Software Interoperability Planning. The following table summarizes the Cisco interoperability modes and their compatibility with third-party switches. Default or Cisco MDS native mode: This is the default mode or behavior for a VSAN that is communicating with a Cisco MDS switch-based SAN.
Python SDK/API library for Cisco MDS Switches. This library will be useful for automating day to day tasks or developing new tools which involve Cisco MDS switches. Python version: 3.6 and above; Supports both NXAPI and SSH; Apache License, Version 2.0 (the 'License') Installation Steps. First create a virtual environment with python3. Cisco MDS 9000 multilayer SAN switches can help lower the total cost of ownership (TCO) of storage environments. They combine a robust, flexible hardware architecture with multiple layers of network and storage-management intelligence. With them, you can build highly available, scalable storage networks with advanced security and unified management. The Configuring Cisco MDS 9000 Series Switches (DCMDS) v3.0 course shows you how to implement, manage, and troubleshoot Cisco® MDS 9000 Series Switches, to build highly available, scalable storage networks. Cisco MDS fabric switches Integrate compact, cost-effective SAN connectivity for applications ranging from small fabrics to large data centers and intelligent SANs. Cisco MDS software and storage services Deploy a single operating system across the data center, including the storage network.
Timezone and NTP configuration of a Cisco MDS switch
Using a GUI for configuring purposes isn’t always the best thing to do, although it most certainly provides a level of overview that cannot be obtained on the CLI.
I’ve found out the Device Manager default settings for NTP for example are that IPv4 addresses used to point to an NTP entity is set to “peer” and if you don’t use peer synchronization, but have a dedicated NTP server instead, it’s better to place a check mark on the “server” item. Also if you have several time sources, you can set a preferred one by placing a check mark at the particular entity.
But just setting the NTP entities is one thing, you also want the logs to display the right timezone. I found the GUI way of doing things for managing the NTP entities the easiest and most reliable way, since you can also easily delete obsolete lines. To adjust a switch’s timezone configuration, I like to use the CLI.
Using your favorite telnet / SSH tool (I use PUTTY) you can adjust the NTP settings I just described as well, it’s just that deleting obsolete lines can be tricky, but can be done as well on the CLI.
After logging in, you need to enter the configuration mode by typing “config terminal”, or simply “conf t”.
The following two commands are used to set the timezone of a switch to Central European Time (CET) as well as naming the Daylight Savings time to CEST (Central European Summer time) and pointing out that the adjustments need to be done on the last Sunday of March at 2AM as well as the last Sunday of October at 3AM and adjusting the time by 60 minutes.
clock timezone CET 1 0
clock summer-time CEST 5 Sun Mar 02:00 5 Sun Oct 03:00 60
the NTP entries I did in the GUI can also be set on the CLI by typing:
ntp server 172.16.21.83 prefer
ntp server 192.168.17.5
Now exit the config mode and save the configuration by entering “copy run start” (or “copy r s”).
Cisco Mds Switch Simulator Cisco Download
Exit the CLI and you’re good to go!
Living in Silicon Valley can be very exciting, but it has some challenges too. Traffic is certainly one of those challenges, and it’s a very common occurrence for most of us. Regardless of where you live in the world, you’ve likely experienced the inconvenience of traffic congestion.
In order to avoid traffic, we usually turn to one common solution. Simply turn on your favorite GPS map application and find the most optimized route around traffic congestion. These applications provide us with real-time traffic reports and visualization across the GRID and in every city.
The same analogy can be applied to Cisco’s industry-unique solution: SAN Analytics for Cisco MDS 9000 series switches.
The Need for SAN Visibility
When beginning a performance review of our storage environment, we need complete visibility. Storage management solutions provide valuable insights from the fabric storage and server infrastructure perspective. But what about congestion that occurs outside of the server or storage environment? It could be a misbehaving application, a corrupt piece of hardware in the pathway, or a saturated storage port. It could even be a VM causing heavy utilization on a server port or an application with bursty behavior caused by a large number of small IOPS. It can literally be anything, right? This is precisely where Cisco SAN Analytics comes to the rescue.
Like a trusted GPS, Cisco SAN Analytics running on the Cisco MDS 32G platform provides real-time, complete visibility across the fabric comprising of SCSI/NVMe flows. Let’s look at this very briefly and understand how it functions in Cisco’s MDS 32G switches.
How It Works
The Cisco SAN Analytics solution runs on the onboard NPU (Network Processing Unit) located on the Cisco MDS 32G platform. It runs on a dedicated network processor which carry out the analytics operation. Hence, turning on this feature is non-disruptive to any normal switching functionality. The dedicated NPU (Network Processor Unit) residing on each 32G module or switch will analyze the Fibre Channel protocol header information (SCSI or NVMe). It will then export this metadata from the switches using streaming telemetry via the management port. This metadata can be streamed into the DCNM (Data Center Network Manager) or to any 3rd party tool that has the ability to digest gRPC formatted data.
Cisco Mds Switch Simulator Cisco Cloud
The unique features of SAN Analytics
- Accessibility: Turn ON or OFF anytime, without disrupting normal switching traffic through the port.
- Ease of configuration or administration: It is not rocket science! It’s a simple 4-step process using DCNM or a 2-line CLI command to enable it.
- Flexibility: It can analyze SCSI or NVMe flows, or both flows together.
- Security: Security does not interfere with the data payload, so there is no concern with compromising the data at any point.
- Simplicity: How about those extra cabling or ports? Not necessary, as this is an on-switch function requiring no extra cables or ports.
- Scalability: It can be turned on across selected / all of the switch ports to monitor up to 40,000 flows.
Now, if there are any issues in the fabric (or even to improve the performance of the fabric), you will know where to send the ambulance!
This is how Cisco SAN Analytics is defining the standards for storage network analytics: simple, scalable, and secure.
Take SAN Analytics for a Test Drive
Why not try it out? Both Cisco Data Center Network Manager (DCNM) and the SAN Analytics software products can be deployed and utilized with full product capabilities for up to 120 days. This will allow customers to test drive these amazing technologies in their environments to get a feel for their capabilities before they purchase.
Simply grab any Cisco MDS 32G FC switch/module, put it in any fabric (Cisco or non-Cisco), and discover issues long before they can become a real problem. The configuration guide can be found here.
Additional Resources
Cisco Storage Area Networking blog series:
SAN Insights how-to video series:
Other related blogs, with engineering flavor: