FreeNAS 9.2 VmWare ESX 5.1

[mauroreggio]

Hi all and thanks for your attention.

Like the title say, i use FreeNAS 9.2 with 2 VmWare 5.1 hosts and VCenter Server 5.5​

FreeNAS is connected with iSCSI at the 2 hosts.

My hardware configuration is this:
FreeNAS: Server Fujitsu Primergy RX300 S3, 8 GB RAM, Controller Raid, 6 SAS 15K disks 450 GB in raid 5, network card Intel 4 x 1 GB.
Host 1: Server Fujitsu Primergy RX300 S5, 16 GB RAM, 2 SAS 15K disks 130 GB, network card Intel 4 x 1 GB
Host 2: Server HP Proliant DL385 G2, 38 GB RAM, 2 SAS 15K disks 130 GB, network card Intel 4 x 1 GB

The 2 hosts are connected to the NAS with dedicated network card (no switch but crossed cables) with MTU at 9000, any host is connected at one dedicated network card on the NAS, with different class of IP address.
In this way, if i read good, i use MULTIPATH configuration, setting in the "Portal" of the iSCSI configuration all the desired ip address.

What is strange in my opinion is that the storage performance are not optimized.
My write througput, when i move many VM data (replica or conversion), is always about 14 MBytes/Sec
My network, when i move many VM data (replica or conversion), is always 55 MBits/Sec

I try without MTU set at 9000, but the values are the same.
I try configure LAG on a switch and on the NAS, but the values are the same.

Someware i read that FreeNAS, in default settings, have a not optimal TCP configuration for data transfere from a unic host (is better for web site pourpose). I also read that this settings can be changed working on sysctl.conf parameters.
I try this value (inflight.enable=0 and hostcache.expire=1) but seems like are not compatible with FreeNAS 9.2 (changing from command line i receive an error: sysctl inflight.enable=0)​

Anyone can say me something about this situation and how i can tuning for better performance?

Thanks all,
Mauro.​

 

[mauroreggio]

No anyone have idea or i've wrong something? (forum or section or someting technical wrong).
If anyone have the same problem, please write here ... so i not feel the only.
Thanks.

 

[cyberjock]

Well, you don't seem to have covered the basics.

• 8GB is the minimum for FreeNAS. If you want to run VMs you're going to need more. ALOT more. Try 64GB of RAM with some L2ARC and ZIL. Yes, this means buying some higher-end SSDs.
• You shouldn't *ever* be using a controller for your RAID. With VMs its even worse.

So I read that and I immediately think that you are wholly unprepared for FreeNAS storing your VMs. After that I kind of lost interest because without the basic hardware I don't particularly care about your problems. You're going to have so many problems with insufficient hardware that the first step is to get your hardware up to spec and then see what problems you have left (if any) and go from there.

 

[mauroreggio]

Well, you don't seem to have covered the basics.

• 8GB is the minimum for FreeNAS. If you want to run VMs you're going to need more. ALOT more. Try 64GB of RAM with some L2ARC and ZIL. Yes, this means buying some higher-end SSDs.
• You shouldn't *ever* be using a controller for your RAID. With VMs its even worse.

So I read that and I immediately think that you are wholly unprepared for FreeNAS storing your VMs. After that I kind of lost interest because without the basic hardware I don't particularly care about your problems. You're going to have so many problems with insufficient hardware that the first step is to get your hardware up to spec and then see what problems you have left (if any) and go from there.

Thank Cyberjock, thank for your experience.
I read with attention what you write (my english is not so good and i would not understand wrong).
I respect your experience, but i not agree about what you write.

• i know that 8GB are the minimum RAM for FreeNAS 9.2, but i not think that RAM is my problem. I check the use of RAM, and always (in normal function with 8 virtual machine in this infrastructure that i describe above, and when i migrate/restore a virtual machine with VEEAM) the RAM are used at no more than 1 GB. And always no paged memory it's used. So, how i can trust that memory is my problem? (see image)

• About your second point, you mean that SOFTWARE RAID have better performance than HARDWARE RAID (with controller)?

If you think that i'm wrong, i apreciate if you say me how.
Thank

 

[Ericloewe]

• About your second point, you mean that SOFTWARE RAID have better performance than HARDWARE RAID (with controller)?

Done properly, yes. That includes plenty of RAM.

In any case, you're using FreeNAS - that means you're here for ZFS' capabilities. If you do not give ZFS what it needs (direct access to the drives) things will not work properly.

 

[mauroreggio]

Hi Eric
Thank at your reply, now it's all more clear ... you open me a new world
I read about ZFS (and this is my fault because i not know more, before, about this filesystem) and i think now to understand better what Cyber say me.
Ear all you at the next time,
regards,
Mauro.