Top 10 things you must read about processors (CPUs) and virtualization
The CPU is the heart of an ESX host server as it provides the processing muscle for all the virtual machines competing for this valuable resource. Therefore it is important to know how physical processors compare to virtual processors and how CPU scheduling occurs on an ESX host. It’s also important to understand the new processor virtualization technologies from both Intel and AMD that offer many benefits to virtualized workloads. The items on this list include documents that cover how the CPU scheduler works, when to use virtual SMP, choosing between Intel and AMD processors and white papers from Intel and AMD describing their new processor virtualization technologies.
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1
ESX Server CPU Scheduling (VMworld 2007)
http://vmworld.com/vmworld/mylearn?classID=11026
A VMworld 2007 presentation (free registration required) on CPU scheduling that covers how it works, performance tips, how to use ESXTOP for analysis and using resource controls.
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2
ESX Server 2 Best Practices Using Vmware Virtual SMP
http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vsmp_best_practices.pdf
A white paper from VMware that provides information on when and when not to use vSMP with virtual machines and also covers best practices for using vSMP.
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3
AMD-VTM Nested Paging
http://developer.amd.com/assets/NPT-WP-1%201-final-TM.pdf
A white paper from AMD that discusses the existing software-based paging virtualization solutions and their associated performance overheads. It also introduces AMD-VTM Rapid Virtualization Indexing technology (nested paging) and highlights its advantages and demonstrates the performance uplift that may be seen with nested paging.
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4
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT) in Converged Application Platforms
http://www3.intel.com/design/intarch/papers/316337.pdf
A white paper from Intel that describes the architecture behind Intel's VT technology and how it can benefit virtualized applications.
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5
Intel, AMD, VMware and Aircrafts
http://it20.info/blogs/main/archive/2007/10/15/68.aspx
A great article from Massimo Re Ferre that covers the important things that you should now when choosing between Intel and AMD processors for your servers.
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6
ESX scheduler support for SMP VMs: co-scheduling and more
http://blogs.vmware.com/performance/2008/06/esx-scheduler-s.html
A good blog post from VMware's VROOM performance team on using multi-processor VMs and how CPU co-scheduling works in ESX.
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Co-scheduling SMP VMs in VMware ESX Server
http://communities.vmware.com/docs/DOC-4960
A document from VMware that explains what CPU co-scheduling is, how it works and the differences between strict and relaxed co-scheduling.
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8
VMkernel Scheduler
http://communities.vmware.com/docs/DOC-5501
A document from VMware that provides details on how the VMkernel CPU scheduler works.
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9
How to be a Good Guest - (VMworld 2007)
http://vmworld.com/vmworld/mylearn?classID=11698
A VMworld 2007 presentation (free registration required) given by AMD that covers CPU features and the challenges of using VMotion across different CPU types and how badly written software can cause problems.
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10
ESX Server 3 Ready Time Observations
http://www.vmware.com/pdf/esx3_ready_time.pdf
A white paper from VMware that covers what ready time is, how it affects CPU scheduling, how to measure it and interpret the measurements.
