6.11.3 SCP New Features

1. Enhanced Monitoring Metrics
Expanded platform monitoring dimensions with new core performance indicators:
Category Metrics Physical Host CPU Usage, CPU Frequency VM CPU Wait Time, CPU Over-limit Time Storage Disk IO Latency, Disk Partition Usage
Value: Helps operations teams comprehensively understand platform infrastructure and VM running status, significantly reducing troubleshooting complexity.

2. DFW Migration
For VMware cross-platform migration scenarios, supports exporting NSX DFW policies and batch importing to SCP platform.
Features:
⦁Export NSX DFW policies via dedicated tool
⦁Batch import to SCP platform
⦁Generate policy compatibility assessment report
Value: Solves pain points of low efficiency and easy omissions in manual firewall policy migration, ensuring network connectivity and policy compliance during large-scale VM migration.

3. virtio-scsi Disk Support
Added virtio-scsi paravirtualized storage interface, fully aligned with VMware and SmartX capabilities.
Technical Features:
⦁Paravirtualization technology reduces IO overhead
⦁Supports TRIM/DISCARD
⦁Supports persistent reservations and other enterprise-grade storage features
Value: Achieves seamless disk type compatibility for VMware migrated VMs without additional adaptation.

4. Custom Specifications
Supports standardized initialization configuration for Windows and Linux systems.
Features:
⦁Shell scripts
⦁Sysprep answer files
⦁Batch programs
⦁Auto-execution on VM creation, cloning, and first boot after migration
Value: Replaces manual initialization, supports batch VM template reuse, significantly simplifying VM deployment process and reducing operation costs.

5. Memory Tiering
Transparently expands VM available memory capacity by using high-performance NVMe SSD as DRAM extension cold tier. Completely transparent to applications, OS, and VMs.
Use Case: Effectively improves VM density when physical memory is limited, especially suitable for memory-intensive but low-access-frequency workloads.
Prerequisites:
Item Requirement Software Version SCP + HCI ≥ 6.11.3 Hardware NVMe SSD slot required Disk Status Must be dedicated, cannot mix with aSAN cache 
Limitations:
⦁Not supported: ARM, Security Edition (SM), Low-latency Edition
⦁Not supported for VMs with: Large pages, hardware passthrough (SRIOV/vGPU/PCI), ultra-large specs (1TB RAM/256 vCPU)
⦁Hot upgrade not supported in over-provisioned memory scenarios

6. NFS Storage Running Virtual Machines
Definition:
Allows NFS storage to be used as VM system disk and data disk. Prior to HCI 6.11.3, NFS could only be used as backup storage. Now with SCP + HCI ≥ 6.11.3, NFS serves as full production VM storage.
Features:
⦁NFS storage as VM system disk and data disk
⦁Full support for VM lifecycle management (create, clone, migrate, snapshot, backup, recovery)
⦁Supports Virtio-SCSI and Virtio-Blk disk types on NFS
Value:
Expands NFS storage use cases from backup-only to production VM storage, providing more flexible storage architecture options for enterprise cloud deployments.
Limitations:
⦁NFS server must grant root permissions
⦁NFS 4.1 protocol not supported
⦁Multiple clusters cannot mount the same NFS simultaneously
⦁Performance bottleneck is on the NFS storage server itself

7. HotAdd Agentless Backup
Definition:
A transport method for agentless backup where a third-party backup proxy VM accesses production VM disk data via HotAdd, enabling backup and recovery without installing agents on production VMs.
Features:
⦁HotAdd disk snapshot clones to backup proxy VM
⦁Direct disk data access within backup proxy VM Guest OS
⦁Supports full backup and incremental backup
⦁Recovery to original VM or new VM
⦁No dedicated backup data transfer network required (LAN-free)
Backup Proxy VM Requirements:
⦁Must reside in the same HCI resource pool as the production VM
⦁Must have access to the datastore where production VM disks reside
⦁Must have vmtools installed
⦁Must be configured as "DR/Backup Proxy" type
Value:
⦁Higher transmission performance than NBD/NBDSSL (no LAN required)
⦁Business zero interruption during backup
⦁Flexible deployment with multiple backup proxy VMs for parallel backup operations
Prerequisites:
SCP ≥ 6.10.0 and HCI ≥ 6.10.0; SCP must manage the target HCI cluster

6.11.2 SCP New Features

Cloud host operation and maintenance optimizations and updates, including:

• Added new debugging options: support for filtering page files during backup, disabling Pause-Loop Exiting, and disabling kvmclock.

• Support for creating cloud hosts using public images (including ISO and built-in images) from all resource pools.

• Added support for selecting Quick Full Derivation, and corrected the original Quick Derivation to Chained Derivation.

• Single cloud host migration now supports setting the running location to Auto Selection; cross-cluster migration supports automatic MAC address assignment; the task list supports configuring migration disk I/O rate.

• Batch migration supports batch configuration of disk I/O rate, compressed transmission, CPU throttling, and grouping.

• Migration from VMware to HCI now supports CBT (Changed Block Tracking) migration.

• Clone cloud host options enhanced (same configuration options as editing a cloud host) and supports cloning from snapshots.

• Exported cloud host list now includes UUID.

• Supports batch snapshot creation within the same resource pool.

Starting from SCP 6.11.2, the aSV, aNET, and aSEC licenses are adjusted to adopt CPU core-based tiered pricing, divided into three tiers:

• Pro Edition: applicable to all specifications of physical CPUs.

• Plus Edition: applicable to CPUs with less than 64 cores (exclusive).

• Base Edition: applicable to CPUs with up to 32 cores (inclusive).

Optimizations to NetBackup (NBU) backup capabilities, including:

• Removal of backup data retention time limits (customizable retention period).

• Support for two backup policies per cloud host.

• Support for managing up to 100 NBU instances.

• Support for cross-site replication and multi-platform administrator management during recovery.

• Optimized backup time point and backup frequency configuration.

• Support for manual incremental/full backups.

• Added advanced options such as encrypted transmission and MAC address retention.

• Display of NBU Job ID linked with backup details.

• Improved full backup frequency for higher efficiency.