HPE Storage Configurations
Overview
HPE storage arrays provide enterprise-grade block storage solutions for data centers. Private Cloud Director supports the following HPE storage arrays:
HPE 3PAR and Primera - Enterprise block storage over Fibre Channel and iSCSI using the HPE 3PAR driver
HPE Alletra 9000/10000 - Modern block storage using the same HPE 3PAR driver over Fibre Channel and iSCSI
HPE Nimble - Predictive analytics-driven storage with iSCSI connectivity
Driver family note HPE 3PAR, Primera, and Alletra 9000/10000 arrays use the same driver family (hpe_3par), which provides consistent configuration and management across models. These arrays support thin provisioning, deduplication, and compression (DECO) for volumes 16 GiB and larger. Configuration parameters are identical across these array types.
Select a storage array and protocol below to view the complete configuration steps for your environment.
HPE 3PAR and Primera arrays use the same driver and configuration parameters for Fibre Channel connectivity, providing high-performance block storage for enterprise workloads.
Prerequisites
Before you configure the 3PAR/Primera Fibre Channel backend, complete these requirements:
Minimum 3PAR OS version: 3.2.1 or later.
Supported Primera models: A650 and A670.
Install Fibre Channel HBAs on all hosts.
Enable the Web Services API (WSAPI) on the 3PAR/Primera array. Private Cloud Directoruses WSAPI to programmatically manage volumes, snapshots, and CPG operations.
Create a Common Provisioning Group (CPG) on the array. Platform9 provisions all volumes from the specified CPG.
Configure FC zoning between hosts and the 3PAR/Primera array. Proper zoning ensures hosts can discover and access storage LUNs.
Volume backend configuration
[hpe_3par_fc_backend]
volume_driver = cinder.volume.drivers.hpe.hpe_3par_fc.HPE3PARFCDriver
volume_backend_name = hpe_3par_fc
san_ip = <3PAR_MGMT_IP>
san_login = <3PAR_USER>
san_password = <3PAR_PASSWORD>
hpe3par_api_url = https://<3PAR_MGMT_IP>/api/v1
hpe3par_username = <3PAR_USER>
hpe3par_password = <3PAR_PASSWORD>
hpe3par_cpg = <CPG_NAME>
hpe3par_debug = false
# Persona 2 configures volumes for generic ALUA hosts (recommended)
hpe3par_persona = 2
use_multipath_for_image_xfer = true
volumes_dir = /opt/pf9/etc/pf9-cindervolume-base/volumes/Configuration parameters
hpe3par_persona Configures the host type for volume attachments. Set to
2for generic ALUA hosts, which is recommended for most deployments. This ensures proper multipath failover behavior.use_multipath_for_image_xfer Enables multipath for image transfers, improving reliability during volume creation from images.
Image management configuration
To enable a storage backend for image uploads, add the following parameters:
Optional parameters
Enable image-volume caching when you use a storage backend for image storage. Caching stores converted images locally on each storage host, which reduces image transfer time for subsequent volume creation requests.
Configuration notes
These arrays support thin provisioning with deduplication and compression (DECO) for volumes 16 GiB and larger.
The system thin-provisions volumes smaller than 16 GiB without DECO.
HPE 3PAR and Primera arrays provide block storage over IP networks through iSCSI, offering flexible connectivity using standard Ethernet infrastructure.
Prerequisites
Before you configure the 3PAR/Primera iSCSI backend, complete these requirements:
Minimum 3PAR OS version: 3.2.1 or later.
Supported Primera models: A650 and A670.
Install
open-iscsion all hosts. The iSCSI initiator enables hosts to discover and connect to iSCSI targets.Enable the Web Services API (WSAPI) on the 3PAR/Primera array. Platform9 uses WSAPI to programmatically manage volumes, snapshots, and CPG operations.
Create a Common Provisioning Group (CPG) on the array. Platform9 provisions all volumes from the specified CPG.
Enable iSCSI ports on the array and verify network connectivity.
Configure iSCSI connectivity between hosts and the array. Verify hosts can reach all iSCSI portal IPs.
Volume backend configuration
Configuration parameters
hpe3par_iscsi_ips Comma-separated list of iSCSI portal IP addresses. Specify multiple IPs for multipath redundancy and higher availability.
use_multipath_for_image_xfer Enables multipath for image transfers, improving reliability during volume creation from images.
Configuration notes
Verify all iSCSI IPs are accessible from hypervisor hosts before configuring the backend.
Configure CHAP authentication for additional security if required.
These arrays support thin provisioning with DECO for volumes 16 GiB and larger.
HPE Alletra 9000 and 10000 series arrays use the same driver and API as HPE 3PAR and Primera, providing modern enterprise storage with Fibre Channel connectivity.
Prerequisites
Before you configure the Alletra Fibre Channel backend, complete these requirements:
Install Fibre Channel HBAs on all hosts.
Enable Web Services API (WSAPI) on the Alletra array. Platform9 uses WSAPI to programmatically manage volumes, snapshots, and CPG operations.
Create a Common Provisioning Group (CPG) on the array. Platform9 provisions all volumes from the specified CPG.
Configure FC zoning between hosts and the Alletra array. Proper zoning ensures hosts can discover and access storage LUNs.
Volume backend configuration
Configuration parameters
hpe3par_persona Configures the host type for volume attachments. Set to
2for generic ALUA hosts, which is recommended for most deployments. This ensures proper multipath failover behavior.use_multipath_for_image_xfer Enables multipath for image transfers, improving reliability during volume creation from images.
Image management configuration
To enable a storage backend for image uploads, add the following parameters:
Optional parameters
Enable image-volume caching when you use a storage backend for image storage. Caching stores converted images locally on each storage host, which reduces image transfer time for subsequent volume creation requests.
Configuration notes
Configuration parameters are identical to 3PAR/Primera.
Alletra 9000 uses the same API endpoints as 3PAR.
These arrays support thin provisioning with DECO compression for volumes 256MB
The system thin-provisions volumes smaller than 16 GiB without DECO.
HPE Alletra 9000 and 10000 series arrays provide block storage over iSCSI using the same driver as HPE 3PAR and Primera.
Prerequisites
Before you configure the Alletra iSCSI backend, complete these requirements:
Install
open-iscsion all hosts. The iSCSI initiator enables hosts to discover and connect to iSCSI targets.Enable Web Services API (WSAPI) on the Alletra array. Private Cloud Director uses WSAPI to programmatically manage volumes, snapshots, and CPG operations.
Create a Common Provisioning Group (CPG) on the array. Private Cloud Director provisions all volumes from the specified CPG.
Enable iSCSI ports on the array and verify network connectivity.
Configure iSCSI connectivity between hosts and the array. Verify hosts can reach all iSCSI portal IPs.
Volume backend configuration
Configuration parameters
hpe3par_iscsi_ips Comma-separated list of iSCSI portal IP addresses. Specify multiple IPs for multipath redundancy and higher availability.
use_multipath_for_image_xfer Enables multipath for image transfers, improving reliability during volume creation from images.
Configuration notes
Configuration parameters are identical to 3PAR/Primera iSCSI.
These arrays support thin provisioning with DECO compression for volumes 16 GiB and larger.
The system thin-provisions volumes smaller than 16 GiB without DECO.
HPE Nimble arrays provide predictive analytics-driven storage with built-in replication and space-efficient snapshots. Private Cloud Director supports Nimble arrays through the Nimble driver using iSCSI.
Prerequisites
Before you configure the Nimble iSCSI backend, complete these requirements:
Install
open-iscsion all hosts. The iSCSI initiator enables hosts to discover and connect to iSCSI targets.Verify the Nimble array management interface is accessible from Private Cloud Directorcontrol plane hosts.
Create a storage pool on the array. Private Cloud Director provisions all volumes from the specified pool.
Configure iSCSI connectivity between hosts and the array. Verify hosts can reach the Nimble iSCSI network.
Volume backend configuration
Configuration parameters
nimble_pool_name Specifies the storage pool name on the Nimble array where Platform9 provisions volumes.
use_multipath_for_image_xfer Enables multipath for image transfers, improving reliability during volume creation from images.
Volume type configuration
Nimble requires specific extra specifications for the volume type of encrypted volumes and for performance policies.
For encrypted volumes:
Enable encryption at the volume-type level using the nimble:encryption attribute:
Nimble encrypted volumes require the nimble:encryption = yes attribute in the volume type. If you omit this attribute, volume allocation to encrypted pools fails with unclear error messages.
For performance policies:
To assign a specific performance policy, add the following extra spec to the volume type:
Example performance policies available on Nimble arrays:
SQL Server 2012
Exchange 2010
VMware
Default
Configuration notes
Performance policies are predefined on the Nimble array and must exist before you reference them in volume types.
Nimble supports automatic compression and space reclamation without additional configuration.
Snapshots are instant and crash-consistent, enabling rapid backup and recovery workflows.
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