Last week Pete Koehler dropped a bomb on us when he blogged about vSAN ReadyNode emulated configurations. Since then I had a few folks asking what this exactly is. It is fairly simple, some vendors have special SKUs for ReadyNodes, which doesn’t always make configuring a ReadyNode to the desired specifications based on the minimum requirements for vSAN ESA and the supported components. SAY WHAT?
Well just imagine you are a Dell shop and you want to use the R750. You simply check if the R750 is listed on the VCG, you list the minimum CPU spec and you go from there based on the minimum (and maximum) specifications for vSAN ESA and based on your workload profile. Just as an example, the minimum specifications for vSAN ESA are now as follows with the introduction of the vSAN AF-0 ReadyNode configuration:
- Minimum of 16 cores Intel or AMD
- For example: 2 x Intel Xeon® Gold 6334 3.6G, 8 cores
- Or: 1 x AMD EPYC 9124 16C 200W 3.0GHz Processor
- Minimum of 128GB memory
- Minimum of 10GbE
- Minimum of 2 NVMe Devices (as listed on vSAN VCG) and 3.2TB per host
Now that we know what those minimums are, I could simply go to the Dell website and spec a Dell R750 Server as desired. This server could have for instance:
- 2 x Intel® Xeon Gold 6342 2.8G, 24 cores
- 256GB memory
- 25GbE networking
- 6 x Dell Ent NVMe CM6 RI 3.84TB
Even though it is not on the list as a ReadyNode configuration, this configuration would be supported as all the components are certified, and the server itself is also certified as a vSAN ReadyNode platform, and we are following the guidelines as documented in the vSAN ESA RN KB.
I hope this helps those who are going through the process of procuring hardware for vSAN ESA.
Ronny says
Hi Duncan,
I thought vSAN AF-0 does only require 16 Cores but has no requirement of two CPU packages like 2x Intel Xeon or 2x AMD EPYC CPU’s?
Is it allowed with the AF-0 profile to only use 1x Intel or AMD CPU package with 16 Cores ?
Duncan Epping says
Yeah, I probably should clarify that, the requirement is 16 cores, and the CPU is an example indeed.
Manuel Dal Bianco says
So can I use a generic R750 (for example) not originally certified as ESA RN but with the same configuration as an ESA RN and it will be accepted?
If so, this will be a real game changer!
Christopher says
Hi Duncan.
I didn’t think vSAN ESA supported 10G? Isn’t it a 25G hard minimum requirement?
Duncan Epping says
As stated, vSAN ESA AF-0 supports 10GbE.
Christopher says
Thanks. I see that now. I should have read the AF-0 blog post more thoroughly. And it’s great news!