Using Dynamic Volumes

Dynamic volume provisioning is suitable for scenarios where PVs need to be automatically created based on workload storage requests. You must first prepare a StorageClass, then create a PVC that references the StorageClass. The storage plugin creates and binds a PV according to the PVC configuration.

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Pre-Operation Confirmation

• The CKS cluster has installed the CSI driver or storage plugin for the target storage backend.
• When creating a GPFS StorageClass on the Volume Template tab, ensure that scitix-csi-plugin is installed on the cluster and that an available GPFS file system exists.

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Create or Select a StorageClass

If the cluster already has a StorageClass that meets your requirements, note its name and continue creating the PVC. When creating a new StorageClass for GPFS, use a volume template whenever possible. Create a StorageClass manually only if you have obtained the CSI driver and all its parameters.

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Create a GPFS StorageClass Using a Volume Template

1. Log in to the GPU Cloud console and go to the Clusters page.
2. On the Clusters page, click the target cluster name to open the cluster workspace.
3. In the left navigation pane, go to the Storage page and switch to the Volume Template tab.
4. Click Create GPFS StorageClass to configure the StorageClass.

   Parameter	Description
   File system	Select the GPFS file system used to create dynamic storage volumes.
   FS path	Specify the path in the file system for creating storage volumes, for example, /gpfs/data.
   StorageClass name	Specify the StorageClass name. When creating a PVC, use this name in storageClassName.
   Reclaim policy	Select how dynamically provisioned PVs are reclaimed after a PVC is deleted. Before selecting Delete, confirm that the backend data is no longer needed. After selecting Retain, an administrator must further handle the retained PVs and data.
   Archive when deleted	Select whether to archive data upon deletion based on data retention requirements. Before enabling this option, confirm the archive location and recovery method.

5. Click Create.

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Create a Custom StorageClass

Creating a custom StorageClass is suitable when you have obtained a complete configuration from the storage administrator or CSI plugin documentation. If the parameters are incomplete, use a volume template to avoid creating a StorageClass that cannot create storage volumes properly.

1. Log in to the GPU Cloud console and go to the Clusters page.
2. On the Clusters page, click the name of the target cluster to open the cluster workspace.
3. In the left navigation pane, go to the Storage page, switch to the StorageClass tab, and click Create.
4. Set Name and enter the StorageClass configuration in Spec (YAML). The following YAML shows the basic structure of a StorageClass. Replace the placeholders with the actual values required by the CSI driver, and add parameters as needed.
   provisioner: <CSI_PROVISIONER_NAME>
   parameters:
     <PARAMETER_NAME>: <PARAMETER_VALUE>
   reclaimPolicy: Retain
   mountOptions: []
   volumeBindingMode: Immediate
   
5. Click Create.

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Create a PVC

1. On the Storage page, switch to the PVC tab and click Create.
2. Configure the PVC.

   Parameter	Description
   Name	Set the PVC name. Workloads reference the PVC by this name.
   Namespace	Select the namespace to which the PVC belongs. The PVC and the workloads that reference it must be in the same namespace.
   Spec (YAML)	Enter the PVC’s metadata and spec. Do not enter apiVersion or kind.

   Replace storageClassName with the name of the StorageClass selected or created in the previous step, and adjust the capacity and access mode as needed.
   metadata:
     labels: {}
     annotations: {}
   spec:
     accessModes:
       - ReadWriteOnce
     resources:
       requests:
         storage: 50Gi
     storageClassName: gpfs-dynamic
     volumeMode: Filesystem
   
3. Click Create.
4. Return to the PVC tab and confirm that the PVC status changes to Bound. After the status changes to Bound, it indicates that the storage plugin has created a PV and that the PV has been bound to the PVC.

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Next Actions

After the PVC status becomes Bound, you can mount persistent storage to a workload. When you no longer need the PVC or PV, see Clean up persistent storage resources.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What should I do if a PVC remains in Pending status for an extended period?

Ensure that the StorageClass corresponding to storageClassName exists, and check whether the CSI driver or storage plugin is installed and functioning properly. If GPFS is used, also ensure that the target file system and the path for creation are available.