Single Root IO Virtualization (SR-IOV) is a technology that allows a physical PCIe device to present itself multiple times through the PCIe bus. This technology enables multiple virtual instances of the device with separate resources. Mellanox adapters can expose up to 127 virtual instances (Virtual Functions - VFs)) for each port in the Mellanox ConnectX® family cards. These virtual functions can then be provisioned separately. Each VF is an additional device connected to the Physical Function. It shares the same resources with the Physical Function, and its number of ports equals those of the Physical Function. SR-IOV is commonly used in conjunction with an SR-IOV enabled hypervisor to provide virtual machines direct hardware access to network resources, hence increasing their performance.
This chapter demonstrates the setup and configuration procedures of (legacy) SR-IOV in OpenStack TripleO.
For further information and instructions, please read the following chapters in t he latestRedHat Network Functions Virtualization Planning and Configuration Guide :
Chapter 5: Planning an SR-IOV Deployment
Chapter 6: Deploying SR-IOV Technologies:
Section 6.1: Prerequisites
Section 6.2: Configuring SR-IOV
Section 6.3: NIC Partitioning
The following overcloud operating system packages are supported:
Item | Version |
Kernel | Inbox |