Dell Unity

Name: Dell Unity
Author: chrishuffman5

ASecurity

Dell Unity XT midrange unified storage: dual-SP architecture, storage pools, FAST VP tiering, FAST Cache, NAS servers, UnityVSA, Unisphere management, replication, and migration planning to PowerStore. Use for \"Dell Unity\", \"Unity XT\", \"UnityVSA\", \"Unisphere\", \"FAST VP\", \"FAST Cache\", \"Unity pool\", \"Unity replication\", \"Unity migration\", \"UEMCLI\".

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Added 9/24/2026

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Scanned 9/24/2026

$npx -y skills add chrishuffman5/domain-expert --skill dell-unity --agent claude-code

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SKILL.md

---
name: dell-unity
description: "Dell Unity XT midrange unified storage: dual-SP architecture, storage pools, FAST VP tiering, FAST Cache, NAS servers, UnityVSA, Unisphere management, replication, and migration planning to PowerStore. Use for \"Dell Unity\", \"Unity XT\", \"UnityVSA\", \"Unisphere\", \"FAST VP\", \"FAST Cache\", \"Unity pool\", \"Unity replication\", \"Unity migration\", \"UEMCLI\"."
license: MIT
---

# Dell Unity XT

This skill covers Dell Unity XT midrange unified storage running Unity OE 5.x, including:

- Hardware: 380/480/680/880 models (hybrid and all-flash F variants)
- Dual active-active SP controllers with ALUA block path management
- Storage pools: dynamic pools (Mapped RAID), traditional pools
- FAST VP automated tiering (Extreme Performance, Performance, Capacity tiers)
- FAST Cache SSD-based secondary cache layer
- Block storage: LUNs, consistency groups, VMware VMFS datastores, vVols
- File storage: NAS servers, multiprotocol SMB/NFS, file systems, quotas
- UnityVSA: Community Edition (4 TB) and Professional Edition (50 TB)
- Unisphere HTML5 management, UEMCLI CLI, REST API
- Replication: async, synchronous (Metro Node), NDMP backup, cloud tiering
- Lifecycle: AFA end-of-sale August 2025, migration to PowerStore

**Critical context**: Unity XT AFA models are past end-of-sale. The platform is in sustaining mode with no new feature investment. Organizations should plan migration to Dell PowerStore.

For cross-platform storage questions, see the `overview` skill.

## How to Approach Tasks

1. **Classify** the request:
   - **Troubleshooting** -- Load `references/diagnostics.md` for Unisphere monitoring, SP utilization, pool exhaustion, replication failures, UEMCLI commands
   - **Architecture / design** -- Load `references/architecture.md` for SP design, pools, FAST VP/Cache, block/file, UnityVSA, Unisphere
   - **Best practices** -- Load `references/best-practices.md` for pool design, FAST VP scheduling, NAS design, replication, PowerStore migration
   - **Migration planning** -- Load `references/best-practices.md` for PowerStore USI migration guidance

2. **Identify OE version** -- Key versions:
   - 5.4 (Feb 2024): FIPS/STIG recertification, SMB2 disable, MFT transfer channel
   - 5.5 (Feb 2025): TLS 1.2 enforcement (TLS 1.0/1.1 must be disabled before upgrade)

3. **Consider lifecycle** -- Always factor in Unity's end-of-sale status and migration timeline when providing recommendations.

## Core Architecture

### Dual SP Controllers
Active-active. Both SPs process I/O simultaneously. On SP failure, surviving SP takes over all resources. ALUA for block path management. System cache NVRAM-backed.

### Storage Pools
Single pool per system recommended. Dynamic Pools (Mapped RAID): extent-level RAID, distributed spares (~1 drive per 32), incremental expansion. RAID 5 (12+1 recommended for AFA), RAID 6 (14+2 for large hybrid), RAID 1/0.

### FAST VP Tiering
Moves data in 256 MB chunks based on hourly I/O analysis. Policies: Start High then Auto-tier (default/recommended), Auto-tier, Highest Available, Lowest Available. Schedule during off-peak. Size flash tier at 20-30% of active working set.

### FAST Cache
Secondary SSD cache at 64 KB granularity. For hybrid pools only (not applicable for AFA). Complements FAST VP for random hot I/O bursts.

### Data Reduction
Inline dedup + compression on AFA. Up to 5:1 claimed, 3:1 guaranteed for AFA models.

## Lifecycle Status

| Milestone | Date |
|---|---|
| AFA models end-of-sale | August 1, 2025 |
| Software updates | ~3 years from purchase (~2028) |
| Hardware support | ~5 years from purchase (~2030) |

**Migration target**: Dell PowerStore (end-to-end NVMe, 5:1 DRR, scale-out, 4M+ IOPS). Use PowerStore Universal Storage Import for non-disruptive migration.

## Reference Files

- `references/architecture.md` -- Hardware models, dual SP design, pools, FAST VP/Cache, block/file, UnityVSA, Unisphere
- `references/best-practices.md` -- Pool design, FAST VP scheduling, NAS server design, replication, PowerStore migration
- `references/diagnostics.md` -- Unisphere monitoring, SP utilization, pool exhaustion, replication troubleshooting, UEMCLI reference

Attribution

chrishuffman5

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--- name: dell-unity description: "Dell Unity XT midrange unified storage: dual-SP architecture, storage pools, FAST VP tiering, FAST Cache, NAS servers, UnityVSA, Unisphere management, replication, and migration planning to PowerStore. Use for \"Dell Unity\", \"Unity XT\", \"UnityVSA\", \"Unisphere\", \"FAST VP\", \"FAST Cache\", \"Unity pool\", \"Unity replication\", \"Unity migration\", \"UEMCLI\"." license: MIT --- # Dell Unity XT This skill covers Dell Unity XT midrange unified storage running Unity OE 5.x, including: - Hardware: 380/480/680/880 models (hybrid and all-flash F variants) - Dual active-active SP controllers with ALUA block path management - Storage pools: dynamic pools (Mapped RAID), traditional pools - FAST VP automated tiering (Extreme Performance, Performance, Capacity tiers) - FAST Cache SSD-based secondary cache layer - Block storage: LUNs, consistency groups, VMware VMFS datastores, vVols - File storage: NAS servers, multiprotocol SMB/NFS, file systems, quotas - UnityVSA: Community Edition (4 TB) and Professional Edition (50 TB) - Unisphere HTML5 management, UEMCLI CLI, REST API - Replication: async, synchronous (Metro Node), NDMP backup, cloud tiering - Lifecycle: AFA end-of-sale August 2025, migration to PowerStore **Critical context**: Unity XT AFA models are past end-of-sale. The platform is in sustaining mode with no new feature investment. Organizations should plan migration to Dell PowerStore. For cross-platform storage questions, see the `overview` skill. ## How to Approach Tasks 1. **Classify** the request: - **Troubleshooting** -- Load `references/diagnostics.md` for Unisphere monitoring, SP utilization, pool exhaustion, replication failures, UEMCLI commands - **Architecture / design** -- Load `references/architecture.md` for SP design, pools, FAST VP/Cache, block/file, UnityVSA, Unisphere - **Best practices** -- Load `references/best-practices.md` for pool design, FAST VP scheduling, NAS design, replication, PowerStore migration - **Migration planning** -- Load `references/best-practices.md` for PowerStore USI migration guidance 2. **Identify OE version** -- Key versions: - 5.4 (Feb 2024): FIPS/STIG recertification, SMB2 disable, MFT transfer channel - 5.5 (Feb 2025): TLS 1.2 enforcement (TLS 1.0/1.1 must be disabled before upgrade) 3. **Consider lifecycle** -- Always factor in Unity's end-of-sale status and migration timeline when providing recommendations. ## Core Architecture ### Dual SP Controllers Active-active. Both SPs process I/O simultaneously. On SP failure, surviving SP takes over all resources. ALUA for block path management. System cache NVRAM-backed. ### Storage Pools Single pool per system recommended. Dynamic Pools (Mapped RAID): extent-level RAID, distributed spares (~1 drive per 32), incremental expansion. RAID 5 (12+1 recommended for AFA), RAID 6 (14+2 for large hybrid), RAID 1/0. ### FAST VP Tiering Moves data in 256 MB chunks based on hourly I/O analysis. Policies: Start High then Auto-tier (default/recommended), Auto-tier, Highest Available, Lowest Available. Schedule during off-peak. Size flash tier at 20-30% of active working set. ### FAST Cache Secondary SSD cache at 64 KB granularity. For hybrid pools only (not applicable for AFA). Complements FAST VP for random hot I/O bursts. ### Data Reduction Inline dedup + compression on AFA. Up to 5:1 claimed, 3:1 guaranteed for AFA models. ## Lifecycle Status | Milestone | Date | |---|---| | AFA models end-of-sale | August 1, 2025 | | Software updates | ~3 years from purchase (~2028) | | Hardware support | ~5 years from purchase (~2030) | **Migration target**: Dell PowerStore (end-to-end NVMe, 5:1 DRR, scale-out, 4M+ IOPS). Use PowerStore Universal Storage Import for non-disruptive migration. ## Reference Files - `references/architecture.md` -- Hardware models, dual SP design, pools, FAST VP/Cache, block/file, UnityVSA, Unisphere - `references/best-practices.md` -- Pool design, FAST VP scheduling, NAS server design, replication, PowerStore migration - `references/diagnostics.md` -- Unisphere monitoring, SP utilization, pool exhaustion, replication troubleshooting, UEMCLI reference