Compute Resources

Compute resources are Xen or KVM platforms running on bare metal with CentOS Linux as the management operating system or VMware ESXi servers. They are used to provide hardware resources for virtual servers, ensuring highly efficient use of available hardware, and complete isolation of virtual server processes. Each virtual server in the cloud is hosted by a specific physical Compute resource server, from which it receives CPU time, RAM and storage capacity from the data stores attached to that Compute resource. OnApp supports multiple Compute resource platforms including Xen, KVM, and VMware.

We strongly recommend that you avoid adding CloudBoot and static Compute resources to one Compute zone.

See also:



Compute resources have types which they inherit from the zone to which they belong. These types also define the type of resources (data stores, networks, and backup servers) that can be associated with a compute zone or compute resource. Compute resources can be later moved from one compute zone to another, but the zones should be of the same type. For more information refer to Zone Types. The table below demonstrates the available compute zone types for different compute resources:

Compute Resource TypeCompute Zone Type
Xen

Virtual

Baremetal

KVM

Virtual

Smart

VMwareVirtual
vCloud DirectorVPC


Compute resource features

Compute resources:

  • Provide system resources such as CPU, memory, and network to virtual servers
  • Control the virtual differentiation of entities such as virtual servers and application data being delivered to cloud-based applications
  • Take care of secure virtualization and channeling of storage, data communications and server processing
  • Can be located in different geographical zones
  • Can have different CPU and RAM

Compute resources can also be organized into Compute zones, which make it easy to offer tiered service levels and create private clouds for specific users.

Compute resources can be dynamically booted over the network using the CloudBoot technology, or statically installed from a CentOS base. Note that enabling the OnApp storage platform requires Compute resources to be provisioned using the CloudBoot interface. Refer to the CloudBoot Compute Resources section for details.

When a Compute resource is inaccessible for a period of time, commands queued during that period of time will be marked as failed. This is an expected OnApp behavior.

Compute resource management

The main Compute resources section in the left Control Panel menu provides access to basic tools for viewing, editing and rebooting Compute resources.

Tools for advanced Compute resource management and controlling сompute zones are located in the Control Panel's Settings menu (Settings > Compute resources, and Settings > Compute resource Zones).  For details, refer to the Compute Resource Settings section of this guide.