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Version: 3.6

Using Pre-provisioned FlashArray Direct Access Volumes

This document describes how to import and use an existing FlashArray volume as a FlashArray Direct Access (FADA) PVC in your Kubernetes cluster. Unlike dynamic provisioning, where Portworx creates a new volume on the FlashArray, pre-provisioned FADA volumes let you consume volumes that already exist on the array.

Prerequisites​

Before you begin, ensure the following:

Use a pre-provisioned FlashArray volume​

To use an existing FlashArray volume as a FADA PVC, create a PersistentVolumeClaim with the pure_vol_name annotation. This annotation tells Portworx to use the specified existing volume on the FlashArray instead of creating a new one.

Create a PVC​

Create a PersistentVolumeClaim spec and add the pure_vol_name annotation in the metadata.annotations field. Set the value to the name of the existing volume on the FlashArray.

If the volume resides inside a FlashArray pod, use the format <fa-pod-name>::<volume-name>. If the volume is not in a pod, specify just the volume name.

kind: PersistentVolumeClaim
apiVersion: v1
metadata:
  name: preprovisioned-fa-pvc
  annotations:
    pure_vol_name: "<volume-name>"
spec:
  accessModes:
    - ReadWriteOnce
  resources:
    requests:
      storage: 20Gi
  storageClassName: sc-portworx-fa-direct-access

The following table describes the annotation used for pre-provisioned FADA volumes:

AnnotationDescriptionRequired
pure_vol_nameThe name of the existing volume on the FlashArray. Use the format <fa-pod-name>::<volume-name> if the volume is inside a FlashArray pod, or just <volume-name> if it is not.Yes
note
  • The storageClassName must reference a FlashArray Direct Access StorageClass with backend: "pure_block". For more information, see Create a StorageClass.
  • The storage value in the PVC spec should be less than or equal to the size of the existing volume on the FlashArray.
  • If the volume name specified in the annotation does not exist on the FlashArray, provisioning will fail with an error indicating the volume could not be looked up.

Mount to a pod​

After you create the PVC, create a pod that references it. For example:

kind: Pod
apiVersion: v1
metadata:
  name: nginx-preprovisioned-fa
spec:
  volumes:
  - name: fa-vol
    persistentVolumeClaim:
      claimName: preprovisioned-fa-pvc
  containers:
  - name: nginx
    image: nginx
    volumeMounts:
    - name: fa-vol
      mountPath: /data
    ports:
    - containerPort: 80

Once you apply the pod spec, you can verify that the pod is running:

kubectl get pods

When the pod reaches a Running status, the pre-provisioned FlashArray volume is successfully mounted and available at the specified mount path.

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