IBM SmartCloud Storage Access architecture
This chapter provides information about the following topics:
•IBM SmartCloud Storage Access and the values that IBM SmartCloud Storage Access can bring to an enterprise
•New features on IBM SmartCloud Storage Access Version 1.2
•The architectural construct of IBM SmartCloud Storage Access software appliance
•Enterprise considerations for infrastructure components for IBM SmartCloud Storage Access-based private cloud deployment
•Roles and core component relationships in an IBM SmartCloud Storage Access-based storage cloud solution.
• Key terms used in an IBM SmartCloud Storage Access-based storage cloud
2.1 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access introduction
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access is a software appliance that provides cloud services to block and file storage environments. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access Version 1.2 supports the following storage devices:
•IBM Scale Out Network Attached Storage
•IBM Storwize V7000 Unified
•IBM Storwize V7000
•IBM System Storage SAN Volume Controller (SAN Volume Controller)
•IBM XIV Storage System
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access provides an environment where the users can serve themselves. The cloud administrators, through IBM SmartCloud Storage Access, can define polices and automate tasks for provisioning resources.
The following list includes some of the key cloud operations enabled through IBM SmartCloud Storage Access:
•Creating and managing file storage and Fibre Channel block storage
•Creating working environments to give team-specific access to file and block storage
•Providing request and approval work flow support
•Providing access to file space through Network File System (NFS) and Common Internet File System (CIFS)
•Setting automatic mail notifications according to policy
•Providing support for expiration of storage resources
•Providing support to federated authentication
•Providing a Storage Cloud application programming interface (API) for 3rd-party integration
•Providing globalization support
2.1.1 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access value statement
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access increases productivity by lowering operational costs and improving service quality. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access enterprises can use the benefits of a cloud delivery model by implementing a private cloud storage solution in a quick and easy way. With IBM SmartCloud Storage Access, users can request and receive storage resources quickly, and administrators can easily track and report usage.
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access includes an intuitive, self-service graphical user interface (GUI) that improves user productivity. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access can work with existing modules in the infrastructure, such as the storage subsystems, authentication servers, and so on.
With IBM SmartCloud Storage Access, an easy-to-use private storage cloud solution can be deployed without significant effort, and without compromising on standards. Enterprises can achieve end-to-end automation that can contribute to a significant reduction of effort in resource provisioning, management, tracking usage, and so on.
2.1.2 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access supported platforms
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access is a software appliance that is bundled with a customized operating system.
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access Server is supported on the following environments:
•VMWare ESX Server
•Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) V6 Server with kernel-based virtual machine (KVM)
The actual hardware and software requirements for installing IBM SmartCloud Storage Access and supporting components are mentioned in the subsequent chapters.
2.2 New features on IBM SmartCloud Storage Access V1.2
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access version 1.2 introduces the following features:
Support for Fibre Channel block storage
The range of storage subsystems supported includes SAN Volume Controller, IBM XIV, and IBM Storwize V7000.
Network drive expiration policy
Users can reserve their network drives for a certain period of time, after which the reservation (and therefore the network drives) expire. Users are reminded periodically about expiration timelines. Users can extend or reduce their reservation period from the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access self-service portal.
Federated authentication
Support for authentication in multi-domain and multi-server environments using Microsoft Windows Active Directory (AD) Services.
Installation on Linux IBM SmartCloud Storage Access V1.2 can be installed as a KVM image on an RHEL V6 Server.
Report export Usage reports can be exported from IBM SmartCloud Storage Access as comma-separated values (CSV) files. This usage report in .csv format can be imported into IBM SmartCloud Cost Management (or any other equivalent previous applications) for user usage data collection and cost calculations.
Storage cloud integration API
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access V1.2 provides Representational State Transfer (REST)-compliant (RESTful) APIs for 3rd-party application integration.
 
 
Tip: IBM SmartCloud Storage Access V1.2 continues to support the features that are part of the previous version.
2.3 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access architecture
This section provides a product overview of IBM SmartCloud Storage Access and the storage solution created using IBM SmartCloud Storage Access with supported components.
2.3.1 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access component model
Figure 2-1 shows the component model for IBM SmartCloud Storage Access. As mentioned in section 2.1.2, “IBM SmartCloud Storage Access supported platforms” on page 19, IBM SmartCloud Storage Access comes as a bundled deployable virtual machine (VM). IBM SmartCloud Storage Access as a product has some components that work independently, and some components that are dependent on external systems or services. Each of these components and their functionality will be described in detail in this section.
Figure 2-1 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access component model
Functionally independent components of IBM SmartCloud Storage Access
The following list describes the parts of IBM SmartCloud Storage Access with independent functions:
Self-service portal This component on IBM SmartCloud Storage Access enables self-service catalogs and automated provisioning for users. In addition, the cloud administrator is enabled to configure IBM SmartCloud Storage Access with authentication, workflow, policies, system settings, integrations, and
so on. Users can request storage resources through the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access self-service portal.
Policy manager A requested storage resource can be file space or fibre-attached block storage. The term network drive is used to refer to any storage resource that users can request through IBM SmartCloud Storage Access. The policy manager component helps the cloud administrator set approval workflows and expirations for a network drive.
Metering The metering component in IBM SmartCloud Storage Access enables users to track and report the usage of storage resources. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access provides .csv format reports that can be imported into a chargeback application, such as IBM SmartCloud Storage Cost Management.
Enterprises deploying IBM SmartCloud Storage Access can also use any other chargeback tools that support the .csv file format.
REST API The REST API component of IBM SmartCloud Storage Access provides an interface for third-party application integration.
Functionally dependent components of IBM SmartCloud Storage Access
The following components are built into the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access software stack, but are dependent on external systems or services to provide functions:
Storage provisioner Storage provisioner enables the provisioning of network drives to users. Storage provisioner also enables the provisioning of network services drives from various storage resources defined at different service levels. The storage resources are classified into different service levels based on reliability, availability, service definitions, and so on, through an external storage resource manager.
Identity and authorization manager
Identity and authorization manager enables authentication, authorization, identity, and role management functions for users. This component is dependent on an external authentication system for exhibiting the previously defined functions.
Mail relay system Mail relay system is a messenger that acts as a communicator to the external world. All requests, approval flows, resource provisioning completion, expiration policies, and so on, are relayed to the appropriate mail boxes through the mail relay system.
The mail relay system on IBM SmartCloud Storage Access is dependent on an external mail server for communication. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access provides standard mail templates for communications about different actions, such as provisioning, approval, and so on.
Clock sync Clock sync is the time synchronization component on IBM SmartCloud Storage Access, and is dependent on an external time synchronization system, such as an external network time server.
Domain naming Domain naming is used to define a user-understandable name to the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access server, and it depends on an external Domain Name System (DNS) server.
External Systems
This list describes some of the external systems that work with IBM SmartCloud Storage Access software to complete the functions that are required in a storage cloud environment:
External authentication system
The external authentication system is the container for all authentication and Identity Management information for users and their groupings. This can be an IBM Tivoli Directory Server, which is a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) server, or AD Server.
External storage resource manager
External storage resource manager is the system that performs the provisioning and de-provisioning of resources by receiving appropriate commands from IBM SmartCloud Storage Access storage provisioning module.
External storage resource manager should also have a method to classify different storage resources into different service levels required in a storage cloud environment.
Typical examples of storage resource service levels might include storage pools that are constituted with different Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID) levels. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access supports IBM Tivoli Storage Productivity Center or IBM Virtual Storage Center as the external storage resource manager.
Storage manager is the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access terminology used to refer to an external storage resource manager. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access can support multiple storage managers.
Mail server Mail server provides Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) functionality for relaying mail from IBM SmartCloud Storage Access. The mail server can simply be referred to as the SMTP server.
Chargeback application
Utilization report information extracted from IBM SmartCloud Storage Access can be imported into external applications, such as IBM SmartCloud Cost Management, for cost calculations. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access provides reports in .csv format files. Any existing chargeback applications can also be used for the cost calculation, provided that the application accepts .csv imports.
External network time server
External network time server can be a Network Time Protocol (NTP) server that synchronizes clocks across the systems used in the network.
File or block storage resources
File or block storage can be a storage pool of an appropriate type from an external storage subsystem, such as IBM Scale Out Network Attached Storage or IBM XIV.
Domain naming service
The domain naming service is typically run from a DNS server. A DNS server is used to give user-understandable names to IP addresses of systems, services, or resources connected to the Internet or a private network.
2.4 Typical IBM SmartCloud Storage Access deployment architecture
This section describes a deployment architecture for a private storage cloud with IBM SmartCloud Storage Access. As shown in Figure 2-2 on page 23, IBM SmartCloud Storage Access works with various external systems or services to achieve the functionality required for a private storage cloud.
Figure 2-2 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access deployment architecture
The three words that matter the most to any enterprise are reduce, reuse, and recycle. These words hold true for an IBM SmartCloud Storage Access-based private cloud deployment, because the enterprises can achieve the following goals:
•Reduce administrator resource usage, operational costs, and provisioning turnaround time.
•Reuse existing infrastructure components, such as NTP Server, DNS, SMTP server, and storage systems
•Recycle unused or under-used storage space, and therefore ensure optimal use.
The deployment architecture has IBM SmartCloud Storage Access working with Tivoli Storage Productivity Center, which is the storage manager to provision and de-provision network drives. Tivoli Storage Productivity Center plays a major role in understanding the resource request from IBM SmartCloud Storage Access and actualizing the resource provisioning.
A network drive that a user requests can be a file space or a block storage drive. The primary difference between file and the block storage is the medium of access, along with the protocol. Typically, file storage can be accessed over an Ethernet network through network sharing protocols, such as NFS or CIFS. Block storage access requires Fibre Channel resources, such as a Fibre Channel network and supported Fibre Channel access mediums on the access end points.
In a typical IT enterprise, block storage serves space requests for physical or virtual servers. File storage can be used across server-class machines and workstations through commonly available Ethernet channels.
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access acts as a user or administrator interface to storage resource requests, and also as a policy management system. By deploying an IBM SmartCloud Storage Access-based private storage cloud, an IT enterprise can look to get away from independent resource request tools, following complex security processes for provisioning, and previous methods of metering. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access can bring a reduction of administrator resource usage, resulting in faster turnaround time to achieve rapid provisioning.
There are several advantages for an enterprise deploying Tivoli Storage Productivity Center for an IBM SmartCloud Storage Access-based solution. In addition to its resource provisioning aspects, Tivoli Storage Productivity Center is a heterogeneous storage infrastructure management and monitoring solution. It is much more than a resource provisioning tool, and more than just an automated storage provisioner.
For more information about Tivoli Storage Productivity Center, see the following website:
IBM Virtual Storage Center is another offering that includes Tivoli Storage Productivity Center and SAN Volume Controller. SAN Volume Controller is a virtualization system that can virtualize storage infrastructure containing storage subsystems from different vendors. An enterprise can deploy a private cloud by integrating IBM SmartCloud Storage Access with IBM Virtual Storage Center, and can achieve a virtualized heterogeneous storage system with monitoring.
For more information about IBM Virtual Storage Center, see the following website:
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access can help enterprises manage huge capacity with policy-based provisioning and expiration. Enterprises can choose to deploy an IBM SmartCloud Storage Access-based private cloud be reusing some of the existing infrastructure components (such as an SMTP server), the authentication system (such as an AD or LDAP), the NTP server, and existing storage systems.
2.5 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access storage cloud solution
This section describes the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access storage cloud solution and introduces different components that are used in the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access solution environment.
2.5.1 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access solution overview
The IBM SmartCloud Storage Access solution components and requirements are described in the following sections.
Solution components
Storage cloud solutions typically require an integration of multiple devices or subsystems. In a cloud environment, in addition to managing the storage subsystem, the IT administrator also performs other activities, such as setting up cloud policies, defining service levels, administering user privileges, processing resource usage applications, managing event notifications, and monitoring cloud environment usage.
All of these tasks might be processed by different applications or systems. The component integration for an IBM SmartCloud Storage Access-based storage cloud solution, and their relationships are shown in Figure 2-3.
Figure 2-3 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access solution components
The IBM SmartCloud Storage Access solution includes the following components:
•IBM SmartCloud Storage Access
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access is a software appliance that is bundled with a customized operating system (OS), and can be deployed in a VM environment. It provides a portal to manage the storage cloud environments, and to process the cloud resource requests. It acquires storage resource information from Tivoli Storage Productivity Center server, and sends storage resource configuration commands to Tivoli Storage Productivity Center to process.
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access manages the user access privileges, together with an LDAP or AD server. The integral components of IBM SmartCloud Storage Access include an SMTP server for mail notification in the storage cloud environment, a DNS server for domain name resolution, and NTP for time synchronization.
•Tivoli Storage Productivity Center
Tivoli Storage Productivity Center is a software product that manages and monitors storage infrastructures. Tivoli Storage Productivity Center can manipulate the storage subsystems through a Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) standard Storage Management Initiative Specification (SMI-S) interface, so that it can behave as a focal point for administering heterogeneous subsystems in the storage cloud.
In the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access solution, Tivoli Storage Productivity Center manages the supported storage subsystems as cloud storage resources. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access controls the cloud environment through Tivoli Storage Productivity Center.
•Supported file or block storage
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access supports a variety of storage subsystems that can provision block storage through Fibre Channel networks, and file storage through Ethernet networks. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access supports NFS and CIFS protocols for file space storage access.
The file storage systems that are supported by IBM SmartCloud Storage Access include IBM Scale Out Network Attached Storage and IBM Storwize V7000 Unified. The block storage systems that are supported by IBM SmartCloud Storage Access includes IBM XIV, SAN Volume Controller, and IBM Storwize V7000.
 
Tip: SAN Volume Controller can virtualize heterogeneous storage subsystems. SAN Volume Controller supports multi-vendor storage, such as Hitachi, EMC, NetApp, and so on. Using SAN Volume Controller for block storage provisioning with IBM SmartCloud Storage Access can help enterprises use multiple storage subsystems that are supported by SAN Volume Controller in a storage cloud environment. For more information about SAN Volume Controller, see the following website:
•SMTP server
SMTP is an Internet standard for email transmission across IP networks. In the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access solution, an SMTP server is required for event notifications in the storage cloud, by sending out email to cloud administrators.
•LDAP/AD server
Generally there are multiple users and user groups defined in the cloud environment with different access privileges. All of the user role definitions and access authentications are controlled by the LDAP or AD server. LDAP can support CIFS and NFS protocols. For AD, Service for UNIX or Identity Management for UNIX must be installed to support NFS.
 
Note: The LDAP/AD server is an important component in the storage cloud environment. It is because IBM SmartCloud Storage Access depends on an external authentication system for authentication, authorization, user management, and group management. With IBM SmartCloud Storage Access, use the same AD or LDAP used for IBM Scale Out Network Attached Storage or Storwize V7000 Unified authentication.
•DNS server
The DNS server is a hierarchical distributed naming system for computers, services, or any resource connected to the Internet or a private network. In a storage cloud environment, server interactions are usually defined by domain names. Therefore, a DNS server is needed to resolve domain names to IP addresses.
•NTP server
NTP is a networking protocol for clock synchronization between computer systems over packet-switched, variable-latency data networks. For IBM SmartCloud Storage Access, an NTP server is required, because different components synchronize the time for authentication and metering functions through the storage cloud.
•Third-Party application (optional integration)
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access provides REST API for integration to any third-party applications.
•Charge back application (optional integration)
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access provides reports in .csv format, which can be exported to an existing chargeback application or to IBM SmartCloud Storage Cost Management.
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access depends on certain external applications, services, or systems to provide an end-to-end storage cloud solution. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access supports the use of existing infrastructure components wherever possible in the solution.
2.5.2 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access deployment requirements
The most important part of the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access base private cloud solution is the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access itself. Table 2-1 shows the suggested hardware requirements for IBM SmartCloud Storage Access deployment.
Note that the requirements shown in Table 2-1 are general guidelines, and are the absolute minimum requirements (with 5 to 10 concurrent users). The exact sizing can vary from installation to installation, and is dependent on the requirements of the solution, such as the concurrent number of users, performance, and so on.
Table 2-1 Suggested hardware requirements
Component
Minimum hardware requirements
Suggested minimum hardware requirements for production deployments
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access
1 processor (4 cores),100 GB disk space, and 16 GB physical memory
4 processors,100 GB disk space, and 16 GB physical memory
 
Important: The hardware requirements shown in Table 2-1 are for a single, stand-alone IBM SmartCloud Storage Access instance deployment. The hardware requirements can vary based on the functional aspects of the deployment, and the predicted usage patterns.
The subsequent chapters give an insight into the hardware requirements for installation of the dependent components, such as Tivoli Storage Productivity Center, LDAP, AD, and so on.
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access can be deployed in VMWare ESX/ESXi server environments, or KVM environments (on an RHEL V6 server). Table 2-2 shows minimum hypervisor requirements for deploying IBM SmartCloud Storage Access.
Table 2-2 Supported hypervisor levels
Hypervisor
Versions
Fix pack level
VMWare ESX
4.x (64 bits) or 5.x (64 bits)
Latest fix packs
RedHat Enterprise Linux Server
Version 6.3
Latest fix pack
2.5.3 Dependent software and levels
Table 2-3, Table 2-4, and Table 2-5 show the requirements for software levels of the dependent software.
Table 2-3 Supported authentication servers
Component
Version
Fix pack level
LDAP version 3
IBM Tivoli Directory Server V6.1 (or later)
With the latest fix pack
AD
Microsoft Windows 2008 R2 or Microsoft Windows 2012
With the latest fix pack
 
Important: Only one of the authentication types is supported for a single instance of an IBM SmartCloud Storage Access deployment. Multiple domains are supported if the authentication server type is Microsoft AD. The support for multiple domains for IBM SmartCloud Storage Access authentication is called federated authentication.
Table 2-4 Supported storage managers
Component
Version
Fix pack level
IBM Tivoli Productivity Center (for IBM SmartCloud Storage Access V1.2)
Version 5.1.1 (for file storage provisioning only) or version 5.2 (for file and block storage)
With the latest fix pack
 
Note: Note that the Tivoli Storage Productivity Center version 5.2 is required for supporting block storage provisioning. Make sure that the Tivoli Storage Productivity Center version is an appropriate level when upgrading IBM SmartCloud Storage Access V1.1 to IBM SmartCloud Storage Access V1.2 to support a requirement for file and block storage.
Table 2-5 Supported client components
Browser
Version
Fix pack level
Mozilla Firefox
Version 4 or higher (with resolution of 1024 x 768 or greater)
With the latest fix pack
Microsoft Internet Explorer
Version 9.0
With the latest fix pack
Google Chrome
Version 23 or higher
With the latest fix pack
2.6 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access deployment roles
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access self-service portal complements the file and block storage infrastructure for storage cloud services. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access provides a self-service environment for cloud administrators and cloud users, while maintaining control over the allocation of storage resources.
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access can be used to perform common storage cloud operations:
•Provisioning and de-provisioning file storage space
•Creating working environments to give team-specific access to storage space
•Providing request and approval workflow support
•Providing access to file space with file protocols such as CIFS and NFS
•Providing access to block space with the standard Fibre Channel protocol
•Setting automatic mail notification for usage warnings and expiration policy
•Expiring the storage resources according to the policy
Figure 2-4 illustrates the various user roles that are a part of an IBM SmartCloud Storage Access-based storage cloud solution deployment.
Figure 2-4 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access roles
In most cases, there are some common roles in the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access solution:
Storage infrastructure administrator
The storage infrastructure administrator uses tools, such as the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access user interface (UI) and Tivoli Storage Productivity Center, to initially set up cloud storage for use.
Cloud administrator The cloud administrator uses IBM SmartCloud Storage Access to set up the storage cloud service and manage the cloud, easily metering and monitoring the entire cloud.
Environment owner The environment owner role is usually assigned to a department administrator, who provides basic multi-tenancy support from the software level for resources and people. These department administrators also use IBM SmartCloud Storage Access to manage the resources in their own working environments, thus easily metering and monitoring their environments.
User The user uses IBM SmartCloud Storage Access in a self-service model, to easily and rapidly provision storage, according to the approval process.
The following list includes key features that IBM SmartCloud Storage Access provides to manage the storage cloud environment:
LDAP and AD support
Cloud administrators can use an existing LDAP or AD server to authenticate users and user groups in their storage cloud environment.
User management Cloud administrators can create users, change user email addresses, and remove users.
Storage access Users can access files in provisioned storage spaces through the Fibre Channel, CIFS, and NFS protocols.
Metering IBM SmartCloud Storage Access can automatically collect storage resource usage data that can be used to generate numerous reports.
Reports Users can monitor cloud usage from multiple points of view, by generating storage pool usage and storage environment usage reports from IBM SmartCloud Storage Access Reports.
Approval lifecycle management
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access supports approval lifecycle management. Cloud administrators can configure the global approval policy for storage operations, and then manage approval requests that are based on these policies.
Role support IBM SmartCloud Storage Access supports the cloud administrator, environment owner, and user roles.
Service levels IBM SmartCloud Storage Access supports customized service class levels for advanced storage cloud implementation.
Third-party application integration
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access provides REST API to support any third-party application integration.
Logging Administrators can easily monitor system usage, and troubleshoot issues with the IBM SmartCloud Storage Access logging feature.
2.7 Core components, relationships, and terminology
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access, IBM Tivoli Productivity Center, and the back-end storage subsystems form the core layer of a storage cloud solution. This section describes the relationship between the core components. The authentication system is not considered as a core component in this scenario. This is because most of the enterprises that deploy a storage cloud solution depend on the existing authentication server, or enterprise directory services, to configure the authentication services.
2.7.1 Core component relationship diagram
Figure 2-5 shows the relationship between core components.
Figure 2-5 Core Storage Cloud Components and Relationships
2.7.2 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access terminology
Some IBM SmartCloud Storage Access terms commonly used in this publication are described in Table 2-6.
Table 2-6 IBM SmartCloud Storage Access Terminology reference
Term
Description
Storage manager
Storage managers are management servers for the back-end storage subsystems. IBM SmartCloud Storage Access refers to Tivoli Storage Productivity Center server as the storage manager.
Storage profile
User-defined groups of service levels. Each service profile can be considered a storage tier (such as performance tier, availability, and so on), and it can contain multiple service levels (such as gold, silver, and so on).
Service level
Cloud administrators can define different service levels for tiered storage services to users. Service levels are mapped to service classes in Tivoli Storage Productivity Center.
Resource pool
Resource pools are storage resources provided by a storage server. Each resource pool in IBM SmartCloud Storage Access is a capacity pool defined in Tivoli Storage Productivity Center. The capacity pool in Tivoli Storage Productivity Center must be registered as a resource pool in IBM SmartCloud Storage Access.
Storage environment
Storage environments are working environments for a group of users sharing storage resources. Cloud administrators can associate the storage environment with multiple service levels. Users in a specific storage environment are able to request storage capacity from that environment.
Network drive
Network drives are space allocated from a storage environment to users. Users can access a network drive (if they have the privilege) through different protocols, such as CIFS, NFS, or Fibre Channel Protocol (FCP).
2.7.3 Tivoli Storage Productivity Center terminology
Table 2-7 shows commonly used Tivoli Storage Productivity Center terms.
Table 2-7 Tivoli Storage Productivity Center Terminology reference
Term
Description
Capacity pool
Capacity pool is a grouping of storage resources used in a storage cloud environment. An entire storage subsystem capacity, or just a storage pool on the storage subsystem, can be defined as a capacity pool in Tivoli Storage Productivity Center.
Cloud Analytics or Storage Manager API for Clouds
The Cloud Analytics (in Tivoli Storage Productivity Center V5.2) or Storage Manager API for Clouds (in Tivoli Storage Productivity Center V5.1.1) is an interface provided by Tivoli Storage Productivity Center. It is provided for the storage cloud applications, such as IBM SmartCloud Storage Access, to manage the storage resources registered in Tivoli Storage Productivity Center capacity pools.
Service Class
Service class is defined in Cloud Analytics (in Tivoli Storage Productivity Center 5.2) or Storage Manager API for Clouds (in Tivoli Storage Productivity Center 5.1.1) to describe the quality of service (QoS) of the storage resources. In addition, service class describes the requirements of new network drives to be created from cloud capacity pools.
A service class specifies what kind of storage capacity can be considered as the same group by defining recipes and included/excluded file systems. There are predefined service classes in Storage Manager API for Clouds, and users can customize their own.
2.8 Conclusion
Figure 2-6 shows the functionality expected from a storage cloud, and product mapping to the functionality to deploy a storage cloud solution with IBM SmartCloud Storage Access.
Figure 2-6 Storage cloud functions and product mapping
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access is a software appliance that integrates with some external services and systems to realize a storage cloud. The installation and configuration of IBM SmartCloud Storage Access, and configuration requirements for the external services and systems, are described in the subsequent chapters.
IBM SmartCloud Storage Access enables enterprises to achieve the following goals:
•Reduce operational costs.
•Recycle under-used resources.
•Reuse expired resources.
•Reuse some of the existing infrastructure components for the overall solution deployment.
Achieving the enterprise vision of a smart storage cloud is possible with IBM SmartCloud Storage Access.
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