Dell EMC Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes with Dell EMC ......TM. Ready Solutions . such as the Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes deliver integrated compute, networking, and storage in

Dell EMC Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes with Dell EMC Unity Storage Arrays

Deploying Dell EMC infrastructure for SAP landscapes

April 2018

H16948

Deployment Guide

Abstract This deployment guide describes how to deploy an infrastructure solution for SAP

landscapes. The solution incorporates Dell EMC PowerEdge servers, Unity storage

systems, and Data Domain storage protection with Connectrix Fibre Channel SAN.

Dell Solutions

Copyright

2 Dell EMC Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes with Dell EMC Unity Storage Arrays Deploying Dell EMC infrastructure for SAP landscapes Deployment Guide

The information in this publication is provided as is. Dell Inc. makes no representations or warranties of any kind with respect to the information in this publication, and specifically disclaims implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

Use, copying, and distribution of any software described in this publication requires an applicable software license.

Copyright © 2018 Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. All Rights Reserved. Dell, EMC, Dell EMC and other trademarks are trademarks of Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. Intel, the Intel logo, the Intel Inside logo, and Xeon are trademarks of Intel Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries. Other trademarks may be the property of their respective owners. Published in the USA 04/18 Deployment Guide H16948.

Dell Inc. believes the information in this document is accurate as of its publication date. The information is subject to change without notice.

Contents

3 Dell EMC Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes with Dell EMC Unity Storage Arrays Deploying Dell EMC infrastructure for SAP landscapes

Deployment Guide

Contents

Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 4

Before you start ............................................................................................................................. 6

Architecture overview ................................................................................................................... 7

Solution implementation ............................................................................................................... 8

Solution verification methodology ............................................................................................. 34

References ................................................................................................................................... 48

Introduction


Introduction

Modern companies are looking for technologies that transform their IT departments into

agile business units capable of delivering continuous application availability through

updates and upgrades. Well-managed change can enable greater efficiencies along with

more reliable and secure delivery of services.

Performance is central to delivering an excellent user application experience. Maintaining

performance while scaling an application ecosystem is critical to ensuring that response

times meet service-level agreements (SLAs) for financial and supply chain management,

among other functions. Application administration teams must have the confidence to

deploy copies of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems while providing a highly

responsive experience for end users, developers, and other groups. The automation of

routine tasks such as provisioning ERP systems means a faster time-to-value, an

increase in operational efficiencies, and delivery of a more reliable product.

Application resiliency is the ability of all layers in the application stack to react to

unplanned problems and still provide the best possible service. The modern application

system must include a broad range of resiliency capabilities, high availability (HA), and

protection solutions that provide optimal application uptime.

Traditionally, IT teams have selected the individual components of an application

infrastructure separately. Because the approach does not always deliver the expected

results, many IT teams now look for integrated solutions that have been pretested and

precertified and can be accurately sized to meet their business requirements. Dell EMCTM

Ready Solutions such as the Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes deliver integrated

compute, networking, and storage in one system.

The Dell EMC Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes solution incorporates PowerEdgeTM

R940 and R740/R740xd servers, ConnectrixTM Fibre Channel (FC) switches, Dell EMC

Unity storage arrays, and Data DomainTM storage protection systems. The solution

encompasses a variety of design configurations and deployment options. Customers use

sizing tools for SAP systems on Dell EMC infrastructure to determine the requirements of

the deployment and work with Dell EMC representatives to configure and deploy the

solution.

PowerEdge servers that are paired with Unity storage power the Ready Bundle for SAP

Landscapes. Customers implementing the solution can expect the following benefits:

Agility―A modern SAP landscape management experience that delivers

automated provisioning capabilities for SAP applications provides faster time to

value.

Engineering―Compute, networking, and storage are integrated with the required

prerequisites, and dependencies have been tested to deliver a seamless solution

experience.

Optimization―Design and deployment guides highlight proven performance,

automation, and resiliency best practices for SAP Landscapes.

Business case

Solution

overview

Key benefits

Introduction


Deployment Guide

This deployment guide describes how to deploy an IT infrastructure consisting of Dell

EMC components for your SAP landscape. It provides detailed configuration steps for an

SAP landscape using PowerEdge servers and Connectrix switches with Unity storage.

The guide also discusses data protection and describes how to configure and deploy Dell

EMC Data Domain and Data Domain BoostTM software for back up and restore of SAP

systems. This guide does not address the installation of SAP and VMware software

components.

The scenario that is described in this guide is an example of a possible design outcome.

Deviations from the configuration that is described might be necessary to meet unique

customer requirements.

This deployment guide is for database administrators, system administrators, storage

administrators, and architects who deploy and maintain database infrastructures. Readers

should have knowledge of Dell EMC PowerEdge servers, storage, and networking

products as well as SAP NetWeaver and VMware virtualization technologies.

Dell EMC Professional Services can assist you with deploying the Ready Bundle for SAP

Landscapes solution. Contact your Dell EMC representative for more information.

The following table defines Data Domain terminology that is used in this guide:

Term Definition

Global compression factor Global compression, a form of data deduplication, compares incoming data to data that is already stored on disk and stores only the unique data segments.

Local compression factor Local compression reduces the size of a piece of incoming data by using compression algorithms.

For more information, see Understanding Data Domain Compression.

Dell EMC and the authors of this document welcome your feedback on the solution and

the solution documentation. Contact [email protected] with your

comments.

Authors: Donagh Keeshan, Fergal Murphy, Aighne Kearney

Document

purpose

Audience

Terminology

We value your

feedback

https://community.emc.com/docs/DOC-32028

mailto:[email protected]?subject=Feedback:%20Dell%20EMC%20Ready%20Bundle%20for%20SAP%20Landscapes%20with%20Dell%20EMC%20Unity%20Storage%20Arrays%20Deployment%20Guide%20(H16948)

Before you start


Before you start

This guide assumes that:

Your onsite Dell EMC infrastructure is cabled and powered on.

You have determined a detailed design for your implementation of the

Ready Bundle following a sizing and scoping exercise with Dell EMC

representatives.

You have completed the relevant SAP Quick Sizer projects and shared the

outputs with Dell EMC representatives.

Note: For more information about sizing tools for SAP systems, see the documentation under

‘SAP Quick Sizer’ on the SAP Service Marketplace website (requires SAP Marketplace

access).

This deployment guide is a companion to the Dell EMC Ready Bundles for SAP

Landscapes with Unity Storage Arrays Design Guide, which you can download from Dell

EMC.com. The design guide provides information about how to design and size the

infrastructure components of the Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes solution.

Predeployment

tasks

Essential

reading

http://service.sap.com/sizing

http://www.emc.com/en-gb/search.htm

http://www.emc.com/en-gb/search.htm

Architecture overview


Deployment Guide

Architecture overview

Figure 1 provides an overview of the architecture of the Dell EMC Ready Bundle for SAP

Landscapes solution.

Figure 1. Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes solution architecture

The Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes is optimized as a single system incorporating the

following components:

Servers―PowerEdge R940 and PowerEdge R740/R740xd

Storage―Unity All Flash storage arrays

Networking―Connectrix (Brocade) 32 Gb/s-capable FC switches

Data Protection Services―Data Domain storage protection

VMware Hypervisor―ESXi 6.5

Solution implementation



This guide describes how to install and configure the following compute, network, storage,

and availability components of the Dell EMC Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes:

PowerEdge R940 and R740/R740xd servers

Connectrix FC storage attached network (SAN)

Unity storage arrays

Data Domain storage protection

The integrated Dell Remote Access Controller (iDRAC) settings utility is a management

platform for Dell EMC servers. The iDRAC utility enables you to configure your R940 and

R740/R740xd servers.

Set up the iDRAC IP address using the iDRAC settings utility

To set up your iDRAC IP address:

1. Power on the PowerEdge Server.

2. Press F2 during Power-on Self-test (POST).

3. On the System Setup Main Menu page, select iDRAC Settings > Network.

4. On the Network page, specify the following:

Network Settings

Common Settings

IPv4 Settings or IPv6 Settings

IPMI Settings

VLAN Settings

5. Select Back > Finish, and then click Yes.

6. After the system reboots, access the iDRAC login screen through any web

browser using the configured iDRAC IP, as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2. iDRAC login screen

7. Enter your user credentials to log in. The default login is root/calvin.

Overview

Configuring the

PowerEdge

servers



Deployment Guide

Configure memory in the BIOS

Use the BIOS Settings screen to view the system memory settings and enable or disable

memory functions such as system memory testing and node interleaving. To complete the

required memory configuration:

1. Select Configuration > BIOS Settings > Memory Settings.

2. Specify the Memory Operating Mode. The available options are:

Optimizer Mode (the default)

Mirror Mode

Single-Rank Spare Mode

Multi-Rank Spare Mode

Fault Resilient Mode

Create virtual disks using the web interface

To create a virtual disk:

1. In the iDRAC Web interface, select Configuration > Storage Configuration.

2. In the Controller list box, select the controller for which you want to create a

virtual disk.

3. In the Virtual Disk Configuration area:

a. Click Create Virtual Disk.

b. Enter a name for the virtual disk.

c. In the Layout list box, select the RAID level you want for the virtual disk.

Only the RAID levels that the controller supports appear in the list. These

RAID levels are based on the total number of physical disks available.

d. Specify the following:

Media Type

Stripe Size

Read Policy

Write Policy

Disk Cache Policy

Only the values that the controller supports appear in the list boxes for these

properties.

e. In the Capacity field, enter the size of the virtual disk.

The maximum size is displayed and then updated as disks are selected.

The Span Count field is displayed based on your selection. For example, if you

selected RAID 10 and the controller supports uneven RAID 10, the span count

value is not displayed. The controller sets the value automatically, as shown in

Figure 3.



Figure 3. Create Virtual Disk screen

4. In the Select Physical Disks area, specify the number of physical disks you

require.

5. Click Add to Pending Operations.

6. Select Maintenance > Job Queue to apply the change.

The settings are applied based on the Apply Operation Mode you selected.

For more information, see the iDrac Online Help, which you can access from the

dashboard.

Note: In our test environment, we choose to boot from internal storage. The option to boot ESXi

servers from SAN is also available. For more information, see the VMware document Booting

ESXi from Fibre Channel SAN.

Enable hyperthreading

Hyperthreading technology enables SAP applications to make best use of compute

resources and deliver better performance by allowing a single CPU to behave like two

logical processors.

To enable hyperthreading:

1. In the iDRAC web interface, select Configuration > BIOS Settings > Processor

Settings > Logical Processor, and then click Enabled.

2. Configure the power plan as follows:

a. In the BIOS:

i Select Configuration > BIOS Settings > System Profile Setting >

System Profile, and then select Performance Per Watt (DAPC) in the

list box.

ii Select Configuration > BIOS Settings > Processor Settings > Dell

Controlled Turbo, and then click Enabled.

b. In the OS:

Select Control Panel > Power Plans Scheme, and then click High

Performance Plan.

https://docs.vmware.com/en/VMware-vSphere/6.5/com.vmware.vsphere.storage.doc/GUID-9004389B-E2C0-4BE5-811C-E4886E3B7450.html

https://docs.vmware.com/en/VMware-vSphere/6.5/com.vmware.vsphere.storage.doc/GUID-9004389B-E2C0-4BE5-811C-E4886E3B7450.html



Deployment Guide

Install an operating system on a PowerEdge server

Certain PowerEdge server models require the use of the Dell EMC-customized ESXi

image for the easiest and most reliable deployment of a fully managed server. For

more information, see VMware vSphere ESXi 6.x on Dell EMC Power Edge Systems: Image

Customization Information.

To download the Dell EMC-customized ESXi ISO image:

1. Go to Dell EMC Support and click the Drivers icon.

2. On the Drivers & Downloads page, select your product from the list and then

select the version of ESXi you have installed as your operating system.

3. Locate the Dell EMC customized ISO images under Enterprise Solutions, and

then download the latest image.

4. From the iDRAC web interface, open the Virtual Console.

5. Click Virtual Media and select Connect Virtual Media.

6. When the function is enabled, click Virtual Media, and then select the pass-

through device you want. We chose Map CD/DVD to use an ISO image file, as

shown in Figure 4.

Figure 4. Selecting the pass-through device

7. Browse to the image file you want to pass through, as shown in Figure 5.

http://www.dell.com/support/manuals/uk/en/ukbsdt1/vmware-esxi-6.x/esx6.xiimgcustom/introduction?guid=guid-3c867498-b577-4929-b7ee-fb4528e80fb2&lang=en-us

http://www.dell.com/support/manuals/uk/en/ukbsdt1/vmware-esxi-6.x/esx6.xiimgcustom/introduction?guid=guid-3c867498-b577-4929-b7ee-fb4528e80fb2&lang=en-us

http://www.dell.com/support/



Figure 5. Selecting the installation media

8. Click Open, and then click Map Device to complete the source selection.

The selected device is now visible in the operating system (OS) and can be used

as a boot source (if it is supported), as shown in Figure 6.

Figure 6. Next Boot options

9. To boot from the selected device, click Next Boot and select Virtual

CD/DVD/ISO.

After a restart, the server starts from this source automatically.

10. Follow the OS installation wizard to complete the installation.



Deployment Guide

This section shows how to create and configure zoning and monitoring for the Connectrix

FC SAN storage network for an SAP environment.

Use zones to partition your fabric into logical groups of devices that can access one

another. These groups are "regular" or "standard" zones―that is, single initiator to single

target. For more information, see the Brocade Fabric OS Administrator’s Guide.

Note: All switches in the fabric must be running the same default zone policy and configuration.

Switches with different zone configurations are not merged. If the two switches cannot join, the

inter-switch link (ISL) between the switches segments.

Create a zone

To create a zone:

1. Log in to the Connectrix Manager graphical user interface (CMCNE).

2. Select Configure > Zoning > Fabric.

The screen shown in Figure 7 appears.

Figure 7. Connectrix Manager zoning screen

3. Select New Zone for standard zone.

All potential zone members are in the left area and can be expanded.

4. Move members from left to right into the newly created zone.

5. Move the newly created zones, which have a green label in front of the zone

name, from the middle area to the Configuration Area on the right.

The zone configuration expands to enable you to view added members and confirm

added zones.

Configuring

Connectrix Fibre

Channel SAN

http://www.brocade.com/en/backend-content/pdf-page.html?/content/dam/secure-external/product-guides/brocade-fabric-os/8-1-0/fos-81x-adminguide.pdf



Note: Zone names with green labels are active members in the configuration. Zone

names without green labels are inactive members.

6. Click Activate.

A screen displaying your zoning changes appears, as shown in Figure 8.

Figure 8. Activate Zone Configuration

7. Click OK to confirm your changes. The active zone configuration now includes the

new zone members.

Fabric Vision features: MAPS and FPI

The Connectrix B Series products offer features for validating, monitoring, alerting, and

remediating the storage network infrastructure. These features are collectively referred to

as Fabric Vision. For more information, see the Brocade Fabric OS Administration Guide.

This section describes how to configure the following Fabric Vision features for this SAP

deployment:

Monitoring and Alerting Policy Suite (MAPS)

Fabric Performance Impact (FPI)

Note: All Connectrix directors and departmental fixed port switches with enterprise bundles

include the Fabric Vision license.

MAPS is an optional (licensed) feature that monitors Connectrix Fabric OS metrics,

statistics, and switch component states. MAPS also provides proactive error mitigation

when threshold conditions are exceeded.

Default policies include defined groups for server ports, storage ports, and switch-to-

switch (ISL) ports. Additional default groups are created for other monitored elements,

including fans, power supplies, and WAN ports. You can apply default policies to each

group using one of four predefined policies:

Base

Aggressive

http://www.brocade.com/en/backend-content/pdf-page.html?/content/dam/secure-external/product-guides/brocade-fabric-os/8-1-0/fos-81x-adminguide.pdf



Deployment Guide

Moderate

Conservative

Configure MAPS

The Moderate MAPS policy is the recommended starting point for new SAN deployments

for SAP landscapes. To enable the Moderate policy:

1. In CMCNE, select Switch > Moderate policy, and then click Activate.

The MAPS Configuration screen appears, as shown in Figure 9.

Figure 9. MAPS Configuration screen

The following options are available in this screen:

View―Quickly view MAPS elements, including rules, thresholds, and actions.

Actions―Enable or disable desired MAPS actions.

Compare―Compare MAPS policy thresholds to better suit your environment

if you choose to modify a policy or enable a different default policy. For more

information, see the Brocade Monitoring and Alerting Policy Suite

Configuration Guide.

View MAPS Violations―View all threshold alert violations.

2. Click the Dashboard tab at the top of the screen to perform MAPS monitoring, as

shown Figure 10.

http://www.brocade.com/en/backend-content/pdf-page.html?/content/dam/secure-external/product-guides/brocade-fabric-os/8-1-0/fos-81x-maps.pdf

http://www.brocade.com/en/backend-content/pdf-page.html?/content/dam/secure-external/product-guides/brocade-fabric-os/8-1-0/fos-81x-maps.pdf



Figure 10. MAPS monitoring screen

Figure 11 shows the MAPS violation widgets you can view in the MAPS dashboard.

Figure 11. Dashboard showing MAPS violations

Configure FPI monitoring

FPI offers advanced device latency detection and mitigation capabilities that are easy to deploy and use. The detection offers a clear indication that the fabric might be experiencing a performance impact because of a slow-draining device or another device that is not behaving as expected.

FPI monitoring is enabled by default in FOS 8.x and actions are available with either the Fabric Vision or Fabric Watch/Advanced Performance Monitor (FW/APM) license.



Deployment Guide

Note: FPI monitoring requires a Fabric Vision license and is supported on 8-Gbps and 16-Gbps

platforms with Fabric OS 7.3 and Fabric OS 7.4. Starting with Fabric OS 8.0, FPI monitoring

does not require a license on 16-Gbps and 32-Gbps platforms.

To enable FPI action options in your system:

1. In Connection Manager, open the MAPS Policy Actions screen.


Figure 12. MAPS Policy Actions screen

2. Select the FPI Actions (SAN only) box and then:

Disable legacy bottleneck monitoring (if it is enabled).

Enable FPI.

Configure and confirm the required FPI actions.

The internal architecture of the Unity system eliminates complex configuration and tuning

steps. In our laboratory, we used the Dell EMC UnisphereTM for Unity OE 4.2.1 to:

Create the SAP hosts

Create a dynamic storage pool

Create SAP volumes and map the volumes to the SAP hosts

Figure 13 shows the interface in which you can perform these tasks.

Configuring

Unity storage for

an SAP

landscape



Figure 13. Dell EMC Unisphere for Unity interface

Creating a host

Each physical host must have two host bus adapter (HBA) ports that are zoned to the FC

ports of the Unity I/O modules. If the zoning is correct, the host initiators are visible to the

Unity module after the hosts are started. Because we are using a virtual environment, we

added the ESXi hosts used for SAP landscapes.

To create an SAP host:

1. In the Unisphere interface, select Access > Hosts in the left panel.

The Hosts page appears.

2. Click the plus sign in the upper left corner and select Host.

The Add a Host screen appears.

3. Enter a name for the new host, create an optional description of the host, andthen click Next.

4. On the OS and Network Address page, specify a host operating system (suchas VMware ESXi) and the network address. Click Next.

Note: The operating system information is not required, but it allows for more specific

configuration and troubleshooting instructions. The network address (name or IP address) is

required to customize access to the NFS share.

5. On the Select iSCSI Initiators page:

If you are using iSCSI initiators, from the list of auto-discovered initiators, selectthe iSCSI initiators for the host to use to access storage resources. If theinitiator you want is not in the list, click Create Initiator to add it manually andthen select it from the list of manually added initiators. Click Next.

If you are not using iSCSI initiators, click Next.

6. On the Select Fibre Channel Initiators page, from the list of auto-discoveredinitiators, select the FC initiators for the host to use to access storage resources,as shown in Figure 14.



Deployment Guide

Figure 14. Select Fibre Channel initiators screen: Adding a Host

If the initiator that you want is not in the list, click Create Initiator to add an

initiator manually, and then select it from the list of manually added initiators. Click

Next.

7. On the Review Host Configuration page, review all the information you enteredfor the SAP host. Click Finish to create the host.

Creating a dynamic storage pool

In Unity All Flash models running OE version 4.2.x or later, all new pools created in the Unisphere GUI are dynamic pools. New pools created in the Unisphere command line interface (CLI) and REST API are dynamic pools by default.

Note: You cannot change the RAID type of a dynamic pool. Also, you cannot shrink a dynamic

pool or change its storage characteristics without deleting the storage resources configured in

the pool and the pool itself. However, you can add drives to expand the pool.

To create a dynamic pool on All Flash models with Unity OE version 4.2 or later:

1. In the left navigation bar of the GUI, select Storage > Pools.

The Pools page appears.

2. Click the plus sign in the upper left corner.

The Create Pool screen appears, as shown in Figure 15.



Figure 15. Create Pool screen

3. Enter a name for the new storage pool. Optionally, create a description for the

storage pool. Click Next.

The Tiers page shown in Figure 16 appears.

Figure 16. Selecting the storage tier

4. Select Extreme Performance Tier and RAID 5 (the default) for the dynamic pool.

Click Next.

The Drives page shown in Figure 17 appears, showing the number of flash drives

that are needed to support the required amount of storage.

Figure 17. Selecting the number of drives



Deployment Guide

5. Click Next.

The Review Your Selections summary page appears, as shown in Figure 18.

Figure 18. Reviewing your selections

6. Review all the information you entered for the dynamic pool. If you are satisfied

with the information, click Finish.

Creating and mapping volumes

To create and map the volumes:

1. In the left panel of the Unisphere interface, select Storage > Block.

The LUNs page appears.

2. Click the plus sign in the upper left corner.

The Create a LUN screen appears.

3. Enter a name and (optionally) a description of the new LUN. Click Next.

The Configure Storage Characteristics page appears, as shown in Figure 19.



Figure 19. Configure Storage Characteristics screen: Creating a LUN

4. Select the following options and click Next:

The pool in which to create the LUN. If the storage pool contains multiple tiers,

select a tiering policy and enter the required size of the LUN. The default LUN

selection is Thin.

Select Compression if desired

The Select Host Access page appears, as shown in Figure 20.



Deployment Guide

Figure 20. Select Host Access page: Creating a LUN

5. Select the host that will have access to the newly created LUN. Click OK.

The Summary page appears, as shown in Figure 21.

Figure 21. Creating a LUN Summary screen

6. Review all the information you entered for the new LUN. Click Finish.

A LUN is created that is visible to the select hosts.



The Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes solution uses the Dell EMC Data Domain storage

system to protect your business-critical SAP data. Data Domain deduplication storage

systems enable fast, reliable disk backup, archiving, and disaster recovery (DR) with high-

speed, inline deduplication. By consolidating backup and archive data on a Data Domain

system, you can reduce storage requirements by 10 to 55 times. For configuration,

management, and monitoring operations, Data Domain systems run the Data Domain

System Manager (DD System Manager) GUI and the Data Domain Operating System

(DD OS) CLI.

Used with Data Domain storage systems, Dell EMC DD BoostTM software provides

advanced integration with backup and enterprise applications. DD Boost enables faster

and more efficient backup and recovery as follows:

DD Boost distributes parts of the deduplication process to the database server or

application clients, enabling client-side deduplication.

Distributed segment processing (DSP) enables deduplication of the backup data on

the database or application host to reduce the amount of data that is transferred

over the network.

Enabling DD Boost on a Data Domain system

You can enable DD Boost software at the DD OS CLI or in the DD System Manager.

To enable DD Boost at the DD OS CLI, run the ddboost enable command.

To enable DD Boost in the DD System Manager, follow these steps:

a. Select Data Management > File System > Enable to enable the file system.

Note: DD Boost is an optional product. A separate license is required to operate DD

Boost software on the Data Domain system.

b. Select Administration > Licenses > Update Licenses to upload the DD

Boost license.

The Update Licenses screen appears, as shown in Figure 22.

Figure 22. Uploading ELMS licenses

c. Browse to the DD boost license and select it. Click Apply.

d. Select Protocols > DD Boost.

Configuring Data

Domain data

protection



Deployment Guide


Figure 23. Enabling DD Boost

Setting up the Data Domain storage units

Each Data Domain system that is to be used with the database application agent requires

one or more storage units, and each storage unit name must be unique on a single Data

Domain system.

To set up the storage units:

1. In DD System Manager, select Protocols > DD Boost > Storage Units.


Figure 24. Setting up storage units on your Data Domain system

2. Click the green plus (+) icon.

The Create Storage Unit screen appears, as shown in Figure 25.



Figure 25. Creating a storage unit

3. Enter the name of the storage unit, select one of the authorized users, and click

Create.

Optionally, create a new local user by selecting Protocols > DD Boost > Settings.

The storage unit is created, as shown in Figure 26.

Figure 26. Data Domain storage units list

4. Select Users with DD Boost Access.

Enabling distributed segment processing

You can choose to enable or disable DSP when you send backup data to a Data Domain

system using DD Boost software.

DSP distributes the deduplication process between the DD Boost library and the Data

Domain system. Parts of the deduplication process run on the database or application

host so that the DD Boost library sends only unique data over the network. The mode of

operation is set on the Data Domain system.

DSP is enabled by default on systems initially installed with DD OS release 5.2 or higher.

On system upgrades from DD OS release 5.0.x/5.1.x up to DD OS release 5.2, DSP

remains in its previous state.

To configure DSP on your Data Domain system:

1. In DD System Manager, select Protocols > DD Boost > More Tasks > Set

Options.



Deployment Guide


Figure 27. Configuring distributed processing

2. Select Distributed Segment Processing and click OK.

Note: Enabling or disabling DSP does not require a restart of the Data Domain file system.

Enabling advanced load balancing and link failover

With the advanced load-balancing and link failover feature, you can combine multiple

Ethernet links into a group and register only one interface with the database application

agent on the Data Domain system.

Setting up an interface group creates a private network within the Data Domain system,

consisting of the IP addresses that are designated as belonging to a group. Clients are

assigned to a single group, and the group interface uses load balancing to improve data

transfer performance and increased reliability.

If an interface group is configured when the Data Domain system receives data from the

DD Boost client, the data transfer is load-balanced and distributed as separate jobs on the

private network. This load balancing increases throughput, especially for customers who

use multiple 1 GbE connections.

To enable load balancing on your Data Domain system:

1. In DD System Manager, select Protocols > DD Boost > Settings > Allowed

Clients and click the green plus (+) icon.

The Modify Allowed Client screen appears, as shown in Figure 28.



Figure 28. Modify Allowed Client screen

2. Enter the FQDN of the database or application host to back up, and then click

OK.

3. Select Protocols > DD Boost > Settings > IP Network > Interface Groups and

click the green plus (+) icon.

The Modify Interface Group screen appears, as shown in Figure 29.

Figure 29. Creating an interface group

4. Enter a name for the interface group, select the interfaces to add to the group,

and click OK.

5. Select Protocols > DD Boost > Settings > IP Network > Configured Clients

and click the green plus (+) icon.

The Add Client screen appears, as shown in Figure 30.



Deployment Guide

Figure 30. Adding a client

6. Enter the name of the client, select the interface group you previously created,

and click OK.

Installing DD Boost for Enterprise Applications

Use the DD Boost for Enterprise Applications (DDBEA) software to integrate the Data

Domain system with your SAP landscape.

1. Download the DDBEA database application agent software from the Customer

Support website and extract the installation package from the file on the database

or application host.

2. Install the software on Linux by running the rpm command, as shown in Figure

31.

Figure 31. Installing the database application agent

3. In a supported cluster environment, install the software on each node that

performs backup and recovery operations.

https://support.emc.com/




Setting up the SAP with Oracle configuration file

For an SAP with Oracle environment, the software installation provides the

sap_oracle_ddbda.utl template for the configuration file. Customize this template to

set up a configuration file to use for backups and restores with the DDBEA database

application agent. The configuration file templates are installed on UNIX and Linux in the

/opt/dpsapps/dbappagent/config/ directory:

The following common parameters, found under the [PRIMARY_SYSTEM] settings on your

Data Domain system, are mandatory for all operations with the database application

agent:

DDBOOST_USER―Specifies the username of the DD Boost user that isconfigured on the primary Data Domain system

DEVICE_HOST―Specifies the hostname of the primary Data Domain systemwhere the backup is stored

DEVICE_PATH―Specifies the name of the storage unit or a top-level directory

within the storage unit on the primary Data Domain system

To customize the configuration file, follow these steps:

1. Go to /opt/dpsapps/dbappagent/config/, copy the

sap_oracle_ddbda.utl configuration file, and rename it init<DBSID>.utl.

2. Modify the parameter settings in the configuration file, as shown in Figure 32.

Figure 32. SAP with Oracle configuration file

Configuring the DD Boost operations with Oracle RMAN

The database application agent is integrated with the SAP BR*Tools backing interface

and the BR*Tools Oracle Recovery Manager (RMAN) interface to enable DD Boost

backups, restores, and transaction log archiving in an SAP with Oracle environment.

Enable the SAP BR*Tools operations to use the RMAN program for the DD Boost

backups and restores. To do this, provide the required settings in the BR*Tools

configuration file init<DBSID>.sap, which is located in /oracle/<SID>/sapprof, as

follows:

1. Set the backup medium to use the RMAN program, as shown in Figure 33.

Figure 33. Setting the backup medium

2. Set the following values in the rman_parms parameter:

Set SBT_LIBRARY to the complete pathname of the database application

agent library that is used with RMAN.

Set CONFIG_FILE to the complete pathname of the configuration file

init<DBSID>.utl.



Deployment Guide

Figure 34 shows the values we provided.

Figure 34. Setting the rman parameters

3. Set the following parameters to configure the RMAN operations according to your

requirements:

rman_channels: Set the number of concurrent data streams. As a best

practice, set the channel numbers equal to the number of CPUs in the system.

rman_filesperset: Set a number to improve the deduplication ratio, as

shown in Figure 35.

Figure 35. Setting the channel numbers

util_par_file: Set the parameter to the complete pathname of the SAP for

Oracle configuration file, as shown in Figure 36.

Figure 36. Setting the util_par_file location

Enabling the Oracle optimized deduplication feature

The Oracle optimized deduplication feature can provide improved deduplication, resulting

in greater storage protection, efficiency, and value. Optimized deduplication is supported

at the MTree level in Data Domain OS 5.5.1 and higher.

To enable optimized deduplication on your Data Domain system:

1. Log in to the system through SSH.

2. Run the following command to enable the optimized compression algorithm:

mtree option set app-optimized-compression < algo_name >

mtree < mtree_path >

For example:

mtree option set app-optimized-compression oracle1 mtree

/data/col1/RB_SAP_BM1

3. Run the mtree option show command to display the MTree values, as

shown in Figure 37.



Figure 37. Setting MTree values

Configuring the lockbox

A lockbox is an encrypted file that the database application agent uses to protect

confidential information from unauthorized access. The lockbox stores your Data Domain

system information, including user credentials for your DD Boost software.

Before you can enable backups and restores on a Data Domain system, you must ensure

that the configuration file is created and contains the mandatory parameter settings. For

example, the parameters shown in Figure 38 are set in the [PRIMARY_SYSTEM] section of

the configuration file.

Figure 38. Parameter settings in the initBM1.utl

1. Run the following command to register the Data Domain system to the host:

ddbmadmin -P -z <configuration_file>

2. Create a lockbox, as shown in Figure 39.

Figure 39. Creating a lockbox with Data Domain

3. After the configuration is complete, start the backup and restore operation to the

Data Domain system.



Deployment Guide

Note: You can also use a backing backup for the database backup. For more information,

see Dell EMC Data Domain Boost for Enterprise Applications and ProtectPoint Database

Application Agent, which is available for download from Dell EMC Online Support.

https://support.emc.com/docu85245_Data-Domain-Boost-for-Enterprise-Applications-and-ProtectPoint-Database-Application-Agent-4.0-Installation-and-Administration-Guide.pdf?language=en_US

https://support.emc.com/docu85245_Data-Domain-Boost-for-Enterprise-Applications-and-ProtectPoint-Database-Application-Agent-4.0-Installation-and-Administration-Guide.pdf?language=en_US


Solution verification methodology



We validated the configuration best practices described in this guide by using SAP ERP

6.0 EHP7 on the NetWeaver 740 technology platform with the Oracle Database 12c

release. We installed the distributed SAP system on SUSE SLES hosts in a virtual

environment. In our use case, the ERP system with a BM1 database represents a

production system running with a database of approximately 2.7 TB. The ERP system’s

Oracle database was fully backed up five times to the Data Domain appliance. After each

backup, we added unique data to the database, using SAP benchmark tools to simulate

data growth. The DD Boost software we installed integrates with SAP-supported

databases to perform host-based deduplication to Data Domain, sending only unique

blocks of data over the network. DD Boost saves bandwidth and lowers network use, a

significant benefit when backups occur in parallel in the data center.

The goal of these tests is to show how the Dell EMC Ready Solution for SAP Landscapes

with Data Domain can quickly back up a production database system and offer

consolidation savings to businesses. Backup metrics and screen shots show how we

achieved our goals.

SAP Power Benchmark tools

SAP Power Benchmark (PBM), which is based on the standard Sales and Distribution

(SD) benchmark, is a collection of Perl scripts and SAP configuration transports. PBM

allows simulation of a large number of SAP user logins and performs a wide range of

order-to-cash transactions. For more information, see the SAP Power Benchmarks

documentation. We ran the PBM to create workloads and to generate data growth

between backups.

Overview

https://www.sap.com/about/benchmark/appbm/power.html



Deployment Guide

Data Domain deduplication storage systems reduce the amount of data to process by only

backing up data that has not previously been processed. The first full backup of a

database requires sending all the data to the Data Domain system because that data is

considered unique. With subsequent full backups, DD Boost software performs

deduplication on the database server, sending only unique blocks for the network and

skipping data that has already been backed up. Another DD Boost benefit is that full

backups consume only a fraction of space on the Data Domain appliance and network

use is minimized.

In our laboratory backup test, the initial SAP database size was 2.781 TB, as shown in

Figure 40. The size consisted of approximately 2.318 TB of data and 463 GB of free

space.

Figure 40. Initial SAP database size

Backup test steps

At a high level, the backup procedure consisted of the following steps:

1. Perform a full initial backup of the SAP database to the Data Domain system

using the DDBEA software, and collect performance and data reduction statistics.

2. Using the PBM, generate small and large application data deltas (changed data)

as follows:

Second backup with a large data change (5 percent)

Third backup with a large data change (5.75 percent)

Fourth backup with a small data change (0.2 percent)

Final backup with a small data change (0.3 percent)

3. Run the full backup again and collect performance and data reduction statistics.

Backup testing



Detailed backup steps

For our test backup procedure, we performed the following steps:

1. Locate the SAP database SLES host to back up and log in as the ora<SID>

user.

2. Back up the SAP database from the OS level by running the following BRtools

command:

brbackup -t online -d rman_util -m all -u /

Figure 41 shows the results we obtained.

Figure 41. First backup test results

The first backup test provided the following results:

Consumption of 835 GiB of physical storage within the Data Domain system

A global compression factor of 1.0x, indicating that all the data written was

unique

A local compression factor of 2.8x

Storage savings of approximately 64 percent compared to the initial backup



Deployment Guide

Note: A high deduplication ratio (global compression factor) is rare in the initial backup of a

dataset because the data reduction in initial backups comes predominantly from local

compression. With subsequent data transfers to the Data Domain system, deduplication (or

global compression) is the dominant compression factor.

3. After the initial backup, expand the database base and generate approximately

120 GB of new data, creating a change (delta) of approximately five percent.

The new database size is 2.941 TB, as shown in Figure 42, with 2.434 TB of data

and 507 GB of free space.

Figure 42. Data generation after the initial backup

4. Create the second backup of the SAP system by running the following BRtools

command:


Figure 43 shows the results we obtained after the five percent change.

Figure 43. Second backup test results

The second backup test provided the following results:

Consumption of only 324 GiB of physical storage

A global compression factor of 3.2x, indicating the presence of data

previously backed up to the Data Domain system


Storage savings of approximately 87 percent on the second backup and a

total storage savings of approximately 75 percent over the two backups



5. Expand the database and generate 140 GB of new data, creating a change of

approximately 5.75 percent.

The new database size is approximately 3.107 TB, as Figure 44 shows, with 2.574

TB of data and 533 GB of free space.

Figure 44. Data generation after the second backup

6. Create the third backup of the SAP system by running the following BRtools

command:



Figure 45. Third backup test results

The third backup test provided the following results:


A global compression factor of 4.1x, again indicating the presence of data

previously backed up to the Data Domain system


Storage savings of approximately 89 percent on the third backup and a total

storage savings of approximately 80 percent for all three backups

7. Generate 600 MB of new data, creating a small change (delta) of approximately

0.2 percent.

The new database size was approximately 3.107 TB, with 2.575 TB of data and

approximately 533 GB of free space, as shown in Figure 46.



Deployment Guide

Figure 46. Data generation after the third backup

8. Create a fourth backup of the SAP system by running the following BRtools

command:



Figure 47. Fourth backup test results

The fourth backup test provided the following results:


A global compression factor of 55x, indicating a large amount of

deduplication


Savings of approximately 99 percent for the fourth backup and a total

savings of approximately 85 percent over all four backups.

9. Next, generate 1 GB of new data, creating a very small delta of approximately

0.3 percent.

The new database size, as shown in Figure 48, is approximately 3.107 TB, with

2.576 TB of data and 532 GB of free space.



Figure 48. Data generation after the fourth backup

10. Create a final backup of the SAP system by running the following BRtools

command:



Figure 49. Final backup test results

The final backup test provided the following results:


A global compression factor of 36x, indicating a large amount of

deduplication


Storage savings of approximately 98 percent for the final backup and a total

storage savings of approximately 87 percent for all five backups

Note: We conducted all our testing in a laboratory environment with a generated test dataset,

using the SAP SD and PBM. Your results might be different depending on the infrastructure

configuration and dataset used.



Deployment Guide

Our test results show that the integration of the Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes

solution with Data Domain storage protection systems can effectively and quickly protect

SAP databases while offering space savings that enable the business to protect more

data. We obtained test results under the following categories:

Backup times

CPU usage

Network usage

Pre- and post-compression

Deduplication and compression savings

Backup times

Figure 50 shows the duration times of the five backup procedures. The initial backup of

our SAP Netweaver 2.7 TB database took only 45 minutes to complete. The subsequent

backups included a data change in a range from 5.75 percent to 0.2 percent.

Full backups require RMAN to read the entire database for every backup. Because we

performed a full backup operation each time, the backup duration time increased slightly

when the database size increased. However, a full backup operation is the best way to

represent the effects of deduplication and compression. With incremental backup

operations, second and subsequent backups complete faster than the initial backup.

Figure 50. Test results: Backup time and database size test

CPU usage

Moving some of the deduplication work from the Data Domain system to the database

server did not negatively impact the server workload. Because sending data is resource-

intensive for the database server, sending less data significantly reduces the load and it

takes fewer CPU cycles to perform the deduplication process than to push full backups.

As Figure 51 shows, the initial full backup of our SAP database used, on average, 27

percent of the database server’s CPU. The first full back is the most resource-intensive

4553 52 58 62

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

0

0.5

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2.5

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3.5

Intial Backup Second Backup Third Backup Fourth Backup Final Backup

Backup Time and Database Size

Data size (TB) Free Space (TB) Backup Duration (mins)

Findings



because the entire database is transferred and protected on the Data Domain system. In

all subsequent backups, the database server’s CPU usage fell from 17 percent to 10

percent. This change occurs because the database server processes only the unique data

in each additional backup, freeing up CPU cycles for other operations. The test results

appear to show the following relationship between the amount of unique data and CPU

utilization for DD Boost: the greater amount of unique data, the higher the CPU utilization.

Figure 51. Database server: CPU usage and database size

Network usage

DD Boost software sends only unique data from the database server or client to the Data

Domain system, enabling more efficient use of the network. Up to 99 percent less data is

moved across the network, even in full backups.

As Figure 52 shows, the initial full backup network usage was, on average, 450 Mbps.

Because all of the data had to be sent to the Data Domain system, the entire database

was considered as unique data and must be protected on Data Domain. The second full

backup network usage drops significantly, by 350 Mbps, because most of the database

was protected already and only the unique data must be transferred. Network usage

drops more with the fourth and final backups because the unique data sets were smaller.

27

16 17

1110

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10

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30

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Data size (TB) Free Space (TB) Avg DD Boost CPU Usage (%)



Deployment Guide

Figure 52. Network usage and database size

High network utilization is a significant concern because most applications and databases

are backed up during the same off-business hours. Minimizing network utilization makes it

possible to efficiently protect more databases that share the same network. The larger the

data center and the greater number of applications, the more important it is to have lower

network utilization usage during backup periods.

Pre- and post-compression

The Data Domain system performs inline deduplication and local compression as the

backup data enters the system and stores only unique elements on disk, leading to lower

storage consumption and costs and a smaller footprint in your data center.

The initial size of our data backup on Data Domain was 2,335 GiB. After the data transfer

to the Data Domain system and application of deduplication and compression algorithms,

physical storage consumption fell to 835 GiB. The second backup increased the database

by five percent. After the data transfer to the Data Domain system, physical storage

consumption fell to 324 GiB. The amount was significantly lower than the initial backup

because deduplication became the dominant factor for the fourth and final backups, as

Figure 53 shows.

450

100 100

15 15

0

100

200

300

400

500

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

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Network Usage and Database Size

Data size (TB) Free Space (TB) Network Usage (Mbps)



Figure 53. Data Domain pre- and post-compression values

Deduplication and compression savings

Data Domain compresses data at two levels: global and local. Global compression, or

deduplication, is used to identify redundant data segments and store only the unique data

segments by comparing received data to data already stored on disk, while local

compression compresses the unique data segments. Certain compression algorithms give

a total compression effect of global compression combined with local compression.

Global compression factor

Figure 54 shows a global compression factor of 1.0x, indicating that all the data written

from the first full backup was unique. The second and third backups had large unique

deltas, ranging from 120 GB to 140 GB, giving global compression factors of 3.2x and

4.1x respectively. The fourth backup of 600 MB and the final backup of 1 GB included

significantly less unique data. Therefore, the global compression factor for these backups

was much higher.

Local compression factor

The local compression factor is 2.8x, indicating that the 2,335 GiB database size was

compressed to 835 GiB, an overall reduction of 64 percent. As Figure 54 shows, there is a

relationship between the amount of unique data and the local compression factor: the

greater the amount of unique data, the greater the compression opportunity and the

higher the compression factor. In our tests, the first backup consisted of entirely unique

data and had the largest compression factor, while the fourth backup had the least

amount of unique data and the lowest compression factor.

Total compression factor

Figure 54 also shows the total amount of compression the Data Domain system

performed with the data it received. The first backup consisted of unique data and had the

lowest total compression factor (2.8x). The second and third backups were similar in the

amount of unique data they included and their total compression factors were 7.7x and

9.2x respectively. The fourth and final backups had the smallest amount of unique data

and therefore the highest total compression factors.



Deployment Guide

There is a relationship between the compression factor and space usage on a Data

Domain appliance: the higher the total compression factor for a backup, the greater the

space savings for that backup.

Figure 54. Test results: Deduplication and compression savings

Data reduction percentage

The data reduction percentage represents the total compression savings to show the

consolidation we achieved: the higher the reduction percentage, the greater the space

savings on the Data Domain appliance. In our test, the first backup had unique data and

yielded the lowest reduction percentage, namely 64 percent. This percentage was

substantial because of the amount of unique data that was transferred. The second and

third backups were similar in the amount of unique data transferred and their reduction

percentages were 87 and 89 percent respectively. The fourth and final backups had the

smallest amount of unique data and the highest reduction percentages.

After application of the deduplication and compression algorithms, we achieved a total

savings of 87 percent after five full backups totaling 12.6 Tib, with a physical storage

consumption of approximately 1.6 Tib on the Data Domain system.

1 2.8 2.8

64

3.2 2.47.7

87

4.1 2.29.2

89

55

1.4

76

99

36

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98

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60

80

100

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Global Compression Factor Local Compression Factor Total Comp Factor Reduction (%)

Data reductions

Initial Backup Second Backup Third Backup Fourth Backup Final Backup



Recovery of an SAP system to its most recent state is required when the database

becomes unusable because of a hardware failure or other issue. This section shows how

to recover the SAP system using BRtools.

1. Shut down the SAP system and database.

2. Run BRtools and select Restore and recovery > Database point-in-time

recovery.

3. Choose the file that was backed up in the previous backup procedure, as shown

Figure 55.

Figure 55. Backup files for recovery

4. Type c to continue the recovery, and then wait until the restore operation finishes,

as shown in Figure 56.

Figure 56. Database restore success message

Recovery

procedure



Deployment Guide

4. To reset the password for database user SAPSR3, run the following command:

brconnect –u system/PASSWROD –f chpass –o SAPSR3 –p

‘PASSWORD’

5. Start the database and SAP application and check the SAP status by issuing the

“sick” transaction code, as shown in Figure 57.

Figure 57. SAP status check

Note: SAP Initial Consistency Check (SICK) is a transaction code used to

determine inconsistencies in the SAP system

References


References

The following documentation on Dell EMC.com and Online Support provides additional,

relevant information. Access to documents on Online Support depends on your login

credentials. If you do not have access to a document, contact your Dell EMC

representative.

Dell EMC Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes with Dell EMC Unity Storage

Arrays Design Guide

Dell EMC Unity: Introduction to the Platform

Dell EMC Unity: Best Practices Guide

Storage Configuration Best Practices for SAP HANA TDI on Dell EMC Unity

Storage Systems

Dell EMC Unity Storage with Oracle Databases

Dell EMC Data Domain Deduplication Storage Systems Spec Sheet

Dell EMC Data Domain Boost for Enterprise Applications and ProtectPoint

Application Agent Installation and Administration Guide

Dell EMC Data Domain Operating System Administration Guide

Dell EMC Live Optics—Overview

The following documentation provides additional, relevant information about VMware:

Architecture Guidelines and Best Practices for Deployments of SAP HANA

on VMware vSphere

SAP and VMware Virtualization

SAP Solutions on VMware Best Practices Guide

Dell EMC

documentation

VMware

documentation

http://www.emc.com/



https://www.emc.com/collateral/white-papers/h15084-dell-emc-unity-introduction-to-the-platform.pdf

https://www.emc.com/collateral/white-papers/h15093-dell-emc-unity-best-practices-guide.pdf

https://www.emc.com/collateral/technical-documentation/h15220-storage-config-best-practices-sap-hana-tdi-unity-sg.pdf

https://www.emc.com/collateral/technical-documentation/h15220-storage-config-best-practices-sap-hana-tdi-unity-sg.pdf

http://www.emc.com/collateral/white-papers/h16765-unity-storage-with-oracle-databases-wp.pdf

https://www.emc.com/collateral/specification-sheet/h11340-datadomain-ss.pdf

https://support.emc.com/docu85245_Data_Domain_Boost_for_Enterprise_Applications_and_ProtectPoint_Database_Application_Agent_4.0_Installation_and_Administration_Guide.pdf?language=en_US

https://support.emc.com/docu85245_Data_Domain_Boost_for_Enterprise_Applications_and_ProtectPoint_Database_Application_Agent_4.0_Installation_and_Administration_Guide.pdf?language=en_US

https://support.emc.com/docu85190_Data-Domain-Operating-System-6.1-Administration-Guide.pdf?language=en_US

http://www.dell.com/en-us/work/learn/dpack

http://www.vmware.com/content/dam/digitalmarketing/vmware/en/pdf/whitepaper/sap_hana_on_vmware_vsphere_best_practices_guide-white-paper.pdf

http://www.vmware.com/content/dam/digitalmarketing/vmware/en/pdf/whitepaper/sap_hana_on_vmware_vsphere_best_practices_guide-white-paper.pdf

http://www.vmware.com/solutions/business-critical-apps/sap-virtualization.html

https://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/solutions/sap/sap-solutions-on-vmware-best-practices-guide.pdf

Documents

Dell EMC Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes with Dell EMC ......TM. Ready Solutions . such as the Ready Bundle for SAP Landscapes deliver integrated compute, networking, and storage in