Summary: How to install a NetApp Storage Monitoring server using onCommand Unified Manager 5.1.
Date: Around 2011
Refactor: 8 March 2025: Checked links and formatting.

We just got a brand new FAS3250C or Nseries N6250 (they are the same) and we decided to reinstall our storage monitoring server, since the software has been replaced by new versions with new functionality. We will run in Windows Server 2008 R2 (since 2012 is not supported by all required software), and will install and run the following software and services:

• IOmeter
• onCommand Unified Manager 5.1

The Unified Manager should be replacing the old DFM (data fabric manager / Operations Manager) which is required for the performance monitoring.

At the end of the configuration we will also configure a few custom reports.

IO meter has been developed by Intel as Galileo and is now a not so active project on sourceforge. The software and documentation can be downloaded from http://www.iometer.org/.

We use “iometer-2006.07.27.win32.i386-setup.exe”

The installation is pretty much “Next” “Next” “Next”. Although the installation was created for 32 bits, the software runs fine under 2008 R2 64 bits.

This getting started guide is copied from the manual, I just changed a few minor things and added screenshots for clearification:

To test disk performance:

• Double-click on Iometer.exe or the shortcut in the start menu. The Iometer main window appears, and a Dynamo workload generator is automatically launched on the local computer.
• Click on the name of the local computer (a manager) in the Topology panel on the left side of the Iometer window. The manager's available disk drives appear in the Disk Targets tab.
  • Blue icons represent physical drives; they are only shown if they have no partitions on them.
  • Yellow icons represent logical (mounted) drives; they are only shown if they are writable. A yellow icon with a red slash through it means that the drive needs to be prepared before the test starts.
    • I found that preparing is automatically done the first time a test is started. However, after preparing the disk the test does not continue. Just stop the test and restart it.
• In the Disk Targets tab, select a disk or disks to use in the test. The selected disks will be automatically distributed among the manager's workers (threads).
• Switch to the Access Specifications tab. Double-click on “Default” in the Global Access Specifications list (the one with the globe icon). The Edit Access Specification dialog appears.
• The Edit Access Specification dialog shows you how the disk will be accessed. The default is 2-Kilobyte random I/Os with a mix of 67% reads and 33% writes, which represents a typical database workload. You can leave it alone or change it. Press OK to close the dialog when you are through.
  • For maximum throughput (Megabytes per second), try changing the Transfer Request Size to 64K, the Percent Read/Write Distribution to 100% Read, and the Percent Random/Sequential Distribution to 100% Sequential.
  • For the maximum I/O rate (I/O operations per second), try changing the Transfer Request Size to 512 bytes, the Percent Read/Write Distribution to 100% Read, and the Percent Random/Sequential Distribution to 100%

Sequential:

• Switch to the Results Display tab. Set the Update Frequency to 10 seconds.
• Press the Start Tests button (green flag). A standard Save File dialog appears. Select a file to store the test results (default results.csv).
• After 10 seconds the first test results appear in the Results Display tab, and they are updated every 10 seconds after that.
  • Press the button to the left of each bar chart for a menu of the different results you can display. You can also drag a worker or manager from the Topology panel to a bar chart to see the results of just that worker or manager.
  • Press the button on the right of each bar chart for the presentation Meter dialog:
    

• Press the Stop Test button (stop sign). The test stops and the final results are saved in the results.csv file. This is a comma-separated text file that can be viewed in any text editor or imported into a spreadsheet.

The onCommand Unified Manager consists of two major parts, the Core Package 5.1 and the Host Package 1.2. The Host package provides insight into the virtual environment using plug-ins. Right now, this is nog included in the scope.

I downloaded the OnCommand Core Package 5.2 for Windows (64-bit), and the file is called: occore-setup-5-2P1-win-x64.exe and is 689 MB in size.

The core package consists of a few components of which I will install the following components:

• DataFabric Manager server
  • Enabled by default
• DataFabric Manager server services
  • Enabled by default
• N series Management Console with protection, provisioning, and Performance Advisor capabilities
  • Bundled with the Core Package but must be installed separately

Note that the onCommand Windows Powershell cmdlets are also included in the package but will not be installed.

During the installation the following choices were made:

• Accept on the Autosupport Notice

By default, the DataFabric Manager server sends AutoSupport event messages and weekly reports to IBM Support.  Messages are sent over secure HTTPS. This information is used to assist you with troubleshooting and problem resolution.  AutoSupport can significantly speed problem determination and resolution should a problem occur on the system.

Status AutoSupport event messages will be sent to IBM once per week and will start 24 hours after installation.  If you do not want AutoSupport event messages sent to IBM, you can disable AutoSupport by setting the AutoSupport Enabled global option to 'No'. This option will initially be set to 'Unknown' unless manually set, and will automatically become 'Yes' after 24 hours if not set manually to 'No'.

If you do not want to include private data such as IP addresses, host names, and user names, set the AutoSupport Content global option to 'minimal'.

• 7-Mode:

• Standard edition:

• License is retrieved from the authorization form included in the hardware
  • License is listed in KeePass

• Installation Destination Folder:
  • D:\onCommand

The Nseries Management Console is installed from within the onCommand Console and launched the Operations Manager console during installation.

• Log in to the OnCommand console by entering your domain account. You don't need Domain Administrator account but you need to be administrator on the local server.
• Click the File menu, then click Download Management Console.
  • A separate browser tab or window opens to the Management Console Software page in the Operations Manager console.
• Click the download link for the Linux or Windows installation.
• In the download dialog box, click Save File.
  • The executable file is downloaded to your local system, from the system on which the onCommand Core Package was installed.
• From the download directory, run the nmconsole-setup-3-3P1-win32.exe.
• Follow the prompts to install N series Management Console:
  • Destination Folder: D:\N series Management Console\

After installation you can login to the N series management console by using you domain administrative account again:

First we add the storage systems to the onCommand console:

• Go to the storage tab and click “Add” to add a new storage controller:

• This opens a new browser(tab) to Operations Manager to allow you to add a new storage system:

If this is the first time you add a system first add the network credentials so you can access the storage:

• Go to Setup → Network Credentials and edit the default network credentials:

• Then go to Setup → Discovery and enable the cluster discovery:

• Go back to All Storage Systems group by going to Home → Member Details and add the storage systems. You need to add each head separately.

If required you can also create groups.

Now logon to the N Series Management Console and go to the monitor section:

Then go to Setup and edit the credentials for each filer and enable data collection:

Note that for newer systems the “Perf Advisor Transport” needs to be set to HTTPS OK. Also note that it can take a while before data is really collected. In the meantime it will show the error: filer-data-unavailable.

Then go to Monitor → Client Statistics → Collect Client Statistics to enforce data collection.

This version of onCommand Unified Manager can do a lot more than the previous version. For example, sending reports on a few topics. First you need to configure the mail server so the report can be sent to you.

To configure the mail server, follow these steps:

• Open the onCommand console
• Go to Administration → Setup Options
• Go to Systems → Alarms
• Fill in the mail server and the from field:

• Click Save And Close

Depending on what you require you can have a various set of reports sent to you. Go to Reports in the main onCommand Console window and expand the Detailed Reports option:

You can click through the various reports. I want to see the effect of the Space Efficiency on a weekly basis:

• Go to Storage Capacity → Space Efficiency → Volume Space Savings
• The report will be automatically created, and to schedule the report you can select the schedule button:

• These are the settings I use, you can play with the format settings to see what fits you best:

• You can switch to the Scheduled Log tab to see if the report was sent:

To add an alarm go to Events in the main onCommand console window and click Create Alarm. Configure the settings to your need: