Cloud Volumes ONTAP Fundamentals

Module 1: Overview of the Cloud Volumes ONTAP System

The Data Fabric is NetApp’s strategy for simplifying and integrating the orchestration of data services across a choice of hybrid, multi-cloud environments.

NetApp Cloud Volumes Services
Predictable performance and ease of integration with cloud services such as analytics, database, and other native services. Supports cloud-only and hybrid cloud environments with seamless data migration. Managed by NetApp.
Offered through Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, AWS

NetApp Cloud Volumes ONTAP (Formerly ONTAP Cloud)
Powerful, cost-effective, and easy-to-use data management solution for your cloud workloads. Managed using the familiar and reliable Cloud Volumes ONTAP data management software with its data protection and storage efficiency features.
Offered through Microsoft Azure, AWS

Cloud Manager
Cloud Manager was built with simplicity in mind. It guides you through Cloud Volumes ONTAP setup in a few quick steps and eases data management by offering a simplified storage provisioning and automated capacity management. Cloud Manager enables drag-and-drop data replication across a hybrid cloud, and more.

Image: Cloud Volumes ONTAP managed with Cloud Manager

Module 2: Cloud Volumes ONTAP Architecture

Image: Cloud Volumes ONTAP Storage Architecture

Image: Cloud Volumes ONTAP – AWS Disk Types – Underlying storage

Image: Cloud Volumes ONTAP – Azure Disk Types – Underlying storage

Data Tiering – Volume tiering policies
Snapshot Only: Tier cold Snapshot copies to object storage
Auto: Tiers cold Snapshot copies and cold user data from the active file system to object storage
Backup: Tier cold Snapshot copies to object storage

Tenants: A tenant isolates working environments into groups.

Cloud Manager Administrator roles:
- Cloud Manager Administrator: Administers Cloud manager and can access all tenants and working environments.
- Tenant Administrator: Administers a single tenant and can create and manage all working environments and users in the tenant.
- Working Environment Administrator: Can create and manage one or more working environments in a tenant.

Security: Encryption of data at rest
- Azure: Azure Storage Service Encryption for data at rest is enabled by default for Cloud Volumes ONTAP data in Azure.
- AWS: When you create a working environment, choose whether to encrypt data on Cloud Volumes ONTAP systems in AWS using either: AWS-managed encryption – or – NetApp Volume Encryption (NVE)*

Security: Antivirus (Vscan) and ransomware protection (Snapshots & Fpolicy).

WORM Storage for compliance:
You can Activate WORM at the system level.
WORM = write once, read many (WORM)

Cloud Volumes ONTAP High Availability for AWS

Active/Active - or - Active/Passive

Image: Cloud Volumes ONTAP High Availability for AWS: HA Architecture for AWS

Multiple Availability Zones – or – Single Availability Zones (Node-A, Node-B, and Mediator are in the same AZ. Doesn’t need Floating IP addresses.)

HA Pairs in Azure

Image: HA Pairs in Azure

Licensing: Cloud Volumes ONTAP Purchase Models
- Pay-as-you-go (PAYGO): Deploy by the hour on Amazon and Azure Marketplaces. Pay for only what you use, by the hours. Online Sales.
- Bring your own license (BYOL): Purchase a subscription from NetApp. Purchase annual subscription. Field Sales.

Image: Cloud Volumes ONTAP License Choices for AWS

Note: Data tiering is support with Cloud Volumes ONTAP Standard, Premium, and BYOL.

Image: Cloud Volumes ONTAP License Choices for Azure

Note: Data tiering is not supported with the DS3_v2 virtual machine type or HA pairs.

Module 3: Deploying the Cloud Volumes ONTAP System

Getting Started:

Step 1) Log into NetApp Cloud Central, locate Cloud Volumes ONTAP, and select ‘Start Free Trial’ to launch OnCommand Cloud Manager in your account.

Step 2) Select your preferred cloud provider – AWS or Azure – an deploy OnCommand Cloud Manager by following the easy-to-use Data Services Wizard.

Step 3) After Cloud Manager is configured, you can quickly and easily launch your first Cloud Volumes ONTAP instance and start your trial!

Image: Create your first Cloud Volumes ONTAP instance

Module 4: Managing the Cloud Volumes ONTAP System

NetApp Cloud Data Services: Service Offerings

Image: NetApp Cloud Data Services – Service Offerings

Cloud Manager:

Cloud Manager enables you to deploy Cloud Volumes ONTAP system, which provide enterprise-class features for your cloud storage, and to easily replicate data across hybrid clouds built on NetApp. Cloud Manager can be run from the cloud or from your data center.

Cloud Manager can discover cluster in an on-premises environment, in existing Cloud Volumes ONTAP deployments, or even in the IBM Cloud.

Cloud Manager can automate the deployment of Trident on a single Kubernetes cluster so that you can use Cloud Volumes ONTAP as persistent storage for containers.

You can use Cloud Manager to perform other volume management functions. You can perform:
- A space-efficient clone of a volume
- Snapshot copy operations
- Change the disk type and storage tiering policy in the cloud provider

Image: Cloud Manager – Volume Management Functions

You can use Cloud Manager to perform aggregate management functions. For example, you can add disks to increase the size of the aggregate.

You enable storage tiering when you create a new working environment. First choose the performance tier disk type that suits your workload, and then enable tiering.

If you enable tiering when you create a Cloud Volumes ONTAP instance, tiering is enabled for both the aggregate and the first volume. The default tiering policy for the volume is typically auto, which can be changed later.

You can upgrade to the latest version of Cloud Volumes ONTAP software directly from Cloud Manager. Cloud Manager notifies you when a new version is available.

Cloud Manager monitors and manages cloud provider resources. You can examine a cost breakdown for compute, storage, and data transfers. Monitoring your cloud provider costs is currently supported with only AWS.

Cloud Manager is 100% API driven, so any actions that you can perform through GUI wizards or commands in Cloud Manager can also be implemented through API calls.

OnCommand System Manager:

Image: Cloud Manager and System Manager

Cloud Volumes ONTAP software does not support multiple SVMs!

You can launch System Manager from within Cloud Manager.

Knowledge Check:

APIs can be used instead of OnCommand Cloud Manager UI.

You can run OnCommand Cloud Manager from the cloud or from your data center.

Module 5: Cloud Volumes ONTAP Data Protection Features

Cloud Volumes ONTAP can protect volume data in two ways:
1) Snapshot copies: which are read-only images of a volume that capture the state of the file system at a point in time.
2) Replication: which copies data and Snapshot copies from a source volume to a destination volume based on the replication policy that is selected.

Cloud Manager provides an easy GUI-based drag-and-drop functionality to create data protection relationships in the hybrid cloud.

Image: Data-Replication Relationship: Create (Drag-and-Drop)

Replication Policies:
- Mirror Policy: Typically used for disaster recovery
- Mirror and Backup Policy: Typically used when both disaster recovery and long-term retention are needed
- Backup Policy: Typically used for long-term retention of backup copies

Resources

- Welcome to NetApp Cloud Central

- NetApp Cloud Documentation

Questions

Q: How are storage systems represented in Cloud Manager?
A: Working environments

Q: During the create of a Cloud Volumes ONTAP for AWS instance, which two data encryption options are available?
A1: AWS managed
A2: none (the data will not be encrypted)

Q: Before OnCommand Cloud Manager running in AWS can discover a Cloud Volumes ONTAP for Azure instance, what two settings must be configured?
A1: VPN connectivity to Azure
A2: The correct permissions on Azure

Q: In Cloud Manager, which menu link do you access to add a new aggregate to the current work environment?
A: Advanced allocation

Q: When adding a new volume to a working environment, which three volume tiering policies are available?
A1: Auto
A2: Snapshot only
A3: None (data tiering is disabled)

Q: Which statement about replication relationships is true?
A: Replication relationships can be created between Cloud Volumes ONTAP instances from different cloud providers.

APPENDIX

Azure Vnet or AWS VPC or GCP VPC

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