Step-by-step Virtualization

configuration on an IBM eServer

pSeries server, part 2:

configure client partitions

by:

Nam Keung

Terry Wang

Balaji Atyam

IBM eServer Solutions Enablement

May 2005

© Copyright IBM Corporation, 2005. All Rights Reserved.

All trademarks or registered trademarks mentioned herein are the property of their respective

holders.

 Table of contents

Abstract ..............................................................................................................................1

Introduction........................................................................................................................1

Setup scenario ..................................................................................................................1

POWER5 machine type and hardware structure ....................................................1

Create client partitions .....................................................................................................2

Modify the VIO Server profile .......................................................................................17

Conclusion.......................................................................................................................22

References ......................................................................................................................23

About the authors ...........................................................................................................24

Trademarks .....................................................................................................................25

 Part 2: Configure client partitions

Abstract
This paper offers a step-by-step (screen-by-screen) explanation of the process
for installing three client partitions on an IBM® eServer™ p5 model 9117-570.
These steps serve as a broader guide for installing client partitions on all current
models of the IBM eServer pSeries family of servers. The client partitions created
in this example will share I/O resources via the IBM Virtual I/O Server (VIO
Server, which is driven by the IBM POWER5™ Virtualization Engine™.

[NOTE: A step-by-step illustration of the process for configuring a VIO Server is

explained in Part 1 of this set of three white papers. The third paper in this series
demonstrates how to configure the Virtual devices.]

Introduction
The reader is about to observe the process for configuring three client server partitions
on an eServer p5 model 9117-570. Each of these client partitions will enjoy shared I/O
resources through the administrative and management functionality built into the VIO
Server. Before beginning, you must have already installed the VIO Server on the same
system that will host the client servers.

After configuration, client partitions can enjoy the following services and functions:
- Micro-Partitioning™ support for up to 10 logical partitions to share one processor
- Virtual SCSI (VSCSI) disks that allow partitions to share physical storage
adapters and devices
- Automated CPU and memory reconfiguration
- Real-time partition configuration and load statistics
- Support for dedicated and shared processor logical partitioning (LPAR) groups
- Support for manual provisioning of resources
- Virtual networking

The client partitions can utilize any of the following operating environments:
- IBM AIX 5L™ Version 5.3
- SUSE Linux™ Enterprise Server 9 for POWER™
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS for POWER, Version 3

Setup scenario
The sample installation process discussed in this paper involves setting up three client
partitions. The VIO Server that interacts with these clients will own a physical SCSI and
a physical Ethernet controller. Because the physical SCSI controller on the designated
hardware system has three physical hard disks attached to it, this scenario will configure
each client partition on a separate physical hard disk.
POWER5 machine type and hardware structure
The eServer p5 server is a model 9117-570. As mentioned, the system has two physical
SCSI controllers, one located on slot T14 and the other located on slot T12. Each SCSI
controller has three physical disks attached to it. Two physical Ethernet controllers are
on slots T6 and C3.

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

Create client partitions

The following processes create partitions for svtlnx1, svtlnx2, and svtlnx3—where both
run and install profiles are configured for each client partition:
1. Expand Server Management Environment in the Navigation Area. Expand the
managed system and Server and Partition. Select Server Management.
2. Expand the managed system in the detail pane on the right. Right-click on
Partitions.
3. From the pop-up menu, select Create > Logical Partition.
4. From the Create Logical Partition Wizard panel, type in the Partition name
fields with the values listed below. Afterward, choose AIX or Linux in Partition
environment. Then click Next. (Figure 1)
svtlnx1 for first client partition

svtlnx2 for second client partition

svtlnx3 for third client partition

Figure 1: Create client partitions is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

5. From the Workload Management Groups panel, select No for workload

management group question. Then click Next. (Figure 2)

Figure 2: Create client partitions step 5 is illustrated on this screen capture

6. From the Create Logical Partition Profile , type in the Profile name (for
example: Run_OS_on_virtual_profile). Then click Next. (Figure 3)

Figure 3: Create client partitions step 6 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

7. From the Memory panel, set the minimum, desired, and maximum memory for
the client partitions (for example: 512 MB, 2 GB, and 4 GB, respectively).
Then click Next. (Figure 4)

Figure 4: Create client partitions step 7 is illustrated on this screen capture

8. From the Processors panel, check Shared. Then click Next. (Figure 5)

Figure 5: Create client partitions step 8 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

9. From the Processing Settings panel, set the desired, minimum, and maximum
processing units for the client partitions (for example: 0.5, 0.1, and 3.0,
respectively). Then click Next. (Figure 6)

Figure 6: Create client partitions step 9 is illustrated on this screen capture

10. From the Managed Systems I/O panel, click Next. There is no need to have
physical I/O devices in the client partition profile. (Figure 7)

Figure 7: Create client partitions step 10 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

11. From the I/O Pools panel, click Next. (Figure 8)

Figure 8: Create client partitions step 11 is illustrated on this screen capture

12. Both Virtual Ethernet and Virtual SCSI adapters are created in this step. From
the Virtual I/O Adapters panel, check YES. Then, click Next. (Figure 9)

Figure 9: Create client partitions step 12 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

13. This scenario uses slot 5 for Ethernet and slot 10 for SCSI—for all the client
partitions. The Virtual SCSI adapters for svtlnx1, svtlnx2, and svtlnx3 connect to
remote slots 10, 11, and 12 on vioserv1_linux, respectively.

From the Create Virtual I/O Adapters panel, check Ethernet in the Create
adapters box. Then click the (Create...) button. (Figure 10)

Figure 10: Create client partitions step 13 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

14. Fill in the values, below, in the Virtual Ethernet Adapter Properties panel
(shown in Figure 11 on the next page). After entering these same values for each
of the three client partitions, click OK. This will add the Virtual Ethernet adapter to
the Virtual adapters list.
Slot number: 5

Port virtual LAN ID: 3

Figure 11: Create client partitions step 14 is illustrated on this screen capture

Note: In order for all the client partitions to access the shared Ethernet adapter
on VIO Server vioserv1_linux, the values for Port virtual LAN ID (PVID) in
all client partitions and the VIO Server must be the same. In this scenario
(above), we chose 3 for PVID.

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

You will now see that the Virtual Ethernet adapter has been added into the
Virtual adapters list. (Figure 12)

Figure 12: Continuation of step 14 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

15. Now, create the Virtual SCSI adapter. From the Create Virtual I/O Adapters
panel, check SCSI in Create adapters and click the (Create...) button. (Figure 13)

Figure 13: Create client partitions step 15 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

16. Fill in the values, below, in the Virtual SCSI Adapter Properties panel (shown in
Figure 14) for each of the three client partitions. Then, click OK.
Slot number: 10 (This is the client slot)
Adapter Type: Client
Remote partition: vioserv1_linux (10)
Remote partition virtual slot number: Fill in 10, 11, and 12 for clients
svtlnx1, svtlnx2, and svtlnx3, respectively.

Figure 14: Create client partitions step 16 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

You will now see the Virtual SCSI adapter has now been added into the Virtual
adapters list. Since you have finished adding the Ethernet and SCSI Virtual
adapters, click Next. (Figure 15)

Figure 15: Continuation of step 16 is illustrated on this screen capture

17. From the Power Controlling Partitions panel, select vioserv1_linux(10)

from the Power controlling partition to add box. Then, click Next. (Figure 16)

Figure 16: Create client partitions step 17 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

18. From the Optional Settings panel, check Normal in Boot modes. Then, click
Next. (Figure 17)

Figure 17: Create client partitions step 18 is illustrated on this screen capture
19. From the Profile Summary panel, confirm the setting. Then, click Finish. If the
partition is created successfully, the client partition will be added into the
Partition with profile name Run_OS_on_virtual_profile. (Figure 18)

Figure 18: Create client partitions step 19 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

20. From the Server Management panel, right-click on

Run_OS_on_virtual_profile under a client partition. Select Copy from the
pop-up menu. (Figure 19)

Figure 19: Create client partitions step 20 is illustrated on this screen capture

21. From the Copy Profile panel, type in the install profile name (for example,
Install_OS_on_virtual_profile) in the New profile name field. Then,
click OK. (Figure 20)

Figure 20: Create client partitions step 21 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

Note: If the copy profile process was successful,

Install_OS_on_virtual_profile will be displayed under the client
partition. (Figure 21)

Figure 21: Continuation of step 21 is illustrated on this screen capture

22. From the Server Management panel, right-click on

Install_OS_on_virtual_profile and select Properties to modify the
install profile. (Figure 22)

Figure 22: Create client partitions step 22 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

23. After the Properties panel comes up, select the Physical I/O tab and add the
CD/DVD controller to the desired list. For example, add as required Slot T15,
Other Mass Storage Controller. Then, click OK. (Figure 23)

Figure 23: Create client partitions step 23 is illustrated on this screen capture

24. Select the Settings tab; check System Management Services (SMS) for the
Boot Modes. Then, click OK. (Figure 24)

Figure 24: Create client partitions step 24 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

Modify the VIO Server profile

You will need to define the Virtual SCSIs and Ethernet in the
Run_VIO_Server_profile for Virtual I/O Server vioserv1_linux.

These steps will define one Virtual Ethernet adapter and three Virtual SCSI server
adapters for the three client partitions.

Before modifying the profile, let's review the following values. The Virtual Ethernet
adapter uses Slot 6 and Port virtual LAN ID (PVID) is 3.

Note: As already mentioned, the Virtual Ethernet adapters on the client partitions must
also use the same PVID number 3 in order to connect to the Virtual Ethernet adapter on
the VIO Server.

You might also remember that the three Virtual SCSI Server adapters use Slot 10, 11,
12, respectively. Client partitions svtlnx1, svtlnx2, and svtlnx3 will connect to the SCSI
Server adapter slots 10, 11, and 12, respectively. All the Virtual SCSI adapters defined
on the client partitions use slot 10.

1. Right-click Run_VIO_Server_profile under vioserv1_linux and select

Properties from the pop-up menu. (Figure 25)

Figure 25: Modify the VIO Server profile step 1 is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

a. From the Properties panel, go to Virtual I/O tab. Check Ethernet in the
Create adapters box. Then, click the (Create...) button. (Figure 26)

Figure 26: Modify the VIO Server profile step 1a is illustrated on this screen capture

b. From the Virtual Ethernet Adapter Properties panel, set the values (shown
below). Then, click OK. (Figure 27) This adds the Virtual Ethernet adapter
into the Virtual adapters list.
Slot number: 5

Port virtual LAN ID: 3

Trunk adapter: select

IEEE 802.1Q compatible adapter: select

Figure 27: Modify the VIO Server profile step 1b is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

c. Back on the Visual I/O tab, check SCSI in the Create adapters box. Then,
click the (Create...) button. (Figure 28)

Figure 28: Modify the VIO Server profile step 1c is illustrated on this screen capture

d. From the Virtual SCSI Adapter Properties panel, set the values (shown
below in Figure 29). Then, click OK. This will add the Virtual SCSI adapter for
svtlnx1.
Slot number: 10
Adapter Type: select Server
Connection Information: select Only selected remote
partition and slot can connect
Remote partitions: svtlnx1
Remote partition virtual slot number: 10

Figure 29: Modify the VIO Server profile step 1d is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

e. Repeat step 1d to create Virtual SCSI adapters for svtlnx2 and svtlnx3. The
slots on the server are 11 and 12, respectively. The client slots are 10 for
both svtlnx2 and svtlnx3. For example:
svtlnx2
Slot number: 11
Adapter Type: select Server
Connection Information: select Only selected remote
partition and slot can connect
Remote partitions: svtlnx2
Remote partition virtual slot number: 10

svtlnx3
Slot number: 12
Adapter Type: select Server
Connection Information: select Only selected remote
partition and slot can connect
Remote partitions: svtlnx3
Remote partition virtual slot number: 10

After adding one Virtual Ethernet and three Virtual SCSI adapters, click OK.
(Figure 30)

Figure 30: Modify the VIO Server profile step 1e is illustrated on this screen capture

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

2. Install VIO Server software in the vioserv1_linux partition:

a. Right-click Install_VIO_Server_profile. Select Activate from the pop-up
menu.
b. From Activate Logical Partition, check Open a terminal window or console
session. Then, click OK.
c. After waiting for a few minutes, the install session will start to display the install
message. Follow the instruction to boot up from the CD.
d. After the installation boot up from CD, choose to install on hdisk2.
e. After installing the VIO Server successfully, reactivate the
Install_VIO_Server_profile and log in as padmin. You will need to
change the password for padmin to one that is unique for you. From the
command line, execute the following command:
>license -accept
f. Because Slot T6 has dual Ethernet ports in the Ethernet controller, run the
following command and list the two physical Ethernet ports ent0 and ent1.
Also, list the physical SCSI adapter sisscsia0.
lsdev -type adapter
g. Shutdown the partition:
>shutdown

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

Conclusion
Client server partitions that are set up on a pSeries® server can participate in sharing
physical resources with other partitions on that same pSeries server. The IBM Virtual I/O
Server, enabled by POWER5 technology, facilitates this sharing of resources to
maximize utilization of physical resources.

Client partitions can be installed without requiring additional physical I/O resources to be
added to the hardware configuration. A greater number of client partitions can be
established than there are actual I/O slots or physical devices. Each partition may enjoy
dedicated I/O, Virtual I/O, or both. Clients can also utilize Virtual SCSI and shared
Ethernet adapter function.

For these and many other reasons, more and more enterprises which run their
aggressive IT missions on the pSeries family of servers are moving to Virtual Client
partitioning.

Through a screen-by-screen approach, this paper has provided the reader with a sense
of the relative simplicity and speed with which client partitions can be configured to
interact with a VIO Server.

With the sophistication of the mainframe-like partitioning technology that is now available
with POWER5, there is no reason to postpone embarking on the “virtual” path—allowing
your enterprise to enjoy higher and more efficient use of its many server resources.

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

References

- White paper: Implementing Virtualization on an IBM eServer p5 server (part 1):

Configure VIO Server
ibm.com/servers/enable/site/peducation/abstracts/abs_436e.html

- White paper: Implementing Virtualization on an IBM eServer p5 server (part 3):

Configure Virtual devices
ibm.com/servers/enable/site/peducation/abstracts/abs_4376.html

- IBM Redbook: Introduction to Advanced POWER Virtualization on IBM p5 Servers,

Introduction and basic configuration (SG24-7940)
ibm.com/redbooks/abstracts/sg247940.html?Open

- IBM Redbook: Server Consolidation on IBM pSeries Systems (SG24-6966)

ibm.com/redbooks/abstracts/sg246966.html?Open

- White paper: IBM eServer POWER5 Processors Virtual SCSI Throughput Analysis,
by Elizabeth Stahl, January 2005
ibm.com/eserver/pseries/hardware/whitepapers/virtual_scsi.pdf

- IBM Redbooks Technote: Server Consolidation: A Comparison of Workload

Management and Partitioning (TIPS0426):
ibm.com/redbooks/abstracts/tips0426.html?Open

- Virtualization on eServer p5 Web site

ibm.com/servers/eserver/pseries/ondemand/ve/resources.html

- IBM Virtual I/O Server support center

http://techsupport.services.ibm.com/server/virtualization/vios/download

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

About the authors

Nam Keung is a senior technical consultant for IBM in Austin, Texas. He has worked in
the area of AIX ISDN communications, AIX SOM/DSOM development, AIX multimedia
development, Microsoft® Windows® NT clustering technology, and Java™ performance.
His current assignment involves helping IBM Business Partners and solution providers in
their efforts to port and deploy applications to the pSeries platform. He also consults in
performance tuning and other educational needs for the pSeries platform.

Terry Wang has a master’s degree in computer science from the University of
Wisconsin, Madison. Terry joined IBM in 1988 working on AIX development. He is
currently with the IBM System and Technology Group, solution enablement team. His
most recent interest is in the areas of AIX virtualization technology and the application of
this technology to solution provider applications.

Balaji V. Atyam is a senior technical consultant in the Systems and Technology Group.
His responsibilities are porting, benchmarking, performance tuning, parallel
programming, and technical consulting services to key solution providers in the area of
high performance computing on IBM eServer platforms.

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 Part 2: Configure client partitions

Trademarks
© IBM Corporation 1994-2005. All rights reserved.

References in this document to IBM products or services do not imply that IBM intends

to make them available in every country.

The following terms are trademarks of International Business Machines Corporation in

the United States, other countries, or both: IBM, eServer, pSeries, AIX, AIX 5L, POWER,

POWER5, Micro-Partitioning, and Virtualization Engine.

Microsoft, Windows, Windows NT, and the Windows logo are trademarks of Microsoft

Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both.

Linux is a trademark of Linus Torvalds in the United States, other countries, or both.

Other company, product or service names may be trademarks or service marks of

others.

Information is provided "AS IS" without warranty of any kind.

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