Migrating between traditional volumes and FlexVol volumes

About migrating between traditional and FlexVol volumes

FlexVol volumes have different best practices, optimal configurations, and performance characteristics compared to traditional volumes. Make sure you understand these differences by referring to the available documentation on FlexVol volumes and deploy the configuration that is optimal for your environment.

For information about deploying a storage solution with FlexVol volumes, including migration and performance considerations, see the technical report Introduction to Data ONTAP Release 7G (available from the NetApp Library at http://www.netapp.com/tech_library/ftp/3356.pdf). For information about configuring FlexVol volumes, see FlexVol volume operations. For information about configuring aggregates, see Aggregate Management.

The following list outlines some facts about migrating between traditional and FlexVol volumes that you should know:

You cannot convert directly from a traditional volume to a FlexVol volume, or from a FlexVol volume to a traditional volume. You must create a new volume of the desired type and then move the data to the new volume using ndmpcopy.
If you move the data to another volume on the same storage system, remember that this requires the system to have enough storage to contain both copies of the volume.
Snapshots on the original volume are unaffected by the migration, but they are not valid for the new volume.

NetApp offers assistance

NetApp Professional Services staff, including Professional Services Engineers (PSEs) and Professional Services Consultants (PSCs) are trained to assist customers with converting volume types and migrating data, among other services. For more information, contact your local NetApp Sales representative, PSE, or PSC.

Migrating a traditional volume to a FlexVol volume

The following procedure describes how to migrate from a traditional volume to a FlexVol volume. If you are migrating your root volume, you can use the same procedure, including the steps that are specific to migrating a root volume.

To migrate a traditional volume to a FlexVol volume, complete the following steps.

Step	Action
1	Determine the size requirements for the new FlexVol volume. Enter the following command to determine the amount of space your current volume uses: *df -Ah [vol_name]* Example df -Ah vol0 Result The following output is displayed. Aggregate total used avail capacity vol0 24GB 1434MB 22GB 7% vol0/.snapshot 6220MB 4864MB 6215MB 0% Root volume If the new FlexVol volume is going to be the root volume, it must meet the minimum size requirements for root volumes, which are based on your storage system. Data ONTAP prevents you from designating as root a volume that does not meet the minimum size requirement. For more information, see the "Understanding the Root Volume" chapter in the System Administration Guide.
2	You can use an existing aggregate or you can create a new one to contain the new FlexVol volume. To determine if an existing aggregate is large enough to contain the new FlexVol volume, enter the following command: `df -Ah` Result All of the existing aggregates are displayed.
3	If needed, create a new aggregate by entering the following command: `aggr create` aggr_name disk-list Example aggr create aggrA 8@144 Result An aggregate called aggrA is created with eight 144-GB disks. The default RAID level is RAID-DP, so two disks will be used for parity (one parity disk and one dParity disk). The aggregate size will be 1,128 GB. If you want to use RAID4, and use one less parity disk, enter the following command: `aggr create aggrA -t raid4 8@144`
4	If you want to use the new FlexVol volume to have the same name as the old traditional volume, you must rename the existing traditional root volume before creating the new FlexVol volume. Do this by entering the following command: aggr rename vol_name new_vol_name Example aggr rename vol0 vol0trad
5	Create the new FlexVol volume in the containing aggregate. For more information about creating FlexVol volumes, see Creating FlexVol volumes. vol create vol_name aggr_name [-s {volume \| file \| none}] size Example vol create vol0 aggrA 90g Root volume You must use the (default) `volume` space guarantee for root volumes, because it ensures that writes to the volume do not fail due to a lack of available space in the containing aggregate.
6	Confirm the size of the new FlexVol volume by entering the following command: df -h vol_name
7	Shut down any applications that use the data to be migrated. Make sure that all data is unavailable to clients and that all files to be migrated are closed.
8	Enable the `ndmpd.enable` option by entering the following command: options ndmpd.enable on
9	Migrate the data by entering the following command: `ndmpcopy` old_vol_name new_vol_name Example ndmpcopy /vol/vol0trad /vol/vol0 For more information about using `ndmpcopy`, see the Data Protection Tape Backup and Recovery Guide.
10	Verify that the `ndmpcopy` operation completed successfully by verifying that the data was replicated correctly.
11	If you are migrating your root volume, make the new FlexVol volume the root volume by entering the following command: *vol options vol_name* root** Example vol options vol0 root
12	If you are migrating your root volume, reboot the storage system.
13	Update the clients to point to the new FlexVol volume. In a CIFS environment, follow these steps: Point CIFS shares to the new FlexVol volume. Update the CIFS maps on the client machines so that they point to the new FlexVol volume. In an NFS environment, follow these steps: Point NFS exports to the new FlexVol volume. Update the NFS mounts on the client machines so that they point to the new FlexVol volume.
14	Make sure all clients can see the new FlexVol volume and read and write data. To test whether data can be written, complete the following steps: Create a new folder. Verify that the new folder exists. Delete the new folder.
15	If you are migrating the root volume, and you changed the name of the root volume, update the `httpd.rootdir` option to point to the new root volume.
16	If quotas were used with the traditional volume, configure the quotas on the new FlexVol volume.
17	Take a snapshot of the target volume and create a new snapshot schedule as needed. For more information about taking snapshots, see the Data Protection Online Backup and Recovery Guide.
18	When you are confident the volume migration was successful, you can take the original volume offline or destroy it. Attention You should preserve the original volume and its snapshots until the new FlexVol volume has been stable for some time.

Migrating a FlexVol volume to a traditional volume

To migrate a FlexVol volume to a traditional volume, complete the following steps.

Step	Action
1	Determine the size requirements for the new traditional volume. Enter the following command to determine the amount of space your current volume uses: *df -Ah [vol_name]* Example df -Ah vol_users Result The following output is displayed. Aggregate total used avail capacity users 94GB 1434GB 22GB 6% users/.snapshot 76220MB 74864MB 6215MB 0%
2	Create the traditional volume that will replace the FlexVol volume by entering the following command: `aggr create` vol_name disk-list Example `aggr create users 3@144`
3	Confirm the size of the new traditional volume by entering the following command: df -h vol_name
4	Shut down the applications that use the data to be migrated. Make sure that all data is unavailable to clients and that all files to be migrated are closed.
5	Enable the `ndmpd.enable` option by entering the following command: options ndmpd.enable on
6	Migrate the data using the `ndmpcopy` command. For more information about using `ndmpcopy`, see the Data Protection Tape Backup and Recovery Guide.
7	Verify that the `ndmpcopy` operation completed successfully by checking that the data has been replicated correctly.
8	Update the clients to point to the new volume. In a CIFS environment, follow these steps: Point CIFS shares to the new volume. Update the CIFS maps on the client machines so that they point to the new volume. Repeat steps 1 and 2 for each new volume. In an NFS environment, follow these steps: Point NFS exports to the new volume. Update the NFS mounts on the client machines so that they point to the new volume. Repeat steps 1 and 2 for each new volume.
9	Make sure all clients can see the new traditional volume and read and write data. To test whether data can be written, complete the following steps: Create a new folder. Verify that the new folder exists. Delete the new folder. Repeat steps 1 through 3 for each new volume.
10	If quotas were used with the FlexVol volume, configure the quotas on the new volume.
11	Take a snapshot of the target volume and create a new snapshot schedule as needed. For more information about taking snapshots, see the Data Protection Online Backup and Recovery Guide.
12	When you are confident the volume migration was successful, you can take the source volume offline or destroy it. Attention You should preserve the original volume and its snapshots until the new volume has been stable for some time.

Migrating between traditional volumes and FlexVol volumes

About migrating between traditional and FlexVol volumes

NetApp offers assistance

Migrating a traditional volume to a FlexVol volume

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Root volume

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Migrating a FlexVol volume to a traditional volume

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