Modifying Containers With a Resource Change Job

Use the resource change job feature to change resource limits on multiple containers that are spread across multiple hosts. These containers must all be using the same container definition. You can either run the resource change job immediately so that the changes are implemented at the same time, or you can schedule the changes to occur later.

Changes to CPU reservations are immediate. Changes to memory caps can take time to write to swap. Any big change to the memory cap will affect system performance while the memory cap is being adjusted.

The following information is available in the Resource Change Job table:

Resource Change Job Name

The name of the job that was provided during job creation.

Hosts

The names of the hosts with which the container is associated.

Schedule

The interval the job is scheduled to run. Options include One Time, Hourly, Daily, Weekly, Monthly.

State

The status of the job. Values include Queued, Succeeded, Failed.

The following example using containers named Webserver and Rollup illustrates how the resource change job feature can be used to manage system resources across the enterprise. In this example, an online store provides order taking from its web site. The Webserver container was created to manage the CPU and memory resources used by the web server across North America. The Rollup container was created to manage the resources required by the database. During the day and early evening hours, web server resource demands are high as people use the web site to place orders. But in the evening, the demand on the webserver typically drops dramatically after midnight. During overnight hours, the database is scheduled to run reports on the day's sales.

To manage the resources required by these two containers on an 8 CPU system with 6,000 Mbytes of physical memory, you could create a total of four resource change jobs as shown in the following table:

Two resource change jobs run every morning at 6:00 am to change the resources for the Webserver and Rollup containers. During the day, the Webserver container is given the majority of CPU and physical memory resources as the demand of the webserver is high. Then at midnight each day a second set of resource change jobs run, and they reallocate the system's resources to accommodate the changing need: the database requires the resources to tally the daily sales while the web server requires fewer resources as demand is low.

This feature is similar to the job management feature found in Sun Management Center, but you should use the Container Manager GUI to administer all Container Manager jobs . For more information about the Sun Management Center job feature, see “Job Management Concepts” in Sun Management Center 3.5 User's Guide.

To Modify a Container Using a Resource Change Job

1. If the Container Manager GUI is not already open, access it as described in To Launch the Container Manager GUI.

2. Select the Containers view.

3. In the navigation window, select the container name.

   The container must be associated with a host in order to proceed.

4. Select the Jobs tab from the right pane.

   The Resource Change Job table is displayed.

   Figure 3–24 Sample: Resource Change Jobs Table

   
   

5. Click the New Resource Change Job button located in the table.

   The Resource Change Job wizard appears. The Overview panel is the first. Move through the wizard by providing information as requested, and clicking the Next button when finished with each panel.

6. Provide a name for the resource change job. Providing a description is optional.

   Length of the name cannot exceed 32 characters. Spaces, dash (-), underscore (_), and dot (.) are all accepted. A space will be converted to an underscore (_).

   The Select Hosts panel appears. The names of all the hosts for which the selected container is associated with appears in the Available list. You can change the resource limits for one or more hosts by selecting them from this window.

7. Select each host from the Available list, and click Add to move each to the Selected list. Or click Add All to move all hosts.

   The host names move to the Selected field.

8. Provide a new minimum CPU reservation. A memory cap is optional.

   The new resource limits will apply to all the hosts selected in the previous step. Use the Previous button to return to make any changes.

9. Provide a start date, start time, and interval for the resource change job.

   The changes to the resource limits will take effect at the requested time.

10. Review your selections in the Summary panel. Use the Previous button to return to make any corrections. When done, click Finish.

    Figure 3–25 Sample: Summary Panel in Resource Change Job Wizard

    
    

    The wizard is dismissed. The job is added to the Jobs table. The status is listed as queued until the day and time when the Job is scheduled to run. The changes to the resource limits will take effect at the time requested.

To Edit a Pending Resource Change Job

Use this procedure to make changes to a pending job whose status still shows as Queued in the Jobs table.

1. If the Container Manager GUI is not already open, access it as described in To Launch the Container Manager GUI.

2. Select the Containers view in the navigation window.

3. Select the Jobs tab from the right pane.

4. From the Resource Change Job table, select the job to be changed by selecting the checkbox next to the name.

   A checkmark appears in the box.

5. To launch the Update Resource Change Job wizard, click the Update Resource Change Job button.

   Move through the wizard by changing information as needed, and clicking the Next button when finished with each panel. For a detailed description of the steps to move the panels, see To Modify a Container Using a Resource Change Job.

6. When done, click Finish.

   The wizard is dismissed. The edits made to the job have been saved.

To View a Resource Change Job Log

Use this procedure to view the log for a change job that has completed. If the job included changes to multiple hosts, the status for the jobs per host is located in the log.

1. If the Container Manager GUI is not already open, access it as described in To Launch the Container Manager GUI.

2. Select the Containers view in the navigation window.

3. Select the Jobs tab from the right pane.

4. From the Resource Change Jobs table, select the completed job whose log you want to view by selecting the checkbox next to the name.

   A checkmark appears in the box.

5. Click the View Log button.

   The log file for the resource change job appears.