Concepts for partitioning the server

There are many different ways in which you can partition a server. You can assign some resources directly to logical partitions, and you can share other resources among your logical partitions to make your server more flexible and reduce the amount of maintenance that you must perform. A thorough understanding of the ways in which you can partition a server will allow you to take the fullest advantage of the capabilities of your server.

Logical partition overview
Logical partitioning is the ability to make a server run as if it were two or more independent servers. When you logically partition a server, you divide the resources on the server into subsets called logical partitions. You can install software on a logical partition, and the logical partition runs as an independent logical server with the resources that you have allocated to the logical partition.
Partitioning tools
You must use tools to partition your servers. The tool that you use to partition each server depends upon the server model and the operating systems and features that you want to use on the server.
Logical partition functional differences
IBM® Systems and eServer™ hardware provides several technical enhancements in logical partition functionality compared to previous hardware models. The logical partition functionality of IBM Systems and eServer hardware also depends upon the partition management tool that you use to partition the server.
Types of logical partition configurations
There are many different types of logical partition configurations on IBM Systems and eServer hardware.
Minimum hardware configuration requirements for logical partitions
Each logical partition requires at least a certain amount of hardware resources. You can assign hardware resources directly to a logical partition, or you can set the logical partition to use the hardware resources that are assigned to another logical partition. The minimum hardware configuration requirements for each logical partition depends on the operating system or software installed on the logical partition.
Physical and virtual hardware resources
When you partition a managed system, you can assign the physical resources on the managed system directly to logical partitions. You can also share hardware resources among logical partitions by virtualizing those hardware resources. The methods used to virtualize and share hardware resources depend on the type of resource that you are sharing.
Communications options for logical partitions
The types of communications options that you use depend on your business needs and the operating system you are running. You can establish interpartition communication using virtual Ethernet. For IBM System i5® and eServer i5 server models, you can also use the HSL OptiConnect for high-speed system-to-system communication or the virtual OptiConnect to emulate external OptiConnect hardware providing a virtual bus between logical partitions.
Logical partition utilities
There are utilities in addition to the main partition management tools that you can use to manage your system. These utilities allow you to monitor and manage resources more closely than you could if you use the partition management tools alone. These utilities are installed on logical partitions on your managed system.
Examples of logically partitioned systems
You can use the logical partitioning examples in this section to consolidate servers, use computing resources more efficiently, and increase the flexibility of your enterprise.

Parent topic: Partitioning the server

Send feedback | Rate this page

Last updated: Fri, Oct 30, 2009