{"id":396,"date":"2024-02-06T04:34:11","date_gmt":"2024-02-06T04:34:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oracle.human-design.jp\/en\/?p=396"},"modified":"2024-02-27T03:34:29","modified_gmt":"2024-02-27T03:34:29","slug":"20230615","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oracle.human-design.jp\/en\/knowledge-base\/20230615\/","title":{"rendered":"6.Oracle Linux KVM Hard Partitioning Settings"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In the previous article<\/a>, we explained the “Oracle license concept” and “Partitioning Policy” for virtual server environments. You should now know that there are many things to be careful about when using Oracle products in a virtual server environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We also explained that Oracle Linux KVM’s Hard Partitioning feature allows you to optimize the licensing cost for Oracle products. However, you can’t limit the number of licenses just by using Oracle Linux, you need to assign a specific CPU core to the virtual machine in the form of pinning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is also written in the “Hard Partitioning with Oracle Linux KVM<\/a>” section introduced last time, but the reality is that it is quite difficult to actually build it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Therefore, in this article, we will focus on the points to note when configuring. However, this article is for the purpose of operation verification, so it is different from the actual operating environment. There are many things to consider, especially in the production environment, such as availability and security, but in this article, we will ignore these factors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, knowledge of KVM is required to build the environment, but it is not the main issue, so we will only mention it briefly. For more information on Linux and KVM, see the Oracle Linux and Red Hat Enterprise Linux manuals at the end of the article.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Requirements for hard partitioning<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

After reading the whitepaper “Hard Partitioning with Oracle Linux KVM<\/a>” about Oracle Linux Hard Partitioning, perhaps you think that it is easy to carry out hard partitioning using the olvm-vmcontrol<\/strong> command?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The reality is completely different. In addition to using Oracle Linux KVM as a hypervisor, you also need the management tool Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager. And these are quite difficult to set up. In the previous generation of virtualization products, Oracle VM Server, you could set up hard partitioning with just a small rewrite of the configuration file. The current situation is very different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Therefore, we will explain the prerequisite requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Oracle Linux KVM and Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

First, let’s review the basic components.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oracle Linux KVM<\/strong>
Oracle Linux KVM is a hypervisor that utilizes KVM built into the Oracle Linux kernel. You can use the kernel with both RHCK and UEK. As a guest OS, it supports Ubuntu, SUSE Linux, and Microsoft Windows as well as RHEL-based Linux. Note that, there is no product called Oracle Linux KVM, and it is realized by incorporating virtualization packages into Oracle Linux 7, Oracle Linux 8, and Oracle Linux 9.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager<\/strong>
Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager (OLVM) is a virtual environment management tool equivalent to VMware’s vCenter. You can do tasks as needed for your operations, such as managing Oracle Linux KVM hosts and virtual machines. Below, it is sometimes abbreviated as OLVM.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager is based on the open source oVirt<\/a>, and the same oVirt-based management tools are used in Red Hat Virtualization (RHV). To be precise, the open source implementation of Red Hat Virtualization is oVirt. Each has a relationship as shown in the following table.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vendor<\/strong><\/th>KVM Management Tool<\/th>Infrastructure Configuration Management Tool<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Red Hat<\/td>Red Hat Virtualization<\/td>Red Hat Satellite<\/td><\/tr>
Open Source Implementation<\/td>oVirt<\/td>Spacewalk<\/td><\/tr>
Oracle<\/td>Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager<\/td>Oracle Linux Manager<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager is required<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

To pin the CPU for hard partitioning, the target Oracle Linux KVM must be managed by the Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is very important. Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager is not required to manage Oracle Linux KVM. However, it is necessary for hard partitioning. The problem is that depending on whether Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager is used or not, the way it is built and operated is completely different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Linux KVM, you can manage with the GUI tool virt-manager or the CLI virsh. You can also use Cockpit, a web-based management tool. However, if you migrate to Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager, you will not be able to use any of these tools. The base is the web-based Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager, followed by the REST interface.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you migrate to Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager, you will no longer be able to manage it with virt-manager or virsh.<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The following is a summary of the requirements for hard partitioning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • The Oracle Linux KVM host is managed by Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • olvm-vmcontrol is set up in Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
    <\/div>\n\n\n\n

    Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager Architecture<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    The key to using Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager is to understand the architecture. In both Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager and Red Hat Virtualization, the manual describing the architecture is written at the top of the documentation list. This section describes the main components and how to configure them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    <\/div>\n\n\n\n

    Key components of Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager consists of two main components:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    o-Virt Engine<\/strong>
    The main component of Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager, which provides services for GUI and REST API to manage resources. It is written in Java and runs on WildFly (formerly JBoss), a built-in Java EE container. It uses PostgreSQL for data management.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    VDSM (Virtual Desktop Server Manager)<\/strong>
    The agent for the o-Virt Engine to be installed on the managed KVM host.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    <\/div>\n\n\n\n

    Two configuration methods<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    There are the following two ways to configure your system with Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager. In order to build correctly, you need to understand the characteristics of each. For details, please refer to the manual, and we will explain it briefly here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • Self-Hosted Engine<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Stand Alone Manager<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      Self-Hosted Engine<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

      The most common way is to run Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager on a virtual machine on an Oracle Linux KVM host. The diagram shows a two-host configuration, but a one-host configuration can be used when availability is not required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Advantages<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
      • oVirt Engine runs on a virtual machine, so one fewer physical server is required<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Redundancy can easily be added to the oVirt Engine<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

        Disadvantages<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

          \n
        • The oVirt Engine runs on the KVM host, reducing the CPU and memory available to the KVM host<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
          \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

          Stand Alone Manager<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

          With this method, the oVirt Engine runs on a host other than the managed Oracle Linux KVM host. A physical server or a virtual machine that is hosted in a different virtual environment is used.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          Advantages<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \n
          • The oVirt Engine is independent of the managed host, so there is no load on the host<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

            Disadvantages<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

              \n
            • To make the oVirt Engine redundant, a cluster configuration using HA cluster software or similar is required.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
              \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
              <\/div>\n\n\n\n

              Unsupported method<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

              Installing Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager on a managed Oracle Linux KVM host as shown below is not supported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

              \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

              Differences in terminology between Oracle and third-party manuals<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

              When reading the Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager manual, the translation of terms and the organization of the manual are confusing. The following table compares these.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

              Source