vSphere 6.5

iBrokeIT

Pretty quiet around the virtualization subforum these days...

VMware vSphere 6.5 intro: https://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/2016/10/introducing-vsphere-6-5.html

Lexluethar

Read the press release this afternoon, pretty big shift from what I've read. There major things is html5, encrypted vms / vmotion and api.

For me right now it's encryption. Encryption at rest is a major requirement for most large customers and allowing encryption at rest is a huge step imo. A few storage arrays do software based encryption and a few use SEDs but nothing is holistic.

I went to 6.0 u2 for FT on vcenter and content libraries, I'll definitely make the jump to 6.5 once u1 is out.

kj0

It's pretty amazing what I'm reading. Some big changes to HA/DRS with Predictive DRS, Network DRS. The major push on VCSA (this has been happening for a while, but it's looking extremely attractive.) especially with VUM embedded now.

VSAN has had some additions to it.

and Nested ESXi has had a lot of benefits. PVSCSI and VMXnet3 are default when setting it up. GuestOS Customizations (IP settings only so far)



It's all pretty amazing. We're keen on it already, but got a fair way to go before then.

iBrokeIT

Yes, big fan of finally being able to run VUM on VCSA! Makes it a worthy upgrade for lab environment.

Very excited that the HTML5 web client is finally release in an update and not a fling. Disappointed the C# client is no longer supported but we knew that was coming already.

Some of the encryption stuff is nice if you don't do that at the SAN level already.

Does anyone know if TLS 1.0/1.1 will finally be deprecated and 1.2 can be enforced?

Overall pretty good.

kj0

Keep in ind, with new enhancments and additions, Higher resources are required.

jdancer

Been running vSphere 6.0U2 with VCSA in production for over a year now. Really glad VCSA now has VUM since the guests are all Linux. VCSA HA is a bonus too.

jibbajabba

iBrokeIT wrote: »

Pretty quiet around the virtualization subforum these days...

VMware vSphere 6.5 intro: https://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/2016/10/introducing-vsphere-6-5.html

Probably most hang around the vExpert Slack Channel

kj0

jibbajabba wrote: »

Probably most hang around the vExpert Slack Channel

I haven't been there for months. Not a huge fan of Slack and changing between teams or channels, or whatever they are called.

Deathmage

Can't wait to upgrade the home-lab to 6.5. Been using vSAN 6.2 for a few months now, got 4.6 TB's of space; it works amazing on the 10G FCoE.

The new VUM integration into vCSA is amazing, that was one of my biggest crutches with vCSA vs the windows-based vCenter.

The new vSAN feature I like allot since being the Lead Technical Engineer for a MSP now for the past few months, SMB's with a few servers really benefit from vSAN.

Lexluethar

People still use FCoE? :P

joelsfood

FCoE usage is definitely rather limited. I'm more interested in what FCoE would have to do with VSAN. Local storage on servers + ethernet, not sure where fcoe would come into play

Lexluethar

We were FCoE but found that storage vendors (not just one but multiple) had limited solutions using FCoE. Most were either FC or iSCSI. So with that we moved from FCoE to iSCSI.

Deathmage

it is for a home-lab guys, read into that much?

home-lab has iSCSI and FCoE, I like using a broad range of protocols in the home-lab.

however i may go with a decent FC switch at some point, the one lacking problem is you can't do LACP correctly on iSCSI, so just a 10G single FCoE works fine in the home-lab.

for customers it's either iSCSI for small, FC for large needs.

joelsfood

That wasn't the question, the question is what FCoE had to do with VSAN, since FCoE is for remote/SAN storage, and VSAN is local storage.

Deathmage

vSAN likes either 1G or 10G connectivity, so I just use a solo 10G FCoE CNA uplink from each R610 to the FCoE switch.

But you do know the wording in your question answers the question, you only do use FCoE for Remote or SAN traffic, vSAN is just a VIRTUAL SAN, so that back-end should be 10G. Technically, I could use iSCSI in the home-lab but I like being different and make it interesting. The Brocade Storage switch I'm using supports them both, it's just because I like using as many protocols as possible. If I lab on nothing but iSCSI all day, when I use FCoE or when I get a FC switch it helps to stay on top of different builds of systems. Like everything, practice makes perfect.

But my problem anymore in the home-lab is that while FCoE is technically faster than ISCSI even at 10G, I'm still encountering a bottleneck now on my QNAP 2U NAS and the CNA's for FCoE on the R610's, so having either FCoE or iSCSI 10G really doesn't make a difference anymore, but it was fun to set it up. I use my QNAP array not for just VMware but for torrents. I seed well over 20 TB's of them, my Sonicwall TZ 210 1G link is usually using all of that 75 Mbit upload connection.

Again, your reading to far into it, as it's just a home-lab setup and not a real world deployment where iSCSI is used for small deployments in fixed with default protocols with Active/Passive links and FCoE is used for larger deployments with round robin and IP Hash in EC bundles. I use FC sometimes but I mainly only use iSCSI anymore, most clients I use never get above 1G SAN's, 10G SAN aren't very prevalent with me yet.

jason_lunde

WTAF dude...now your just spitting out acronyms to sound fancy. In what realm does 'IP' hashing have anything to do with native Fibre Channel. Do you even FSPF brah?

Deathmage

I was merely stating the use-cases of them in a VMware posting?

No protocol is set in stone ever, it's just what I use. Everyone has their own preferences. I just like IP hashing on bonded connections like LACP and Etherchannel, LACP can be either FCoE or just normal IP traffic. I find LACP is the better protocol to use, personally. But I don't use FC tremendously, so I don't have a need to know it, I know enough or to some not enough.

But this just my opinion, everyone has their own.

Iristheangel

I'll bite. Tell me more about LACP with FC. I know this is impossible so do tell how no protocol is set in stone.

Deathmage

oops, I meant FCoE with LACP, FC can't be used with LACP. I get them confused.

Anytime Iris rebuttles on posts I think to make sure my words is correctly. I don't always say things how I mean. But Iris always like to jump to conclusions with my postings and forgets I'm dyslexic. Then abruptly the posts are always deleted because it turns into a drama fest. So I'm not even going to give you food to chew.

Iristheangel

Seriously? Three CCIE DCs tell you that you'r factually incorrect on various points and I'm the last one to comment on only one of those points and somehow I'm picking on you for your learning disability?

Deathmage

I'm not perfect, I don't always understand even my own words, try living with dyslexia then we can talk.

Again, telling me your a CCIE just sounds like a electronic epeen being strutted, it really doesn't phase me at all.

That's like telling a Cop I'm a CCIE and VCDX, give me a speed reduction because I can fix IT stuff. He would just look at you with a haze.

I do however look forward to getting a FC switch for the home-lab so I can understand it's inner workings. I just don't use FC that much, ISCSI or FCoE is usually good for me as most of the SAN's I've used just have solo 10G links, I'm sure someday I'll go to FC but I just haven't had a need. I guess i'll figure it out when I get to that point, I really don't mind right now. Recently NSX and CISSP has been my focus.

Iristheangel

I don't have three CCIEs.i was referring to Jason and Joel's epeen if that makes you feel better

Deathmage

I tried once, but he gave me a break because I made him laugh. I had a barney costume in the back seat. I was going to the Wednesday night clubbing event to dance in it.

I had a 'Intel Inside' stick on my window but it said 'Geek Inside' and asked me to put down the back window since it was tinted and he literally laughed. I was doing 78 in a 45. My car doesn't do, slow!

Deathmage

@Iris - I can never tell, since you always jump to conclusions with my wording. Google Dyslexia and understand it, can a CCIE do that? (ok that was kind of harsh but you understand my frustration I hope and everyone too on here), I'd hope after being on this forum so many years and how my wording is always consistently messed up you'd put one and one together and ask for clarification.

I tell all my employers I'm disabled and get wording messed up, but ADA doesn't apply to a forum.

Ok, I'm sorry this hijacked this thread, if a moderator can delete these posts that be nice. I just felt misunderstood sometimes,, naaa most time(s) I should say but it had to be said.

Iristheangel

Da hell? You get called out by multiple people on multiple things and it's all my fault and I'm picking on you because you're disabled? Considering I have family members with dyslexia, I'm very aware of what it is and have seen how it personally affects people. It's pretty obvious that you don't have a grasp of the technology you're bragging about but you're very quick to blame it on a disability or people picking on you when you get called out instead of learning something. You're on a forum with other technical folks so when you say something that people disagree with, it's unbecoming to assume the victim stance instead of course correcting.

Deathmage

you just always seem to pick fights with me and it's exhausting. You always presume the worse. I'm sorry your perfect, I aim to be real and in-perfect.

But what I've tried to do is be more humbled that some people do think they are perfect, so I accept this fact. But your right I don't know everything, nor do I want too, because when you know everything, your ego is larger than life and what's the fun in that?

lostindaylight

Bro you don't have to lie to kick it. It's obvious you don't know much about storage networking so why pretend like you do?

Iristheangel

I said I would bite... after 2-3 people already were being critical of the stuff you said. Instead of responding to everyone, you called me out saying you better watch your wording because *I* was around. Great way to distract though.


@IBrokeIT - Sorry about the MASSIVE thread derail. I let Deathmage bait me into responding to his silly replies to my post. Back to regular programming...

Deathmage

lostindaylight wrote: »

Bro you don't have to lie to kick it. It's obvious you don't know much about storage networking so why pretend like you do?

I'm not even pretending, but what everyone always presumes with my wording is that it's face valued, and not mixed up.

I'll never admit to know everything, what I will fight for is when people try to undermine my character based on my disability. This isn't the 1st time I've mentioned this.

@iBrokeIT - yes I'm sorry this always happens, no one has yet to grasp my disability. Dunno why.

CCIE #50693

Its real simple Deathmage. If your going to tell us about your network on a technical forum, be technically accurate. Im not a storage engineer. I run iSCSI between my ESXi hosts. Its storage over IP. All i need to know. IF you are the leas technical engineer at an MSP, you should be able to articulate technical information easily to technical people. IF you were the lead engineer on my project, I would be requesting someone else does it. im not sure "lead" is the title for you. FB it says technical sales engineer, which means your in pre sales. IM in post sales, engineering, i have to make presales solutions work. So dont create designs that will make engineers dislike you. Looking out for you man, think before you type

Lexluethar

Oh man sorry for the FCoE comment, didn't mean to make everyone go down this rabbit hole. Ya vsan is local but the hosts still communicate over some type of network which is why i made the joke about the protocol. It's his home lab so do what you want, FCoE is going away with what I'm seeing in the market for storage fabric (cisco will probably disagree).