Which virtual device is typically used to connect a VM to a storage network?

Which virtual device is typically used to connect a VM to a storage network?

• A. Virtual HBA
• B. Virtual NIC
• C. Virtual Switch
• D. Virtual Router

Answer: (A)

The VM connects to a storage network through a virtual HBA because this emulates a host bus adapter that talks storage protocols (like SCSI over Fibre Channel or iSCSI) to the storage array. This gives the VM direct access to LUNs on the SAN by presenting a storage interface the OS can use for I/O. A virtual NIC handles network traffic over Ethernet, not storage. A virtual switch simply connects virtual NICs within the host for network traffic. A virtual router handles traffic routing between networks, not storage access. Even when storage traffic can traverse IP networks (as with iSCSI), the VM’s storage I/O is presented through a virtual HBA to talk to the storage fabric, making the virtual HBA the correct choice.

The VM connects to a storage network through a virtual HBA because this emulates a host bus adapter that talks storage protocols (like SCSI over Fibre Channel or iSCSI) to the storage array. This gives the VM direct access to LUNs on the SAN by presenting a storage interface the OS can use for I/O.

A virtual NIC handles network traffic over Ethernet, not storage. A virtual switch simply connects virtual NICs within the host for network traffic. A virtual router handles traffic routing between networks, not storage access. Even when storage traffic can traverse IP networks (as with iSCSI), the VM’s storage I/O is presented through a virtual HBA to talk to the storage fabric, making the virtual HBA the correct choice.