Managing stores
A store is the logical name for the physical location of the vDisk folder. This folder can exist on a local server or on shared storage. When vDisks files are created in the Console, they are assigned to a store. Within a site, one or more Provisioning Servers are given permission to access that store to serve vDisks to target devices.
A Provisioning Server checks the database for the Store name and the physical location where the vDisk resides, to provide it to the target device
Separating the physical paths to a vDisks storage location allows for greater flexibility within a farm configuration, particularly if the farm is configured to be highly available. In a highly available implementation, if the active Provisioning Server in a site fails, the target device can get its vDisk from another Provisioning Server that has access to the store and permissions to serve the vDisk.
If necessary, copies of vDisks can be maintained on a secondary shared-storage location when the connection to the primary shared-storage location is lost. In this case, the default path can be set in the store properties if all Provisioning Servers can use the same path to access the store. If a particular server cannot use the path because the default path is not valid for that server an override path can be set in the store properties for that particular server. Provisioning Servers use either the default path or the override path if it does exists in the database.
Store administrative privileges
Stores are defined and managed at the farm level by a farm administrator. Access or visibility to a store depends on the users administrative privileges:
- Farm Administrators have full access to all stores within the farm
- Site Administrators have access to only those stores owned by the site
- Device Administrators and Device Operators have read-only access. Site Administrators have read-only access if that store exists at the farm level, or if that store belongs to another site.
Creating a store
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In the Console tree, right-click on Stores, then select the Create store menu option. The Store Properties dialog appears.
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On the General tab, type the store name (logical name for this storage location) and a description of this store.
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Optionally, select the site that acts as owner of this store. Otherwise, accept the default <None> so that only farm administrators can manage this store.
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On the Servers tab, select a site from the list. All Provisioning Servers in that site appear.
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Check the box next to each server that is permitted to access this store. If the store is only for a specific site, only those servers within that site are valid selections. Also, if the default path is not valid for a selected server, an override path must be defined for that server on the Server Properties dialogs Store tab. Repeat this step for each site if necessary. (If this procedure is performed by a site administrator, only those sites that they administer appear.)
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On the Paths dialog, type or browse for the default path for this store (physical location of the vDisk folder). Optionally, a new folder can be created by clicking the browse button, and then clicking Create New Folder. If the user is a site administrator, only those sites that they administer appear in the list.
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The write cache path for the selected store display under the paths list. Optionally, a new store cache folder can be created by clicking the browse button, and then clicking Create New Folder. More write cache paths can be added for use by the store by clicking Add. Entering more than one write cache paths allows for vDisk load to be distributed to physically different drives. When a target device first connects, the Stream Service picks from the list. If using HA, the order of the write-cache paths for any override paths in store properties for that server must match the order of the write-cache paths specified here.
If a write cache path is not selected and the OK button is clicked, the user is prompted to create the default write cache path. Click OK on this message to create the default write cache path (C:\pvsstore\WriteCache).
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After configuring the store and paths, click Validate to open the Validate Store Paths dialog and validate the path settings.
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Under the Status column, view the path validation results. Click Close to close this dialog and return to the Store Properties dialog to make any necessary changes or to continue.
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Click OK to save Property settings.
Store properties
A store can be created when the Configuration Wizard is run or in the Store Properties dialog. Use the Store Properties dialog to:
- Name and provide a description of the store
- Select the owner of the store (the site which manages the store)
- Provide a default path to the store (physical path to the vDisk)
- Define default write cache paths for this store
- Select the servers that can provide this store
After a store is created, Store information is saved in the Provisioning Services database. Each site has one vDisk Pool, which is a collection of vDisk information required by Provisioning Servers that provide vDisks in that site. The vDisk information can be added to the vDisk pool using the vDisk Properties dialog or by scanning a store for new vDisks that have not yet been added to the database.
The Store Properties dialog includes the following tabs:
General
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | View, type the logical name for this store. For example, PVS-1. |
| Description | View or type a description of this store. |
| Site that acts as owner of this store | Optional. View or scroll to select the site that acts as owner of this store. This feature allows a farm administrator to give one site’s administrators, special permission to manage the store. These rights are normally reserved for farm administrators. |
Paths
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Default store path | View, type, or browse for the physical path to the vDisk folder that this store represents. The default path is used by all Provisioning Servers that do not have an override store path set. Note: If setting an override store path on the Server’s Properties dialog, the path must be set prior to creating a version of the vDisk. Because this path information is stored and referenced in the .vhdx header information, changing the path after versioning may cause unexpected results. |
| Default write cache paths | View, add, edit, remove, or move the default write cache paths for this store. Entering more than one write cache path allows for vDisk load to be distributed to physically different drives. When a target device first connects, the Stream Service picks from the list. The order of the write cache paths, for any override paths in the server store properties, must match the order of the write cache paths specified here. |
| Validate | Click to validate store path selections from the Validate Store Paths dialog. The validation results display under the Status column. |
Servers
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Site | View or scroll to select the site where Provisioning Servers that can access this store exist (multiple sites can access the same store). |
| Servers that provide this store | All Provisioning Servers within the selected site display in this list. Check the box next to all servers that are permitted to access this store. If the store is only for a specific site, only those servers within that site are valid selections. |
| Validate | Click to validate store path selections from the Validate Store Paths dialog. The validation results display under the Status column. |