Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 A Dell Reference Architecture for Microsoft SQl Server 2014 using Dell’s latest server–PowerEdge FX2 and Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2 Hyper-V

Megha Jayaraman Dell Global Solutions Engineering December 2014

2 Reference Architecture| Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 |

Revisions

Date Description

December 2014 Initial release

THIS WHITE PAPER IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY, AND MAY CONTAIN TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS AND

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3 Reference Architecture| Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 |

Table of contents Revisions ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 2

Executive Summary .......................................................................................................................................................................... 4

1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................................................ 5

1.1 Objective........................................................................................................................................................................... 5

1.2 Audience ........................................................................................................................................................................... 5

2 Solution Overview ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6

2.1 Dell PowerEdge FX Architecture .................................................................................................................................. 6

2.1.1 Dell PowerEdge FX2 Chassis ......................................................................................................................................... 6

2.1.2 Dell PowerEdge FC630 server ...................................................................................................................................... 6

2.2 Dell Storage SC4020 ...................................................................................................................................................... 7

3 Reference Architecture ............................................................................................................................................................. 8

3.1 Network Design Consideration .................................................................................................................................... 9

3.1.1 Hyper-V Networking Configuration ............................................................................................................................ 9

3.2 Storage Design Consideration .................................................................................................................................... 10

3.2.1 Hyper-V Storage Configuration ................................................................................................................................. 10

3.2.2 Enabling SQL Server direct access to FC Storage targets ..................................................................................... 10

3.3 High availability consideration ..................................................................................................................................... 11

4 Solution Specification ............................................................................................................................................................. 13

5 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................................................ 14

4 Reference Architecture| Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 |

Executive Summary

Evolving enterprise applications are now driving the need for an adaptive converged infrastructure for the

business to remain competitive. Application scalability and performance, standardized hardware and

simplified management continue to remain critical parameters for IT decision makers while considering IT

agility and efficiency. The DellTM PowerEdgeTM FX converged architecture is designed to offer enterprises

the flexibility to tailor the computing infrastructure for specific workloads to grow and adapt as per

business needs.

The paper showcases a Microsoft○R Windows Server 2012○R R2 Hyper-V○R virtualized reference

architecture for Microsoft SQL Server○R 2014 database, on Dell PowerEdge FX2 and Dell CompellentTM

Storage SC4020. The solution enables organizations to focus on getting more value from the virtualized

infrastructure, for both OLTP and OLAP database workloads. The paper also outlines guidelines and best

practices to deploy a SQL Server database on the Dell PowerEdge FX2 platform.

Key features of PowerEdge FX solution for the SQL Server workload are:

• Provides dense computing power along with ease of managing the converged system as a single

unit, which benefits the SQL Server database performance.

• Offers high availability at the infrastructure layer and ensures maximum SQL Server database

uptime.

• Virtualizes the infrastructure and enables application consolidation. On a power intensive platform

like PowerEdgeFX2 SQL Server, the database can run in conjunction with other workloads with

ease.

• Offers optimal performance for a deployed database by using Dell and Microsoft best practices

applied to the infrastructure. For virtualized workloads like the SQL Server database, designing the

underlying Hyper-V architecture is a key step.

• Enables direct Fibre Channel (FC) storage access to the SQL Server virtual machine using the PCIe

slot, with the FC host bus adapter card and Hyper-V virtual FC feature.

5 Reference Architecture| Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 |

1 Introduction IT organizations today have realized the importance of converged infrastructure – compute, storage,

networking and management under a single unit. It enables consolidation of systems, efficient resource

utilization, centralized management and lower investment costs. When such infrastructures are virtualized,

it further adds efficiency and ease of management to the datacenters. Dell PowerEdge FX2 is one such

modular platform which is adaptable and can be customized at the component level to match the

workload requirements.

The PowerEdge FX2 is a 2U rack-based platform that combines the density and efficiency of a blade

chassis with the simplicity and cost benefit of rack-based systems. The server blocks provide options to

the customer to choose between FC630 and FM120x4 servers based on the application requirement. The

chassis networking I/O modules provide connectivity to the workload.

At the time of writing, PowerEdge FX2 supports PowerEdge FC630 and PowerEdge FM120x4 severs only.

Storage in PowerEdge FX2 architecture is a part of a future release.

Microsoft SQL Server 2014 is an enterprise class database engine that provides key value propositions like

power packed performance, greater uptime, and enhanced security feature for mission-critical

applications. The virtualized PowerEdge FC630 servers provide an excellent platform to host Microsoft

SQL Server database workloads.

1.1 Objective The scope of this paper is to showcase a sample reference configuration of Microsoft SQL Server 2014

database on Dell PowerEdge FX2. The paper outlines how to design a Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2

Hyper-V based reference architecture, and leverage the architecture for the SQL Server database

alongside other workloads. The reference architecture ensures high availability at all infrastructure tiers –

compute, network, and storage and database application.The paper does not detail deployment

procedure or performance numbers for the deployed database application.

1.2 Audience This whitepaper is intended for IT administrators and architects who are interested in designing and

implementing a virtualized infrastructure for Microsoft SQL Server database with Dell PowerEdge FX2. The

reader is expected to have an understanding of Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2 Hyper-V, Microsoft

SQL Server 2014, Dell Storage SC4020, and Dell PowerEdge FX2.

6 Reference Architecture| Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 |

2 Solution Overview This section provides an overview of the hardware used in the reference architecture, for deploying a

virtualized Microsoft SQL Server database.

2.1 Dell PowerEdge FX Architecture The PowerEdge FX architecture is a converged, modular, building-block concept that scales and adapts to

varying workload demands. It is a scalable architecture that allows enterprises to grow their processing

resources as per business needs. The architecture is workload optimized. The computing resources that

are best suited can be chosen to run any data center applications. The initial release of FX portfolio

consists of the FX2 Chassis, two servers, and networking I/O modules.

The chassis hosts the server and storage blocks that are modular and agile, while providing efficiencies

through shared power, networking, and management within the chassis itself.

The components of the FX portfolio are outlined in the following sections.

2.1.1 Dell PowerEdge FX2 Chassis The foundation of the FX architecture is the PowerEdge FX2 chassis that combines compute, network and

storage in a single unit. It can hold 1U half-width (PowerEdge FC630) or PowerEdge FM120x4 micro

server. The chassis supports up to eight low profile PCI Express (PCIe) Gen 3 expansion slots to extend

connectivity to the servers. Redundant, quad-port 1 GBE or 10 GBE I/O modules are available on the

chassis for server network connectivity. These IO modules along with three FN I/O Aggregator modules

simplify cabling, improve East/West traffic within the server and enable LAN and SAN convergence.The

management of the chassis can be done on each server using the agent-free iDRAC8 with LifeCycle

Controller or like a chassis using Chassis Management Controller (CMC), which is an embedded

management component.

The reference architecture uses QLogic 2500 Series 8 Gbps FC Host Bus Adapters (HBA) to provide Fibre

Channel (FC) connectivity to the Dell Storage SC4020 SAN storage. Two, quad-port 10 GBE I/O modules

are used for the hypervisor and workload network connectivity.

For more information on the Dell PowerEdge FX2, see the PowerEdge FX2 Enclosure Tech Sheet.

2.1.2 Dell PowerEdge FC630 server Dell PowerEdge FC630 server is a half-width, two-socket server which delivers exceptional performance

in a compact form factor. The FX2 chassis can accommodate up to four, Dell PowerEdge FC630 servers.

Each PowerEdge FC630 server supports up to 18 cores with latest Intel Xeon E5-2600v3 processors and

up to 24 dual in-line memory modules (DIMMs), resulting in up to 768 GB of memory. Such computing

power makes PowerEdge FC630 a suitable candidate to host virtualized environments and demanding

workloads like enterprise databases.

For the reference architecture, a FX2 chassis with four PowerEdge FC630 servers with 2 X 2.5 inch disk

drives are used. These four servers are virtualized and can host different workloads along with Microsoft

7 Reference Architecture| Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 |

SQL Server database. The Broadcom 57810 10 GBE network daughter card (NDC) provides network

connectivity to the servers using the redundant 10 GBE pass-through I/O modules. The servers also

contain a blade mezzanine card to connect to the PCIe add-on peripherals on the PowerEdge FX2 chassis.

For more information on the Dell PowerEdge FC630, see the PowerEdge FC630 Tech Sheet

2.2 Dell Storage SC4020 SC4020 series array is based on Dell’s enterprise class SC8000 platform. Dual redundant controllers, 24

internal drives, eight 8 Gb Fibre Channel, or four 10 GB iSCSI network ports and four additional 10 Gb

ports for management and replication are all delivered in a space saving 2U chassis. For going beyond 24

drives, SC200 or SC220 enclosures can be added to reach over 400 TB of raw capacity.

Key features of SC4020 are outlined below:

• Auto-tuned for maximum performance and cost-savings, based on real time usage information

• FLASH optimized for all flash or hybrid SSD/HDD deployments

• Fibre Channel or iSCSI support, along with scale-out NAS option

• Perpetual software licensing for low lifecycle costs

• Co-pilot support

The reference architecture uses a SC4020 storage array with 24 X 15 K, 300 GB internal drives for virtual

machine files (VM store), SQL Server database and other workload data volumes.

For more information on the Dell Storage SC4020, see the Dell Storage SC4020 all-in-one array product

configuration

8 Reference Architecture| Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 |

3 Reference Architecture In this reference architecture, the underlying infrastructure is virtualized using Microsoft Windows Server

2012 R2 Hyper-V to optimize the hardware resource utilization and provide a simple solution

management strategy. The virtualized design is then leveraged to deploy the SQL Server database.

FC Switch 1 FC Switch 2

Microsoft Hyper-V Cluster

Dell Storage SC4020

Dell PowerEdge FX2 Chassis

10GBE Switch 1

10GBE Switch 2

Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Standalone VM Other Application VMs

SAN

LAN

LAG

ISL

Figure 1 Reference architecture

A single Hyper-V cluster is created from the four PowerEdge FC630 servers of the FX2 chassis. Windows

Server 2012 R2 is installed on the 2 X 2.5 inch(RAID1 configuration) internal drives available with servers,

and Hyper-V role configured. A failover cluster is created using these four nodes to serve as a compute

platform for not only SQL Server database virtual machine (VM) but also other workload VMs.

The Storage Area Network (SAN) and Local Area Network (LAN) fabric are kept separate using different

switches to keep the application data segregated from the networking traffic.

9 Reference Architecture| Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 |

3.1 Network Design Consideration The PowerEdge FC630 servers connect to the network using a dual-port 10 GBE NDC card through the 10

GB pass-through I/O modules. The server to pass-through I/O module mapping for a dual-port NDC is

shown below.

FC630 servers with dual port NDC

FX2 Chassis IO Module 1 IO Module 2

FC630 Server 1 Port 1 - NIC 1 Port 2 - NA Port 1 - NIC 2 Port 2 - NA

FC630 Server 2 Port 3 - NIC 1 Port 4 - NA Port 3 - NIC 2 Port 4 - NA

FC630 Server 3 Port 5 - NIC 1 Port 6 - NA Port 5 - NIC 2 Port 6 - NA

FC630 Server 4 Port 7 - NIC 1 Port 8 - NA Port 7 - NIC 2 Port 8 - NA

Table 1 Server to pass-through I/O module port mapping

The network layer is designed to be redundant with two Dell Networking 10GBE switches to eliminate a single point of failure, in the solution. These switches are tagged together using an inter switch link (ISL). Similarly the virtual and the physical network connections are made resilient at the server level using the NIC teaming feature of Windows Server 2012. This applies to both the Hyper-V host and the SQL Server database VM. For the SAN fabric, the PowerEdge FC630 server connects to the redundant FC Switches using the 8 GBps dual-port Qlogic QLE2562 add-on PCIe cards, at the rear-end of the chassis.

3.1.1 Hyper-V Networking Configuration The onboard Broadcom 10GBE NDC and an optional 10 GB PCIe add-on network card can be combined

to create a Windows Server 2012 R2 NIC team. The team settings in the table below are used to create the

NIC team.

Windows Server 2012 R2 team Configuration

NIC Team Mode SwitchIndependent

Load Balancing Algorithm HyperVPort

Standby Adapter None

Team Members

Four Network ports(2 LOMs and 2 optional PCIe Adapter Ports or from Quad-port NDC card)

Table 2 Team settings for the Hyper-V networking

A Hyper-V converged virtual switch is created using the NIC team. Separate network adapters are created

10 Reference Architecture| Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 |

for management, live migration, application, and cluster heartbeat with specific VLAN ID and bandwidth

weights.

The deployed SQL Server database VM can talk to infrastructure VMs like active directory/DNS, Data

Protection Manager (DPM), System Center Virtual Machine Manager (SCVMM) etc using the management

network, and to other applications like SharePoint, using the application network.

3.2 Storage Design Consideration The reference architecture uses 24 X 300 GB 15K drives of the Dell Storage SC4020 to host the Hyper-V

failover cluster, workload VM store, and data files. The two dual port Qlogic QLE2562 card provides four

connections per server to the SC4020 array.

The SC4020 storage is used for the following two purposes:

• Storing VM files like the virtual hard disk (VHDX)

• Storing the SQL Server data and log files

3.2.1 Hyper-V Storage Configuration In order to create a Windows Server 2012 R2 failover cluster, a 1 GB quorum is carved out of the SC4020

storage and provided to the cluster nodes. A quorum configuration helps the cluster to determine the

number of failures the cluster can withstand.

A Cluster Shared Volume (CSV) is created on the SC4020 to store workload VM files like the virtual

machine hard disk (VHDX). CSVs enable faster failover of clustered roles like SQL Server virtual machine to

another node without the need for dismounting the drive, changing ownership, or remounting the

volume.

3.2.2 Enabling SQL Server direct access to FC Storage targets Windows Server 2012 R2 Hyper-V allows the virtual machine to connect to an existing FC based storage

array using FC ports from within the guest operating system. The SQL Server VM is configured to make use

of this feature and talk directly to the SC4020 array, using the virtual FC adapter.

A virtual SAN is created by grouping the physical ports of the Qlogic QLE2562 adapter, on the PowerEdge

FC630 server. Virtual FC adapter is added for the VM to access the SC4020 storage. The VM World Wide

Names (WWN) address is zoned for the SQL Server VM to access the data LUNs. A number of volumes are

created for the SQL Server database data and log files.

11 Reference Architecture| Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 |

WWN1

FC Port 1 FC Port 2

WWN2Virtual Fibre Channel

Adapter

Dual-port Qlogic QLE2562 card

FC630 Hyper-V host

SQl Server VM

Figure 2 SQL Server direct access to FC storage targets

3.3 High availability consideration The reference architecture is designed to have high availability at several levels like hardware, hypervisor,

or application.

• Hardware: Redundant infrastructure components like servers, switches, storage controllers, drives,

I/O modules, network path, and peripherals ensure that the solution design continues to be valid in

the event of a hardware failure.

• Hypervisor: In case of a Hyper-V server failure, the SQL Server database virtual machine restarts on

the other available hosts in the cluster.

Application: In order to achieve SQL Server application availability for disaster recovery scenarios, the

AlwaysOn feature can be leveraged.

- The primary database replica can reside on the Dell PowerEdge FX2 based reference

architecture, while the secondary database replica can reside at a remote site. This secondary

replica can be a standalone SQL Server VM or can be deployed on a physical server.

- A Windows guest OS clustering is created for this SQL Server VM/physical server. A cluster file

share is hosted on a different site to ensure maximum database availability. Standalone SQL

Server instances are deployed on them. AlwaysOn availability groups are created and identified

for databases that need to be protected from disaster.

12 Reference Architecture| Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 |

The following figure shows a sample architecture for disaster recovery scenario

Dell PowerEdge FX2 Chassis

SQL 2014 AlwaysON Availability Group -

Primary

SQL 2014 AlwaysON Availability Group -

Seconday

Physical Server/Hyper-V Virtual Machine

Microsoft Hyper-V Cluster

File Share Server

SQL Server Standalone VM

Windows 2012 R2 Guest Clustering with No Shared Storage

Data Synchronization(Sync or Async)

Site A Site B

Site C

Figure 3 Sample architecture for a disaster recover scenario

13 Reference Architecture| Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 |

4 Solution Specification The following tables list out the components used in the reference architecture.

Table 3 Reference Architecture Configuration

Component Details

Virtualization Infrastructure 1 x Dell PowerEdge FX2 Chassis 8 x Qlogic QLE 2652 DP PCIe Add-on FC HBA 2 x 10GbE SFP+ Pass-through IOM

Virtualization Hosts 4 x Dell PowerEdge FC630 Servers

Processor 2 x Intel Xeon E5-2660v3 Family

Memory 128 GB; 8 x 16GB DDR4 DIMMs

HDD 2 x 600GB 15K SAS in RAID 1 for OS volume

Network Broadcom 57810 dual port NDC

OS Windows Server 2012 R2 Data Center Edition

Storage Arrays Dell Storage SC4020 with 24 X 300GB, 15K disk drives

Networking 2 x Dell Networking S4810 for Local Area Networking (LAN) 2 x 8Gbps FC Switches for FC Storage Area Networking (SAN)

Table 4 Configuration for SQL Server database VM

Component Details

Processor 6 x Virtual Processors

Memory 64 GB(static)

OS VHDX 1 x 160 GB stored on the VM Store in the SC4020

Network 2 x Synthetic Network Adapters for Management and SQL Server Application 2 x Virtual FC Adapters for FC connectivity

OS Windows Server 2012 R2 Data Center Edition

SQL Server SQL Server 2014 Enterprise Edition

14 Reference Architecture| Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Virtualized Reference Architecture with Dell PowerEdge FX2 |

5 Conclusion The reference architecture described in this guide covers the design practices involved in deploying a SQL

Server database on a Microsoft Windows 2012 R2 Hyper-V virtualized, PowerEdge FX architecture. The

performance of the database primarily depends on the underlying compute platform. Dell PowerEdge

FC630 proves to be the best candidate to deploy such enterprise class SQL Server database due to its

immense computing power. Another parameter that impacts the database application is availability. This

requirement is met by implementing high availability at various levels of the reference architecture to avoid

a single point of failure.

The guide showed the best practices used to design and configure the Hyper-V reference configuration

and how it complements the SQL Server application design. Creating a right virtualized architecture is

critical as it has a direct impact on the performance and availability of the data center applications.

The reference architecture showcases how a SQL Server standalone database instance can be deployed

on a Hyper-V based architecture stack along with other workload VMs. For a disaster recovery scenario,

the AlwaysOn feature can be leveraged to create a primary secondary database replica on the two sites,

with a file share configured on a third site. This ensures application high availability in case of a site failure.