Note
Access to this page requires authorization. You can try signing in or changing directories.
Access to this page requires authorization. You can try changing directories.
This article explains external storage support for Azure Local, its benefits, supported configurations, and other essential information.
Overview
Azure Local supports integration with external Storage Area Networks (SAN), enabling customers to attach new or existing SAN arrays as block storage devices for Virtual Machines (VMs), Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) clusters, and Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) instances.
This capability extends Azure Local's hybrid flexibility by allowing organizations to use enterprise-grade, high-performance SAN infrastructure without disrupting existing investments. External SAN storage operates side-by-side with the in-box Storage Spaces Direct (S2D) solution, giving customers flexibility to choose the right data-tiering and performance model for each workload.
Multiple volumes from the SAN array can be presented as Cluster Shared Volumes (CSVs) on Azure Local nodes. Each CSV appears as a folder path that can be mapped as a Storage Path for VMs.
Benefits
Investment protection: Extends existing SAN infrastructure into Azure Local without re-architecture.
Operational consistency: Offers the ability to use existing practices for management and operations.
Resilience and scale: Dual fabrics, multipathing, and SAN-native redundancy ensure high availability.
Flexibility: Choose between Storage Spaces Direct or external SAN volumes per workload requirement.
Enterprise performance: Uses Fibre Channel-class bandwidth and latency for demanding workloads.
Supported configurations
Fibre Channel (FC) based SAN connectivity and Dell PowerFlex are Generally available.
Fibre Channel based SAN arrays
Bring your Fibre Channel based SAN arrays from leading vendors and directly integrate them into Azure Local clusters for consistent management, high throughput, and low-latency I/O. Each Azure Local node connects to the SAN through dual Fibre Channel fabrics (Fabric A and Fabric B) for redundancy and performance. Host Bus Adapters (HBAs) installed on each host enable resilient, high-throughput connectivity to the external SAN.
Once connected, SAN-backed volumes are discovered and integrated as Cluster Shared Volumes (CSVs) formatted with NTFS, allowing shared access across nodes and seamless visibility for workloads. This configuration enables independent scaling of compute and storage while maintaining unified Azure management for both local and Arc-enabled services.
Dell PowerFlex solution integration
Dell PowerFlex delivers a robust, software-defined storage solution built for hybrid environments like Azure Local.
PowerFlex exposes remote block volumes to Azure Local nodes, which are mounted directly into the cluster and consumed by VMs, AKS pods, and AVD instances as if the storage is local. The solution uses PowerFlex's distributed I/O architecture, offering predictable throughput, low latency, and linear scalability across nodes.
Each Azure Local node installs the PowerFlex SDC driver, which facilitates efficient multipath communication over dual fabrics. Supported configurations scale from 4 to 512 PowerFlex nodes and 3 to 16 Azure Local hosts, ensuring enterprise-grade availability. PowerFlex deployments also employ non-routable dedicated SDS networks, jumbo-frame (MTU 9014) configurations, and NIC bonding/teaming to optimize throughput and failover.
Together, Dell PowerFlex and Azure Local deliver an integrated, high-performance storage fabric that combines Azure operational simplicity with PowerFlex's software-defined resiliency and scale.
Unsupported configurations
Rack aware clusters are not supported with External SAN storage for hyperconverged deployments.
Related content
- Learn more about Dell PowerFlex for Azure Local Integration Guide (PDF).