(imported topic written by cop3ccpotter91)
Can anyone advise me on the possiblility of using a vm virtualized server as the BES server?
Are main reason for the question is how to stream line the BES server so if a hardware failure occurs we can turn the old server off and turn on the other vm bes.
(imported comment written by mc116991)
We make extensive use of VMware in our environment, however we opted to not use a VM for the BES server. Depending on the size of your environment, you may also consider doing this. You do make a good point however with redundancy.
(imported comment written by mcalvi91)
we did this for a limited install base for our POC of Bigfix. For up to a 1000 or so clients (all we did) it worked beautifully.
(imported comment written by BenKus)
You can certainly install the BES Server on a virtualized server, but be aware that there tends to be IO penalties for virtualization and it could slowdown the network/disk activity of the BES Server. For smaller deployments (say under 10,000 computers), this is probably not a big deal… but for bigger deployments of 50,000-200,000 computer range, the small IO penalty can be meaningful…
Here is some more info:
http://support.bigfix.com/cgi-bin/kbdirect.pl?id=366
Ben
(imported comment written by hanspjacobsen)
This thread is quit old so I was just wondering if the recommendation is stil not to virtualization for 10 000 + deployments?
One of the points where that there would be to much network traffic if virtualization. Wouldn’t this be an issue if one uses a NAS for storage instead of local disks.
(imported comment written by SystemAdmin)
I’m not sure of the official BigFix position and we don’t have 10,000+ clients. But I’ve done two BES deployments on vmware esx 3 and both have been virtualized with zero issues.
As for the 10,000+ client question, if you are running vmware I’d point you to this link on what they are touting as near native in vshpere 4 - http://www.vmware.com/technology/performance/benchmarks.html and tell you to get in touch with your vmware rep as they are very interested in disproving what can’t be virtualized.
(imported comment written by SystemAdmin)
Yes, the main problem with virtualization for the BES Server is slow disk access. The SQL Database in particular is heavily affected by disk latency. Virtualization can work if setup correctly but we recommend working with a technician to ensure it is done correctly. Using a physical server is still recommended to avoid problems.
(imported comment written by hanspjacobsen)
Hi Tyler wouldn’t using nas disks also effect the performanse since these are accessed via fiber compaired to local disks.
(imported comment written by MattBoyd)
Connectivity isn’t the only thing that will affect disk I/O performance. The type of disk you’re using can be very important to performance. If you’re using a VMWare server that’s connected to a SAN with SAS 15k rpm disks, you will see much better performance compared to using SATA disks. I’m not sure I’d recommend using a NAS because you may not see the same level of performance or redundancy that you get with a SAN.
(imported comment written by SystemAdmin)
Yes, local disks provides the lowest latency possible. Even Fiber introduces latency, it is just unavoidable when connecting to a remote server. SAN and NAS will both be slower than locally attached storage.