Cloud FAQs: Answers to Common Questions, Part 2

a) How many nodes can live migration support on the cluster ?

Live migration is supported on failover clusters of up to 16 nodes.

b) What is the maximum number of virtual machines supported by each node ?

The virtual machines from the failed host are brought online on different nodes in the cluster, with the maximum supported number depending on production deployments, server workloads, and VDI workloads. Customers must plan for sufficient capacity in case of a failover.

c) Does live migration work on clusters with mixed AMD and Intel host nodes ?

To ensure successful live or quick migration, all cluster nodes must have processors from the same processor vendor, such as Intel or AMD.

d) Can a virtual machine be migrated from an older processor host to a newer processor host if host nodes have the same manufacturer’s virtualization-capable processors ?

To migrate a virtual machine from a host, use the “Processor Compatibility Mode” option in RC. This feature allows live and fast migration from newer processors to older processors from the same manufacturer. Enable this option under Virtual Machine Settings > Processor > Migrate to a physical machine with a different processor version. This allows for live migration or quick migration without using the Processor Compatibility Mode option.

e) Are there any new tools included in Windows Server R2 Server Core to help manage Hyper-V ?

New versions and advanced software versions introduce additional functionality and server configuration scripts in Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V RC. To start the utility, type sconfig on the command line.