Installation, Configuration, and Deployment
Domain 4: Installation, Configuration, and Deployment
This domain tests whether you can take a validated design into production: site readiness, racking and cabling, array initialization, host integration, and acceptance testing. Questions often ask for the next step or the missing validation check.
Pre-installation and site readiness
- Confirm rack units, weight, rail kit, power circuits and PDUs, cooling, airflow, management network drops, FC or Ethernet ports, IP addresses, zoning plan, firmware baseline, and support registration.
- Check the HPE support matrix for array OS, HBA/driver, switch firmware, hypervisor, and multipathing software before installation. A design that is not on the matrix is not deployable.
Array initialization
- Alletra 9000/Primera: initialize through the service processor and management console, then create CPGs, volumes, hosts, host sets, and VLUNs; configure ports, QoS, Remote Copy, and Peer Persistence as designed.
- Alletra 6000/5000: complete serial-console setup, management IP configuration, InfoSight registration, pool and volume creation, initiator groups, and access control.
- MSA: use the Storage Management Utility to create pools, volumes, host mappings, and iSCSI/FC settings.
- StoreOnce: configure stores, Catalyst, replication, Cloud Bank, retention, and security before backup jobs are pointed at it.
Host integration and validation
- Zone FC by single initiator to single target; mask LUNs; install multipathing; verify ALUA; create VMFS/NFS/SMB or native filesystems; validate cluster settings.
- Acceptance: health checks, firmware compliance, InfoSight call-home, path-failure test, controller-failure test where possible, backup and restore test, replication test, documentation, and handover.
Worked example
Deploying Alletra 6000 for VMware over iSCSI: rack and cable with redundant power, configure management IPs, complete serial setup, register with InfoSight, create a pool and volume, create an initiator group containing the ESXi IQNs, map the volume, configure vSwitch port binding and jumbo frames consistently, set the PSP to round robin, rescan, create the datastore, then test a path failure before handover. Skipping the path-failure test leaves the most common deployment defect undiscovered.
Traps that cost marks
- Ignoring firmware and interoperability matrices.
- Mismatched MTU or incomplete iSCSI port binding.
- Incomplete zoning or LUN masking.
- Not registering the array for call-home and analytics.
- Declaring success without failover, backup, and restore tests.