With the release of Purity 6.4.1, multiple storage containers can be created on a single FlashArray. There will be the default storage container, which is the "root pod" or default location for volumes and volume groups. On the FlashArray, these additional storage containers are managed through the Pod object.
Not all use cases will require creating additional storage containers. By default all FlashArray will have the default storage container in the root, so additional storage container is not required to use vVols. However, in the event that multiple storage containers is required this section covers how to create additional storage containers.
1. Navigate to the pod creation screen by clicking (1) Storage, (2) Pods and (3) + sign to create a new pod.
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2. Give the pod a (1) Name then click (2) Create.
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3. After pod creation, the GUI will direct you to the screen for the pod object. From here, under volumes, select the (1) ellipses then click (2) Show Protocol Endpoints. This will change this part of the GUI to show only PEs (Protocol Endpoints) attached to the pod.
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4. To complete the storage container creation process create the protocol endpoint by selecting the (1) ellipses then clicking (2) Create Protocol Endpoint. Please note that generally speaking, only one PE per pod will be necessary, but more are supported if needed.
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5. Give the PE a (1) Name then click (2) Create to create it.
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6. After the PE has been created, it will show up under Volumes in the pod screen. (1) Click on the PE name. Note that the name format is PodName::ProtocolEndpointName.
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7. First, Highlight and Copy the serial number of the PE; this will be used later in the vCenter GUI to validate the connection of the PE to the host object. Click the (1) ellipses then click (2) Connect. While the PE can be connected to individual hosts, the recommended way to connect Protocol Endpoints is to connect it with a host group.
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8. Select the (1) Host Group to connect the PE to then click (2) Connect.
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9. To validate that the PE was successfully connected to the correct host objects, log into the vCenter client that manages the hosts in the host group that were connected earlier. Select (1) Hosts and Clusters view, select (2) a Host object, select (3) Storage Devices, left click the (4) Filter button and finally (5) paste the PE serial number. vCenter will filter devices that have serial number in the name. If the PE does not show up initially, you might need to rescan the storage devices associated with that host.
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10. If the PE shows up correctly as a Storage Device, next rescan the Storage Providers. Still under Hosts and Clusters view, select (1) the vCenter previously configured with the appropriate storage provider, select (2) Configure, (3) Storage Providers, (4) the Storage Provider for the array where the pod was configured and for the FlashArray controller that is Active (not Standby) then select (5) Rescan.
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11. Now that the additional PE has been connected and configured in a pod on the FlashArray, proceed to Mounting a vVol Datastore.