KVM installation
Overview
This page outlines the requirements for deploying the Continuous Compliance Engine via Linux KVM, as well as recommended configuration parameters.
Contact a Delphix representative to request this capability. Delphix will assist in assuring that all KVM requirements are met to successfully run a Continuous Compliance Engine with the most appropriate configurations for the use case.
If the Delphix Continuous Compliance Engine compete with other virtual machines on the same host for resources, it will result in increased latency for all operations.
With that, it is crucial that your KVM host is not over-subscribed, eliminating the possibility of insufficient resources for the Continuous Compliance Engine. This includes allowing a percentage of CPU resources for the hypervisor itself, as it can de-schedule an entire VM, in a case where the hypervisor is needed for managing I/O or computing resources.
The KVM ecosystem includes many versions/variations. Delphix is announcing general support for KVM, but will forego any formal certification for specific versions, focusing rather on declared support for specific Linux Kernels.
Delphix disk storage capabilities are based on the backend storage provided. Performance, redundancy, and stability characteristics are determined by the hypervisor or Cloud provisioned storage.
Pre-requisites
The KVM provider must explicitly state that the Ubuntu 20.04 kernel is supported by their variation of KVM.
Most, if not all, KVM hypervisor providers should have public facing documentation that includes support matrices for guest OS compatibility. If the KVM hypervisor provider does not explicitly state support for Ubuntu kernel version 20.04, Delphix cannot support the KVM provider.
As an example, RedHat Linux (a KVM hypervisor provider), provides a publicly accessible guest operating system support matrix. As of March 2024, this matrix does not include support for any Ubuntu guest OS, and therefore Delphix would also not support deployment on RedHat Linux KVM.
Oracle Linux (a different KVM hypervisor provider) also provides a publicly accessible guest operating system support matrix, which declares support for Ubuntu 20.04. In this case, since the hypervisor provider declares support for the Delphix Ubuntu kernel, Delphix will support deployment on Oracle Linux KVM.
A check of the Delphix appliance on the variation/version of KVM.
It is required that a Delphix representative works with the organization to check the Delphix appliance (and/or use case) on the specified KVM variation/version. This check will ensure that the software is compatible.
Virtual CPUs
Requirements | Notes |
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8 vCPUs |
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Never allocate all available physical CPUs to virtual machines. |
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Memory
Requirements | Notes |
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128 GB vRAM (recommended) |
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Memory for the KVM Server to perform hypervisor activities must be set aside before assigning memory to Delphix and other VMs. |
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Network
Requirements | Notes |
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Virtual ethernet adapter requirements. |
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If the network load in the KVM Server hosting the Continuous Compliance Engine VM is high, dedicate one or more physical NICs to the Continuous Compliance Engine. |
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SCSI controller
When adding virtual disks, make sure that they are evenly distributing the load across the maximum of four virtual SCSI controllers. Spreading the disks across available SCSI controllers evenly will ensure optimal I/O performance from the disks. For example, a VM with 4 SCSI controllers and 8 virtual disks should distribute the disks across the controllers as follows:
disk0 = SCSI(0:0) - System Disk on Controller 0 Port 0
(ignore for purposes of load balancing)
disk1 = SCSI(0:1) - Data Disk on Controller 0 Port 1
disk2 = SCSI(1:1) - Data Disk on Controller 1 Port 1
disk3 = SCSI(2:1) - Data Disk on Controller 2 Port 1
disk4 = SCSI(3:1) - Data Disk on Controller 3 Port 1
disk5 = SCSI(0:2) - Data Disk on Controller 0 Port 2
disk6 = SCSI(1:2) - Data Disk on Controller 1 Port 2
disk7 = SCSI(2:2) - Data Disk on Controller 2 Port 2
disk8 = SCSI(3:2) - Data Disk on Controller 3 Port 2
For load purposes, we generally focus on the Delphix storage (data disks) and ignore the controller placement of the system disk.
General storage
Using a minimum of four disks to run your Continuous Compliance Engine is recommended. One disk is used for the Delphix File System (DxFS), to ensure that its file systems are always consistent on disk without additional serialization. The other three, or more equally, sized disks will be used for metadata storage. This also enables the Continuous Compliance Engine to achieve higher I/O rates by queueing more I/O operations to its storage.
Requirements | Notes |
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Storage used for Delphix must be provisioned from storage that provides data protection. |
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