Virtual Volumes Quick Reference
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vVols Best Practices Summary
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If using Virtual Volumes and FlashArray replication, ensure that anticipated recovery site is running vSphere 6.7 or later.
As always, please ensure you follow standard Pure Storage best practices for vSphere.
Currently VMware does not support Stretched Storage with vVols. This means that due to limitations both with Purity//FA and vSphere, vVols is not supported with ActiveCluster. vVols are also not supported with ActiveDr.
Pure Storage and VMware are actively partnered to develop support for stretched storage (ActiveCluster) for vVols and have targeted 1H of 2024CY for release, release timelines are subject to change.
VMware has identified a critical issue when using vVols with ESXi 6.7 U2. Should vSphere Replication be in use with vVols hosts will PSOD. If using vSphere Replication in the ESXi environment using vVols, please run either ESXi 6.5 U3, 6.7 U1 or ESXi 6.7 U3. Refer to VMware's KB on the issue found here.
User Guides
- vVols User Guide: Best Practice Summary ( updated Fri Sep 08, 2023 )
- Web Guide: Implementing vSphere Virtual Volumes with FlashArray ( updated Fri Sep 08, 2023 )
- vVols Deep Dive: Understanding Virtual Volumes and Failure Scenarios ( updated Fri Jul 07, 2023 )
- Web Guide: Managing the VASA Certificates with purecert via the CLI ( updated Mon Jun 26, 2023 )
- Web Guide: Virtual Volumes Quick Start Guide ( updated Fri May 12, 2023 )
- vVols User Guide: vVol Datastore ( updated Mon Feb 06, 2023 )
- vVols User Guide: Protocol Endpoints ( updated Tue Jan 10, 2023 )
- vVols Deep Dive: Array Based Replication with vVols ( updated Thu Dec 15, 2022 )
- Table of Contents: vSphere Virtual Volumes with Pure Storage User Guide ( updated Wed Dec 14, 2022 )
- vVols User Guide: Migrating VMs to vVols ( updated Wed Dec 14, 2022 )
- vVols User Guide: Storage Policy Based Management ( updated Thu Jun 09, 2022 )
- vVols User Guide: Snapshots of vVols ( updated Mon May 09, 2022 )
- Using VMware Site Recovery Manager with the Pure Storage FlashArray ( updated Fri Mar 25, 2022 )
- Web Guide: Configuring Multiple Non-Linked vCenters with the FlashArray VASA Provider ( updated Mon Mar 21, 2022 )
- vVols User Guide: The FlashArray VASA Provider ( updated Wed Feb 23, 2022 )
- vVols Deep Dive: What Happens when a Single VASA Service is Unreachable? ( updated Thu Sep 09, 2021 )
- vVols User Guide: vVol Binding ( updated Fri Aug 27, 2021 )
- vVols User Guide: Types of vVols ( updated Fri Aug 27, 2021 )
- vVols User Guide: Replicating vVols ( updated Mon Aug 02, 2021 )
- vVols User Guide: vVols Reporting ( updated Tue Nov 24, 2020 )
- vVols User Guide: Configuring Host Connectivity ( updated Wed Nov 11, 2020 )
- vVols User Guide: Terminology ( updated Fri Nov 06, 2020 )
- vVols User Guide: Introduction to vVols ( updated Tue Nov 03, 2020 )
- vVols Deep Dive: Lifecycle of a VASA Operation ( updated Wed Jun 17, 2020 )
Release Notes
- FlashArray VASA Provider Version by Purity Release ( updated Mon Aug 07, 2023 )
- VASA and vVols Related Fixes by ESXi Release ( updated Thu Jun 15, 2023 )
- Note on vVol support of NVMe-oF in vSphere 8.0 and the Pure VASA Provider ( updated Tue Sep 27, 2022 )
- What's New with VASA Provider Version 2.0.0? ( updated Tue May 17, 2022 )
- What's new with VASA Version 1.2.0? ( updated Fri Dec 17, 2021 )
- What to expect when upgrading to Purity 5.3 when using vVols ( updated Fri Jun 19, 2020 )
- What's new with VASA Version 1.1.0? ( updated Wed Jun 17, 2020 )
How Tos
- Web Guide: Managing the VASA Certificates with purecert via the CLI ( updated Mon Jun 26, 2023 )
- How To: Renewing the Storage Provider Certificate that is Expired or Going to Expire ( updated Fri Aug 26, 2022 )
- How To: Change the IP Address of a FlashArray Controller when using vVols on the FlashArray ( updated Mon Mar 21, 2022 )
- Web Guide: Configuring Multiple Non-Linked vCenters with the FlashArray VASA Provider ( updated Mon Mar 21, 2022 )
- How To: Managing vVol Storage Provider Certificates during a FlashArray Hardware NDU or Controller Replacement ( updated Wed Feb 24, 2021 )
- Virtual Volume How To's ( updated Thu Jul 30, 2020 )
- Web Guide: vSphere Virtual Volume VM Recovery and Snapshot Workflows ( updated Mon Jul 15, 2019 )
Videos
- Virtual Volume Videos: Lightboard Overviews ( updated Thu Jan 05, 2023 )
- VMware Cloud Foundation Videos: Virtual Volumes ( updated Tue Oct 06, 2020 )
- Virtual Volume Videos: Database-centric Lightboard ( updated Tue Aug 04, 2020 )
- Virtual Volume Videos: Joint VMware/Pure Lightboards ( updated Tue Aug 04, 2020 )
- Pure Storage Plugin for the vSphere Client Videos: Virtual Volumes ( updated Mon Aug 03, 2020 )
Troubleshooting
- Virtual Volumes (vVols) FAQ ( updated Tue Feb 21, 2023 )
- Troubleshooting: vCenter Storage Provider Errors and Host Protocol Endpoint Connection Errors ( updated Tue Dec 20, 2022 )
- A 25 second pause in I/O during a single link loss with iSCSI ( updated Wed Sep 07, 2022 )
- How To: Renewing the Storage Provider Certificate that is Expired or Going to Expire ( updated Fri Aug 26, 2022 )
- Why am I unable to create a thick provisioned vVol VM? ( updated Mon May 09, 2022 )
- Troubleshooting: VASA Operations Fail with Vendor Specific Error - Duplicate Key Found ( updated Tue Nov 16, 2021 )
- Troubleshooting: CBT Enabled vVols VMs Fail QueryChangedDiskAreas when FlashArray SafeMode is Enabled ( updated Wed Oct 13, 2021 )
- Troubleshooting: After upgrading to Purity//FA 6.0 or 6.1 SRM is reporting vVol VMs are not replicated and queryReplicationGroup fails ( updated Thu Aug 26, 2021 )
- Troubleshooting: Storage Providers are offline after a Purity upgrade to 5.1.6+ ( updated Wed Jun 09, 2021 )
- Troubleshooting: vVols Mental Model ( updated Wed Mar 03, 2021 )
- Troubleshooting: PowerShell "Object Reference Not Set" Failure with PowerCLI 12 ( updated Sat Jan 09, 2021 )
- Troubleshooting: Deploying a vVol VM fails to create a FlashArray Volume Group on ESXi 6.7 U1 ( updated Tue Nov 24, 2020 )
- Storage vMotion using VVOL datastore on Pure array results in Error 195887107 ( updated Thu Jul 30, 2020 )
- Troubleshooting: vVols report "LOGICAL BLOCK ADDRESS OUT OF RANGE" SCSI errors ( updated Wed Jun 03, 2020 )
- Troubleshooting when vVol Datastore Fails to Mount on UCS Server ( updated Mon Apr 30, 2018 )