As I mentioned in previous posts, NetApp’s VASA Provider for VMware vSphere allows for the management of storage through profiles, and gears towards the Software Defined Data Center (SDDC) approach.

In order to deploy VASA provider, you will need to download the NetApp VASA provider for vSphere from NetApp’s support site. There is an ONTAP 7-Mode flavor and also an ONTAP C-Mode flavor, so choose the one that matches your environment. Deploy the virtual appliance (OVA) using VMware’s client and provide the necessary information for the virtual appliance. You will also need VSC already installed in order to register the VASA provider after installation and configuration.

During the first boot, VMware Tools installation prompt appears. Mount the VMware Tools and hit enter to install VMware tools and continue installation. Change the CD/DVD configuration on the virtual appliance to “Client Device”. Provide passwords for maintenance account (maint) and vpserver account when prompted. Use the vpserver account to register VASA with VSC from the VSC configuration page by providing the IP address of the VASA provider.

Configuration settings will appear after installation. Use the Web UI for normal use and the maintenance console (CLI) when the Web UI is not accessible. Note that the Web Console utilizes port 9083, so make sure to enter the correct TCP/IP socket when using the WEB UI.

At this point, VASA has been deployed and configured. All that is left to do is register the VASA Provider with vSphere via VSC, and enjoy the benefits of NetApp and VMware integration.