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Creating SVMs

You can use Storage Manager to create fully configured storage virtual machines (SVMs) that can serve data immediately. A cluster can have one or more SVMs.

Before you begin

  • The cluster must have at least one non-root aggregate in the online state.

  • The aggregate must have sufficient space for the SVM root volume.

  • You must have synchronized the time across the cluster by configuring and enabling NTP to prevent CIFS creation and authentication failures.

  • The protocols that you want to configure on the SVM must be licensed.

  • You must have configured the CIFS protocol for secure DDNS to work.

About this task

  • While creating SVMs, you can perform the following tasks:

    • Create and fully configure SVMs.

    • Configure the volume type that is allowed on SVMs.

    • Create and configure SVMs with minimal network configuration.

    • Delegate the administration to SVM administrators.

  • To name the SVM, you can use alphanumeric characters and the following special characters: . (period), - (hyphen), and _ (underscore).

    The SVM name should start with an alphabet or _ (underscore) and must not contain more than 47 characters.
    Note
    You should use unique fully qualified domain names (FQDNs) for the SVM name such as vs0.example.com.

  • You can establish SnapMirror relationships only between volumes that have the same language settings.

    The language of the SVM determines the character set that is used to display file names and data for all NAS volumes in the SVM.

  • You cannot use a SnapLock aggregate as the root aggregate of SVMs.

  1. Click Storage > Storage VMs.
  2. Click +Add.
  3. Specify Storage VM Name and the protocol that the SVM will support.
  4. Click Save.

Result

The SVM that you created is started automatically. The root volume name is automatically generated as SVM name_root. By default, the vsadmin user account is created and is in the locked state.

After you finish

You must configure at least one protocol on the SVM to allow data access.

  • Configuring CIFS and NFS protocols on SVMs
    You can use Storage Manager to configure CIFS and NFS protocols on a storage virtual machine (SVM) to provide file-level data access for NAS clients. To enable the CIFS protocol, you must create data LIFs and the CIFS server. To enable the NFS protocol, you can specify the NIS details and the data LIFs.
  • Configuring iSCSI protocol on SVMs
    You can configure the iSCSI protocol on a storage virtual machine (SVM) to provide block-level data access by using Storage Manager. You can create iSCSI LIFs and portsets and then add the LIFs to the portsets. LIFs are created on the most suitable adapters and are assigned to portsets to ensure data path redundancy.
  • Configuring FC protocol and FCoE protocol on SVMs
    You can configure the FC protocol and the FCoE protocol on the storage virtual machine (SVM) for SAN hosts. LIFs are created on the most suitable adapters and are assigned to port sets to ensure data path redundancy. Based on your requirements, you can configure either the FC protocol or the FCoE protocols, or both the protocols by using Storage Manager.
  • Configuring NVMe protocol on SVMs
    You can configure the NVMe protocol on a storage virtual machine (SVM) using Storage Manager. You can then create namespaces and assign them to an NVMe subsystem and host.
  • Delegating administration to SVM administrators
    After setting up a functional storage virtual machine (SVM) or SVMs with basic network configuration, you can optionally delegate the administration of the SVM to SVM administrators.