5.2

Sizing Formulas for Linked-Clone Pools
Storage-sizing formulas can help you estimate the size of linked-clone disks relative to the free space on the
datastores that you select for OS disks, View Composer persistent disks, and replicas.
Storage Sizing Formulas
Table 5-8 shows the formulas that calculate the estimated sizes of linked-clone disks when you create a pool
and as the linked-clone desktops grow over time. These formulas include the space for replica disks that are
stored with the clones on the datastore.
If you edit an existing pool or store replicas on a separate datastore, View Manager uses a different sizing
formula.
See “Sizing Formulas for Creating Linked Clones When You Edit a Pool or Store Replicas on a Separate
Datastore,” on page 109.
Table 5-8. Storage Sizing Formulas for Linked-Clone Disks on Selected Datastores
Data Type
Selected Free Space
(GB)
Min Recommended
(GB) 50% Utilization (GB)
Max Recommended
(GB)
OS disks Free space on the
selected datastores
Number of VMs * (2 *
memory
of VM) + (2 *
replica disk)
Number of VMs *
(50% of replica disk +
memory of VM) + (2 *
replica disk)
Number of VMs *
(100% of replica disk +
memory of VM) + (2 *
replica disk)
Persistent disks Free space on the
selected datastores
Number of VMs * 20%
of persistent disk
Number of VMs * 50%
of persistent disk
Number of VMs * 100%
of persistent disk
Example of a Storage Sizing Estimate
In this example, the parent virtual machine is configured with 1GB of memory. The parent virtual machine's
disk size is 10GB. A linked-clone pool is created with 10 desktops. Persistent disks are configured as 2048MB
in size.
The
OS disks are configured on a datastore that currently has 184.23GB of available space. The persistent disks
are configured on a different datastore with 28.56GB of available space.
Table 5-9 shows how the sizing formulas calculate estimated storage requirements for the sample linked-clone
pool.
Table 5-9. Example of a Sizing Estimate for Linked-Clone Disks Deployed on Selected Datastores
Data Type
Selected Free Space
(GB)
Min Recommended
(GB) 50% Utilization (GB)
Max Recommended
(GB)
OS disks 184.23 10 * (2*1GB) +
(2*10GB) =
40.00
10 * (50% of 10GB +
1GB) + (2*10GB) =
80.00
10 * (100% of 10GB +
1GB) + (2*10GB) =
130.00
Persistent disks 28.56 10 * (20% of 2GB) =
4.00
10 * (50% of 2GB) =
10.00
10 * (100% of 2GB) =
20.00
Sizing Formulas for Creating Linked Clones When You Edit a Pool or Store Replicas
on a Separate Datastore
View
Manager calculates different sizing formulas when you edit an existing linked-clone pool, or store replicas
on a separate datastore, than when you first create a pool.
If you edit an existing pool and select datastores for the pool, View Composer creates new clones on the selected
datastores. The new clones are anchored to the existing snapshot and use the existing replica disk. No new
replicas are created.
If you store replicas on a separate datastore, the other selected datastores are dedicated to linked-clone disks.
Chapter 5 Creating Desktop Pools
VMware, Inc. 109