HP-UX vPars and Integrity VM V6.1.5 Administrator Guide (5900-2295, April 2013)

9.2 Configuring vPar/VM storage
This section describes how to plan and set up vPar/VM storage, including the following topics:
• Storage considerations
• Setting up virtual storage
9.2.1 Storage considerations
When you configure storage for a vPar/VM, consider the following:
• Storage supportability
• Storage performance
• Storage multipath solutions
• Storage management
• Storage changes
• Virtual storage setup time
The following sections explain each of these considerations.
9.2.1.1 Storage supportability
Before you configure vPar/VM storage, make sure the VSP storage can be supported by the
vPar/VM.
• All VSP storage available for use by a vPar/VM must meet support requirements for the Integrity
server and OS version that comprise the VSP. If the physical storage is not supported by the
VSP, it is not supported for use by a vPar/VM.
• All VSP storage available for use by a vPar/VM must be connected with a supported adapter
and driver type. See the HP-UX vPars and Integrity VM V6.1.5 Release Notes for the list of
supported types.
If the physical storage is not connected with one of the supported adapter and driver types,
it cannot be used by a vPar/VM. Use the ioscan command to display the VSP storage that
is connected to adapters and drivers.
• Any VSP attachable devices available for use by a vPar/VM must be supported by the guest
OS to which it is attached. If the physical device is not supported by the guest OS, the device
cannot be attached to the vPar/VM.
9.2.1.2 Performance of virtual devices
To meet the performance requirements of applications running in vPars/VMs, consider the potential
performance of each type of vPar/VM storage device.
Different types of virtual media have different effects on the performance of the virtual device
because they communicate differently with the VSP to complete vPar/VM I/O operations. To
understand the effect of the virtual device type on potential performance, consider the vPar/VM
storage I/O stack illustrated in Figure 5.
118 Creating virtual storage devices