Configuring UCS Components for VM-FEX

This chapter includes the following sections:

Creating a Dynamic vNIC Connection Policy for VM-FEX for Hyper-V

The vNICs created by this procedure become VFs when they are associated with an SR-IOV PF in a service profile. The maximum number of VFs that you can create depends on the number of adapters and the number of configured PFs and vHBAs, according to the following formula:

Number of dynamic vNICs = (116 * number of adapters) - number of PFs - number of vHBAs

Before You Begin

For more information on dynamic vNIC connection policies, see Configuring Policies.

Procedure
    Step 1   In the Navigation pane, click the LAN tab.
    Step 2   On the LAN tab, expand LAN > Policies.
    Step 3   Expand the node for the organization where you want to create the policy.

    If the system does not include multitenancy, expand the root node.

    Step 4   Right-click the Dynamic vNIC Connection Policies node and choose Create Dynamic vNIC Connection Policy.
    Step 5   In the Create Dynamic vNIC Connection Policy dialog box, complete the following fields:

    Name Description

    Name field

    The name of the policy.

    This name can be between 1 and 32 alphanumeric characters. You cannot use spaces or any special characters other than - (hyphen) or _ (underscore), and you cannot change this name after the object has been saved.

    Note   

    Do not specify "default" as the value for the dynamic vNIC connection policy name. Cisco UCS Manager automatically resolves any empty policy references to "default". Any service profiles or service profile templates with only static vNICS defined will automatically reference the policy "default" when it is present. If you specify “default” for the dynamic vNIC connection policy name, then unexpected dynamic vNICs might be created on those service profiles or service profile templates.

    Description field

    A description of the policy. We recommend that you include information about where and when the policy should be used.

    Enter up to 256 characters. You can use any characters or spaces except ` (accent mark), \ (backslash), ^ (carat), " (double quote), = (equal sign), > (greater than), < (less than), or ' (single quote).

    Number of Dynamic vNICs field

    The number of dynamic vNICs that this policy affects.

    Enter an integer between 0 and the maximum number as determined by the following formula:

    Number of dynamic vNICs = (116 * number of adapters) - number of PFs - number of vHBAs

    Adapter Policy drop-down list

    The adapter profile associated with this policy. The profile must already exist to be included in the drop-down list.

    For Hyper-V, select the predefined Windows adapter policy.

    Protection field

    Dynamic vNICs are always protected in Cisco UCS, but this field allows you to select a preferred fabric, if any. You can choose one of the following:

    • Protected Pref A—Cisco UCS attempts to use fabric A but fails over to fabric B if necessary
    • Protected Pref B—Cisco UCS attempts to use fabric B but fails over to fabric A if necessary
    • Protected—Cisco UCS uses whichever fabric is available
    Step 6   Click OK.
    Step 7   If the Cisco UCS Manager GUI displays a confirmation dialog box, click Yes.

    Creating a Service Profile for VM-FEX for Hyper-V

    The service profile created by this procedure creates the SR-IOV PF and VF interfaces and configures the BIOS settings required for Hyper-V.

    Before You Begin

    For more information on configuring service profiles, see the Cisco UCS Manager GUI Configuration Guide.

    Procedure
      Step 1   In the Navigation pane, click the Servers tab.
      Step 2   On the Servers tab, expand Servers > Service Profiles.
      Step 3   Expand the node for the organization where you want to create the service profile.

      If the system does not include multitenancy, expand the root node.

      Step 4   Right-click the organization and select Create Service Profile (expert).
      Step 5   Complete the Identify Service Profile page and click Next.
      Step 6   In the Networking page, make sure that the Dynamic vNIC Connection Policy drop-down list has no dynamic vNIC connection policy selected.
      Step 7   Select Expert as the method for configuring LAN connectivity.
      Step 8   Click Add on the icon bar of the first vNIC table to open the Create vNICs dialog box.
      Step 9   In the Create vNICs dialog box, create a vNIC for Fabric A.

      This vNIC will become an SR-IOV physical function (PF).
      Step 10   In the Adapter Performance Profile area, select SRIOV from the Adapter Policy list.

      The SRIOV adapter policy is predefined.

      Note   

      The predefined SRIOV adapter policy supports up to 32 CPU threads. If the server has more than 32 CPU threads, you must create and specify a custom adapter policy that supports a number of interrupts equal to the number of CPU threads. To the right of the Adapter Policy, click Create Ethernet Adapter Policy and follow the instructions in Creating a Custom Ethernet Adapter Policy for SR-IOV.
      Step 11   From the Dynamic vNIC Connection Profile list, select the dynamic vNIC connection policy that you created using the predefined Windows adapter policy.
      Step 12   Click OK.

      This vNIC will become a PF.
      Step 13   (Optional)Create another vNIC with no dynamic vNIC connection policy as a static vNIC for host management.

      For this vNIC, choose the Windows adapter policy or a custom adapter policy.
      Step 14   Click Next and complete the remaining wizard pages up to the Operational Policies page.
      Step 15   In the Operational Policies page, expand the BIOS Configuration bar and select SRIOV from the BIOS Policy drop-down list.

      The predefined SRIOV BIOS policy configures the required BIOS settings for Hyper-V.
      Step 16   Click Finish.

      Creating a Port Profile for VM-FEX for Hyper-V

      Before You Begin

      For general information about port profiles and profile clients, see Configuring Port Profiles.

      Procedure
        Step 1   In the Navigation pane, click the VM tab.
        Step 2   On the VM tab, expand the All node.
        Step 3   Right-click the Port Profiles node and choose Create Port Profile.
        Step 4   In the Create Port Profile dialog box, configure a Name for the port profile.

        This name can be between 1 and 31 alphanumeric characters. You cannot use spaces or any special characters other than - (hyphen) and _ (underscore), and you cannot change this name after the object has been saved.

        Step 5   (Optional)Enter a Description for the port profile.

        Enter up to 256 characters. You can use any characters or spaces except ` (accent mark), \ (backslash), ^ (carat), " (double quote), = (equal sign), > (greater than), < (less than), or ' (single quote).

        Step 6   In the VLANs area, configure a Native VLAN for the port profile.
        Step 7   Configure any other desired settings.

        Detailed information about port profile configuration can be found in Configuring Port Profiles. In many cases, the default settings are sufficient.
        Step 8   Click OK.
        What to Do Next

        Create a cluster and a profile client.

        Creating a Cluster

        We recommend that you create one or more dedicated clusters for Hyper-V instead of using the default cluster automatically created by Cisco UCS Manager.

        Procedure
          Step 1   In the Navigation pane, click the VM tab.
          Step 2   In the VM tab, expand the All node.
          Step 3   Right-click the Clusters node and select Create Cluster.

          The Create Cluster dialog box opens.
          Step 4   In the Create Cluster dialog box, complete the following fields:
          Name Description

          Name field

          Enter a name for the cluster.

          The cluster name can be between 1 and 16 alphanumeric characters. You cannot use spaces or any special characters other than - (hyphen) and _ (underscore), and you cannot change the name after the cluster has been saved.

          Description field

          (Optional) Enter a description of the cluster.

          Enter up to 256 characters. You can use any characters or spaces except ` (accent mark), \ (backslash), ^ (carat), " (double quote), = (equal sign), > (greater than), < (less than), or ' (single quote).

          Cluster ID field

          Enter a unique identifier for the cluster.

          The Cluster ID must contain exactly 34 hexadecimal (0-9 and a-f) characters and 4 dashes (-) in the following format: XXXXXXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX. For example: 01234567-0123-4567-89ab-0123456789abcd.
          Step 5   Click OK.

          Creating a Profile Client for VM-FEX for Hyper-V

          In a Hyper-V system, the profile client determines the cluster to which the port profile is applied.

          For more information about profile clients, see Port Profile Clients.

          Procedure
            Step 1   In the Navigation pane, click the VM tab.
            Step 2   On the VM tab, expand All > Port Profiles.
            Step 3   Right-click the port profile for which you want to create a profile client and choose Create Profile Client.
            Step 4   In the Create Profile Client dialog box, configure a Name for the profile client.

            This name can be between 1 and 16 alphanumeric characters. You cannot use spaces or any special characters other than - (hyphen) and _ (underscore), and you cannot change this name after the object has been saved.

            Step 5   (Optional)Enter a Description for the profile client.

            Enter up to 256 characters. You can use any characters or spaces except ` (accent mark), \ (backslash), ^ (carat), " (double quote), = (equal sign), > (greater than), < (less than), or ' (single quote).

            Step 6   In the Distributed Virtual Switch drop-down list, select the cluster you created for Hyper-V.
            Note   

            In a Hyper-V system, there is no distributed virtual switch. This setting associates the profile client to the cluster.
            Step 7   Configure any other desired settings.

            Detailed information about profile client configuration can be found in Creating a Profile Client. In many cases, the default settings are sufficient.
            Step 8   Click OK.

            The port profile will appear under the cluster in the Navigation pane.