HP Instant Capacity Version 10.x User Guide (762794-001, March 2014)

GiCAP group members
Every operating system on a GiCAP group member must be running Instant Capacity version
10.04.01 or later. Every GiCAP group member must be hardware-compatible with other GiCAP
group members, as determined by the GiCAP grouping rules.
GiCAP grouping rules
After you have determined which system will host the active Group Manager, you must acquire
grouping rules from the portal and install the encrypted file on the active Group Manager system
using the icapmanage -i command. Under some circumstances (for example, when adding
new hardware not covered by the grouping rules currently in use), you might need to acquire
newer grouping rules from the portal.
GiCAP sharing rights
To create a GiCAP group with members, you must purchase GiCAP sharing rights, acquire the
GiCAP codeword from the HP Utility Pricing Solutions portal (http://www.hp.com/go/icap/portal),
and then apply the associated codeword to the active Group Manager system. You must purchase
as many GiCAP sharing rights as the total number of cores without usage rights being applied
across all the potential group members. Members can be added to a GiCAP group if sufficient
sharing rights are available, and if the grouping rules indicate hardware compatibility.
Unlike other iCAP codewords, GiCAP codewords must be generated for and applied to a specific
partition, if the active Group Manager is on a partitionable system. Therefore, to retrieve the
codeword, you must specify the purchase order number, the system serial number, and the partition
information, if any. Use the icapmanage -s command on the active Group Manager system to
get the applicable serial number and nPar ID, or vPar code.
GiCAP codewords also have a sequence value and must be applied in the order in which they
are generated for the Group Manager system. However, GiCAP codewords are sequenced
independently from any other types of iCAP codewords that might be generated for the same
system, and can therefore be applied independently from iCAP codewords.
GiCAP group creation
After the sharing rights codeword and the grouping rules are applied to the active Group Manager,
a GiCAP group can be created by issuing the icapmanage command using the -a, -g and -m
options. Members are added by issuing the icapmanage command using the -a option, the -g
option to select the group name, and the -m option to specify the member name and the hostname(s)
of the Onboard Administrator(s).
Each member that joins the group, decreases the available GiCAP sharing rights by the number
of cores without usage rights contributed by that member complex.
GiCAP resource sharing
After a group is established, Instant Capacity resources (core, cell board, memory usage rights,
and temporary capacity) can be shared among all the members of the group.
Usage rights are shared by deactivating resources on one group member, and then activating
resources on another member of the group. In effect, the system on which the resources were
deactivated is loaning usage rights to the activating (or borrowing) system. The activation and
deactivation commands are done using the usual icapmodify and parmodify commands on
the individual member systems to effect this “loan” operation (also sometimes referred to as a
transfer of usage rights).
Any temporary capacity available to individual members of the group is combined into a larger
pool of temporary capacity that is available for consumption by any and all members of the group,
as needed. Usage of shared temporary capacity is the same as with individually purchased TiCAP:
group members use the icapmodify -a -t command to activate shared temporary capacity.
This differs from the sharing of usage rights in that temporary capacity is never a loan to be returned;
it is always depleted through its usage over time.
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