HP Matrix 7.2 KVM Private Cloud Getting Started Guide

1 Overview of the HP Matrix KVM Private Cloud
HP Matrix KVM Private Cloud, new in Insight Management 7.2, is the next generation of HP
CloudSystem Matrix providing an integrated hardware, software and services solution that allows
you to realize the value of cloud computing. Matrix KVM Private Cloud enables the provisioning
of virtual machine instances on KVM (Linux kernel-based virtual machine) hosts in a virtual data
center (a cloud) using Matrix infrastructure orchestration templates and self-service portal processes.
Some advantages of this solution include automatic detection and accelerated integration of KVM
hosts, and a health monitoring subsystem that provides up-to-date information about KVM hosts.
Matrix KVM Private Cloud has adopted OpenStack, an open-source technology for cloud computing
software, to build cloud solutions deployed by enterprises and service providers.
The Matrix KVM Private Cloud environment consists of:
• A management appliance running the HP Matrix KVM Admin Console. The appliance is
hosted on a single KVM management host or a two-node failover KVM management cluster
in a high availability design.
• A set of compute nodes under the exclusive control of the management appliance. The compute
nodes run on physical servers hosting Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.3 Kernel Virtual Machines.
Features
The Matrix KVM Admin Console allows you to prepare operating system images (OS images) and
pools of IP (Internet Protocol) addresses for use in deploying KVM (Kernel Virtual Machine) instances
to a virtual data center (a cloud) for private use, and to manage the VM hosts and deployed
instances.
The OS images can be viewed in HP Matrix Operating Environment infrastructure orchestration
software for use in virtual machine provisioning and deployment to a cloud of VM hosts that the
Matrix KVM Admin Console manages.
In turn, an Infrastructure Administrator can use the Matrix KVM Admin Console to view the state
of the deployed virtual servers.
Features of this release of the Matrix KVM Admin Console include:
• User authentication and authorization. With the KVM Admin Console appliance, you can add
privileged users and define user accounts to be used by Matrix Operating Environment to
connect to Matrix KVM Private Cloud. User privileges are associated with the role assigned
to the user by the Infrastructure Administrator, and users are authenticated locally based on
the unique information that the Infrastructure Administrator enters for each user.
• Appliance network configuration and update. As Infrastructure Administrator, you can configure
the appliance network in the Matrix KVM Admin Console.
• Cloud network configuration and update. As Infrastructure Administrator, you can configure
the cloud network in the Matrix KVM Admin Console.
• OS image upload, creation and management. Use the Matrix KVM Admin Console to define
the attributes of the OS image you want to deploy to virtual machines. A created image is a
snapshot of an active instance. From the Images panel, you can also track which images are
in use and on which virtual servers.
• IP address pool management. As Infrastructure Administrator, you can define the network used
with virtual machines and the pool of IP addresses.
6 Overview of the HP Matrix KVM Private Cloud