GUI Common Use Cases

Overview

This guide provides step-by-step use cases for common tasks performed in the TS7785 GUI. These use cases are designed for both new users learning the system and experienced users who need quick reference documentation.

Initial Login and Password Reset

User Goal: Access the TS7785 GUI for the first time and establish secure credentials.

User Action:

1. Go to the TS7785 GUI login page.
2. Enter default credentials provided by the administrator.
3. Click Login.
4. To change your password, enter a new password (meeting complexity requirements).
   Note: Passwords must contain at least 16 characters with one letter, one number, and one symbol.
5. Confirm new password.
6. Click Continue.

System Response:

• System validates credentials
• System detects first-time login and prompts for password change
• System validates new password against security policies (minimum length, complexity requirements)
• System updates password in the authentication database
• System displays confirmation message: "Your password has been reset".

Expected Outcome: User successfully logs in with new secure credentials and gains access to the TS7785 Management GUI dashboard.

Configure Virtual Libraries

User Goal: Create a virtual tape library instance in the TS7785 grid that emulates an IBM TS4500 Tape Library.

User Action:

1. Go to Virtual Libraries > Libraries
2. Click Create library.
3. Enter library name and description
4. Select an application type. For example, IBM i, IBM Storage Protect, or Other.
5. Click Next.
6. Define the number of virtual tape drives per cluster. Each drive is accessible via one cluster in the grid. Drives created will be evenly spread over all clusters in the grid.
7. Define the set of virtual tape cartridges in the virtual tape library that are available to all clusters in the grid. A cartridge pool defines membership and behavior such as replication and cloud tiering.
   Notes:

   • You can update pool settings or add more cartridges later.
   • You can add multiple pools/cartridges from the wizard.
8. Review the selected values and defaulted values for the virtual tape library prior to creation.
9. Click Create to create the virtual library.

System Response:

• System validates library configuration parameters
• System checks for naming conflicts with existing libraries
• System allocates resources from available cartridge pools
• System creates virtual library object in the grid database
• System displays success notification with library details
• New virtual library appears in the libraries list

Expected Outcome: A new virtual library is successfully created and available for host mapping and data storage operations.

Configure Host Mappings

User Goal: Map host systems to virtual libraries to enable data backup and retrieval operations.

User Action:

1. Go to Virtual Libraries.
2. Select Hosts, then click Create host group.
3. Enter the Host group name, Host name, and Host port (WWPN).
4. Click Next.
5. From the dropdown, select the library that contains the drives to be mapped.
6. From the dropdown, select the type of drives to map.
7. Click Next.
8. Select the virtual library ports to associate with the host port(s).
9. Review the selected and defaulted values for the host group.
10. Click Create to establish the mapping.

System Response:

• System validates host identifier format
• System checks for existing mappings to prevent conflicts
• System updates host access control lists
• System initiates connection handshake with host

Expected Outcome: Host system is successfully mapped to the virtual library and can access virtual tape drives and cartridges for backup operations.

Enable/Disable/Reload Virtual Libraries

• Make the created virtual library available after the creation.
• Make the existing virtual library unavailable before attempting the deletion.
• Enable the configuration change on the available virtual library.

User Action: At the initial virtual library creation including the host mappings, it is required to enable the virtual library to make it usable once all configuration is done.

1. Go to Libraries.
2. The State must be Disabled. Click the rightmost More options (⋮) menu and select Enable.
3. In the next Library Enable menu, click Enable.
4. The window is back to the original Libraries page. The operation to enable the virtual library could take time.
5. When the virtual library is fully enabled, the state becomes Online.

   When the used virtual library is no longer required and the user would like to delete it, it is required to disable the virtual library to make it unusable before deleting the virtual library and all associated resources.

1. Go to Libraries.
2. The state must be Online. Click the rightmost More options menu (⋮) and select Disable.
3. In the next Library Enable menu, click Disable.
4. The window is back to the original Libraries page. The operation to disable the virtual library could take time.
5. When the virtual library is fully disabled, the State becomes Offline.

When the configuration change is applied to the existing enabled virtual library, it is required to reload the virtual library to make the changes available once all required change is done.

1. Go to Libraries.
2. The State must be Online. Click the rightmost More options menu (⋮) and select Reload.
3. In the next Library Enable menu, click Reload.
4. The window is back to the original Libraries page. The operation to enable the virtual library could take time.
5. When the virtual library is reloaded and fully enabled, the State becomes Online again.
   Note: Reloading virtual libraries immediately after changing virtual drives or ports does not make them usable. Because existing host mappings cannot be modified in the GUI, you must create a new host mapping that reflects the updated drive/port configuration, then reload.

Configure Replication

User Goal: Set up data replication between grid nodes for disaster recovery and data protection.

User Action:

1. Go to Libraries.
2. Select an existing library to see the details.
3. Select the Cartridge pools tab.
4. Click Create cartridge pool.
5. Insert a set of new cartridges into the cartridge pool for the virtual library.
6. Select a replication option.
   • Copy everywhere. A copy of the data is kept on the receiving cluster and replicated to all other clusters asynchronously.
   • Local copy only. A copy of the data is kept on the receiving cluster but not replicated to other clusters.
   • Custom (Advanced) 100% customizable option with advanced features.
7. Configure how data is moved between clusters and where it is kept for virtual tape cartridges assigned to the cartridge pool.
8. Click Create.

System Response:

• System validates network connectivity between source and target
• System checks available bandwidth and storage capacity
• System creates replication job in the scheduler
• System initiates baseline synchronization
• System monitors replication progress and displays status
• System sends notification when initial sync completes

Expected Outcome: Replication policy is active, and data is continuously or periodically replicated to the target site for data redundancy and disaster recovery capability.

Configure Cloud Repositories

User Goal: Create one or more cloud repositories to allow the TS7785 grid to tier data to it.

User Action:

1. Go to Cloud Repositories.
2. Click Create cloud Repository. A new window opens.
   Note: Use these steps to create a cloud repository.

   1. Deep Archive
   2. Connection
   3. Credentials
   4. Bucket
   5. Summary

   Complete each step from top to bottom.
3. Deep Archive: Select the user-defined name of the cloud repository.
4. Connection: Enter connection details.
   1. Select the URL, IP address, or hostname of the virtual data network port on the Deep Archive system.
   2. Upload the S3 certificate.
5. Credentials: Enter sign-in details.
   1. Select the access key given for a user account on the Deep Archive system.
   2. Select the secret access key given for a user account on the Deep Archive system.
6. Bucket: Enter the name of an existing S3 bucket for the cloud repository.
7. Summary: Review and confirm settings.
8. Click Create.

Configure Cloud Tiering

User Goal: Configure data tiering for one or more cloud repositories.

User Action:

1. Go to Libraries.
2. Select an existing library to see the details.
3. Click Cartridge pool > Create cartridge pool.
4. Select Enable in the Cloud Tiering step.
5. Select one or more cloud repositories. Additionally, configure the advanced settings as needed.
   Note: Each cartridge pool supports a maximum of two cloud repositories for cloud tiering configuration.
6. Click Create.

System Response:

• System validates cloud credentials and connectivity
• System tests write/read operations to cloud storage
• System creates cloud storage profile in configuration database
• System initiates tiering engine and policy evaluation
• System begins identifying data eligible for tiering
• System displays tiering status and statistics dashboard

Monitor Grid Health

User Goal: Check overall system health and identify potential issues before they impact operations.

User Action:

1. Go to Dashboard.
2. Review the health dashboard showing all grid components.
3. Check each cluster state and indicators (green=healthy, yellow= warning, or red=error/inaccessible)
4. On the Grid panel, click the more options icon to rename the grid, collect logs, or update GUI/API.
5. Review active alerts and warnings.
6. Optionally, click the more options icon to rename clusters, modify site, allow, or disallow takeover.

System Response:

• System queries health status from all grid nodes
• System evaluates health against predefined thresholds
• System displays real-time health visualization
• System highlights components requiring attention
• System provides recommended actions for warnings/errors

Expected Outcome: User gains comprehensive view of grid health status, can identify potential issues early, and receives actionable recommendations for maintaining optimal system performance.

Monitor Capacity

User Goal: Track storage capacity utilization and plan for capacity expansion.

User Action:

1. Go to Dashboard.
2. View capacity overview dashboard showing total, used, and available capacity.
3. Review capacity breakdown by virtual library, storage pool, or node.
4. Check capacity trends and growth rate charts.

System Response:

• System collects capacity data from all storage pools and nodes
• System calculates utilization percentages and trends
• System displays charts and graphs
• System triggers alerts when thresholds are exceeded

Expected Outcome: User has clear visibility into current capacity utilization, can identify capacity constraints, and can proactively plan for storage expansion before running out of space.

Monitor Host Connections

User Goal: Verify host connectivity status and troubleshoot connection issues.

User Action:

1. Go to Hosts.
2. View list of all configured host mappings
3. Check connection status for each host (online, degraded, offline)
4. Review connection details.
5. Click the more options icon on a specific host to rename a host, modify host ports, export connection information, or delete a host.
6. Review connection error logs if issues are detected.

System Response:

• System polls connection status from all mapped hosts
• System validates network paths and protocol handshakes
• System displays connection state with status indicators
• System logs connection events and errors
• System provides troubleshooting guidance for failed connections

Expected Outcome: User can verify that all hosts are properly connected, identify connection problems quickly, and access diagnostic information to resolve connectivity issues.

Manage Virtual Cartridges

User Goal: Create, modify, and manage virtual tape cartridges for data storage.

User Actions:

• Create new cartridge pools
• Insert new cartridges to existing pools.
• Delete existing pools.

1. Select Virtual libraries > Libraries.
2. Select an existing library to manage virtual cartridges.
3. If additional virtual cartridges need to be inserted from an existing cartridge pool, select Insert cartridges from the rightmost More options menu.
4. If a new cartridge pool is required, click Create cartridge pool button and insert a new virtual cartridges along with the cartridge pool.
5. If additional virtual cartridges need to be inserted from an existing cartridge pool, select Insert cartridges from the rightmost More options menu.
6. If the cartridge pool is no longer required, select Delete from the rightmost More options menu. A pool can be deleted only when all cartridges in the pool are already deleted.

User Actions:

• Restore (insert back) cartridges from shelf to library.
• Delete cartridges from shelf.

1. Select Virtual libraries > Libraries.
2. Select an existing library to manage virtual cartridges.
3. Select Cartridges. It provides the table to describe cartridges in the library and their state such as pool name.
4. Click Show cartridges on shelf. It provides the table to describe cartridges on shelf on the right.
5. When the cartridge on shelf is no longer required and needs to be deleted, click the trash can icon then Delete in the next pop-up window.
6. When the cartridge on shelf needs to be inserted back to the library, click the restore icon then Insert in the next pop-up window.

System Response:

• System validates cartridge label format and uniqueness
• System checks library capacity for new cartridge
• System allocates storage space from assigned cartridge pool
• System creates cartridge metadata in inventory database
• System makes cartridge available in virtual library slot
• System updates library inventory and displays new cartridge

Expected Outcome: Virtual cartridge is successfully created and available in the virtual library for backup applications to use. Cartridge appears in inventory and can be mounted to virtual drives.