HP Virtual Server Environment for HP-UX—Automated, real-time server resource allocation

White paper

Executive summary........................................................................................................................... 2 HP Virtual Server Environment—Server resource optimization ................................................................ 3 HP Virtual Server Environment in action .............................................................................................. 7

Workload management: HP-UX Workload Manager within a single operating system image ................ 7 HP-UX Workload Manager and psets within a single operating system image ..................................... 9 HP-UX Workload Manager and partitioning: HP Virtual Partitions .................................................... 11 HP-UX Workload Manager and utility pricing solutions: HP Instant Capacity ..................................... 12 HP-UX Workload Manager and high availability: HP Serviceguard .................................................. 15 HP-UX Workload Manager and disaster-tolerant solutions: HP geographically dispersed cluster solutions .......................................................................................................................... 16 Virtual Server Environment Quick Start Solution.............................................................................. 18

HP Virtual Server Environment—Real value for your business ............................................................... 19 Improved RoIT ............................................................................................................................ 19 Enhanced business agility............................................................................................................ 19 Improved quality of service .......................................................................................................... 19 Reduced risk .............................................................................................................................. 19

Future directions of the HP Virtual Server Environment ........................................................................ 20 HP Global Workload Manager.................................................................................................... 20

Why HP? ...................................................................................................................................... 20 For more information ...................................................................................................................... 21

Executive summary Businesses are increasingly focused on reducing costs and improving their return on information technology investment (RoIT). As they strive for agility, the ability for computing resources to be managed in a way that responds to and reflects rapidly changing business drivers has become a priority for IT departments. The HP vision for the Adaptive Enterprise is one in which the ability of IT to supply services is consistently aligned with the demand from the business.

Figure 1. The HP framework for the Adaptive Enterprise

As business cycles vary and demand ebbs and flows, the underlying infrastructure must respond accordingly. Just as increased exertion results in expansion of the lungs to absorb a greater volume of air to meet the body’s increased oxygen requirements, the underlying technology infrastructure of a business must scale to meet the demands made upon it. After the body’s period of exertion is over, the air intake is reduced and the lungs contract as they continue to serve the needs of the body until the demand is increased again. In a similar way, the ability to expand and contract to meet demand without additional resources being required is a fundamental, underlying principle of an Adaptive Enterprise.

To support its Adaptive Enterprise vision, HP is developing an underlying infrastructure that has been specifically created to reduce cost and complexity while increasing IT responsiveness. A key pillar of the HP Adaptive Enterprise is virtualization.

Virtualization is an approach to IT that pools and shares resources so utilization is optimized and supply automatically meets demand.

One key solution for enabling an infrastructure of this nature is the HP Virtual Server Environment (VSE), which offers an increased RoIT through the optimization of server resource utilization in real time according to business priorities. In addition to increasing server utilization, the HP VSE also enables the rapid deployment of computing resources, improves availability, and significantly reduces costs.

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This white paper is designed to outline the capabilities and benefits of the HP Virtual Server Environment and explain how and why it is an important building block for an Adaptive Enterprise. It is designed to cater to the needs of senior IT managers and data center staff who are in the process of addressing cost, complexity, resource utilization, and RoIT issues within their enterprises.

HP Virtual Server Environment—Server resource optimization The HP VSE is composed of seamlessly integrated server virtualization products built around the only goal-based policy engine available for UNIX®. The VSE assesses whether the performance of a single server—or cluster of servers—is meeting predefined service-level objectives (SLOs), and it then dynamically adjusts server resources by managing free pools of resources and/or moving resources out of underutilized virtual servers. The SLOs assessed by VSE fall into three categories1:

1. Resource utilization: An application or application group can be assigned a minimum and maximum percentage or share of CPU cycles, and it is also assigned a priority based on business needs. This percentage or share—also known as CPU entitlement—can be dynamically and automatically adjusted within the predefined range according to application priority, based on the utilization of the current entitlement.

2. Performance: A direct measurement of the performance of the workload—for example, a response time of less than 1 second or a throughput of 5,000 transactions per minute. Degradation in performance will result in the VSE dynamically allocating additional resources to maintain the SLO.

3. Application load: A measurement of the load placed on an application—that is, the number of users or processes or the queue length. As load increases, the VSE will automatically reassign resources to handle the additional workload.

Management of SLOs in the fashion outlined above improves return on IT. The VSE ensures higher levels of server utilization and increased agility because server resources are automatically adjusted to meet changing business priorities and application usage levels.

Traditionally, servers have been acquired and deployed on an application basis. For example, an SAP R/3 project would require dedicated servers for development, test, production, and disaster-recovery environments. An Oracle® customer relationship management (CRM) project would most likely require the acquisition and deployment of new, dedicated servers for each of those environments at additional expense. The planning, budget, and procurement cycles—as well as the capital expenditure incurred—would have a direct impact on the time to market and return on investment of the project. Delays in implementation might even erase any competitive advantage that may have existed when the project began. In addition, research shows that the majority of servers would be underutilized most of the time.

Now just imagine an environment where:

• All of those SAP R/3 and CRM server resources could be placed in a dynamic resource pool, with each request for resources being evaluated and allocated according to business priorities

• Underutilized server resources could be reassigned to alternate application instances without compromising security or availability

• An unforeseen transaction peak would result in additional resources being added to the pool and assigned to meet the need as opposed to requests for service being denied

• Disaster recovery no longer requires a set of underutilized, standby systems • New applications can be deployed with defined SLOs without having to acquire additional

hardware and without initiating a new procurement cycle

1 For examples, see the “HP Virtual Server Environment in action” section on page 6.

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The HP Virtual Server Environment enables all of those benefits through the virtualization—or abstraction—of server resources so that they are no longer seen as independent, dedicated boxes with processors and memory, but rather as a pool of dynamic computing resources available to your entire organization. As business requirements fluctuate, resource requirements are analyzed and orchestrated across multiple systems using dynamic provisioning, allocation, and management technologies in accordance with agreed service-level objectives. The VSE automatically grows and shrinks based on the needs of hosted applications. Resource usage is thus optimized across the business while IT spending is contained.

Figure 2. The HP Virtual Server Environment

VSE encompasses many fully integrated, complementary components that enhance the functionality and flexibility of your server environment. These include:

• An intelligent policy engine, HP-UX Workload Manager (HP-UX WLM), which performs real-time assessment of resource usage and advises and acts based on SLOs and business priorities to adjust the supply of resources according to demand

• Resource management technologies—HP Process Resource Manager (PRM) and Processor sets (psets)—that enable granular processor, memory, and I/O allocation to be managed between multiple applications competing for resources within a single system or virtual partition, thus eliminating resource contention

• Flexible Virtual Partitions (vPars) that combine software fault isolation and security with the ability to share resources with other vPars within a system, thus increasing utilization and reducing cost (Instant ignition [Ignite-UX] of operating systems within new vPars offers quick provisioning of new environments for development, test, QA, or disaster recovery as required.)

• Utility Pricing Solutions from HP—Instant Capacity , Temporary Instant Capacity, and Pay-per-use (PPU)—that enable dormant processors and memory to be dynamically activated and paid for as required

• Clustering solutions (HP Serviceguard, HP Extended Campus Clusters, HP Metrocluster, and HP Continentalclusters) that enable the implementation of cost-effective failover and disaster-tolerant environments without the acquisition of redundant hardware

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• HP geographically dispersed cluster solutions such as HP Serviceguard Extension for RAC (SGeRAC) that extend clustering capability from a single data center solution to a transparent “virtual application environment” between two data centers up to 100 km apart in an active-active environment with no redundant hardware

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The core functionality of the VSE is delivered by the intelligent policy engine, HP-UX Workload Manager, which continuously assesses whether a server environment is meeting its SLOs and advises administrators or adjusts resources automatically when SLOs are not met. This base functionality is enhanced by the ability of VSE to orchestrate the real-time allocation of all virtual server resources—virtual partitions, utility pricing solutions, and cluster solutions—assigned to executing applications, users, and processes.

Seamless integration between these components provides continuous availability and performance of mission-critical applications such as enterprise resource planning (ERP), supply chain management (SCM), and CRM.

Furthermore, additional application-transparent toolkits allow for closer integration between HP-UX WLM and specific applications such as BEA WebLogic and Oracle. These toolkits ensure that application-specific resource demands, such as BEA queue length and number of free threads or number of active Oracle users, are assessed by HP-UX WLM; that the system administrator is advised of the situation and of potential remedies; and that HP-UX WLM in turn acts on the relevant VSE component so as to meet the SLO.

To get a virtualized BEA WebLogic Server or Oracle database environment deployed quickly, HP has also developed the Virtual Server Environment Quick Start Solution. It is a pre-tested, qualified, and supported software package consisting of best-of-breed infrastructure components designed to substantially reduce the design, testing, installation, and integration processes for these two applications.

This white paper focuses on the key components of the VSE—HP-UX Workload Manager, HP Virtual Partitions, HP Utility Pricing Solutions, and HP clustering solutions in high-availability and disaster-tolerant environments—as well as the integration of the components. Take a look in greater detail at how the key components of VSE work together to provide a unique value proposition for you and your organization.

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HP Virtual Server Environment in action The VSE components work together in such a way that the technological strength of each complements that of the others. Figure 3 illustrates how the modular building blocks of the VSE expand the scope of dynamic resource optimization, thereby increasing business agility.

Figure 3. Building blocks of the Virtual Server Environment

As the base capability, workload management enables application stacking within an operating system image with or without utilizing processor allocation (psets). Partitioning enhances this capability by enabling application stacking across operating system images within the same hard partition or server. Utility pricing solutions provide flexible capacity management and pricing schemes that offer you the ability to instantly ignite additional CPU capacity to meet SLOs or to pay HP on the basis of only the actual resources used. Integration with high-availability clusters and multiple data center disaster-tolerant solutions maximizes resource optimization and reduces risk.

The following section looks first at the intelligence behind the HP-UX WLM component of VSE and then explains how each building block within the VSE is orchestrated to provide the dynamic virtual server environment that your organization needs to improve operational efficiencies and increase return on IT investment.

Workload management: HP-UX Workload Manager within a single operating system image At the heart of the VSE is an enhanced version of HP-UX WLM, the only goal-based, intelligent policy engine for UNIX available today. It provides real-time monitoring of application SLOs to ensure that they are maintained through the dynamic re-allocation of processor resources as required. This core functionality enables otherwise underutilized resources to be re-allocated from idle applications to those that require them to maintain performance and response times.

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Figure 4. Workload management in a VSE: HP-UX WLM

To begin with, the system administrator must decide on the SLO for each application. Within the context of HP-UX WLM, SLOs can be entitlement-based or goal-based. With an entitlement-based SLO, either HP PRM—an HP-UX resource management component of VSE—or HP-UX WLM tries to grant a specified percentage of available computing resources to the associated application workload, such as 40 to 80% of processor capacity for PRM Group A, as depicted in Figure 4.

With goal-based SLOs, HP-UX WLM actively changes the associated workload’s PRM resource allocation to best meet the SLO. For example, if the SLO of a priority application cannot be maintained using 40% of processor resources, HP-UX WLM will increase the processor allocation until such time as the SLO is honored. These SLOs are based on one of two goal types:

1. Metric goals: Goals based on a metric, such as performing n transactions per minute, or a response time of less than x seconds, as pictured in Figure 4.

2. Usage goals: Goals based on how efficiently workloads use their CPU allocations—if a workload is not using its full allocation, its allocation is decreased; if a workload is using a high percentage of its allocation, the allocation is increased.

With HP-UX WLM, the system administrator creates one or more SLOs for defined workloads composed of executing applications. Each SLO is assigned a priority in addition to metric or resource usage goals. As the applications execute, HP-UX WLM compares the performance metrics or usage against the defined goals and automatically adjusts the CPU entitlements (the amounts of CPU that are available to the workloads) to achieve each goal, maintaining the relative priorities at all times.

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HP-UX WLM enables you to run the system at close to 100% utilization and still count on the performance of your mission-critical applications. This is accomplished by placing one or more critical applications that have performance requirements on a system along with multiple lower-priority workloads that have little or no performance requirements. HP-UX WLM will allocate resources to ensure that the critical applications get the resources they need to meet their performance requirements, and then it will allocate spare CPU cycles to the lower-priority workloads. HP-UX WLM maximizes the use of CPU resources while ensuring that the most critical applications perform according to the defined SLOs. The investment in historically single-application, low-utilization systems can be recouped by utilizing those systems to run multiple workloads, all managed by HP-UX WLM. Resources required by mission-critical applications that peak at different times can be shared instead of dedicated.

The implementation of HP-UX WLM enables the following:

• Multiple applications can be consolidated within a single operating system image to utilize excess capacity while ensuring that the highest priority applications still have access to the resources they need during peak times. This reduces the need for a high server asset count and eases the management burden associated with large server farms.

• System resources can be dynamically re-allocated in response to changing priorities, conditions that change over time, resource demand, and application performance.

HP-UX Workload Manager and psets within a single operating system image One example of HP-UX WLM in a VSE is its success in managing resource utilization in BEA WebLogic environments executing on large HP servers. Many data centers want to simplify deployment, minimize management overhead, and reduce licensing and support costs by running multiple BEA WebLogic instances on larger systems that are better able to handle fluctuating workloads.

Because of the Java™ Virtual Machine, BEA WebLogic’s architecture scales best in environments of up to four processors. The benefit of allocating BEA WebLogic instances to systems that scale beyond four processors—such as HP Superdome—is limited because of the sharing of CPU cycles and the underutilization of available resources.

BEA WebLogic requires dedicated CPUs, but installation across multiple smaller systems increases deployment and management complexity, negating the benefits available through consolidation on larger, scalable systems. Moreover, dedicated CPUs without the flexibility of re-allocation according to need causes underutilization and increased cost.

Psets are an HP-UX feature that enables the customer to group processors together within a single operating system instance. Representing a group of dedicated processors within a system, psets provide a mechanism for dynamic CPU resource management. They enable users to partition large systems into more than one virtual machine in terms of the processor resources only. A BEA WebLogic instance assigned to a pset will only utilize processors within that assigned pset, ensuring CPU resource isolation for applications and users. Therefore, multiple BEA WebLogic instances can run in a single operating system on a single HP Superdome, each with a dedicated set of CPUs. This can, however, create underutilization of the system based on fluctuating demand.

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WLM solves this problem by being able to allocate and migrate CPUs between BEA WebLogic instances based on priority. Figure 5 depicts an HP Superdome partition with eight processors running two BEA WebLogic instances as well as other workloads. Each BEA WebLogic instance has been assigned to a pset that includes a minimum of one dedicated CPU (CPU 6 and CPU 7). Both pset 1 and pset 2 have been assigned an additional CPU (CPU 5 and CPU 4, respectively) from the default pset pool, which holds all CPUs not allocated to specific psets.

Figure 5. HP-UX WLM managing multiple BEA WebLogic workloads

Assessing the information obtained using the WLM BEA WebLogic Server Toolkit, HP-UX WLM will note that WebLogic 1 has a queue containing 37 outstanding requests. To handle this workload based on its assigned priorities, HP-UX WLM will migrate CPU 3 from the default pset to pset 1 to manage the queued requests, as illustrated in Figure 6. Immediately, the number of outstanding requests in the queue is reduced (from 37 to two) and free threads are made available (from zero to three).

HP-UX WLM will also be informed that WebLogic 2 no longer requires CPU 4 because it has no queued requests and the number of free threads available has increased (from four to 11). CPU 4 will, as a result, be migrated back to the default pset pool for use by other workloads.

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Figure 6. HP-UX WLM de-allocates processors when not required

HP-UX Workload Manager and partitioning: HP Virtual Partitions This orchestration of resources by HP-UX Workload Manager is significantly enhanced when implemented in an environment incorporating HP Virtual Partitions (vPars) in a VSE.

HP vPars are a unique feature that enables multiple operating system instances to execute within a single system or hard partition (an HP nPartition incorporating electrical isolation). Each vPar can own a specified amount of memory, one or more ranges of physical memory, a specified pool of CPUs, or a set of one or more I/O cards within the server. HP vPars can be dynamically created and modified using software commands. Each application is then able to run in an environment where performance is maximized because its own unique operating system configuration requirements are met.

Security is maintained because each operating system instance is isolated from all others. In the event of an operating system panic within one vPar, applications executing in alternate vPars are not affected. Moreover, greater flexibility is achieved because each server is able to run multiple versions and patch levels of the operating system. This means that applications can exploit new operating system features without having to wait for all applications on the system to be ported to the same operating system version. In addition, vPars can be created on the fly for testing new versions of the operating system or application without having to replicate the deployment environment.

HP-UX WLM can resize virtual partitions by dynamically re-allocating CPUs from one virtual partition to another. The policy-based rules of HP-UX WLM and HP PRM determine the prioritization of each application within the partition, enabling the allocation of CPU, memory, I/O, and capacity according to specific processing requirements and assigned priority. In the event of an application within a clustered partition failing over, resources can automatically be re-allocated, minimizing the user impact resulting from resource contention.

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CPUs that are not allocated to any specific vPar within the system are known as “floating” CPUs and are assigned by HP-UX WLM according to need. Figure 7 represents a single system with six processors and four vPars, each possibly executing a different patch level of HP-UX 11i along with different kernel tuning parameters, according to the application requirements. Each vPar is assigned a dedicated CPU, while vPars A and B each have one additional “floating” CPU currently assigned to them—CPU 4 and CPU 5, respectively. Specific SLOs have been set for applications A and B, residing in vPars A and B, respectively. Application A has an SLO that states its online response time must be less than one second. Application B’s SLO is not as stringent, stating that response times of less than five seconds are acceptable.

Figure 7. Partitioning in VSE: HP-UX WLM managing HP vPar resources

If the response time of Application A exceeds one second, HP-UX WLM will assess the situation. Because Application A has a higher priority than Application B, HP-UX WLM will dynamically de-allocate “floating” CPU 5 from vPar B and re-allocate it to vPar A so the SLO will be met. In doing so, HP-UX WLM has the ability to flex, or adjust, the resource assignment based on business priorities.

This integration between HP-UX WLM and vPars in a VSE enables development, test, and QA or pre-staging environments to be deployed on the same systems as production workloads. Should the production workload exceed its configured resource threshold, HP-UX WLM will automatically re-allocate resources assigned to the lower priority, non-production partitions, thus leveraging the full value of the investment.

HP-UX Workload Manager and utility pricing solutions: HP Instant Capacity Flexible capacity and cost management is provided by HP Utility Pricing Solutions to minimize risk while enhancing agility for your business. These solutions are designed to enable you to cater to demand fluctuations without having to make a significant up-front investment in processing resources that may only be utilized at a later date. In a VSE, when a requirement is recognized by HP-UX WLM, dormant resources can be activated and utilized to ensure that business processes are managed and maintained according to the agreed-upon service-level agreements (SLAs) from which the SLOs are derived.

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HP Utility Pricing Solutions fall into two categories: metered capacity, such as PPU, or Instant Capacity. In the case of metered capacity, all of the CPUs in a system are activated and monitored on a daily basis. A monthly average is derived from the daily CPU utilization metrics, and that average serves as the basis for your monthly payment. Integration with HP-UX WLM in a PPU environment ensures the optimization of the resource utilization to the minimum required to meet your SLOs, optimizing your monthly costs.

HP Instant Capacity solutions provide additional flexibility based on the increase of performance requirements over time, whereas transaction volatility is catered to by metered capacity. HP Instant Capacity comes in three variations:

• Standard Instant Capacity: With the standard Instant Capacity program, you can deploy a server fully loaded with CPUs but pay only for the processors you plan to use on day one. When needed, the dormant processors can be activated instantly with a simple UNIX command. This is a real benefit in the case of new projects where systems are sized based on a future, anticipated transaction volume. In addition, if a CPU failure is detected, high availability is provided by the automatic activation of an Instant Capacity processor and the shutdown of the defective processor. Because the total number of active processors does not change in this case, there is no cost associated with this transaction.

• Temporary Instant Capacity: In the case of an environment where extra processing power is only required on rare occasions (for example, peak holiday periods or year-end processing), Temporary Instant Capacity allows processors to be activated and then deactivated. One Temporary Instant Capacity 30-day license is applied to each system so that any number of Instant Capacity CPUs installed on the system can be activated and deactivated for an accumulated time of 30 days within a three-year period. Should additional capacity over and above the 30 days be required, more Temporary Instant Capacity licenses can be purchased.

• Cell board Instant Capacity: Cell board Instant Capacity for the HP rp7410 and rp8400 servers extends the value of Instant Capacity to include complete cell boards loaded with CPUs and memory. Designed for systems with hard partitions, cell board Instant Capacity can be transferred between partitions based on demand and then activated following a reboot. Each partition requires at least one active cell board, with the cell board, one processor, and one memory module activated. Additional processors and memory modules are activated by the administrator as required.

The availability of HP Instant Capacity solutions within the VSE provides two key benefits:

• Available resources are optimized so activation of additional Instant Capacity resources is delayed as long as possible, saving you money.

• If Instant Capacity resources are required to meet SLOs, activation is almost instantaneous, so procurement cycles and downtime for upgrades are eliminated and no revenue-generating opportunities are lost.

As with the other key components of the VSE, Instant Capacity is seamlessly integrated to provide you with the efficiency and return on investment that you have come to expect from HP.

As discussed previously, HP-UX WLM monitors the SLOs of the individual workloads to determine how to allocate resources in order to best optimize the entire system resource pool based on business priorities. In cases where Instant Capacity resources are available but inactive, HP-UX WLM monitors these resources and can either activate them dynamically to meet its SLOs or simply inform a system administrator that Instant Capacity resources could be activated. HP has found that many customers prefer to have their system administrator analyze the situation and choose whether to activate the resource and incur the cost rather than receive an unexpected invoice. Because the time required for

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the administrator to make an informed decision based on the cost of the resource compared to the impact of the SLO violation is often minimal, this process has also been implemented in HP-UX WLM2.

When an SLO is missed on a system where all resources are fully utilized and Instant Capacity resources are available, the system administrator is notified both of the SLO violation and of the availability of the Instant Capacity resource that can be activated to resolve the situation. If the Instant Capacity resource is activated, it will become available to HP-UX WLM and will be utilized to meet the SLO. In environments where virtual partitions are installed, administrator-activated Instant Capacity CPUs become “floating” CPUs, which can be allocated by HP-UX WLM to vPars according to demand and priority.

Figure 8. HP-UX WLM orchestrating Instant Capacity CPUs between nPars

A new release of HP-UX—scheduled for late 2003—will allow integration between HP-UX WLM, nPars, and Instant Capacity resources. This integration allows the activation and deactivation of Instant Capacity CPUs to be synchronized across nPars so no additional Instant Capacity or software licensing costs are incurred.

Figure 8 depicts the process that HP-UX WLM follows when attempting to allocate available Instant Capacity resources in order to meet SLOs. Each nPar includes two active, dedicated CPUs and two Instant Capacity CPUs. Both Instant Capacity CPUs in nPar A are active, while both Instant Capacity CPUs in nPar B are inactive. If the workload executing in nPar B violates its SLO, HP-UX WLM will assess the possibility of transferring the Instant Capacity license from one active Instant Capacity CPU in nPar A to an inactive Instant Capacity CPU in nPar B. If there are unused resources in nPar A or if nPar B has a higher priority—as is the case in this example—HP-UX WLM will dynamically deactivate an Instant Capacity CPU in nPar A and then activate one of the inactive Instant Capacity CPUs in 2 Integration of HP-UX WLM with HP Instant Capacity 6 requires that the administrator be notified. The automatic activation of Instant Capacity CPUs is not available in this configuration.

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nPar B. This process ensures that the total number of active Instant Capacity CPUs within the system remains constant. This means that the customer is not charged for the activated Instant Capacity CPU or for additional per-processor software licenses in situations where both nPars are executing the same database or application. If the SLOs for both nPar A and nPar B cannot be met by the existing active CPUs, HP-UX WLM will notify the administrator, who can choose to activate one or more additional Instant Capacity CPUs in nPar B.

HP-UX WLM works not only across the virtual partitions within an HP 9000 server, but also across hard partitions on both HP 9000 and HP Integrity servers. While CPU resources cannot be moved between hard partitions at this time, HP-UX WLM does integrate with nPars and Instant Capacity to offer some dynamic capabilities. If a system has inactive Instant Capacity CPUs, WLM can turn off a CPU in one hard partition and then turn on an available CPU in another hard partition. Because the total number of active CPUs in the system does not change, customers are not charged for activating the Instant Capacity CPUs. HP-UX WLM can trigger license transfer through either set policies (such as time of day) or application SLOs.

HP-UX WLM is thus able to orchestrate workloads executing on a single system or in a hard or virtual partition, workloads in environments where Instant Capacity resources are available, and, in the future, workloads in multiple hard partitions with available inactive Instant Capacity CPUs. This ensures that SLOs are met in the event of resource contention. While resolving resource conflicts according to business priorities is the main focus of HP-UX WLM, its strength lies in its ability to accomplish this even in times of resource outage.

HP-UX Workload Manager and high availability: HP Serviceguard HP Serviceguard is the foundation software designed to protect mission-critical applications on HP-UX and Linux operating systems from a wide variety of hardware and software failures. Integration of Serviceguard within the VSE ensures application availability while maintaining SLOs through dynamic resource re-allocation—even between multiple, distributed data centers.

With Serviceguard, up to 16 servers and server partitions (hard or virtual) are organized in an enterprise cluster that delivers highly available application services to LAN-attached clients. HP Serviceguard monitors the health of each server and partition and rapidly responds to failures in a way that minimizes or eliminates application downtime. Within Serviceguard, applications are “packaged” and then transferred to alternate servers or partitions within the cluster in the event of an operating system or system failure. In addition, “packages” can be rolled over to alternate servers or partitions to maintain services while operating system or hardware upgrades take place on the original system. In each situation, integration with HP-UX WLM ensures that the application priorities and corresponding performance SLOs are honored.

In the event of either an unplanned failover or a planned rollover for system maintenance, HP Serviceguard will fail over the affected packages to an alternate system within the cluster. Figure 9 depicts two systems within a data center cluster environment. The two systems could be either two independent servers or two partitions (hard or virtual) on the same server.

In the event that Server 1 becomes unavailable for service because of an interruption (a system error, a major unplanned event, or an operator intervention, such as a rolling upgrade), Package A will be restarted on Server 2 as defined in the HP Serviceguard configuration file. HP-UX WLM will automatically optimize the system resources by re-allocating and balancing them according to business priorities. Because of its higher priority as defined within the HP-UX WLM configuration file that is shared across the cluster, Package A will be allocated additional resources at the expense of Packages B and C to minimize the impact on its SLO. Because HP-UX WLM supports inactive SLOs, packages are always guaranteed resources on the receiving node. At the same time, because all inactive SLOs receive a combined maximum allocation of 1% CPU and 1% memory, available resources can be fully utilized at times when application packages have not been transferred.

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Figure 9. High availability: HP-UX WLM integration with HP Serviceguard

Furthermore, if Instant Capacity resources are available on the receiving system (Server 2), HP-UX WLM will notify the system administrator that these can be activated to meet the SLOs of all packages. When activated, HP-UX WLM will use the Instant Capacity resources to restore the performance of the affected applications. This capability provides a compelling business case because the RoIT of a high-availability solution that includes VSE is significantly better than a traditional high-availability environment involving oversized servers that cater to additional workloads and are often underutilized.

HP-UX Workload Manager and disaster-tolerant solutions: HP geographically dispersed cluster solutions Properly preparing for disasters can be an expensive undertaking because multiple data centers are involved in creating a disaster-tolerant environment. Subscription to a third-party disaster recovery (DR) site raises concerns about security, time, and resource sharing, as well as the very real threat of not having priority if multiple companies require use of the facility in the event of a national disaster. For companies with multiple data centers and stringent time and data point recovery requirements, catering for disasters in-house is an alternative solution—but it can also be an expensive undertaking. In some instances, redundant hardware is installed at enormous cost in a remote data center, and data is mirrored in case of a disaster. In other cases, each data center is populated with both production and non-production systems (for example, development, QA, or tests). In the event of a disaster at one site, all non-production systems at the alternate sites are reconfigured to run the production workload.

These traditional disaster-tolerant or business continuity models have been replaced with solutions that adapt to meet the changing needs of both the business and the computing environment. The HP virtualization of servers across different data centers means that all available resources are fully

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utilized, both in an everyday environment and in the event of a disaster. There is no longer a need for idle equipment to stand by in the event of a disaster.

HP geographically dispersed cluster solutions (GDCS) are built on an HP Serviceguard foundation and deliver the same capabilities as Serviceguard, only over a far greater distance. The HP GDCS suite consists of Extended Campus Cluster, Metrocluster, and Continentalclusters. HP Extended Campus Cluster enables automatic and bidirectional failover of mirrored mission-critical data and applications between data centers located up to 100 km apart. HP Metrocluster enhances those capabilities by adding asynchronous and synchronous data replication between disk arrays over the same distance. HP Continentalclusters is the most flexible of the GDC solutions, supporting up to 32 nodes over an unlimited distance and allowing any type of data replication. In all cases, resource utilization and performance are optimized with the addition of a VSE.

Figure 10. Disaster-tolerant solutions: HP-UX WLM reconfigures the landscape following a disaster

Figure 10 illustrates the integration of HP-UX WLM and HP Extended Campus Cluster, Metrocluster, and Continentalclusters solutions. Regardless of the distance between data centers, in the event of a disaster, “packages” can be rolled over to servers in alternate data centers and workloads prioritized to honor SLOs.

If your environment requires disaster-tolerant protection for Oracle9i RAC while still needing the adaptive infrastructure to maintain SLOs in the event of a failure, Serviceguard Extension for RAC (SGeRAC) is also part of the Serviceguard portfolio of high-availability products for HP-UX. Enhancements to this product extend its capability from a single data center solution to providing a transparent “virtual application environment” between two data centers up to 100 km apart. In all cases, resource utilization and performance are optimized with the addition of a VSE.

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HP disaster-tolerant solutions are recognized as being among the best in the industry. Implementing HP VSE significantly reduces the high costs associated with traditional disaster-tolerant or business continuity environments requiring hot standby resources. The integration of HP GDCS, HP-UX WLM, and Instant Capacity allows all available servers to be fully utilized at all times. In the event of a disaster, mission-critical applications will be re-allocated resources from lower-priority workloads and additional capacity requirements will be fulfilled by HP Utility Pricing Solutions, allowing the system to flex based on demand.

Virtual Server Environment Quick Start Solution To get a virtualized BEA WebLogic Server or Oracle database environment deployed quickly, HP has developed the Virtual Server Environment Quick Start Solution. It is a pre-tested, qualified, and supported software package consisting of best-of-breed infrastructure components. The Virtual Server Environment Quick Start Solution is designed to substantially reduce the design, testing, installation, and integration processes for these applications. The solution contains all of the required components and patches. The VSE Quick Start Solution includes components and tools for:

• Virtual Server Environment techniques (as described previously) • System management • Web serving • Cluster management • Directory serving • Self-tuning/adapting • HP-UX operating environment management

In addition to BEA WebLogic Server and Oracle9i Database, the Virtual Server Environment Quick Start Solution includes best-of-breed software to take advantage of HP best practices in the areas of consolidation (application stacking), management, and virtualization.

Processor set tools contained in the VSE Quick Start Solution allow Java Virtual Machines (JVMs) to function optimally on SMP machines by restricting each JVM to a subset of four or fewer processors where they perform best. Additionally, the same technique can be used to stack Oracle9i Database. The result is that you can consolidate (“stack”) multiple WebLogic Servers or Oracle instances onto one operating system image without compromising performance.

The VSE Quick Start Solution also includes powerful tools from HP OpenView to enable your IT staff to better manage its IT infrastructure and BEA WebLogic and Oracle installations. HP OpenView tools enable you to monitor, control, and report on the operation of your infrastructure, including your network, systems, storage, databases, applications, services, and the Internet.

HP-UX Workload Manager can assign processors to the tasks that require them, when they require them, synchronizing your IT supply and demand. This means that the system can adapt to bottlenecks by shifting resources on the fly, away from, for example, a BEA WebLogic installation whose load requires only one processor for its current task.

The Virtual Server Environment Quick Start Solution is flexible, can be customized through HP Services, and is supported by HP Customer Support. This solution enables you to demand more from your BEA WebLogic Server or Oracle9i Database installations—more utilization, more agility, and a better return on IT.

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HP Virtual Server Environment—Real value for your business The previous explanation of what the HP VSE is and how it works should give you an idea of the benefits that your organization could gain from its use. While the technological benefits are many, the key business values derived from implementing HP VSE within the server environment can be summarized in the following sections.

Improved RoIT The industry plays up the reduced TCO and increased RoIT that go hand-in-hand with consolidation. True, servers and mass storage devices have increased in scalability. But new servers are often oversized and redundant and only increase the management complexity of the data center. Moreover, the things that really count—security, availability, performance, and user assurance—have not arrived either at the same pace or at an affordable price. HP VSE provides a far greater RoIT than many companies expect because it provides an immediate return through radically improved utilization of your current infrastructure.

VSE’s integrated, consolidated architecture reduces the amount of hardware required to run current and future workloads; allows production and non-production application instances to execute on a single system; automates IT tasks; provides tangible savings on floor space, power, and software licensing fees; improves asset utilization; reduces the need for additional staffing through simplification of the environment; makes the IT budget go much further on revenue-generating opportunities; and aligns IT cost with business revenue.

Enhanced business agility In today’s world, the old adage “time is money” certainly holds true. Globalization has compressed the world into a tight, highly competitive environment where a moment’s hesitation can result in millions of dollars in lost revenues. As companies evolve from decades of monolithic structure building to highly agile, on-the-fly, opportunistic, accountable business units, their IT infrastructures must be aligned to support this new business model.

VSE supports this new model. With VSE it is easier, faster, and less costly to turn around a business request for more or less capacity; for a flexible, adaptive server architecture; or for usage-based billing. With VSE, companies can be confident that no matter where opportunities might arise in our unpredictable world—no matter how the business ebbs and flows—their server infrastructure will be there to support their endeavors.

Improved quality of service The HP VSE provides real-time provisioning of business services. Companies can capitalize on new opportunities almost immediately because they no longer have to budget for new hardware and then wait for delivery. Off-the-shelf or in-house applications can be installed on existing systems characterized by either low utilization or intermittent demand. IT departments can be more confident of meeting agreed-upon SLOs.

Reduced risk Most companies purchase hardware during the development phase of a project with a three-year system life span in mind. This means that the systems are usually sized to meet the performance requirements anticipated at the end of the third year. However, research shows that approximately 35% of projects never require more capacity than that utilized at the end of the first year. This means that a lot of unused, redundant hardware is lying around. In addition, 30% of all projects are stopped within the first year and 50% fail. Because of accounting procedures, the hardware purchased is rarely transferred to other projects and is generally written off. Other projects that might produce a far greater return for the company never get off the ground because of either lack of funds or management skepticism as to the ability of the projects to succeed.

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The HP VSE helps to alleviate these concerns and save your budget. The implementation of either vPars or HP-UX WLM—or both—reduces the over-provisioning associated with new projects. By developing new applications in partitions on current servers, additional hardware costs can be eliminated for projects with an uncertain future. Even for projects that do succeed and do require new hardware, Instant Capacity or PPU solutions eliminate the temptation to oversize, thus saving considerable expense. User satisfaction is ensured through the use of HP-UX WLM and the re-allocation of resources to meet business demand. The enormous cost associated with managing the risk of disasters is significantly reduced by the integration of high-availability systems through clustering, optimized workloads, and HP on-demand solutions.

Future directions of the HP Virtual Server Environment As the individual capabilities of HP VSE evolve—workload management, partitioning, utility pricing, and clustering—its level of integration will be significantly enhanced. Integration between HP-UX WLM, nPars, vPars, and Instant Capacity resources will increase its flexibility and dynamic attributes.

HP Global Workload Manager HP Global Workload Manager (gWLM) is an enhanced release of HP-UX WLM. The integration of gWLM with the VSE will optimize resources in a multi-server, heterogeneous environment composed of HP-UX, Linux, and Microsoft® Windows® platforms. The complexity and management challenges associated with multi-tier applications and Web services will be reduced by VSE’s ability to anticipate and adjust the virtual resource requirements across the entire service based on the demand generated at the front end.

HP gWLM will enable VSE to provide dynamic resource allocation for applications and business services within vertical and horizontal scaled environments, such as clustered environments. VSE will ensure that each service can access the resources it requires to meet its SLOs. This will be done by adjusting the resource allocations between resource management groups and virtual partitions and, in a clustered environment, moving applications from one server or hard partition to another based on resource demand and priority.

Why HP? In the executive summary at the beginning of this white paper, the HP Adaptive Enterprise vision and its meaning to your organization was explained. The HP Virtual Server Environment, built around the only UNIX goal-based policy engine—HP-UX Workload Manager—is a significant step toward the realization of the HP vision of the Adaptive Enterprise.

John Madden, a senior analyst with Summit Strategies, stated the following with regard to VSE: “Smart enterprises want to prioritize and automatically adjust infrastructure resource workloads based on business objectives. This helps set user expectations for performance and clearly communicates the business value IT brings to the enterprise. HP delivers these capabilities today and, in fact, has a strong lead in offering customers the most comprehensive set of technologies relative to hard partitioning, virtual partitioning, and goal-based workload management.”

The orchestration and real-time allocation of server resources according to business priorities that is enabled by the HP VSE reflects the real world and helps ensure your company will have an agile IT infrastructure.

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For more information To learn more, go to:

• http://www.hp.com/go/virtualization • http://www.hp.com/go/wlm

© 2003, 2005 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. The information contained herein is subject to change without notice. The only warranties for HP products and services are set forth in the express warranty statements accompanying such products and services. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting an additional warranty. HP shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein.

Java is a U.S. trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc. Microsoft and Windows areU.S. registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Oracle is a registered U.S. trademark of Oracle Corporation, Redwood City, California. UNIX is a registered trademark of The Open Group.

5982-1426EN Rev. 1, 03/2005

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