Provide secure, self-service storage to multiple internal or external customers

HP 3PAR Virtual Domains Software

Solution brief

HP 3PAR Virtual Domains Software delivers secure access and improved storage services for separate applications and user groups. By providing secure administrative segregation of users and hosts within a consolidated, massively parallel HP 3PAR Storage System, individual user groups and applications can affordably achieve greater storage service levels (performance, availability, and functionality) than previously possible. IT organizations, in turn, can now deliver customized, secure, and even self-service storage to multiple administrators, applications, departments, and customers while retaining the benefits of storage consolidation. The result is a simple, efficient, and scalable approach to delivering secure segregation within a consolidated platform.

The benefits
Achieve greater storage service levels without compromising security Protect against unauthorized access, monitoring, and control Deliver customized, secure, self-service storage to multiple internal or external customers customers cannot share traditional storage resources due to concerns over privacy, control, administrative error, and even compliance. Organizations must resort to the costly purchase and time-consuming management of separate physical resourceseither within a monolithic storage system or with multiple, dedicated modular storage arrays. In either case, consolidation benefits are lost.

The challenge: security concerns a barrier to consolidation

The benefits of storage consolidation are well understood: greater resource utilization, reduced administration, centralized backup, and reduced energy and floor space consumption. Too often, however, disparate user groups, departments, and

The solution: secure administrative segregation

HP 3PAR Virtual Domains Software is the answer. Unlike the use of multiple storage systems or traditional array partitioning schemes that rely on the physical segregation of resources, Virtual Domains uses a policy-based, logical implementation that preserves the benefits of massively distributing and sharing each application workload across all system resources (ports, processors, cache, loops, and disk drives). Virtual Domains is ideal for internal or external storage service providers that understand the benefits of consolidation but must enable secure, independent storage services to multiple administrators, applications, departments, and customers. In many environments, the simple but secure consolidation of production with test and development can represent huge savings. In others, simple storage

HP 3PAR Virtual Domains Software

Virtual Domain A

Access

Hosts

Voulmes

Provisioning Policies

Virtual Domain B

Access

Hosts

Voulmes

Provisioning Policies

administrative tasks or monitoring tools can be turned over to system and application administrators in a self-service model for time and cost savings. Virtual Domains works by enabling administrators to define multiple autonomous, secure, and policy-based virtual systems within a single, massively-scalable utility storage system. Since users (or groups) have access to only those virtual domains to which they have been granted access, they can independently and confidently administer and monitor the system without concern for the actions or visibility of other users. Deliberate or inadvertent deletions or presentations of a volume are blocked, thereby protecting all users against unauthorized access, monitoring, or control. Virtual Domains is a completely virtual solution that requires no physical reservation of resources. To use Virtual Domains, a master administrator first creates a virtual domain and then assigns logically-defined entities to it. These entities can include one or more host definitions based on World Wide Name (WWN) groupings, one or more provisioning policies (RAID and disk type), or one or more system administrators (who are also granted role-based privileges by the master administrator). Depending on the level of access, users can create, export, and copy standard volumes or thin provisioned volumes. For more information visit www.hp.com and www.hp.com/go/3PAR.

HP 3PAR Virtual Domains Software is fully integrated with other HP 3PAR Software products, offering support for:
HP 3PAR Remote Copy Softwarefor secured access to replicated volumes. HP 3PAR System Reporter Softwarefor access-protected historical performance and capacity utilization reporting by virtual domain. LDAPfor centralized array, virtual domain, and overall IT user authentication and authorization via use of the lightweight directory access protocol (LDAP).

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Copyright 2011 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. The information contained herein is subject to change without notice. The only warranties for HP products and services are set forth in the express warranty statements accompanying such products and services. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting an additional warranty. HP shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein.

4AA3-4018ENW, Created April 2011