HP-UX Virtual Partitions 6.0 Release Notes

1 Introduction
HP-UX Virtual Partitions v6.0 (vPars v6.0) is the new generation of 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. Virtualized I/O in vPars v6.0 increases the flexibility of network and mass storage
configurations, and increases their utilization through the ability of sharing storage HBAs and NICs
between virtual partitions.
Overview
vPars v6.0 is an HP-UX Virtual Partitions product that enables you to run multiple instances of HP-UX
simultaneously on a Virtualization Services Platform (VSP). The VSP is a single point of management
and control for virtual partitions. It is an instance of HP-UX from which you can exercise control
over virtual partitions. 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
Operating System (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. The patch level of each instance of
HP-UX can be different.
vPars v6.0 offers a common manageability framework that is accessible from the VSP. You can
use the VSP to assign resources that includes CPU, memory, and I/O, and manage virtual partitions
(vPars) from the graphical user interface (GUI). The VSP provides you 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 all management of vPars is performed from the VSP
manageability platform, which includes the command-line interface (CLI) and graphical user interface
(GUI). The GUI is available as HP Integrity Virtual Server Manager, and is accessible from the HP
System Management Homepage (HP SMH).
IMPORTANT: This release notes document focuses on vPars 6.0 and does not include content
related to HP Integrity Virtual Server Manager and virtual machines. Currently, virtual machines
continue to be managed using the HP Integrity Virtual Machines software. For documents on HP
Integrity Virtual Server Manager, see http://www.hp.com/go/matrixoe/docs or http://
www.hp.com/go/insightdynamics-manuals. For documents 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 sufficient memory for HP-UX and the hosted applications. The
VSP has similar requirements except that memory for the VSP is allocated first and the remaining
memory is used to create vPars. 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.
4 Introduction