Introduction

EMC VNX series of storage systems are a family of systems that provides unified file and block storage.

OpsRamp uses XML API server to discover and monitor an EMC VNX device.

Prerequisite

The XML API server must be enabled on the EMC VNX Control Station. However, the XML API server is disabled by default.

To start the XML API server:

  1. On the VNX Control Station, as root, uncomment the following entry in the /nas/sys/nas_mcd.cfg file:
        # daemon "XML API Server"
        #   executable "/nas/sbin/start_xml_api_server"
        #   optional yes
        #   canexit yes
        #   autorestart yes
        #   ioaccess no
  2. Restart the NAS services: service nas start.
  3. Ensure that the XML API server and the Tomcat server are running on the VNX Control Station.

OpsRamp configuration

Configuration involves:

  1. Creating credentials.
  2. Configuring the integration.
  3. Adding a discovery profile.

Step 1: Create a credential

To create credentials:

  1. From All Clients, select a client.
  2. Go to Setup > Accounts > Clients.
  3. On the client’s Credentials tab, add the credential information.

The following describes some of the credential settings:

  • Type: EMC VNX
  • Collector Type:
    • VNX NAS - File Level Storage
    • VNX SAN - Block Level Storage
    • VNX UNIFIED (NAS+SAN) - Unified Storage Array
  • Depending on the collector type, the following must be specified:
    • Authentication Scope:
      • Local: Used to manage a specific system.
        Logging into a system using a local user account is recommended when there are large number of systems in the domain.
      • Global: Used when the VNX is configured to be a member of a storage domain.
        All the systems within the domain can be administrated using a single Sign-On with a global account.
      • LDAP: Used when the VNX is configured to bind to an LDAP domain.
        The VNX performs an LDAP query to the domain to authenticate administrative users.
  • Use Password Vault: If enabled, specify Policy Mapping, otherwise, specify a password.
    • Policy mapping enables integration of a Password Manager application with credentials.
    • Password is the authentication password to access a resource.

Step 2: Configure the integration

To integrate:

  1. From All Clients, select a client.
  2. Go to Setup > Integrations > Integrations.
  3. From Available Integrations, select Storage > EMC VNX and click Install.
  4. Provide the following:
    • Name
    • IP address
    • Credentials. Select an existing credential or create a new credential.
  5. Click Save.

Step 3: Add a discovery profile

To add a discovery profile:

  1. From the integration, click Add.
  2. Provide the following information:
    • Profile details.
      • Profile name
      • Select profile
      • IP address
    • Filter criteria
      • Smart filters: Use to filter resources based on the resource type.
      • Resource filters: Use to filter resources based on certain resource attributes.
    • Perform actions: Manage Device
    • Discovery schedule. Based on the settings, discovery is triggered based on the scheduled time. New resources added to the environment are automatically discovered.
  3. Click Save.
  4. From the Discovery Profiles section, click Scan Now for the associated profile.

What to do next

After a discovery profile is created, you can do the following:

  • View the integration: Go to Infrastructure > Storage.
  • Assign monitoring templates to the resource.
  • Validate that the resource was successfully added to OpsRamp.