Some of the growing challenges for the companies in managing IT infrastructure include cutting down or sharing server resources (such as CPU, memory, IO) reducing power cooling cost and reducing server rack unit space. IBM POWERVM technology which was introduced in POWER6 systems helps in consolidating servers by virtualizing CPU, memory and IO adapter resources. It helps in managing servers efficiently by improving performance and availability of the servers.
CPU Virtualization is achieved through technology called micropartitioning which was introduced in POWER5 systems. Micropartitioning is the process in which a physical CPU can be segmented and shared across multiple logical partitions (LPAR). Memory sharing is achieved through Active Memory Sharing (AMS) setup between VIO and LPARs. For AMS, POWERVM Enterprise edition is needed. IO adapter can be virtualized using Virtual I/O servers (VIO) by creating and configuring the following:
1. Virtual SCSI adapter for virtualizing local or SAN drives.
2. Shared Ethernet Adapter for virtualizing ethernet adapters.
3. NPIV (N-Port ID Virtualization) for virtualizing HBA (Host Bus Adapters).
I'll talk about the steps involved in creating and configuring these virtual adapters in the upcoming posts.
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