VMware Storage APIs (VAAI/VASA)

The ability to adapt to evolving technologies and business growth is critical in a virtual environment. vStorage APIs for array integration (VAAI) is another of the key integrations with Vmware that enable Dell Compellent Storage Center the flexibility needed to support the virtualized data center. Functions such as Block-zeroing and Unmap, which reduce CPU load and I/O on the server and returns unused storage to the storage pool, respectively, improves the efficiency of managing both VMs and storage resources.

VMware vStorage APIs for Array Integration (VAAI) enable offloading of certain storage intensive tasks to storage tier. This integration frees up network bandwidth and host compute resources by allowing EqualLogic arrays to perform tasks such as full copy, block zeroing, and hardware assisted locking. Delegating these tasks to the storage layer can enable quick deployment of virtual machines from templates, and improved storage performance for volumes shared by multiple virtual machines.

VMware vSphere Storage APIs for Storage Awareness enables unprecedented coordination between vSphere/vCenter and storage arrays. It provides built-in storage insight in vCenter to support intelligent VM storage provisioning, bolster storage troubleshooting and enable new DRS-related use cases for storage. Workload balancing is enabled by Dell EqualLogic integration with VMware vSphere Storage APIs for Storage Awareness (VASA).