---
title: How to mount an RPN SAN volume in VMware ESXi 7 and later
description: This page explains how to mount a Scaleway RPN SAN volume in VMware ESXi 7 and later
tags: dedibox rpn san vmware esxi esxi7
dates:
validation: 2025-08-27
posted: 2021-11-10
---
import Requirements from '@macros/iam/requirements.mdx'
import image from './assets/scaleway-esxi7-dashboard.webp'
import image2 from './assets/scaleway-esxi7-ssh.webp'
import image3 from './assets/scaleway-enable_ssh.webp'
import image4 from './assets/scaleway-rpn_switch.webp'
import image5 from './assets/scaleway-vmkernel_nic.webp'
import image6 from './assets/scaleway-esxi7-vmnic.webp'
import image7 from './assets/scaleway-rpn_switch_connected.webp'
import image8 from './assets/scaleway-configure_iscsi.webp'
import image9 from './assets/scaleway-datastore_device.webp'
import image10 from './assets/scaleway-datastore_list.webp'
Due to VMware's acquisition by Broadcom, the free edition of VMware vSphere Hypervisor is no longer available on the VMware website. For more details, check out [the EOL of free vSphere Hypervisor](https://knowledge.broadcom.com/external/article?legacyId=2107518). Note that the following content is provided as-is, without any guarantee of functionality.
We suggest considering alternative hypervisors such as Proxmox. You can learn how to [deploy virtual machines with Proxmox on Scaleway Dedibox](/tutorials/configure-failover-proxmox/).
- A Dedibox account logged into the [console](https://console.online.net)
- A [Dedibox dedicated server](https://www.scaleway.com/en/dedibox/)
- An [RPN SAN](https://www.scaleway.com/en/dedibox/storage/)
This documentation covers **VMware ESXi version 7** and later. Follow [this link](/dedibox-rpn/how-to/use-rpn-san-esxi/) to see the documentation for ESXi 5.0/5.1/5.5 and 6.0.
## How to configure VMware ESXi to use RPN
### Enable SSH on your ESXi
1. Log into the ESXi web interface at `https://YOUR_ESXI_HOST_IP`.
Use the `root` user and the password set during installation of the machine to log in.
Once logged in, the ESXi dashboard displays.
2. Click **Manage** in the menu on the left. Then click the **Services** tab to display a list of available services.
3. Select **TSM-SSH**, then click **Start** to activate the SSH service.
### Configure ESXi to access the RPN
#### Configuration in the ESXi interface
1. Connect to your Dedibox server by typing the server's IP address in a web browser. The ESXi login displays. Enter your credentials to log in.
2. Click **Actions** > **Services** > **Enable Secure Shell (SSH)**:
The following warning displays once SSH is enabled: **SSH is enabled on this host. You should disable SSH unless it is necessary for administrative purposes**.
3. Create a new **Virtual Switch** by clicking on **Networking** > **Virtual Switches** > **Add Standard Virtual Switch**. Configure it as shown in the following example:
4. Create a new **VMkernel NIC** by clicking on **Networking** > **VMkernel NICs** > **Add VMkernel NIC** and configure it as follows.
* Make sure to configure Jumboframes (MTU 9000) both for the switch and the NIC.
* Make sure the DHCP server IP is set to `[YOUR_RPN_GATEWAY_IP]` and no firewall rules are blocking external DHCP or iSCSI client packets.
5. Connect to your server using SSH. The SSH credentials are identical to those for the web interface.
6. Locate the MAC address of the network card connected to the RPN (MTU 9000):
```
esxcfg-nics -l
```
7. Export the current VMkernel NIC configuration:
```
configstorecli config current get -c esx -g network -k vmknics > vmknics.json
```
8. Open the VMkernel NIC configuration file in a text editor:
```
vi vmknics.json
```
9. Replace the MAC address of your RPN VMkernel NIC with your server's private interface MAC address (displayed in your Dedibox console interface).
10. Import the new configuration:
```
configstorecli config current set -c esx -g network -k vmknics -i vmknics.json --overwrite
```
11. Reboot the machine to activate the new configuration.
### Setting RPN routes
1. Enter the ESXi web interface, click **Networking** > **Virtual Switches** > **RPN Switch** and check the IP address of the VMkernel NIC. It now has the RPN IP auto-assigned to the interface via DHCP:
2. Reactivte the SSH service and connect to the machine via SSH.
3. Run the following command to add the RPN route:
```
esxcfg-route -a 10.88.0.0/13 [YOUR_RPN_GATEWAY_IP]
```
You can find the RPN gateway either on your server's overview page in the Dedibox console or by following [this guide](/dedibox-rpn/how-to/find-rpn-gateway/).
4. Ping a RPN-SAN (`san-1.rpn.online.net`, `10.90.254.113`) to check if the RPN connection is working properly:
```
ping 10.90.254.113
```
5. Open the file `/etc/rc.local.d/local.sh` in a text editor and add the following lines to it to configure the RPN route automatically during boot:
```
esxcfg-route -a 10.88.0.0/13 [YOUR_RPN_GATEWAY_IP]
exit 0
```
### Connecting the RPN-SAN
To be able to communicate with the RPN-SAN, you need to allow your servers to access it.
1. Connect to the Dedibox console and click **Storage** > **RPN-SAN**.
2. Select the SAN you want to configure and click **Manage**.
3. Add the server(s) you want to access your SAN services to the list. Optionally you can add RPN subnet IPs.
If you use RPNv2, an [additional configuration](/dedibox-rpn/how-to/configure-rpnv1-gateway/) is required to access the RPN-SAN.
While it is technically possible, it is not recommended to allow more than one server at a time to communicate with the SAN. The iSCSI protocol does not handle concurrency: you may lose all your data if you allow more than one server to access this storage.
4. Click **Save** to validate the new configuration of the SAN.
5. Connect to the ESXi web interface of your server.
6. Click **Storage** > **Adapters** > **Software iSCSI**. A configuration pop-up displays.
7. **Enable** the service. Click **Add port binding** and add the RPN Network. Then click **Add dynamic target** and enter the address of your SAN. Then, click **Save configuration**:
ESXi rescans for devices, and you can see the new iSCSI disk in the **Devices** tab of the storage section.
## Adding a new Datastore
To use the RPN-SAN with ESXi, you need to create a new datastore. To do so, follow these steps:
1. Connect to the ESXi web interface, then click **Storage** > **Datastores** > **New Datastore**.
2. Select **Create new VMFS datastore** and click **Next**.
3. Enter a name for the new datastore and select the RPN-SAN iSCSI disk from the list of available devices. Then click **Next**:
4. Configure the partitioning of the datastore. Then click **Next**. A summary displays.
5. Validate all given information and click **Finish** to format the device.
Be careful, formatting the device deletes all data you may have stored on it.
6. The newly created datastore displays in the datastore list and is ready for use: