Figure 4.17 Selecting the options for the new iSCSI VHDX target
Note that the whole creation can also be automated in PowerShell using the New-
IscsiVirtualDisk and New-IscsiServerTarget cmdlets. At this stage, you have a
Windows-hosted iSCSI target that has been configured so that specific IQNs can
access it. If the Windows iSCSI target is used to host important data, a cluster should
be used to provide the iSCSI service, which is fully cluster supported.
Using the Windows iSCSI Initiator
While the iSCSI target is built into Windows Server, by default the service, called
Microsoft iSCSI Initiator, is not started, and its startup is set to manual. The first time
you launch the iSCSI Initiator Control Panel applet, you will be notified that the
service is not running and asked whether you wish the service to be modified so that it
starts automatically. Click Yes.
The iSCSI Initiator properties are accessed through property tabs. The Configuration
tab shows the IQN of the client (which can be modified) and allows CHAP and IPsec
configurations. Most of the actions that you need to perform are through the
Discovery and Targets tabs.
On the Discovery tab, click the Discovery Portal button, enter the DNS name or IP
address of the iSCSI server, and click OK. This performs a scan of all the targets on the
specified server that the initiator has permission to access. To connect to one of the
targets, select the Targets tab, select a discovered target, and click Connect. This
connects to the storage and adds it as a favorite by default, which means that it will
automatically connect after reboots, as shown in Figure 4.18. Once connected in Disk