Extending TrueNAS to Dell EqualLogic

[TheUsD]

So I've got two PS6110 Dell EqualLogics that are being offered to me. I believe they have external SAS cards on them and was wondering if I will be able to utilize them with a TrueNAS server.

Anyone done this or point me in the right direction?

 

[HoneyBadger]

That specific model (PS6110) is iSCSI only, connected via 10GbE; double-check that's the one you're being offered.

If it's actually able to behave as a SAS direct-attached shelf, you might be able to configure it in a way that will present a drive or drives to be handled by ZFS at the TrueNAS level.

If not, you can probably buy a JBOD shelf and repurpose the drives, or just use it as-is for a different target. You could technically set up TrueNAS with some iSCSI HBAs (or software iSCSI) to connect to the targets on the EQL, and then layer it in that way, but that's a little convoluted.

 

[TheUsD]

That specific model (PS6110) is iSCSI only, connected via 10GbE; double-check that's the one you're being offered.

That is the one.

If not, you can probably buy a JBOD shelf and repurpose the drives,

No drives will come with it. This is from my healthcare 9-5 job. HIPAA...rules and all. I do think I saw some HBAs on there but can't remember. Will have to go back to the office to see.

Thanks for the info.

 

[HoneyBadger]

You're unlikely to be able to fish anything usable out of the inside of the controllers themselves, and I'm reasonably sure that it requires drives with matching Dell firmware to work in its original mode.

The expansion shelves might be more valuable than the controller/head honestly. But neither of them will be particularly quiet or power-efficient.

 

[dwilliam62]

Hello,
Correct, all EQL SANs are iSCSI only. Drives must be made specifically for them. It is not the firmware that determines compatibility. You will have to find EQL refurbished drives. OEM, Dell enterprise, or other Dell SAN drives will not work either.

There is no JBOD option with EQL. A RAID must be configured first.

So it's not ideal for ZFS. You could however, mirror the two SANs using ZFS. That would increase your HA dramatically.

To date I have only used TrueNAS core and recently SCALE with EQL SANs. I use ZFS to mirror volumes on two different EQL groups. The TrueNFS servers are running as VMs so the hypervisor handles the MPIO requirements quite well and provides HA. One benefit is that I could also use EQL replication to have two targets in different locations. Lot's of flexibility. ZFS intent is to deal directly with disks of course.

Just thought I would clarify some info about EQL even though this is an older thread. Hopefully, someone finds it useful down the road.

Regards,
Don