Server Virtualization
SAM SPENCER
Agenda
 Introduction
 History
 Server Virtualization Software
 Server Virtualization Hardware
 Determining Server Hardware
 Pros and Cons of Server Virtualization
 Pros and Cons of Dedicated Servers
 Hyper-V Demo
Introduction
 What is Virtualization?
 Virtualization is the creation of a virtual resource or device
where the framework divides the resource into one or more
execution environments
 Examples of Virtualization
 Virtual drives
 Virtual memory
 Virtual machines
 Virtual servers
 Why is it popular?
History
 1960s Machines
 Did not scale well
 Extremely expensive
 Cost efficiency was desired
 IBM-360 Operating System (1964)
 Virtual Memory
 IBM 370 Operating System (1972)
 Virtual Machines
 Used in many mainframe environments
Virtualization Software
 Microsoft Virtual Server (2005)
 Came with Microsoft Server 2003
 Did not scale well with 64 bit systems
 Replaced by Hyper-V
 Microsoft Hyper-V (2008 & 2012)
 Hyper-V is short for Hypervisor
 Free release with Server 2008 and 2012
 Best option for Microsoft based virtualization
Hyper-V Architecture
Virtualization Software
 VMware (Company)
 Releases most popular line of virtualization software
 First company to utilize virtualization on x86 machines
 Software runs on Linux, Windows, and MAC
 vSphere (aka ESX)
 Costly
 High overhead
 VMware Server
 Free
 Not as powerful as ESX
ESX Architecture
Hypervisor
 The Hypervisor is the
piece of software that
enables virtualization
 It allows the host
machine to allocate
resources to guest
machines
Hypervisor
Type I versus Type II Hypervisor
Virtualization Hardware
 CPU
 At least one CPU core per virtual machine
 Having free cores for high stress situations recommended
 RAM
 No set amount for RAM
 Estimate minimum amounts of RAM and upgrade based on
performance
Virtualization Hardware
 Networking



Multiple network cards
required for increased
throughput
Measure peak traffic
amounts
Network Virtualization
Virtualization Hardware
 Storage
 Local storage on servers is limited
 Allow for 20% extra storage space for VM files and server
snapshots
 Storage Networks (highly recommended)
Storage Area Network (SAN) – Large data transfers
 Network Attached Storage (NAS) – File-based data storage

Determining Server Hardware
 Apache Jmeter
 Load Testing
 Stress Testing
 Data Analysis
 Demo
 http://jmeter.apache.org/
Pros and Cons of Server Virtualization
 Pros
 Cost
Less physical servers
 Less server space (consolidation of servers)
 Less energy costs
 Less maintenance


Efficient Administration
Easier management, management through one machine
 Single point of failure
 Smaller IT staff

Pros and Cons of Server Virtualization
 Pros
 Growth and Scalability
Upgrading one server upgrades them all
 Easy growth
 Less hardware complications


Security
Single server security maintenance
 Hypervisor software often provides security benefits


Legacy Servers
Upgrading servers to a virtual setup from old systems
 Goes hand-in-hand with scalability

Pros and Cons of Server Virtualization
 Cons
 Slow Performance
High stress on single machine
 Longer processing times
 More network bottlenecking


Single Point of Failure
Many servers on one host machine
 Hardware or software failures can be critical
 Backup servers will need to be setup

Pros and Cons of Server Virtualization
 Cons
 Cost
High initial investment
 Software licensing costs


Security


All servers through one machine
Learning curve
Many different types of software
 Different architecture

Pros and Cons of Dedicated Servers
 Pros
 High Performance
All resources on server are dedicated
 Can handle high stress scenarios


Multiple Points of Failure
Easier to identify problems
 Only one server will fail at a time

Pros and Cons of Dedicated Servers
 Pros
 Price
Old servers already exist
 No long term investments
 If it’s not broke, don’t fix it


Small Learning Curve
Dedicated servers have been around for a long time
 IT staff will not need to learn any new systems if dedicated servers
already exist

Pros and Cons of Dedicated Servers
 Cons
 Price
Long term costs of dedicated servers can add up
 More applications and services = more servers


Servers not being utilized
Servers may not be efficient
 Even at peak, some servers may not need all resources

Pros and Cons of Dedicated Servers
 Cons
 Lack of growth and consistency
Adding servers for more services and applications
 Expanding of physical space with servers
 Software patches and updates will be inconsistent
 Management can be difficult and inconsistent

Demo
 Hyper-V setup demo
 How to install hyper-v
 How to set up virtual server on machine
 How to manage virtual server
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwuyRzAjS1I
References

Grazino, Charles. A performance analysis of Xen and KVM hypervisors for Hosting the
XenWorlds Project. Diss. Iwoa State University, 2011. Print.
<http://lib.dr.iastate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3243&context=etd>.

IBM, . "Mainframes introduction 2." IBM.com. IBM. Web. 29 Oct 2013. <www03.ibm.com/ibm/history/exhibits/mainframe/mainframe_intro.html>.

Kleyman, Bill. "Hypervisor 101: Understanding the Virtualization Market."
datacenterknowledge.com. N.p., 01 Aug 2012. Web. 29 Oct 2013.
<www.datacenterknowledge.com/archives/2012/08/01/hypervisor-101-a-look-hypervisormarket/>.

Laverick, Mike. Server Virtualization Basics: The Benefits of Server Virtualization. Newton:
TechTarget, 2012. 2-11. Print.

Microsoft, . "Microsoft Announces General Availability of Virtual Server 2005." microsoft.com.
Microsoft, 13 Sept. 2005. Web. 29 Oct 2013. <http://www.microsoft.com/enus/news/press/2004/sep04/09-13availabilityvs2005pr.asp&xgt;.
References

Microsoft, . "Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2012." microsoft.com. Microsoft, n.d. Web. 29 Oct 2013.
<http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/server-cloud/hyper-v-server/default.asp&xgt;.

NetSource, . "Virtualization vs. Dedicated Servers? Not Always Clear." ntsource.com. NetSource, 22
Aprl 2011. Web. 29 Oct 2013. <http://www.ntsource.com/web-hosting/chicago-hosting-newsarticle.cfm?articleID=17>.

Siebert, Eric. "Sizing server hardware for virtual machines." techtarget.com. N.p., 26 Jun 2008. Web.
29 Oct 2013. <http://searchservervirtualization.techtarget.com/tip/Sizing-server-hardware-forvirtual-machines>.

VMware. (Designer). Traditional Arch vs Virtualiztion Arch [Web Graphic]. Retrieved from
http://www.vectro-networks.com/services/virtualization.php

VMware, . VMware ESX Server: SAN Configuration Guide. 2.5. Palo Alto: VMware, Inc., 2005.
eBook. <http://www.vmware.com/pdf/esx25_san_cfg.pdf>.

Microsoft. (2012, May 31). Hyper-v network virtualization technical details. Retrieved from
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj134174.aspx

Apache. (Designer) (2013). Apache jmeter [Theater]. Available from http://jmeter.apache.org/