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Oracle VM Server for SPARC 3.0 Administration Guide     Oracle VM Server for SPARC
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Document Information

Preface

Part I Oracle VM Server for SPARC 3.0 Software

1.  Overview of the Oracle VM Server for SPARC Software

Hypervisor and Logical Domains

Logical Domains Manager

Roles for Domains

Command-Line Interface

Virtual Input/Output

Virtual Network

Virtual Storage

Virtual Console

Resource Configuration

Persistent Configurations

Oracle VM Server for SPARC Physical-to-Virtual Conversion Tool

Oracle VM Server for SPARC Configuration Assistant

Oracle VM Server for SPARC Management Information Base

2.  Installing and Enabling Software

3.  Oracle VM Server for SPARC Security

4.  Setting Up Services and the Control Domain

5.  Setting Up Guest Domains

6.  Setting Up I/O Domains

7.  Using Virtual Disks

8.  Using Virtual Networks

9.  Migrating Domains

10.  Managing Resources

11.  Managing Domain Configurations

12.  Performing Other Administration Tasks

Part II Optional Oracle VM Server for SPARC Software

13.  Oracle VM Server for SPARC Physical-to-Virtual Conversion Tool

14.  Oracle VM Server for SPARC Configuration Assistant (Oracle Solaris 10)

15.  Using Power Management

16.  Using the Oracle VM Server for SPARC Management Information Base Software

17.  Logical Domains Manager Discovery

18.  Using the XML Interface With the Logical Domains Manager

Glossary

Index

Logical Domains Manager

The Logical Domains Manager is used to create and manage logical domains, as well as map logical domains to physical resources. Only one Logical Domains Manager can run on a server.

Roles for Domains

All logical domains are the same and can be distinguished from one another based on the roles that you specify for them. The following are the roles that logical domains can perform:

You can install the Logical Domains Manager on an existing system that is not already configured with Logical Domains. In this case, the current instance of the OS becomes the control domain. Also, the system is configured with only one domain, the control domain. After configuring the control domain, you can balance the load of applications across other domains to make the most efficient use of the entire system. You do this by adding domains and moving those applications from the control domain to the new domains.

Command-Line Interface

The Logical Domains Manager uses a command-line interface (CLI) to create and configure logical domains. The CLI is a single command, ldm, that has multiple subcommands. See the ldm(1M) man page.

The Logical Domains Manager daemon, ldmd, must be running to use the Logical Domains Manager CLI.

Virtual Input/Output

In a Logical Domains environment, you can provision up to 128 domains on a system. Some servers, particularly single-processor and some dual-processor systems, have a limited number of I/O buses and physical I/O slots. As a result, you might be unable to provide exclusive access to a physical disk and network devices to all domains on these systems. You can assign a PCIe bus or endpoint device to a domain to provide it with access to a physical device. Note that this solution is insufficient to provide all domains with exclusive device access. See Chapter 6, Setting Up I/O Domains. This limitation on the number of physical I/O devices that can be directly accessed is addressed by implementing a virtualized I/O model.

Any logical domains that have no physical I/O access are configured with virtual I/O devices that communicate with a service domain. The service domain runs a virtual device service to provide access to a physical device or to its functions. In this client-server model, virtual I/O devices either communicate with each other or with a service counterpart through interdomain communication channels called logical domain channels (LDCs). The virtualized I/O functionality includes support for virtual networking, storage, and consoles.

Virtual Network

Logical Domains uses the virtual network device and virtual network switch device to implement virtual networking. The virtual network (vnet) device emulates an Ethernet device and communicates with other vnet devices in the system by using a point-to-point channel. The virtual switch (vsw) device primarily functions as a multiplexor of all the virtual network's incoming and outgoing packets. The vsw device interfaces directly with a physical network adapter on a service domain, and sends and receives packets on behalf of a virtual network. The vsw device also functions as a simple layer-2 switch and switches packets between the vnet devices connected to it within the system.

Virtual Storage

The virtual storage infrastructure uses a client-server model to enable logical domains to access block-level storage that is not directly assigned to them. The model uses the following components:

Although the virtual disks appear as regular disks on the client domain, most disk operations are forwarded to the virtual disk service and processed on the service domain.

Virtual Console

In a Logical Domains environment, console I/O from the primary domain is directed to the service processor. The console I/O from all other domains is redirected to the service domain that is running the virtual console concentrator (vcc). The domain that runs the vcc is typically the primary domain. The virtual console concentrator service functions as a concentrator for all domains' console traffic, and interfaces with the virtual network terminal server daemon (vntsd) to provide access to each console through a UNIX socket.

Resource Configuration

A system that runs the Oracle VM Server for SPARC software can configure resources, such as virtual CPUs, virtual I/O devices, cryptographic units, and memory. Some resources can be configured dynamically on a running domain, while others must be configured on a stopped domain. If a resource cannot be dynamically configured on the control domain, you must first initiate a delayed reconfiguration. The delayed reconfiguration postpones the configuration activities until after the control domain has been rebooted. For more information, see Resource Reconfiguration.

Persistent Configurations

You can use the ldm command to store the current configuration of a logical domain on the service processor. You can add a configuration, specify a configuration to be used, remove a configuration, and list the configurations. See the ldm(1M) man page. You can also specify a configuration to boot from the SP. See Using Logical Domains With the Service Processor.

For information about managing configurations, see Managing Logical Domains Configurations.