How many storage pools do I need?

This topic provides consideration for determining how many storage pools you need in your environment.

Typically, you would assign volumes to storage pools based on common characteristics, such as device capabilities (or quality of service) or data security.

When you assign volumes based on device capabilities (for example, performance, reliability, and availability), you first need to classify your data and applications according to its value to the business. These are some examples of assigning volumes based on device capabilities:

Storage pools defined in terms of data security would be used to limit access. For example, a medical-records database would be kept in a storage pool whose volumes are zoned to limit access.

Define your storage pool using factors from device capabilities and data-security policies. Creating too few storage pools indicates that there is not enough differentiation in quality of service or security. Because a reserve is typically kept in each storage pool, creating too many storage pools might cause wasted space.

Tip: To ease administration of the storage pools, make volumes in a pool homogenous so that they can be administered uniformly.

Parent topic: Planning the storage configuration

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