HP Insight Virtualization Manager with Logical Server Management 6.1 User Guide

4 Managing logical servers
A logical server is a set of configuration information that you create, activate, and move across
physical and virtual machines. It contains the logical server definition and description, including
the server compute resources (for example, number of CPU cores and amount of memory), and
the server connections to storage fabric and networks.
When activated, a logical server is applied to the creation of a virtual machine using
hypervisor-based software or to a bare-metal server blade using HP Virtual Connect technology.
Logical servers can be defined in Virtualization Manager using the Create Logical Server wizard,
or created and activated via the import of an existing server blade or virtual machine.
Virtualization Manager also provides a convenient way for you to move logical servers by
allowing you to drag and drop an active logical server from one system to another. When you
select a target on which to move a logical server, you are shown a Headroom rating that displays
between one and five stars, with the higher number of stars denoting more excess resources are
available on the target server.
NOTE: You can use the logical servers feature in Virtualization Manager only on a Windows
CMS, although you can create and perform operations on logical servers that run on a Windows,
Linux, or HP-UX system on HP ProLiant, Integrity, and certain non-HP servers.
This chapter covers the following information about working with logical servers from
Virtualization Manager:
• Using logical servers (see “Using logical servers in Virtualization Manager” (page 41))
• Understanding logical servers (see “Logical servers in visualization perspectives” (page 42))
• Performing logical server operations (see “Logical server operations” (page 44))
• Authorizations, requirements and configuration (see “Authorizations, requirements, and
configuration” (page 55))
For information about defining logical server storage, see Chapter 6 “Defining storage for logical
servers”.
For information about upgrading logical servers from a previous version, see the Upgrading
Logical Servers to HP Insight Dynamics 6.0 white paper.
Using logical servers in Virtualization Manager
The logical servers feature in HP Insight Dynamics is advanced infrastructure management
software that allows you to analyze and optimize physical and virtual resources in the same
way.
The logical servers feature in Virtualization Manager allows you to perform tasks such as the
following:
• Populate an enclosure
• Load balance servers by moving a running logical servers from one location to another
• Evacuate servers, for routine maintenance or in case of disaster
Using logical servers within the Virtualization Manager provides the following benefits:
• Allows you to use a common interface and management tools for both virtual machines and
servers with Virtual Connect.
• Allows you to deploy resources only when needed. For example, some applications are
needed only during parts of a business cycle.
• Increases business agility and flexibility by decoupling business processing from physical
hardware, allowing you to respond to rapid changes in demand.
Using logical servers in Virtualization Manager 41