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Working with iSCSI Target and Initiator to Mount on Clients

Being able to work with iSCSI block storage on servers and clients is becoming a common skill in today's distributed IT organizations. This activity will allow you to get hands on with setting up both an iSCSI initator and target (client and server) in order to mount that block storage on a system. Once you have completed this activity, you will understand how to make iSCSI storage available and then consume it on a system.

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Path Info

Level
Clock icon Intermediate
Duration
Clock icon 30m
Last updated
Clock icon Aug 11, 2025

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Table of Contents

  1. Challenge

    Install the Server and Client iSCSI Utilities

    Since we are using the single instance as both server and client (target and initiator in this case), we can install what is needed with:

    sudo yum install -y targetcli iscsi-initiator-utils

  2. Challenge

    Create the iSCSI Block Device on the Server

    Using the first device on the system of 20gb, you are asked to create a block device that you make available via iSCSI. This will involve the following commands:

    As root:

    [#/] targetcli

/> backstores/block/ create test1 /dev/nvme2n1
/> iscsi/ create iqn.2018-11.com.mylabserver:t1
/> cd iscsi/iqn.2018-11.com.mylabserver:t1/tpg1
/> luns/ create /backstores/block/test1
/> acls/ create iqn.2018-11.com.mylabserver:client

  3. Challenge

    Enable and Start the Target iSCSI Service

    Easy enough to do, as root:

    systemctl enable target
systemctl start target

  4. Challenge

    Create the Client Initiator Name

    We need to add the client initiator name (which we created in the earlier configration ACL for the target) to the /etc/initiatorname.iscsi file, like so:

     InitiatorName=iqn.2018-11.com.mylabserver:client

  5. Challenge

    Complete the Client 'Initiator' Configuration and Discover (Verify) the Configuration

    Within the /etc/iscsi/iscsi.conf file, you will look for, and change, the following values in the file:

    node.session.auth.authmethod = CHAP
<CHANGE TO>
#node.session.auth.authmethod = CHAP

    You are COMMENTING OUT the value. You then need to enable and start the service:

    systemctl enable iscsi
systemctl start iscsi

    Discover and verify you can now see the block device:

    iscsiadm --mode discovery --type sendtargets --portal [Private IP of Server]

    and you should see the target configured.

    Restart the iscsi and iscsid services: systemctl restart iscsi systemctl restart iscsid

    Now make sure you can connect:

    iscsiadm --mode node --targetname iqn.2018-11.com.mylabserver:t1 --portal [Private IP of Server] --login

    You should now see the SCSI device (like /dev/sda) when executing the 'lsblk' command

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