Block Storage

• 1: Overview
• 1.1: Monitoring Metrics
• 2: How-to guides
• 2.1: Connect to Server
• 2.2: Use Snapshot
• 2.3: Move Volume
• 3: API Reference
• 4: CLI Reference
• 5: Release Note

1 - Overview

Service Overview

Block Storage is a high-performance storage that stores data in block units arranged in a fixed size and layout.
Suitable for large-scale, high-performance requirements such as databases and mail servers, and users can directly allocate volumes on the server for use.

Features

• Large Volume Provisioning: OS configuration volumes are created with at least the minimum size per image and can be expanded up to 12 TB, and data storage volumes outside the OS can be created and expanded from a minimum of 8 GB to a maximum of 12 TB. Capacity expansion is performed reliably while online.
• High-Performance Full SSD Offering: It provides high durability and availability based on redundant controllers and Disk Array RAID. Since a Full SSD disk is provided by default, it is suitable for high-speed data processing tasks such as database workloads.
• Snapshot Backup: Data that has been modified or deleted can be recovered using the image snapshot feature. The user selects a snapshot created at the desired point in time from the list and performs the recovery.

Service Architecture Diagram

Provided features

Block Storage provides the following features.

• Volume Name: Users can set or modify the name for each volume.
• Capacity: Volumes can be created with sizes from a minimum of 8 GB up to a maximum of 12 TB, and can be expanded while in use. The OS default volume can be created with at least the minimum size for each image.
• Connection Server: You can select a Virtual Server to connect or disconnect.
  • Multi-Server Connection (Multi Attach): Connect to two or more servers, with no limit on the number of servers per volume, and a Virtual Server can connect up to 26 volumes.
• Encryption: All volumes of Block Storage have AES-256 algorithm encryption applied by default, and when a volume is of HDD/SSD_KMS disk type, additional in‑transit encryption is provided for the segment between the instance and the Block Storage attached to the instance.
• Snapshot: The image snapshot feature allows recovery of modified or deleted data. Users select a snapshot created at the desired point in time from the list to restore it.
• Volume Transfer: You can transfer a volume to another Account using the volume transfer feature.
• Monitoring: IOPS, Latency, Throughput, etc. monitoring information can be viewed through the Cloud Monitoring service.

Component

You can create a volume by entering the capacity and selecting the disk type according to the user’s service scale and performance requirements. When using the snapshot feature, you can restore data to the desired point in time.

Volume

A volume (Volume) is the basic creation unit of the Block Storage service and is used as data storage space. Users select a name, capacity, and disk type to create a volume, then attach it to a Virtual Server for use.
The volume name generation rules are as follows.

snapshot

A snapshot (Snapshot) is an image backup of a volume at a specific point in time. Users can view the snapshot name and creation timestamp in the snapshot list to select the snapshot they want to restore, and through that snapshot they can recover data that was changed or deleted.
The following considerations apply when using snapshots.

Preliminary Service

This is a list of services that must be pre-configured before creating the service. Please refer to the guide provided for each service for details and prepare in advance.

1.1 - Monitoring Metrics

Block Storage Monitoring Metrics

The table below shows the monitoring metrics for Block Storage that can be viewed in Cloud Monitoring. For detailed usage of Cloud Monitoring, refer to the Cloud Monitoring guide.

2 - How-to guides

Users can create the service by entering the required information for Block Storage and selecting detailed options through the Samsung Cloud Platform Console.

Create Block Storage

You can create and use the Block Storage service in the Samsung Cloud Platform Console.

To create a Block Storage, follow these steps.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.

2. Click the Block Storage menu. Go to the Block Storage List page.

3. On the Block Storage page, click the Create Service button. You will be taken to the Block Storage Creation page.

4. On the Block Storage Creation page, enter the information required to create the service and select detailed options.

   Category	Required or not	Detailed description
   Volume name	Required	Volume name English letters, numbers, spaces, and special characters(-, _) using to input up to 255 characters
   snapshot	Selection	Select the snapshot to use when creating a volume from a snapshot After checking the Use option, snapshot selection is possible When creating a service via snapshot recovery volume creation, provide the recovery snapshot name If not selected, an empty volume is created
   Disk type	Required	Select Disk Type SSD_Provisioned: SSD volume with configurable IOPS and throughput SSD/HDD: Standard SSD/HDD volume SSD/HDD_KMS: Additional encrypted volume SSD/HDD_MultiAttach: Volume that can be attached to more than one server Cannot be modified after service creation When creating a service via snapshot recovery volume creation, it is set identical to the original and cannot be modified
   capacity	Selection	Capacity setting Can be created within 8~12,228GB Enter the number of units provided in 8GB increments Enter a capacity that is equal to or larger than the original when creating the service via snapshot recovery volume creation
   Max IOPS	Required	Enter the maximum IOPS value between 5,000 and 20,000 Can be set only when disk type is SSD_Provisioned
   Max Throughput	Required	Enter the maximum Throughput value between 250 and 1,000 Can be set only when the disk type is SSD_Provisioned

   Table. Block Storage Service Information Input Items

5. Check the detailed information and estimated billing amount generated in the Summary panel, and click the Create button.

   • When creation is complete, check the created resource on the Block Storage List page.

View Block Storage Details

The Block Storage service allows you to view and edit the full resource list and detailed information. Block Storage Detail page consists of Detail Information, Snapshot List, Tags, Operation History tabs.

Follow these steps to view detailed information about the Block Storage service.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Navigate to the Block Storage List page.
3. On the Block Storage List page, click the resource for which you want to view detailed information. You will be taken to the Block Storage Details page.
   • Block Storage Details page displays status information and additional feature information, and consists of Details, Snapshot List, Tags, Activity History tabs.

     Category	Detailed description
     Volume status	Volume status Creating: In progress Downloading: In progress (applying OS image) Available: Created, server connection available Reserved: Waiting for server connection Attaching: Connecting to server Detaching: Server connection detached In Use: Server connection established Deleting: Terminating service Awaiting Transfer: Waiting for volume transfer Extending: Expanding capacity Error Extending: Abnormal state during capacity expansion Backing Up: Backing up volume Restoring Backup: Restoring volume backup Error Backing Up: Abnormal state during volume backup Error Restoring: Abnormal state during volume backup restoration Error Deleting: Abnormal state during deletion Error Managing: Abnormal state Error: Abnormal state Maintenance: Temporary maintenance state Reverting: Restoring snapshot
     Previous volume	Move the volume to another Account For detailed information about moving volumes, see 볼륨 이전
     Create snapshot	Immediately create a snapshot at the time of creation For detailed information on snapshot creation, see Creating a Snapshot
     Snapshot recovery	Recover the volume using the latest snapshot in Available state For detailed information on snapshot recovery, see 스냅샷 복구하기
     Service termination	Cancel service button

     Table. Status Information and Additional Features

Detailed information

Block Storage List page lets you view detailed information of the selected resource and edit the information if needed.

Snapshot List

Block Storage List page allows you to view the snapshot of the selected resource.

tag

Block Storage List page lets you view the tag information of the selected resource, and add, modify, or delete it.

Work History

On the Block Storage List page, you can view the operation history of the selected resource.

Managing Block Storage Resources

If you need to modify the settings of a created Block Storage or add or remove connected servers, you can perform the tasks on the Block Storage Details page.

Edit volume name

You can rename a volume. To rename a volume, follow these steps.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Navigate to the Block Storage list page.
3. On the Block Storage List page, click the resource whose volume name you want to edit. You will be taken to the Block Storage Details page.
4. Click the Edit button of the Volume name. The Edit Volume Name popup window opens.
5. Enter the volume name and click the Confirm button.

Increase capacity

You can expand the volume capacity. To expand the capacity, follow the steps below.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Go to the Block Storage List page.
3. Block Storage List page, click the resource to expand capacity. You will be taken to the Block Storage Details page.
4. Click the Capacity Edit button. The Capacity Edit popup window opens.
5. Enter the capacity and click the Confirm button.

Modify connection server

You can connect to or disconnect from the server. To modify the connected server, follow these steps.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Go to the Block Storage List page.
3. Block Storage List page, click the resource to edit the attached server. You will be taken to the Block Storage Details page.
4. When adding a Virtual Server connection, click the Add button in the Connection Server field. The Add Connection Server popup window will open.
5. After selecting the Virtual Server you want to connect to, click the Confirm button.
6. If you are disconnecting the Virtual Server, click the Connection Server item’s Disconnect button.
   • Be sure to perform the disconnect operation (Umount, Disk Offline) on the server before proceeding with the release.

Cancel Block Storage

You can reduce operating costs by terminating unused Block Storage. However, terminating the service may cause the running service to stop immediately, so you should carefully consider the impact of service interruption before proceeding with the termination.

To cancel Block Storage, follow the steps below.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Go to the Block Storage List page.
3. On the Block Storage List page, select the resource to terminate, and click the Terminate Service button.
4. After termination is complete, verify on the Block Storage List page that the resource has been terminated.

2.1 - Connect to Server

When using a volume on the server, a connect or disconnect operation is required.
On the Block Storage Details page, add a connected server, then access the server to perform connection operations (Mount, Disk Online). After use, perform disconnection operations (Umount, Disk Offline) and then remove the connected server.

Connect to Server (Mount, Disk Online)

To use the volume added to the connected server, you must log into the server and perform the connection tasks (Mount, Disk Online). Follow the steps below.

Linux operating system

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Go to the Block Storage List page.
3. On the Block Storage List page, click the resource to be used on the connected server. Navigate to the Block Storage Details page.
4. After verifying the server in the Connection Server item, connect.
5. Refer to the steps below to mount the volume (Mount).

• Switch to root privileges

  $ sudo -i
  

• Check Disk

  # lsblk
  NAME    MAJ:MIN  RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT
  vda       252:0   0    24G  0 disk
  ├─vda1    252:1   0  23.9G  0 part [SWAP]
  └─vda14   252:14  0     4M  0 part /
  └─vda15   252:15  0   106M  0 part /boot/efi
  vdb       252:16  0    24G  0 disk
  

• Create partition

  # fdisk /dev/vdb
  Command (m for help): n
  
  Partition type:
     p   primary (0 primary, 0 extended, 4 free)
     e   extended
  Select (default p): p
  Partition number (1-4, default 1): 1
  First sector (2048-50331646, default 2048):
  Last sector, +/-sectors or +/-size{K,M,G,T,P} (2048-50331646, default 50331646):
  
  Created a new partition 1 of type 'Linux' and of size 24 GiB.
  
  Command (m for help): w
  The partition table has been altered!
  Calling ioctl() to re-read partition table.
  Syncing disks.
  

• Partition format setting (example: ext4)

  # lsblk
  NAME    MAJ:MIN  RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT
  vda       252:0   0    24G  0 disk
  ├─vda1    252:1   0  23.9G  0 part [SWAP]
  └─vda14   252:14  0     4M  0 part /
  └─vda15   252:15  0   106M  0 part /boot/efi
  vdb       252:16  0    24G  0 disk
  └─vdb1    252:17  0    24G  0 part
  
  # mkfs.ext4 /dev/vdb1
  mke2fs 1.46.5 (30-Dec-2021)
  ...
  Writing superblocks and filesystem accounting information: done
  

• Volume Mount

  # mkdir /data
  
  # mount /dev/vdb1 /data
  
  # lsblk
  NAME    MAJ:MIN  RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT
  vda       252:0   0    24G  0 disk
  ├─vda1    252:1   0  23.9G  0 part [SWAP]
  └─vda14   252:14  0     4M  0 part /
  └─vda15   252:15  0   106M  0 part /boot/efi
  vdb       252:16  0    24G  0 disk
  └─vdb1    252:17  0    24G  0 part /data
  
  # vi /etc/fstab
  (추가) /dev/vdb1     /data       ext4     defaults   0 0
  

Windows operating system

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Virtual Server Service Home page.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. You will be taken to the Block Storage List page.
3. On the Block Storage List page, click the resource to be used on the connected server. You will be taken to the Block Storage Details page.
4. Connection Server item, verify the server and then connect.
5. Refer to the steps below to connect the volume (Disk Online).

• After right-clicking the Windows Start icon, run Computer Management.

• In the Computer Management tree structure, select Storage > Disk Management

• Check Disk

  

• Disk Online

  

• Disk initialization

  

  

• Partition format

  

  

  

• Check volume

  

Disconnect server (Umount, Disk Offline)

Access the server, perform the disconnect operations (Umount, Disk Offline), and then disconnect the server from the Console.

Follow the next procedure.

Linux operating system

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Navigate to the Block Storage List page.
3. On the Block Storage List page, click the resource to detach the attached server. You will be taken to the Block Storage Details page.
4. After verifying the server in the Connection Server item, connect.
5. Refer to the steps below to unmount the volume(Umount).
   • Volume Umount

  # umount /dev/vdb1 /data

  # lsblk
  NAME    MAJ:MIN  RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT
  vda       252:0   0    24G  0 disk
  ├─vda1    252:1   0  23.9G  0 part [SWAP]
  └─vda14   252:14  0     4M  0 part /
  └─vda15   252:15  0   106M  0 part /boot/efi
  vdb       252:16  0    24G  0 disk
  └─vdb1    252:17  0    24G  0 part

  # vi /etc/fstab
  (삭제) /dev/vdb1     /data       ext4     defaults   0 0

Windows operating system

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.

2. Click the Block Storage menu. Go to the Block Storage List page.

3. Block Storage List page, click the resource to detach the connected server. Navigate to the Block Storage Details page.

4. In the Connection Server field, verify the server before connecting.

5. Unmount the mounted file system.

6. Please follow the procedure below to detach the volume (Disk Offline).

   • Right-click the Windows Start icon, then run Computer Management.

   • In the Computer Management tree structure, select Storage > Disk Management

   • Right-click the disk to be removed, then run Offline

     

   • Check disk status

     

2.2 - Use Snapshot

You can create, delete, or restore snapshots of a created Block Storage using snapshots. You can perform these actions on the Block Storage Details page and the Snapshot List page.

Creating a Snapshot

You can create a snapshot of the current point in time. To create a snapshot, follow these steps.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Go to the Block Storage List page.
3. On the Block Storage List page, click the resource for which you want to create a snapshot. You will be taken to the Block Storage Details page.
4. Click the Create Snapshot button. The Create Snapshot popup window opens.
5. Enter the Snapshot name and description, then click the Confirm button. This creates a snapshot of the current point in time.
6. Click the Snapshot List button. You will be taken to the Block Storage Snapshot List page.
7. Check the generated snapshot.

Edit Snapshot

You can edit snapshot information. To modify the snapshot name or description, follow these steps.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Go to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Navigate to the Block Storage List page.
3. Block Storage List page, click the resource to edit the snapshot information. You will be taken to the Block Storage Details page.
4. Click the Snapshot List button. You will be taken to the Block Storage Snapshot List page.
5. After confirming the snapshot to edit, click the More button.
6. Click the Edit button. The Snapshot Edit popup window opens.
7. Enter the Snapshot name or Description, and click the Confirm button.

Recover snapshot

Block Storage volumes can be restored to the latest snapshot while in the Available state. To restore a snapshot, follow the steps below.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Go to the Block Storage List page.
3. On the Block Storage List page, click the resource to restore from a snapshot. You will be taken to the Block Storage Details page.
4. If there are servers added in the Connected Server item, connect to the server and perform the disconnect operations (Umount, Disk Offline).
   • For detailed information about disconnecting the server, see Disconnecting the Server.
5. On the Block Storage Details page, click the Disconnect button in the Connected Server item to remove the server. The connected server will be removed.
   • For detailed information on disconnecting the connection server, refer to Modify Connection Server.
6. Click the Snapshot List button. You will be taken to the Block Storage Snapshot List page.
7. Check the latest snapshot in the Available state. The volume will be restored from that snapshot.
8. Click the Snapshot Recovery button. The Snapshot Recovery popup window opens.
9. After verifying the Snapshot name and Creation timestamp, click the Confirm button.
   • When recovery starts, the status becomes Reverting, and when it completes, it becomes Available.
10. Detailed Information page button, click it. It navigates to the Block Storage Detailed Page.
11. Click the Add button of the Connection Server. Reconnect the Virtual Server.
    • For detailed information about adding a connection server, refer to Edit Connection Server.
12. After connecting to the added server, perform the connection tasks (Mount, Disk Online) according to the operating system.
    • For detailed information about server connection, please refer to Connect to Server.

Create a snapshot recovery volume

You can create a volume using a snapshot. To create a snapshot recovery volume, follow these steps.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Go to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Go to the Block Storage List page.
3. On the Block Storage List page, click the resource to create a snapshot recovery volume. You will be taken to the Block Storage Details page.
4. Click the Snapshot List button. You will be taken to the Block Storage Snapshot List page.
5. After checking the Snapshot Name, Description and Creation Time, click the More button of the snapshot you want to restore.
6. Click Create recovery volume. The Create snapshot recovery volume popup opens.
7. Click the Confirm button. Go to the Create Block Storage page.
8. On the Block Storage Creation page, enter the information required to create the service and select detailed options.
   • Enter the volume name and size. You can specify a size that is greater than or equal to the original volume.
   • The disk type is set to match the original and cannot be modified.

     Category	Required	Detailed description
     Volume name	Required	Volume name Enter up to 255 characters using English letters, numbers, spaces, and special characters (-, _)
     Disk type	Required	Select Disk Type SSD_Provisioned: SSD volume with configurable IOPS and Throughput SSD/HDD: Standard SSD/HDD volume SSD/HDD_KMS: Additional encrypted volume SSD/HDD_MultiAttach: Volume that can be attached to more than one server Cannot be modified after service creation SSD_Provisioned: SSD volume with configurable IOPS and Throughput When creating the service via snapshot recovery volume creation, it is set identical to the original and cannot be modified
     capacity	Selection	Capacity setting Can be created within 8~12,228 GB Enter the number of units provided in 8 GB increments Enter a capacity equal to or larger than the original when creating the service via snapshot recovery volume creation
     Max IOPS	Required	Enter the maximum IOPS value between 5,000 and 20,000 Can be configured only when Disk type is SSD_Provisioned
     Max Throughput	Required	Enter the maximum Throughput value between 250 and 1,000 Disk type can be set only when it is SSD_Provisioned
     Recovery snapshot name	Selection	Name of the recovery snapshot used when creating the volume Provide the recovery snapshot name when creating a service via snapshot recovery volume creation

     Table. Block Storage Service Information Input Items
9. Summary Check the detailed information and estimated billing amount generated in the panel, and click the Create button.
   • When creation is complete, check the created resource on the Block Storage List page.

Delete Snapshot

You can select a snapshot to delete. To delete a snapshot, follow these steps.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. You will be taken to the Block Storage list page.
3. On the Block Storage List page, click the resource to delete the snapshot. You will be taken to the Block Storage Details page.
4. Click the Snapshot List button. You will be taken to the Block Storage Snapshot List page.
5. After checking Snapshot Name, Description and Creation Time, click the More button of the snapshot you want to delete.
6. Click the Delete button. The snapshot will be removed from the Snapshot List page.

2.3 - Move Volume

You can transfer a volume to another account, and when you do, the volume is removed from its original location. You can perform volume transfer on the Block Storage List or Block Storage Details page.

Previous volume

You can transfer a volume to another Account within the same region. To transfer a volume, follow the steps below.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Go to the Block Storage List page.
3. On the Block Storage List page, after selecting the resource to migrate, click the More > Migrate Volume button at the top left of the list.
   • Or click the Volume Migration button at the top of the Block Storage Details page of the resource to be migrated.
4. When the popup indicating volume transfer opens, verify the volume name you want to transfer, then click the Confirm button.
5. When the pop‑up for previous completion opens, click the Confirm button. The Volume Transfer ID and Approval Key information will be downloaded as a text file.
6. The volume changes to Awaiting Transfer state.

Cancel previous volume

You can cancel after creating a volume migration. To cancel a volume migration, follow the steps below.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Go to the Block Storage List page.
3. Block Storage List page, click the resource to cancel the volume migration. You will be taken to the Block Storage Details page.
   • If the volume is in Awaiting Transfer status, it can be canceled.
4. Click the Cancel previous volume button. The Cancel previous volume popup will open.
5. After confirming the volume name for which you want to cancel the volume transfer, click the Confirm button.
6. The volume changes to Available state.

Get previous volume

You can receive a volume from another Account within the same region. To receive a volume, follow these steps.

1. Click the All Services > Compute > Virtual Server menu. Navigate to the Service Home page of Virtual Server.
2. Click the Block Storage menu. Navigate to the Block Storage List page.
3. On the Block Storage List page, click the More > Receive Volume Transfer button at the top left of the list. The Receive Volume Transfer popup opens.
4. Volume Migration: Enter the Volume Migration ID and Approval Key provided when creating it.
5. A volume is created on the Block Storage list page.

3 - API Reference

4 - CLI Reference

5 - Release Note

Block Storage