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Dell Unity Configuration Guide

Last Updated

07 October 2025

Overview

This CEE/HTTP-based integration requires a minimum of PeerGFS v6.3 and Unity Operating Environment (OE) v5.4. PeerSync does not yet support this new integration. If your environment does not meet these requirements, you will need to use the legacy CEE/RabbitMQ-based integration. See Dell Unity Legacy Configuration Guide for more information.

This guide steps you through configuring your environment to work with a Dell storage platform in preparation for installing Peer Software solutions. The last section of this guide provides troubleshooting information. The components covered in this guide may be installed on the same server as Peer Software components (like the Peer Agent) or they may be installed on a dedicated server.

The software you will be installing and configuring includes:

  • Dell CEE (Common Event Enabler) framework – Required to receive real-time notifications from specific Dell storage platforms.

Requirements

  • Your Dell Unity storage device must be running Unity Operating Environment (OE) v5.4 or later.

  • If you are installing the CEE on Red Hat, it requires Red Hat Enterprise Linux v9.x or later. CEE does not support Rocky Linux.

  • Local administrator rights are required for most of the installation and configuration tasks.

  • See Dell Unity Prerequisites for other requirements.

Terminology

  • CEE server – A Windows or Red Hat server hosting CEE framework and optionally, your Peer Software solutions.

  • Common AntiVirus Agent (CAVA) – A software service that provides anti-virus services for Dell storage platforms.

  • Common Event Enabler (CEE) framework – A Dell software product required to obtain real-time event notifications from a Unity storage device.  Used to be called Celerra Event Enabler.

  • Common Event Publishing Agent (CEPA) – A software service that provides event publishing services for Dell storage platforms.

  • Multi-Protocol – Multi-protocol allows workloads where some clients use SMB and others use NFS to access the same data set on the same storage system. This enables mixed environments (e.g., Windows and Linux) to access and modify common files without maintaining separate copies.

  • NAS Server – A Dell Unity storage server that uses the SMB and/or NFS protocols to catalog, organize, and transfer files within designated file systems.

  • NFS – The Network File System (NFS) protocol is a network file-sharing protocol typically used by Linux-based clients. Common versions include v3 and v4.

  • SMB/CIFS – The Server Message Block (SMB) Protocol is a network file-sharing protocol; it supersedes Common Internet File System (CIFS), an earlier protocol. SMB is used in this document to refer to both protocols. SMB is widely used in Windows environments, but it is supported across multiple operating systems.

  • Unity – All-flash and hybrid flash unified storage platform.

  • Unisphere – A web-based application for managing the Unity platform.

Configuration Tasks

Task 1. Confirming Configuration Readiness

  1. Ensure that the Dell Unity prerequisites are met for the Peer Software solution you will be using.

  2. If your storage platform (e.g., PowerStore and Unity) requires licensing for the Common Event Enabler (CEE) framework, ensure that CEE is licensed.

  3. Ensure that the Unity storage device is already configured to serve data via SMB and optionally, NFS.  SMB is required for event publishing with CEE. should be able to access an SMB share and optional NFS export from a client BEFORE attempting to continue.

  4. Ensure that the date and time on the Unity storage device are synchronized with any associated domains, as well as the servers hosting the Peer Software solution and the CEE.

Task 2. Installing the Common Event Enabler

Installing the Common Event Enabler on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

  1. SSH into the CEE server (can be either the Agent server itself or a separate CEE server).

  2. Download the CEE installer.  You can download the software from Dell’s support site (requires a Dell account):
    https://dl.dell.com/downloads/93PD1_Common-Event-Enabler-9.2.0.0-for-Red-Hat-Enterprise-Linux---64-bit.rpm
    The minimum CEE version required is v9.2.

    CODE 
    wget --user-agent=Mozilla -O emc_cee_RHEL-9.2.0.0.x86_64.rpm https://dl.dell.com/downloads/93PD1_Common-Event-Enabler-9.2.0.0-for-Red-Hat-Enterprise-Linux---64-bit.rpm

  3. Start the CEE installation using dnf or yum.
    The RPM name should look something like emc_cee_RHEL-9.2.0.0.x86_64.rpm.

    CODE 
    sudo dnf install emc_cee_RHEL-9.2.0.0.x86_64.rpm

  4. If you are installing CEE for the first time, you will be prompted to install CEE.

    image-20251007-162931.png

    If you have already have a previous version of CEE installed on this server, you will be prompted to upgrade.

    image-20251007-163236.png

    In either case, type y then press the enter key to start.

  5. When complete, the install script will automatically exit.

    image-20251007-162422.png

Installing the Common Event Enabler on Windows

  1. RDP into the CEE server (can be either the Agent server itself or a separate CEE server)

  2. Download the latest Microsoft Visual C++ runtime from https://aka.ms/vs/17/release/vc_redist.x64.exe

  3. Install the latest Microsoft Visual C++ runtime.

  4. Download the CEE installer.  You can download the software from Dell’s support site (requires a Dell account):
    https://dl.dell.com/downloads/GKH5N_Common-Event-Enabler-9.2.0.0-for-Windows---32-and-64-bit.iso
    The minimum CEE version required is v9.2.

  5. Run the CEE installer.

  6. As part of the initial setup process, you may be asked to install Microsoft .NET Framework v4.8. This will be handled automatically by the CEE installer. If prompted to reboot the server, do not do so. However, you will need to restart the CEE installer once the .NET installation is complete.

  7. Once in the CEE installer’s wizard, take the defaults until you get to the Configure CEE Security Settings page. On this page, make sure Enable HTTP Server. is checked and Enable AccessList is unchecked.

    image-20251007-163536.png

  8. On the Symantec SAV for NAS page, ensure that no options are checked.

    image-20251007-163608.png

  9. Complete and close the installer wizard. If prompted to reboot the server, do not do so. You will reboot after configuring CEE in the next task.

Task 3. Configuring the Common Event Enabler

Configuring the Common Event Enabler on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

  1. Navigate to the install directory for the CEE (typically /opt/CEEPack).

  2. Open emc_cee_config.xml using your preferred editor.

  3. In the CEPP/Audit/Configuration section...

    Set Enabled to 1

    Set EndPoint to:

    CODE 
    PeerSoftwareCollector@http://<Agent IP Address>:<Agent Listening Port>

    Set <Agent IP Address> to the appropriate IP of the Agent server and <Agent Listening Port> to 9843. If you are installing the CEE on the same server as the Agent itself, do NOT use the local loopback address (127.0.0.1) for the Agent server’s IP.

    For example:

    image-20250826-152305.png

  4. Navigate to the bottom of the xml file and find the Configuration/Security section...

    Set Access/AccessListEnabled to 0

    Set Http/ServerEnabled to 1

  5. Save and close the xml file.

  6. Restart the CEE service

    CODE 
    sudo systemctl restart emc_cee
Configuring the Common Event Enabler on Windows

  1. Open the Windows Registry Editor (regedit.exe)

  2. Navigate to:

    CODE 
    Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\EMC\CEE\CEPP\Audit\Configuration

  3. Set Enabled to 1

    Set EndPoint to:

    CODE 
    PeerSoftwareCollector@http://<Agent IP Address>:<Agent Listening Port>

    Set <Agent IP Address> to the appropriate IP of the Agent server and <Agent Listening Port> to 9843. If you are installing the CEE on the same server as the Agent itself, do NOT use the local loopback address (127.0.0.1) for the Agent server’s IP.

    For example:

    image-20250826-152129.png

  4. If in Task #2, you did not enable HTTP Server or you did not disable the AccessList feature of the CEE, refer to the Troubleshooting section below on how to change these settings in the registry.

  5. Close the Registry Editor and reboot the server.

Task 4. Configuring the Unity Storage Device

The event publishing system on the Dell Unity storage device is responsible for sending event and client activity notifications to the Common Event Enabler (CEE), which then sends notifications to Peer Software solutions.  You can configure the event publishing settings on a Unity storage device using their Unisphere web interface.  You must be an admin user of the Unity storage device to configure these settings.

  1. Open a browser window.

  2. Enter the IP address of the Unity storage device in the browser's address bar.

  3. Enter your user name and password, and then click OK.
    The Dashboard page of the Unisphere web application is displayed.

  4. Click the File link in the Storage section of the navigation pane on the left.
    The File Systems page that appears displays a list of the attached file systems.

    image-20250829-114829.png

  5. For each file system you want to monitor, enable the tracking of end-user activity:

    1. Double-click the name of the file server.
      The Properties dialog appears.

    2. Click the Advanced tab.

      image-20250829-114928.png

    3. Select the appropriate protocols to monitor under Event Notifications. If you are setting up a multi-protocol environment, be sure to check both Enable SMB Events publishing and Enable NFS Events publishing.

    4. Click the Apply button, and then click the Close button.

    5. Repeat Step # 5 for each file system you want to monitor.

  6. Click the NAS Servers tab.
    A list of NAS servers is displayed.

    image-20250829-115208.png

  7. Double-click the name of the NAS server you want to monitor.
    The Properties dialog appears.

  8. Click the Protection & Events tab then the Events Publishing link in the navigation pane on the left.
    The Event Publishing Pool is displayed.

    image-20250829-115352.png

  9. If not already selected, select the Enable Common Event Publishing checkbox, and then click Apply.

  10. If there are no existing event pools, the New Event Pool dialog automatically appears.  If there are existing event pools, click the Add icon to open the New Event Pool dialog.
    Note:  One event pool must be dedicated to Peer Software solutions.  A maximum of three event pools are allowed per NAS server.

  11. Set the pool Name to an appropriate name.
    Note this name as you will need it when configuring your Peer Software solution.
    You will need to add at least one FQDN or IP address to CEPA Servers list.

    1. If you installed the CEE on the same server as the Peer Agent, add a single IP address or FQDN of the Agent server and nothing else. There should be only one entry in the list.

    2. If you are installing the CEE on a separate server(s) from the Peer Agent, add the IP address(es) or FQDN(s) of the appropriate servers.

    image-20250829-115853.png

  12. Click the Configure link for Post Events.
    The Configure PostEvents for New Event Pool dialog appears.

  13. Click Select all, then uncheck the CloseDir, OpenDir, FileRead, OpenFileReadOffline, and OpenFileWriteOffline checkboxes.

    image-20250829-120009.png

  14. Click OK.
    The New Event Pool dialog reappears.  The selected events are listed next to Post Events.

    image-20250829-120120.png

  15. Click the Configure button in the lower right corner of the dialog.
    The configuration is applied, and the Properties dialog reappears.  The new event pool is now listed in the Event Publishing Pool section.

  16. Click the Apply button, and then click the Close link.

Task 5. Installing and Configuring the Dell NAS Management Tool

This task is for SMB and multi-protocol workloads only. The Dell NAS Management Tool allows you to set up SMB user filters on the Dell storage device. In the context of Peer Software solutions, these user filters allow the storage device to not track activity generated by Peer Software services. While this activity is automatically ignored by Peer Software services, filtering this activity out on the storage side reduces overhead on both the storage device and the CEE service.

The NAS Management Tool can also be used to grant backup operator-related privileges to Peer Software services in order to avoid being blocked from files and folders for permission reasons.

  1. RDP into a Windows server that will run the NAS Management tool. This can be a server hosting the Peer Software solution or the CEE service.

  2. Download the Dell NAS Management tool.  You can download the software from Dell's support site (requires a Dell account):
    https://dl.dell.com/downloads/2TNNK_8.1.21.256_VNXFileCifsMgmt.exe.exe

  3. Install the NAS Management tool software:

    1. Run the NAS Management installer as an administrator.
      The Dell NAS Management Setup wizard appears.

      92155b9c-4119-45e3-a314-18e3c454a8a2.jpg

    2. Take the defaults through the wizard until you see a notice about installing the 32-bit version.

    3. Click OK.
      The Select Installation Folder page appears.

    4. Click Next to accept the default location.
      The Select Features page appears.

    5. Click Next to install all the features then Next again to start the installation.
      Click Finished when the installation has completed. 

  4. Open the Dell NAS Management console.

    1. In the start menu, search for and open Administrative Tools.

      image-20250829-122100.png

    2. Open Dell EMC NAS Management as an administrator.

    3. If the Initialize Active Directory? dialog appears, click OK.

      image-20250829-122251.png

  5. Connect to the appropriate NAS Server:

    1. In the navigation pane, right-click the Data Mover/NAS Server Management folder, and then select Connect to Data Mover/NAS Server… from the shortcut menu.

      image-20250829-122523.png

    2. In the Select Data Mover/NAS Server dialog that appears, select the appropriate Unity or PowerStore NAS Server, and then click OK.

      image-20250829-122554.png

  6. Add the Peer Agent service account or SMB Access account (if using multi-protocol) to the EMC Event Notification Bypass and EMC Virus Checking security policies:

    1. Navigate to the Data Mover/NAS Server Management > Data Mover/NAS Server Security Settings >User Rights Assignment folder.
      The list of user rights assignment settings appears in the details pane and includes their current setting and effective setting.

    2. In the details pane, right-click the EMC Event Notification Bypass policy, and then select Security from the shortcut menu.
      The Security Policy Setting dialog appears and lists users or groups that are already assigned to the selected user rights assignment. If no assignments exist, the list is blank.

    3. Click Add.
      The Select User or Groups dialog appears.

    4. In the Look in box, select the domain in which the Agent service or SMB Access account is located.

    5. In the upper pane, select the Peer Agent service or SMB access account, and then click Add.
      The account appears in the lower pane.

    6. Click OK.
      The account is now listed in the Security Policy Setting dialog.

    7. Click OK.
      The account is now assigned to the EMC Event Notification Bypass policy.

    8. Repeat Steps 6b-g for for each of the following policies:

      1. EMC Virus Checking

      2. Back up files and directories

      3. Restore files and directories

      4. Take ownership of files or other objects

      5. Manage auditing and security log

  7. Restart the EMC CAVA and EMC CEPA services on your CEE server.
    Note: Once these settings are in place, no testing should be performed with this service account.

Troubleshooting

Excerpt - Troubleshooting

Windows: Error 1053 When Starting CAVA Service

If you get Error 1053 when you try to start the EMC CAVA service, ensure that the .NET 4.8 Framework is installed on the CEE server, and then restart the EMC CAVA service on the CEE server.

Windows: EMC CAVA and/or CEPA Services are Constantly Restarting

Check that the latest Microsoft Visual C++ runtime is installed. The installer can be obtained from https://aka.ms/vs/17/release/vc_redist.x64.exe. Restart the EMC CAVA and CEPA services after installation.

Windows or RHEL: CEE is not receiving events from storage device

A number of issues can result in this behavior. Be sure to check the following items:

  1. Make sure the CEE server is configured for HTTP.

    1. To enable HTTP on Windows CEE servers:

      1. RDP into the CEE server and open regedit.exe.

      2. Navigate to HKLM\SOFTWARE\EMC\CEE\CEPP\Configuration\Security\Http

      3. Make sure that ServerEnabled is set to 1.

      4. Restart the EMC CEPA service after making this change.

    2. To enable HTTP on RHEL CEE servers:

      1. SSH into the CEE server.

      2. Navigate to the install directory for the CEE (typically /opt/CEEPack).

      3. Open emc_cee_config.xml using your preferred editor.

      4. Navigate to the bottom of the xml file, find the Configuration/Security section and set Http/ServerEnabled to 1

      5. Save and close the xml file

      6. Restart the CEE service

        CODE 
        sudo systemctl restart emc_cee

  2. Ensure that AccessList is disabled. If AccessList support is a requirement for your environment, refer to the Dell documentation on how to configure the IP address(es) of the storage devices that will communicate with CEE.

    1. To turn off AccessList on Windows CEE servers:

      1. RDP into the CEE server and open regedit.exe

      2. Navigate to HKLM\SOFTWARE\EMC\CEE\CEPP\Configuration\Security\Access

      3. Make sure that AccessListEnabled is set to 0

      4. Restart the EMC CEPA service after making this change.

    2. To turn off AccessList on RHEL CEE servers:

      1. SSH into the CEE server.

      2. Navigate to the install directory for the CEE (typically /opt/CEEPack).

      3. Open emc_cee_config.xml using your preferred editor.

      4. Navigate to the bottom of the xml file, find the Configuration/Security section and set Access/AccessListEnabled to 0

      5. Save and close the xml file

      6. Restart the CEE service

        CODE 
        sudo systemctl restart emc_cee

  3. Make sure the CEE server has no firewalls enabled. If firewalls are a must, make sure that inbound port 12228 (by default) is open. Refer to Dell documentation if you need to change this port as it needs to be changed on the CEE server as well as on the storage device.

Technical Support

Peer Software Service Desk

USA               +1 703-763-7700

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UK/IE            +44 20 777 098 22

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