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# The multi-array Provision Storage wizard

The multi-array Provisioning Storage wizard simplifies the task of identifying the most optimal target array and provisioning storage on that array.

## Prerequisites

- See Roles and associated permissions to determine the user roles that can perform this task.
- There is more than one array that is local to this instance of Unisphere.
- The local arrays are also registered for performance data collection.

## About this task

Unisphere provides a system-level provisioning launch point that takes array-independent inputs (storage group name, device count and size, and (optionally) response time target and/or initiator filter), selects ports based on current utilization and port group best practices, and returns component impact scores for all locally connected arrays.

To use the multi-array Provisioning Storage wizard:

## Steps

1. Click the Provision button on the storage systems dashboard.
2. Select Any system (the default).
   Selecting a specific storage system allows you to provision storage for that array (see The Provision Storage wizard).
3. Type a Storage Group Name name.
   Storage group names cannot exceed 64 characters. Only alphanumeric characters, underscores ( _ ), and dashes (-) are valid. Storage group names are case-insensitive.
4. Select System Default for Response Time Target or specify the response time target (see Specify response time target).
5. Optional: Add one or more storage groups by hovering over the area to the right of the volume capacity and selecting .
6. Optional: Create a storage group with multiple volume sizes or edit the storage group by hovering over the area to the right of the volume capacity and selecting (see Edit storage group volume details).
7. Type the number of Volumes and select the Capacity of each.
8. Data Reduction is enabled by default in the following situations:
   - When creating a storage group or storage container on All Flash systems running the HYPERMAX OS 5977 Q3 2016 Service Release or later.
   - When creating a storage group on systems running PowerMaxOS 10 (6079).

   To disable it, clear the Enable Data Reduction check box. On a storage group, doing so disables compression for all child storage groups.

9. Optional: Clear the Enable compliance alerts checkbox.
10. Optional: To set host I/O limits for the storage groups, click Set Host I/O Limits to open the Host I/O limits dialog box. Enter values for MB/sec and IO/sec, and select a value (Always, OnFailure, or Never) for Dynamic Distribution. When done, close the dialog box to return to the wizard.
11. Click Next.
12. Select the initiator type.
13. Click Copy Host to extract initiators or Specify initiators to select initiators.
14. Click Next.
15. Click Create new port group or Use existing port groups.
16. For fibre port selection, click Utilization or Zoning.
17. Click Next.
18. On the Performance Impact Results page, review the performance impact..
19. Click Next.
20. On the Review Masking page, review the masking related configuration and modify if necessary.
21. Click Next.
22. Review the Summary page and click Back if you want to make any modifications.
23. Do one of the following:
    - Click Run Now to perform the operation now.
    - Expand Run Now and click Add to Job List to add this task to the job list, from which you can schedule or run the task at your convenience. For more information, see Schedule jobs and Preview jobs.