Free EMC D-XTR-DY-A-24 Practice Exam with Questions & Answers | Set: 2

RecoverPoint offers data protection and disaster recovery for heterogeneous storage environments. However, when it comes to XtremIO-to-XtremIO replication, RecoverPoint supports homogeneous replication, meaning it can replicate data between XtremIO arrays. This ensures that the advanced data services provided by XtremIO, such as deduplication and compression, are maintained during the replication process1.

Homogeneous Replication: RecoverPoint’s homogeneous replication capability allows for consistent replication between similar storage systems, which is essential for maintaining data efficiency features.

XtremIO Integration: When integrated with XtremIO, RecoverPoint utilizes the storage array’s native capabilities to ensure efficient replication.

Data Services Continuity: By supporting homogeneous replication, RecoverPoint ensures that XtremIO’s data services like deduplication and compression are preserved during replication, optimizing storage utilization and performance1.

Disaster Recovery: This integration allows for robust disaster recovery solutions, ensuring that data is protected and can be recovered in the event of a site failure.

Scalability: While RecoverPoint can scale up with additional RecoverPoint Appliances (RPAs) in other environments, the replication between XtremIO arrays is designed to work within the XtremIO ecosystem1.

Understanding XtremIO XMS Requirements: The XtremIO Management Server (XMS) is a dedicated server that manages one or more XtremIO clusters. Each XMS can manage multiple clusters, but there are limitations depending on the software version.

Software Version Compatibility:

XtremIO Software 4.0.4-41: This version can manage multiple clusters with a single XMS server.

XtremIO Software 3.0.3-11: This version has more stringent requirements and typically requires a separate XMS server for each cluster due to its older architecture and limitations.

Cluster Configuration:

For the two clusters running 4.0.4-41, a single XMS server can manage both.

For the two clusters running 3.0.3-11, each cluster will require its own XMS server.

Calculation of Minimum XMS Servers:

1 XMS server for the two clusters with software version 4.0.4-41.

2 XMS servers for the two clusters with software version 3.0.3-11.

Therefore, the total minimum number of XMS servers required = 1 (for 4.0.4-41) + 2 (for 3.0.3-11) = 3.

References:

Dell XtremIO Deployment Guide

XtremIO Management Server (XMS) Documentation

Dell XtremIO Deployment Services

Identify the Components: According to the Dell XtremIO Deploy Achievement document, the XtremIO X1 system includes a Storage Controller (SC) and a Battery Backup Unit (BBU)1.

Understand the Configuration: For a single X-Brick cluster, the left power supply in Storage Controller 1 (X1-SC1-PSU-L) should be connected to the corresponding BBU to ensure proper power redundancy and failover capabilities1.

Determine the Correct Connection: The document specifies that each Storage Controller’s left power supply connects to Output1 of the BBU within the same X-Brick cluster1.

Verify the Answer: Based on the information provided, the correct power cable connection for the left power supply in Storage Controller 1 to the Battery Backup Unit in an XtremIO X1 single X-Brick cluster is to BBU1-Output1, which corresponds to option OB1.

To update the Install base record for Dell XtremIO in addition to the PSNT, the following data needs to be provided:

Microcode Version: This refers to the firmware version running on your XtremIO system. It’s essential to have the latest microcode version reported for support and maintenance purposes.

Installation Configuration: This includes details about the XtremIO system’s setup, such as cluster configuration, number of X-Bricks, and any custom settings applied during the installation.

The process of updating the Install base record typically involves:

Gathering Information: Collect the microcode version from the XtremIO Management Server (XMS) interface and document the installation configuration details.

Submitting the Data: Provide the collected information to Dell Support or through the appropriate channel as directed in the Dell XtremIO Deploy Achievement documentation.

Verification: Dell Support may verify the provided information against their records and the actual system configuration to ensure accuracy.

Record Update: Once verified, Dell Support will update the Install base record with the new information.

For detailed instructions and the official procedure, refer to the Dell XtremIO Deploy Achievement document1. It’s crucial to follow the official guidelines to ensure that the Install base record is accurately updated, which can be critical for effective support and maintenance of the XtremIO system.

Port Identification: Based on the exhibit, ports a, b, c, and d need to be identified correctly.

Port a: Typically used for Fibre Channel (FC) connections.

Port c: Typically used for iSCSI connections.

FC2 and iSCSI 1 Connections: Ports a and c correspond to FC2 and iSCSI 1 connections respectively.

References:

Dell XtremIO Installation Guide

XtremIO User Guide

Dell XtremIO Deployment Services

For an XtremIO X2 two X-Brick system installation, only two IP addresses are required because the entire system is managed through the first X-Brick. This is in line with the design of the XtremIO X2 architecture, which allows for a single management point for multiple X-Bricks. The XMS (XtremIO Management Server) manages multiple XtremIO arrays and requires an IP address for each X-Brick in the cluster1. In a two X-Brick system, the first X-Brick acts as the primary management point, and the second X-Brick is managed through it, thus only necessitating two IP addresses for management purposes2.

XtremIO management can be performed through the XtremIO Management Server (XMS). The virtual XMS is a scalable solution that can manage multiple X-Brick clusters, specifically up to four. This allows for centralized management of the storage infrastructure, providing flexibility and efficiency. The capability of managing up to four clusters with a virtual XMS makes it a versatile tool for handling large storage environments.

References:

Dell XtremIO Deployment and Learning Course Materials

XtremIO Management and Configuration Guide

1.

For a VMware VM running on vSphere 6.5 that will reside on a datastore provisioned from an XtremIO volume, the disk should be presented to the guest as Thick Provisioned, Eager Zero (EZT). This is recommended for the best performance and efficient capacity usage.

Thick Provisioning, Eager Zero: This type of provisioning allocates all the space required for the virtual disk upfront and marks all the space as zeroed. This means that the physical space is reserved and zeroed on the storage array, ensuring that the VM does not have to wait for space to be allocated or zeroed before writing data. This can lead to better performance, especially for I/O-intensive applications1.

XtremIO and EZT: XtremIO arrays are particularly well-suited for EZT because they use inline deduplication and never actually have to zero out physical media. The metadata is kept in memory, and writes are journaled to memory before being saved to SSDs. XtremIO uses VAAI (vStorage APIs for Array Integration) to accelerate zeroing operations, so hosts do not have to write zeros, and the allocation of EZT virtual disks is a very quick operation1.

Performance Considerations: For applications that require low latency, such as databases, using EZT reduces overall latency for the application. Since XtremIO arrays are designed to handle such operations efficiently, the initial zeroing process with EZT, which could take a long time on traditional storage architectures, is significantly faster1.

In conclusion, for ensuring proper performance and capacity usage for a VM on vSphere 6.5 with an XtremIO volume, Thick Provisioned, Eager Zero is the recommended method of disk presentation.