Automatic Discovery of iSCSI Initiator/Targets using iSNS

The Internet Storage Name Server (iSNS) protocol is used for interaction between iSNS servers and iSNS clients (application servers and storage servers) to facilitate the discovery and configuration of iSCSI devices.

In order to make use of this protocol, an iSNS server needs to be installed on the network and both the iSCSI initiator and target ports need to be registered with it. This topic provides the steps to register iSCSI initiator and target ports on storage servers.

To configure iSCSI target ports to point to the iSNS server:

1. In SANsymphony Console, click the iSCSI Manager component in the console tree.

2. In the left pane, right-click an iSCSI target port and choose Properties from the shortcut menu.

3. In the properties box, click the iSNS tab.

4. In the iSNS Client area, choose Enabled from the drop-down menu in the Mode box.
   

5. In the iSNS Server area, enter the IP address or DNS name and TCP port for the iSNS server. (The default TCP port is 3205, this should be correct for standard environments.)
   

6. Click OK to close the properties box.

7. Repeat the steps for all target ports.

To configure the iSCSI initiator port to point to the iSNS server:

1. From the Windows Control Panel, open the iSCSI Initiator.

2. In the iSCSI Initiator Properties box, click Add… in the iSNS servers area.
   

3. In the Add iSNS Server box, enter the IP address or DNS name of the iSNS server and click OK.
   

4. Click OK to close the properties box.

 

1. In the iSCSI Manager tool, select the MS iSCSI Initiator component in the console tree and choose Properties from the context menu.

2. In the Properties dialog box, click the iSNS Servers tab.

3. Click Add and enter the IP address or the DNS name of the iSNS server to add to the list.

4. Click OK. This allows all initiators to automatically discover the iSCSI target port, eliminating the need for manual configuration.

Automatic Discovery of iSCSI Initiator/Targets using iSNS