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Step-by-step for Storage Spaces Tiering in Windows Server 2012 R2

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1. Overview

 

In this document, I am sharing all the steps I used to create a demo or test environment of a storage space with storage tiers on Windows Server 2012 R2 Preview so that you can experiment with some of the new technologies yourself. You need only a single computer with one SSD and one HDD for this demo (the specs are provided below).

If you're not familiar with Storage Spaces or storage tiers (also known as Storage Spaces Tiering), I would strong encourage you to review the Storage Spaces Overview and TechEd 2013 talks on “Storage Spaces”, which you can find below:

 

2. Simulated environment with limited hardware

 

In a typical storage tier configuration (non-clustered), you have a JBOD with a few hard disks, some being SSDs and some being HDD. For instance, you could have 4 SSDs and 8 HDDs. You would then combine all 12 disks into a pool, create the two tiers (SSD and HDD) and then create spaces (virtual disks) on top of those. Here’s what it looks like:

image

However, if you’re just experimenting with this feature or trying to learn how to configure it, the investment in the hardware (1 JBOD, 4 SSDs, 8 HDDs, SAS HBA, cables) might be holding you back. So, in this blog post, we’ll show how to configure storage tiers using just one SSD and one HDD, with the help of Hyper-V. Here’s what the simulated environment looks like:

image

As you can see in the diagram, the basic goal here is to simulate a tiered storage space using 4 (simulated) SSDs and 8 (simulated) HDDs. We’ll show the Windows PowerShell cmdlets to create the VHDs and the VM required to simulate the environment. Then, inside the guest, we’ll create the pool, storage tiers and storage spaces (both simple and mirrored). To verify it’s all working, we’ll create some test files and run a simulated SQL workload. We’ll also look into the storage tier maintenance tasks and extending an existing storage space.

 

3. Required Hardware and Software, plus Disclaimers

 

You will need the following hardware to perform the steps described here:

You will need the following software to perform the steps described here:

Notes and disclaimers:

  • A certain familiarity with Windows administration and configuration is assumed. If you're new to Windows, this document is not for you. Sorry...
  • If you are asked a question or required to perform an action that you do not see described in these steps, go with the default option.
  • There are usually several ways to perform a specific configuration or administration task. What I describe here is one of those many ways. It's not necessarily the best way, just the one I personally like best at the moment.
  • For the most part, I use PowerShell to configure the systems. You can also use a graphical interface instead, but I did not describe those steps here.
  • The specific Storage Spaces configuration shown in this blog post is not supported. Microsoft Support will only answer questions and assist in troubleshooting configurations where Storage Spaces uses a physical machine (not a VM) and uses one of the certified JBOD hardware solutions (see https://www.windowsservercatalog.com/results.aspx?&chtext=&cstext=&csttext=&chbtext=&bCatID=1642&cpID=0&avc=10&ava=0&avq=0&OR=1&PGS=25&ready=0)
  • Because of the item above, the configuration described here should only be used for demos, testing or learning environments.

 

4. Configure the physical host

# Preparation steps: Install Window Server 2012 R2 Preview

# Install required roles and features, restart at the end

Install-WindowsFeature Hyper-V -IncludeManagementTools –Restart

 

# Create 4 VHDX files on the SSD with 10GB each

1..4 | % { New-VHD -Path D:\VMS\VMA_SSD_$_.VHDX -Fixed –Size 10GB}

# Create 8 VHDX files on the HDD with 30GB each

1..8 | % { New-VHD -Path E:\VMS\VMA_HDD_$_.VHDX -Fixed –Size 30GB}

# Create a new VM. Assumes you have an Windows Server 2012 R2 OS VHDX in place

New-VM -Name VMA -Path D:\VMS –VHDPath D:\VMS\VMA_OS.VHDX -Memory 2GB

# Add all data disks to the VM

1..4 | % { Add-VMHardDiskDrive -VMName VMA -ControllerType SCSI -Path D:\VMS\VMA_SSD_$_.VHDX }

1..8 | % { Add-VMHardDiskDrive -VMName VMA -ControllerType SCSI -Path E:\VMS\VMA_HDD_$_.VHDX }

 

# Start the VM

Start-VM VMA

  

5. Check VM configuration (from the Host, with output)

 

 

PS C:\> Get-VM VMA
 
Name State CPUUsage(%) MemoryAssigned(M) Uptime Status
---- ----- ----------- ----------------- ------ ------
VMA Running 0 2048 00:01:52 Operating normally
 
PS C:\> Get-VM VMA | Get-VMHardDiskDrive

VMName ControllerType ControllerNumber ControllerLocation DiskNumber Path
------ -------------- ---------------- ------------------ ---------- ----
VMA IDE 0 0 D:\VMS\VMA_OS.VHDX
VMA SCSI 0 0 D:\VMS\VMA_SSD_1.VHDX
VMA SCSI 0 1 D:\VMS\VMA_SSD_2.VHDX
VMA SCSI 0 2 D:\VMS\VMA_SSD_3.VHDX
VMA SCSI 0 3 D:\VMS\VMA_SSD_4.VHDX
VMA SCSI 0 4 E:\VMS\VMA_HDD_1.VHDX
VMA SCSI 0 5 E:\VMS\VMA_HDD_2.VHDX
VMA SCSI 0 6 E:\VMS\VMA_HDD_3.VHDX
VMA SCSI 0 7 E:\VMS\VMA_HDD_4.VHDX
VMA SCSI 0 8 E:\VMS\VMA_HDD_5.VHDX
VMA SCSI 0 9 E:\VMS\VMA_HDD_6.VHDX
VMA SCSI 0 10 E:\VMS\VMA_HDD_7.VHDX
VMA SCSI 0 11 E:\VMS\VMA_HDD_8.VHDX

 

6. Check VM configuration (from the Guest, with output)

PS C:\> Get-PhysicalDisk | Sort Size | FT DeviceId, FriendlyName, CanPool, Size, MediaType -AutoSize

DeviceId FriendlyName CanPool Size MediaType
-------- ------------ ------- ---- ---------
2 PhysicalDisk2 True 10737418240 UnSpecified
4 PhysicalDisk4 True 10737418240 UnSpecified
3 PhysicalDisk3 True 10737418240 UnSpecified
1 PhysicalDisk1 True 10737418240 UnSpecified
12 PhysicalDisk12 True 32212254720 UnSpecified
11 PhysicalDisk11 True 32212254720 Unspecified
7 PhysicalDisk7 True 32212254720 Unspecified
6 PhysicalDisk6 True 32212254720 Unspecified
5 PhysicalDisk5 True 32212254720 Unspecified
10 PhysicalDisk10 True 32212254720 UnSpecified
9 PhysicalDisk9 True 32212254720 Unspecified
8 PhysicalDisk8 True 32212254720 Unspecified
0 PhysicalDisk0 False 42949672960 Unspecified
 
PS C:\> Get-PhysicalDisk -CanPool $true | ? Size -lt 20GB | Sort Size | FT -AutoSize

FriendlyName CanPool OperationalStatus HealthStatus Usage Size
------------ ------- ----------------- ------------ ----- ----
PhysicalDisk4 True OK Healthy Auto-Select 10 GB
PhysicalDisk2 True OK Healthy Auto-Select 10 GB
PhysicalDisk1 True OK Healthy Auto-Select 10 GB
PhysicalDisk3 True OK Healthy Auto-Select 10 GB
 
PS C:\> Get-PhysicalDisk -CanPool $true | ? Size -gt 20GB | Sort Size | FT -AutoSize
 
FriendlyName CanPool OperationalStatus HealthStatus Usage Size
------------ ------- ----------------- ------------ ----- ----
PhysicalDisk6 True OK Healthy Auto-Select 30 GB
PhysicalDisk11 True OK Healthy Auto-Select 30 GB
PhysicalDisk12 True OK Healthy Auto-Select 30 GB
PhysicalDisk7 True OK Healthy Auto-Select 30 GB
PhysicalDisk5 True OK Healthy Auto-Select 30 GB
PhysicalDisk10 True OK Healthy Auto-Select 30 GB
PhysicalDisk8 True OK Healthy Auto-Select 30 GB
PhysicalDisk9 True OK Healthy Auto-Select 30 GB

7. Configure media type for virtual SAS disks

# Create Storage Pool

$s = Get-StorageSubSystem

New-StoragePool -StorageSubSystemId $s.UniqueId -FriendlyName Pool1 -PhysicalDisks (Get-PhysicalDisk -CanPool $true)

# Configure media type for virtual SAS disks

Get-StoragePool Pool1 | Get-PhysicalDisk | ? Size -lt 20GB | Set-PhysicalDisk –MediaType SSD

Get-StoragePool Pool1 | Get-PhysicalDisk | ? Size -gt 20GB | Set-PhysicalDisk –MediaType HDD

 

 

8. Check media type configuration (with output)

 

PS C:\> Get-StoragePool Pool1

 

FriendlyName OperationalStatus HealthStatus IsPrimordial IsReadOnly

------------ ----------------- ------------ ------------ ----------

Pool1 OK Healthy False False

 

 

PS C:\> Get-StoragePool Pool1 | Get-PhysicalDisk | Sort Size | FT –AutoSize

 

FriendlyName CanPool OperationalStatus HealthStatus Usage Size

------------ ------- ----------------- ------------ ----- ----

PhysicalDisk3 False OK Healthy Auto-Select 9.25 GB

PhysicalDisk2 False OK Healthy Auto-Select 9.25 GB

PhysicalDisk1 False OK Healthy Auto-Select 9.25 GB

PhysicalDisk4 False OK Healthy Auto-Select 9.25 GB

PhysicalDisk11 False OK Healthy Auto-Select 29.25 GB

PhysicalDisk12 False OK Healthy Auto-Select 29.25 GB

PhysicalDisk7 False OK Healthy Auto-Select 29.25 GB

PhysicalDisk6 False OK Healthy Auto-Select 29.25 GB

PhysicalDisk9 False OK Healthy Auto-Select 29.25 GB

PhysicalDisk5 False OK Healthy Auto-Select 29.25 GB

PhysicalDisk8 False OK Healthy Auto-Select 29.25 GB

PhysicalDisk10 False OK Healthy Auto-Select 29.25 GB

 

 

PS C:\> Get-StoragePool Pool1 | Get-PhysicalDisk | Sort Size | FT FriendlyName, Size, MediaType, HealthStatus, OperationalStatus -AutoSize

 

FriendlyName Size MediaType HealthStatus OperationalStatus

------------ ---- --------- ------------ -----------------

PhysicalDisk3 9932111872 SSD Healthy OK

PhysicalDisk2 9932111872 SSD Healthy OK

PhysicalDisk1 9932111872 SSD Healthy OK

PhysicalDisk4 9932111872 SSD Healthy OK

PhysicalDisk11 31406948352 HDD Healthy OK

PhysicalDisk12 31406948352 HDD Healthy OK

PhysicalDisk7 31406948352 HDD Healthy OK

PhysicalDisk6 31406948352 HDD Healthy OK

PhysicalDisk9 31406948352 HDD Healthy OK

PhysicalDisk5 31406948352 HDD Healthy OK

PhysicalDisk8 31406948352 HDD Healthy OK

PhysicalDisk10 31406948352 HDD Healthy OK

 

PS C:\> Get-StoragePool Pool1 | Get-PhysicalDisk | Group MediaType, Size | Sort Name | FT -AutoSize

 

Count Name Group

----- ---- -----

    8 HDD, 31406948352 {MSFT_PhysicalDisk (ObjectId = "{1}\\WIN-T5PORQGQECN\root/Microsoft/Win...), MSFT_PhysicalDis...

    4 SSD, 9932111872 {MSFT_PhysicalDisk (ObjectId = "{1}\\WIN-T5PORQGQECN\root/Microsoft/Win...), MSFT_PhysicalDis...

 

PS C:\> Get-StoragePool Pool1 | FL Size, AllocatedSize

 

Size : 290984034304
AllocatedSize : 3221225472 

9. Configure Tiers

# Configure two tiers

Get-StoragePool Pool1 | New-StorageTier –FriendlyName SSDTier –MediaType SSD

Get-StoragePool Pool1 | New-StorageTier –FriendlyName HDDTier –MediaType HDD

 

 

10. Check Tiers configuration (with output)

PS C:\> Get-StorageTier | FT FriendlyName, MediaType, Size -AutoSize

 

FriendlyName MediaType Size

------------ --------- ----

SSDTier SSD 0

HDDTier HDD 0

 

PS C:\> Get-StoragePool Pool1 | FL Size, AllocatedSize

 

Size : 290984034304

AllocatedSize : 3221225472

 

Note: 3GB used out of 271GB total. Storage Spaces reserves 256MB on each disk in the pool for internal VD metadata. 256MB * 12 drives = 3GB.

 

 

PS C:\> Get-StorageTierSupportedSize SSDTier -ResiliencySettingName Simple | FT -AutoSize

 

 

SupportedSizes TierSizeMin TierSizeMax TierSizeDivisor

-------------- ----------- ----------- ---------------

{} 4294967296 34359738368 4294967296

 

Note: 32GB on the SSD Tier (8 GB * 4). Minimum size is 4GB.

 

PS C:\> Get-StorageTierSupportedSize SSDTier -ResiliencySettingName Mirror | FT -AutoSize

 

SupportedSizes TierSizeMin TierSizeMax TierSizeDivisor

-------------- ----------- ----------- ---------------

{} 2147483648 17179869184 2147483648

 

Note: Mirrored offers 16GB on the SSD Tier (8 GB * 4 / 2). Minimum size is 2GB.

 

 

PS C:\> Get-StorageTierSupportedSize HDDTier -ResiliencySettingName Simple | FT -AutoSize

 

SupportedSizes TierSizeMin TierSizeMax TierSizeDivisor

-------------- ----------- ----------- ---------------

{} 8589934592 249108103168 8589934592

 

Note: 232GB on the HDD Tier (29 GB * 8). Minimum size is 8GB.

 

PS C:\> Get-StorageTierSupportedSize HDDTier -ResiliencySettingName Mirror | FT -AutoSize

 

SupportedSizes TierSizeMin TierSizeMax TierSizeDivisor

-------------- ----------- ----------- ---------------

{} 4294967296 124554051584 4294967296

 

Note: Mirrored offers 116GB on the HDD Tier (29 GB * 8 / 2). Minimum size is 4GB.

 

11. Resiliency Settings and Spaces

 

 

# Configure resiliency settings

Get-StoragePool Pool1 | Set-ResiliencySetting -Name Simple -NumberOfColumnsDefault 4

Get-StoragePool Pool1 | Set-ResiliencySetting -Name Mirror -NumberOfColumnsDefault 2

 

# Create simple and mirrored spaces with tiering

$SSD = Get-StorageTier -FriendlyName SSDTier

$HDD = Get-StorageTier -FriendlyName HDDTier

Get-StoragePool Pool1 | New-VirtualDisk -FriendlyName Space1 -ResiliencySettingName Simple –StorageTiers $SSD, $HDD -StorageTierSizes 8GB, 32GB -WriteCacheSize 1GB

Get-StoragePool Pool1 | New-VirtualDisk -FriendlyName Space2 -ResiliencySettingName Mirror -StorageTiers $SSD, $HDD -StorageTierSizes 8GB, 32GB –WriteCacheSize 1GB

 

12. Check Storage Spaces configuration (with output)

PS C:\> Get-StoragePool Pool1 | Get-ResiliencySetting | FT -AutoSize

 

Name NumberOfDataCopies PhysicalDiskRedundancy NumberOfColumns Interleave

---- ------------------ ---------------------- --------------- ----------

Simple 1 0 4 262144

Mirror 2 1 2 262144

Parity 1 1 Auto 262144

 

PS C:\> Get-VirtualDisk | FT -AutoSize

 

FriendlyName ResiliencySettingName OperationalStatus HealthStatus IsManualAttach Size

------------ --------------------- ----------------- ------------ -------------- ----

Space1 Simple OK Healthy False 40 GB

Space2 Mirror OK Healthy False 40 GB

 

PS C:\> Get-StorageTier | FT FriendlyName, MediaType, Size -AutoSize

 

FriendlyName MediaType Size

------------ --------- ----

SSDTier SSD 0

HDDTier HDD 0

Space1_SSDTier SSD 8589934592

Space1_HDDTier HDD 34359738368

Space2_SSDTier SSD 8589934592

Space2_HDDTier HDD 34359738368

 

PS C:\> Get-StoragePool Pool1 | FL Size, AllocatedSize

 

Size : 290984034304

AllocatedSize : 136365211648

 

Note: 127GB allocated after creating the two spaces. 144GB left out of 271GB total.

 

PS C:\> Get-StorageTierSupportedSize SSDTier -ResiliencySettingName Simple | FT -AutoSize

 

SupportedSizes TierSizeMin TierSizeMax TierSizeDivisor

-------------- ----------- ----------- ---------------

{} 4294967296 4294967296 4294967296

 

Note: 4GB left on the SSD Tier.

 

PS C:\> Get-StorageTierSupportedSize SSDTier -ResiliencySettingName Mirror | FT -AutoSize

 

SupportedSizes TierSizeMin TierSizeMax TierSizeDivisor

-------------- ----------- ----------- ---------------

{} 2147483648 2147483648 2147483648

 

Note: 4GB left on the SSD Tier. 2GB available if mirroring.

 

PS C:\> Get-StorageTierSupportedSize HDDTier -ResiliencySettingName Simple | FT -AutoSize

 

SupportedSizes TierSizeMin TierSizeMax TierSizeDivisor

-------------- ----------- ----------- ---------------

{} 4294967296 146028888064 4294967296

 

Note: 136GB left on the SSD Tier.

 

PS C:\> Get-StorageTierSupportedSize HDDTier -ResiliencySettingName Mirror | FT -AutoSize

 

SupportedSizes TierSizeMin TierSizeMax TierSizeDivisor

-------------- ----------- ----------- ---------------

{} 2147483648 73014444032 2147483648

 

Note: 136GB left on the SSD Tier. 68GB available if mirroring.

13. Create Partitions and Volumes

 

# Configure volume “F” on Space1

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Set-Disk -IsReadOnly 0

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Set-Disk -IsOffline 0

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Initialize-Disk -PartitionStyle GPT

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | New-Partition -DriveLetter “F” -UseMaximumSize

Initialize-Volume -DriveLetter “F” -FileSystem NTFS -Confirm:$false

# Configure volume “G” on Space2

Get-VirtualDisk Space2 | Get-Disk | Set-Disk -IsReadOnly 0

Get-VirtualDisk Space2 | Get-Disk | Set-Disk -IsOffline 0

Get-VirtualDisk Space2 | Get-Disk | Initialize-Disk -PartitionStyle GPT

Get-VirtualDisk Space2 | Get-Disk | New-Partition -DriveLetter “G” -UseMaximumSize

Initialize-Volume -DriveLetter “G” -FileSystem NTFS -Confirm:$false

 

14. Check Partitions and Volumes (with output)

PS C:\> Get-Partition | ? DriveLetter -ge "F" | FT -AutoSize

 

   Disk Number: 13

 

PartitionNumber DriveLetter Offset Size Type

--------------- ----------- ------ ---- ----

2 F 135266304 39.87 GB Basic

 

   Disk Number: 14

 

PartitionNumber DriveLetter Offset Size Type

--------------- ----------- ------ ---- ----

2 G 135266304 39.87 GB Basic

 

PS C:\> Get-Volume | ? DriveLetter -ge "F" | FT -AutoSize

 

DriveLetter FileSystemLabel FileSystem DriveType HealthStatus SizeRemaining Size

----------- --------------- ---------- --------- ------------ ------------- ----

F NTFS Fixed Healthy 39.75 GB 39.87 GB

G NTFS Fixed Healthy 39.75 GB 39.87 GB

15. Create Test Files

 

# Create 3 files on volume “F”, place them on different tiers

1..3 | % {

   fsutil file createnew f:\file$_.dat (4GB)

   fsutil file setvaliddata f:\file$_.dat (4GB)

}

Set-FileStorageTier -FilePath f:\file1.dat -DesiredStorageTierFriendlyName Space1_SSDTier

Set-FileStorageTier -FilePath f:\file2.dat -DesiredStorageTierFriendlyName Space1_HDDTier

Get-FileStorageTier -VolumeDriveLetter F

 

# Create 3 files on volume “G”, place them on different tiers

1..3 | % {

   fsutil file createnew g:\file$_.dat (4GB)

   fsutil file setvaliddata g:\file$_.dat (4GB)

}

Set-FileStorageTier -FilePath g:\file1.dat -DesiredStorageTierFriendlyName Space2_SSDTier

Set-FileStorageTier -FilePath g:\file2.dat -DesiredStorageTierFriendlyName Space2_HDDTier

Get-FileStorageTier -VolumeDriveLetter G

 

16. Check Test Files (with output)

PS C:\> Dir F:

 

    Directory: f:\

 

Mode LastWriteTime Length Name

---- ------------- ------ ----

-a--- 8/21/2013 10:09 AM 4294967296 file1.dat

-a--- 8/21/2013 10:09 AM 4294967296 file2.dat

-a--- 8/21/2013 10:09 AM 4294967296 file3.dat

 

PS C:\> Dir G:

 

    Directory: g:\

 

Mode LastWriteTime Length Name

---- ------------- ------ ----

-a--- 8/21/2013 10:08 AM 4294967296 file1.dat

-a--- 8/21/2013 10:08 AM 4294967296 file2.dat

-a--- 8/21/2013 10:08 AM 4294967296 file3.dat

 

PS C:\sqlio> Get-Volume | ? DriveLetter -ge "F" | FT -AutoSize

 

DriveLetter FileSystemLabel FileSystem DriveType HealthStatus SizeRemaining Size

----------- --------------- ---------- --------- ------------ ------------- ----

F NTFS Fixed Healthy 27.75 GB 39.87 GB

G NTFS Fixed Healthy 27.75 GB 39.87 GB

 

PS C:\> Get-FileStorageTier -VolumeDriveLetter F | FT -AutoSize

 

FilePath DesiredStorageTierName PlacementStatus State

-------- ---------------------- --------------- -----

F:\file1.dat Space1_SSDTier Completely on tier OK

F:\file2.dat Space1_HDDTier Partially on tier Pending

 

PS C:\> Get-FileStorageTier -VolumeDriveLetter G | FT -AutoSize

 

FilePath DesiredStorageTierName PlacementStatus State

-------- ---------------------- --------------- -----

G:\file1.dat Space2_SSDTier Completely on tier OK

G:\file2.dat Space2_HDDTier Partially on tier Pending

 

17. Tasks for Storage Tiering

# Check tasks used by Storage Tiering

Get-ScheduledTask -TaskName *Tier* | FT –AutoSize

Get-ScheduledTask -TaskName *Tier* | Get-ScheduledTaskInfo

 

# Manually running the “Storage Tiers Optimization” task

Get-ScheduledTask -TaskName "Storage Tiers Optimization" | Start-ScheduledTask

18. Tasks for Storage Tiering (with Output)

PS C:\> Get-ScheduledTask -TaskName *Tier* | FT –AutoSize

 

TaskPath TaskName State

-------- -------- -----

\Microsoft\Windows\Storage Tiers Management\ Storage Tiers Management Initialization Ready

\Microsoft\Windows\Storage Tiers Management\ Storage Tiers Optimization Ready

 

PS C:\> Get-ScheduledTask -TaskName *Tier* | Get-ScheduledTaskInfo

 

LastRunTime :

LastTaskResult : 1

NextRunTime : 8/22/2013 1:00:00 AM

NumberOfMissedRuns : 0

TaskName : Storage Tiers Optimization

TaskPath : \Microsoft\Windows\Storage Tiers Management\

PSComputerName :

 

LastRunTime : 8/21/2013 11:18:18 AM

LastTaskResult : 0

NextRunTime :

NumberOfMissedRuns : 0

TaskName : Storage Tiers Management Initialization

TaskPath : \Microsoft\Windows\Storage Tiers Management\

PSComputerName :

 

PS C:\> Get-ScheduledTask -TaskName "Storage Tiers Optimization" | Start-ScheduledTask

PS C:\> Get-ScheduledTask -TaskName "Storage Tiers Optimization" | Get-ScheduledTaskInfo

 

LastRunTime : 8/21/2013 12:11:11 PM

LastTaskResult : 267009

NextRunTime : 8/22/2013 1:00:00 AM

NumberOfMissedRuns : 0

TaskName : Storage Tiers Optimization

TaskPath : \Microsoft\Windows\Storage Tiers Management\

PSComputerName :

 

19. Running SQLIO

 

# These commands assume that the SQLIO2.EXE file was copied to the C:\SQLIO folder

# SQLIO workload 1 : 30 seconds, random, read, 8KB, 4 thread, 16 outstanding IOs, no buffering

# SQLIO workload 2 : 30 seconds, sequential, read, 512KB, 4 thread, 4 outstanding IOs, no buffering

# Check file location on tiers for volume F:

Get-FileStorageTier -VolumeDriveLetter F | FT -AutoSize

# Running SQLIO on F:, using File1 (HDD tier), File2 (HDD tier) and File 3 (unspecified tier)

c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -frandom -kR -b8 -t4 -o16 -BN f:\file1.dat

c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -frandom -kR -b8 -t4 -o16 -BN f:\file2.dat

c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -frandom -kR -b8 -t4 -o16 -BN f:\file3.dat

c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -fsequential -kR -b512 -t4 -o4 -BN f:\file1.dat

c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -fsequential -kR -b512 -t4 -o4 -BN f:\file2.dat

c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -fsequential -kR -b512 -t4 -o4 -BN f:\file3.dat

# Check file location on tiers for volume G:

Get-FileStorageTier -VolumeDriveLetter G | FT -AutoSize

# Running SQLIO on G:, using File1 (HDD tier), File2 (HDD tier) and File 3 (unspecified tier)

c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -frandom -kR -b8 -t4 -o16 -BN g:\file1.dat

c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -frandom -kR -b8 -t4 -o16 -BN g:\file2.dat

c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -frandom -kR -b8 -t4 -o16 -BN g:\file3.dat

c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -fsequential -kR -b512 -t4 -o4 -BN g:\file1.dat

c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -fsequential -kR -b512 -t4 -o4 -BN g:\file2.dat

c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -fsequential -kR -b512 -t4 -o4 -BN g:\file3.dat

20. Running SQLIO (with Output)

PS C:\> Get-FileStorageTier -VolumeDriveLetter F | FT -AutoSize

 

FilePath DesiredStorageTierName PlacementStatus State

-------- ---------------------- --------------- -----

F:\file1.dat Space1_SSDTier Completely on tier OK

F:\file2.dat Space1_HDDTier Completely on tier OK

 

PS C:\> c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -frandom -kR -b8 -t4 -o16 -BN f:\file1.dat

 

sqlio v2.15. 64bit_SG

4 threads reading for 30 secs to file f:\file1.dat

        using 8KB random IOs

        enabling multiple I/Os per thread with 16 outstanding

        buffering set to not use file nor disk caches (as is SQL Server)

using current size: 4096 MB for file: f:\file1.dat

initialization done

CUMULATIVE DATA:

throughput metrics:

IOs/sec: 35745.63

MBs/sec: 279.26

 

PS C:\> c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -frandom -kR -b8 -t4 -o16 -BN f:\file2.dat

 

sqlio v2.15. 64bit_SG

4 threads reading for 30 secs to file f:\file2.dat

        using 8KB random IOs

   enabling multiple I/Os per thread with 16 outstanding

        buffering set to not use file nor disk caches (as is SQL Server)

using current size: 4096 MB for file: f:\file2.dat

initialization done

CUMULATIVE DATA:

throughput metrics:

IOs/sec: 141.57

MBs/sec: 1.10

 

PS C:\> c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -frandom -kR -b8 -t4 -o16 -BN f:\file3.dat

 

sqlio v2.15. 64bit_SG

4 threads reading for 30 secs to file f:\file3.dat

        using 8KB random IOs

        enabling multiple I/Os per thread with 16 outstanding

        buffering set to not use file nor disk caches (as is SQL Server)

using current size: 4096 MB for file: f:\file3.dat

initialization done

CUMULATIVE DATA:

throughput metrics:

IOs/sec: 384.86

MBs/sec: 3.00

 

PS C:\> c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -fsequential -kR -b512 -t4 -o4 -BN f:\file1.dat

 

sqlio v2.15. 64bit_SG

4 threads reading for 30 secs to file f:\file1.dat

        using 512KB sequential IOs

        enabling multiple I/Os per thread with 4 outstanding

        buffering set to not use file nor disk caches (as is SQL Server)

using current size: 4096 MB for file: f:\file1.dat

initialization done

CUMULATIVE DATA:

throughput metrics:

IOs/sec: 998.25

MBs/sec: 499.12

 

PS C:\> c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -fsequential -kR -b512 -t4 -o4 -BN f:\file2.dat

 

sqlio v2.15. 64bit_SG

4 threads reading for 30 secs to file f:\file2.dat

        using 512KB sequential IOs

        enabling multiple I/Os per thread with 4 outstanding

        buffering set to not use file nor disk caches (as is SQL Server)

using current size: 4096 MB for file: f:\file2.dat

initialization done

CUMULATIVE DATA:

throughput metrics:

IOs/sec: 81.30

MBs/sec: 40.65

 

PS C:\> c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -fsequential -kR -b512 -t4 -o4 -BN f:\file3.dat

 

sqlio v2.15. 64bit_SG

4 threads reading for 30 secs to file f:\file3.dat

        using 512KB sequential IOs

        enabling multiple I/Os per thread with 4 outstanding

        buffering set to not use file nor disk caches (as is SQL Server)

using current size: 4096 MB for file: f:\file3.dat

initialization done

CUMULATIVE DATA:

throughput metrics:

IOs/sec: 148.51

MBs/sec: 74.25

 

PS C:\> Get-FileStorageTier -VolumeDriveLetter G | FT -AutoSize

 

FilePath DesiredStorageTierName PlacementStatus State

-------- ---------------------- --------------- -----

G:\file1.dat Space2_SSDTier Completely on tier OK

G:\file2.dat Space2_HDDTier Completely on tier OK

 

PS C:\> c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -frandom -kR -b8 -t4 -o16 -BN g:\file1.dat

 

sqlio v2.15. 64bit_SG

4 threads reading for 30 secs to file g:\file1.dat

        using 8KB random IOs

        enabling multiple I/Os per thread with 16 outstanding

        buffering set to not use file nor disk caches (as is SQL Server)

using current size: 4096 MB for file: g:\file1.dat

initialization done

CUMULATIVE DATA:

throughput metrics:

IOs/sec: 35065.17

MBs/sec: 273.94

 

PS C:\> c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -frandom -kR -b8 -t4 -o16 -BN g:\file2.dat

 

sqlio v2.15. 64bit_SG

4 threads reading for 30 secs to file g:\file2.dat

        using 8KB random IOs

        enabling multiple I/Os per thread with 16 outstanding

        buffering set to not use file nor disk caches (as is SQL Server)

using current size: 4096 MB for file: g:\file2.dat

initialization done

CUMULATIVE DATA:

throughput metrics:

IOs/sec: 138.98

MBs/sec: 1.08

 

PS C:\> c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -frandom -kR -b8 -t4 -o16 -BN g:\file3.dat

 

sqlio v2.15. 64bit_SG

4 threads reading for 30 secs to file g:\file3.dat

        using 8KB random IOs

        enabling multiple I/Os per thread with 16 outstanding

        buffering set to not use file nor disk caches (as is SQL Server)

using current size: 4096 MB for file: g:\file3.dat

initialization done

CUMULATIVE DATA:

throughput metrics:

IOs/sec: 360.33

MBs/sec: 2.81

 

PS C:\> c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -fsequential -kR -b512 -t4 -o4 -BN g:\file1.dat

 

sqlio v2.15. 64bit_SG

4 threads reading for 30 secs to file g:\file1.dat

        using 512KB sequential IOs

        enabling multiple I/Os per thread with 4 outstanding

        buffering set to not use file nor disk caches (as is SQL Server)

using current size: 4096 MB for file: g:\file1.dat

initialization done

CUMULATIVE DATA:

throughput metrics:

IOs/sec: 997.90

MBs/sec: 498.95

 

PS C:\> c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -fsequential -kR -b512 -t4 -o4 -BN g:\file2.dat

 

sqlio v2.15. 64bit_SG

4 threads reading for 30 secs to file g:\file2.dat

        using 512KB sequential IOs

        enabling multiple I/Os per thread with 4 outstanding

        buffering set to not use file nor disk caches (as is SQL Server)

using current size: 4096 MB for file: g:\file2.dat

initialization done

CUMULATIVE DATA:

throughput metrics:

IOs/sec: 118.34

MBs/sec: 59.17

 

PS C:\> c:\sqlio\sqlio2.exe -s30 -fsequential -kR -b512 -t4 -o4 -BN g:\file3.dat

 

sqlio v2.15. 64bit_SG

4 threads reading for 30 secs to file g:\file3.dat

        using 512KB sequential IOs

        enabling multiple I/Os per thread with 4 outstanding

        buffering set to not use file nor disk caches (as is SQL Server)

using current size: 4096 MB for file: g:\file3.dat

initialization done

CUMULATIVE DATA:

throughput metrics:

IOs/sec: 197.65

MBs/sec: 98.82

 

21. Summary of SQLIO Results

 

Here’s the summary of the SQLIO runs:

Resiliency

Workload

Tier

IOPs

MB/s

Simple

8KB Read

File1 (SSD)

35,746

279

File2 (HDD)

142

1

File3 (Mixed)

385

3

512KB Sequential

File1 (SSD)

998

499

File2 (HDD)

81

41

File3 (Mixed)

149

74

Mirror

8KB Read

File1 (SSD)

35,065

274

File2 (HDD)

39

1

File3 (Mixed)

360

3

512KB Sequential

File1 (SSD)

998

499

File2 (HDD)

118

59

File3 (Mixed)

198

99

 

Note 1: In general, this is working as expected. File1 (SSD Tier) shows SSD performance characteristics while File 2 (HDD Tier) behaves like a spinning disk. File3 is somewhere between the two.

Note 2: These results are not meant to showcase the true performance of a production tiered storage solution. Keep in mind that there is only one physical SSD and one physical HDD behind all the virtual layers. Both simple and mirrored are spaces are basically limited by the hardware limitations of the two disks.

Note 3: This shows the results of a single run of each workload, so some variance is expected. If you are running this in your own setup, you might want to run each workload multiple times and average it out. There’s some guidance to that regard at https://blogs.technet.com/b/josebda/archive/2013/03/25/sqlio-powershell-and-storage-performance-measuring-iops-throughput-and-latency-for-both-local-disks-and-smb-file-shares.aspx

 

22. Extending existing Spaces and Volumes

# Check state before change

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | FT -AutoSize

Get-StorageTier Space1* | FT FriendlyName, Size –AutoSize

Get-StorageTierSupportedSize SSDTier -ResiliencySettingName Simple | FT -AutoSize

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | FT -AutoSize

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Get-Partition | FT –AutoSize

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Get-Partition | Get-Volume | FT –AutoSize

 

# Add 4GB on the SSD Tier

Resize-StorageTier Space1_SSDTier -Size 12GB

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Update-Disk

 

# Check after Virtual Disk change

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | FT -AutoSize

Get-StorageTier Space1* | FT FriendlyName, Size –AutoSize

Get-StorageTierSupportedSize SSDTier -ResiliencySettingName Simple | FT -AutoSize

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | FT -AutoSize

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Get-Partition | FT –AutoSize

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Get-Partition | Get-Volume | FT –AutoSize

 

# Extend partition (also extends the volume)

Resize-Partition -DriveLetter F -Size 43.87GB

 

# Check after Partition/Volume change

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Get-Partition | FT –AutoSize

Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Get-Partition | Get-Volume | FT –AutoSize

 

23. Extending existing Spaces and Volumes(with output)

PS C:\> Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | FT -AutoSize

 

FriendlyName ResiliencySettingName OperationalStatus HealthStatus IsManualAttach Size

------------ --------------------- ----------------- ------------ -------------- ----

Space1 Simple OK Healthy False 40 GB

 

PS C:\> Get-StorageTier Space1* | FT FriendlyName, Size –AutoSize

 

FriendlyName Size

------------ ----

Space1_SSDTier 8589934592

Space1_HDDTier 34359738368

 

PS C:\> Get-StorageTierSupportedSize SSDTier -ResiliencySettingName Simple | FT -AutoSize

 

SupportedSizes TierSizeMin TierSizeMax TierSizeDivisor

-------------- ----------- ----------- ---------------

{} 4294967296 4294967296 4294967296

 

PS C:\> Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | FT -AutoSize

 

Number Friendly Name OperationalStatus Total Size Partition Style

------ ------------- ----------------- ---------- ---------------

13 Microsoft Storage Space Device Online 40 GB GPT

 

PS C:\> Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Get-Partition | FT -AutoSize

 

   Disk Number: 13

 

PartitionNumber DriveLetter Offset Size Type

--------------- ----------- ------ ---- ----

1 24576 128 MB Reserved

2 F 135266304 39.87 GB Basic

 

PS C:\> Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Get-Partition | Get-Volume | FT -AutoSize

 

DriveLetter FileSystemLabel FileSystem DriveType HealthStatus SizeRemaining Size

----------- --------------- ---------- --------- ------------ ------------- ----

F NTFS Fixed Healthy 27.75 GB 39.87 GB

 

PS C:\> Resize-StorageTier Space1_SSDTier -Size 12GB

 

PS C:\> Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Update-Disk

 

PS C:\> Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | FT -AutoSize

 

FriendlyName ResiliencySettingName OperationalStatus HealthStatus IsManualAttach Size

------------ --------------------- ----------------- ------------ -------------- ----

Space1 Simple OK Healthy False 44 GB

 

PS C:\> Get-StorageTier Space1* | FT FriendlyName, Size –AutoSize

 

FriendlyName Size

------------ ----

Space1_SSDTier 12884901888

Space1_HDDTier 34359738368

 

PS C:\> Get-StorageTierSupportedSize SSDTier -ResiliencySettingName Simple | FT -AutoSize

 

SupportedSizes TierSizeMin TierSizeMax TierSizeDivisor

-------------- ----------- ----------- ---------------

{} 0 0 0

 

PS C:\> Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | FT -AutoSize

 

Number Friendly Name OperationalStatus Total Size Partition Style

------ ------------- ----------------- ---------- ---------------

13 Microsoft Storage Space Device Online 44 GB GPT

 

PS C:\> Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Get-Partition | FT –AutoSize

 

   Disk Number: 13

 

PartitionNumber DriveLetter Offset Size Type

--------------- ----------- ------ ---- ----

1 24576 128 MB Reserved

2 F 135266304 39.87 GB Basic

 

PS C:\> Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Get-Partition | Get-Volume | FT –AutoSize

 

DriveLetter FileSystemLabel FileSystem DriveType HealthStatus SizeRemaining Size

----------- --------------- ---------- --------- ------------ ------------- ----

F NTFS Fixed Healthy 27.75 GB 39.87 GB

 

PS C:\> Resize-Partition -DriveLetter F -Size 43.87GB

PS C:\> Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Get-Partition | FT –AutoSize

 

   Disk Number: 13

 

PartitionNumber DriveLetter Offset Size Type

--------------- ----------- ------ ---- ----

1 24576 128 MB Reserved

2 F 135266304 43.87 GB Basic

 

PS C:\> Get-VirtualDisk Space1 | Get-Disk | Get-Partition | Get-Volume | FT –AutoSize

 

DriveLetter FileSystemLabel FileSystem DriveType HealthStatus SizeRemaining Size

----------- --------------- ---------- --------- ------------ ------------- ----

F NTFS Fixed Healthy 31.75 GB 43.87 GB

 

 

24. Final Notes

 

  • I hope you enjoyed these step-by-step instructions. I strongly encourage you to try them out and perform the entire installation yourself. It’s a good learning experience.
  • Let me know how these steps worked for you using the comment section. If you run into any issues or found anything particularly interesting, don’t forget to mention the number of the step.

 

For additional content related to Storage Spaces, check these:

Comments

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    Dear Jose,Thank you so much... amazing!I just tested it, it rocks...A small question based on above steps:Let's say in a production environment, I need to add additional 4 HDDs and 4 SSDs, so in total 12 HDDs and 8 SSDs.How can I add&expand to the existing Storage Spaces Tiering?Cheers,Charo

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    @PierreGlad you liked it. Feel free to re-use, tweak, expand.Jose

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    @PhilippI am using an internal-only version of SQLIO that has some additional options. However, I believe I am not using any of those options and you should be able to use the publicly available version without any problems. Let me know if you run into any issues to that regard.

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    @CHAROITThe number of columns per space, for maximum performance, would be:For a simple space, the number of disks in the tierFor a mirrored space, half the number of disks in the tier If the tiers have different number of disks, use the smaller number of the two.In the example in this post, I have 4 disks in the SSD tier and 8 disks in the HDD tier.So, that means 4 columns (number of disks in the smaller tier) for the simple space and 2 columns (half the number of disks in the smaller tier) for the mirrored one.

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    @CHAROXThe process is simple:Add the physical disks to the tierEnsure they have mediatype is properly set Follow the steps described in items 22 and 23 in this post to resize the tier and extend the partition.

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    The comment has been removed

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    Thank you dear Jose for your prompt reply,Now it's clear (always choose the smaller number of the two tiers SSD/HDD).One more question, if I added more disks in the JBOD in the future to expand my storage space.Let's take the example described above, 4 disks in the SSD tier and 8 disks in the HDD tier for a mirrored space.I will add 4 SSDs and 4 HDDs (Total= 8 disks in the SSD tier and 12 disks in the HDD tier).How it will reflect the NumberOfColumns?Do I need to run a new POS below?Get-StoragePool Pool1 | Set-ResiliencySetting -Name Mirror -NumberOfColumnsDefault 4Regards,

  • Anonymous
    August 28, 2013
    WOW! That is an awsome work! Both for storage spaces explanation by use, and for PowerShell capabilities if any doubt was left... I'll be using, if you allow it, a very big part of these hands on instructions during future training sessions on 2012R2!!!best regards from France, an amazed MCT.... i'm gone testing it right now!again, Woooooooow!you made my day!!!!!!

  • Anonymous
    August 28, 2013
    that's an excellent article.. I just loved it :)

  • Anonymous
    August 29, 2013
    Thanks, great article!But i got one question. Currently i am using SQLIO v1.5 but i am not able to find a download location for the version 2, you are using in your scripts. can you provide it?cheers philipp

  • Anonymous
    September 19, 2013
    Awesome job!

  • Anonymous
    December 18, 2013
    Pingback from NoGeekLeftBehind.com » Windows Storage Spaces 2012 R2 Resources

  • Anonymous
    December 18, 2013
    Pingback from NoGeekLeftBehind.com » Windows Storage Spaces 2012 R2 Resources

  • Anonymous
    March 04, 2014
    This blog post was originally written by Michael Schroeder & Thomas Cantwell.
    Introduction

  • Anonymous
    March 06, 2014
    The comment has been removed

  • Anonymous
    March 13, 2014
    This is the second blog post in a series about Cluster Shared Volumes (CSV). In this post we will go

  • Anonymous
    March 25, 2014
    In previous posts I created a fileserver for my lab environment and used the UI to create a storage space

  • Anonymous
    March 30, 2014
    In this post, I'm providing a reference to the most relevant content related to Windows Server 2012

  • Anonymous
    May 26, 2014
    Pingback from New Features in Windows Storage Spaces 2012 R2 | Free LessonsFree Lessons

  • Anonymous
    July 07, 2014
    In this post, I'm providing a reference to the most relevant content related to Windows Server 2012

  • Anonymous
    November 19, 2014
    In this post, I'm sharing my favorite links related to Storage Spaces in Windows Server 2012 R2.

  • Anonymous
    December 02, 2015
    Background
    Although Windows Server 2012 R2 has already released for more than 2 years, from time to

  • Anonymous
    April 27, 2016
    The examples of fsutil to create the files don't work correctly if you are in a CMD prompt instead of powershell. The fsutil tool only takes size in bytes, but powershell uses the (4GB) as a sort of inline function to do the math to get the correct number of bytes.

  • Anonymous
    July 06, 2016
    Awesome post! I have a question, how many files can I pin to the ssd tier?It seems that I can't put more than 2014 files...

  • Anonymous
    December 11, 2016
    Amazing post...One of the best and interesting article on storage so far what I have read.Thank you !

  • Anonymous
    December 25, 2016
    Great post! Very informative as I'm trying to migrate off of hardware RAID.I'm trying to reproduce this on a Server 2016 Essential VM but all VHDX's are reporting "-canpool $false" preventing me from creating a storage pool. Was this changed for 2016?

  • Anonymous
    March 22, 2017
    The comment has been removed

  • Anonymous
    November 08, 2018
    Hi Jose,Great article! I have been searching around but have not been able to figure out an answer to my situation. I have 3 HDDs and 2 SSDs, is it possible to set up a single parity HDD pool tiered with a mirrored SSD pool with this hardware?Regards,Kevin