ThinkSystem® SAN OS 11.70.

Installing and Configuring for

Linux®
Express Guide
Note

Before using this information and the product it supports, be sure to read and
understand the safety information and the safety instructions, which are available at:
http://thinksystem.lenovofiles.com/help/topic/safety_documentation/pdf_files.html

In addition, be sure that you are familiar with the terms and conditions of the Lenovo warranty
for your server,which can be found at:
http://datacentersupport.lenovo.com/warrantylookup

Fourth Edition (October 2021)

© Copyright Lenovo 2019, 2021.

LIMITED AND RESTRICTED RIGHTS NOTICE: If data or software is delivered pursuant to a General
Services Administration (GSA) contract, use, reproduction, or disclosure is subject to restrictions set forth
in Contract No. GS-35F-05925.
TABLE OF CONTENTS

Deciding whether to use this Express Guide.................................................................................... 1

Understanding the workflow .............................................................................................................. 3
Verifying the configuration is supported ........................................................................................... 4
Configuring management port IP addresses .................................................................................. 10
Access ThinkSystem System Manager and use the Setup Wizard .............................................. 13
Install ThinkSystem Host Utilities .................................................................................................... 15
Performing FC-specific tasks ........................................................................................................... 16
Determining host WWPNs and making the recommended settings - FC ........................................................ 16
Configuring the switches - FC ......................................................................................................................... 16
Configure the multipath software .................................................................................................................... 17
Create partitions and filesystems .................................................................................................................... 18
Verify storage access on the host ................................................................................................................... 19
FC worksheet .................................................................................................................................................. 19
Performing iSCSI-specific tasks ....................................................................................................... 21
Configuring the switches - iSCSI..................................................................................................................... 21
Configuring networking - iSCSI ....................................................................................................................... 21
Configuring array-side networking - iSCSI ...................................................................................................... 20
Configuring host-side networking - iSCSI ....................................................................................................... 22
Verifying IP network connections—iSCSI ....................................................................................................... 24
Configure the multipath software .................................................................................................................... 24
Create partitions and filesystems .................................................................................................................... 26
Verify storage access on the host ................................................................................................................... 26
iSCSI worksheet ............................................................................................................................................. 27
Performing SAS-specific tasks ......................................................................................................... 28
Determining SAS host identifiers .................................................................................................................... 28
Configure the multipath software .................................................................................................................... 28
Create partitions and filesystems .................................................................................................................... 29
Verify storage access on the host ................................................................................................................... 30
SAS worksheet ............................................................................................................................................... 30
Performing NVMe over RoCE-specific tasks................................................................................... 32
Verify the Linux configuration is supported ................................................................................................. 32
Configure the switch ...................................................................................................................................... 32
Set up NVMe over RoCE on the host side ................................................................................................... 32
Configure storage array NVMe over RoCE connections ............................................................................ 33
Discover and connect to the storage from the host ..................................................................................... 35
Set up failover on the host ............................................................................................................................ 36
Create filesystems .......................................................................................................................................... 38
NVMe over RoCE worksheet for Linux ........................................................................................................... 39
Performing NVMe over Fibre Channel tasks ................................................................................... 42
Verify the Linux configuration is supported ................................................................................................. 42
Configure the switch ...................................................................................................................................... 42
 Set up NVMe over Fibre Channel on the host side ..................................................................................... 43
Display the volumes visible to the host ........................................................................................................ 43
Set up failover on the host ............................................................................................................................ 44
Create filesystems .......................................................................................................................................... 45
NVMe over Fibre Channel worksheet for Linux............................................................................................... 45
Creating a workload ........................................................................................................................... 48
Create workloads ............................................................................................................................................ 48
Create volumes .................................................................................................................................. 49
Step 1: Select host for a volume ..................................................................................................................... 49
Step 2: Select a workload for a volume ........................................................................................................... 50
Step 3: Add or edit volumes ............................................................................................................................ 51
Step 4: Review volume configuration .............................................................................................................. 55
Defining a host in ThinkSystem System Manager.......................................................................... 57
Create host automatically................................................................................................................................ 57
Create host manually ...................................................................................................................................... 57
Create host cluster .......................................................................................................................................... 59
Mapping a volume to a host.............................................................................................................. 61
Discovering, Configuring, and Verifying storage on the host ....................................................... 62
Where to find additional information ............................................................................................... 63
Contacting Support ........................................................................................................................... 64
Notices ................................................................................................................................................ 65
Trademarks......................................................................................................................................... 66
 Deciding whether to use this Express Guide
The express method for installing your storage array and accessing ThinkSystem System Manager is
appropriate for setting up a standalone Linux host to a DE Series storage system. It is designed to
get the storage system up and running as quickly as possible with minimal decision points.

The express method includes the following steps:

1. Setting up one of the following communication environments:

• Fibre Channel (FC)

• iSCSI

• SAS

• NVMe over RoCE

• NVMe over Fibre Channel

2. Creating logical volumes on the storage array.

3. Making the volume LUNs available to the data host.

This guide is based on the following assumptions:

Component Assumptions
Hardware
• You have used the Installation and Setup Instructions included with
the controller shelves to install the hardware.

• You have connected cables between the optional drive shelves and
the array controllers.

• You have applied power to the storage array.

• You have installed all other hardware (for example, management

station, switches) and made the necessary connections.

• If you are using NVMe over Fabrics, each DE6000H or DE6000F

controller contains at least 64 GB of RAM.

Host
• You have made a connection between the storage array and the
data host.

• You have installed the host operating system.

• You are not using Windows as a virtualized guest.

• You are not configuring the data (I/O attached) host to boot from
SAN.

• If you are NVMe over Fabrics, you have installed the latest
compatible Linux version as listed under the Lenovo Storage
Interoperation Center.

Storage
management • You are using a 1 Gbps or faster management network.
station

1 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Component Assumptions
• You are using a separate station for management rather than the
data (I/O attached) host.

• You are using out-of-band management, in which a storage

management station sends commands to the storage array through
the Ethernet connections to the controller.

• You have attached the management station to the same subnet as

the storage management ports.

IP addressing
• You have installed and configured a DHCP server.

• You have not yet made an Ethernet connection between the

management station and the storage array.

Storage
provisioning • You will not use shared volumes.

• You will create pools rather than volume groups.

Protocol: FC
• You have made all host-side FC connections and activated switch
zoning.

• You are using Lenovo-supported FC HBAs and switches.

• You are using FC HBA driver versions as listed on Lenovo Storage

Interoperation Center (LSIC).

Protocol: iSCSI
• You are using Ethernet switches capable of transporting iSCSI
traffic.

• You have configured the Ethernet switches according to the

vendor’s recommendation for iSCSI.

Protocol: SAS
• You are using Lenovo-supported SAS HBAs.

• You are using SAS HBA driver versions as listed on Lenovo Storage
Interoperation Center (LSIC).

Protocol: NVMe
over RoCE • You have received the 100G host interface cards in a DE6000H and
DE6000F storage system pre-configured with the NVMe over RoCE
protocol

• You are using RDMA enabled NIC(RNIC) driver versions as listed

on Lenovo Storage Interoperation Center (LSIC).

Protocol: NVMe
over Fibre • You have received the 32G host interface cards in a DE6000H and
Channel DE6000F storage system pre-configured with the NVMe over Fibre
Channel protocol or the controllers were ordered with standard FC
ports and need to be converted to NVMe-oF.

• You are using FC-NVMe HBA driver versions as listed on Lenovo

Storage Interoperation Center (LSIC).

2 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Understanding the workflow
This workflow guides you through the express method for configuring your storage array
and ThinkSystem System Manager to make storage available to a host.

Verify the configuration is supported.

↓
Configure management port IP address.
↓
Access ThinkSystem System Manager and
Install ThinkSystem Storage Manager for Host Utilities
↓
Follow Setup wizard to configure storage array.
↓
Perform protocol-specific tasks and
multipath software
↓
Discover assigned storage on host.
↓
Configure storage on host.
↓
Verify storage access on host.

3 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Verifying the configuration is supported
To ensure reliable operation, you create an implementation plan and then verify that the entire
configuration is supported.

1. Go to the Lenovo Storage Interoperation Center (LSIC).

2. Follow the Guidance for LSIC & Help.

In this file, you may search for the product family that applies, as well as other criteria
for the configuration such as Operating System, ThinkSystem SAN OS, and Host
Multipath driver.

3. As necessary, make the updates for your operating system and protocol as listed in the
table.

Operating system updates Protocol Protocol-related

updates
FC Host bus adapter (HBA)
You might need to install out-of-box drivers to driver, firmware, and
ensure proper functionality and supportability. bootcode
iSCSI Network interface card
Each HBA vendor has specific methods for (NIC) driver, firmware
updating boot code and firmware. Refer to the and bootcode
support section of the vendor’s website to SAS Host bus adapter (HBA)
obtain the instructions and software necessary driver, firmware, and
to update the HBA boot code and firmware. bootcode
NVMe over RDMA enabled
RoCE NIC(RNIC) driver,
firmware, and bootcode
NVMe over FC-NVMe HBA driver,
Fibre firmware, and bootcode
Channel

4 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
Configuring management port IP addresses
In this express method for configuring communications between the management station and the
storage array, you use Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) to provide IP addresses. Each
controller has two storage management ports, and each management port will be assigned an IP
address.

Before you begin

You have installed and configured a DHCP server on the same subnet as the storage management
ports.
The following instructions refer to a storage array with two controllers (a duplex configuration).

1. If you have not already done so, connect an Ethernet cable to the management station
and to management port 1 on each controller (A and B).

The DHCP server assigns an IP address to port 1 of each controller.

Note: Do not use management port 2 on either controller. Port 2 is reserved for use by
Lenovo technical personnel.

Important: If you disconnect and reconnect the Ethernet cable, or if the storage array
is power-cycled, DHCP assigns IP addresses again. This process occurs until static IP
addresses are configured. It is recommended that you avoid disconnecting the cable or
power-cycling the array.

If the storage array cannot get DHCP-assigned IP addresses within 30 seconds, the
following default IP addresses are set:

• Controller A, port 1: 169.254.128.101

• Controller B, port 1: 169.254.128.102

• Subnet mask: 255.255.0.0

2. Locate the MAC address label on the back of each controller, and then provide your
network administrator with the MAC address for port 1 of each controller.

Your network administrator needs the MAC addresses to determine the IP address for
each controller. You will need the IP addresses to connect to your storage system
through your browser.

10 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Access ThinkSystem System Manager and use the Setup
Wizard
You use the Setup wizard in ThinkSystem System Manager to configure your storage array.

Before you begin

• You have ensured that the device from which you will access ThinkSystem System
Manager contains one of the following browsers:
Browser Minimum version
Google Chrome 47
Microsoft Internet Explorer 11
Microsoft Edge EdgeHTML 12
Mozilla Firefox 31
Safari 9

• You are using out-of-band management.

If you are an iSCSI user, make sure you have closed the Setup wizard while configuring iSCSI.

The wizard automatically relaunches when you open System Manager or refresh your browser
and at least one of the following conditions is met:

• No pools and volume groups are detected.

• No workloads are detected.

• No notifications are configured.

If the Setup wizard does not automatically appear, contact technical support.

1. From your browser, enter the following URL: https://<DomainNameOrIPAddress>

IP Address is the address for one of the storage array controllers.

The first time ThinkSystem System Manager is opened on an array that has not been
configured, the Set Administrator Password prompt appears. Role-based access
management configures four local roles: admin, support, security, and monitor. The
latter three roles have random passwords that cannot be guessed. After you set a
password for the admin role you can change all of the passwords using
the admin credentials. See ThinkSystem System Manager online help for more
information on the four local user roles.

2. Enter the System Manager password for the admin role in the Set Administrator
Password and Confirm Password fields, and then select the Set Password button.

When you open System Manager and no pools, volumes groups, workloads, or
notifications have been configured, the Setup wizard launches.

3. Use the Setup wizard to perform the following tasks:

• Verify hardware (controllers and drives) – Verify the number of

controllers and drives in the storage array. Assign a name to the array.

• Verify hosts and operating systems – Verify the host and operating
system types that the storage array can access.

13 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 • Accept pools – Accept the recommended pool configuration for the
express installation method. A pool is a logical group of drives.

• Configure alerts – Allow System Manager to receive automatic

notifications when a problem occurs with the storage array.

• Enable AutoSupport – Automatically monitor the health of your storage

array and have dispatches sent to technical support.

4. If you have not already created a volume, create one by going

to Storage > Volumes > Create > Volume.

For more information, see the online help for ThinkSystem System Manager.

14 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Install ThinkSystem Host Utilities
Storage Manager (Host Utilities) can only be installed on host servers.

1. Download the ThinkSystem Host Utilities package from DE Series Product Support Site.

2. Install the ThinkSystem Host Unitilites binary.

15 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
Performing FC-specific tasks
For the Fibre Channel protocol, you configure the switches and determine the host port identifiers.

Determining host WWPNs and making the recommended

settings - FC
You install an FC HBA utility so you can view the worldwide port name (WWPN) of each host port.

Guidelines for HBA utilities:

• Most HBA vendors offer an HBA utility. You will need the correct version of HBA for your host
operating system and CPU. Examples of FC HBA utilities include:

• Emulex OneCommand Manager for Emulex HBAs

• QLogic QConverge Console for QLogic HBAs

• Host I/O ports might automatically register if the host context agent is installed.

1. Download the appropriate utility from your HBA vendor's web site.

2. Install the utility.

3. Select the appropriate settings in the HBA utility.

Configuring the switches - FC

Configuring (zoning) the Fibre Channel (FC) switches enables the hosts to connect to the storage
array and limits the number of paths. You zone the switches using the management interface for the
switches.

Before you begin

• You must have administrator credentials for the switches.

• You must have used your HBA utility to discover the WWPN of each host initiator port
and of each controller target port connected to the switch.

For details about zoning your switches, see the switch vendor's documentation.

You must zone by WWPN, not by physical port. Each initiator port must be in a separate zone with
all of its corresponding target ports.

1. Log in to the FC switch administration program, and then select the zoning configuration
option.

2. Create a new zone that includes the first host initiator port and that also includes all of
the target ports that connect to the same FC switch as the initiator.

3. Create additional zones for each FC host initiator port in the switch.

4. Save the zones, and then activate the new zoning configuration.

16 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Configure the multipath software
Multipath software provides a redundant path to the storage array in case one of the physical paths
is disrupted. The multipath software presents the operating system with a single virtual device that
represents the active physical paths to the storage. The multipath software also manages the failover
process that updates the virtual device. You use the device mapper multipath (DM-MP) tool for Linux
installations.

Before you begin

You have installed the required packages on your system.

• For Red Hat (RHEL) hosts, verify the packages are installed by running rpm -q device-
mapper- multipath.

• For SLES hosts, verify the packages are installed by running rpm -q multipath-tools.

By default, DM-MP is disabled in RHEL and SLES. Complete the following steps to enable DM-MP
components on the host.

If you have not already installed the operating system, use the media supplied by your operating
system vendor.

1. If a multipath.conf file is not already created, run the # touch /etc/multipath.conf

command.

2. Use the default multipath settings by leaving the multipath.conf file blank.

3. Start the multipath service.

# systemctl start multipathd

4. Configure multipath for startup persistence.

# chkconfig multipathd on

5. Save your kernel version by running the uname -r command.

# uname -r

6. Do one of the following to enable the multipathd daemon on boot.

If you are using.... Do this...

RHEL 6.x systems: chkconfig multipathd on
RHEL 7.x and 8.x systems: systemctl enable multipathd
SLES 12.x and 15.x systems: systemctl enable multipathd

7. Rebuild the initramfs image or the initrd image under /boot directory:

If you are using.... Do this...

RHEL 6.x and 7.x systems: dracut --force --add multipath

SLES 12.x and 15.x systems: dracut --force --add multipath

8. Make sure that the newly created /boot/initrams-* image or /boot/initrd-* image is
selected in the boot configuration file.For example, for grub it is /boot/grub/menu.lst and
for grub2 it is /boot/ grub2/menu.cfg.

9. Use the "Create host manually" procedure in the online help to check whether the hosts
are defined.
17 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Verify that each host type is either Linux DM-MP (Kernel 3.10 or later) if you enable the
Automatic Load Balancing feature, or Linux DM-MP (Kernel 3.9 or earlier) if you disable
the Automatic Load Balancing feature. If necessary, change the selected host type to
the appropriate setting.

10. Reboot the host.

Setting up the multipath.conf file

The multipath.conf file is the configuration file for the multipath daemon, multipathd. The
multipath.conf file overrides the built-in configuration table for multipathd. Any line in the file whose
first non-white-space character is # is considered a comment line. Empty lines are ignored.

Note: For ThinkSystem operating system 8.50 and newer, Lenovo recommends using the default
settings as provided.

The multipath.conf are available in the following locations:

• For SLES, /usr/share/doc/packages/multipath-tools/multipath.conf.synthetic

• For RHEL, /usr/share/doc/device-mapper-multipath-0.4.9/multipath.conf

Create partitions and filesystems

A new LUN has no partition or file system when the Linux host first discovers it. You must format the
LUN before it can be used. Optionally, you can create a file system on the LUN.

Before you begin

The host must have discovered the LUN. See common tasks on storage array in chapter Creating a
workload, Create volumes, and Defining a host in ThinkSystem System Manager, and Mapping a
volume to a host.

In the /dev/mapper folder, you have run the ls command to see the available disks.

You can initialize the disk as a basic disk with a GUID partition table (GPT) or Master boot record
(MBR).

Format the LUN with a file system such as ext4. Some applications do not require this step.

1. Retrieve the SCSI ID of the mapped disk by issuing the multipath -ll command.The SCSI ID
is a 33-character string of hexadecimal digits, beginning with the number 3. If user-friendly
names are enabled, Device Mapper reports disks as mpath instead of by a SCSI ID.

# multipath -ll
mpathd(360080e5000321bb8000092b1535f887a) dm-2 LENOVO ,DE_Series
size=1.0T features='3 queue_if_no_path pg_init_retries 50' hwhandler='1 alua' wp=rw
|-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=50 status=active
| |- 16:0:4:4 sde 69:144 active ready running
| `- 15:0:5:4 sdf 65:176 active ready running
`-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=10 status=enabled
|- 16:0:5:4 sdg 70:80 active ready running
`- 15:0:1:4 sdh 66:0 active ready running.

2. Create a new partition according to the method appropriate for your Linux OS release.
Typically, characters identifying the partition of a disk are appended to the SCSI ID (the
number 1 or p3 for instance).

# parted -a optimal -s -- /dev/mapper/360080e5000321bb8000092b1535f887a mklabel gpt mkpart

primary ext4 0% 100%
18 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 3. Create a file system on the partition.The method for creating a file system varies depending
on the file system chosen.

# mkfs.ext4 /dev/mapper/360080e5000321bb8000092b1535f887a1

4. Create a folder to mount the new partition.

# mkdir /mnt/ext4

5. Mount the partition.

# mount /dev/mapper/360080e5000321bb8000092b1535f887a1 /mnt/ext4

Verify storage access on the host

Before using the volume, you verify that the host can write data to the volume and read it back.

Before you begin

You must have initialized the volume and formatted it with a file system.

1. On the host, copy one or more files to the mount point of the disk

2. Copy the files back to a different folder on the original disk.

3. Run the diff command to compare the copied files to the originals.

Remove the file and folder that you copied.

FC worksheet
You can use this worksheet to record FC storage configuration information. You
need this information to perform provisioning tasks.
The illustration shows a host connected to an DE Series storage array in two zones. One
zone is indicated by the blue line; the other zone is indicated by the red line. Any single port
has two paths to the storage (one to each controller).

Host indentifiers

19 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Callou Host (initiator) port connections WWPN
t No.
1 Host not applicable
2 Host port 0 to FC switch zone 0
7 Host port 1 to FC switch zone 1

Target identifiers

Callou Host (initiator) port connections WWPN

t No.
3 Switch not applicable
6 Array controller (target) not applicable
5 Controller A, port 1 to FC switch 1
9 Controller A, port 2 to FC switch 2
4 Controller B, port 1 to FC switch 1
8 Controller B, port 2 to FC switch 2

Mapping host

Mapping host name

Host OS type

20 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Performing iSCSI-specific tasks
For the iSCSI protocol, you configure the switches and configure networking on the array side
and the host side. Then you verify the IP network connections.

Configuring the switches - iSCSI

You configure the switches according to the vendor’s recommendations for iSCSI. These
recommendations might include both configuration directives as well as code updates.

You must ensure the following:

• You have two separate networks for high availability. Make sure that you isolate your
iSCSI traffic to separate network segments.

• You have enabled send and receive hardware flow control end to end.

• You have disabled priority flow control.

• If appropriate, you have enabled jumbo frames.

Note: Port channels/LACP is not supported on the controller's switch ports. Host-side LACP is not
recommended; multipathing provides the same, and in some cases better, benefits.

Configuring networking - iSCSI

You can set up your iSCSI network in many ways, depending on your data storage requirements.

Consult your network administrator for tips on selecting the best configuration for your environment.

An effective strategy for configuring the iSCSI network with basic redundancy is to connect each host
port and one port from each controller to separate switches and partition each set of host and
controller ports on separate network segments using VLANs.

You must enable send and receive hardware flow control end to end. You must disable priority flow
control.

If you are using jumbo frames within the IP SAN for performance reasons, make sure to configure
the array, switches, and hosts to use jumbo frames. Consult your operating system and switch
documentation for information on how to enable jumbo frames on the hosts and on the switches. To
enable jumbo frames on the array, complete the steps in Configuring array-side networking—iSCSI.

Note: Many network switches must be configured above 9,000 bytes for IP overhead. Consult your
switch documentation for more information.

21 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Configuring array-side networking - iSCSI
You use the ThinkSystem System Manager GUI to configure iSCSI networking on the array side.

Before you begin

• You must know the IP address or domain name for one of the storage array controllers.

• You or your system administrator must have set up a password for the System
Manager GUI, or you must have configured Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) or
LDAP and a directory service for the appropriate security access to the storage array.
See the ThinkSystem System Manager online help for more information about Access
Management.

This task describes how to access the iSCSI port configuration from the Hardware page. You can
also access the configuration from System > Settings > Configure iSCSI ports.

1. From your browser, enter the following URL: https://<DomainNameOrIPAddress>

IP Address is the address for one of the storage array controllers.

The first time ThinkSystem System Manager is opened on an array that has not been
configured, the Set Administrator Password prompt appears. Role-based access
management configures four local roles: admin, support, security, and monitor. The
latter three roles have random passwords that cannot be guessed. After you set a
password for the admin role you can change all of the passwords using
the admin credentials. See ThinkSystem System Manager online help for more
information on the four local user roles.

2. Enter the System Manager password for the admin role in the Set Administrator
Password and Confirm Password fields, and then select the Set Password button.

When you open System Manager and no pools, volumes groups, workloads, or
notifications have been configured, the Setup wizard launches.

3. Close the Setup wizard.

You will use the wizard later to complete additional setup tasks.

4. Select Hardware.

5. If the graphic shows the drives, click Show back of shelf.

The graphic changes to show the controllers instead of the drives.

6. Click the controller with the iSCSI ports you want to configure.

The controller's context menu appears.

7. Select Configure iSCSI ports.

The Configure iSCSI Ports dialog box opens.

8. In the drop-down list, select the port you want to configure, and then click Next.

9. Select the configuration port settings, and then click Next.

20 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 To see all port settings, click the Show more port settings link on the right of the
dialog box.

Port Setting Description

Configured Ethernet Select the desired speed.
port speed
The options that appear in the drop-down list depend on the
maximum speed that your network can support (for example, 10
Gbps).

Note: The optional iSCSI host interface cards in the DE6000H

and DE6000F controllers do not auto-negotiate speeds. You
must set the speed for each port to either 10 Gb or 25 Gb. All
ports must be set to the same speed.
Enable IPv4 / Select one or both options to enable support for IPv4 and IPv6
Enable IPv6 networks.
TCP listening port
If necessary, enter a new port number.
(Available by
clicking Show more The listening port is the TCP port number that the controller uses
port settings.) to listen for iSCSI logins from host iSCSI initiators. The default
listening port is 3260. You must enter 3260 or a value between
49152 and 65535.

MTU size
If necessary, enter a new size in bytes for the Maximum
(Available by Transmission Unit (MTU).
clicking Show more
port settings.) The default Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU) size is 1500
bytes per frame. You must enter a value between 1500 and
9000.

Enable ICMP PING Select this option to enable the Internet Control Message
responses Protocol (ICMP). The operating systems of networked computers
use this protocol to send messages. These ICMP messages
determine whether a host is reachable and how long it takes to
get packets to and from that host.

If you selected Enable IPv4, a dialog box opens for selecting IPv4 settings after you
click Next. If you selected Enable IPv6, a dialog box opens for selecting IPv6 settings
after you click Next. If you selected both options, the dialog box for IPv4 settings opens
first, and then after you click Next, the dialog box for IPv6 settings opens.

10. Configure the IPv4 and/or IPv6 settings, either automatically or manually. To see all
port settings, click the Show more settings link on the right of the dialog box.

Port setting Description

Automatically Select this option to obtain the configuration automatically.
obtain
configuration
Manually specify Select this option, and then enter a static address in the fields. For
static IPv4, include the network subnet mask and gateway. For IPv6,
configuration include the routable IP address and router IP address.
Enable VLAN Important: This option is only available in an iSCSI environment.
support
Select this option to enable a VLAN and enter its ID. A VLAN is a
logical network that behaves like it is physically separate from other

21 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Port setting Description
physical and virtual local area networks (LANs) supported by the
(Available by same switches, the same routers, or both.
clicking Show
more settings.)

Enable ethernet Important: This option is only available in an iSCSI environment.

priority
Select this option to enable the parameter that determines the
(Available by priority of accessing the network. Use the slider to select a priority
clicking Show between 1 and 7.
more settings.)
In a shared local area network (LAN) environment, such as
Ethernet, many stations might contend for access to the network.
Access is on a first-come, first-served basis. Two stations might try
to access the network at the same time, which causes both stations
to back off and wait before trying again. This process is minimized
for switched Ethernet, where only one station is connected to a
switch port.

11. Click Finish.

12. Close System Manager.

Configuring host-side networking - iSCSI

You configure iSCSI networking on the host side by setting the number of node sessions per
physical path, turning on the appropriate iSCSI services, configuring the network for the iSCSI ports,
creating iSCSI face bindings, and establishing the iSCSI sessions between initiators and targets.

In most cases, you can use the inbox software-initiator for iSCSI CNA/NIC. You do not need to
download the latest driver, firmware, and BIOS. Refer to the Interoperability Matrix document to
determine code requirements.

Before you begin

• You have fully configured the switches that will be used to carry iSCSI storage traffic.

• You must have enabled send and receive hardware flow control end to end and
disabled priority flow control.

• You have completed the array side iSCSI configuration.

• You must know the IP address of each port on the controller.

These instructions assume that two NIC ports will be used for iSCSI traffic.

1. Check the node.session.nr_sessions variable in the /etc/iscsi/iscsid.conf file to see the

default number of sessions per physical path. If necessary, change the default number of
sessions to one session.

node.session.nr_sessions = 1

2. Change the node.session.timeo.replacement_timeout variable in the

/etc/iscsi/iscsid.conf file to 20, from a default value of 120.

node.session.timeo.replacement_timeout=20
22 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 3. Make sure iscsid and (open-)iscsi services are on and enabled for boot.Red Hat Enterprise
Linux 7 (RHEL 7) and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 and 8 (RHEL 7 and RHEL 8)

# systemctl start iscsi

# systemctl start iscsid

# systemctl enable iscsi

# systemctl enable iscsid

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 (SLES 12) and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 and 15
(SLES 12 and SLES 15)

# systemctl start iscsid.service # systemctl enable iscsid.service

Optionally, you set node.startup = automatic in in /etc/iscsi/iscsid.conf before running any

iscsiadm commands to have sessions persist after reboot:

4. Get the host IQN initiator name, which will be used to configure the host to an array.

# cat /etc/iscsi/initiatorname.iscsi

5. Configure the network for iSCSI ports:

Note: In addition to the public network port, iSCSI initiators should use two NICs or more on
separate private segments or vLANs
1. Determine the iSCSI port names using the # ifconfig -a command.
2. Set the IP address for the iSCSI initiator ports. The initiator ports should be present
on the same subnet as the iSCSI target ports.
# vim /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-<NIC port>

Edit:
BOOTPROTO=none
ONBOOT=yes
NM_CONTROLLED=no

Add:
IPADDR=192.168.xxx.xxx
NETMASK=255.255.255.0

Note: Be sure to set the address for both iSCSI initiator ports.
3. Restart network services.

# systemctl restart network

4. Make sure the Linux server can ping all of the iSCSI target ports.

6. Configure the iSCSI interfaces by creating two iSCSI iface bindings.

# iscsiadm –m iface –I iface0 –o new
# iscsiadm –m iface –I iface0 –o update –n iface.net_ifacename –v <NIC port1>
# iscsiadm –m iface –I iface1 –o new
# iscsiadm –m iface –I iface1 –o update –n iface.net_ifacename –v <NIC port2>

Note: To list the interfaces, use iscsiadm –m iface

7. Establish the iSCSI sessions between initiators and targets (four total).
23 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 1. Discover iSCSI targets. Save the IQN (it will be the same with each discovery) in the
worksheet for the next step.
# iscsiadm –m discovery –t sendtargets –p 192.168.0.1:3260 –I iface0 –P 1
Note: The IQN looks like the following:
iqn.2002-09.lenovo:de-series.600a098000af40fe000000005b565ef8
2. Create the connection between the iSCSI initiators and iSCSI targets, using ifaces.
# iscsiadm –m node –T iqn.2002-09.lenovo:de-series.600a098000af40fe000000005b565ef8 –p
192.168.0.1:3260 –I iface0 -l
3. List the iSCSI sessions established on the host.
# iscsiadm -m session

Verifying IP network connections—iSCSI

You verify Internet Protocol (IP) network connections by using ping tests to ensure the host and array
are able to communicate.

1. On the host, run one of the following commands, depending on whether jumbo frames are
enabled:

• If jumbo frames are not enabled, run this command:

ping -I <hostIP> <targetIP>

• If jumbo frames are enabled, run the ping command with a payload size of 8,972
bytes. The IP and ICMP combined headers are 28 bytes, which when added to the
payload, equals 9,000 bytes. The -s switch sets the packet size bit. The -d switch
sets the debug option. These options allow jumbo frames of 9,000 bytes to be
successfully transmitted between the iSCSI initiator and the target.
ping -I <hostIP> -s 8972 -d <targetIP>

2. In this example, the iSCSI target IP address is 192.0.2.8.

C:\> ping -I 192.0.2.100 -s 8972 -d 192.0.2.8

Reply from 192.0.2.8: bytes=8972 time=2ms TTL=64

Reply from 192.0.2.8: bytes=8972 time=2ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.0.2.8: bytes=8972 time=2ms TTL=64
Reply from 192.0.2.8: bytes=8972 time=2ms TTL=64

Ping statistics for 192.0.2.8:

Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss), Approximate round trip times in milli-
seconds:

Minimum = 2ms, Maximum = 2ms, Average = 2ms

Configure the multipath software

Multipath software provides a redundant path to the storage array in case one of the physical paths
is disrupted. The multipath software presents the operating system with a single virtual device that
represents the active physical paths to the storage. The multipath software also manages the failover
process that updates the virtual device. You use the device mapper multipath (DM-MP) tool for Linux
installations.

Before you begin

You have installed the required packages on your system.

24 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 • For Red Hat (RHEL) hosts, verify the packages are installed by running rpm -q device-
mapper- multipath.

• For SLES hosts, verify the packages are installed by running rpm -q multipath-tools.

By default, DM-MP is disabled in RHEL and SLES. Complete the following steps to enable DM-MP
components on the host.

If you have not already installed the operating system, use the media supplied by your operating
system vendor.

1. If a multipath.conf file is not already created, run the # touch /etc/multipath.conf

command.

2. Use the default multipath settings by leaving the multipath.conf file blank.

3. Start the multipath service.

# systemctl start multipathd

4. Configure multipath for startup persistence.

# chkconfig multipathd on

5. Save your kernel version by running the uname -r command.

# uname -r

6. Do one of the following to enable the multipathd daemon on boot.

If you are using.... Do this...

RHEL 6.x systems: chkconfig multipathd on
RHEL 7.x systems: systemctl enable multipathd
SLES 12.x and 15.x systems: systemctl enable multipathd

7. Rebuild the initramfs image or the initrd image under /boot directory:

If you are using.... Do this...

RHEL 6.x and 7.x systems: dracut --force --add multipath

SLES 12.x and 15.x systems: dracut --force --add multipath

8. Make sure that the newly created /boot/initrams-* image or /boot/initrd-* image is
selected in the boot configuration file.For example, for grub it is /boot/grub/menu.lst and
for grub2 it is /boot/ grub2/menu.cfg.

9. Use the "Create host manually" procedure in the online help to check whether the hosts
are defined. Verify that each host type is either Linux DM-MP (Kernel 3.10 or later) if
you enable the Automatic Load Balancing feature, or Linux DM-MP (Kernel 3.9 or
earlier) if you disable the Automatic Load Balancing feature. If necessary, change the
selected host type to the appropriate setting.

10. Reboot the host.

Setting up the multipath.conf file

The multipath.conf file is the configuration file for the multipath daemon, multipathd. The
multipath.conf file overrides the built-in configuration table for multipathd. Any line in the file whose
first non-white-space character is # is considered a comment line. Empty lines are ignored.

25 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
Note: For ThinkSystem operating system 8.50 and newer, Lenovo recommends using the default
settings as provided.

The multipath.conf are available in the following locations:

• For SLES, /usr/share/doc/packages/multipath-tools/multipath.conf.synthetic

• For RHEL, /usr/share/doc/device-mapper-multipath-0.4.9/multipath.conf

Create partitions and filesystems

A new LUN has no partition or file system when the Linux host first discovers it. You must format the
LUN before it can be used. Optionally, you can create a file system on the LUN.

Before you begin

The host must have discovered the LUN. See common tasks on storage array in chapter Creating a
workload, Create volumes, and Defining a host in ThinkSystem System Manager, and Mapping a
volume to a host.

In the /dev/mapper folder, you have run the ls command to see the available disks.

You can initialize the disk as a basic disk with a GUID partition table (GPT) or Master boot record
(MBR).

Format the LUN with a file system such as ext4. Some applications do not require this step.

1. Retrieve the SCSI ID of the mapped disk by issuing the multipath -ll command.The SCSI ID
is a 33-character string of hexadecimal digits, beginning with the number 3. If user-friendly
names are enabled, Device Mapper reports disks as mpath instead of by a SCSI ID.
# multipath -ll
mpathd(360080e5000321bb8000092b1535f887a) dm-2 LENOVO ,DE_Series
size=1.0T features='3 queue_if_no_path pg_init_retries 50' hwhandler='1 alua' wp=rw
|-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=50 status=active
| |- 16:0:4:4 sde 69:144 active ready running
| `- 15:0:5:4 sdf 65:176 active ready running
`-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=10 status=enabled
|- 16:0:5:4 sdg 70:80 active ready running
`- 15:0:1:4 sdh 66:0 active ready running.

2. Create a new partition according to the method appropriate for your Linux OS release.
Typically, characters identifying the partition of a disk are appended to the SCSI ID (the
number 1 or p3 for instance).
# parted -a optimal -s -- /dev/mapper/360080e5000321bb8000092b1535f887a mklabel gpt mkpart
primary ext4 0% 100%

3. Create a file system on the partition.The method for creating a file system varies depending
on the file system chosen.
# mkfs.ext4 /dev/mapper/360080e5000321bb8000092b1535f887a1

4. Create a folder to mount the new partition.

# mkdir /mnt/ext4

5. Mount the partition.

# mount /dev/mapper/360080e5000321bb8000092b1535f887a1 /mnt/ext4

Verify storage access on the host

Before using the volume, you verify that the host can write data to the volume and read it back.

26 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
Before you begin

You must have initialized the volume and formatted it with a file system.

4. On the host, copy one or more files to the mount point of the disk

5. Copy the files back to a different folder on the original disk.

6. Run the diff command to compare the copied files to the originals.

Remove the file and folder that you copied.

iSCSI worksheet
You can use this worksheet to record iSCSI storage configuration information. You need this
information to perform provisioning tasks.

Recommended configuration

Recommended configurations consist of two initiator ports and four target ports with one or more
VLANs.

Target IQN
Callout No. Target port connection IQN
2 Target port
Mappings host name
Callout No. Host information Name and type
1 Mappings host name
Host OS type

27 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Performing SAS-specific tasks
Determining SAS host identifiers
For the SAS protocol, you find the SAS addresses using the HBA utility, then use the HBA BIOS to
make the appropriate configuration settings.

Guidelines for HBA utilities:

• Most HBA vendors offer an HBA utility. Depending on your host operating system and
CPU, use either the LSI-sas2flash(6G) or sas3flash(12G) utility.

• Host I/O ports might automatically register if the host context agent is installed.

1. Download the LSI-sas2flash(6G) or sas3flash(12G) utility from your HBA vendor's web
site.

2. Install the utility.

3. Use the HBA BIOS to select the appropriate settings for your configuration.

Configure the multipath software

Multipath software provides a redundant path to the storage array in case one of the physical paths
is disrupted. The multipath software presents the operating system with a single virtual device that
represents the active physical paths to the storage. The multipath software also manages the failover
process that updates the virtual device. You use the device mapper multipath (DM-MP) tool for Linux
installations.

Before you begin

You have installed the required packages on your system.

• For Red Hat (RHEL) hosts, verify the packages are installed by running rpm -q device-
mapper- multipath.

• For SLES hosts, verify the packages are installed by running rpm -q multipath-tools.

By default, DM-MP is disabled in RHEL and SLES. Complete the following steps to enable DM-MP
components on the host.

If you have not already installed the operating system, use the media supplied by your operating
system vendor.

1. If a multipath.conf file is not already created, run the # touch /etc/multipath.conf

command.

2. Use the default multipath settings by leaving the multipath.conf file blank.

3. Start the multipath service.

# systemctl start multipathd

4. Configure multipath for startup persistence.

# chkconfig multipathd on

5. Save your kernel version by running the uname -r command.

# uname -r

28 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 6. Do one of the following to enable the multipathd daemon on boot.

If you are using.... Do this...

RHEL 6.x systems: chkconfig multipathd on
RHEL 7.x and 8.x systems: systemctl enable multipathd
SLES 12.x and 15.x systems: systemctl enable multipathd

7. Rebuild the initramfs image or the initrd image under /boot directory:

If you are using.... Do this...

RHEL 6.x, 7.x and 8.x systems: dracut --force --add multipath

SLES 12.x and 15.x systems: dracut --force --add multipath

8. Make sure that the newly created /boot/initrams-* image or /boot/initrd-* image is
selected in the boot configuration file.For example, for grub it is /boot/grub/menu.lst and
for grub2 it is /boot/ grub2/menu.cfg.

9. Use the "Create host manually" procedure in the online help to check whether the hosts
are defined. Verify that each host type is either Linux DM-MP (Kernel 3.10 or later) if
you enable the Automatic Load Balancing feature, or Linux DM-MP (Kernel 3.9 or
earlier) if you disable the Automatic Load Balancing feature. If necessary, change the
selected host type to the appropriate setting.

10. Reboot the host.

Setting up the multipath.conf file

The multipath.conf file is the configuration file for the multipath daemon, multipathd. The
multipath.conf file overrides the built-in configuration table for multipathd. Any line in the file whose
first non-white-space character is # is considered a comment line. Empty lines are ignored.

Note: For ThinkSystem operating system 8.50 and newer, Lenovo recommends using the default
settings as provided.

The multipath.conf are available in the following locations:

• For SLES, /usr/share/doc/packages/multipath-tools/multipath.conf.synthetic

• For RHEL, /usr/share/doc/device-mapper-multipath-0.4.9/multipath.conf

Create partitions and filesystems

A new LUN has no partition or file system when the Linux host first discovers it. You must format the
LUN before it can be used. Optionally, you can create a file system on the LUN.

Before you begin

The host must have discovered the LUN. See common tasks on storage array in chapter Creating a
workload, Create volumes, and Defining a host in ThinkSystem System Manager, and Mapping a
volume to a host.

In the /dev/mapper folder, you have run the ls command to see the available disks.

You can initialize the disk as a basic disk with a GUID partition table (GPT) or Master boot record
(MBR).
29 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
Format the LUN with a file system such as ext4. Some applications do not require this step.

1. Retrieve the SCSI ID of the mapped disk by issuing the multipath -ll command.The SCSI ID
is a 33-character string of hexadecimal digits, beginning with the number 3. If user-friendly
names are enabled, Device Mapper reports disks as mpath instead of by a SCSI ID.
# multipath -ll
mpathd(360080e5000321bb8000092b1535f887a) dm-2 LENOVO ,DE_Series
size=1.0T features='3 queue_if_no_path pg_init_retries 50' hwhandler='1 alua' wp=rw
|-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=50 status=active
| |- 16:0:4:4 sde 69:144 active ready running
| `- 15:0:5:4 sdf 65:176 active ready running
`-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=10 status=enabled
|- 16:0:5:4 sdg 70:80 active ready running
`- 15:0:1:4 sdh 66:0 active ready running.

2. Create a new partition according to the method appropriate for your Linux OS release.
Typically, characters identifying the partition of a disk are appended to the SCSI ID (the
number 1 or p3 for instance).
# parted -a optimal -s -- /dev/mapper/360080e5000321bb8000092b1535f887a mklabel gpt mkpart
primary ext4 0% 100%

3. Create a file system on the partition.The method for creating a file system varies depending
on the file system chosen.
# mkfs.ext4 /dev/mapper/360080e5000321bb8000092b1535f887a1

4. Create a folder to mount the new partition.

# mkdir /mnt/ext4

5. Mount the partition.

# mount /dev/mapper/360080e5000321bb8000092b1535f887a1 /mnt/ext4

Verify storage access on the host

Before using the volume, you verify that the host can write data to the volume and read it back.

Before you begin

You must have initialized the volume and formatted it with a file system.

7. On the host, copy one or more files to the mount point of the disk

8. Copy the files back to a different folder on the original disk.

9. Run the diff command to compare the copied files to the originals.

Remove the file and folder that you copied.

SAS worksheet
You can use this worksheet to record SAS storage configuration information. You need this
information to perform provisioning tasks.

30 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
Host Identifiers
Callout No. Host (initiator) port connections SAS address
1 Host not applicable
2 Host (initiator) port 1 connected to Controller A, port 1
3 Host (initiator) port 1 connected to Controller B, port 1
4 Host (initiator) port 2 connected to Controller A, port 1
5 Host (initiator) port 2 connected to Controller B, port 1
Target Identifiers

Recommended configurations consist of two target ports.

Mappings Host
Mappings Host Name

Host OS Type

31 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Performing NVMe over RoCE-specific tasks
You can use NVMe with the RDMA over Converged Ethernet (RoCE) network protocol.

Verify the Linux configuration is supported

To ensure reliable operation, you create an implementation plan and then use the Lenovo
Interoperability Matrix to verify that the entire configuration is supported.

1. Go to Lenovo Storage Interoperation Center (LSIC).

2. Appropriate settings for your configuration are listed

NVMe over RoCE restrictions

Controller restrictions
• NVME over RoCE can be configured for the DE6000H or DE6000F 64GB controllers.
The controllers must have 100GB host ports.

Switch restrictions
Attention: RISK OF DATA LOSS. You must enable Priority Flow Control or Global Pause Control
on the switch to eliminate the risk of data loss in an NVMe over RoCE environment.

Host, host protocol, and host operating system restrictions

• The host must be running SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP5 or later system. See
the Lenovo Storage Interoperation Center (LSIC) for a complete list of requirements.

• For a list of supported host channel adapters see the Lenovo Storage Interoperation
Center (LSIC).

• In-band CLI management via 11.50.3 SMcli is not supported in NVMe-oF modes.

Storage and disaster recovery restrictions

• Asynchronous and synchronous mirroring are not supported.

• Thin provisioning (the creation of thin volumes) is not supported

Configure the switch

You configure the switches according to the vendor’s recommendations for NVMe over RoCE. These
recommendations might include both configuration directives as well as code updates.

Attention: RISK OF DATA LOSS. You must enable Priority Flow Control or Global Pause Control
on the switch to eliminate the risk of data loss in an NVMe over RoCE environment.

Enable Ethernet pause frame flow control end to end as the best practice configuration.

Consult your network administrator for tips on selecting the best configuration for your environment.

Set up NVMe over RoCE on the host side

NVMe initiator configuration in an NVMe-RoCE environment includes installing and configuring the
rdma-core and nvme-cli packages, configuring initiator IP addresses, and setting up the NVMe-oF
layer on the host.

32 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 1. Install the rdma and nvme-cli packages:
# zypper install rdma-core
# zypper install nvme-cli.

2. Setup IPv4 IP addresses on the ethernet ports used to connect NVMe over RoCE. For
each network interface, create a configuration script that contains the different variables
for that interface.

The variables used in this step are based on server hardware and the network
environment. The variables include the IPADDR and GATEWAY. These are example
instructions for the latest SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 service pack:

Create the example file/etc/sysconfig/network/ifcfg-eth4 as follows:

BOOTPROTO='static'
BROADCAST=
ETHTOOL_OPTIONS=
IPADDR='192.168.1.87/24'
GATEWAY='192.168.1.1'
MTU=
NAME='MT27800 Family [ConnectX-5]'
NETWORK=
REMOTE_IPADDR=
STARTMODE='auto'

Create the example file/etc/sysconfig/network/ifcfg-eth5 as follows:

BOOTPROTO='static'
BROADCAST=
ETHTOOL_OPTIONS=
IPADDR='192.168.2.87/24'
GATEWAY='192.168.2.1'
MTU=
NAME='MT27800
Family [ConnectX-5]'
NETWORK=
REMOTE_IPADDR=
STARTMODE='auto'

3. Enable the network interfaces:

# ifup eth4
# ifup eth5.

4. Set up the NVMe-oF layer on the host

Create the following file under /etc/modules-load.d/ to load the nvme-rdma kernel
module and make sure the kernel module will always be on, even after a reboot:
# cat /etc/modules-load.d/nvme-rdma.conf
nvme-rdma

Configure storage array NVMe over RoCE connections

If your controller includes a connection for NVMe over RoCE (RDMA over Converged Ethernet), you
can configure the NVMe port settings from the Hardware page or the System page in ThinkSystem
System Manager.

Attention: RISK OF DATA LOSS. You must enable Priority Flow Control or Global Pause Control
on the switch to eliminate the risk of data loss in an NVMe over RoCE environment.

33 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 • Your controller must include an NVMe over RoCE host port; otherwise, the NVMe over
RoCE settings are not available in ThinkSystem System Manager.

• You must know the IP address of the host connection.

You can access the NVMe over RoCE configuration from the Hardware page or from Settings >
System. This task describes how to configure the ports from the Hardware page.

Note: The NVMe over RoCE settings and functions appear only if your storage array's controller
includes an NVMe over RoCE port.

1. Select Hardware.

2. Click the controller with the NVMe over RoCE port you want to configure.
The controller's context menu appears.

3. Select Configure NVMe over RoCE ports.

The Configure NVMe over RoCE ports dialog box opens.

4. In the drop-down list, select the port you want to configure, and then click Next.
5. Select the port configuration settings you want to use, and then click Next. To see all
port settings, click the Show more port settings link on the right of the dialog box

Port Setting Description

Configured ethernet port speed Select the desired speed.

The options that appear in the drop-down list depend on the maximum
speed that your network can support (for example, 10 Gbps). Possible
values include:
• Auto-negotiate
• 10 Gbps
• 25 Gbps
• 40 Gbps
• 50 Gbps
• 100 Gbps

Note: The configured NVMe over RoCE port speed should match the
speed capability of the SFP on the selected port. All ports must be set
to the same speed.
Enable IPv4 and/or Enable IPv6 Select one or both options to enable support for IPv4 and IPv6
networks.
MTU size If necessary, enter a new size in bytes for the maximum
(Available by clicking transmissionunit (MTU).
Showmore port settings.)
The default MTU size is 1500 bytes per frame. You must enter a
valuebetween 1500 and 4200.

If you selected Enable IPv4, a dialog box opens for selecting IPv4 settings after you
click Next. If you selected Enable IPv6, a dialog box opens for selecting IPv6 settings
after you click Next. If you selected both options, the dialog box for IPv4 settings opens
first, and then after you click Next, the dialog box for IPv6 settings opens.

6. Configure the IPv4 and/or IPv6 settings, either automatically or manually. To see all
port settings, click the Show more settings link on the right of the dialog box

Port setting Description

34 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Automatically obtain Select this option to obtain the configuration automatically.
configuration from
DHCPserver
Manually specify Select this option, and then enter a static address in the fields. For IPv4,
staticconfiguration include the network subnet mask and gateway. For IPv6, include the routable
IP addresses and router IP address.
Note: If there is only one routable IP address, set the remaining address to
0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0.

7. Click Finish.

Discover and connect to the storage from the host

Before making definitions of each host in ThinkSystem System Manager, you must discover the
target controller ports from the host, and then establish NVMe connections.

1. Discover available subsystems on the NVMe-oF target for all paths using the following
command:
nvme discover -t rdma -a target_ip_address

In this command, target_ip_address is the IP address of the target port.

Note: The nvme discover command discovers all controller ports in the subsystem,
regardless ofhost access.

# nvme discover -t rdma -a 192.168.1.77

Discovery Log Number of Records 2, Generation counter 0
=====Discovery Log Entry 0======
trtype: rdma
adrfam: ipv4
subtype: nvme subsystem
treq: not specified
portid: 0
trsvcid: 4420
subnqn: nqn.1992-08.com.netapp:5700.600a098000a527a7000000005ab3af94 traddr:
192.168.1.77
rdma_prtype: roce
rdma_qptype: connected
rdma_cms: rdma-cm
rdma_pkey: 0x0000

=====Discovery Log Entry 1======

trtype: rdma
adrfam: ipv4
subtype: nvme subsystem
treq: not specified
portid: 1
trsvcid: 4420
subnqn: nqn.1992-08.com.netapp:5700.600a098000a527a7000000005ab3af94 traddr:
192.168.2.77
rdma_prtype: roce
rdma_qptype: connected

2. Repeat step 1 for any other connections

Connect to the discovered subsystem on the first path using the command: nvme
connect -t rdma -n discovered_sub_nqn -a target_ip_address -Q queue_depth_setting -
l controller_loss_timeout_period.

3. Repeat step 3 to connect the discovered subsystem on the second path

Important: Connections are not established for any discovered port inaccessible
35 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 by the host.

Important: If you specify a port number using this command, the connection fails.
The default port is the only port set up for connections.

Important: The recommended queue depth setting is 1024. Override the default
setting of 128 with 1024 using the -Q 1024 command line option, as shown in the
following example.

Important: The recommended controller loss timeout period in seconds is 60

minutes (3600 seconds). Override the default setting of 600 seconds with 3600
seconds using the -l 3600 command line option, as shown in the following
example.

# nvme connect -t rdma -a 192.168.1.77 -n nqn.1992-08.com.netapp:5700.

600a098000a527a7000000005ab3af94 -Q 1024 -l 3600
# nvme connect -t rdma -a 192.168.2.77 -n nqn.1992-08.com.netapp:5700.
600a098000a527a7000000005ab3af94 -Q 1024 -l 3600

4. Repeat step 1 for any other connections.

5. Auto connect after system reboot setup.

1. Create file nvmf-autoconnect.service under /usr/lib/systemd/system, if the file
doesn't exist.
2. Fulfill following service content as below:

[Unit]
Description=Connect NVMe-oF subsystems automatically during boot
ConditionPathExists=/etc/nvme/discovery.conf
After=network.target Before=remote-fs-pre.target

[Service] Type=oneshot
ExecStart=/usr/sbin/nvme connect-all

[Install] WantedBy=default.target

Set up failover on the host

Multipath software provides a redundant path to the storage array in case one of the physical paths
is disrupted. There are currently two methods of multipathing available for NVMe, and which you will
be using is going to be dependent on which OS version you are running. For SLES 12 SP5 and later,
device mapper multipath (DMMP) will be used.

Configuring the SLES 12 SP5 and later host to run failover

The SUSE Linux Enterprise Server hosts require additional configuration changes to run failover.

• You have installed the required packages on your system.

• For SLES 12 SP5 and later hosts, verify the packages are installed by running rpm -q
multipath-tools

By default, DM-MP is disabled in RHEL and SLES. Complete the following steps to enable DM-MP
components on the host.

1. Add the NVMe DE Series device entry to the devices section of the
/etc/multipath.conf file, as shown in the following example:
devices {
device {
vendor "NVME"
product "NetApp E-Series" path_grouping_policy group_by_prio failback immediate
no_path_retry 30
36 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 }
}
2. Configure multipathd to start at system boot

# systemctl enable multipathd

3. Start multipathd if it is not currently running.

# systemctl start multipathd

4. if it is not currently running.

5. Verify the status of multipathd to make sure it is active and running:

# systemctl status multipathd

Accessing NVMe Volumes

You can configure the I/O directed to the device target based on your Linux version.

Before you begin

The host must have discovered the namespace. See common tasks on storage array in chapter
Creating a workload, Create volumes, and Defining a host in ThinkSystem System Manager, and
Mapping a volume to a host.

Accessing NVMe volumes for virtual device targets (DM-MP devices)

For SLES 12, I/O is directed to virtual device targets by the Linux host. DM-MP manages the
physical paths underlying these virtual targets. Make sure you are running I/O only to the virtual
devices created by DM-MP and not to the physical device paths. If you are running I/O to the
physical paths, DM-MP cannot manage a failover event and the I/O fails.

You can access these block devices through the dm device or the symlink in /dev/mapper, for
example:

/dev/dm-1
/dev/mapper/eui.00001bc7593b7f5f00a0980000af4462

Example

The following example output from the nvme list command shows the host node name and its
correlation with the namespace ID.

NODE SN MODEL NAMESPACE

/dev/nvme1n1 021648023072 Lenovo DE-Series 10
/dev/nvme1n2 021648023072 Lenovo DE-Series 11
/dev/nvme1n3 021648023072 Lenovo DE-Series 12
/dev/nvme1n4 021648023072 Lenovo DE-Series 13
/dev/nvme2n1 021648023151 Lenovo DE-Series 10
/dev/nvme2n2 021648023151 Lenovo DE-Series 11
/dev/nvme2n3 021648023151 Lenovo DE-Series 12
/dev/nvme2n4 021648023151 Lenovo DE-Series 13

37 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Column Description
Node The node name includes two parts:
• The notation nvme1 represents controller A and nvme2 represents controller B.
• The notation n1, n2, and so on represent the namespace identifier from the
host perspective. These identifiers are repeated in the table, once for
controller A and once forcontroller B.
Namespace The Namespace column lists the namespace ID (NSID), which is the identifier from
the storagearray perspective.

In the following multipath -ll output, the optimized paths are shown with a prio value of 50, while the
non- optimized paths are shown with a prio value of 10.

The Linux operating system routes I/O to the path group that is shown as status=active, while the
path groups listed as status=enabled are available for failover.
eui.00001bc7593b7f500a0980000af4462 dm-0 NVME,Lenovo DE-Series size=15G features='1
queue_if_no_path' hwhandler='0' wp=rw
|-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=50 status=active
| `- #:#:#:# nvme1n1 259:5 active ready running
`-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=10 status=enabled
`- #:#:#:# nvme2n1 259:9 active ready running

eui.00001bc7593b7f5f00a0980000af4462 dm-0 NVME,Lenovo DE-Series size=15G features='1

queue_if_no_path' hwhandler='0' wp=rw
|-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=0 status=enabled
| `- #:#:#:# nvme1n1 259:5 failed faulty running
`-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=10 status=active
`- #:#:#:# nvme2n1 259:9 active ready running

Line item Description

policy='service- This line and the following line show that nvme1n1, which is the namespace
time0' prio=50 with an NSID of10, is optimized on the path with a prio value of 50 and a status
status= active value of active.

This namespace is owned by controller A.

policy='service- This line shows the failover path for namespace 10, with a prio value of 10 and a
time0' prio=10 status valueof enabled. I/O is not being directed to the namespace on this path at
status= enabled the moment.

This namespace is owned by controller B.

policy='service- This example shows multipath -ll output from a different point in time, while
time0' prio=0 controller A is rebooting. The path to namespace 10 is shown as failed faulty
status= enabled running with a prio value of 0and a status value of enabled.

policy='service- Note that the active path refers to nvme2, so the I/O is being directed on this path
time0' prio=10 to controllerB.
status= active

Create filesystems
You create a file system on the namespace or native nvme device and mount the filesystem.

Create filesystems (SLES 12)

For SLES 12, you create a file system on the namespace and mount the filesystem.

1. Run the multipath -ll command to get a list of /dev/mapper/dm devices.

# multipath -ll

2. The result
38 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 of this command shows two devices, dm-19 and dm-16

eui.00001ffe5a94ff8500a0980000af4444 dm-19 NVME,Lenovo DE-Series size=10G

features='1 queue_if_no_path' hwhandler='0' wp=rw
|-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=8 status=active
| |- #:#:#:# nvme0n19 259:19 active ready running
| `- #:#:#:# nvme1n19 259:115 active ready running
`-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=2 status=enabled
|- #:#:#:# nvme2n19 259:51 active ready running
`- #:#:#:# nvme3n19 259:83 active ready running
eui.00001fd25a94fef000a0980000af4444 dm-16 NVME,Lenovo DE-Series size=16G
features='1 queue_if_no_path' hwhandler='0' wp=rw
|-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=8 status=active
| |- #:#:#:# nvme0n16 259:16 active ready running
| `- #:#:#:# nvme1n16 259:112 active ready running
`-+- policy='service-time 0' prio=2 status=enabled
|- #:#:#:# nvme2n16 259:48 active ready running
`- #:#:#:# nvme3n16 259:80 active ready running

3. Create a file system on the partition for each /dev/mapper/dm device.The method for
creating a file system varies depending on the file system chosen. In this example, we
are creating an ext4 file system.

# mkfs.ext4 /dev/mapper/dm-19 mke2fs 1.42.11 (09-Jul-2014)

Creating filesystem with 2620928 4k blocks and 655360 inodes Filesystem UUID: 97f987e9-
47b8-47f7-b434-bf3ebbe826d0 Superblock backups stored on blocks:
32768, 98304, 163840, 229376, 294912, 819200, 884736, 1605632
Allocating group tables: done Writing inode tables: done
Creating journal (32768 blocks): done
Writing superblocks and filesystem accounting information: done g

4. Create a folder to mount the new device.

# mkdir /mnt/ext4

5. Mount the device.

# mount /dev/mapper/eui.00001ffe5a94ff8500a0980000af4444 /mnt/ext4

Verify storage access on the host

Before using the namespace, you verify that the host can write data to the namespace and read it
back.

1. On the host, copy one or more files to the mount point of the disk

2. Copy the files back to a different folder on the original disk.

3. Run the diff command to compare the copied files to the originals.

Remove the file and folder that you copied.

NVMe over RoCE worksheet for Linux

You can use this worksheet to record NVMe over RoCE storage configuration information. You need
this information to perform provisioning tasks.

Direct connect topology

39 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
In a direct connect topology, one or more hosts are directly connected to the subsystem. In the
ThinkSystem SAN OS 11.60.2 release, we support a single connection from each host to a
subsystem controller, as shown below. In this configuration, one HCA (host channel adapter) port
from each host should be on the same subnet as the DE Series controller port it is connected to, but
on a different subnet from the other HCA port.

An example configuration that satisfies the requirements consists of four network subnets as follows:

• Subnet 1: Host 1 HCA Port 1 and Controller 1 Host port 1.

• Subnet 2: Host 1 HCA Port 2 and Controller 2 Host port 1

• Subnet 3: Host 2 HCA Port 1 and Controller 1 Host port 2

• Subnet 4: Host 2 HCA Port 2 and Controller 2 Host port 2

Switch connect topology

In a fabric topology, one or more switches are used. For a list of supported switches, go to
the Lenovo Storage Interoperation Center (LSIC) and look for proper configuration.

NVMe over RoCE: Host Identifiers

Locate and document the initiator NQN from each host.

40 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Host port connections Initiator NQN
Host (initiator) 1 Host
Host (initiator) 2

NVMe over RoCE: Target NQN

Recommended configurations consist of two target ports.

Array Name Target NQN
Array controller (target)

Mappings Host
Mappings Host Name
Host OS Type

41 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Performing NVMe over Fibre Channel tasks
You can use NVMe with the Fibre Channel protocol.

Verify the Linux configuration is supported

To ensure reliable operation, you create an implementation plan and then use the Lenovo
Interoperability Matrix to verify that the entire configuration is supported.

3. Go to Lenovo Storage Interoperation Center (LSIC).

4. Appropriate settings for your configuration are listed

NVMe over Fibre Channel restrictions

Controller restrictions
• NVME over Fibre Channel can be configured for the DE6000H or DE6000F 64GB
controllers. The controllers must have 100GB host ports.

Switch restrictions
Attention: RISK OF DATA LOSS. You must enable Priority Flow Control or Global Pause Control
on the switch to eliminate the risk of data loss in an NVMe over RoCE environment.

Host, host protocol, and host operating system restrictions

• The host must be running SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP5 or later system. See
the Lenovo Storage Interoperation Center (LSIC) for a complete list of requirements.

• For a list of supported host channel adapters see the Lenovo Storage Interoperation
Center (LSIC).

• In-band CLI management via 11.50.3 SMcli is not supported in NVMe-oF modes.

Storage and disaster recovery restrictions

• Asynchronous and synchronous mirroring are not supported.

• Thin provisioning (the creation of thin volumes) is not supported

Configure the switch

Configuring (zoning) the Fibre Channel (FC) switches enables the hosts to connect to the storage
array and limits the number of paths. You zone the switches using the management interface for the
switches.

Before you begin

• You must have administrator credentials for the switches.

• You must have used your HBA utility to discover the WWPN of each host initiator port
and of each controller target port connected to the switch.

For details about zoning your switches, see the switch vendor's documentation.

You must zone by WWPN, not by physical port. Each initiator port must be in a separate zone with
all of its corresponding target ports.

1. Log in to the FC switch administration program, and then select the zoning configuration
option.

42 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 2. Create a new zone that includes the first host initiator port and that also includes all of
the target ports that connect to the same FC switch as the initiator.

3. Create additional zones for each FC host initiator port in the switch.

4. Save the zones, and then activate the new zoning configuration.

Set up NVMe over Fibre Channel on the host side

NVMe initiator configuration in a Fibre Channel environment includes installing and configuring the
nvme-cli package, and enabling the NVMe/FC initiator on the host.

These are the instructions for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP1 and 32Gb FC HBAs.

1. Install the nvme-cli package:

For SLES15 SP1:

# zypper install nvme-cli

2. Enable and start the nvmefc-boot-connections service.

# systemctl enable nvmefc-boot-connections.service

# systemctl start nvmefc-boot-connections.service

3. Set lpfc_enable_fc4_type to 3 to enable SLES15 SP1 as an NVMe/FC initiator.

# cat /etc/modprobe.d/lpfc.conf
options lpfc lpfc_enable_fc4_type=3

4. Re-build the initrd to get the Emulex change and the boot parameter change.

# dracut –force

5. Reboot the host to reconfigure the lpfc driver.

# reboot

The host is rebooted and the NVMe/FC initiator is enabled on the host.

Note: After completing the host side setup, configuration of the NVMe over Fibre
Channel ports occur automatically.

Display the volumes visible to the host

Before you begin

The host must have discovered the namespace. See common tasks on storage array in chapter
Creating a workload, Create volumes, and Defining a host in ThinkSystem System Manager, and
Mapping a volume to a host.

The SMdevices tool, part of the nvme-cli package, allows you to view the volumes currently visible
on the host. This tool is an alternative to the nvme list command.

1. To view information about each NVMe path to a DE Series volume, use the nvme netapp
smdevices [-o <format>] command. The output <format> can be normal (the default if -o
is not used), column, or json.

# nvme netapp smdevices

/dev/nvme1n1, Array Name ICTM0706SYS04, Volume Name NVMe2, NSID 1, Volume ID
000015bd5903df4a00a0980000af4462, Controller A, Access State unknown, 2.15GB

43 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 /dev/nvme1n2, Array Name ICTM0706SYS04, Volume Name NVMe3, NSID 2, Volume ID
000015c05903e24000a0980000af4462, Controller A, Access State unknown, 2.15GB
/dev/nvme1n3, Array Name ICTM0706SYS04, Volume Name NVMe4, NSID 4, Volume ID
00001bb0593a46f400a0980000af4462, Controller A, Access State unknown, 2.15GB
/dev/nvme1n4, Array Name ICTM0706SYS04, Volume Name NVMe6, NSID 6, Volume ID
00001696593b424b00a0980000af4112, Controller A, Access State unknown, 2.15GB
/dev/nvme2n1, Array Name ICTM0706SYS04, Volume Name NVMe2, NSID 1, Volume ID
000015bd5903df4a00a0980000af4462, Controller B, Access State unknown, 2.15GB
/dev/nvme2n2, Array Name ICTM0706SYS04, Volume Name NVMe3, NSID 2, Volume ID
000015c05903e24000a0980000af4462, Controller B, Access State unknown, 2.15GB
/dev/nvme2n3, Array Name ICTM0706SYS04, Volume Name NVMe4, NSID 4, Volume ID
00001bb0593a46f400a0980000af4462, Controller B, Access State unknown, 2.15GB
/dev/nvme2n4, Array Name ICTM0706SYS04, Volume Name NVMe6, NSID 6, Volume ID
00001696593b424b00a0980000af4112, Controller B, Access State unknown, 2.15GB

Set up failover on the host

Accessing NVMe volumes for physical NVMe device targets (SLES 15)

For SLES 15 SP1, I/O is directed to the physical NVMe device targets by the Linux host. A native
NVMe multipathing solution manages the physical paths underlying the single apparent physical
device displayed by the host.

Note: It is best practice to use the links in /dev/disk/by-id/ rather than /dev/nvme0n1, for example: # ls
/dev/disk/by-id/ -l lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 13 Oct 18 15:14 nvme-
eui.0000320f5cad32cf00a0980000af4112 -> ../../nvme0n1

Physical NVMe devices are I/O targets

Run I/O to the physical nvme device path. There should only be one of these devices present for
each namespace using the following format:

/dev/nvme[subsys#]n[id#]

All paths are virtualized using the native multipathing solution underneath this device. You can view
your paths by running:

# nvme list-subsys
nvme-subsys0 - NQN=nqn.1992-08.com.netapp:5700.600a098000d709d6000000005e27796e
\
+- nvme0 fc traddr=nn-0x200200a098d709d6:pn-0x204200a098d709d6 host_traddr=\ nn-
0x200000109b211680:pn-0x100000109b211680 live
+- nvme1 fc traddr=nn-0x200200a098d709d6:pn-0x204300a098d709d6 host_traddr=\ nn-
0x200000109b21167f:pn-0x100000109b21167f live

If you specify a namespace device when using the nvme list-subsys command, it provides additional
information about the paths to that namespace:

# nvme list-subsys /dev/nvme0n1

nvme-subsys0 - NQN=nqn.1992-08.com.netapp:5700.600a098000d709d6000000005e27796e
\
+- nvme0 fc traddr=nn-0x200200a098d709d6:pn-0x204200a098d709d6 host_traddr=\ nn-
0x200000109b211680:pn-0x100000109b211680 live
+- nvme1 fc traddr=nn-0x200200a098d709d6:pn-0x204300a098d709d6 host_traddr=\ nn-
0x200000109b21167f:pn-0x100000109b21167f live

44 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
There are also hooks into the multipath commands to allow you to view your path information for
native failover through them as well:

# multipath -ll
eui.000007e15e903fac00a0980000d663f2 [nvme]:nvme0n1 NVMe,Lenovo DE-Series,98620002
size=207618048 features='n/a' hwhandler='ANA' wp=rw
|-+- policy='n/a' prio=n/a status=n/a\
| `- 0:10:1 nvme0c10n1 0:0 n/a n/a live
`-+- policy='n/a' prio=n/a status=n/a\
`- 0:32778:1 nvme0c32778n1 0:0 n/a n/a live

Create filesystems
Create filesystems (SLES 15)
For SLES 15 SP1, you create a filesystem on the native nvme device and mount the filesystem.

1. Run the multipath -ll command to get a list of /dev/nvme devices.The result of this
command shows device nvme0n1:

# multipath -ll
eui.000007e15e903fac00a0980000d663f2 [nvme]:nvme0n1 NVMe,Lenovo DE-Series,98620002
size=207618048 features='n/a' hwhandler='ANA' wp=rw
|-+- policy='n/a' prio=n/a status=n/a\
| `- 0:10:1 nvme0c10n1 0:0 n/a n/a live
`-+- policy='n/a' prio=n/a status=n/a\
`- 0:32778:1 nvme0c32778n1 0:0 n/a n/a live

2. Create a file system on the partition for each /dev/nvme0n# device. The method for
creating a file system varies depending on the file system chosen. This example shows
creating an ext4 file system.

# mkfs.ext4 /dev/disk/by-id/nvme-eui.000082dd5c05d39300a0980000a52225 mke2fs 1.42.11

(22-Oct-2019) Creating filesystem with 2620928 4k blocks and 655360 inodes Filesystem UUID:
97f987e9-47b8-47f7-b434-bf3ebbe826d0 Superblock backups stored on blocks: 32768, 98304,
163840, 229376, 294912, 819200, 884736, 1605632
Allocating group tables: done
Writing inode tables: done
Creating journal (32768 blocks): done
Writing superblocks and filesystem accounting information: done

3. Create a folder to mount the new device.# mkdir /mnt/ext4

4. Mount the device

# mount /dev/disk/by-id/nvme-eui.000082dd5c05d39300a0980000a52225 /mnt/ext4

NVMe over Fibre Channel worksheet for Linux

You can use this worksheet to record NVMe over Fibre Channel storage configuration information.
You need this information to perform provisioning tasks.

Direct connect topology

In a direct connect topology, one or more hosts are directly connected to the controller.

45 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 • Host 1 HBA Port 1 and Controller A Host port 1

• Host 1 HBA Port 2 and Controller B Host port 1

• Host 2 HBA Port 1 and Controller A Host port 2

• Host 2 HBA Port 2 and Controller B Host port 2

• Host 3 HBA Port 1 and Controller A Host port 3

• Host 3 HBA Port 2 and Controller B Host port 3

• Host 4 HBA Port 1 and Controller A Host port 4

• Host 4 HBA Port 2 and Controller B Host port 4

Switch connect topology

In a fabric topology, one or more switches are used. For a list of supported switches, go to
the Lenovo Storage Interoperation Center (LSIC) and look for proper configuration.

NVMe over Fibre Channel: Host identifiers

Locate and document the initiator NQN from each host.

46 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Host port connections Software NQN
Host (initiator) 1 Host
Host (initiator) 2

NVMe over Fibre Channel: Target NQN

Recommended configurations consist of two target ports.

Array Name Target NQN
Array controller (target)

Mappings Host
Mappings Host Name
Host OS Type

47 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
Creating a workload
You create storage by first creating a workload for a specific application type. Next, you add storage
capacity to the workload by creating volumes with similar underlying volume characteristics.

Create workloads
You can create workloads for any type of application.

About this task

A workload is a storage object that supports an application. You can define one or more workloads,
or instances, per application. For some applications, the system configures the workload to contain
volumes with similar underlying volume characteristics. These volume characteristics are optimized
based on the type of application the workload supports.

Keep these guidelines in mind:

• When using an application-specific workload , the system recommends an optimized

volume configuration to minimize contention between application workload I/O and
other traffic from your application instance. You can review the recommended volume
configuration, and then edit, add, or delete the system-recommended volumes and
characteristics using the Add/Edit Volumes dialog box.

• When using other application types , you manually specify the volume configuration
using the Add/Edit Volumes dialog box.

1. Select Storage > Volumes .

2. Select Create > Workload .

The Create Application Workload dialog box appears.

3. Use the drop-down list to select the type of application that you want to create the
workload for and then type a workload name.

4. Click Create .

You are ready to add storage capacity to the workload you created. Use the Create Volume option
to create one or more volumes for an application, and to allocate specific amounts of capacity to
each volume.

48 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Create volumes
You create volumes to add storage capacity to an application-specific workload, and to make the
created volumes visible to a specific host or host cluster. In addition, the volume creation sequence
provides options to allocate specific amounts of capacity to each volume you want to create.

Most application types default to a user-defined volume configuration. Some application types have a
smart configuration applied at volume creation. For example, if you are creating volumes for
Microsoft Exchange application, you are asked how many mailboxes you need, what your average
mailbox capacity requirements are, and how many copies of the database you want. System
Manager uses this information to create an optimal volume configuration for you, which can be edited
as needed.

The process to create a volume is a multi-step procedure.

Note: If you want to mirror a volume, first create the volumes that you want to mirror, and then use
the Storage > Volumes > Copy Services > Mirror a volume asynchronously option.

1. Step 1: Select host for a volume

You create volumes to add storage capacity to an application-specific workload, and to
make the created volumes visible to a specific host or host cluster. In addition, the
volume creation sequence provides options to allocate specific amounts of capacity to
each volume you want to create.

2. Step 2: Select a workload for a volume

Select a workload to customize the storage array configuration for a specific
application, such as Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft Exchange, Video Surveillance
applications, or VMware. You can select "Other application" if the application you
intend to use on this storage array is not listed.

3. Step 3: Add or edit volumes

System Manager may suggest a volume configuration based on the application or
workload you selected. This volume configuration is optimized based on the type of
application the workload supports. You can accept the recommended volume
configuration, or you can edit it as needed. If you selected one of the "Other"
applications, you must manually specify the volumes and characteristics you want to
create.

4. Step 4: Review volume configuration

Review a summary of the volumes you intend to create and make any necessary
changes.

Step 1: Select host for a volume

You create volumes to add storage capacity to an application-specific workload, and to make the
created volumes visible to a specific host or host cluster. In addition, the volume creation sequence
provides options to allocate specific amounts of capacity to each volume you want to create.

• Valid hosts or host clusters exist under the Hosts tile.

• Host port identifiers have been defined for the host.

• Before creating a DA-enabled volume, the host connection you are planning to use
must support DA. If any of the host connections on the controllers in your storage array
do not support DA, the associated hosts cannot access data on DA-enabled volumes.
ThinkSystem DE Series storage only supports DA between the controller and the
drives.

49 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
Keep these guidelines in mind when you assign volumes:

• A host's operating system can have specific limits on how many volumes the host can
access. Keep this limitation in mind when you create volumes for use by a particular
host.

• You can define one assignment for each volume in the storage array.

• Assigned volumes are shared between controllers in the storage array.

• The same logical unit number (LUN) cannot be used twice by a host or a host cluster to
access a volume. You must use a unique LUN.

• If you want to speed the process for creating volumes, you can skip the host
assignment step so that newly created volumes are initialized offline.

Note: Assigning a volume to a host will fail if you try to assign a volume to a host cluster that conflicts
with an established assignment for a host in the host clusters.

1. Select Storage > Volumes.

2. Select Create > Volume.

The Create Volumes dialog box appears.

3. From the drop-down list, select a specific host or host cluster to which you want to
assign volumes, or choose to assign the host or host cluster at a later time.

4. To continue the volume creation sequence for the selected host or host cluster,
click Next, and go to Step 2: Select a workload for a volume.

The Select Workload dialog box appears

Step 2: Select a workload for a volume

Select a workload to customize the storage array configuration for a specific application, such as
Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft Exchange, Video Surveillance applications, or VMware. You can
select "Other application" if the application you intend to use on this storage array is not listed.

This task describes how to create volumes for an existing workload.

• When you are creating volumes using an application-specific workload, the system may
recommend an optimized volume configuration to minimize contention between
application workload I/O and other traffic from your application instance. You can
review the recommended volume configuration and edit, add, or delete the system-
recommended volumes and characteristics using the Add/Edit Volumes dialog box.

• When you are creating volumes using "Other" applications (or applications without
specific volume creation support), you manually specify the volume configuration using
the Add/Edit Volumes dialog box.

1. Do one of the following:

• Select the Create volumes for an existing workload option to create

volumes for an existing workload.

• Select the Create a new workload option to define a new workload for a
supported application or for "Other" applications.

50 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 ▪ From the drop-down list, select the name of the application
you want to create the new workload for.

Select one of the "Other" entries if the application you intend

to use on this storage array is not listed.

▪ Enter a name for the workload you want to create.

2. Click Next.

3. If your workload is associated with a supported application type, enter the information
requested; otherwise, go to Step 3: Add or edit volumes.

Step 3: Add or edit volumes

System Manager may suggest a volume configuration based on the application or workload you
selected. This volume configuration is optimized based on the type of application the workload
supports. You can accept the recommended volume configuration or you can edit it as needed. If you
selected one of the "Other" applications, you must manually specify the volumes and characteristics
you want to create.

Before you begin

• The pools or volume groups must have sufficient free capacity.

• The maximum number of volumes allowed in a volume group is 256.

• The maximum number of volumes allowed in a pool depends on the storage system
model:

• 2,048 volumes (DE6000H, DE6000F series)

• 512 volumes (DE2000H, DE4000H, DE4000F series)

• To create a Data Assurance (DA)-enabled volume, the host connection you are
planning to use must support DA.

Selecting a DA capable pool or volume group

If you want to create a DA-enabled volume, select a pool or volume group that is DA
capable (look for Yes next to "DA" in the pool and volume group candidates table).

DA capabilities are presented at the pool and volume group level in System Manager.
DA protection checks for and corrects errors that might occur as data is transferred
through the controllers down to the drives. Selecting a DA-capable pool or volume
group for the new volume ensures that any errors are detected and corrected.

If any of the host connections on the controllers in your storage array do not support
DA, the associated hosts cannot access data on DA-enabled volumes. ThinkSystem
DE Series only supports DA between the controller and the drives.

• To create a secure-enabled volume, a security key must be created for the storage
array.

Selecting a secure-capable pool or volume group

If you want to create a secure-enabled volume, select a pool or volume group that is
secure capable (look for Yes next to "Secure-capable" in the pool and volume group
candidates table).

51 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Drive security capabilities are presented at the pool and volume group level in System
Manager. Secure-capable drives prevent unauthorized access to the data on a drive
that is physically removed from the storage array. A secure-enabled drive encrypts data
during writes and decrypts data during reads using a unique encryption key.

A pool or volume group can contain both secure-capable and non-secure-capable

drives, but all drives must be secure-capable to use their encryption capabilities.

About this task

You create volumes from pools or volume groups. The Add/Edit Volumes dialog box shows all
eligible pools and volume groups on the storage array. For each eligible pool and volume group, the
number of drives available and the total free capacity appears.

For some application-specific workloads, each eligible pool or volume group shows the proposed
capacity based on the suggested volume configuration and shows the remaining free capacity in
GiB. For other workloads, the proposed capacity appears as you add volumes to a pool or volume
group and specify the reported capacity.

1. Choose one of these actions based on whether you selected Other or an application-
specific workload:

• Other – Click Add new volume in each pool or volume group that you
want to use to create one or more volumes.

Table 1. Field Details

Field Description

Volume A volume is assigned a default name by System

Name Manager during the volume creation sequence. You can either
accept the default name or provide a more descriptive one
indicating the type of data stored in the volume.

Reported Define the capacity of the new volume and the capacity units
Capacity to use (MiB, GiB, or TiB). For Thick volumes, the minimum
capacity is 1 MiB, and the maximum capacity is determined by
the number and capacity of the drives in the pool or volume
group.

Keep in mind that storage capacity is also required for copy

services (snapshot images, snapshot volumes, volume copies,
and remote mirrors); therefore, do not allocate all of the
capacity to standard volumes.

Capacity in a pool is allocated in 4-GiB increments. Any

capacity that is not a multiple of 4 GiB is allocated but not
usable. To make sure that the entire capacity is usable,
specify the capacity in 4-GiB increments. If unusable capacity
exists, the only way to regain it is to increase the capacity of
the volume.

Segment
Size Shows the setting for segment sizing, which only appears for
volumes in a volume group. You can change the segment size
to optimize performance.

52 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Table 1. Field Details
Field Description
Allowed segment size transitions – System
Manager determines the segment size transitions that are
allowed. Segment sizes that are inappropriate transitions from
the current segment size are unavailable on the drop-down
list. Allowed transitions usually are double or half of the current
segment size. For example, if the current volume segment size
is 32 KiB, a new volume segment size of either 16 KiB or 64
KiB is allowed.

SSD Cache-enabled volumes – You can specify a 4-KiB

segment size for SSD Cache-enabled volumes. Make sure
you select the 4-KiB segment size only for SSD Cache-
enabled volumes that handle small-block I/O operations (for
example, 16 KiB I/O block sizes or smaller). Performance
might be impacted if you select 4 KiB as the segment size for
SSD Cache-enabled volumes that handle large block
sequential operations.

Amount of time to change segment size – The amount of

time to change a volume's segment size depends on these
variables:

▪ The I/O load from the host

▪ The modification priority of the volume

▪ The number of drives in the volume group

▪ The number of drive channels

▪ The processing power of the storage array

controllers

When you change the segment size for a volume, I/O

performance is affected, but your data remains available.

Secure- Yes appears next to "Secure-capable" only if the drives in the

capable pool or volume group are secure-capable.

Drive Security prevents unauthorized access to the data on a

drive that is physically removed from the storage array. This
option is available only when the Drive Security feature has
been enabled, and a security key is set up for the storage
array.

A pool or volume group can contain both secure-capable and

non-secure-capable drives, but all drives must be secure-
capable to use their encryption capabilities.

DA Yes appears next to "DA" only if the drives in the pool or

volume group support Data Assurance (DA).

DA increases data integrity across the entire storage system.

DA enables the storage array to check for errors that might

53 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Table 1. Field Details
Field Description
occur when data is moved between the controllers and drives
on a Storage Array.

• Application-specific workload – Either click Next to accept the system-

recommended volumes and characteristics for the selected workload, or
click Edit Volumes to change, add, or delete the system-recommended
volumes and characteristics for the selected workload.

Field Details

Field Description

Volume A volume is assigned a default name by System

Name Manager during the volume creation sequence. You can either
accept the default name or provide a more descriptive one
indicating the type of data stored in the volume.

Reported Define the capacity of the new volume and the capacity units
Capacity to use (MiB, GiB, or TiB). For Thick volumes, the minimum
capacity is 1 MiB, and the maximum capacity is determined by
the number and capacity of the drives in the pool or volume
group.

Keep in mind that storage capacity is also required for copy

services (snapshot images, snapshot volumes, volume copies,
and remote mirrors); therefore, do not allocate all of the
capacity to standard volumes.

Capacity in a pool is allocated in 4-GiB increments. Any

capacity that is not a multiple of 4 GiB is allocated but not
usable. To make sure that the entire capacity is usable,
specify the capacity in 4-GiB increments. If unusable capacity
exists, the only way to regain it is to increase the capacity of
the volume.

Volume Volume type indicates the type of volume that was created for
Type an application-specific workload.

Segment
Size Shows the setting for segment sizing, which only appears for
volumes in a volume group. You can change the segment size
to optimize performance.

Allowed segment size transitions – System

Manager determines the segment size transitions that are
allowed. Segment sizes that are inappropriate transitions from
the current segment size are unavailable on the drop-down
list. Allowed transitions usually are double or half of the current
segment size. For example, if the current volume segment
size is 32 KiB, a new volume segment size of either 16 KiB or
64 KiB is allowed.

54 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Field Description
SSD Cache-enabled volumes – You can specify a 4-KiB
segment size for SSD Cache-enabled volumes. Make sure
you select the 4-KiB segment size only for SSD Cache-
enabled volumes that handle small-block I/O operations (for
example, 16 KiB I/O block sizes or smaller). Performance
might be impacted if you select 4 KiB as the segment size for
SSD Cache-enabled volumes that handle large block
sequential operations.

Amount of time to change segment size – The amount of

time to change a volume's segment size depends on these
variables:

▪ The I/O load from the host

▪ The modification priority of the volume

▪ The number of drives in the volume group

▪ The number of drive channels

▪ The processing power of the storage array

controllers

When you change the segment size for a volume, I/O

performance is affected, but your data remains available.

Secure- Yes appears next to "Secure-capable" only if the drives in the

capable pool or volume group are secure-capable.

Drive security prevents unauthorized access to the data on a

drive that is physically removed from the storage array. This
option is available only when the drive security feature has
been enabled, and a security key is set up for the storage
array.

A pool or volume group can contain both secure-capable and

non-secure-capable drives, but all drives must be secure-
capable to use their encryption capabilities.

DA Yes appears next to "DA" only if the drives in the pool or

volume group support Data Assurance (DA).

DA increases data integrity across the entire storage system.

DA enables the storage array to check for errors that might
occur when data is moved between the controllers and drives
on a Storage Array.

2. To continue the volume creation sequence for the selected application, click Next, and
go to Step 4: Review volume configuration.

Step 4: Review volume configuration

Review a summary of the volumes you intend to create and make any necessary changes.
55 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 1. Review the volumes you want to create. Click Back to make any changes.

2. When you are satisfied with your volume configuration, click Finish.

System Manager creates the new volumes in the selected pools and volume groups, and then
displays the new volumes in the All Volumes table.

• Perform any operating system modifications necessary on the application host so that
the applications can use the volume.

• Run either the host-based hot_add utility or an operating system-specific utility

(available from a third-party vendor), and then run the SMdevices utility to correlate
volume names with host storage array names.

The hot_add utility and the SMdevices utility are included as part of
the SMutils package. The SMutils package is a collection of utilities to verify what the
host sees from the storage array. It is included as part of the Storage Manager software
installation.

56 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Defining a host in ThinkSystem System Manager

You can create a host automatically or manually. To make it easier to give multiple hosts access to
the same volumes, you can also create a host cluster.

Create host automatically

You can allow the Host Context Agent (HCA) to automatically detect the hosts, and then verify that
the information is correct. Creating a host is one of the steps required to let the storage array know
which hosts are attached to it and to allow I/O access to the volumes.

Before you begin

The Host Context Agent (HCA) is installed and running on every host connected to the storage array.
Hosts with the HCA installed and connected to the storage array are created automatically. To install
the HCA, install ThinkSystem Storage Manager on the host and select the Host option. The HCA is
not available on all supported operating systems. If it is not available, you must create the host
manually.

1. Select Storage > Hosts .

The table lists the automatically-created hosts.

2. Verify that the information provided by the HCA is correct (name, host type, host port
identifiers).

If you need to change any of the information, select the host, and then click View/Edit
Settings .

3. (Optional) If you want the automatically-created host to be in a cluster, create a host

cluster and add the host or hosts.

What happens next?

After a host is created automatically, the system displays the following items in the Hosts tile table:

• The host name derived from the system name of the host.

• The host identifier ports that are associated with the host.

• The Host Operating System Type of the host.

Create host manually

For hosts that cannot be automatically discovered, you can manually create a host. Creating a host
is one of the steps required to let the storage array know which hosts are attached to it and to allow
I/O access to the volumes.

About this task

Keep these guidelines in mind when you create a host:

• You must define the host identifier ports that are associated with the host.

• Make sure that you provide the same name as the host's assigned system name.

57 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 • This operation does not succeed if the name you choose is already in use.

• The length of the name cannot exceed 30 characters.

1. Select Storage > Hosts .

2. Click Create > Host .

The Create Host dialog box appears.

3. Select the settings for the host as appropriate.

Table 1. Field Details

Setting Description
Name Type a name for the new host.
Host Select the operating system that is running on the new host from the drop-
operating down list.
system
type
Host (Optional) If you have more than one type of host interface supported on
interface your storage array, select the host interface type that you want to use.
type
Host ports Do one of the following:

• Select I/O Interface

Generally, the host ports should have logged in and be

available from the drop-down list. You can select the host
port identifiers from the list.

• Manual add

If a host port identifier is not displayed in the list, it means

that the host port has not logged in. An HBA utility or the
iSCSI initiator utility may be used to find the host port
identifiers and associate them with the host.

You can manually enter the host port identifiers or

copy/paste them from the utility (one at a time) into the Host
ports field.

You must select one host port identifier at a time to associate

it with the host, but you can continue to select as many
identifiers that are associated with the host. Each identifier is
displayed in the Host ports field. If necessary, you also can
remove an identifier by selecting the X next to it.

CHAP (Optional) If you selected or manually entered a host port with an iSCSI
initiator IQN, and if you want to require a host that tries to access the storage array
to authenticate using Challenge Handshake Authentication Protocol
(CHAP), select the CHAP initiator checkbox. For each iSCSI host port
you selected or manually entered, do the following:

• Enter the same CHAP secret that was set on each iSCSI
host initiator for CHAP authentication. If you are using mutual
CHAP authentication (two-way authentication that enables a
host to validate itself to the storage array and for a storage
array to validate itself to the host), you also must set the

58 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Table 1. Field Details
Setting Description
CHAP secret for the storage array at initial setup or by
changing settings.

• Leave the field blank if you do not require host

authentication.

Currently, the only iSCSI authentication method used by System

Manager is CHAP.

4. Click Create .

What happens next?

After the host is successfully created, the system creates a default name for each host port
configured for the host (user label).

The default alias is < Hostname_Port Number >. For example, the default alias for the first port
created for host IPT is IPT_1 .

Create host cluster

You create a host cluster when two or more hosts require I/O access to the same volumes.

About this task

Keep these guidelines in mind when you create a host cluster:

• This operation does not start unless there are two or more hosts available to create the
cluster.

• Hosts in host clusters can have different operating systems (heterogeneous).

• NVMe hosts in host clusters cannot be mixed with non-NVMe hosts.

• This operation does not succeed if the name you choose is already in use.

• The length of the name cannot exceed 30 characters.

1. Select Storage > Hosts .

2. Select Create > Host Cluster .

The Create Host Cluster dialog box appears.

3. Select the settings for the host cluster as appropriate.

Table 1. Field Details

Setting Description
Name Type the name for the new host cluster.
Select hosts to share Select two or more hosts from the drop-down list. Only those
volume access hosts that are not already part of a host cluster appear in the list.

4. Click Create .

If the selected hosts are attached to interface types that have different Data Assurance

59 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 (DA) capabilities, a dialog appears with the message that DA will be unavailable on the
host cluster. This unavailability prevents DA-enabled volumes from being added to the
host cluster. Select Yes to continue or No to cancel.

DA increases data integrity across the entire storage system. DA enables the storage
array to check for errors that might occur when data is moved between the controllers
and the drives. Using DA for the new volume ensures that any errors are detected.

What happens next?

The new host cluster appears in the table with the assigned hosts in the rows beneath.

60 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Mapping a volume to a host

For a host or host cluster to send I/O to a volume, you must assign the volume to the host or host
cluster.

You can select a host or host cluster when you create a volume or you can assign a volume to a host
or host cluster later. A host cluster is a group of hosts. You create a host cluster to make it easy to
assign the same volumes to multiple hosts.

Assigning volumes to hosts is flexible, allowing you to meet your particular storage needs.

• Stand-alone host, not part of a host cluster – You can assign a volume to an
individual host. The volume can be accessed only by the one host.

• Host cluster – You can assign a volume to a host cluster. The volume can be
accessed by all the hosts in the host cluster.

• Host within a host cluster – You can assign a volume to an individual host that is part
of a host cluster. Even though the host is part of a host cluster, the volume can be
accessed only by the individual host and not by any other hosts in the host cluster.

When volumes are created, logical unit numbers (LUNs) are assigned automatically. The LUN
serves as the "address" between the host and the controller during I/O operations. You can change
LUNs after the volume is created.

61 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Discovering, Configuring, and Verifying storage on the
host
Volumes on your storage system appear as disk LUNs to the Linux host when you use FC, iSCSI,
or SAS. It shows as NVMe namespace when you use NVMe over RoCE or NVMe over Fibre
Channel. When you add new volumes, you must manually rescan the associated LUNs or
namespace to discover them. The host does not automatically discover new storage space. The
discovering procedures are protocol specific, see related chapters in previous sections.

62 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Where to find additional information
Use the resources listed here if you need additional information.

• ThinkSystem Storage DE Series on-line publications:

◦ Hardware Installation and Maintenance Guide, Version 11.70.1
◦ SAN Manager software, Version 5.1
◦ System Manager software, Version 11.70.1
◦ Embedded Command Line Interface, Version 11.70.1
• Lenovo Storage Interoperation Center
• Lenovo Press DE Series Storage

63 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Contacting Support
You can contact Support to obtain help for your issue.
You can receive hardware service through a Lenovo Authorized Service Provider. To locate a
service provider authorized by Lenovo to provide warranty service, go to
https://datacentersupport.lenovo.com/serviceprovider and use filter searching for different countries. For
Lenovo support telephone numbers, see https://datacentersupport.lenovo.com/supportphonelist for
your region support details.

64 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Notices
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Consult your local Lenovo representative for information on the products and services currently
available in your area.
Any reference to a Lenovo product, program, or service is not intended to state or imply that only
that Lenovo product, program, or service may be used. Any functionally equivalent product,
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Lenovo may have patents or pending patent applications covering subject matter described in this
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65 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021
 Trademarks
LENOVO, LENOVO logo, and THINKSYSTEM are trademarks of Lenovo. All other
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66 Installing and Configuring for Linux Express Guide © Copyright Lenovo 2021