HP-UX Virtual Partitions 6.0 Administrator Guide

1 Introduction
HP-UX Virtual Partitions v6.0 (vPars v6.0) is the new generation of the HP-UX Virtual Partitions
product family. This new version expands vPars functionality to the Integrity blade servers. vPars
v6.0 provides workload flexibility through the ability to add and remove CPUs from a running
virtual partition. Shared I/Os in vPars v6.0 increases flexibility through the ability to efficiently
share storage HBAs and NICs between virtual partitions.
Intended audience
This document is for users having prior experience in managing partitions on HP Integrity servers.
The guide is intended for system administrators responsible for installing, configuring, and managing
virtual partitions. Administrators are expected to have in-depth knowledge of HP-UX operating
system concepts, commands, and configuration, and knowledge about virtual partitions. In addition,
administrators must be familiar with the system console.
Overview
What is vPars v6.0?
vPars v6.0 is an HP-UX Virtual Partitions product that enables you to simultaneously run multiple
instances of HP-UX hosted by a Virtualization Services Platform (VSP), which is itself an HP-UX OS
instance . Each virtual partition is assigned a subset of hardware, runs a separate instance of
HP-UX, and hosts its own set of applications.
As each instance of HP-UX is isolated from all other instances, vPars provides application and OS
fault isolation. Applications running on top of HP-UX using vPars run the same as when run on
HP-UX native-mode (standalone). No changes, recompilation, or re-certification is required for
applications running in the virtual partitions unless otherwise noted. The patch level of each instance
of HP-UX can be different.
vPars v6.0 offers a common manageability framework accessible from the VSP. You can use the
VSP to assign resources that include, CPU, memory, and I/O, and manage virtual partitions from
the GUI or the CLI. The VSP provides control over creating, starting, stopping, modifying, and
deleting virtual partitions.
HP-UX Virtual Partitions v6.0 – the new virtual partitions management
model
Unlike earlier versions of vPars, in vPars v6.0 you can manage virtual partitions using the VSP
manageability platform, that includes a GUI. In later versions of the product, it will be possible to
manage both vPars and VMs using the VSP. The same GUI will allow you to create and manage
vPars and VMs.
IMPORTANT: This edition of the document focuses on vPars and does not include content related
to virtual machines. Currently, virtual machines continue to be managed using the HP Integrity
Virtual Machines software. For more information on virtual machines, see http://www.hp.com/
go/hpux-hpvm-docs.
In vPars v6.0, each virtual partition requires a minimum of one dedicated processor core (CPU),
one network port, one root disk, and memory sufficient for HP-UX and the hosted applications. The
VSP also has similar requirements. In terms of scalability, it is possible to create 31 vPars in an
eight socket 32 core BL890c i2 with each vPar having one dedicated physical processor core, or
to create a single vPar with 31 cores on that same server. vPars v6.0 is only supported on BL8x0c
i2 servers. A future release of the product is expected to support Superdome2 and rx2800 i2
servers.
Overview 5