual machine is detected for the first time.
Status One of the following statuses is detected on a virtual machine:
Not Normal
An error or warning status was detected on the virtual machine.
Warning
A warning status was detected on the virtual machine.
Error (default)
An error status was detected on the virtual machine.
VMDKs You can use a number of operators to determine when you are notified of the
number of VMDKs on the virtual machine. For example, you can select to be
notified when the number of VMDKs changes, or when the number is or is not a
specific number, or when the number lies outside a specific range.

Table 80. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on virtual machines.
Capacity Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions

Capacity The total amount of storage space assigned to a virtual machine hosted by the
hypervisor.

VMDKs
Table 81. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on virtual machine disks (VMDKs).
VMDK Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Deleted Virtual Disk A previously monitored virtual disk can no longer be found. Historical data
about the virtual disk is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this
alert to be notified if a virtual disk is deleted or becomes unavailable.
New Virtual Disk A virtual disk is detected for the first time.

Appendix A. Reference 269

Table 82. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on VMDKs.
Capacity Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Size The size of the VMDK on the hypervisor data store.

Used Space The percentage of storage space that is used on the VMDK on the hypervisor
data store. The used space is available if a Storage Resource agent is deployed.

Triggering conditions for switch alerts

You can set up IBM Spectrum Control so that it examines the attributes and
performance of a switch and notifies you when changes or violations are detected.

Alerts can notify you of general changes and performance issues on the following
resources:
v “Switches (performance)”
v “Switches (general changes)” on page 271
v “Ports” on page 272

Important: Not all the attributes upon which you can alert are listed here. A
number of other attributes are available for alerts and are based on the key
properties of a switch. To view a complete list of attributes upon which you can
alert, go to Network > Switches, right-click a switch, and select Edit Alert
Definitions.

Attributes that are automatically configured for alerts are marked with an asterisk
(*).

Switches (performance)

Define alerts that notify you when the performance of a switch falls outside a
specified threshold. In alerts, you can specify conditions based on metrics that
measure the performance of switch ports, including I/O, data, and error rates, and
frame transfer sizes. By creating alerts with performance conditions, you can be
informed about potential bottlenecks in your network infrastructure.

For example, you can define an alert to be notified when the port congestion index
for a port is greater than or equal to a specified threshold. Port congestion
represents the estimated degree to which frame transmission was delayed due to a
lack of buffer credits. Use this alert to help identify port conditions that might slow
the performance of the resources to which those ports are connected.

You can also be notified when a metric is less than a specified threshold, such as
when you want to identify ports that might be under used.

For a complete list of switch metrics that can be alerted upon, see “Performance
metrics for switches” on page 333.

Tips for performance conditions:

v A performance monitor must collect data about a resource before IBM Spectrum
Control can determine whether a threshold is violated and an alert is generated
for a performance condition.
v When you set thresholds for performance conditions, try to determine the best
value so you can derive the maximum benefit without generating too many false
alerts. Because suitable thresholds are highly dependent on the type of workload

270 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 that is being run, hardware configuration, the number of physical disks, exact
model numbers, and other factors, there are no easy or standard default rules.
A recommended approach is to monitor the performance of resources for a
number of weeks and by using this historical data, determine reasonable
threshold values for each performance condition. After that is done, you can
fine-tune the condition settings to minimize the number of false alerts.

Switches (general changes)

Table 83. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on switches
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Firmware The version of the Licensed Internal Code on the switch changes. You can use a
number of operators to determine when you are notified of a firmware change,
such as when the firmware is, or is not, a specific version, or when the version
number contains a specific value.

Last Successful Probe A specified amount of time has passed since a probe or performance monitor was
able to collect data about a switch. You can use this alert to be notified when
Last Successful Monitor up-to-date configuration, status, or performance data is not being collected about
a switch and its existing data might be stale. This situation might occur if the
resource, network, or IBM Spectrum Control server is unavailable.
Probe Status* One of the following statuses is detected for a probe:
Not Successful
An error or warning occurred during data collection. This status
indicates that a probe did not collect any data, or only collected a partial
set of data about a resource.
Warning
A probe completed, but might not have collected a complete set of data.
This status might occur if data cannot be collected about one or more of
the internal resources of a resource.
Error (default)
A probe did not complete when it attempted to collect asset data about
the resource. This status might occur if the resource cannot be reached
during data collection.
For details about why a specific status occurred, check the log for the probe. To
check the log, go to the details page for a resource, click Data Collection, and
select Actions > Open Logs in the Probe section on the Data Collection page.

Appendix A. Reference 271

Table 83. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on switches (continued)
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Performance Monitor Status* One of the following statuses is detected for a performance monitor:
Not Normal
An error or warning occurred during data collection. This status
indicates that a performance monitor did not collect any data, or only
collected a partial set of data about a resource.
Warning
A performance monitor completed, but did not collect a complete set of
performance data. This status might occur if the resource was rebooted
during data collection, no valid performance data was provided by the
resource, or a communication error occurred with the resource or its
associated agent.
Error A performance did not complete when it attempted to collect
performance data about the resource. This status might occur if the
resource cannot be reached during data collection, or if no configuration
data is available for the resource.
For details about why a specific status occurred, check the log for the
performance monitor. To check the log, go to the details page for a resource, click
Data Collection, and select Actions > Open Logs in the Performance Monitor
section on the Data Collection page.

Ports
Table 84. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on ports
General Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Removed Port A previously monitored port can no longer be found. Historical data about the
port is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if a port is removed or becomes unavailable.
Speed The negotiated speed of a port, which is measured in GiB per second. You can
generate an alert when the port speed changes, or when it is greater than, less
than, equal to, or is not equal to a specific value.

State A port is online, enabled but offline, or disabled.

Status* One of the following statuses is detected for a port:
Not Normal
An error or warning status is detected on a port.
Warning
A warning status is detected on a port. This status might occur if the
switch is stopped, starting, or in service (being maintained, cleaned, or
administered).
Error An error status is detected on a port.

Triggering conditions for fabric alerts

You can set up IBM Spectrum Control so that it examines the attributes of a fabric
and notifies you when changes are detected.

Alerts can notify you of general changes on the following types of fabric resources:
v “Fabrics” on page 273
v “Switches” on page 274

272 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Important: Not all the attributes upon which you can alert are listed here. A
number of other attributes are available for alerts and are based on the key
properties of a fabric. To view a complete list of attributes upon which you can
alert, go to Network > Fabrics, right-click the fabric, and select Edit Alert
Definitions.

Attributes that are automatically configured for alerts are marked with an asterisk
(*).

Fabrics
Table 85. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on fabrics
Fabric Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Last Successful Probe A specified amount of time has passed since a probe was able to collect data
about a fabric. You can use this alert to be notified when up-to-date configuration
and status data is not being collected about a fabric and its existing data might
be stale. This situation might occur if the fabric, network, or IBM Spectrum
Control server is unavailable.
Probe Status* One of the following statuses is detected for a probe:
Not Successful
An error or warning occurred during data collection. This status
indicates that a probe did not collect any data, or only collected a partial
set of data about a resource.
Warning
A probe completed, but might not have collected a complete set of data.
This status might occur if data cannot be collected about one or more of
the internal resources of a resource.
Error (default)
A probe did not complete when it attempted to collect asset data about
the resource. This status might occur if the resource cannot be reached
during data collection.
For details about why a specific status occurred, check the log for the probe. To
check the log, go to the details page for a resource, click Data Collection, and
select Actions > Open Logs in the Probe section on the Data Collection page.

Status* One of the following statuses is detected on a fabric:

Not Normal
An error or warning status was detected on the fabric or its internal
resources.
Warning
A warning status was detected on the fabric or its internal resources.
Error (default)
An error status was detected on the fabric or its internal resources.
Unreachable
One or more of the monitored resources for a fabric are not responding.

Appendix A. Reference 273

 Switches
Table 86. Triggering attributes and conditions for changes on switches
Fabric Attributes Triggering Conditions for Attributes
Last Successful Monitor A specified amount of time has passed since the last successful performance
monitor for switches in the fabric. You can use this alert to be notified when
performance data is not being collected for a fabric's switches. This situation
might occur if a switch, network, or IBM Spectrum Control server is unavailable
during data collection.
Performance Monitor Status* One of the following statuses is detected for performance monitors that are
collecting data about switches in the fabric:
Not Normal
An error or warning occurred during data collection. This status
indicates that a performance monitor did not collect any data, or only
collected a partial set of data about a switch.
Warning
A performance monitor completed, but did not collect a complete set of
performance data. This status might occur if a switch was restarted
during data collection, no valid performance data was provided by the
switch, or a communication error occurred.
Error A performance did not complete when it attempted to collect
performance data about a switch. This status might occur if a switch
cannot be reached during data collection, or if no configuration data is
available for a switch.
For details about why a specific status occurred, check the log for the
performance monitor. To check the log, go to the details page for a switch, click
Data Collection, and select Actions > Open Logs in the Performance Monitor
section on the Data Collection page.

Triggering conditions for server alerts

You can set up IBM Spectrum Control so that it examines the attributes and
capacity of a server and notifies you when changes are detected.

Alerts can notify you of general changes and capacity changes on the following
resources:
v “Servers” on page 275
v “Controllers” on page 276
v “Disks” on page 277
v “Disk Groups” on page 278
v “File Systems and Logical Volumes” on page 278
v “Paths” on page 279
v “Shares” on page 280
v “Triggering conditions for the IBM Spectrum Control server” on page 280

274 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Important: Not all the attributes upon which you can alert are listed here. A
number of other attributes are available for alerts and are based on the key
properties of a server. To view a complete list of server attributes upon which you
can alert, go to Servers > Servers, right-click the server, and select Edit Alert
Definitions.

Attributes that are automatically configured for alerts are marked with an asterisk
(*).
Tip: For capacity attributes, you can generate alerts when the amount of storage is
greater than, less than, or equal to a specified value. You can also determine the unit
of measurement for the attribute, such as KiB, MiB, GiB, or TiB.

Servers
Table 87. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on servers.
General Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Agent State* A Storage Resource agent is in one of the following states:
Not Normal
An error or warning state was detected on a Storage Resource agent.
Warning
A warning state was detected on a Storage Resource agent. For example,
a warning state might occur when an agent must be upgraded to the
same version level as the IBM Spectrum Control server to which it is
communicating.
Error (default)
An error state was detected on a Storage Resource agent. For example,
an error state might occur when an agent was not able to be upgraded.
Last Successful Probe A specified amount of time has passed since a probe was able to collect data
about a server. You can use this alert to be notified when up-to-date
configuration and status data is not being collected about a server and its existing
data might be stale. Data collection might be interrupted or not occur if the
resource, network, or IBM Spectrum Control server are unavailable.
Probe Status* One of the following statuses is detected for a probe:
Not Successful
An error or warning occurred during data collection. This status
indicates that a probe did not collect any data, or only collected a partial
set of data about a resource.
Warning
A probe completed, but might not have collected a complete set of data.
This status might occur if data cannot be collected about one or more of
the internal resources of a resource.
Error (default)
A probe did not complete when it attempted to collect asset data about
the resource. This status might occur if the resource cannot be reached
during data collection.
For details about why a specific status occurred, check the log for the probe. To
check the log, go to the details page for a resource, click Data Collection, and
select Actions > Open Logs in the Probe section on the Data Collection page.

Appendix A. Reference 275

Table 87. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on servers (continued).
General Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Status* One of the following statuses is detected on a server:
Not Normal
An error or warning status was detected on the server or its internal
resources.
Warning
A warning status was detected on the server or its internal resources.
For example, a warning status might occur when an HBA or HBA to a
server node is newly discovered, is missing, or is rediscovered.
Error (default)
An error status was detected on the server or its internal resources. For
example, an error status might occur when a server goes offline, or a
server disk is disconnected or partially disconnected if it has multiple
paths and one of the paths is disconnected.
Unreachable
One or more of the monitored resources for a server are not responding.
This status might be caused by a problem in the network or by a
Storage Resource agent that is no longer running and did not
communicate that it was shutting down.

Table 88. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on servers.
Capacity Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Available Disk Space The amount of unused disk space on the local and SAN-attached storage for the
server. SAN-attached storage is assigned to the server from storage systems.
Available File System Space The amount of unused storage space in the file systems on the server.

Unused file system space does not include space that is reserved for the
operating system. For example, the unused space for tmpfs on UNIX operating
systems is not included in this value.
Disk Space from Storage Systems The amount of disk space that is assigned to the server from storage systems.

The disk space from storage systems is only available when SAN-attached
storage is assigned to the server.
File System Capacity The amount of file system space on the server.
File System Space from Storage The amount of file system space that is assigned to the server from storage
Systems systems.

The file system space from storage systems is only available when SAN-attached
storage is assigned to the server.
Total Disk Space The total amount of disk space for all the local and SAN-attached storage on the
server. SAN-attached storage is assigned to the server from storage systems.
Used Space The amount of used disk space on the local and SAN-attached storage for the
server. SAN-attached storage is assigned to the server from storage systems.

Controllers

276 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 89. Triggering attributes and conditions for changes on disk controllers.
Controller Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions

v Driver Version The version of the driver, firmware, or read-only memory (ROM) on a disk
controller changes. You can use a number of operators to determine when you
v Firmware
are notified of a version change, such as when the driver, firmware, or ROM is,
v ROM Version or is not, a specific version, or when the version number contains a specific
value.

Use this alert for HBAs only.

Last Data Collection A specified amount of time since data was collected about a controller. Use this
alert to be notified if data is not being collected about a controller or if the
existing data is becoming too stale.
New Disk Controller A disk controller is detected for the first time. Use this alert to be notified of
hardware additions on servers.
Removed Disk Controller A previously monitored disk controller can no longer be found. Historical data
about the controller is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this
alert to be notified if a controller is removed or becomes unavailable.
Status* One of the following statuses is detected on a disk controller:
Not Normal
An error or warning status was detected on the controller.
Warning
A warning status was detected on the controller.
Error (default)
An error status was detected on the controller.

Disks
Table 90. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on disks.
General Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Firmware The version of the Licensed Internal Code on the disk changes. You can use a
number of operators to determine when you are notified of a firmware change,
such as when the firmware is, or is not, a specific version, or when the version
number contains a specific value.
Multipathing Policy The multipathing policy that is in effect for a disk. For example, you can be
notified when the policy changes, or when the policy is Round Robin, Load
Balancing, Failover Only, or other another policy.
New Disk A disk is detected for the first time. Use this alert to be notified of hardware
changes on servers or hypervisors.
Paths The number of access paths that are associated with the disk falls outside a
specified range, or is equal to or not equal to a specified value.
Removed Disk A previously monitored disk can no longer be found. Historical data about the
disk is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if a disk is removed or becomes unavailable.
Status* One of the following statuses is detected on a disk:
Not Normal
An error or warning status was detected on the disk.
Warning
A warning status was detected on the disk.
Error (default)
An error status was detected on the disk.

Appendix A. Reference 277

Table 91. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on disks.
Capacity Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions

Available Disk Space The amount of unused storage space on a disk that is attached to the server.

Capacity The total amount of storage space on a disk that is attached to the server.

Used Space The amount of used storage space on a disk that is attached to the server.

Disk Groups
Table 92. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on disk groups (volume groups).
General Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Deleted Volume Group A previously monitored volume group can no longer be found. Historical data
about the volume group is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use
this alert to be notified if a volume group is deleted or becomes unavailable.
New Volume Group A volume group is detected for the first time.
Status* One of the following statuses is detected on a disk group:
Not Normal
An error or warning status was detected on the disk group.
Warning
A warning status was detected on the disk group.
Error (default)
An error status was detected on the disk group.

Table 93. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on disk groups (volume groups).
Capacity Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions

Available Space The amount of unused storage space on a server disk group.

Used Space The amount of used storage space on a server disk group.

Volume Group Capacity The total amount of storage space on a server volume group. This value is
inclusive of all storage space and applies to all space values related to volume
groups.

File Systems and Logical Volumes

Table 94. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on file systems and logical volumes.
General Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Available Inodes The number of unused inodes on file systems on the operating system changes,
falls outside a specified range, or is equal to or not equal to a specified value.
Deleted File System A previously monitored file system is deleted or unmounted from a server.
Historical data about the file system is retained, but no current data is being
collected. This attribute applies to file systems on the following resources:
v Storage systems that are configured for file storage, including Storwize V7000
Unified and IBM Spectrum Scale
v Servers that are managed by Storage Resource agents

278 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 94. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on file systems and logical volumes (continued).
General Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Deleted Logical Volume A previously monitored logical volume can no longer be found. Historical data
about the logical volume is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use
this alert to be notified if a logical volume is removed or becomes unavailable.
New File System A file system was detected for the first time. This alert applies to file systems on
the following resources:
v Storage systems that are configured for file storage, including Storwize V7000
Unified and IBM Spectrum Scale
v Servers that are managed by Storage Resource agents
New Logical Volume A logical volume is detected for the first time.
Used Inodes The number of used inodes on file systems on the operating system changes. You
can use a number of operators to determine when you are notified, such when
the number of used inodes falls outside a specified range, or is equal to or not
equal to a specified value.

Table 95. Triggering attributes and conditions for capacity changes on file systems and logical volumes.
Capacity Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions

Available File System Space The amount of unused storage space on a file system on the server disk.

File System Capacity The total amount of storage space on a file system on the server disk.

Logical Volume Capacity The total amount of storage space on a logical volume on the server disk.

Used File System Space The amount of used storage space on a file system on the server disk.

Used Space The percentage of used storage space on a file system or logical volume on the
server disk.

Paths
Table 96. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on paths.
Path Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Deleted Path A previously monitored access path for a server disk can no longer be found.
This change might or might not affect the availability of the disk because there
might be more than one path available.
New Path An access path for a disk is detected for the first time.
Status* One of the following statuses is detected on a path:
Not Normal
An error or warning status was detected on the path.
Warning
A warning status was detected on the path.
Error (default)
An error status was detected on the path.

Appendix A. Reference 279

 Shares
Table 97. Triggering attributes and conditions for general changes on shares.
Share Attributes Descriptions of Triggering Conditions
Deleted Share A previously monitored share can no longer be found. Historical data about the
share is retained, but no current data is being collected. Use this alert to be
notified if a share is removed or becomes unavailable.
New Share A new share was detected for the first time.

Triggering conditions for the IBM Spectrum Control server

The server on which IBM Spectrum Control is installed is automatically monitored

for conditions that might cause an interruption in product functions. When these
conditions are detected, alerts are triggered and shown on the Home > Alerts
page. You do not need to manually define alerts for these product-related
conditions; they are automatically enabled.
Table 98. Triggering conditions for the IBM Spectrum Control server.
Triggering Condition Explanation Related Error Message
Database unavailable The product database is not available. This database is ALR4112E, ALR4113E
the repository for information that is collected about the
monitored resources in your environment.
High memory usage* A high amount of memory is being used by a server ALR4103W
process and might cause stability problems.
Database alarm* The system database or the database manager that hosts ALR4104W
the product's database repository is reporting an alarm.
High workload The workload queue for the Device server is high and ALR4105W
might cause performance issues.
High number of external The server is receiving a high number of external events, ALR4106W
events such as CIM indications or SNMP traps. The high
number of events might cause performance issues.

Alert suppression actions

When you select triggering conditions for alerts, you can specify the conditions
under which alerts are triggered and choose whether you want to suppress
repeating alerts. Alerts can be suppressed to avoid generating too many alert log
entries or too many actions when the triggering condition occurs often. You can
view suppressed alerts in the constraint violation reports.

You can define the following options that enable you to specify conditions that
suppress alerts.
Do not suppress alerts
Receive alert notifications whenever an alert violation is detected.
Only alert once until problem clears
Receive one notification for an alert violation, even if the condition is
violated multiple times. This option is the default.
Only generate alerts every
Receive one notification when an alert is initially violated. The alert is
suppressed and no notifications are sent until both the specified time has
passed and the alert is triggered again.

280 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 Use this option when a single occurrence of an alert violation might be
insignificant, but repeated occurrences can represent a potential problem.
Do not alert until condition has been violated for more than
Do not receive notifications for an alert unless the violation has not cleared
for longer than the specified time.
Use this option to avoid email messages and other disruptive notifications
if the same violation occurs repeatedly during the specified time period. In
these cases, an alert is generated only for the first occurrence of the
violation. Alerts for other occurrences during the time period are
suppressed. When the suppression period ends, the cycle starts again.

Triggering actions and notifications for alerts

Specify how you are notified when alert conditions are detected on resources and
any actions to take as a result of those alerts. These settings can be defined
globally for a resource, or for specific alert definitions that apply to a resource.
Table 99. Locations where you can specify alert actions and notification settings.
Task Location in GUI
Specify the notification Resource page and resource details page
settings for all the alert
definitions that apply to a For example, to specify the global notification settings for a
resource block storage system, go to Storage > Block Storage
Systems, right-click a storage system, and select Edit Alert
Notification Settings. These notification settings are
applied globally to all the alert definitions that are specified
for the selected storage system. You can override the global
settings by specifying different settings for each alert
definition.
Specify alert actions and Resource page and resource details page
notification settings for a
specific alert definition For example, to specify the notification settings for an alert
definition that applies to a block storage system, go to
Storage > Block Storage Systems, right-click a storage
system, and select Edit Alert Definitions. Click the

envelope icon next to the alert definition that you

want to edit. The notification settings that you define
override any global settings for the resource.

You can specify that the following actions are taken when alert conditions are
detected on monitored resources:
Run script
Run a script when an alert is triggered for the condition. Use a script to
call external programs or run commands that take action as the result of an
alert. By using a script, you can automatically address potential storage
issues when they are detected to avoid unplanned downtime or
performance bottlenecks. Learn more.
Email Send emails to specific email addresses when an alert is detected on a
monitored resource.
Netcool or OMNIbus EIF Probe Server
Send alert notifications to a Netcool server or OMNIbus EIF probe server
within your environment that was configured to receive IBM Spectrum
Control alerts.

Appendix A. Reference 281

 SNMP trap
Generate SNMP trap messages to any network management station (NMS),
console, or terminal when an alert condition is detected. System
administrators must set up their SNMP trap ringer with the provided
management information base (MIB) files to receive SNMP traps from the
product.
Windows event log or UNIX syslog
Write alert messages to the OS log. If you already have an administrator
monitoring OS logs, this method is a way to centralize your priority
messages for quick notification and viewing.

How scripts are run

After an alert is triggered, scripts can be run from the server where IBM Spectrum
Control is installed or from any server where a Storage Resource agent is
deployed. For some alert conditions, scripts can be specified to run on the server
where the change was detected.

You must include the script files that you want to run in the /scripts directory on
the server where IBM Spectrum Control is installed. The default path of /scripts
is determined by the operating system of the server:
v Windows: C:\Program Files\IBM\TPC\Data\scripts
v UNIX or Linux: /opt/IBM/TPC/Data/scripts or /usr/IBM/TPC/Data/scripts

Tip: When you run a script against a NAS filer, the script is run from the Storage
Resource agent that is assigned to the file system where the condition was
detected.

How script names are resolved

When you run scripts in response to alerts, the names of those scripts are resolved
by using the following criteria:
v The operating system of the server where the product is installed.
v The script name that you specify on the Script name field when you define or
edit an alert definition.

The operating system of the server or Storage Resource agent where you choose to
run a script determines how that script that is run:
UNIX, Linux operating systems
A Storage Resource agent that is deployed on a UNIX or Linux operating
system does not run scripts that have an extension. If the specified script
name contains an extension, the agent ignores the extension and searches
for a file of the same name (without an extension). For example, if you
enter backup.vbs in the Script name field, a UNIX or Linux agent searches
for a file with the name backup. If the script exists, the first line of the
script is read and the appropriate interpreter is used to run the script. If a
file cannot be found, no action is taken.
Windows operating systems
A Storage Resource agent that is deployed on a Windows operating system
runs scripts that have an extension. The extension of a script file
determines which interpreter is used to run the script. If you specify a
script name that does not contain an extension, the agent searches for the
file name in the following order (based on its extension): .com, .exe,
.bat, .cmd, .vbs, .vbe, .js, .jse. If a file cannot be found, no action is
taken.
282 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
 Tip: You can run scripts with the same name across multiple operating systems. To
run a script on both a UNIX or Linux and Windows operating systems, you must
have two versions of that file in the /scripts directory. For example, if you want
to run a provisioning script against Storage Resource agents on UNIX or Linux and
Windows servers, you must have two versions of that file (provision.bat and
provision) in /scripts.

Performance data
Use the IBM Spectrum Control to view the performance data of devices in your
environment.

Performance metrics
IBM Spectrum Control can collect information about the performance of storage
systems and switches. This information includes metrics that measure the
performance of volumes, ports, and disks. You can view performance information
or specify alerts for when the performance of a resource falls outside a specified
range.

You can view performance metrics at the following locations:

Resource pages
To access a view of performance metrics for a resource, go to the following
pages:
v Storage systems page, Storage system details page
v Volumes page
v Pools page
v Switches page, Switch details page
v Server details page > Related Resources
v Hypervisor details page > Related Resources
Cognos BI reports
To view detailed performance reports for multiple resources in the Cognos
BI reporting tool, hover the mouse pointer over Cognos in the menu bar
and select an option.
Related concepts:
“Monitoring the performance of resources” on page 149
IBM Spectrum Control can collect information about the performance of storage
systems and switches. This information includes key performance metrics that can
help you measure, identify, and troubleshoot performance issues and bottlenecks in
your storage.

Performance metrics for DS6000 and DS8000

Monitor the performance metrics that are collected for DS8000 and DS6000 storage
systems.

Overview

Performance metrics are available for the following resources:

v “Volume metrics” on page 284
v “Disk metrics” on page 288
v “Port metrics” on page 290

Appendix A. Reference 283

 A performance metric might apply to one or more storage resources. To check
which resources the performance metric applies to, see the tips and the table
footnotes.

Volume metrics

Volume performance metrics are divided into the following categories:

v Key volume metrics
v I/O rate metrics
v Cache hit percentage metrics
v Average transfer size and HPF I/O metrics

Tip: Unless otherwise noted, you can view the volume metrics in Table 100,
Table 101 on page 285, Table 102 on page 286, and Table 103 on page 288 for the
following resources:
v Host connections
v Nodes
v Pools
v RAID arrays
v Storage systems
v Volumes
Table 100. Key volume metrics.
Metric Description
1
Cache Holding Time The average number of seconds that I/O
data for a storage system node is held in the
cache. A short cache-holding time indicates
adverse performance.
Data Rate (Read) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for read operations.
Data Rate (Write) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for write operations.
Data Rate (Total) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for read operations and write
operations.
Overall I/O Rate (Read) The average number of read operations per
second. This value includes both sequential
and nonsequential read operations.
Overall I/O Rate (Write) The average number of write operations per
second. This value includes both sequential
and nonsequential write operations.
Overall I/O Rate (Total) The average number of read operations and
write operations per second. This value
includes both sequential and nonsequential
operations.
Pool Activity Score2 The activity level of pools, which is set to
the following value:

[Read I/O Rate × (1− Read I/O Cache Hit

%)] ÷ Total Pool Capacity
Response Time (Read) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a read operation.

284 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 100. Key volume metrics (continued).
Metric Description
Response Time (Write) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a write operation.
Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds to
complete an I/O operation. This value
includes both read and write operations.
Volume Utilization3 The average percentage of time that the
volume is busy.
Write-Cache Delay Percentage The percentage of I/O operations that are
delayed because of space constraints in the
write cache, or because of other conditions.
The value is a percentage of all operations.
This value applies only to storage systems
that are running a version of IBM Spectrum
Virtualize earlier than V7.3. The metric is an
approximation because actual transfer rates
are different for each cache layer. Therefore,
you cannot directly compare this metric
from storage systems that are V7.3 or later
with earlier versions.
Notes:
1. This metric is only available when you view the performance of nodes or storage
systems.
2. This metric is only available when you view the performance of pools.
3. This metric is only available when you view the performance of volumes.

Table 101. I/O Rates.

Metric Description
1
Average Transfer Rate (Cache-to-Disk) The average number of sectors or tracks per
second that are transferred from the cache to
the disks.
Average Transfer Rate (Disk-to-Cache)1 The percentage of cache hits for
record-mode read operations. For
record-mode read operations, only the
requested data, rather than a full track of
data, is managed in the cache.
High Performance FICON® (Read)2 The average number of read operations per
second that are issued by the High
Performance FICON feature of the storage
system.
High Performance FICON (Write)2 The average number of write operations per
second that are issued by the High
Performance FICON feature of the storage
system.
High Performance FICON (Total)2 The average number of I/O operations per
second that are issued by the High
Performance FICON feature of the storage
system. This value includes both read and
write operations.
Normal I/O Rate (Read) The average number of nonsequential read
operations per second.

Appendix A. Reference 285

 Table 101. I/O Rates (continued).
Metric Description
Normal I/O Rate (Write) The average number of nonsequential write
operations per second.
Normal I/O Rate (Total) The average number of nonsequential I/O
operations per second. This value includes
both read and write operations.
PPRC Transfer Rate The average number of tracks per second
that are transferred to the secondary device
of a Peer-to-Peer Remote Copy (PPRC) pair.
This value shows the activity for the source
of the PPRC relationship, but shows no
activity for the target.
Record Mode Read I/O Rate1 The average number of I/O operations per
second for record-mode read operations. For
record-mode read operations, only the
requested data is managed in the cache
rather than a full track of data.
Sequential I/O Rate (Read) The average number of sequential read
operations per second.
Sequential I/O Rate (Write) The average number of sequential write
operations per second.
Sequential I/O Rate (Total) The average number of sequential I/O
operations per second. This value includes
both read and write operations.
Write-Cache Delay I/O Rate The average number of I/O operations per
second that are delayed because of space
constraints in the write cache, or because of
other conditions.
Notes:
1. This metric is only available when you view the performance of volumes, RAID arrays,
pools, nodes, and host connections.
2. This metric applies only to DS8000 storage systems.

Table 102. Cache hit percentages.

Metric Description
Normal I/O Cache Hits (Read) The percentage of nonsequential read
operations that find data in the cache.You
can use this value to understand throughput
or response times. Low cache-hit percentages
can increase response times because a cache
miss requires access to the back-end storage
resources.
Normal I/O Cache Hits (Write) The percentage of nonsequential write
operations that are handled in the cache.
Normal I/O Cache Hits (Total) The percentage of nonsequential I/O
operations that are handled in the cache.
This value includes both read and write
operations.You can use this value to
understand throughput or response times.
Low cache-hit percentages can increase
response times because a cache miss requires
access to the back-end storage resources.

286 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 102. Cache hit percentages (continued).
Metric Description
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Read) The percentage of all read operations that
find data in the cache. This value includes
both sequential and random read operations,
and read operations in the volume cache
and volume copy cache where applicable.
You can use this value to understand
throughput or response times. Low cache-hit
percentages can increase response times
because in the event of cache miss, the data
must be read from the back-end storage
resources.
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Write) The average percentage of all write
operations that are handled in the cache,
across all volumes on the server. This value
includes both sequential and nonsequential
write operations.
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Total) The percentage of all read operations and
write operations that are handled in the
cache. This value includes both sequential
and random read and write operations, and
read and write operations in the volume
cache and volume copy cache where
applicable.You can use this value to
understand throughput or response times.
Low cache-hit percentages can increase
response times because a cache miss requires
access to the back-end storage resources.
Record Mode Read Cache Hit Percentage1 The percentage of cache hits for
record-mode read operations. For
record-mode read operations, only the
requested data, rather than a full track of
data, is managed in the cache.
Sequential I/O Cache Hits (Read) The percentage of sequential read operations
that find data in the cache. You can use this
value to understand throughput or response
times. Low cache-hit percentages can
increase response times because a cache miss
requires access to the back-end storage
resources.
Sequential I/O Cache Hits (Write) The percentage of sequential write
operations that are handled in the cache.
Sequential I/O Cache Hits (Total) The percentage of sequential I/O operations
that are handled in the cache. This value
includes both read and write operations.You
can use this value to understand throughput
or response times. Low cache-hit percentages
can increase response times because a cache
miss requires access to the back-end storage
resources.
Note:
1. This metric is only available when you view the performance of volumes, RAID arrays,
pools, nodes, and host connections.

Appendix A. Reference 287

 Table 103. Average transfer size, HPF I/O, and miscellaneous metrics.
Metric Description
Average Transfer Size (Read) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per read operation.
Average Transfer Size (Write) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per write operation.
Average Transfer Size (Overall) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per I/O operation. This value
includes both read and write operations.
HPF I/O Percentage The percentage of all I/O operations that are
issued by the High Performance FICON
feature of the storage system.
Sequential I/O Percentage1 Percentage of all I/O operations that were
completed for a RAID array over a specified
time interval that were sequential
operations.
Note:
1. This metric is only available when you view the performance of RAID arrays.

Disk metrics

Disk performance metrics are divided into the following categories:

v Key disk metrics
v Transfer size metrics

Tip: Unless otherwise noted, you can view the volume metrics in Table 104 and
Table 105 on page 289 for the following resources:
v Nodes
v Pools
v RAID arrays
v Ranks
v Storage systems
Table 104. Key disk metrics.
Metric Description
Data Rate (Read) The average number of MiB per second that
are read from the back-end storage
resources.
Data Rate (Write) The average number of MiB per second that
are written to the back-end storage
resources.
Data Rate (Total) The average rate at which data is
transmitted between the back-end storage
resources and the component. The rate is
measured in MiB per second and includes
both read and write operations.

288 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 104. Key disk metrics (continued).
Metric Description
1
Disk Utilization Percentage The average percentage of time that the
disks that are associated with an array are
busy. No value is calculated for this
property if there are multiple ranks in the
extent pool where the thin-provisioned
volumes are allocated. In this case, the value
N/A is displayed for this property. This
limitation applies only to DS8000 storage
systems. If there is only a single rank in the
extent pool, the value for this property is
calculated regardless of the thin-provisioned
volumes.
I/O Rate (Read) The average number of read operations per
second that are issued to the back-end
storage resources.
I/O Rate (Write) The average number of write operations per
second that are issued to the back-end
storage resources.
I/O Rate (Total) The average number of I/O operations per
second that are transmitted between the
back-end storage resources and the
component. This value includes both read
and write operations.
Response Time (Read) The average number of milliseconds for the
back-end storage resources to respond to a
read operation.
Response Time (Write) The average number of milliseconds for the
back-end storage resources to respond to a
write operation.
Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds for the
back-end storage resources to respond to a
read or a write operation.
Note:
1. This metric is only available when you view the performance of RAID arrays.

Table 105. Transfer size metrics.

Metric Description
Average Transfer Size (Read) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per read operation from the
back-end storage resources.
Average Transfer Size (Write) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per write operation to the
back-end storage resources.
Average Transfer Size (Overall) The average transfer size, in KiB, of a read
or a write operation to the back-end storage
resources.

Appendix A. Reference 289

 Port metrics

Port performance metrics are divided into the following categories:

v Key port metrics
v Port I/O rate metrics
v Port data rate metrics
v Port response time metrics
v Error rate metrics
v Remote mirror metrics
v Transfer size metrics

Tip: Unless otherwise noted, you can view the port metrics in Table 106, Table 110
on page 292, Table 111 on page 295, and Table 112 on page 295 for ports and
storage systems. The port metrics in Table 107 on page 291, Table 108 on page 291,
Table 109 on page 292 are only available for ports.
Table 106. Key port metrics.
Metric Description
Data Rate (Receive) The average rate at which data is received
by the port. The rate is measured in MiB per
second.
Data Rate (Send) The average rate at which data is sent
through the port. The rate is measured in
MiB per second.
Data Rate (Total) The average rate at which data is transferred
through the port. The rate is measured in
MiB per second and includes both send and
receive operations.
I/O Rate (Receive) The average number of I/O operations per
second for operations in which the port
receives data.
I/O Rate (Send) The average number of I/O operations per
second for operations in which data is sent
from a port.
I/O Rate (Total) The average number of send operations and
receive operations per second.
Response Time (Receive) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a receive operation.
Response Time (Send) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a send operation.
Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a send or receive operation.
Port Utilization (Receive)1 The average percentage of time that the port
is busy receiving data.
Port Utilization (Send)1 The average percentage of time that the port
is busy sending data.
Port Utilization (Overall)1 The average percentage of time that the port
is busy sending or receiving data.

290 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 106. Key port metrics (continued).
Metric Description
1
Bandwidth (Receive) The percentage of the port bandwidth that is
used for receive operations. This value is an
indicator of port bandwidth usage that is
based on the speed of the port.
Bandwidth (Send)1 The percentage of the port bandwidth that is
used for send operations. This value is an
indicator of port bandwidth usage that is
based on the speed of the port.
Bandwidth (Overall)1 The percentage of the port bandwidth that is
used for send operations and receive
operations. This value is an indicator of port
bandwidth usage that is based on the speed
of the port.
Note:
1. This metric is only available when you view the performance of ports.

Table 107. Port I/O rate metrics.

Metric Description
FICON I/O Rate (Send) The average number of send operations per
second for Fibre Channel connection
(FICON) usage.
FICON I/O Rate (Receive) The average number of receive operations
per second for FICON usage.
FICON I/O Rate (Total) The average number of send and receive
operations per second for FICON usage.
FCP I/O Rate (Send) The average number of send operations per
second for Fibre Channel Protocol (FCP)
usage.
FCP I/O Rate (Receive) The average number of receive operations
per second for FCP usage.
FCP I/O Rate (Total) The average number of send operations and
receive operations per second for FCP usage.

Table 108. Port data rates.

Metric Description
FICON Data Rate (Send) The average number of MiB per second that
is sent for FICON usage.
FICON Data Rate (Receive) The average number of MiB per second that
is received for FICON usage.
FICON Data Rate (Total) The average number of MiB per second that
is transferred for FICON usage. This value
includes both send and receive FICON
operations.
FCP Data Rate (Send) The average number of MiB per second that
are sent for FCP usage.
FCP Data Rate (Receive) The average number of MiB per second that
are received for FCP usage.

Appendix A. Reference 291

 Table 108. Port data rates (continued).
Metric Description
FCP Data Rate (Total) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for FCP usage. This value
includes both send and receive FCP
operations.

Table 109. Port response times.

Metric Description
FICON Response Time (Send) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a send operation for FICON usage.
FICON Response Time (Receive) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a receive operation for FICON
usage.
FICON Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a send or receive operation for
FICON usage. This value includes both send
and receive FICON operations.
FCP Response Time (Send) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a send operation for FCP usage.
FCP Response Time (Receive) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a receive operation for FCP usage.
FCP Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a send or receive operation for
FCP usage.

Table 110. Error rate metrics.

Tip: You can view the following metrics for ports and storage systems.
Metric Description
Frame Errors (CRC Errors) The average number of frames per second
that are received in which a cyclic
redundancy check (CRC) error is detected. A
CRC error is detected when the CRC in the
transmitted frame does not match the CRC
computed by the receiver. For Brocade
switches, this metric includes only the CRC
Errors with a good end-of-frame (EOF)
indicator.
Frame Errors (Error Frame) The average number of error frames per
second that are received. An error frame is a
frame that violates the Fibre Channel
Protocol.
Frame Errors (Invalid Relative Offset Rate) The average number of times per second
that frames are received with an invalid
relative offset in the frame header.
Link Errors (Invalid Link Transmission) The average number of times per second
that an invalid transmission word was
detected by the port while the link did not
experience any signal or synchronization
loss.
Link Errors (Invalid Transmission Words) The average number of bit errors per second
that are detected.

292 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 110. Error rate metrics (continued).
Tip: You can view the following metrics for ports and storage systems.
Metric Description
Link Errors (Link Failures) The average number of miscellaneous fibre
channel link errors per second for ports.
Link errors might occur when an
unexpected Not Operational (NOS) is
received or a link state machine failure was
detected.
Link Errors (Primitive Sequence Protocol The average number of primitive sequence
Error Rate) protocol errors per second that are detected.
This error occurs when there is a link failure
for a port.
Link Errors (Sequence Timeouts) The average number of times per second
that the port detects a timeout condition
after the port receives a sequence initiative
for a Fibre Channel exchange.
Link Errors (Signal Loss) The average number of times per second at
which the port lost communication with its
partner port. These types of errors usually
indicate physical link problems, caused by
faulty SFP modules or cables, or caused by
faulty connections at the switch or patch
panel. However, in some cases, this error
can also occur when the maximum link
distance between ports is exceeded, for the
type of connecting cable and light source.
Link Errors (Sync Loss) The average number of times per second
that the port lost synchronization with its
partner port. These types of errors usually
indicate physical link problems, caused by
faulty SFP modules or cables, or caused by
faulty connections at the switch or patch
panel. However in some cases this can also
occur due to mismatching port speeds
between the partner ports, when
auto-negotiation of link speed is disabled.
Overload Errors (Extreme I/O Concurrency The average percentage of I/O operations
Percentage) 1 for which the port on DS8000 had more than
1500 concurrent I/O operations or
exchanges. The number of concurrent I/O
operations for ports on DS8000 cannot
exceed 2000.
Overload Errors (Extreme I/O Concurrency The average number of times per second
Rate) 1 that the port on DS8000 had more than 1500
concurrent I/O operations or exchanges. The
number of concurrent I/O operations for a
port on DS8000 cannot exceed 2000.
1
Overload Errors (I/O Busy Percentage) The average percentage of I/O operations or
exchanges for which the port on DS8000
returned a SCSI Queue Full or a Busy status
to the server. Ports can return these statuses
if the number of I/O operations exceeds an
internal DS8000 threshold.

Appendix A. Reference 293

 Table 110. Error rate metrics (continued).
Tip: You can view the following metrics for ports and storage systems.
Metric Description
1
Overload Errors (I/O Busy Rate) The average number of times per second
that the port on DS8000 returned a SCSI
Queue Full or a Busy status to the server.
Ports can return these statuses if the number
of I/O operations or exchanges exceeds an
internal DS8000 threshold.
1
Overload Errors (I/O Overrun Percentage) The average percentage of I/O operations
that the port on DS8000 had to discard
because the number of concurrent I/O
operations or exchanges for the port
exceeded 2000.
1
Overload Errors (I/O Overrun Rate) The average number of times per second
that the port on DS8000 had to discard
commands because the number of
concurrent I/O operations or exchanges for
the port exceeded 2000.
Port Protocol Errors (Credit Recovery Link The estimated average number of link resets
Resets) per second that a switch or port completed
to recover buffer credits. This estimate
attempts to disregard link resets that were
caused by link initialization. When you
troubleshoot a SAN, use this metric to help
identify port conditions that might slow the
performance of the resources to which those
ports are connected.
Port Protocol Errors (Duplicate Frames) The average number of duplicate frames per
second that are received. A duplicate frame
is a frame that the system previously
processed for the port.
Port Protocol Errors (Link Reset Received) The average number of times per second
that the port changes from an active (AC)
state to a Link Recovery (LR2) state.
Port Protocol Errors (Link Reset Transmitted) The average number of times per second
that the port changes from an active (AC)
state to a Link Recovery (LR1) state.
Port Protocol Errors (Out of Order ACK) The average number of times per second
that an out-of-order acknowledge (ACK)
frame is detected.An ACK frame is used for
end-to-end flow control and is sent to verify
receipt of a frame.
Port Protocol Errors (Out of Order Data) The average number of times per second
that an out-of-order frame is detected.
1
Zero Receive Buffer Credit Percentage The amount of time, as a percentage, that
the port on DS8000 had depleted its receive
buffer credits. That is, the percentage of time
that the port on DS8000 had no credit to
provide to the sending port.
1
Zero Send Buffer Credit Percentage The amount of time, as a percentage, that
the port on DS8000 had depleted its send
buffer credits. That is, the percentage of time
that the receiving port had no credit to
provide to the port on DS8000.

294 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 110. Error rate metrics (continued).
Tip: You can view the following metrics for ports and storage systems.
Metric Description
Note:
1. This metric is only available when you view the performance of ports.

Table 111. Remote mirror metrics.

Metric Description
PPRC Data Rate (Receive) The average number of MiB per second that
are received by using the Peer-to-Peer
Remote Copy protocol.
PPRC Data Rate (Send) The average number of MiB per second that
are sent by using the Peer-to-Peer Remote
Copy protocol.
PPRC Data Rate (Total) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred by using the Peer-to-Peer
Remote Copy (PPRC) protocol. This value
includes both send and receive PPRC
operations.
PPRC I/O Rate (Receive) The average number of operations per
second that are received by using the
Peer-to-Peer Remote Copy protocol.
PPRC I/O Rate (Send) The average number of operations per
second that are sent by using the
Peer-to-Peer Remote Copy protocol.
PPRC I/O Rate (Total) The average number of send operations and
receive operations per second using the
Peer-to-Peer Remote Copy protocol.
PPRC Response Time (Receive) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a receive operation by using the
Peer-to-Peer Remote Copy protocol.
PPRC Response Time (Send) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a send operation by using the
Peer-to-Peer Remote Copy protocol.
PPRC Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a send or receive operation by
using the Peer-to-Peer Remote Copy (PPRC)
protocol.

Table 112. Transfer size metrics.

Metric Description
Average Transfer Size (Receive) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per receive operation.
Average Transfer Size (Send) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per send operation.
Average Transfer Size (Overall) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per I/O operation. This value
includes both send and receive operations.

Appendix A. Reference 295

 Performance metrics for storage systems that run IBM Spectrum
Virtualize
Monitor the performance metrics that are collected for SAN Volume Controller,
Storwize, FlashSystem V840, and FlashSystem V9000 storage systems.

Overview

Definitions are provided for the performance metrics that are collected for the
following storage systems:
v FlashSystem V840
v FlashSystem V9000
v SAN Volume Controller
v Storwize V3500
v Storwize V3700
v Storwize V5000
v Storwize V7000
v Storwize V7000 Unified

The performance metrics are divided into the following categories:

v “Volume performance metrics”
v “Disk performance metrics” on page 305
v “Port performance metrics” on page 307
v “Node performance metrics” on page 312

Volume performance metrics

Volume performance metrics are divided into the following categories:

v Key metrics for volumes
v I/O rate metrics for volumes
v Cache hit percentage metrics for volumes
v Response time metrics for volumes
v Remote mirror metrics for volumes
v Volume cache metrics for volumes
v Volume copy cache metrics for volumes
v Miscellaneous metrics for volumes
v Legacy cache metrics for volumes

Tip: Unless otherwise noted, you can view the volume metrics in Table 113 on
page 297, Table 114 on page 298, Table 115 on page 298, Table 116 on page 299,
Table 117 on page 299, Table 118 on page 299, Table 119 on page 301, Table 120 on
page 303, and Table 121 on page 304 for the following resources:
v Host connections
v I/O groups
v Nodes
v Pools
v Storage systems
v Volumes

296 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 113. Key metrics for volumes.
Metric Definition
Data Rate (Read) The average number of MiB per second that are
transferred for read operations.
Data Rate (Write) The average number of MiB per second that are
transferred for write operations.
Data Rate (Total) The average number of MiB per second that are
transferred for read operations and write operations.
Overall Host Attributed The percentage of the average response time that can be
Response Time Percentage attributed to delays from host systems. This value
includes both read response times and write response
times, and can help you diagnose slow hosts and fabrics
that are not working efficiently.For read response time,
the value is based on the time that it takes for hosts to
respond to transfer-ready notifications from the nodes.
For write response time, the value is based on the time
that it takes for hosts to send the write data after the
node responds to a transfer-ready notification.
Overall I/O Rate (Read) The average number of read operations per second. This
value includes both sequential and nonsequential read
operations.
Overall I/O Rate (Write) The average number of write operations per second.
This value includes both sequential and nonsequential
write operations.
Overall I/O Rate (Total) The average number of nonsequential I/O operations
per second. This value includes both read and write
operations.
Pool Activity Score1 The activity level of pools, which is set to the following
value: [Read I/O Rate × (1− Read I/O Cache Hit %)] ÷
Total Pool Capacity
Response Time (Read) The average number of milliseconds to complete a read
operation.
Response Time (Write) The average number of milliseconds to complete a write
operation.
Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds to complete an I/O
operation. This value includes both read and write
operations.
Volume Utilization2 The average percentage of time that the volume is busy.
Write Cache Delay The percentage of I/O operations that are delayed
because of space constraints in the write cache, or
because of other conditions. The value is a percentage of
all operations. This value applies only to storage systems
that are running a version of IBM Spectrum Virtualize
earlier than V7.3. The metric is an approximation
because actual transfer rates are different for each cache
layer. Therefore, you cannot directly compare this metric
from storage systems that are V7.3 or later with earlier
versions.
Notes:
1. This metric is also available when you view the performance of pools.
2. This metric is only available when you view the performance of volumes.

Appendix A. Reference 297

 Table 114. I/O rate metrics for volumes.
Metric Definition
*
Transfer Rate (Cache-to-Disk) The average number of sectors or tracks per
second that are transferred from the cache to
the disks.
Transfer Rate (Disk-to-Cache)* The average number of sectors or tracks per
second that are transferred per second from
the disks to the cache.
Write-Cache Delay I/O Rate* The average number of I/O operations per
second that are delayed because of space
constraints in the write cache, or because of
other conditions. This value applies only to
storage systems that are running a version
of IBM Spectrum Virtualize earlier than
V7.3. The metric is an approximation
because actual transfer rates are different for
each cache layer. Therefore, you cannot
directly compare this metric from storage
systems that are V7.3 or later with earlier
versions.
Note: *This value applies only to storage systems that are running a version of IBM
Spectrum Virtualize earlier than V7.3. The metric is an approximation because actual
transfer rates are different for each cache layer. Therefore, you cannot directly compare this
metric from storage systems that are V7.3 or later with earlier versions.

Table 115. Cache hit percentages metrics for volumes.

Metric Definition
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Read) The percentage of all read operations that
find data in the cache. This value includes
both sequential and random read operations,
and read operations in the volume cache
and volume copy cache where applicable.
You can use this value to understand
throughput or response times. Low cache-hit
percentages can increase response times
because in the event of cache miss, the data
must be read from the back-end storage
resources.
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Write) The percentage of all write operations that
are handled in the cache. This value includes
both sequential and random write
operations, and write operations in the
volume cache and volume copy cache where
applicable.
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Total) The percentage of all read operations and
write operations that are handled in the
cache. This value includes both sequential
and random read and write operations, and
read and write operations in the volume
cache and volume copy cache where
applicable.You can use this value to
understand throughput or response times.
Low cache-hit percentages can increase
response times because a cache miss requires
access to the back-end storage resources.

298 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 116. Response time metrics for volumes.
Metric Definition
Peak Response Time (Read) The worst response time measured for a
read operation in the sample interval.
Peak Response Time (Write) The worst response time measured for a
write operation in the sample interval.

Table 117. Remote mirror metrics for volumes.

Metric Definition
Global Mirror (Overlapping Write I/O Rate) The average number of overlapping write
operations per second that are issued by the
Global Mirror primary site. Some
overlapping writes are processed in parallel
and are excluded from this value.
Global Mirror (Overlapping Write The percentage of overlapping write
Percentage) operations that are issued by the Global
Mirror primary site. Some overlapping
writes are processed in parallel and are
excluded from this value.
Global Mirror (Secondary Write Lag) The average number of additional
milliseconds that it takes to service each
secondary write operation for Global Mirror.
This value does not include the time to
service the primary write operations.You
monitor the value of Global Mirror
Secondary Write Lag to identify delays that
occurred during the process of writing data
to the secondary site.
Global Mirror (Write I/O Rate) The average number of write operations per
second that are issued to the Global Mirror
secondary site.

Volume cache metrics are only available for SAN Volume Controller, Storwize, and
FlashSystem block storage systems whose firmware version is V7.3 or later.
Table 118. Volume cache metrics for volumes.
Metric Definition
Cache Hits (Dirty Writes) The percentage of all cache write hits that
occur on data that is marked as modified in
the volume cache. This value represents how
effectively write operations are coalesced
before the data is written to disk.
Cache Hits (Read) The percentage of read operations that find
data in the volume cache.
Cache Hits (Total) The percentage of cache hits for read and
write operations that are handled in the
volume cache.
Cache Hits (Write) The percentage of cache hits for write
operations that are handled in the volume
cache.

Appendix A. Reference 299

 Table 118. Volume cache metrics for volumes (continued).
Metric Definition
I/O Rate (Destage) The average number of cache-to-disk
transfer operations per second that are
processed in the volume cache.
I/O Rate (Stage) The average number of disk-to-cache
transfer operations per second that are
processed in the volume cache.
I/O Rate (Read) The average number of read operations per
second that are processed in the volume
cache. This value includes operations that
are started by hosts or by remote replication
sources.
I/O Rate (Total) The average number of read and write
operations per second that are processed by
the volume cache. This value includes
requests sent by hosts and by remote
replication sources.
I/O Rate (Write) The average number of write operations per
second that are processed by the volume
cache. This value includes operations that
are started by hosts or by remote replication
sources.
Response Time (Destage) The average number of milliseconds that it
took to complete each destage operation in
the volume cache. That is, the time that it
took to do write operations from the volume
cache to the disk.
Response Time (Stage) The average number of milliseconds that it
took to complete each stage operation in the
volume cache. That is, the time that it took
to do read operations from the disk to the
volume cache.
Transfer Rates (Cache-to-Disk) The average number of sectors that are
transferred per second from the volume
cache to the disks.
Transfer Rates (Disk-to-Cache) The average number of sectors that are
transferred per second from the disks to the
volume cache.
Write Delay Percentage (Flush-through) The percentage of write operations that are
written to disk in flush-through mode in the
volume cache.
Write Delay Percentage (Total Delay) The percentage of I/O operations that are
delayed because of space constraints in the
write cache, or because of other conditions
in the volume cache. The value is a
percentage of all operations.
Write Delay Percentage (Write-through) The percentage of write operations that are
written to disk in write-through mode in the
volume cache.
Write Delay Rate (Flush-through) The average number of tracks per second
that are written to disk in flush-through
mode in the volume cache.

300 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 118. Volume cache metrics for volumes (continued).
Metric Definition
Write Delay Rate (Total Delay) The average number of I/O operations per
second that are delayed. The delay might
occur because of space constraints in the
write cache, or because of other conditions
in the volume cache. The value is an average
of all operations.
Write Delay Rate (Write-through) The average number of sectors per second
that are written to disk in write-through
mode in the volume cache.

Volume copy cache metrics are only available for SAN Volume Controller,
Storwize, and FlashSystem block storage systems whose firmware version is V7.3
or later.
Table 119. Volume copy cache metrics for volumes.
Metric Definition
Cache Hits (Dirty Writes) The percentage of all cache write hits that
occur on data that is marked as modified in
the volume copy cache. This value
represents how effectively write operations
are coalesced before the data is written to
disk.
Cache Hits (Read-ahead)* The percentage of all read cache hits that
occur on pre-staged data.
Cache Hits (Read) The percentage of read operations that find
data in the volume copy cache.
Cache Hits (Total) The percentage of cache hits for read and
write operations that are handled in the
volume copy cache.
Cache Hits (Write) The percentage of cache hits for write
operations that are handled in the volume
copy cache.
I/O Rate (Destage) The average number of cache-to-disk
transfer operations per second that are
processed in the volume copy cache.
I/O Rate (Prestage) The average number of prefetch
disk-to-cache transfer operations per second
that are processed in the volume copy cache.
I/O Rate (Stage) The average number of disk-to-cache
transfer operations per second that are not
prefetch operations and are processed in the
volume copy cache.
I/O Rate (Read) The average number of read operations per
second that are processed in the volume
copy cache. This value includes read
operations that are associated with
FlashCopy services, volume mirroring, and
other internal processes. This value might
also include some operations that are passed
from the volume cache.

Appendix A. Reference 301

 Table 119. Volume copy cache metrics for volumes (continued).
Metric Definition
I/O Rate (Total) The average number of read and write
operations per second that are processed by
the volume copy cache. This value includes
operations that are associated with
FlashCopy services, volume mirroring, and
other internal processes. This value might
also include some operations that are passed
from the volume cache.
I/O Rate (Write) The average number of write operations per
second that are processed by the volume
copy cache. This value includes read
operations that are associated with
FlashCopy services, volume mirroring, and
other internal processes. This value might
also include some operations that are passed
from the volume cache.
Response Time (Destage) The average number of milliseconds that it
took to complete each destage operation in
the volume copy cache. That is, the time that
it took to do write operations from the
volume copy cache to the disk.
Response Time (Prestage) The average number of milliseconds that it
took to complete each prestage operation in
the volume copy cache. That is, the time that
it took to prefetch data from the disk into
the volume copy cache.
Response Time (Stage) The average number of milliseconds that it
took to complete each stage operation in the
volume copy cache. That is, the time that it
took to do read operations from the disk to
the volume copy cache.
Transfer Rates (Cache-to-Disk) The average number of sectors that are
transferred per second from the volume
copy cache to the disks.
Transfer Rates (Disk-to-Cache) The average number of sectors that are
transferred per second from the disks to the
volume copy cache.
Write Delay Percentage (Flush-through) The percentage of write operations that are
written to disk in flush-through mode in the
volume copy cache.
Write Delay Percentage (Total Delay) The percentage of I/O operations that are
delayed because of space constraints in the
write cache, or because of other conditions
in the volume copy cache. The value is a
percentage of all operations.
Write Delay Percentage (Write-through) The percentage of write operations that are
written to disk in write-through mode in the
volume copy cache.
Write Delay Rate (Flush-through) The average number of sectors per second
that are written to disk in flush-through
mode in the volume copy cache.

302 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 119. Volume copy cache metrics for volumes (continued).
Metric Definition
Write Delay Rate (Total Delay) The average number of I/O operations per
second that are delayed. The delay might
occur because of space constraints in the
write cache, or because of other conditions
in the volume copy cache. The value is an
average of all operations.
Write Delay Rate (Write-through) The average number of sectors per second
that are written to disk in write-through
mode in the volume copy cache.
Note: *This metric is only available for SAN Volume Controller, Storwize, and FlashSystem
block storage systems whose firmware version is V7.4 or later.

Tip: Unless otherwise noted, you can view the volume metrics in Table 120 for the
following resources:
v Nodes
v I/O groups
v Host connections
v Storage systems
Table 120. Miscellaneous metrics for volumes.
Metric Definition
1
Cache to Host Transfer Response Time The average number of milliseconds that is
taken to transfer a track from the cache to
the host, including any queuing time that
occurs because of throttling.
Non-Preferred Node Usage Percentage2 The overall percentage of I/O operations
that are not directed against the preferred
node for each volume in an I/O Group.
There is a small performance penalty when
I/O does not go to the preferred node for
each volume.
Transfer Size (Read) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per read operation.
Transfer Size (Write) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per write operation.
Transfer Size (Overall) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per I/O operation. This value
includes both read and write operations.
Unaligned Write I/O Rate3 The average number of write operations per
second that are not aligned on a boundary
between 4 KB physical blocks. Unaligned
write operations can cause a significant
decrease in efficiency of write operations to
some types of back-end disks. You can
ignore this metric for iSeries servers.

Appendix A. Reference 303

 Table 120. Miscellaneous metrics for volumes (continued).
Metric Definition
Notes:
1. The metric is only available for SAN Volume Controller, Storwize, and FlashSystem
block storage systems whose firmware version is V7.3 or later.
2. This metric is only available when you view the performance of volumes, I/O groups,
and host connections.
3. This metric is only available when you view the performance of pools, volumes, and
host connections. The metric is only available for SAN Volume Controller, Storwize,
and FlashSystem block storage systems whose firmware version is V7.4 or later.

Legacy cache metrics are only available for SAN Volume Controller and Storwize
block storage systems whose firmware version is earlier than V7.3.
Table 121. Legacy cache metrics for volumes.
Metric Definition
Write-Cache Percentages (Flush-through) The percentage of tracks that are written to
disk in flush-through mode. This value
applies only to storage systems that are
running a version of IBM Spectrum
Virtualize earlier than V7.3.
Write-Cache Percentages (Write-through) The percentage of tracks that are written to
disk in write-through mode. This value
applies only to storage systems that are
running a version of IBM Spectrum
Virtualize earlier than V7.3.
Write-Cache Percentages (Overflow) The percentage of all write operations that
are handled in the cache. This value includes
both sequential and random write
operations, and write operations in the
volume cache and volume copy cache where
applicable.
Write-Cache I/O Rate (Flush-through) The average number of tracks per second
that are written to disk in flush-through
mode. This value applies only to storage
systems that are running a version of IBM
Spectrum Virtualize earlier than V7.3.
Write-Cache I/O Rate (Overflow) The average number of tracks per second
that are written but are delayed because
there is not enough space in the write cache.
This value applies only to storage systems
that are running a version of IBM Spectrum
Virtualize earlier than V7.3.
Write-Cache I/O Rate (Write-through) The average number of tracks per second
that are written to disk in write-through
mode. This value applies only to storage
systems that are running a version of IBM
Spectrum Virtualize earlier than V7.3.

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Table 121. Legacy cache metrics for volumes (continued).
Metric Definition
Dirty Write Percentage of Cache Hits The percentage of all cache write hits that
occur on data in the cache that is marked as
modified. This value represents how
effectively write operations are coalesced
before the data is written to disk. This value
applies only to storage systems that are
running a version of IBM Spectrum
Virtualize earlier than V7.3.

Disk performance metrics

Disk performance metrics are divided into the following categories:

v Key metrics for disks
v Response time metrics for disks
v Miscellaneous metrics for disks

Unless otherwise noted, you can view disk metrics for the following resources:
v Managed disks
v Pools
v Nodes
v I/O Groups
v Storage systems
Table 122. Key metrics for disks
Metric Definition
Data Rate (Read) The average number of MiB per second that
are read from the back-end storage
resources.
Data Rate (Write) The average number of MiB per second that
are written to the back-end storage
resources.
Data Rate (Total) The average rate at which data is
transmitted between the back-end storage
resources and the component. The rate is
measured in MiB per second and includes
both read and write operations.
I/O Rate (Read)1 The average number of read operations per
second that are issued to the back-end
storage resources.
I/O Rate (Write)2 The average number of write operations per
second that are issued to the back-end
storage resources.
I/O Rate (Total)3 The average number of I/O operations per
second that are transmitted between the
back-end storage resources and the
component. This value includes both read
and write operations.
Response Time (Read) The average number of milliseconds for the
back-end storage resources to respond to a
read operation.

Appendix A. Reference 305

 Table 122. Key metrics for disks (continued)
Metric Definition
Response Time (Write) The average number of milliseconds for the
back-end storage resources to respond to a
write operation.
Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds for the
back-end storage resources to respond to a
read or a write operation.
Notes:
1. The performance metrics for I/O Rate (Read) are available for pools, nodes, I/O
groups, and storage systems.
2. The performance metrics for I/O Rate (Write) are available for pools, nodes, I/O
groups, and storage systems.
3. The performance metrics for I/O Rate (Total) are available for pools, nodes, I/O
groups, and storage systems.

Table 123. Response time metrics for disks

Metric Definition
Queue Time (Read) The average number of milliseconds that a
read operation spends in the queue before
the operation is sent to the back-end storage
resources.
Queue Time (Write) The average number of milliseconds that a
write operation spends in the queue before
the operation is sent to the back-end storage
resources.
Queue Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds that a
read or a write operation spends in the
queue before the operation is sent to the
back-end storage resources.
Peak Back-end Queue Time (Read) The longest time that a read operation
spends in the queue before the operation is
sent to the back-end storage resources.
Peak Back-end Queue Time (Write) The longest time that a write operation
spends in the queue before the operation is
sent to the back-end storage resources.
Peak Back-end Response Time (Read) The longest time for a back-end storage
resource to respond to a read operation.
Peak Back-end Response Time (Write) The longest time for a back-end storage
resource to respond to a write operation by
a node.

Table 124. Miscellaneous metrics for disks

Metric Definition
Transfer Size (Read) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per read operation from the
back-end storage resources.
Transfer Size (Write) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per write operation to the
back-end storage resources.

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Table 124. Miscellaneous metrics for disks (continued)
Metric Definition
Transfer Size (Overall) The average transfer size, in KiB, of a read
or a write operation to the back-end storage
resources.
Cache Destage (In-Flight I/O)* The actual number of concurrent operations
that are issued from the cache to the
managed disk. The number of in-flight
operations cannot exceed the target, but also
varies over time, depending on the type of
I/O operations and on the performance of
the managed disk.
Cache Destage (Target I/O)* The maximum number of concurrent
operations that can be issued from the cache
to the managed disk. This target changes
over time, depending on changes in cache
utilization and on changes in the
performance of the managed disk.
Note: *This metric is only available when you view the performance of managed disks.
The metric is only available for SAN Volume Controller, Storwize, and FlashSystem block
storage systems whose firmware version is V7.3 or later.

Port performance metrics

Port performance metrics are divided into the following categories:

v Key metrics for ports
v I/O rate metrics for ports
v Data rate metrics for ports
v Response time metrics for ports
v Error rate metrics for ports
v Miscellaneous metrics for ports

Unless otherwise noted, you can view port metrics for the following resources:
v Ports
v Nodes
v I/O Groups
v Storage systems
Table 125. Key metrics for ports
Metric Definition
I/O Rate (Receive) The average number of I/O operations per
second for operations in which the port
receives data.
I/O Rate (Send) The average number of I/O operations per
second for operations in which data is sent
from a port.
I/O Rate (Total) The average number of send operations and
receive operations per second.
Data Rate (Receive) The average number of I/O operations per
second for operations in which the port
receives data.

Appendix A. Reference 307

 Table 125. Key metrics for ports (continued)
Metric Definition
Data Rate (Send) The average number of I/O operations per
second for operations in which data is sent
from a port.
Data Rate (Total) The average rate at which data is transferred
through the port. The rate is measured in
MiB per second and includes both send and
receive operations.

Table 126. I/O rate metrics for ports

Metric Definition
Port-to-Disk I/O Rate (Receive) The average number of exchanges per
second that are received from back-end
storage resources.
Port-to-Disk I/O Rate (Send) The average number of exchanges per
second that are sent to back-end storage
resources.
Port-to-Disk I/O Rate (Total) The average number of exchanges per
second that are transmitted between
back-end storage resources and the
component. This value includes both send
and receive operations.
Port-to-Host I/O Rate (Receive) The average number of exchanges per
second that are received from host
computers.
Port-to-Host I/O Rate (Send) The average number of exchanges per
second that are sent to host computers.
Port-to-Host I/O Rate (Total) The average number of exchanges per
second that are transmitted between host
computers and the component.
Port-to-Local Node I/O Rate (Receive) The average number of exchanges per
second that are received from other nodes
that are in the local cluster.
Port-to-Local Node I/O Rate (Send) The average number of exchanges per
second that are sent to other nodes that are
in the local cluster.
Port-to-Local Node I/O Rate (Total) The average number of exchanges per
second that are transmitted between the
component and other nodes that are in the
local cluster.
Port-to-Remote Node I/O Rate (Receive) The average number of exchanges per
second that are received from nodes that are
in the remote cluster.
Port-to-Remote Node I/O Rate (Send) The average number of exchanges per
second that are sent to nodes that are in the
remote cluster.
Port-to-Remote Node I/O Rate (Total) The average number of exchanges per
second that are transmitted between the
component and nodes that are in the remote
cluster.

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Table 127. Data rate metrics for ports
Metric Definition
Port-to-Disk Data Rate (Receive) The average rate at which data is received
from back-end storage resources. The rate is
measured in MiB per second.
Port-to-Disk Data Rate (Send) The average rate at which data is sent to
back-end storage resources. The rate is
measured in MiB per second.
Port-to-Disk Data Rate (Total) The average rate at which data is
transmitted between back-end storage
resources and the component. The rate is
measured in MiB per second and includes
both send and receive operations.
Port-to-Host Data Rate (Receive) The average rate at which data is received
from host computers. The rate is measured
in MiB per second.
Port-to-Host Data Rate (Send) The average rate at which data is sent to
host computers. The rate is measured in MiB
per second.
Port-to-Host Data Rate (Total) The average rate at which data is
transmitted between host computers and the
component. The rate is measured in MiB per
second and includes both send and receive
operations.
Port-to-Local Node Data Rate (Receive) The average rate at which data is received
from other nodes that are in the local cluster.
The rate is measured in MiB per second.
Port-to-Local Node Data Rate (Send) The average rate at which data is sent to
other nodes that are in the local cluster. The
rate is measured in MiB per second.
Port-to-Local Node Data Rate (Total) The average rate at which data is
transmitted between the component and
other nodes that are in the local cluster. The
rate is measured in MiB per second.
Port-to-Remote Node Data Rate (Receive) The average rate at which data is received
from nodes that are in the remote cluster.
The rate is measured in MiB per second.
Port-to-Remote Node Data Rate (Send) The average rate at which data is sent to
nodes that are in the remote cluster. The rate
is measured in MiB per second.
Port-to-Remote Node Data Rate (Total) The average rate at which data is
transmitted between the component and
nodes that are in the remote cluster. The rate
is measured in MiB per second.

Table 128. Response time metrics for ports

Metric Definition
Port-to-Local Node Response Time (Receive) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a receive operation from another
node that is in the local cluster. This value
represents the external response time of the
transfers.

Appendix A. Reference 309

 Table 128. Response time metrics for ports (continued)
Metric Definition
Port-to-Local Node Response Time (Send) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a send operation to another node
that is in the local cluster. This value
represents the external response time of the
transfers.
Port-to-Local Node Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a send or receive operation with
another node that is in the local cluster. This
value represents the external response time
of the transfers.
Port-to-Remote Node Response Time The average number of milliseconds to
(Overall) complete a send operation to, or a receive
operation from a node in the remote cluster.
This value represents the external response
time of the transfers.
Port-to-Remote Node Response Time The average number of milliseconds to
(Receive) complete a receive operation from a node
that is in the remote cluster. This value
represents the external response time of the
transfers.
Port-to-Remote Node Response Time (Send) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a send operation to a node that is
in the remote cluster. This value represents
the external response time of the transfers.
Port-to-Remote Node Response Time The average number of milliseconds to
(Overall) complete a send operation to, or a receive
operation from a node in the remote cluster.
This value represents the external response
time of the transfers.

Metrics availability restrictions: The response time metrics are available for
nodes, I/O groups, and storage system.
Table 129. Error rate metrics for ports
Metric Definition
CRC Error Rate The average number of frames per second
that are received in which a cyclic
redundancy check (CRC) error is detected. A
CRC error is detected when the CRC in the
transmitted frame does not match the CRC
computed by the receiver. For Brocade
switches, this metric includes only the CRC
Errors with a good end-of-frame (EOF)
indicator.
Link Errors (Invalid Link Transmission Rate) The average number of bit errors per second
that are detected.
Link Errors (Invalid Transmission Word The average number of bit errors per second
Rate) that are detected.

310 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 129. Error rate metrics for ports (continued)
Metric Definition
Link Errors (Link Failures) The average number of miscellaneous fibre
channel link errors per second for ports.
Link errors might occur when an
unexpected Not Operational (NOS) is
received or a link state machine failure was
detected.
Link Errors (Primitive Sequence Protocol The average number of primitive sequence
Error Rate) protocol errors per second that are detected.
This error occurs when there is a link failure
for a port.
Link Errors (Signal Loss) The average number of times per second at
which the port lost communication with its
partner port. These types of errors usually
indicate physical link problems, caused by
faulty SFP modules or cables, or caused by
faulty connections at the switch or patch
panel. However, in some cases, this error
can also occur when the maximum link
distance between ports is exceeded, for the
type of connecting cable and light source.
Link Errors (Sync Loss) The average number of times per second
that the port lost synchronization with its
partner port. These types of errors usually
indicate physical link problems, caused by
faulty SFP modules or cables, or caused by
faulty connections at the switch or patch
panel. However in some cases this can also
occur due to mismatching port speeds
between the partner ports, when
auto-negotiation of link speed is disabled.
Port Congestion Index* The estimated degree to which frame
transmission was delayed due to a lack of
buffer credits. This value is generally 0 - 100.
The value 0 means there was no congestion.
The value can exceed 100 if the buffer credit
exhaustion persisted for an extended
amount of time. When you troubleshoot a
SAN, use this metric to help identify port
conditions that might slow the performance
of the resources to which those ports are
connected.
Port Protocol Errors (Zero Buffer Credit The amount of time, as a percentage, that
Percentage) the port was not able to send frames
between ports because of insufficient
buffer-to-buffer credit. The amount of time
value is measured from the last time that the
node was reset. In Fibre Channel technology,
buffer-to-buffer credit is used to control the
flow of frames between ports.

Appendix A. Reference 311

 Table 129. Error rate metrics for ports (continued)
Metric Definition
Port Protocol Errors (Zero Buffer Credit The number of microseconds that the port is
Timer) not able to send frames between ports
because there is insufficient buffer-to-buffer
credit. In Fibre Channel technology,
buffer-to-buffer credit is used to control the
flow of frames between ports.
Buffer-to-buffer credit is measured from the
last time that the node was reset.
Note: *The performance metric for Port Congestion Index is only available for ports.

Table 130. Miscellaneous metrics for ports

Metric Definition
Port-to-Local Node Queue Time (Receive) The average time in milliseconds that a
receive operation spends in the queue before
the operation is processed. This value
represents the queue time for receive
operations that are issued from other nodes
that are in the local cluster.
Port-to-Local Node Queue Time (Send) The average time in milliseconds that a send
operation spends in the queue before the
operation is processed. This value represents
the queue time for send operations that are
issued to other nodes that are in the local
cluster.
Port-to-Local Node Queue Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds that a
send or receive operation spends in the
queue before the operation is processed.
This value is for send and receive operations
that are issued between the component and
other nodes that are in the local cluster.
Port-to-Remote Node Queue Time (Receive) The average time in milliseconds that a
receive operation spends in the queue before
the operation is processed. This value
represents the queue time for receive
operations that are issued from a node that
is in the remote cluster.
Port-to-Remote Node Queue Time (Send) The average time in milliseconds that a send
operation spends in the queue before the
operation is processed. This value represents
the queue time for send operations that are
issued to a node that is in the remote cluster.
Port-to-Remote Node Queue Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds that a
send or receive operation spends in the
queue before the operation is processed.
This value is for send and receive operations
that are issued between the component and
a node that is in the remote cluster.

Node performance metrics

Unless otherwise noted, you can view node metrics for the following resources:
v Nodes

312 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

v I/O Groups
v Storage systems
Table 131. Metrics for nodes.
Metric Definition
CPU Utilization (System CPU) The average percentage of time that the
processors on nodes are busy doing system
I/O tasks.
CPU Utilization (Compression CPU) The average percentage of time that the
processors used for data compression I/O
tasks are busy.
System CPU Utilization (Core 1 to Core 4) The approximate percentage of time that the
processor core was busy with system I/O
tasks.
Compression CPU Utilization (Core 1 to The approximate percentage of time that the
Core 4) processor core was busy with data
compression tasks.

Performance metrics for XIV and IBM Spectrum Accelerate

Monitor the performance metrics that are collected for XIV systems and IBM
Spectrum Accelerate.

For XIV systems, performance metrics are available for the following resources:
v “Volume metrics”
v “Port metrics” on page 317

For IBM Spectrum Accelerate, performance metrics are available for the following
resource:
v “Volume metrics”

Restriction: XIV systems and IBM Spectrum Accelerate do not track performance
statistics for volumes that were never used. Because there are no performance
statistics, performance metrics are not shown for these volumes and their related
components.

Volume metrics

Volume performance metrics are organized into the following categories:

v Key storage metrics
v Cache hit percentage metrics
v Response time metrics
v Miscellaneous metrics
Unless otherwise noted, you can view volume metrics for the following resources:
v Volumes
v Pools
v Modules
v Host connections
v Storage systems

Appendix A. Reference 313

 Table 132. Key volume metrics
Metric Description
Data Rate (Read) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for read operations.
Data Rate (Write) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for write operations.
Data Rate (Total) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for read operations and write
operations.
Overall I/O Rate (Read) The average number of read operations per
second. This value includes both sequential
and nonsequential read operations.
Overall I/O Rate (Write) The average number of write operations per
second. This value includes both sequential
and nonsequential write operations.
Overall I/O Rate (Total) The average number of read operations and
write operations per second. This value
includes both sequential and nonsequential
operations.
Response Time (Read) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a read operation.
Response Time (Write) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a write operation.
Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds to
complete an I/O operation. This value
includes both read and write operations.
Important: For XIV systems, all the key storage metrics are available for version 10.2.2 or
later.

Table 133. Cache hit percentage metrics

Metric Description
2
Data Cache Hits (Read) The percentage of all read data that is read
from the cache.
Data Cache Hits (Write)2 The percentage of all write data that is
written to cache slots that are marked as
modified.
Data Cache Hits (Overall)2 The percentage of all data that is handled in
the cache. This value includes read data that
is read from the cache and write data that is
written to cache slots that are marked as
modified.
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Read)1 The percentage of all read operations that
find data in the cache. This value includes
both sequential and random read operations,
and read operations in the volume cache
and volume copy cache where applicable.
You can use this value to understand
throughput or response times. Low cache-hit
percentages can increase response times
because in the event of cache miss, the data
must be read from the back-end storage
resources.

314 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 133. Cache hit percentage metrics (continued)
Metric Description
1
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Write) The average percentage of all write
operations that are handled in the cache,
across all volumes on the server. This value
includes both sequential and nonsequential
write operations.
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Total)1 The percentage of all read operations and
write operations that are handled in the
cache. This value includes both sequential
and random read and write operations, and
read and write operations in the volume
cache and volume copy cache where
applicable.You can use this value to
understand throughput or response times.
Low cache-hit percentages can increase
response times because a cache miss requires
access to the back-end storage resources.
SSD Read Cache Hits (I/O)2 The percentage of read operations that find
data in the cache on a solid-state drive
(SSD). The value for this metric is also
included in the value for the Overall Read
Cache Hit Percentage metric. This metric is
only available for XIV systems that use
solid-state drives as drives for caching.
SSD Read Cache Hits (Data)2 The percentage of all read data that was
read from cache memory on a solid-state
drive. This metric is only available for XIV
systems that use solid-state drives as drives
for caching.
Notes:
1. For XIV systems, this metric is available in version 10.2.2 or later.
2. For XIV systems, this metric is available in version 10.2.4 or later.

Table 134. Response time metrics

Metric Description
Cache Hit Response Time (Read) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a read-cache hit operation.
Cache Hit Response Time (Write) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a write-cache hit operation.
Cache Hit Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a cache hit operation. This value
includes the times for both read-cache hit
and write-cache hit operations.
Cache Miss Response Time (Read) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a read-cache miss operation.
Cache Miss Response Time (Write) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a write-cache miss operation.
Cache Miss Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a cache miss operation. This value
includes the times for both read-cache miss
and write-cache miss operations.

Appendix A. Reference 315

 Table 134. Response time metrics (continued)
Metric Description
Response Time by Transfer Size (Small) The average number of milliseconds to
complete an I/O operation that has a small
data transfer size. A small data transfer has
a size that is less than or equal to 8 KiB.
Response Time by Transfer Size (Medium) The average number of milliseconds to
complete an I/O operation that has a
medium data transfer size. A medium data
transfer has a size that is greater than 8 KiB
and less than or equal to 64 KiB.
Response Time by Transfer Size (Large) The average number of milliseconds to
complete an I/O operation that has a large
data transfer size. A large data transfer has a
size that is greater than 64 KiB and less than
or equal to 512 KiB.
Response Time by Transfer Size (Very Large) The average number of milliseconds to
complete an I/O operation with a data
transfer size that is greater than 512 KiB.
SSD Read Cache Hit Response Time The average number of milliseconds that it
takes to complete a hit operation on the read
cache on a solid-state drive. The value for
this metric is also included in the value for
the Read Cache Hit Response Time
metric.This metric is only available for XIV
systems that use solid-state drives as drives
for caching.
Note: For XIV systems, all the response time metrics are available for version 10.2.2 or
later.

Table 135. Miscellaneous metrics

Metric Description
1
Average Transfer Size (Read) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per read operation.
Average Transfer Size (Write)1 The average number of KiB that are
transferred per write operation.
Average Transfer Size (Overall)1 The average number of KiB that are
transferred per I/O operation. This value
includes both read and write operations.
I/O Transfer Size (Small)2 The percentage of I/O operations with a
small data transfer size. A small data
transfer has a size that is less than or equal
to 8 KiB.
I/O Transfer Size (Medium)2 The percentage of I/O operations with a
medium data transfer size. A medium data
transfer has a size that is greater than 8 KiB
and less than or equal to 64 KiB.
I/O Transfer Size (Large)2 The percentage of I/O operations with a
large data transfer size. A large data transfer
has a size that is greater than 64 KiB and
less than or equal to 512 KiB.

316 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 135. Miscellaneous metrics (continued)
Metric Description
2
I/O Transfer Size (Very Large) The percentage of I/O operations with a
data transfer size that is greater than 512
KiB.
2
Data Transfer Size (Small) The percentage of data that is transferred as
a result of I/O operations with a small data
transfer size. A small data transfer has a size
that is less than or equal to 8 KiB.
2
Data Transfer Size (Medium) The percentage of data that is transferred as
a result of I/O operations with a medium
data transfer size. A medium data transfer
has a size that is greater than 8 KiB and less
than or equal to 64 KiB.
Data Transfer Size (Large)2 The percentage of data that is transferred as
a result of I/O operations with a large data
transfer size. A large data transfer has a size
that is greater than 64 KiB and less than or
equal to 512 KiB.
Data Transfer Size (Very Large)2 The percentage of data that is transferred as
a result of I/O operations with a data
transfer size that is greater than 512 KiB.
Volume Utilization1, 3 The average percentage of time that the
volume is busy.
Pool Utilization1, 3 The average percentage of time that the
volumes in the pool are busy.
Notes:
1. For XIV systems, this metric is available in version 10.2.2 or later.
2. For XIV systems, this metric is available in version 10.2.4 or later.
3. This metric is only available when you view the performance of pools.

Port metrics

The following performance metrics for ports are available for XIV systems that are
version 10.2.4 or later:
v I/O rate metrics
v Data rate metrics
v Response time metrics
v Miscellaneous port metrics

Restriction: Port metrics are not available for IBM Spectrum Accelerate.
Table 136. I/O rate metrics
Metric Description
I/O Rate (Send) The average number of I/O operations per
second for operations in which data is sent
from a port.
I/O Rate (Receive) The average number of I/O operations per
second for operations in which the port
receives data.

Appendix A. Reference 317

 Table 136. I/O rate metrics (continued)
Metric Description
I/O Rate (Total) The average number of send operations and
receive operations per second.

Table 137. Data rate metrics

Metric Description
Data Rate (Send) The average rate at which data is sent
through the port. The rate is measured in
MiB per second.
Data Rate (Receive) The average rate at which data is received
by the port. The rate is measured in MiB per
second.
Data Rate (Total) The average rate at which data is transferred
through the port. The rate is measured in
MiB per second and includes both send and
receive operations.

Table 138. Response time metrics

Metric Description
Response Time (Send) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a send operation.
Response Time (Receive) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a receive operation.
Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a send or receive operation.

Table 139. Miscellaneous port metrics

Metric Description
Bandwidth (Send) The percentage of the port bandwidth that is
used for send operations. This value is an
indicator of port bandwidth usage that is
based on the speed of the port.
Bandwidth (Receive) The percentage of the port bandwidth that is
used for receive operations. This value is an
indicator of port bandwidth usage that is
based on the speed of the port.
Bandwidth (Overall) The percentage of the port bandwidth that is
used for send operations and receive
operations. This value is an indicator of port
bandwidth usage that is based on the speed
of the port.

Performance metrics for ESS

Monitor the performance metrics that are collected for IBM TotalStorage Enterprise
Storage Server® systems.

Performance metrics are available for the following resources:

v “Volume metrics” on page 319
v “Disk metrics” on page 322

318 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

v “Port metrics” on page 324

When you view metrics for ESS systems, you must take into account the following
differences between IBM Spectrum Control reports and the native reports of those
systems:
v IBM Spectrum Control reports display port performance metrics as send and
receive metrics, such as Data Rate (Send) and Data Rate (Receive).
v Reports that are included with storage systems (for example, reports based on
data that is collected by the DS CLI) display port performance metrics as read
and write metrics, such as Byteread and Bytewrite.

Volume metrics

Volume performance metrics are organized into the following categories:

v Key volume metrics
v I/O rate metrics
v Cache hit percentage metrics
v Miscellaneous metrics
Unless otherwise noted, you can view volume metrics for the following resources:
v Host connections
v Nodes
v Pools
v RAID arrays
v Storage systems
v Volumes
Table 140. Key volume metrics.
Metric Description
Data Rate (Read) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for read operations.
Data Rate (Write) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for write operations.
Data Rate (Total) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for read operations and write
operations.
Cache Holding Time* The average number of seconds that I/O
data for a storage system node is held in the
cache. A short cache-holding time indicates
adverse performance.
Write-Cache Delay Percentage The percentage of I/O operations that are
delayed because of space constraints in the
write cache, or because of other conditions.
The value is a percentage of all operations.
Overall I/O Rate (Read) The average number of read operations per
second. This value includes both sequential
and nonsequential read operations.
Overall I/O Rate (Write) The average number of write operations per
second. This value includes both sequential
and nonsequential write operations.

Appendix A. Reference 319

 Table 140. Key volume metrics (continued).
Metric Description
Overall I/O Rate (Total) The average number of read operations and
write operations per second. This value
includes both sequential and nonsequential
operations.
Response Time (Read) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a read operation.
Response Time (Write) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a write operation.
Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds to
complete an I/O operation. This value
includes both read and write operations.
Note: * This metric is only available when you view the performance of nodes and storage
systems.

Table 141. I/O rate metrics.

Metric Description
Average Transfer Rate (Cache-to-Disk) The average number of sectors or tracks per
second that are transferred from the cache to
the disks.
Average Transfer Rate (Disk-to-Cache) The percentage of cache hits for
record-mode read operations. For
record-mode read operations, only the
requested data, rather than a full track of
data, is managed in the cache.
Normal I/O Rate (Read) The average number of nonsequential read
operations per second.
Normal I/O Rate (Write) The average number of nonsequential write
operations per second.
Normal I/O Rate (Total) The average number of nonsequential I/O
operations per second. This value includes
both read and write operations.
PPRC Transfer Rate The average number of tracks per second
that are transferred to the secondary device
of a Peer-to-Peer Remote Copy (PPRC) pair.
This value shows the activity for the source
of the PPRC relationship, but shows no
activity for the target.
Record Mode Read I/O Rate The average number of I/O operations per
second for record-mode read operations. For
record-mode read operations, only the
requested data is managed in the cache
rather than a full track of data.
Sequential I/O Rate (Read) The average number of sequential read
operations per second.
Sequential I/O Rate (Write) The average number of sequential write
operations per second.
Sequential I/O Rate (Total) The average number of sequential I/O
operations per second. This value includes
both read and write operations.

320 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 141. I/O rate metrics (continued).
Metric Description
Write-Cache Delay I/O Rate The average number of I/O operations per
second that are delayed because of space
constraints in the write cache, or because of
other conditions.
Write-Cache Delay Percentage The percentage of I/O operations that are
delayed because of space constraints in the
write cache, or because of other conditions.
The value is a percentage of all operations.

Table 142. Cache hit percentage metrics.

Metric Description
Normal I/O Cache Hits (Read) The percentage of nonsequential read
operations that find data in the cache.You
can use this value to understand throughput
or response times. Low cache-hit percentages
can increase response times because a cache
miss requires access to the back-end storage
resources.
Normal I/O Cache Hits (Write) The percentage of nonsequential write
operations that are handled in the cache.
Normal I/O Cache Hits (Total) The percentage of nonsequential I/O
operations that are handled in the cache.
This value includes both read and write
operations.You can use this value to
understand throughput or response times.
Low cache-hit percentages can increase
response times because a cache miss requires
access to the back-end storage resources.
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Read) The percentage of all read operations that
find data in the cache. This value includes
both sequential and random read operations,
and read operations in the volume cache
and volume copy cache where applicable.
You can use this value to understand
throughput or response times. Low cache-hit
percentages can increase response times
because in the event of cache miss, the data
must be read from the back-end storage
resources.
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Write) The average percentage of all write
operations that are handled in the cache,
across all volumes on the server. This value
includes both sequential and nonsequential
write operations.

Appendix A. Reference 321

 Table 142. Cache hit percentage metrics (continued).
Metric Description
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Total) The percentage of all read operations and
write operations that are handled in the
cache. This value includes both sequential
and random read and write operations, and
read and write operations in the volume
cache and volume copy cache where
applicable.You can use this value to
understand throughput or response times.
Low cache-hit percentages can increase
response times because a cache miss requires
access to the back-end storage resources.
Record Mode Read Cache Hit Percentage The percentage of cache hits for
record-mode read operations. For
record-mode read operations, only the
requested data, rather than a full track of
data, is managed in the cache.
Sequential I/O Cache Hits (Read) The percentage of sequential read operations
that find data in the cache. You can use this
value to understand throughput or response
times. Low cache-hit percentages can
increase response times because a cache miss
requires access to the back-end storage
resources.
Sequential I/O Cache Hits (Write) The percentage of sequential write
operations that are handled in the cache.
Sequential I/O Cache Hits (Total) The percentage of sequential I/O operations
that are handled in the cache. This value
includes both read and write operations.You
can use this value to understand throughput
or response times. Low cache-hit percentages
can increase response times because a cache
miss requires access to the back-end storage
resources.

Table 143. Miscellaneous metrics.

Metric Description
Average Transfer Size (Read) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per read operation.
Average Transfer Size (Write) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per write operation.
Average Transfer Size (Overall) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per I/O operation. This value
includes both read and write operations.
Volume Utilization* The average percentage of time that the
volume is busy.
*
Note: This metric is only available when you view the performance of volumes.

Disk metrics

Disk performance metrics are organized into the following categories:

v Key disk metrics

322 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

v Transfer size metrics
v Utilization metrics
Unless otherwise noted, you can view disk metrics for the following resources:
v Nodes
v Pools
v RAID arrays
v Rank
v Storage systems
Table 144. Key disk metrics.
Metric Description
Data Rate (Read) The average number of MiB per second that
are read from the back-end storage
resources.
Data Rate (Write) The average number of MiB per second that
are written to the back-end storage
resources.
Data Rate (Total) The average rate at which data is
transmitted between the back-end storage
resources and the component. The rate is
measured in MiB per second and includes
both read and write operations.
I/O Rate (Read) The average number of read operations per
second that are issued to the back-end
storage resources.
I/O Rate (Write) The average number of write operations per
second that are issued to the back-end
storage resources.
I/O Rate (Total) The average number of I/O operations per
second that are transmitted between the
back-end storage resources and the
component. This value includes both read
and write operations.
Response Time (Read) The average number of milliseconds for the
back-end storage resources to respond to a
read operation.
Response Time (Write) The average number of milliseconds for the
back-end storage resources to respond to a
write operation.
Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds for the
back-end storage resources to respond to a
read or a write operation.

Table 145. Transfer size metrics.

Metric Description
Average Transfer Size (Read) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per read operation from the
back-end storage resources.
Average Transfer Size (Write) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per write operation to the
back-end storage resources.

Appendix A. Reference 323

 Table 145. Transfer size metrics (continued).
Metric Description
Average Transfer Size (Overall) The average transfer size, in KiB, of a read
or a write operation to the back-end storage
resources.

Table 146. Utilization metrics.

Metric Internal resources Description
Disk Utilization RAID array The average percentage of
time that the disks that are
associated with an array are
busy. No value is calculated
for this property if there are
multiple ranks in the extent
pool where the
thin-provisioned volumes are
allocated. In this case, the
value N/A is displayed for
this property. This limitation
applies only to DS8000
storage systems.
Tip: IBM Spectrum Control
does not calculate a value for
this column if there are
multiple ranks in the extent
pool where thin-provisioned
volumes are allocated. This
column displays value of
N/A for the reports in which
it is displayed. However, if
there is only a single rank in
the extent pool, IBM
Spectrum Control does
calculate the value for this
column regardless of the
thin-provisioned volumes.
Sequential I/O Percentage RAID array Percentage of all I/O
operations that were
completed for a RAID array
over a specified time interval
that were sequential
operations.

Port metrics

Port performance metrics are organized into the following categories:

v Key port metrics
v I/O rate metrics
v Data rate metrics
v Response time metrics
v Remote mirror metrics
v Transfer size metrics

324 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 147. Key port metrics.
Metric Resources Description
Bandwidth (Send) Port The percentage of the port
bandwidth that is used for
send operations. This value
is an indicator of port
bandwidth usage that is
based on the speed of the
port.
Bandwidth (Receive) Port The percentage of the port
bandwidth that is used for
receive operations. This
value is an indicator of port
bandwidth usage that is
based on the speed of the
port.
Bandwidth (Overall) Port The percentage of the port
bandwidth that is used for
send operations and receive
operations. This value is an
indicator of port bandwidth
usage that is based on the
speed of the port.
Data Rate (Send) Port, storage system The average rate at which
data is sent through the port.
The rate is measured in MiB
per second.
Data Rate (Receive) Port, storage system The average rate at which
data is received by the port.
The rate is measured in MiB
per second.
Data Rate (Total) Port, storage system The average rate at which
data is transferred through
the port. The rate is
measured in MiB per second
and includes both send and
receive operations.
I/O Rate (Send) Port, storage system The average number of I/O
operations per second for
operations in which data is
sent from a port.
I/O Rate (Receive) Port, storage system The average number of I/O
operations per second for
operations in which the port
receives data.
I/O Rate (Total) Port, storage system The average number of send
operations and receive
operations per second.
Port Utilization (Send) Port The average percentage of
time that the port is busy
sending data.
Port Utilization (Receive) Port The average percentage of
time that the port is busy
receiving data.

Appendix A. Reference 325

 Table 147. Key port metrics (continued).
Metric Resources Description
Port Utilization (Overall) Port The average percentage of
time that the port is busy
sending or receiving data.
Response Time (Send) Port, storage system The average number of
milliseconds to complete a
send operation.
Response Time (Receive) Port, storage system The average number of
milliseconds to complete a
receive operation.
Response Time (Overall) Port, storage system The average number of
milliseconds to complete a
send or receive operation.

Table 148. I/O rate metrics.

Metric Resources Description
FICON I/O Rate (Send) Port The average number of send
operations per second for
Fibre Channel connection
(FICON) usage.
FICON I/O Rate (Receive) Port The average number of
receive operations per second
for FICON usage.
FICON I/O Rate (Total) Port The average number of send
and receive operations per
second for FICON usage.
FCP I/O Rate (Send) Port The average number of send
operations per second for
Fibre Channel Protocol (FCP)
usage.
FCP I/O Rate (Receive) Port The average number of
receive operations per second
for FCP usage.
FCP I/O Rate (Total) Port The average number of send
operations and receive
operations per second for
FCP usage.

Table 149. Data rate metrics.

Metric Resources Description
FICON Data Rate (Send) Port The average number of MiB
per second that is sent for
FICON usage.
FICON Data Rate (Receive) Port The average number of MiB
per second that is received
for FICON usage.
FICON I/O Rate (Total) Port The average number of MiB
per second that is transferred
for FICON usage. This value
includes both send and
receive FICON operations.

326 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 149. Data rate metrics (continued).
Metric Resources Description
FCP Data Rate (Send) Port The average number of MiB
per second that are sent for
FCP usage.
FCP Data Rate (Receive) Port The average number of MiB
per second that are received
for FCP usage.
FCP Data Rate (Total) Port The average number of MiB
per second that are
transferred for FCP usage.
This value includes both
send and receive FCP
operations.

Table 150. Response time metrics.

Metric Resources Description
FICON Response Time Port The average number of
(Send) milliseconds to complete a
send operation for FICON
usage.
FICON Response Time Port The average number of
(Receive) milliseconds to complete a
receive operation for FICON
usage.
FICON Response Time Port The average number of
(Overall) milliseconds to complete a
send or receive operation for
FICON usage. This value
includes both send and
receive FICON operations.
FCP Response Time (Send) Port The average number of
milliseconds to complete a
send operation for FICON
usage.
FCP Response Time (Receive) Port The average number of
milliseconds to complete a
receive operation for FICON
usage.
FCP Response Time (Overall) Port The average number of send
operations and receive
operations per second for
FCP usage.

Table 151. Remote mirror metrics.

Metric Resources Description
PPRC Data Rate (Send) Port, storage system The average number of MiB
per second that are sent by
using the Peer-to-Peer
Remote Copy protocol.

Appendix A. Reference 327

 Table 151. Remote mirror metrics (continued).
Metric Resources Description
PPRC Data Rate (Receive) Port, storage system The average number of MiB
per second that are received
by using the Peer-to-Peer
Remote Copy protocol.
PPRC Data Rate (Total) Port, storage system The average number of MiB
per second that are
transferred by using the
Peer-to-Peer Remote Copy
(PPRC) protocol. This value
includes both send and
receive PPRC operations.
PPRC I/O Rate (Send) Port, storage system The average number of
operations per second that
are sent by using the
Peer-to-Peer Remote Copy
protocol.
PPRC I/O Rate (Receive) Port, storage system The average number of
operations per second that
are received by using the
Peer-to-Peer Remote Copy
protocol.
PPRC I/O Rate (Total) Port, storage system The average number of send
operations and receive
operations per second using
the Peer-to-Peer Remote
Copy protocol.
PPRC Response Time (Send) Port, storage system The average number of
milliseconds to complete a
send operation by using the
Peer-to-Peer Remote Copy
protocol.
PPRC Response Time Port, storage system The average number of
(Receive) milliseconds to complete a
receive operation by using
the Peer-to-Peer Remote
Copy protocol.
PPRC Response Time Port, storage system The average number of
(Overall) milliseconds to complete a
send or receive operation by
using the Peer-to-Peer
Remote Copy (PPRC)
protocol.

Table 152. Transfer size metrics.

Metric Resources Description
Average Transfer Size (Send) Port, storage system The average number of KiB
that are transferred per send
operation.
Average Transfer Size Port, storage system The average number of KiB
(Receive) that are transferred per
receive operation.

328 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 152. Transfer size metrics (continued).
Metric Resources Description
Average Transfer Size Port, storage system The average number of KiB
(Overall) that are transferred per I/O
operation. This value
includes both send and
receive operations.

Performance metrics for IBM Spectrum Scale

Monitor the performance metrics that are collected for IBM Spectrum Scale storage
systems.

Overview

The performance metrics are divided into the following categories:

v “Node performance metrics”
v “File system performance metrics” on page 330

Node performance metrics

You can view the following metrics for each GPFS cluster node.
Table 153. Metrics for nodes.
Metric Definition
CPU Utilization (User) The average percentage of time that the
processors on a node are busy doing user
tasks.
CPU Utilization (System) The average percentage of time that the
processors on a node are busy doing system
tasks.
CPU Utilization (Total) The average percentage of time that the
processors on a node are busy doing user
tasks and system tasks.
Memory Used (Cache and Buffer) The average percentage of memory on a
node that is used for cache and buffer
memory.
Memory Used The average percentage of memory that is
used on a node. This value does not include
the memory that is used for cache and
buffer memory.
Memory Used (Total) The average percentage of memory that is
used on a node. This value includes the
memory that is used for cache and buffer
memory.
I/O Rate (Read) The average number of read operations per
second.
I/O Rate (Write) The average number of write operations per
second.
I/O Rate (Total) The average number of read operations and
write operations per second.

Appendix A. Reference 329

 File system performance metrics

You can view file system metrics for the following resources:
v File systems
v IBM Spectrum Scale storage systems

Tip: For a storage system, the metrics contain summary values for all the file
systems on the storage system.
Table 154. Metrics for file systems.
Metric Definition
Data Rate (Read) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for read operations.
Data Rate (Write) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for write operations.
Data Rate (Total) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for read operations and write
operations.
Maximum Data Rate (Read) The maximum number of MiB per second
that are transferred for read operations.
Maximum Data Rate (Write) The maximum number of MiB per second
that are transferred for write operations.
Maximum Data Rate (Total) The maximum number of MiB per second
that are transferred for read operations and
write operations.
I/O Rate (Read) The average number of read operations per
second.
I/O Rate (Write) The average number of write operations per
second.
I/O Rate (Total) The average number of read operations and
write operations per second.
Maximum I/O Rate (Read) The maximum number of read operations
per second.
Maximum I/O Rate (Write) The maximum number of write operations
per second.
Maximum I/O Rate (Total) The maximum number of read operations
and write operations per second.
Response Time (Read) The average number of milliseconds for the
back-end storage resources to respond to a
read operation from the file system.
Response Time (Write) The average number of milliseconds for the
back-end storage resources to respond to a
write operation from the file system.
Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds for the
back-end storage resources to respond to a
read operation or a write operation from the
file system.

Performance metrics for other storage systems

Monitor the performance metrics that are collected for SMI-S BSP systems such as
DS5000, DS4000, and DS3000, EMC, Hitachi, NetApp and other storage systems.

330 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Overview

Performance metrics are available for the following resources:

v “Volume metrics”
v “Port metrics” on page 332

A performance metric might apply to one or more storage resources. To check

which resources the performance metric applies to, see the tips and the table
footnotes.

Volume metrics

Volume performance metrics are divided into the following categories:

v Key volume metrics
v Cache hit percentage metrics
v Average transfer size metrics

Tip: Unless otherwise noted, you can view the volume metrics in Table 155,
Table 156 on page 332, and Table 157 on page 332 for the following resources:
v Volumes
v Nodes
v Storage systems
Table 155. Key volume metrics.
Metric Description
Overall I/O Rate (Read) The average number of read operations per
second. This value includes both sequential
and nonsequential read operations.
Overall I/O Rate (Write) The average number of write operations per
second. This value includes both sequential
and nonsequential write operations.
Overall I/O Rate (Total) The average number of read operations and
write operations per second. This value
includes both sequential and nonsequential
operations.
Data Rate (Read) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for read operations.
Data Rate (Write) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for write operations.
Data Rate (Total) The average number of MiB per second that
are transferred for read operations and write
operations.
Response Time (Read) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a read operation.
Response Time (Write) The average number of milliseconds to
complete a write operation.
Response Time (Overall) The average number of milliseconds to
complete an I/O operation. This value
includes both read and write operations.
Volume Utilization1 The average percentage of time that the
volume is busy.

Appendix A. Reference 331

 Table 155. Key volume metrics (continued).
Metric Description
Note:
1. This metric is only available when you view the performance of volumes.

Table 156. Cache hit percentages.

Metric Description
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Read) The percentage of all read operations that
find data in the cache. This value includes
both sequential and random read operations,
and read operations in the volume cache
and volume copy cache where applicable.
You can use this value to understand
throughput or response times. Low cache-hit
percentages can increase response times
because in the event of cache miss, the data
must be read from the back-end storage
resources.
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Write) The average percentage of all write
operations that are handled in the cache,
across all volumes on the server. This value
includes both sequential and nonsequential
write operations.
Overall I/O Cache Hits (Total) The percentage of all read operations and
write operations that are handled in the
cache. This value includes both sequential
and random read and write operations, and
read and write operations in the volume
cache and volume copy cache where
applicable.You can use this value to
understand throughput or response times.
Low cache-hit percentages can increase
response times because a cache miss requires
access to the back-end storage resources.

Table 157. Average transfer size metrics.

Metric Description
Average Transfer Size (Read) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per read operation.
Average Transfer Size (Write) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per write operation.
Average Transfer Size (Overall) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per I/O operation. This value
includes both read and write operations.

Port metrics

Port performance metrics are divided into the following categories:

v Key port metrics
v Transfer size metrics

332 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Tip: You can view the port metrics in Table 158 and Table 159 for ports and storage
systems.
Table 158. Key port metrics.
Metric Description
I/O Rate (Receive) The average number of I/O operations per
second for operations in which the port
receives data.
I/O Rate (Send) The average number of I/O operations per
second for operations in which data is sent
from a port.
I/O Rate (Total) The average number of send operations and
receive operations per second.
Data Rate (Receive) The average rate at which data is received
by the port. The rate is measured in MiB per
second.
Data Rate (Send) The average rate at which data is sent
through the port. The rate is measured in
MiB per second.
Data Rate (Total) The average rate at which data is transferred
through the port. The rate is measured in
MiB per second and includes both send and
receive operations.

Table 159. Transfer size metrics.

Metric Description
Average Transfer Size (Receive) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per receive operation.
Average Transfer Size (Send) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per send operation.
Average Transfer Size (Overall) The average number of KiB that are
transferred per I/O operation. This value
includes both send and receive operations.

Performance metrics for switches

Monitor the performance metrics that are collected for switches, switch ports, and
inter-switch connections.

Performance metrics for switches are divided into the following categories:
v Key port metrics
v I/O rate metrics
v Peak data rate metrics
v Frame error rate metrics
v Port protocol error rate metrics
v Link error rate metrics
v Miscellaneous metrics

Appendix A. Reference 333

 Table 160. Key port metrics.
Metric Description
Bandwidth Percentage (Send) The percentage of the port bandwidth that is
used for send operations. This value is an
indicator of port bandwidth usage that is
based on the speed of the port.
Bandwidth Percentage (Receive) The percentage of the port bandwidth that is
used for receive operations. This value is an
indicator of port bandwidth usage that is
based on the speed of the port.
Bandwidth Percentage (Overall) The percentage of the port bandwidth that is
used for send operations and receive
operations. This value is an indicator of port
bandwidth usage that is based on the speed
of the port.
Data Rate (Send) The average rate at which data is sent by the
port. A send operation is a read operation
that is processed, or a write operation that is
initiated by the port. The rate is measured in
MiB per second.
Data Rate (Receive) The average rate at which data is received
by the port. A receive operation is a write
operation that is processed, or a read
operation that is initiated by the port. The
rate is measured in MiB per second.
Data Rate (Total) The average rate at which data is transferred
through the port. The rate is measured in
MiB per second and includes both send and
receive operations.
Total Port Error Rate The average number of times per second
that an error was detected on the port. This
rate is a summation of all the other error
rates for the port.

Table 161. I/O rates

Metric Description
Port Frame Rate (Send) The average number of frames per second
that are sent through the port.
Port Frame Rate (Receive) The average number of frames per second
that are received by the port.
Port Frame Rate (Total) The average number of frames per second
that are transferred. This value includes
frames that are sent and frames that are
received by the port.

Table 162. Peak data rates

Metric Description
1
Peak Data Rate (Send) The highest rate at which data is sent by the
port. A send operation is a read operation
that is processed, or a write operation that is
initiated by the port.

334 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 162. Peak data rates (continued)
Metric Description
1
Peak Data Rate (Receive) The highest rate at which data is received by
the port. A receive operation is a write
operation that is processed, or a read
operation that is initiated by the port.
Notes:
1. This metric is only available for ports on Brocade switches. You must use a CIM agent
to collect data for this metric.

Table 163. Frame error rates.

Metric Description
Bad EOF CRC Error Rate1 The percentage of nonsequential read
operations that find data in the cache.You
can use this value to understand throughput
or response times. Low cache-hit percentages
can increase response times because a cache
miss requires access to the back-end storage
resources.
CRC Error Rate The percentage of nonsequential write
operations that are handled in the cache.
Discarded Class 3 Frame Rate The average number of class 3 frames per
second that are discarded.
Error Frame Rate1 The average number of error frames per
second that are received. An error frame is a
frame that violates the Fibre Channel
Protocol.
F-BSY Frame Rate2 The average number of F-BSY frames per
second that are generated. An F-BSY frame
is issued by the fabric to indicate that a
frame cannot be delivered because the fabric
or destination N_port is busy.
F-RJT Frame Rate2 The average number of F-RJT frames per
second that are generated.An F-RJT frame is
issued by the fabric to indicate that delivery
of a frame was denied.
Long Frame Rate The average number of frames that are
received per second that are longer than
2140 octets. This number excludes
start-of-frame bytes and end-of-frame bytes.
The 2140 octet limit is calculated based on
the assumption that a frame has 24 header
bytes, 4 CRC bytes, and 2112 data bytes.
Short Frame Rate2 The average number of frames that are
received per second that are shorter than 28
octets. This number excludes start-of-frame
bytes and end-of-frame bytes. The 28 octet
limit is calculated based on the assumption
that a frame has 24 header bytes, and 4 CRC
bytes.
Notes:
1. This metric is only available for ports on Brocade switches.
2. You must use an SNMP agent to collect data for this metric.

Appendix A. Reference 335

 Table 164. Port protocol error rates.
Metric Description
1
Class 3 Receive Timeout Frame Rate The average number of class 3 frames per
second that were discarded after reception
because of a timeout condition. The timeout
condition occurs while a transmitting port
waits for buffer credit from a port at the
other end of the fibre. When you
troubleshoot a SAN, use this metric to help
identify port conditions that might slow the
performance of the resources to which those
ports are connected.
Class 3 Send Timeout Frame Rate1 The average number of class 3 frames per
second that were discarded before
transmission because of a timeout condition.
The timeout condition occurs while the
switch or port waits for buffer credit from
the receiving port at the other end of the
fibre. When you troubleshoot a SAN, use
this metric to help identify port conditions
that might slow the performance of the
resources to which those ports are
connected.
Credit Recovery Link Reset Rate The estimated average number of link resets
per second that a switch or port completed
to recover buffer credits. This estimate
attempts to disregard link resets that were
caused by link initialization. When you
troubleshoot a SAN, use this metric to help
identify port conditions that might slow the
performance of the resources to which those
ports are connected.
Discarded Frame Rate1 The average number of frames per second
that are discarded because host buffers are
unavailable for the port.
Link Reset Received Rate The average number of times per second
that the port changes from an active (AC)
state to a Link Recovery (LR2) state.
Link Reset Transmitted Rate The average number of times per second
that the port changes from an active (AC)
state to a Link Recovery (LR1) state.
Port Congestion Index1 The estimated degree to which frame
transmission was delayed due to a lack of
buffer credits. This value is generally 0 - 100.
The value 0 means there was no congestion.
The value can exceed 100 if the buffer credit
exhaustion persisted for an extended
amount of time. When you troubleshoot a
SAN, use this metric to help identify port
conditions that might slow the performance
of the resources to which those ports are
connected.

336 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Table 164. Port protocol error rates (continued).
Metric Description
1 2
RDY Priority Override Rate The average number of times per second
during which the sending of R_RDY or
VC_RDY signals was a higher priority than
the sending of frames. This condition occurs
because of diminishing credit reserves in the
transmitter at the other end of the fibre.
When you troubleshoot a SAN, use this
metric to help identify port conditions that
might slow the performance of the resources
to which those ports are connected.
Zero Buffer Credit Rate1 The average number of Zero Buffer Credit
conditions per second that occurred. A Zero
Buffer Credit condition occurs when a port
is unable to send frames because of a lack of
buffer credit since the last node reset. When
you troubleshoot a SAN, use this metric to
help identify port conditions that might slow
the performance of the resources to which
those ports are connected.
Notes:
1. This metric is available only for ports on Brocade switches.
2. You must use an SNMP agent to collect data for this metric.

Table 165. Link error rates.

Metric Description
Encoding Disparity The average number of disparity errors per
second that are received.
Invalid Link Transmission Rate The average number of times per second
that an invalid transmission word was
detected by the port while the link did not
experience any signal or synchronization
loss.
Invalid Word Transmission Rate The average number of bit errors per second
that are detected.
Link Failure Rate The average number of miscellaneous fibre
channel link errors per second for ports.
Link errors might occur when an
unexpected Not Operational (NOS) is
received or a link state machine failure was
detected.
Loss of Signal Rate The average number of times per second at
which the port lost communication with its
partner port. These types of errors usually
indicate physical link problems, caused by
faulty SFP modules or cables, or caused by
faulty connections at the switch or patch
panel. However, in some cases, this error
can also occur when the maximum link
distance between ports is exceeded, for the
type of connecting cable and light source.

Appendix A. Reference 337

 Table 165. Link error rates (continued).
Metric Description
Loss of Sync Rate The average number of times per second
that the port lost synchronization with its
partner port. These types of errors usually
indicate physical link problems, caused by
faulty SFP modules or cables, or caused by
faulty connections at the switch or patch
panel. However in some cases this can also
occur due to mismatching port speeds
between the partner ports, when
auto-negotiation of link speed is disabled.
Port State Change Rate1 The average number of times per second
that the state of a port changes to offline,
online, or faulty. When you troubleshoot a
SAN, use this metric to help identify port
conditions that might slow the performance
of the resources to which those ports are
connected.
Primitive Sequence Protocol Error Rate The average number of primitive sequence
protocol errors per second that are detected.
This error occurs when there is a link failure
for a port.
Notes:
1. This metric is only available for ports on Brocade switches. You must use an SNMP
agent to collect data for this metric.

Table 166. Miscellaneous port metrics.

Metric Description
Link Quality Percentage The percentage is based on whether the port
is an expansion port (E_port) or a fabric port
(F_port), and on the numbers and types of
errors that are detected by the port.
Port Frame Size (Overall) The average frame transfer size. This value
is measured in KiB and includes frames that
are sent and frames that are received by the
port.
Port Frame Size (Receive) The average size of a frame, in KiB, that is
received by the port.
Port Frame Size (Send) The average size of a frame, in KiB, that is
sent through the port.

Cinder driver for IBM Spectrum Control

The Cinder driver for IBM Spectrum Control enables cloud storage that is powered
by OpenStack to use a IBM Spectrum Control installation for block storage
provisioning.

IBM Spectrum Control provides block storage provisioning capabilities that the
storage administrator can employ to define the properties and characteristics of
storage volumes within a particular service class. For example, a block storage

338 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 service class can define RAID levels, tiers of storage, and various other storage
characteristics. For more on service classes, see “Configuring IBM Spectrum
Control for provisioning” on page 194.

The Cinder driver enables an OpenStack cloud to use these defined service classes,
which are available in your Cinder environment as Cinder volume types. For each
block storage service class, a Cinder volume type is created. Your cloud users can
create and use volumes of this type.

To download the IBM Spectrum Control Cinder driver and installation instructions
go to https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/servicemanagement/sm/
spectrum_control/index.html and click the Downloads tab.

Planning to deploy the Cinder driver

Before using the Cinder driver for IBM Spectrum Control you need to create
volume types and service classes for the service to use. You also need to decide the
connection protocol your storage will be using (FC or iSCSI).

Volume types within OpenStack

New volumes are created within OpenStack by specifying the type of volume to be
created. The volume types are high-level descriptions that identify the class of
storage a volume can provide. For instance, a cloud user might want to create a
new volume with Gold class storage. The user can employ the OpenStack Horizon
GUI or Cinder CLI to provision a new volume. The user can then specify that the
type of volume they want to create is of type Gold. The OpenStack Cinder
scheduler then allocates from those volume drivers that can provision a volume of
type Gold.

The Cinder driver works with this information through the medium of service
classes. A service class is used to identify classes of storage within the storage
infrastructure that can be configured for such services as thin provisioning,
virtualized volumes, and varying RAID levels. Service classes can be configured to
use storage across multiple devices and device types that still meet the constraints
that are defined within the service class. The Cinder driver can discover the service
classes that are configured within IBM Spectrum Control and create corresponding
volume types within the OpenStack environment. The user can then provision a
volume from the service classes that are already defined within IBM Spectrum
Control.

Creating a service class and volume type

To provide a new class or type of volume, the storage administrator creates a

service class within IBM Spectrum Control. The definition includes the
characteristics of the service class and the storage pools that are available to the
service class. When the service class is created, the Cinder driver detects the new
service class and automatically creates a corresponding Volume Type entry within
the OpenStack infrastructure.

Specifying connection protocols for storage (FC and iSCSI)

When the Cinder driver is requested to attach a volume to a Nova node, the
Cinder driver submits required access information to the IBM Spectrum Control
service. The service then assigns the volume to all available host ports associated
with the Nova node.

Appendix A. Reference 339

 When the IBM Spectrum Control service assigns the volume to the ports, the
service returns all available access information back to the Cinder driver. The
Cinder driver chooses the optimal access to give to the Nova node to initialize the
connection. By default, the Cinder driver attempts to choose the Fibre Channel
method of access. The Cinder driver determines whether the IBM Spectrum
Control server can enable Fibre Channel access and if the Nova node can use Fibre
Channel access. If both are available, Fibre Channel connection information is
returned. If Fibre Channel access is not available, the Cinder driver checks whether
the IBM Spectrum Control service is able to assign iSCSI access to the volume. If
iSCSI access is available to the Nova node, the Cinder driver returns the iSCSI
access information to the Nova node.

An OpenStack cloud administrator can change which access protocol the Cinder
driver attempts to assign first. The setting is the tpc_preferred_protocol
parameter in the cinder.conf driver configuration section. By changing the
preferred protocol to iSCSI, the Cinder driver first attempts to provide iSCSI
access. If unsuccessful, the Cinder driver falls back to Fibre Channel access. If the
preferred protocol cannot be met but an alternative protocol is available, then the
alternative protocol is chosen.

Enabling an OpenStack cloud for IBM Spectrum Control

Enabling your OpenStack cloud to leverage your IBM Spectrum Control

installation is a two step process. Configuration scripts for enabling IBM Spectrum
Control functionality and policies for the Cinder driver are available in the
tpc-scripts directory.

Download this zip file and extract its contents to a location on the IBM Spectrum
Control server. Open a command prompt to the tpc-scripts directory and run the
setup script for your platform.

Note: You must restart the IBM Spectrum Control Device, Data, and Web servers
to complete the setup process.

A natively installable package containing the Cinder driver is available in the

cinder-packages directory. Copy the appropriate .rpm or .deb file to your Cinder
node and install it using the operating system's native packaging tool.

For example, if the Cinder node is running Red Hat, copy the
openstack-tpcdriver-1.0.0-1.x86_64.rhel.rpm file and install the file using the
command rpm -ivh openstack-tpcdriver-1.0.0-1.x86_64.rhel.rpm.

Upon installation of the .rpm or .deb file, you can run the tpcdriver-config.sh
utility to help determine appropriate Cinder settings for your installation.

Copy the appropriate settings into your cinder.conf file and restart the Cinder
volume service to enable the Cinder driver.

Once the Cinder driver is installed and configured, you can verify the installation
and configuration by navigating to the Volumes page of the Horizon Admin panel
to check that the service classes configured within IBM Spectrum Control are now
available as volume types.

340 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Setting up the Cinder driver environment
To use the Cinder driver, you need to configure role-to-group mappings for an
authorized Cinder user, add storage system mappings, and define capacity pools
and service classes.

Configuring volume creation and attachment

After you install the IBM Spectrum Control, but before you configure the Cinder
node, use the IBM Spectrum Control GUI to set up volume creation and
attachment.
1. Log in to the IBM Spectrum Control GUI.
2. Configure role-to-group mappings for an authorized OpenStack Cinder user in
a selected group to connect IBM Spectrum Control.
a. In the menu bar, go to Settings > User Management.
b. On the User Management window, click Add Group.
c. On the Add Group window, enter the name of the group to which the user
belongs, and click Search.
d. Select the group name and assign the External Application role to this
group.
e. Click OK.
3. Add storage subsystems to manage to IBM Spectrum Control. For more
information, see “Adding storage systems” on page 81.
a. In the menu bar, go to Storage > Storage Systems.
b. Click Add Storage System.
c. Click the Storage System icon.
d. On the Discover page, enter the information, and click Next.
e. On the Configure page, enter the information, and click Configure.
4. Define capacity pools for the storage subsystems to be used by the service
classes. For more information, see “Capacity pools” on page 41.
a. In the menu bar, go to Storage > Pools.
b. Select one or more pools of a storage system and select Action > Add to
Capacity Pool.
c. Click Create Capacity Pool.
d. In the Create Capacity Pool page, specify a name for the capacity pool.
e. Click OK.
5. Define the service classes to be used by the Cinder driver. For more
information, see “Service classes” on page 37.
a. In the menu bar, go to Advanced Analytics > Cloud Configuration, and
click Work With Service Classes.
b. Click Create Service Class.
c. In the Select Type page, click on the Block icon to create a block storage
service class.
d. In the Define Properties page, specify a name for the service class.
e. Specify the requirement for provisioning block-storage of this service class,
and click Next.
f. In the Capacity Pool page, select Only allow provisioning from selected
capacity pools, select the capacity pools, and click Next.
g. In the Authorize Users page, disable Approval required. Select Allow
administrators and specified users to provision.
h. Select the user name
Appendix A. Reference 341
 i. Click Add User, and then click Finish.
6. Install the IBM Spectrum Control OpenStack patch and the Cinder driver. See
“Installing the Cinder driver” on page 344.
7. Use the OpenStack Horizon GUI to verify that the service classes are listed as
volume types on Cinder nodes.
a. Log in to the OpenStack Horizon GUI as a user with admin roles.
b. Select Admin tab > System Panel > Volumes.
c. Verify that the service classes created on IBM Spectrum Control are listed
under Volume Types.
v OR
a. Log in to the OpenStack Cinder node.
b. Use the CLI cinder command to list volume type: # cinder type-list.
c. Verify that the service classes you created on IBM Spectrum Control are
listed.
d. Ensure that the correct settings for IBM Spectrum Control are added to the
Cinder configuration file /etc/cinder/cinder.conf. Check that the Cinder
volume service was restarted.
8. iSCSI volume attachment
To use iSCSI connections, the storage system must be configured for iSCSI
access. You must assign IP addresses to specific Ethernet ports on the storage
subsystem itself. For each storage subsystem, consult the product
documentation on how to configure Ethernet ports for iSCSI access.
After the storage system is configured for iSCSI access, the IBM Spectrum
Control server populates information about the iSCSI access with the next
probe of the storage subsystem. You can manually trigger this action from the
IBM Spectrum Control GUI by running the Start Probe command under the
Data Collection menu for storage subsystems.
When you assign a volume to a server with iSCSI host ports, the IBM Spectrum
Control generates and assigns a pseudo-random 16 character CHAP secret to
any host definitions it creates on the storage subsystem. If the host port already
belongs to a host definition on the storage system, the server does not carry out
any CHAP secret modification.

Note: In IBM Spectrum Control version 5.2.1, iSCSI ports appear as Fibre
Channel ports within the IBM Spectrum Control GUI. The WWPN of the iSCSI
port is the iSCSI name of the port itself.
In IBM Spectrum Control 5.2.2, iSCSI ports appear as Fibre Channel ports
within the IBM Spectrum Control GUI. The WWPN of the iSCSI port is the
iSCSI name of the port itself.

Requirements for installing the Cinder driver

To offer cloud services for provisioning block files, you must ensure that you have
the correct versions of IBM Spectrum Control and OpenStack.

Requirements for IBM Spectrum Control

You need to install IBM Spectrum Control with IBM Spectrum Control Advanced
Edition license. You also need:
v A local operating system, LDAP, or Windows Domain group to add to IBM
Spectrum Control

342 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 v A user added as a member of this group for use by the Cinder driver to connect
to IBM Spectrum Control
v A supported version of DB2 client or DB2 server
v Service classes available to the OpenStack Cinder node(s) as volume types
v Storage systems available for OpenStack volume creation and attachment
support

Storage platform support

The following storage platforms are supported:
v DS8000
v IBM SAN Volume Controller 6.1 or later
v Storwize V7000 6.1 or later
v XIV 11.0 or later

Requirements for OpenStack

You will need:

v OpenStack (Havana release)
v The OpenStack Cinder node must run on one of the following operating
systems:
– Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.4 or higher
– Ubuntu 12.04
v The python-cinder (included in python-cinderclient package) and
python-rdflib library packages installed on the Cinder node:
– Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.4 or higher.
The Red Hat python-rdflib library is available in the Extra Packages for
Enterprise Linux (EPEL) repository. Visit the Fedora wiki for information
on installing the EPEL repository on your system.
# yum install python-cinderclient
# yum install python-rdflib
– Ubuntu 12.04
# sudo apt-get install python-cinderclient
# sudo apt-get install python-pip
# sudo pip install rdflib==3.2.1

Note: The python-rdflib debian package available in the Ubuntu precise

archives contains rdflib 2.4.2. The IBM Spectrum Control Cinder driver
requires version 3.2.1 or higher of the rdflib library. Use the pip command
above in order to install the correct version of the rdflib library.

Cinder driver package contents

To enable an OpenStack cloud to leverage a IBM Spectrum Control installation, run
the installation script and use a configuration utility to determine appropriate
Cinder settings for your installation.

The tpc-scripts directory contains the platform-specific IBM Spectrum Control

Server OpenStack scripts to enable or disable the IBM Spectrum Control
functionality and policies for the Cinder driver.
v AIX Scripts: setup_aix.sh and unsetup_aix.sh
v Linux Scripts: setup_linux.sh and unsetup_linux.sh

Appendix A. Reference 343

 v Windows Scripts: setup_windows.bat and unsetup_windows.bat

The setup script configures a IBM Spectrum Control server with the files required
to enable the supported OpenStack functionality on the IBM Spectrum Control
server. For more information about installing the Cinder driver, see “Requirements
for installing the Cinder driver” on page 342 and “Installing the Cinder driver.”

The unsetup script reconfigures a a IBM Spectrum Control server with the files
required to disable supported OpenStack functionality on the a IBM Spectrum
Control server. For more information about uninstalling the Cinder driver, see
“Uninstalling the Cinder driver” on page 345.

When IBM Spectrum Control Cinder driver is installed, you are ready to enable
OpenStack and IBM Spectrum Control to work together. The cinder-packages
directory contains the platform specific Cinder driver installer packages . Both the
IBM Spectrum Control server and the OpenStack Cinder node need to be patched.
v Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.4 or higher: openstack-tpcdriver-1.0.1-
1.x86_64.rhel.rpm
v Ubuntu 12.04: openstack-tpcdriver_1.0.1-1_all.deb
1. Log on to IBM Spectrum Control server as root for Linux/AIX or as
Administrator for Windows.
2. Change directory to tpc-scripts.
3. Run the setup script, providing the path to the IBM Spectrum Control
installation location. For example:

Option Description
AIX # ./setup_aix.sh /opt/IBM/TPC
Linux # ./setup_linux.sh /opt/IBM/TPC
Windows > setup_windows.bat "C:\Program Files\IBM\TPC"

4. The installer package installs the OpenStack tpc.py driver in the proper
location. It also installs the tpcdriver-config.sh script which generates the
additional Cinder driver-related entries needed for the Cinder configuration file
(/etc/cinder/cinder.conf).

Installing the Cinder driver

To install the Cinder driver, run the installation script and use a configuration
utility to determine appropriate Cinder settings for your installation.

The IBM Spectrum Control server and all OpenStack Cinder nodes need to be
patched to enable IBM Spectrum Control OpenStack functions and policies for the
Cinder driver. Review “Requirements for installing the Cinder driver” on page 342
before you proceed with the installation.
1. Run the IBM Spectrum Control OpenStack patch installation script for AIX,
Linux, or Windows. On IBM Spectrum Control:
a. Log on as root for Linux/AIX or Administrator for Windows.
b. Change directory to tpc-scripts.
c. Run the setup script, specifying the path to the IBM Spectrum Control
server installation location:
v AIX# ./setup_aix.sh /opt/IBM/TPC
v Linux# ./setup_linux.sh /opt/IBM/TPC
v Windows: setup_windows.bat "C:\Program Files\IBM\TPC"
344 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
 d. When prompted if you want to proceed with the update, enter Y or y.

Note: You must restart the IBM Spectrum Control Device, Data, and Web
servers to complete the setup process.
2. The IBM Spectrum Control OpenStack patch installation script attempts to
determine the DB2 settings. If the script cannot find a setting, you are
prompted to enter the value. Descriptions of the settings are in the following
table:

Option Description
Hostname of the The host name of the IBM Spectrum Control database server.
DB2 server
Port of the DB2 The port that the IBM Spectrum Control database server is running
server on.
DB2 profile user The user name of the DB2 user on the server this installation script
(AIX/Linux only) is being run on. This setting is only relevant for AIX and Linux.
DB2 user The user name of the DB2 user with permissions to access the IBM
Spectrum Control database.
DB2 password Password for the DB2 user.
Database name The name of the IBM Spectrum Control database.
Schema name The schema name of the IBM Spectrum Control database.

3. Run the Cinder driver installation script for Red Hat and Ubuntu installations.
On the OpenStack Cinder nodes:
a. Ensure that the current user has administrative privileges - root for Red Hat
and Ubuntu.
b. Change directory to cinder-packages.
c. Install the package for your OpenStack distribution:
v Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.4: # rpm -ivh openstack-tpcdriver-1.0.0-
1.x86_64.rhel.rpm
v Ubuntu 12.04: # dpkg -i openstack-tpcdriver_1.0.0-1.x86_64.deb

Note: If you installed any packages manually (for example, with pip or
from source), you can force the installation by overriding dependency
checks. On Red Hat systems, the --nodeps flag is passed to the rpm
command. On Ubuntu systems, the --force-depends flag is passed to the
dpkg command.
4. Run the tpcdriver-config.sh configuration script. You are prompted to
provide IBM Spectrum Control server information as the script runs: #
/usr/local/bin/tpcdriver-config.sh Refer to “Configuring the Cinder driver”
on page 346 for more details on the Cinder configuration settings specific to
IBM Spectrum Control.
5. Copy the Cinder driver settings that are generated by the tpcdriver-config.sh
script to the [DEFAULT] section of the Cinder configuration file,
/etc/cinder/cinder.conf.
6. Restart the Cinder volume service.

Uninstalling the Cinder driver

To uninstall the Cinder driver, run uninstallation scripts for AIX, Linux, and
Windows installations.

Appendix A. Reference 345

 Use IBM Spectrum Control OpenStack patch uninstallation scripts for AIX, Linux,
and Windows to uninstall an instance of the Cinder driver.
1. Log on to IBM Spectrum Control with administrative privileges - root for
Linux/AIX or Administrator for Windows.
2. Change directory to tpc-scripts.
3. Run the unsetup script, specifying the path to the IBM Spectrum Control
server installation location:
v AIX
# ./unsetup_aix.sh /opt/IBM/TPC
v Linux
# ./unsetup_linux.sh /opt/IBM/TPC
v Windows
unsetup_windows.bat "C:\Program Files\IBM\TPC"
4. When prompted if you want to proceed with the update, enter Y or y.
5. You must restart the IBM Spectrum Control Device, Data, and Web servers to
complete the unsetup process.
6. On the OpenStack Cinder node(s), log on as root for Red Hat and Ubuntu.
7. Configure the Cinder volume service to no longer use the IBM Spectrum
Control Cinder volume driver by editing the Cinder configuration file
/etc/cinder/cinder.conf and removing all references to the IBM Spectrum
Control Cinder volume driver. Parameters for the driver are prefixed with the
string tpc_.
8. Restart the Cinder volume service.
9. After the Cinder volume services are no longer configured to use the IBM
Spectrum Control driver, the native package can be removed from the Cinder
volume node. For example:
v Red Hat
# rpm -e openstack-tpcdriver
v Ubuntu
# dpkg -r openstack-tpcdriver

Configuring the Cinder driver

To make IBM Spectrum Control volumes and service classes available to Cinder
services, you must configure the Cinder driver.

On IBM Spectrum Control, you must plan user and service class details:
v Identify which IBM Spectrum Control user the Cinder driver can use to log on.
The user's group must be added to User Management as External Application.
v Identify the preferred service class. This class is used when no volume type is
specified in the Cinder configuration file. All block service classes available to
the user are available to the Cinder driver as volume types.

The tpcdriver-config.sh script installed on the Cinder node as part of the rpm or
deb file helps to configure the Cinder volume service to use the Cinder driver.
Configure the Cinder driver by editing the Cinder configuration file
(/etc/cinder/cinder.conf.

Edit the following volume_ settings in the Cinder configuration file:

346 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 v volume_driver: The name of the Cinder driver to use for volume creation. By
default, name is set as cinder.volume.drivers.lvm.LVMISCSIDriver in the Cinder
configuration file. To use the Cinder driver, change the setting to
cinder.volume.drivers.tpc.TPCDriver.
v volume_name_template: The template that is used by IBM Spectrum Control to
name OpenStack volumes. By default, template is set as volume-%s in the Cinder
configuration file. You can change this value to one more easily identifiable as
an OpenStack volume (for example, openstackvol-%s) when you are viewing or
searching volumes. The template is a global setting that affects volume names
for all Cinder drivers.
You must add the following tpc_ settings to the Cinder configuration file:
v tpc_ip: The IP address of the IBM Spectrum Control server.
v tpc_login: The user name that the Cinder driver will log on with.
v tpc_password: The password that the Cinder driver will log on with.
v tpc_service_class: The default IBM Spectrum Control service class that the
Cinder driver uses if no volume type is specified.
v tpc_preferred_protocol: The preferred protocol if more than one is available.
The preferred protocol can be set to iSCSI or FC: these values are case-sensitive.
This flag is optional - if not specified, the default is FC.

After you edit the Cinder configuration file, restart Cinder services with the
command: service service-name restart. For Ubuntu, the service-name
parameter is cinder-volume. For RedHat and SLES, the service-name parameter is
openstack-cinder-volume.

Use the Horizon GUI to create, attach, and delete volumes.

Learn more about the Cinder driver

You can learn more about the Cinder driver from Service Management Connect
resources such as developer wikis, updates, and Beta packages.

IBM Spectrum Control Service Management Connect contains the OpenStack

package and links to
v IBM Spectrum Control developerWorks wiki
v IBM Spectrum Control forums
v Updates to this package
v IBM Spectrum Control Beta material

To learn more, go to https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/

servicemanagement/sm/spectrum_control/index.html and click the Downloads
tab.

The OpenStack website contains information on installing, configuring, and

managing an OpenStack cloud. To learn more, go to http://www.openstack.org.

Limitations and known issues for the Cinder driver

The Cinder driver is subject to the following limitations and known issues.

Appendix A. Reference 347

 Decommissioning a service class and volume type

To remove a volume type from OpenStack, you must first remove the service class
that is associated with the volume type in IBM Spectrum Control. After the service
class is removed, the OpenStack Administrator must then remove the
corresponding volume type in OpenStack.

For example, you can remove a service class (Gold) from IBM Spectrum Control,
and then remove the type of volume that is associated with the Gold service class.
If a user requests the type of volume that is associated with the Gold service class,
the request is rejected.

If you remove the volume type from OpenStack but do not remove the associated
service class, the volume type is re-created the next time the Cinder driver checks
for available service classes.

iSCSI support with XIV Storage System

v For an XIV system with multiple Internet Small Computer System Interface
(iSCSI) ports, only one port is populated by the Cinder driver.
v For the XIV system, IBM Spectrum Control is unable to use
Challenge-Handshake Authentication Protocol (CHAP) secrets for iSCSI host
definitions. CHAP information is not available through the CLI for the XiV
system. iSCSI attachments that are made through the Cinder driver are assigned
without CHAP secrets defined.

Mixed iSCSI and Fibre Channel Volume Assignments

IBM Spectrum Control attempts to assign all ports that belong to a Nova node.
When the unmanaged server representing the Nova node contains both Fibre and
iSCSI ports, the volume is available to the Fibre Channel and iSCSI ports on the
Nova node. In some cases, when you detach a volume from a host, the ports for
the access method in use by the Nova node are removed but the access for the
alternative connectivity method remains. This access can cause errors to delete the
volume from the storage system. In this case, the volume is removed from the
Cinder database but it requires manual steps to remove the storage volume from
the storage system.

Unable to Attach Storage Volumes

In some circumstances, attempts to attach a storage volume to a compute instance

fails even though the volume is assigned to the Nova node's host connection
information. To resolve this problem, verify that the Nova node can connect to the
storage system through the Ethernet LAN or Fibre SAN. If an XIV Storage System
is added (regardless of whether the volume is on an XIV Storage System), restart
the IBM Spectrum Control Device server. Use the startup scripts in the scripts
directory where IBM Spectrum Control is installed.

Opening IBM Spectrum Control on Windows operating systems

You can open IBM Spectrum Control CLIs and GUIs and administer IBM Spectrum
Control on Windows operating systems.

Opening IBM Spectrum Control GUIs and CLIs

To manage and monitor storage resources, open IBM Spectrum Control GUIs and
CLIs.

348 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

You can open the following GUIs and CLIs:
v “Opening IBM Spectrum Control GUI”
v “Opening DB2 Command Window”
v “Opening IBM Data Studio Administration client on Windows operating
systems”
v “Opening IBM Tivoli Monitoring Services” on page 350

Opening IBM Spectrum Control GUI

1. Choose one of these options:

Option Description
Windows Server 2012 1. On the Dashboard page, hover the
mouse over the lower left corner of the
page next to the Server Manager taskbar
button, and then click Start.
2. On the Start page, right-click, and then
click the All apps taskbar button.
Windows 7, Windows 2008, Windows Vista, Click Start > All Programs.
Windows XP

2. Click IBM Spectrum Control > IBM Spectrum Control.

Opening DB2 Command Window

1. Choose one of these options:

Option Description
Windows Server 2012 1. On the Dashboard page, hover the
mouse over the lower left corner of the
page next to the Server Manager taskbar
button, and then click Start.
2. On the Start page, right-click, and then
click the All apps taskbar button.
Windows 7, Windows 2008, Windows Vista, Click Start > All Programs.
Windows XP

2. Click IBM DB2 > Command Line Tools > Command Window.

Opening IBM Data Studio Administration client on Windows

operating systems
1. Choose one of these options:

Option Description
Windows Server 2012 1. On the Dashboard page, hover the
mouse over the lower left corner of the
page next to the Server Manager taskbar
button, and then click Start.
2. On the Start page, right-click, and then
click the All apps taskbar button.
Windows 7, Windows 2008, Windows Vista, Click Start > All Programs.
Windows XP

2. Click IBM Data Studio > Data Studio Administration Client.

Appendix A. Reference 349

 Opening IBM Tivoli Monitoring Services
1. Choose one of these options:

Option Description
Windows Server 2012 1. On the Dashboard page, hover the
mouse over the lower left corner of the
page next to the Server Manager taskbar
button, and then click Start.
2. On the Start page, right-click, and then
click the All apps taskbar button.
Windows 7, Windows 2008, Windows Vista, Click Start > All Programs.
Windows XP

2. Click IBM Tivoli Monitoring > IBM Tivoli Monitoring Services.

Accessing administration tools

To manage and maintain IBM Spectrum Control, access the Windows system
administration tools.

To complete tasks in IBM Spectrum Control, you must open the following
administration and maintenance facilities:
v “Accessing the Control Panel”
v “Accessing Administrative Tools”
v “Accessing Windows Services” on page 351
v “Accessing Computer Management” on page 351
v “Accessing Programs and Program Features” on page 351

Accessing the Control Panel

1. Choose one of these options:

Option Description
Windows Server 2012 On the Dashboard page, hover the mouse
over the lower left corner of the page next to
the Server Manager taskbar button, and
then click Start.
Windows 7, Windows 2008, Windows Vista, Click Start.
Windows XP

2. Click Control Panel

Accessing Administrative Tools

1. Choose one of these options:

Option Description
Windows Server 2012 On the Dashboard page, hover the mouse
over the lower left corner of the page next to
the Server Manager taskbar button, and
then click Start.
Windows 7, Windows 2008 Click Start.
Windows XP, Windows Vista Click Start > Control Panel.

2. Click Administrative Tools

350 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Accessing Windows Services
1. Choose one of these options:

Option Description
Windows Server 2012 On the Dashboard page, hover the mouse
over the lower left corner of the page next to
the Server Manager taskbar button, and
then click Start.
Windows 7, Windows 2008 Click Start.
Windows XP, Windows Vista Click Start > Control Panel.

2. Click Administrative Tools > Services

Accessing Computer Management

1. Choose one of these options:

Option Description
Windows Server 2012 On the Dashboard page, hover the mouse
over the lower left corner of the page next to
the Server Manager taskbar button, and
then click Start.
Windows 7, Windows 2008, Windows Vista, Click Start.
Windows XP

2. Click Control Panel > Computer Management

Accessing Programs and Program Features

1. Choose one of these options:

Option Description
Windows Server 2012 On the Dashboard page, hover the mouse
over the lower left corner of the page next to
the Server Manager taskbar button, and
then click Start.
Windows 7, Windows 2008, Windows Vista, Click Start.
Windows XP

2. Click Control Panel > Programs and Program Features.

Accessing Window Run

1. Choose one of these options:

Option Description
Windows Server 2012 On the Dashboard page, hover the mouse
over the lower left corner of the page next to
the Server Manager taskbar button, and
then click Start.
Windows 7, Windows 2008, Windows Vista, Click Start.
Windows XP

2. Click Run.

Appendix A. Reference 351

352 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
Appendix B. Accessibility features for IBM Spectrum Control
Accessibility features help users who have a disability, such as restricted mobility
or limited vision, to use information technology products successfully.

Accessibility features

The following list includes the major accessibility features in IBM Spectrum
Control:
v Keyboard-only operation in the GUI.
v A Knowledge Center that includes the following accessibility features:
– The Knowledge Center is provided in XHTML 1.0 format, which is viewable
in most web browsers. With XHTML, you can view documentation according
to the display preferences that are set in your browser. XHTML supports
screen readers and other assistive technologies.
– All documentation for IBM Spectrum Control is available in Adobe Portable
Document Format (PDF) by using the Adobe Acrobat Reader. To access PDFs,
go to http://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/SS5R93_5.2.9/
com.ibm.spectrum.sc.doc/fqz0_r_printable_doc.html.
– All images in the Knowledge Center are provided with alternative text, so
that visually impaired users can understand the contents of the images.
v Interfaces that are commonly used by screen readers.
The setting for the automatic-refresh button in the screen reader is toggled to the
ON position by default. If you want the screen reader to read the previous text,
complete the following steps:
1. Navigate to the Accessibility Settings Navigation region by using the arrow
keys. The region is located after the IBM Spectrum Control application title.
2. Click Enter to toggle the automatic-refresh button to the OFF position. (An
alert sounds to make you aware that the turn-off automatic-refresh toggle
button was pressed.)
3. To move backward to the previously read text so that the screen reader can
read it again, use the arrow keys. You can move backwards and forwards
through the page.
4. When you are ready to move on, click Enter to toggle the automatic-refresh
button to the ON position and to refresh the page. (An alert sounds to make
you aware that the turn-on, automatic-refresh toggle button was pressed.)

Tip: Alternatively, let the toggle setting persist, and refresh as needed by
pressing the F5 key.

Keyboard navigation

Most of the features of the IBM Spectrum Control GUI are accessible by using the
keyboard. For those features that are not accessible, equivalent function is available
by using the command-line interface (CLI), except as noted in the product release
notes.

You can use keys or key combinations to perform operations and initiate many
menu actions that can also be done through mouse actions. The following sections
describe the keys or key combinations for different parts of the GUI:

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 353

 For navigating in the GUI and the context-sensitive help system:
v To navigate to the next link, button, or topic within a panel, press Tab.
v To move to the previous link, button, or topic within a panel, press
Shift+Tab.
v To select an object, when the object is in focus, press Enter.
For actions menus:
v To navigate to the grid header, press Tab.
v To reach the drop-down field, press the Left Arrow or Right Arrow key.
v To open the drop-down menu, press Enter.
v To select the menu items, press the Up Arrow or Down Arrow key.
v To start the action, press Enter.
For filters:
To specify a filter option and text:
1. Press Tab to navigate to the magnifying glass icon.
2. Press the Up Arrow or Down Arrow key to navigate the filtering list.
3. Press Enter to select a filtering option.
4. When a filtering option is selected, the cursor moves to the filter text
box. Type the filter text and press Enter. To reset a filter, press Enter.
For text fields:
v To navigate to text fields, press Tab.
v To navigate to the fields that are available for editing, press Tab.
v To navigate to the next field or to the Submit button, press Tab.
For tables or lists:
v To navigate between column headers, focus on a column header and use
the Left Arrow and Right Arrow keys to move to other column headers.
v To navigate between data cells, focus on a data cell and use the Left,
Right, Up, Down, Pageup, and Pagedown Arrow keys.
v To sort a column, focus on a column header and press Enter. The focus
remains on the column header after the sort occurs.
v To change the size of a column, focus on the column header, hold
Shift+Control, and press the Left or Right Arrow keys.
v To follow a link in a data cell, focus on a data cell and press Shift+F9.
v To open a menu for a table row, focus on the row and press Shift+F10.
v To select consecutive rows, select the first row and hold Shift, press the
Up or Down Arrow keys to go to the last row in the range, and press
the Space bar to add the new rows to the selection.
v To select non-consecutive rows, select a row and hold Control, press the
Up or Down Arrow keys, and press the Space bar to add the new row to
the selection.

Restriction: For Chinese languages, the keyboard combination

Control+Space bar is not enabled for selecting multiple rows at the same
time.

IBM and accessibility

For more information about IBM's commitment to accessibility, see the IBM Human
Ability and Accessibility Center website at http://www.ibm.com/able/.

354 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Appendix C. Accessibility features for Tivoli Storage
Productivity Center for Replication
Accessibility features help users who have a disability, such as restricted mobility
or limited vision, to use information technology products successfully.

Accessibility features

The following list includes the major accessibility features in Tivoli Storage
Productivity Center for Replication:
v Keyboard-only operation
v Interfaces that are commonly used by screen readers
v Keys that are discernible by touch but do not activate just by touching them
v Industry-standard devices for ports and connectors
v The attachment of alternative input and output devices
v A Knowledge Center that includes the following accessibility features:
– The Knowledge Center is provided in XHTML 1.0 format, which is viewable
in most web browsers. With XHTML, you can view documentation according
to the display preferences that are set in your browser. XHTML supports
screen readers and other assistive technologies.
– All documentation for Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for Replication is
available in Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) by using the Adobe
Acrobat Reader. To access the PDFs, go to ftp://public.dhe.ibm.com/
software/tivoli/tpc/ and select the v527 directory.
– All images in the Knowledge Center are provided with alternative text so that
visually impaired users can understand the contents of the images.

Keyboard navigation

Use the following key combinations to navigate the interface by keyboard:

v To go directly to the topic pane, press Alt+K, and then press Tab.
v In the topic pane, to go to the next link, press Tab.
v To go directly to the Search Results view, press Alt+R, and then press the Enter
or Up-Arrow key to enter the view.
v To go directly to the Navigation (Table of Contents) view, press Alt+C, and then
press the Enter or Up-Arrow key to enter the view.
v To expand and collapse a node in the navigation tree, press the Right and
Left-Arrow keys.
v To move to the next topic node, press the Down-Arrow or Tab key.
v To move to the previous topic node, press the Up-Arrow key or Shift+Tab.
v To go to the next link, button, or topic node from inside on of the views, press
Tab.
v To scroll all the way up or down in a pane, press Home or End.
v To go back, press Alt+Left Arrow; to go forward, press Alt+Right Arrow.
v To go to the next pane, press F6.
v To move to the previous pane, press Shift+F6.
v To print the active pane, press Ctrl+P.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 355

 Related accessibility information

The following list contains hints and tips that can help you more fully use the
graphical user interface:
Drop-down lists are positioned directly over or before the radio button that
activates it.
If you use a screen reader, you should be aware that there are radio
buttons to activate drop-down lists for several GUI pages. The way to
activate the drop-down list is by selecting the associated radio button. The
drop-down list is positioned directly over or before the radio button that
activates it. When you use a screen reader that processes the fields and
controls of a page sequentially, you might select the radio button, but not
know that the associated drop-down list has been activated. The screen
reader processes inactive drop-down lists first, and then processes the next
radio button. The drop-down list is activated if you select the radio button.
On the following pages, keep in mind that radio buttons activate a
drop-down list:
v Administration
v ESS/DS Paths
v Sessions
v Session Details
v Storage Systems
Tables are best understood by reviewing the surrounding text and the table row
and column number of the table.
On some graphical user pages, tables use the header or row ID attributes
when reading a single cell. The screen reader reads the table row and
column number, along with cell data. Therefore, you can infer the column
header and row ID.
Experiment with and fine-tune the way your screen reader pronounces some of
the product abbreviations.
Your screen reader might pronounce abbreviations as if they were words.
For example, the common abbreviation for Enterprise Storage Server is
ESS. Your screen reader might read ESS as the word "ess". With some
screen readers you can hear alternate pronunciations. If you frequently use
the software you might prefer to fine-tune such associations in your
settings. When an association is created, the screen reader can recognize
the abbreviation as a word. If you can add dictionary words with your
screen reader, replace the capitalized character sequence with the sequence
E space S space S.
Typically, this abbreviation is used in the combination form of ESS/DS.
This term refers to TotalStorage Enterprise Storage Server Model 800,
System Storage DS6000, or System Storage DS8000.
Some decorative artifacts might persist if the cascading style sheet is disabled.
Enable cascading style sheets when possible; otherwise, some decorative
elements might persist in the web browser GUI. These artifacts do not
affect performance. If they become too distracting, consider using the
command-line interface instead.
For efficiency, confirmation dialogs place initial focus on the Yes button.

356 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 When a confirmation dialog box is displayed, focus is given to the Yes
button. Therefore, the screen reader reads “Yes” but does not read the
confirmation text. The software processes the information in this way when
you do the following types of tasks:
v Perform an action on a session
v Remove a connection to a storage system
v Click the About link
v Create a high-availability connection
To read the confirmation text before clicking the Yes, No, or OK button,
view the previous heading before the button.
Dojo components are not read by all screen readers.
The Job Access for Windows and Speech (JAWS) screen reader does not
read some Dojo components on Windows Internet Explorer. Use the
command-line interface instead of the GUI with JAWS on Windows
Internet Explorer.
Firefox is the preferred browser for use with a screen reader.
Use Firefox as the screen reader because other browsers might not fully
expose assistive technology content to the screen reader.

IBM and accessibility

For more information about IBM's commitment to accessibility, see the IBM Human
Ability and Accessibility Center website at http://www.ibm.com/able.

Appendix C. Accessibility features for Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for Replication 357
358 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
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© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 359

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360 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

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Notices 361
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362 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

Glossary
This glossary provides terms and definitions for any operational cluster can take over
the IBM Spectrum Control software and products. the processing of a failing cluster.
2. A collection of complete systems that
The following cross-references are used in this work together to provide a single,
glossary: unified computing capability.
v See refers you from a nonpreferred term to the 3. In Storwize® V7000, a pair of nodes
preferred term or from an abbreviation to the that provides a single configuration
spelled-out form. and service interface.
v See also refers you to a related or contrasting 4. A loosely coupled collection of
term. independent systems (or nodes)
organized into a network for the
For other terms and definitions, see the IBM purpose of sharing resources and
Terminology website (opens in new window). communicating with each other.
Common Information Model (CIM)
A An implementation-neutral,
object-oriented schema for describing
active management server
network management or systems
A management server from which the
management information. The Distributed
storage environment can be monitored
Management Task Force (DMTF) develops
and managed. The active management
and maintains CIM specifications.
server replicates its database to the
standby server. community name
The part of an SNMP message that
B represents a password-like name and that
is used to authenticate the SNMP
business continuity message.
The capability of a business to withstand
consistency group
outages and to operate mission-critical
A group of copy relationships between
services normally and without
virtual volumes or data sets that are
interruption in accordance with
maintained with the same time reference
predefined service-level agreements.
so that all copies are consistent in time.
copy set
C The set of source volumes or target
CIM See Common Information Model. volumes involved in a FlashCopy
operation.
CIM agent
The code that consists of common count key data (CKD)
building blocks that can be used instead A data recording format that uses
of proprietary software or device-specific self-defining record formats in which each
programming interfaces to manage record on a volume is represented by up
devices that are compliant with the to three fields: a count field identifying
Common Information Model (CIM). the record and specifying its format, an
optional key field that can be used to
CKD See count key data. identify the data area contents, and an
cluster optional data field that typically contains
the user data.
1. In IBM System Storage DS8000, a
partition capable of performing all
DS8000 series functions. With two
clusters in the DS8000 storage unit,

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 363

 FlashCopy
D
1. Pertaining to a point-in-time copy
data collection where a virtual copy of a volume is
The process of obtaining performance and created. The target volume maintains
availability monitoring data and the contents of the volume at the point
providing that data to a metric evaluator. in time when the copy was
Examples of data collectors include established. Any subsequent write
Domain Name System (DNS) probes, web operations to the source volume are
page analyzers, or database analyzers. See not reflected on the target volume.
also discovery. 2. An optional feature of the Storage
data source System DS family that can make an
A storage resource or agent that provides instant copy of data, that is, a
data about a storage environment. point-in-time copy of a volume.

discovery freeze An operation in which a storage system

The process of finding resources within blocks I/O from the host system to the
an enterprise, including finding the new affected volumes on the primary site. A
location of monitored resources that were freeze operation stops mirroring between
moved. See also data collection. the primary and secondary volumes to
ensure data consistency at the secondary
site. See also thaw.
E
ECKD See extended count key data. G
enterprise repository Global Copy
A component of the data server that A non-synchronous long-distance copy
records and stores all information about option for data migration and backup. See
the monitored computers' storage assets also Global Mirror, Metro Mirror, remote
and their usage over time. The repository mirror and copy.
is organized into relational database
tables and is accessed by the data server Globally Unique Identifier (GUID)
using Java Database Connectivity (JDBC). An algorithmically determined number
that uniquely identifies an entity within a
event An occurrence of significance to a task or system.
system. Events can include completion or
failure of an operation, a user action, or Global Mirror
the change in state of a process. An optional capability of the remote
mirror and copy feature that provides a
extended count key data (ECKD) two-site extended-distance remote copy.
An extension of the count-key-data (CKD) Data that is written by the host to the
architecture. It includes additional storage unit at the local site is
commands that can be used to improve automatically maintained at the remote
performance. site. See also Global Copy, Metro Mirror,
remote mirror and copy.
F grain size
fileset See file set. The unit size for allocating space on
thin-provisioned volumes, such as 32, 64,
file set 128, and 256 kibibyte. The grain size is
1. A subset of a file system that provides defined when a volume is created.
granularity of functions such as
GUID See Globally Unique Identifier.
snapshots or quotas within the file
system.
2. A hierarchical grouping of files
managed as a unit for balancing
workload across a cluster.

364 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

H M
Hardware Management Console (HMC) Management Information Base (MIB)
In a system storage environment, a In the Simple Network Management
system that acts as the focal point for Protocol (SNMP), a database of objects
configuration, management of Copy that can be queried or set by a network
Services functions, and maintenance. management system.
heat map management server
A color-coded data chart in which colors A system that provides a central point of
are used to differentiate values in a data control for managing data replication.
set.
management server relationship
HMC See Hardware Management Console. A connection between two replication
servers, where one server acts as the
host volume
active server and replicates the data that
A volume that represents the volume
is necessary for the standby server to take
functional role from an application point
control of the replication environment.
of view. The host volume can be
connected to a host or server. It receives Metro Global Mirror
read, write, and update application I/O, A three-site, high availability, disaster
depending on the site to which the recovery solution. Metro Global Mirror
application is writing. uses synchronous replication to mirror
data between a local site and an
hypervisor
intermediate site, and asynchronous
Software or a physical device that enables
replication to mirror data from an
multiple instances of operating systems to
intermediate site to a remote site.
run simultaneously on the same
hardware. Metro Mirror
A function of the remote mirror and copy
feature that constantly updates a
J secondary copy of a volume to match
journal volume changes made to a source volume. See
A volume that holds a consistent copy of also Global Copy, Global Mirror, remote
data until a new consistent copy is mirror and copy.
formed. The journal volume restores the MIB See Management Information Base.
last consistent point during a recovery.

N
L
namespace
launch-in-context The scope within which a Common
An operation in which a user starts a Information Model (CIM) schema applies.
secondary application from a primary
application to perform a specific task. native interface
Using the parameters, navigation An interface that is specific to a system or
instructions, and user credentials that are subsystem.
supplied by the primary application, the
secondary application opens to the P
specific place in which to complete the
task. ping
logical unit number (LUN) 1. The command that sends an Internet
In the Small Computer System Interface Control Message Protocol (ICMP)
(SCSI) standard, a unique identifier used echo-request packet to a gateway,
to differentiate devices, each of which is a router, or host with the expectation of
logical unit (LU). receiving a reply.
2. A job that tracks the availability of
LUN See logical unit number.
assets and that is performed by an

Glossary 365
 agent. Several ping jobs can be used to to which a user has access. A user can be
monitor the availability of any assigned one or more roles.
computer or subset of computers in
role pair
the network.
The association of two volume roles in a
pool A grouping of storage space that consists session that take part in a copy
of volumes, logical unit numbers (LUNs), relationship. For example, in a Metro
or addresses that share a common set of Mirror session, the role pair can be the
administrative characteristics. association between host volumes at the
primary site and host volumes at the
practice volume
secondary site (H1-H2).
A volume that can be used to test
disaster-recovery actions while
maintaining disaster-recovery capability. S
primary site scan A data collection job that monitors storage
A physical or virtual site that is made up usage and file statistics on the resources
of hardware, network, and storage in an environment.
resources. Typically, production
operations run at the primary site. Data secondary site
can be replicated to a secondary site for A physical or virtual site that is made up
disaster recovery and failover operations. of the hardware, network, and storage
See also secondary site. resources that support the recovery needs
of the primary site. When a failure occurs
primordial pool at the primary site, operations can
Storage capacity that is unallocated on a continue at the secondary site. See also
storage device. Storage pools are created primary site.
by allocating storage capacity from
primordial pools. session
A collection of source and target volumes
probe A data collection job that itemizes and that are managed to create consistent
creates an inventory of assets, such as copies of data. The type of data
computers, controllers, disk drives, file replication that is associated with the
systems, and logical units. session determines the actions that can be
conducted for the volumes.
R site awareness
The association of a location with each
recovery point objective
storage system in a session. Site
The maximum amount of data loss that
awareness ensures that a volume can only
can be tolerated during a service
be selected for a session if it matches the
interruption.
location of the site. Site awareness helps
remote mirror and copy to prevent both reversing a hardware
A feature of a storage server that relationship and selecting volumes at the
constantly updates a secondary copy of a wrong location.
logical volume to match changes made to
SMI-S See Storage Management Initiative
a primary logical volume. The primary
Specification.
and secondary volumes can be on the
same storage server or on separate standby management server
storage servers. See also Global Copy, A management server that is a backup for
Global Mirror, Metro Mirror. the active server. The replication
environment cannot be monitored or
resource
managed from the standby server.
In a storage environment, an entity that is
monitored. Resources can include fabrics, Storage Management Initiative Specification
switches, computers, and storage systems. (SMI-S)
A design specification developed by the
role A job function that identifies the tasks
Storage Networking Industry Association
that a user can perform and the resources
(SNIA) that specifies a secure and reliable

366 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

 interface with which storage management external interfaces as their counterparts,
systems (SMSs) can identify, classify, but differ in attributes, such as size,
monitor, and control physical and logical performance, and cost. Virtualization is
resources in a storage area network commonly applied to physical hardware
(SAN). The interface integrates the resources by combining multiple physical
various devices to be managed in a SAN resources into shared pools from which
and the tools used to manage them. users receive virtual resources.
storage pod virtual storage area network (VSAN)
A logical entity of components of a A fabric within the storage area network
system consisting of two storage nodes, (SAN).
and one or two storage subsystems
VSAN See virtual storage area network.
directly connected with these storage
nodes.
storage resource group
Z
A named collection of logically related zone A logical grouping of switches, switch
resources that are monitored by IBM ports, and their attached devices in a
Spectrum Control. Monitored resources fabric.
can include fabrics, switches, computers,
storage systems, and other storage zone alias
resource groups. A name that is given to a collection of one
or more zone members to be managed
together.
T
zone set
target volume A group of zones that function together
A volume that receives data from a host on a fabric.
volume or another intermediate volume.
thaw An operation in which a storage system
releases the block of the I/O from the
host system to the affected volumes on
the primary site. A thaw operation can
occur after a freeze operation ends and
consistency is formed on the secondary
site. See also freeze.
thin provisioning
A mechanism that provides the ability to
define logical volume sizes that are larger
than the physical capacity installed on the
system.
track space-efficient volume (TSE volume)
A volume in which storage space is
allocated on an as-needed basis by using
space on the target volume only when
tracks are copied from the source volume
to the target volume.
TSE volume
See track space-efficient volume.

V
virtualization
The substitution of virtual resources for
actual resources, where the virtual
resources have the same functions and

Glossary 367
368 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
Index
A analyze tiering (continued)
storage pools 221
Cisco MDS 9000 56
cloud computing 338, 339
about this document vii storage virtualizers 220 cloud configuration 37, 194
access path host replacement 199 thresholds, modify 222 collection
accessibility features volume placement 62 overview 32
for IBM Spectrum Control 353 volumes 221 comments, sending vii
for Tivoli Storage Productivity Center volumes, colocate 63 components 23
for Replication 355 application computer alerts
acknowledging alerts 129 scenario 68 triggering conditions 274
activity deviation percentage application context 177 concept diagram
formula 224 applications VASA provider 48
activity levels adding applications to departments condition of resources
formula 224 for monitoring 182 how the condition of resources is
activity limits application hierarchy 170 determined 141
formula 224 creating 170 condition of resources in the web-based
adding 175, 181, 182 creating applications for GUI
adding applications 182 monitoring 171 viewing the condition of top-level
adding hypervisors monitoring 169 resources 144
ESX and ESXi 88 removing 177 conditions and violations 111
vCenter Server system 88 removing applications for configuring 37, 194
adding resources 75, 175 monitoring 176 alerts for performance monitors 107
fabrics 85 resources 177 alerts for probes 101
hypervisors 88, 89 scenarios controls for performance view
servers with agents 96 viewing capacity usage trends 70 export performance information 156
servers without agents 92 viewing information 169 hide and show resources 156
storage systems 81 viewing status 169 hide and show the legend 156
switches 85 applications and departments remove resources 156
vCenter Server system 90 scenarios select metrics 156
adding subdepartments 181 monitoring capacity usage 64 specify a time range 156
agents architecture specify granularity 156
CIM 57 description 23 view chart 156
alert conditions and violations 111 audience v view chart in a new window 156
alert for resource view table 156
suppressing notifications 120 creating 171, 175, 180, 195
alert notification settings
modifying 125, 126 B creating applications 171
creating departments 180
alerting 111 balance pools 60
creating subcomponents 175
alert log 111 criteria 224
defining alerts for attribute and modify 223
capacity changes 113 volumes, colocate 63
notifications 111 Balance Pools 223 D
overview 49, 251 block storage provisioning dashboard 133
alerts 111 on vSphere Web Client extension 216 data collection 32
acknowledging 129 creating performance monitors in the
actions 280, 281 web-based GUI 104
configuring for performance C modifying performance monitors in
the web-based GUI 106
monitors 107 capacity
configuring for probes 101 performance monitors 103
adding to a capacity pool 201
notifications 281 starting and stopping performance
removing from a capacity pool 202
removing 130 monitors in the web-based GUI 107
capacity pool 37, 194
suppression actions 280 verifying that a performance monitor
adding resources to 201
triggering conditions 252 is running in the web-based
creating 201
viewing violations of performance GUI 105
deleting 203
thresholds 164 verifying that a probe is running in
modifying 202
alias 54 the web-based GUI 100
removing resources from 202
analysis period viewing all performance monitors in
viewing capacity of 202
performance data, change 228 theweb-based GUI 108
viewing details of 202
analyze tiering viewing performance monitor logs in
viewing resources of 202
analysis period, change 228 the web-based GUI 109
CIM agents 57
conditions, setting 62 viewing performance monitors for a
Cinder 338, 339
hypervisors 220 resource in theweb-based GUI 109
Cinder driver 338, 339, 347
servers 220

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2001, 2016 369

data collection (continued)
viewing performance monitors in
E hypervisors 220
adding 88, 89
theweb-based GUI 108 EB modifying properties 229
data paths See EiB optimized volumes, colocate 63
changing the layout 192 EiB 51 tiering, analyze 220
exporting a data path to a file 193 ESSperformance metrics 318 user roles 80
fabrics 187 ESX and ESXi viewing data paths 187
hypervisors 187 adding 88 viewing information in the web-based
navigating a data path 191 exported file systems 110 GUI 130
overview 187 exporting information in the web-based viewing status in the web-based
printing a view 193 GUI 186, 232 GUI 139
resources that you can view 188
saving the view settings 193
servers 187 F I
storage systems 187 fabric 53 I/O rate
topology view 188 fabric alerts volumes, tiering 62
topology view for data paths triggering conditions 272 IBM Copy Services Manager 31
changing the layout 192 Fabric Manager IBM Spectrum Control
exporting a data path to a file 193 zone 54 architecture 23
navigating a data path 191 zone set 54 component overview 23
printing a view 193 fabrics overview 23
saving the view settings 193 adding 85, 88 VASA provider 47
viewing information about internal agent types for monitoring 88 IBM Spectrum Control limitations and
resources 191 modifying properties 229 known issues 348
viewing information about viewing data paths 187 IBM Spectrum Scale
top-level resources 191 viewing information in the web-based file systems, view performance
zooming in 192 GUI 130 metrics 329
zooming out 192 viewing status in the web-based nodes, view performance metrics 329
viewing information about internal GUI 139 IBM Spectrum Virtualize
resources 191 FCID zoning 54 host connections, view performance
viewing information about top-level file share metrics 296
resources 191 access path 199 I/O groups, view performance
zooming in 192 file storage provisioning metrics 296
zooming out 192 on vSphere Web Client extension 217 managed disks, view performance
data store filtering lists in the web-based GUI 234 metrics 296
creating in vSphere Web Client filters 172 nodes, view performance metrics 296
extension 216 assign resources 172 pools, view performance metrics 296
datastore sorting rows 235 ports, view performance metrics 296
See data store
volumes, view performance
default
metrics 296
zone 54
defining alerts for attribute and capacity
G Installation
GiB 51 Cinder driver package contents 343
changes 113
glossary 363 interfaces 31
department
GUI overview 24
scenarios
exporting information about Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for
comparing storage in each
applications and departments 186 Replication 31
department 66
department context 184 monitoring fabrics 54
departments monitoring switches 54
applications 184 saving information about applications K
creating departments for and departments 186 KB
monitoring 180 See KiB
monitoring 178 KiB 51
removing 184 H
removing departments for hardware zoning 54
monitoring 183
viewing information 178
hierarchies L
application 184 license restrictions 16
viewing status 178 department 184 licenses 16
departments and applications viewing information 184 Linux 338, 339
scenarios host definition lists
different levels of business default 210 hiding columns 235
hierarchy 64 for fibre_channel ports 210 reorganizing columns 235
relational 70 provisioning 210 showing columns 235
details 176, 183 how the condition of resources is
discover 110 determined 141
domain port zoning 54 hypervisor alerts
Domain_ID 54 triggering conditions 266

370 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

M performance view (continued)
bookmarks 164
resources (continued)
adding storage systems for
max deviation percentage controls 156 monitoring 81
default range 224 favorites 164 adding switches for monitoring 85
MB saving URLs 164 adding to a capacity pool 201
See MiB viewing the performance of internal manually adding resources to
metricsESS 318 resources 160 applications 175
metricsperformance reports 283 viewing the performance of related modifying properties 229
metricsXIV 313 resources 160 removing 98
MiB 51 PiB 51 removing from a capacity pool 202
modifying 196 pools restrictions
monitor balance 60 based on license 16
capacity and space usage 68 balance, analyze 223 based on role 16
Monitoring Agent hot spots, identify 60 role restrictions 16
displaying reports 58 modifying properties 229 roles 52
tiering, analyze 221
port name zoning 54
N port zoning 54 S
N_Port address identifier 54 PortId zoning 54
SAN Volume Controller
N_Port_Name 54 probes
publications v
Node_Name 54 configuring alerts 101
sending comments vii
non standard zones problems
server alerts
fabric assist 56 report viii
triggering conditions 274
protocol 56 provisioning 110, 211
servers
quick loop 56 custom requirements for 198
adding
notifications for alerts 281 overview 42, 194
importing servers from a list 94
scenarios
importing servers with agents from
constrained set of storage 71
a file 96
O using vSphere Web Client
extension 71
adding by deploying an agent 96
open source 338, 339 adding without agents 92
shares 213, 214
Opening the management GUI for a modifying properties 229
volumes 211, 212, 213
resource 231 optimized volumes, colocate 63
OpenStack 338, 339 tiering, analyze 220
IBM Spectrum Control 341 viewing data paths 187
Installing IBM Spectrum Control 344 R viewing information in the web-based
Uninstalling IBM Spectrum Control reader feedback, sending vii GUI 130
Cinder driver 346 reclamation viewing status in the web-based
overview 37 block storage systems 225 GUI 139
excluding 226 service viii
recommendations 225, 226 service class 37, 194, 195, 196
P storage systems 226
viewing volumes 225
deleting 198
satisfying custom requirements of
PB volumes 225, 226 a 198
See PiB Reclamation viewing properties of 196
performance 283 storage 46 viewing storage constraints of 196
controls for the performance volumes 46 viewing users who can provision by
view 156 Red Hat 338, 339 using 196
hot spots 59 removing 176, 183 viewing volumes or shares associated
metrics removing alerts with 196
disk 283 alerts service management connect viii
ESS 318 removing 130 shares 110
IBM Spectrum Accelerate 313 removing applications 176 SMC viii
port 283 removing departments 183 software zoning 54
volume 283 removing resources 98 sorting rows in lists 235
XIV 313 reporting starting
monitoring 149 dashboard 133 IBM Spectrum Control web-based
performance view 155, 164 reporting problems viii GUI 25
viewing threshold violations 164 resource alert definition status of resources
performance alert for resource viewing 121 viewing the status of resources 145
editing 117 resources status of resources in the web-based GUI
performance data adding 75 acknowledging the status of a
analysis period, change 228 adding agentless servers for resource 146
performance metrics monitoring 92 acknowledging the status of a
IBM Spectrum Scale 329 adding fabrics for monitoring 85 top-level resource 146
IBM Spectrum Virtualize 296 adding hypervisors for acknowledging the status of an
performance view monitoring 88, 89, 90 internal resource 148
accessing 155, 164

Index 371
status of resources in the web-based tasks (continued) triggering conditions (continued)
GUI (continued) implementing optimization storage system alerts 253
viewing the overall status of recommendations in theweb-based switch alerts 270
resources 144 GUI 244, 245 troubleshooting
storage pools managing in the web-based GUI 236 performance 149
tier level, setting 220 managing provisioning tasks in the
tiering, analyze 221 web-based GUI 240
storage provisioning
vSphere Web Client extension 48
managing tiering storage, balancing
pools, and transforming-storage
U
Ubuntu 338, 339
storage reporting tasks in the web-based GUI 242
units of measurement 51
vSphere Web Client extension 48 pausing, resuming, and canceling
user roles
storage system alerts analysis-execution tasks in the
hypervisors 80
triggering conditions 253 web-based GUI 246
storage systems 80
storage systems running provisioning tasks in the
VMware vSphere data sources 80
adding 81 web-based GUI 241
users
IBM Spectrum Scale, adding running tiering analysis,
assigning roles 52
openstack access, configuring 85 transform-plan, and balance-analysis
using 172
performance data collection, tasks in the web-based GUI 244
configuring 84 scheduling the implementation of
probe, configuring 84 optimization recommendations in
sudo access, configuring 83 theweb-based GUI 246 V
modifying properties 229 setting the number of task runs VASA provider
user roles 80 displayed 240 architecture 48
viewing data paths 187 viewing all tasks in the web-based IBM Spectrum Control 47
viewing information in the web-based GUI 236 VASA provider for IBM Spectrum Control
GUI 130 viewing details in the web-based architecture 48
viewing status in the web-based GUI 238 vCenter Server system
GUI 139 viewing in the web-based GUI 236 adding 88, 90
storage virtualizers 220 viewing pending tasks 237 viewing
tiering, analyze 220 viewing task logs in the web-based scenarios
volumes, analyze placement 59 GUI 239 connectivity information 72
volumes, optimize 59 viewing tasks for a resource in the NPIV connections 72
subcomponents web-based GUI 238 viewing details of a department 183
creating subcomponents for existing viewing tasks for a resource type in viewing details of an application 176
applications 175 the web-based GUI 237 Viewing
subdepartments TB the overall status of a storage
creating 181 See TiB environment 133
support viii temporary zone sets 54 viewing application details 176
Support thresholds viewing department details 183
contact viii viewing violations pf viewing the status of resources 145
suppression actions 280 performance 164 VMware vSphere
suppressions for alerts 280 TiB 51 provisioning 71
switch alerts tier levels volume collocation 63
triggering conditions 270 storage pools, setting 220 volumes
switches tiering tiering 62
adding 85, 88 analysis period 228 tiering by I/O density 221
agent types for monitoring 88 I/O density 221 tiering by I/O rate 221
modifying properties 229 I/O rate 221 tiering, analyze 221
viewing information in the web-based tiering thresholds workload 223
GUI 130 I/O rate, modify 222 volumes, shares 211
viewing status in the web-based Tivoli Storage Productivity Center VSANs 56
GUI 139 Cinder driver requirements 342 vSphere resources
Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for managing 216, 217
Replication 31 vSphere storage
T topology view for data paths 188
TPCD.cfg
provisioning 48
vSphere storage reports
tasks
saveNonRoot parameter, add 110 viewing 48
analysis execution 245, 246
trademarks 361 vSphere Web Client extension
creating provisioning tasks in the
translations managing resources 216
web-based GUI 240
browser locale requirement vii provisioning block storage 216
creating tiering storage, balancing
triggering actions 281 provisioning file storage 217
pools, and transforming-storage
triggering conditions provisioning storage 48
tasks in the web-based GUI 243
alerts 252 viewing storage reports 48
deleting in the web-based GUI 248
computer alerts 274
exporting provisioning tasks in the
fabric alerts 272
web-based GUI 242
hypervisor alerts 266
server alerts 274

372 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide

W web-based GUI (continued)
viewing information about
web-based GUI resources 130
acknowledging the status of a viewing information about top-level
resource 146 resources 137
acknowledging the status of a viewing pending tasks 237
top-level resource 146 viewing performance monitor
acknowledging the status of an logs 109
internal resource 148 viewing performance monitors 108
alert severities 113 viewing performance monitors for a
customizing lists 233 resource 109
data collection viewing task details 238
creating performance viewing task for a resource 238
monitors 104 viewing task for a resource type 237
modifying performance viewing task logs 239
monitors 106 viewing tasks 236
performance monitors 103 viewing the condition of top-level
starting performance resources 144
monitors 107 viewing the overall status of
stopping performance resources 144
monitors 107 Windows 349, 350
verifying that a performance workload
monitor is running 105 volumes 223
verifying that a probe is WWN zoning 54
running 100
exporting information about resources,
jobs, and alerts 232
filtering 234 X
how information is organized 131 XIVperformance metrics 313
internal, related, and object resources,
list 75
managing tasks 236 Z
Monitoring the status of zone 54
resources 139 concepts 54
Opening the management GUI for a default 54
resource 231 hardware 54
resources that can be monitored 75 membership 54
saving information about resources, non standard 56
jobs, and alerts 232 port 54
status of resources 139 software 54
tasks supported switches 56
analysis execution 245, 246 zone set 54
creating provisioning tasks 240 temporary 54
creating tiering storage, balancing zones 53
pools, and transforming-storage zoning
tasks 243 automatic 54
deleting 248 during provisioning 54
exporting provisioning tasks 242
implementing optimization
recommendations 244, 245
managing provisioning tasks 240
managing tiering storage,
balancing pools, and
transforming-storage tasks 242
pausing, resuming, and canceling
analysis-execution tasks 246
running provisioning tasks 241
running tiering analysis, transform
plan, and balance-analysis
tasks 244
scheduling the implementation of
optimization
recommendations 246
viewing all performance
monitors 108
viewing all tasks 236
viewing information about internal,
object, and related resources 138

Index 373
374 IBM Spectrum Control: User's Guide
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