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    Cloud Storage Gateway:Manage an iSCSI gateway in the CSG console

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    Cloud Storage Gateway:Manage an iSCSI gateway in the CSG console

    Last Updated:Sep 18, 2024

    This topic describes how to create an Internet Small Computer Systems Interface (iSCSI) gateway and an iSCSI volume in the Cloud Storage Gateway (CSG) console.

    Prerequisites

    1. An Alibaba Cloud account is created and real-name verification for the account is complete. For more information, see Create an Alibaba Cloud account.

      Note

      We recommend that you log on to the CSG console as a RAM user. For more information, see Use RAM to implement account-based access control.

    2. CSG is activated.

      If CSG is not activated, follow the on-screen instructions in the CSG console to activate CSG.

    3. A virtual private cloud (VPC) is available in the region where you want to create an iSCSI gateway. For more information, see Create a VPC and vSwitches.

    4. An Elastic Compute Service (ECS) instance is available in the region where you want to create an iSCSI gateway. The ECS instance runs in the VPC. For more information, see Create an ECS instance.

      Note

      If your on-premises host is connected to a VPC over an Express Connect circuit, you can also perform the following steps by using the host.

    5. An Object Storage Service (OSS) bucket is created. For more information, see Create buckets.

      Note

      iSCSI gateways support only Standard and Infrequent Access (IA) OSS buckets.

    Step 1: Create an iSCSI gateway

    1. Log on to the CSG console.

    2. In the top navigation bar, select the region where you want to create an iSCSI gateway.

    3. On the Overview page, click Create Gateway Cluster.

      If the desired gateway cluster already exists, skip this step.

    4. In the left-side navigation pane, click Gateways.

    5. On the Gateways page, select the desired gateway cluster from the Current Gateway Cluster drop-down list. Click Create.

    6. In the Gateway Information step, set the parameters described in the following table and click Next.

      Parameter

      Description

      Name

      The name of the gateway.

      The name must be 1 to 60 characters in length and can contain letters, digits, periods (.), underscores (_), and hyphens (-). It must start with a letter.

      Location

      The location where you want to deploy the gateway. Valid values:

      • On-premises: deploys an on-premises iSCSI gateway in your data center. You can deploy an on-premises iSCSI gateway by using the CSG console or the on-premises iSCSI gateway console.

      • Alibaba Cloud: deploys the iSCSI gateway on Alibaba Cloud. You can deploy a cloud iSCSI gateway only by using the CSG console.

      Type

      The type of the gateway that you want to create. Select iSCSI Gateway.

    7. In the Gateway Configurations step, set the required parameters and click Next.

      If you set Location to Alibaba Cloud, you must set the gateway configuration parameters. The following table describes the parameters.

      Parameter

      Description

      Edition

      The gateway edition. Valid values: Basic, Standard, Enhanced, and Performance Optimized. For more information, see Specifications.

      VPC

      The VPC in which you want to deploy the gateway.

      Note

      The specified VPC must be the VPC in which your ECS instance or on-premises host resides.

      VSwitch

      The vSwitch that you want to use to connect the gateway.

      Note

      • The specified vSwitch must be the same vSwitch that is connected to your ECS instance or on-premises host.

      • If no gateway resource is available in the zone where the specified vSwitch resides, create a vSwitch in another zone.

      Public Network Bandwidth

      The public bandwidth.

      Note

      • By default, Public Network Bandwidth is not selected. If you want to use a gateway that resides in another region, you must select and set the Public Network Bandwidth parameter. For more information, see Configure a public bandwidth limit.

    8. In the Billing Information step, configure the parameters and click Next. The following table describes the parameters.

      Parameter

      Description

      Billing Method

      The billing method. You can select Pay-as-you-go or Subscription. For more information, see Billable items and billing methods.

      If you select Subscription, you are redirected to the buy page after the gateway is created. You need to complete the payment to start using the gateway. For more information, see Purchase a gateway.

      Expiration Policy

      The expiration policy for the gateway. You can select Switch to Pay-as-you-go or Release.

    9. In the Confirmation step, verify your settings and click OK.

      • After you create a cloud iSCSI gateway, the system completes the deployment in 5 to 10 minutes. If the Running state is displayed in the Status column, the gateway is deployed and activated.

      • After you create an on-premises iSCSI gateway, click Activate Gateway in the Actions column to activate the gateway. For more information, see Step 4: Activate the gateway.

    Step 2: Add a cache disk

    Before you create an iSCSI volume whose cache mode is enabled, you must add a cache disk to the iSCSI gateway.

    Note

    This section describes how to add a cache disk to a cloud iSCSI gateway. To add a cache disk to an on-premises iSCSI gateway, do it in the on-premises platform where the gateway is deployed. For more information, see Add disks.

    1. Log on to the CSG console.

    2. Select the region where the iSCSI gateway resides.

    3. In the left-side navigation pane, click Gateways. On the page that appears, click the iSCSI gateway ID to open the Volumes page.

    4. In the left-side navigation pane, click Cache. On the Cache page, click Create Cache.

    5. In the Add Cache dialog box, configure the following parameters:

      • Capacity: the size of the cache disk. Valid values: 20 GB to 32 TB.

      • Type: the type of the cache disk. Valid values: Ultra Disk, Standard SSD, and ESSD.

      Note

      • The capacity of a cache disk in a Basic gateway can be set to a value that ranges from 20 GB to 4 TB.

      • The capacity of a cache disk in a Standard gateway can be set to a value that ranges from 20 GB to 8 TB.

    6. Click OK.

      If the iSCSI gateway is a subscription gateway, you are redirected to the cache disk buy page. For more information, see Purchase a cache disk.

    Step 3: Create an iSCSI volume

    1. Log on to the CSG console.

    2. Select the region where the iSCSI gateway resides.

    3. In the left-side navigation pane, click Gateways. On the page that appears, click the iSCSI gateway ID to open the Volumes page.

    4. In the left-side navigation pane, click Volume Information. On the Volumes page, click Create.

    5. In the Bucket Settings step, configure the parameters and click Next. The following table describes the parameters.

      Parameter

      Description

      Cross-region Binding

      • If you select Yes, you can access a bucket that resides in a different region from the gateway.

      • If you select No, you can access only a bucket that resides in the same region as the gateway.

      Note

      If you select a public endpoint of the specified bucket, you may be charged for download traffic.

      OSS Endpoint

      The endpoint of the region in which the bucket is located.

      Use SSL to Connect Bucket

      If you select Yes, the bucket is connected over SSL.

    6. In the Basic Information step, configure the parameters and click Next. The following table describes the parameters.

      Parameter

      Description

      Volume Name

      The name of the iSCSI volume. The name must be 1 to 31 characters in length, and can contain letters and digits.

      Recover

      You can select whether to recover a volume that uses the specified OSS bucket as backend storage. Valid values:

      • Yes: When the associated OSS bucket is used as a volume, the system attempts to recover the volume based on the metadata of the volume, such as the size of the volume.

      • No: The system uses the associated OSS bucket to create a volume.

      Capacity

      If you set Recover to No, you must configure the Capacity parameter. The capacity must be greater than or equal to 1 GB and less than or equal to 256 TB.

      Mode

      The mode that the gateway uses to read and write files. Valid values:

      • Write Through Mode: In Write-through mode, data reads and writes are preferentially performed on the OSS bucket.

      • Cache Mode: In Cache mode, data reads and writes are preferentially performed in the on-premises cache disk. Generally, iSCSI gateways have better read and write performance in Cache mode.

      Cache

      If you set Mode to Cache Mode, you must select a cache disk.

      Make sure that you have added a cache disk to the iSCSI gateway. Otherwise, no cache disk is available.

      Storage Allocation Unit

      If you set Recover to No, you must set the Storage Allocation Unit parameter. Valid values: 8K, 16K, 32K, 64K, and 128K. Default value: 32K.

      Authorization

      The one-way Challenge-Handshake Authentication Protocol (CHAP) authentication.

      If you select CHAP from the Authorization drop-down list, you must set the following parameters:

      • CHAP Username of Initiator: Enter a CHAP username.

      • CHAP Password of Initiator: Enter a CHAP password. The password must be 12 to 16 characters in length.

    7. In the Confirmation step, verify your settings and click OK.

    8. After you create an iSCSI volume, you can use the volume. For more information, see Use volumes on a Windows-based ECS instance.