Nutanix File Servers Test

Nutanix Files is a software-defined scale-out file storage solution that lets you share files in a centralized and protected location to eliminate the requirement of a third-party file server.

Files uses a scale-out architecture that provides file services to clients through Server message Block (SMB) and Network File System (NSP) protocols. Files combine one or more file server VMs (FSVMs) into a logical file server instance sometimes referrred to as a File Cluster. You can create multiple file servers within a single Nutanix cluster.

Files creates a volume group (VG) for every FSVM to provide stable storage for persistent states and audit events. During a service outage, the states, storage, and events of a VG fail-over to another FSVM. Files also creates a dedicated container for every file server instance. In order to protect Nutanix files users from malware and viruses, you need to address both the client and the file server. Nutanix currently supports third party vendors that use Internet Content Adaptation Protocol ( ICAP ) servers. If too many files from a file server are quarantined by the ICAP server or if too many files are disconnected from the file server during scans, then those files may not be available to the users. Similarly, if the file server runs out of space, the files in the file server will not be updated and hence the files may be outdated. This may lead to frustrated users and a poor user expereince. To ensure that the file servers are upto date and are scanned periodically, administrators can use the Nutanix File Servers test.

This test auto-discovers the file servers in the target Nutanix AHV Prism Element and for each file server, reports the number of file shares, SMB connections initiated and the file server VMs. The count of files that were scanned and quarantined by the ICAP server from the file server throws light on the file server that is frequently prone to malicious attacks. The I/O operations performed on the file servers are periodically monitored and the file server that is taking too long to perform I/O operations is identified. The space utilization of the file servers are also periodically monitoredand the file sserver that is running out of space is identified. This way, administrators can isolate those file servers that are problematic and initiate troubleshooting at the earliest.

Target of the test : A Nutanix AHV Prism Element

Agent deploying the test : A remote agent

Outputs of the test : One set of results for each Nutanix file server on the target the Nutanix AHV Prism Element being monitored

Configurable parameters for the test

Parameter	Description
Test Period	How often should the test be executed
Host	The host for which the test is to be configured.
Port	The port at which the specified host listens. By default, this is 9440.
Nutanix Prism Element User, Nutanix Prism Element Password and Confirm Password	To connect to the Nutanix Prism Element and collect metrics from it, the eG agent should be configured with the credentials of a Prism Element user with the Viewer role. The steps for creating such a user are detailed in the Pre-requisites for Monitoring Nutanix Prism Element topic. Confirm the nutanix Prism Element password by retyping itin Confirm Password textbox.
SSL	By default, the Nutanix Prism Element server is SSL-enabled. Accordingly, the SSL flag is set to Yes by default. This indicates that the eG agent will communicate with the Prism Element server via HTTPS by default.
WebPort	By default, the Nutanix Prism Element server listens on port 9440. This implies that while monitoring a Nutanix AHV server via the Prism server, the eG agent connects to port 9440.
DD Frequency	Refers to the frequency with which detailed diagnosis measures are to be generated for this test. The default is 1:1. This indicates that, by default, detailed measures will be generated every time this test runs, and also every time the test detects a problem. You can modify this frequency, if you so desire. Also, if you intend to disable the detailed diagnosis capability for this test, you can do so by specifying none against DD frequency.
Detailed Diagnosis	To make diagnosis more efficient and accurate, the eG Enterprise embeds an optional detailed diagnostic capability. With this capability, the eG agents can be configured to run detailed, more elaborate tests as and when specific problems are detected. To enable the detailed diagnosis capability of this test for a particular server, choose the On option. To disable the capability, click on the Off option. The option to selectively enable/disable the detailed diagnosis capability will be available only if the following conditions are fulfilled: The eG manager license should allow the detailed diagnosis capability Both the normal and abnormal frequencies configured for the detailed diagnosis measures should not be 0.

Measurements made by the test

Measurement	Description	Measurement Unit	Interpretation
Number of NVMs	Indicates the total number of file server VMs in this file server.	Number	The detailed diagnosis of this measure lists the name of each file server VM, IP address, vCPUs and size of the memory allocated to each file server VM.
NTP servers	Indicates the number of NTP servers that are synchornizing with the file server VMs in this file server.	Number	Use the detailed diagnosis of this measure to figure out the names of the NTP servers that are synchronizing with the file server VMs.
SMB connections	Indicates the total number of SMB connections initiated by this file server.	Number
File shares	Indicates the number of file shares in this file server.	Number	Use the detailed diagnosis of this measure to figure out the name of the file shares available in the file server.
ICAP latency	Indicates the time taken by this file server to connect to the ICAP server.	Secs	A low value is desired for this measure. Compare the value of this measure across file servers to identify the file server that is taking too long to connect to the ICAP server.
Total ICAP scanned files	Indicates the total number of files (available in this file server) that were scanned by the ICAP server.	Number	Compare the value of this measure across file servers to identify the file server from which maximum number of files were scanned successfully by the ICAP server.
Total ICAP quarantined files	Indicates the total number of files (from this file server) that were quarantined by the ICAP server.	Number	Files that are infected are generally quarantined and cannot be accessed by the users. A consistently high value for this measure is a cause of concern. Files of certain extensions such as .dat,.ini can be incorrectly quarantined by the ICAP server. Administrators need to analyze whether the files are incorrectly quarantined or whether the files are infected due to malicious attacks and initiate troubleshooting at the earliest. Comparing the number of quarantined fies across file servers will help you in identifying the file server on which maximum number of files are quarantined.
Total ICAP cleaned files	Indicates the number of files (from this file server) that were cleaned by the ICAP server.	Number	Compare the value of this measure across file servers to identify the file server that topped the number of files cleaned by the ICAP server.
Total ICAP disconnect files	Indicates the number of files that were disconnected (from this file server) by the ICAP server.	Number
ICAP daemon queue depth	Indicates the number of files (fromthis file server) that are in the scan queue waiting for an ICAP server.	Number	A high value for this measure may indicate that the ICAP server is down.
ICAP throughput	Indicates the amount of data processed by the ICAP server while processing the files of this file server.	MB
Total ICAP threads	Indicates the total number of scanning ICAP threads available for this file server.	Number
Control I/O bandwidth	Indicates the amount of data used to perform read and write I/O operations per second on this file server.	KBps	Compare the value of this measure across file server to identify the file server on which maximum amount of data was used to perform read and write I/O operations.
Total control IOPS	Indicates the total number of read and write I/O operations performed on this file server.	Number	Compare the value of this measure across file servers to identify the file server that is busy in terms of read and write I/O operations.
Control latency	Indicates the time taken to read from and write to this file server.	Secs	A high value for this measure is a cause of concern. Compare the value of this measure across file servers to identify the file server on which the read and write operations are taking too long to complete.
User storage capacity	Indicates the amount of storage that is allocated for the users accessing the file server VMs of this file server.	GB
Total capacity	Indicates the total capacity/size of this file server.	GB
Used capacity	Indicates the size of this file server that is already utilized.	GB	A value close to the Total capacity measure indicates that the File Sever is running out of space.
Free capacity	Indicates the size of this file server that is available for use.	GB	A high value is desired for this measure.
Used percentage	Indicates the capacity of this file server that is already utilized, expressed as percentage.	Percent	A value close to 100 percent indicates that the file server is running out of space.
Free percentage	Indicates the capacity of this file server that is available for use, expressed as percentage.	Percent	A high value is desired for this measure.
Snapshot capacity	Indicates the amount of space that is available for snapshots in this file server.	GB