Re: [Xen-devel] RAM allocation and miscellaneous questions

[Paul Dorman <pauld@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hmmmmmm. Lots of RAM :o)

Yes, I do have a 'cluster', but only two machines so far. The problem for me 
is that multi-processor Opteron 1u machines (or 2u or 4u for that matter) are 
hard to come by here in New Zealand, unless we pay through the nose for an HP 
or other big-name machine. I can get dual Xeon machines pretty cheap though. 
If I look at the Opteron option, I'll have to compare it to just buying more 
Xeons. Either way, it's going to cost more for our initial cluster than it 
would if I could just use 12GB in a cheap Xeon unit. Don't get me wrong 
though, if Opteron units were available here I would have got them from the 
outset.

Personally I have no issue with sourcing machines from Australia or somewhere, 
but my bosses will be reluctant due to support issues, etc.

Regards,
Paul

On Wednesday 29 September 2004 08:37 pm, Keir Fraser wrote:
> > Another option, and I'm thinking you are all going to say 'go for that
> > one!', would be to use 64bit machines for our main cluster, perhaps just
> > using the two dual Xeon machines I have now for development purposes.
> > That way I could use lots of RAM and presumably load up even more VMs
> > into each. If I go down this road, I'm wondering what kind of hardware I
> > should get. Does Xen work well with Opterons? I'm an AMD fan and would be
> > very happy to use them if I went for this option. I'm after inexpensive
> > commodity servers, so if anyone has any recommendations (especially if
> > you are in NZ or Australia), I'm all ears.
>
> Opteron isn't supported yet in 64-bit mode, but it /is/ on the todo
> list to get it finished off. As opposed to PAE36 mode, which it is
> highly likley that we will never support.
>
> > May I ask how much RAM I could use with a dual Opteron system in a
> > sensible Xen configuration? What's been tested?
>
> You will be able to stuff in as much RAM as the machine will take. :-)
>
> > One final question: if I were to ask the directors of the company if they
> > would be interested in sponsoring big memory on Xeon-based machines, what
> > kind of commitment would we be talking about? It could be cheaper to do
> > this than to buy a cluster of dual Opteron machines! I do realise though
> > that the true impediment will probably be the amount of time you
> > developers have, so I'll brace myself for disappointment! :o)
>
> So you already have an existing 32-bit cluster that you would have to
> sideline?
>
>  -- Keir


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