In this section:
This section describes the DSC Software Edition (DSC SWe) SWe hardware and software requirements and recommendations.
To install and configure the DSC SWe, make sure the Virtual Machine (VM) host meets the following recommended hardware, server platform, and software requirements.
Caution
The recommended hardware and software settings intended to ensure optimum DSC SWe stability and performance. If the recommended settings are not used, the DSC SWe system may not behave as expected.
Caution
The DSC SWe software only runs on platforms using Intel processors. Platforms using Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) processors are not supported.
KVM Host Hardware Requirements
Refer to your Host OS and KVM vendor installation requirements. Verify the base installation requirements are satisfied before allocating resources to the virtual machine containers.
Ethernet Port Requirements
The DSC SWe handles critical signaling traffic. For network robustness, it is recommended the DSC SWe is deployed with a minimum of four physical Ethernet ports between virtual machines running on individual (physically separate) COTS servers. Four physical Ethernet ports are the recommended minimum, however, eight physical Ethernet ports is preferred to allow sufficient physical layer redundancy and traffic separation. This Ethernet configuration allows the DSC SWe to remain fault tolerant.
Recommended BIOS Settings
Ribbon recommends the following BIOS settings for optimum performance.
Recommended BIOS Settings for Optimum Performance
| BIOS Parameter | Recommended Setting | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Intel VT-x (Virtualization Technology) | Enabled | For hardware virtualization |
| Intel VT-d (Directed I/O) | Enabled | If available |
| Intel Hyper-Threading | Enabled | |
| Intel Turbo Boost | Enabled | |
| CPU power management | Maximum Performance |
Note
For locating the appropriate BIOS settings for your server, refer to the Vendor's Website/documentation for this server.
As an example, the BIOS settings in the following table are for the HP DL 380p Gen8 servers.
Note
The minimally required items are Intel® VT-d, HP Power Profile, and Thermal Configuration.
BIOS Setting Recommendations for HP DL380p Gen8 Server (Example)
| BIOS Parameter | Recommended Setting | Default Value |
|---|---|---|
| Adjacent Sector Prefetcher | Disabled | Enabled |
| Data Direct I/O | Enabled | Disabled |
| HP Power Profile | Maximum Performance | Balanced Power and Performance |
| HW Prefetchers | Disabled | Enabled |
| Intel® VT-d | Enabled | Disabled |
| Memory Pre-Failure Notification | Disabled | Enabled |
| Memory Refresh Rate | 1x Refresh | 2x Refresh |
| Processor Power and Utilization Monitoring | Disabled | Enabled |
| SR-IOV | Enabled | Disabled |
| Thermal Configuration | Maximum Cooling | Optimal Cooling |
Software Requirements for the Linux KVM Host and DSC SWe
The following table shows the Linux KVM Host and DSC SWe application software requirements. KVM Host Linux OS Requirements Software Version For More Information Module installedKVM Module libvirt-0.9.4-23 (or newer) Linux RHEL QEMU-KVM 1.5 or greater Libvirt and tools 1.0 or greater Genisoimage 1.1 or greater
VM Configuration Recommendations
Note
The following are general recommendations for a DSC SWe installation:
- Refer to section Performance Tuning the DSC SWe VM to determine the required resources (for example, vRAM, vCPU, vNIC ports, and the virtual Hard Disk) for optimum performance of the DSC VM.
- In the BIOS settings of your computer, disconnect or disable any physical hardware devices that you will not be using (for example, floppy devices, network interfaces, storage controllers, optical drives, or USB controllers) to free CPU resources.
Note
Allocate each VM with the required virtual hardware for robust operation. Provisioning a VM with more resources than it requires can, in some cases, reduce the performance of the VM and other VMs sharing the same KVM Host.
The following tables show the recommended resources allocated to each VM installed on a KVM Host. Recommended KVM Host Resources Allocated to each DSC SWe VM for Diameter 4 cores; 2 GHz minimum Recommended KVM Host Resources Allocated to each DSC SWe VM for SS7 4 cores; 2 GHz minimumResources To support Diameter only vCPU vRAM 5 GB vHDD 65 GB vNIC 4 virtual NICS (1 MGMT, 1 HA, and 2 packet ports) Recommended KVM Host Resources Allocated for DSC (Diameter and SS7) VMsResources To support SS7 Only vCPU vRAM 5 GB vHDD 65 GB vNIC 4 virtual NICS (1 MGMT, 1 HA, and 2 packet ports)
| Resources | 2 VMs supporting Diameter and SS7 |
|---|---|
| vCPU | 8 cores; 2 GHz minimum |
| vRAM | 5 GB |
| vHDD | 65 GB |
| vNIC | 4 virtual NICS (1 MGMT, 1 HA, and 2 packet ports) |
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