Performance Lab Report & Architecture Overview Summary of SnapVDI Features and Performance Testing Using Login VSI

Transcription

1 by American Megatrends, Inc. Performance Lab Report & Architecture Overview Summary of SnapVDI Features and Performance Testing Using Login VSI

2 Table of Contents Executive Summary Introduction Desktop Virtualization with SnapVDI SnapVDI Components SnapVDI Manager (SVM) SnapVDI Spark SnapVDI Zero Client SnapVDI Reference Architecture Overview Architecture Components Infrastructure Network Design Considerations Test Results Summary Test Methodology Test Objectives Test Tool Load Generation Test Criteria Test Configuration Test Results and Analysis Test Scenarios Storage IOPS Personal and Pooled Desktop Solution Login VSI Office Worker Workload User Test Boot Storm I/O Login Storm I/O Steady State I/O Workload for Office Users Pooled Desktop Solution Migration of Virtual Desktops During Failover Test Results Storage IOPS Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 2

3 Pooled and Personal Desktop Solution Login VSI Testing Boot Storm I/O Login Storm I/O Steady State I/O Pooled Desktop Solution Login VSI Testing Steady State I/O High Availability (HA) Configuration Server Configuration SnapVDI Configuration Windows 8.1 Virtual Desktop Configuration Login VSI Test Configuration Conclusion References Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 3

4 Executive Summary Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) deployments have become increasingly prevalent among companies and organizations due to VDI s inherent benefits of enhanced security, manageability, mobility, and productivity. The turnkey, all-in-one SnapVDI solution from AMI includes both software and hardware and is deployed in a matter of hours allowing users to resolve the cost, complexity, and performance concerns associated with traditional desktop environments. Characteristics Density Performance Result SnapVDI Solution 120 Mixed Personal/Pooled desktops on High Availability 150 Pooled desktops on High Availability Login VSI baseline of 1,473 ms with a VSImax 4.1 average of 2164 ms (VSImax not reached) This technical white paper describes the SnapVDI solution with detailed notes on its hardware components and architecture, including patented SnapVDI Spark Technology, SnapVDI Manager (SVM) and SnapVDI Zero Client. The document also demonstrates how a modular virtual desktop environment can be deployed in a SnapVDI VDI infrastructure leveraging two SnapVDI servers in high-availability (HA) mode. The SnapVDI solution was validated using Login VSI and Iometer and was able to host 150 pooled virtual desktops with no compromise in user experience and performance. The solution includes built-in failover that guarantees high availability with near-zero downtime along with unprecedented boot storm and login storm performance. Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 4

5 1. Introduction Virtual Desktop Infrastructure deployments are replacing traditional PC environments in organizations of all sizes to simplify management, increase security, and reduce overall IT costs. A centralized installation of client systems through Virtual Machines (VMs) drastically reduces the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), as well as the complexity of infrastructure management that administrators face with individual PCs. In addition, organizations seeking to increase security with a private cloud can do so with a VDI solution. SnapVDI is the end-to-end solution from AMI that helps to realize the benefits of VDI and avoid the many pitfalls of integrating components from numerous vendors. 2. Desktop Virtualization with SnapVDI SnapVDI is a complete VDI solution that scales from tens of users up to thousands. Unlike most VDI component-based products, SnapVDI is shipped as a Ready-to-Deploy solution that makes implementing VDI quick and simple. SnapVDI was architected to leverage the latest virtual desktop technologies while keeping in mind the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). Most virtual desktop implementations fail due to the complexity and high cost associated with the project. Hundreds of users have shared their desire for VDI, but expressed concerns over the roadblocks they had experienced during past VDI evaluations. SnapVDI resolves these common concerns by delivering a lower cost per user than traditional desktops while providing unparalleled functionality and performance SnapVDI Components The SnapVDI solution includes: SnapVDI Manager (SVM), which allows administrators to manage and monitor the entire VDI environment from a single interface SnapVDI Spark, a highly patented VDI acceleration algorithm that guarantees intelligent usage of hardware resources to deliver unrivaled performance SnapVDI Zero Client, the end user device with proprietary SnapVDI VUE firmware for enhanced user experience Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 5

6 Figure 1 : SnapVDI Components SnapVDI Manager (SVM) SnapVDI Manager is the centralized management software that aids in managing the entire VDI solution. Using this software, an administrator can monitor, manage, and provision all VDI components - including VM pool creation, deletion, modification, provisioning and management of users, storage, zero clients and inventory - all from a single local or remote location. In addition, SnapVDI Manager enables the administrator to build a private cloud environment to greatly increase the utility and cost-effectiveness of the VDI solution SnapVDI Spark The brain of the SnapVDI architecture, SnapVDI Spark provides intelligent caching and storage with unprecedented high performance. Spark also enables a seamless user experience with on-the-fly backup and recovery built in. This layer of SnapVDI empowers Remote Desktop Services (RDS), giving users an experience identical to that of a local desktop. SnapVDI Spark is designed for scalability and performance with minimal downtime. In fact, all Virtual Machines (VMs) in the entire VDI environment can be booted up in a matter of seconds SnapVDI Zero Client SnapVDI Zero Client is the physical device given to each user to access the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure. All zero clients, as well as all users, are simply managed through a single point by SnapVDI Manager. The SnapVDI Zero Client is a high performance System-On-Chip (SOC) device that supports Microsoft RDS-based VDI solutions and uses only 7 watts of power at the maximum. The client can also be integrated on devices to make a portable workstation. SnapVDI Zero Client also supports HD graphics (maximum resolution of 1920x1080) for workstations and graphics oriented applications. SnapVDI Zero Client does not require any OS to be installed by the end user as it comes with an embedded OS pre-installed. Zero Client manageability, including access to desktops, user privileges, and peripheral device control, are managed by SVM through user policies. If any unauthorized access to the device is attempted, the device will be locked by SVM and it can be unlocked only by the administrator through SVM. Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 6

7 2.2. SnapVDI Reference Architecture Overview This paper is intended to help customers, IT architects, consultants, and administrators involved in the early phases of planning, designing, or deploying SnapVDI -based VDI solutions. The purpose is to provide a standard, repeatable, and highly scalable design that can be easily adapted to specific environments and customer requirements. Some key features that can help an organization get started quickly with a solution that integrates easily into existing IT processes and procedures include: Standardized, validated, readily available components Scalable designs that allow room for future growth Validated and tested designs that reduce implementation and operational risks Quick implementation, reduced costs, and minimized risk Architecture Components This reference architecture uses common components to minimize support costs and deployment risks. The desktop virtualization solution referenced in this whitepaper, the SnapVDI B150 brick, combines the best of breed of data center, virtualization, and network technologies. The B150 employs the below tabulated hardware and software components: Component Quantity Host Hardware 2U SnapVDI Server (HA) 2 2U SnapVDI Dual Controller Storage Console 1 Intel Xeon Processor E v4 2 32GB DIMM RAM 48 SAS HBA 2 1TB SAS HDD 16 Network 20 x1gbps Ports, 4 x10gbps Ports - Software Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2 Data Center 2 Processors 2 Microsoft WINENT Software Assurance Pack OLV License 1 YR 1 Microsoft Windows Remote Desktop Service Cal 1 YR Microsoft VDA Single Sub 1 Month Per Device (12 Months) Per User Per User SnapVDI Manager 1 Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 7

8 SnapVDI Spark 1 SnapVDI User License Table 1 : Architecture components Per User Infrastructure The below reference architectural block diagram represents the logical infrastructure SnapVDI solution with the hardware and software components in place. Figure 2 : Reference Architecture Network Design Considerations The figure below shows the network layout of the two host 2U SnapVDI servers. Out of the two 10 Gbps network ports, one is connected to the 10 Gbps port of the network switch and the other 10 Gbps port is connected in crossover between the two servers assisting in monitoring heartbeat for the High Availability (HA). Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 8

9 Speed 10 Gbps Speed 10 Gbps for SnapVDI Heartbeat Speed 1 Gbps Figure 3 : Network Consideration 3. Test Results Summary The table below provides the summary of the test results based on testing methods that were used to demonstrate the performance of SnapVDI solution (on high-availability). A more in depth analysis is provided in the testing sections to explain how these results were achieved. VDI load (4KiB 20% Read and 80% Write with 80% random distribution) test for storage IOPS 4KiB 50% Read 50% Write with 100% Sequential distribution test for storage IOPS Test for Personal and Pooled Desktop collection (30 70%) Test for Pooled Desktop Failover Test IOMeter Test Summary 2,612 IOPS 12,514 IOPS Login VSI Test Summary High Availability Test Summary 120 user sessions ran successfully VSImax office worker 4.1 not reached with VSIbase of 1621 ms 150 user sessions ran successfully VSImax office worker 4.1 not reached with VSIbase of 1576 ms All virtual desktops in both simulations were available and running in approx. 15 minutes Table 2: Test Results Summary Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 9

10 4. Test Methodology This section outlines the test objectives along with the test tools and criteria used to determine the maximum number of desktops that can be supported in the environment Test Objectives The test objectives are: Determine how many virtual desktops can be deployed in this environment using SnapVDI servers with acceptable user experience indicators for an office user workload profile. Determine the performance impact on the Spark disk during peak I/O activity such as boot and login storms. Determine the time taken for the virtual desktops to migrate from one server to another server during failover Test Tool The tests were conducted using Login VSI 4.1 as the workload generator and user experience analyzer tool and Iometer as both workload generator and the measurement tool along with Windows built-in Performance monitor for IOPS. Login VSI is the industry standard load testing solution for centralized virtualized desktop environments. (More information can be found at Iometer is an I/O subsystem measurement and characterization tool for single and clustered systems. (More information can be found at Load Generation The Office worker workload from Login VSI was used to simulate the user workload. Although Login VSI provides other workloads, the office worker workload is selected as it focuses on broad Office and Internet Explorer usage and is designed to run within 1vCPU virtual desktops which closely resemble the test setup. VDI workload (4KiB 20% Read and 80% Write with 80% random distribution) and 4KiB 50% Read and 50% Write with 100% sequential distribution workload is generated in Iometer to get the IOPS from the disks Test Criteria The primary focus of the test was to determine the maximum number of desktops that can be supported on SnapVDI servers in high-availability mode while using SnapVDI Spark and SnapVDI Manager. Virtual desktop user experience was also monitored Test Configuration A SnapVDI B150 brick was used in both test scenarios. The desktop (pooled and personal) collections were configured using the SnapVDI Manager interface. Each pool was built from a Windows 8.1 base image. The following section explains the desktop pool configuration used for testing. Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 10

11 Desktop pool configurations The first configuration was comprised of four Pooled collections with 80 desktops and two Personal collections with 40 Desktops for 120 combined desktops. The second configuration was comprised of eight Pooled desktop collections for 152 pooled virtual desktops. The disk(s) that contained the collection was de-duplicated for storage efficiency. Six launch systems were used for the mixed Pooled and Personal test, while eight launcher systems were used in the Pooled only test in Login VSI. Setup Storage Pool Pooled 150VMs Pooled/Personal 120 VMs 2 Pools with 4 Physical Disks mirrored Virtual Disk Mirror, 2 Columns, 256 KB Interleave Resiliency 2 Virtual Disks for three Sparkdisk Sparkdisk Polling Intervals : 0.5ms (write, stream, delete) Configuration Processing Window Size : 5000 (write, stream) 1000 (delete) Collections Pooled 6 collections of 25 VMs each Pooled/Personal 4 collections of 20 VMs (Pooled), 2 collections of 20 VMs (Personal) LoginVSI Pooled Office worker workload, 2880 seconds as launch window with 8 launchers launching 19 VMs each Pooled/Personal - Office worker workload, 2880 seconds as launch window with 6 launchers launching 20 VMs each SVM VM Running -- SVM 2027 (RC version) Operating System for VM VM Details Windows 8.1 running Windows Office 2010 and other Login VSI test suite apps. 2 vcpu per user 2GB Dynamic vram per user Server Details HA Server Setup running Server 2012 R2 OS Server configuration: - 10 Core CPU GB RAM 5. Test Results and Analysis This section presents the results from the different SnapVDI characterization tests and the key findings from each test. The office worker workload represents a majority of the VDI users in the industry today, and the testing was focused on this workload profile Test Scenarios The following tests were conducted to gather results and analyze the solution: Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 11

12 Storage IOPS The typical industry standard IOPS recommended for an office worker is 20 IOPS/user. Maintaining this limit ensures good user application response times when there are no other bottlenecks at the infrastructure layer Personal and Pooled Desktop Solution In these tests, the solution is configured with 40 personal desktop collections and with 80 pooled desktop collections and the below test cases are carried out. The intent of this test was to show that the solution can offer the standard VDI solution configuration of 70% pooled and 30% personal desktop collection. The testing was performed on a SnapVDI B150 brick (two SnapVDI Servers and a SnapVDI Storage console) Login VSI Office Worker Workload User Test The Login VSI office worker workload was run for at least for one hour with the standard recommended launch window setting of 2880 seconds to simulate the real world scenario of users performing their daily tasks. The VSImax (Dynamic) parameter from Login VSI is used to evaluate the user experience of a simulated user working on the virtual desktop throughout this test Boot Storm I/O Boot storms represent the worst-case scenario where many virtual desktops are powered on at the same time and they all contend for the system resources simultaneously. This test was used to evaluate if the storage array hosting the desktops was capable of handling large spikes in storage I/O without causing significant impact on user experience and other services Login Storm I/O Login storms also represent a heavy I/O scenario where many users are logging into their virtual desktops at the beginning of a work day or a shift at the same time. In this test, all of the desktops were pre-booted and left in an idle state for more than 20 minutes to let their I/O settle prior to running the Login VSI Office worker workload to simulate users logging into their virtual desktops Steady State I/O Workload for Office Users The test is intended to study the steady state of I/O that is required for the desktops to perform optimally during the Login VSI office worker workload Pooled Desktop Solution In these tests, the solution is configured with 150 pooled/non-persistent desktop collections running on a SnapVDI B150 brick (two SnapVDI Servers and a SnapVDI Storage console). The boot storm, login storm, and steady state tests were repeated for this configuration. Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 12

13 Migration of Virtual Desktops During Failover Highly available systems build redundancy into the application and architecture layers to protect against disasters. Maintaining reliable, recoverable, and continuous operable resources with minimal downtime ensures a highly redundant system Test Results Storage IOPS To study on the storage capacity and capability of the Spark disks, Iometer is made to generate different workloads and made to run for 20 minutes. Below are the findings from the Iometer test: Load Total IOPS 4KiB 50% Read 50% Write with 100% Sequential distribution 12,514 4KiB 50% Read 50% Write with 100% Random distribution 3,414 4KiB 50% Read 50% Write with 50% Sequential and 50% Random distribution 3,948 VDI Load (4KiB 20% Read and 80% Write with 80% random distribution) 2,612 Table 3 : Test results for Storage IOPS Pooled and Personal Desktop Solution Login VSI Testing To test the SnapVDI solution in a real-world scenario, Login VSI was configured with office user workloads and was made to launch and test 120 VMs for about an hour with launch window of 2880 seconds across six launchers. Below is the Login VSI user experience graph and it can be observed that VSI v4 max was not reached indicating it s likely that more desktops are able to run on this system. (Login VSI is the industry standard load testing solution for centralized virtualized environments. Enterprise IT departments use Login VSI to test the performance and scalability of VMware Horizon View, Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp, Microsoft Remote Desktop Services (Terminal Services) or any other Windows based virtual desktop solution. Login VSI benefits IT organizations in all phases of their deployment from capacity planning, to load testing, to change impact prediction--for more predicable performance, higher availability and a more consistent end user experience. For more information, download a trial at Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 13

14 Figure 4 : Login VSI Test result for Pooled and Personal desktop solution Boot Storm I/O To simulate a boot storm, the 120 virtual desktops were started simultaneously from the management interface. The below figure shows the storage characteristics during the boot storm the Spark disk delivered 4,000 IOPS under the peak load during this test at an average of IOPS per VM. All 120 of the virtual desktops were booted up and were available in about 148 seconds, approximately 1.2 seconds per VM. Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 14

15 IOPS IOPS Boot Storm IOPS Total IOPS Read IOPS Write IOPS Duration (secs) (The mark on the graph represents the time when all 120 VMs booted up.) Figure 5 : Boot Storm IOPS for Pooled and Personal desktop Solution Login Storm I/O Login VSI was programmed to launch 120 virtual desktops over a period of about 5 minutes after pre-booting the virtual desktops. The peak IOPS observed during the login storm was about 3,350 IOPS at an average of IOPS per VM. Login Storm IOPS Total IOPS Read IOPS Write IOPS Duration (secs) Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 15

16 Figure 6 : Login Storm IOPS for Pooled and Personal desktop Solution Steady State I/O The average IOPS on the Spark disks during the steady state with all 120 users logged in was around 1,100 (8-10 IOPS per VM). Of this, the read IOPS accounted for about 330 (approximately 30 % of the total I/O load) and the remaining 770 IOPS or 70% were write IOPS Pooled Desktop Solution Figure 7 : Steady State IOPS for Pooled and Personal desktop Solution Login VSI Testing Login VSI testing was carried out with office user workloads and was made to launch and test 150 VMs for about an hour with launch window of 2880 seconds across eight launchers. Below is a chart listing the hardware and software components utilized in the test, as well as a Login VSI user experience graph. It can be observed from the graph that VSI v4 max was not reached; therefore it s likely that more desktops are able to run on this system as well. Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 16

17 Setup Storage Pool Virtual Disk Resiliency Sparkdisk Sparkdisk Configuration Collections Write-through mode LoginVSI SVM VM Operating System for VM VM Details Server Details 150VMs 2 Pools with 4 Physical Disks mirrored Mirror, 2 Columns, 256 KB Interleave 2 Virtual Disks for three Sparkdisk Pool1 -> vdisk1 Pool2 -> vdisk2 Pool2 -> vdisk1 3 disks of 140 GB with write-through and mirroring enabled for Pooled Desktop Collection Threshold : 495K-500K Polling Intervals : 0.5ms (write, stream, delete) Processing Window Size : 5000 (write, stream) 1000 (delete) Pooled-6 collections of 25VMs each(2 on each RAM Disk) Sparkdisk 1 -> vdisk1 Sparkdisk 2 -> vdisk2 Sparkdisk 3 -> vdisk1 Office worker (1vCPU), 2880 seconds as launch window with 8 launchers launching 19 VMs each Running -- SVM 2027 (RC version) Windows 8.1 running Windows Office 2010 and other Login VSI test suite apps. Pooled 2 vcpu and 2GB Dynamic vram per user Personal 2 vcpu and 4GB Dynamic vram per user HA Server Setup running Server 2012 R2 OS Server configuration: - 10 Core CPU per server (2x) GB RAM per server (2x) Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 17

18 Figure 8 : Login VSI Test result for Pooled desktop solution Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 18

19 Steady State I/O The total IOPS on the Spark disks averaged during the steady state with all the 150 users logged in was approx. 2,100 (14-15 IOPS per VM). Of this, the read IOPS accounted for about 630 (approximately 30 % of the total I/O load) and the remaining 1,470 IOPS or 70% were write IOPS. Figure 9 : Steady State IOPS for Pooled desktop Solution High Availability (HA) The high availability of the solution is determined by simulating failover. The active server was shut down properly, keeping all 120 virtual desktops actively running in the mixed user test, as well as all 150 users in the pooled user test. After the changing of nodes (i.e. the passive node becoming active), all virtual desktops were available up and running in approximately 15 minutes in both simulations. 6. Configuration 6.1. Server Configuration The 2U SnapVDI Servers are configured as below: The server was equipped with two Intel Xeon processor E v4, GHz, 48x32GB DIMM RAM, two SAS HDDs and one LSI SAS HBA controller. The SnapVDI Storage console is populated with 12 SAS HDD and is connected to the server via the LSI SAS HBA controller. Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 19

20 The HDDs for the server is RAID1 configured for resiliency and high availability with Microsoft Windows server 2012 R2 64 bit OS is installed on it. Remote Desktop Services, Hyper-V and Cluster Manager Roles and Features are installed alongside SnapVDI Spark for hosting virtual desktops. The servers are clustered and the RDS is configured in high availability mode with SnapVDI Spark disk mirrored making the solution resilient to disaster. The media storage in the SnapVDI Storage Console is advertised storage spaces for the clustered servers and is primarily used for backing up the contents of the SnapVDI Spark disk SnapVDI Configuration The SnapVDI Manager is installed on the centralized desktop and is configured to manage the entire solution from a single point. The Create Desktop collection in the SnapVDI Manager was used to create the virtual desktop collection Windows 8.1 Virtual Desktop Configuration Following the guideline from Login VSI, the Windows 8.1 base image was generated based on the below generic template with the following properties: SnapVDI Host Agent 2.0 Two virtual CPU Dynamic RAM, 4GB for Personal virtual desktop and 2 GB for Pooled virtual desktop 30 GB virtual hard drive One virtual NIC connected to the VDI network Windows bit OS with the latest guest additions installed 6.4. Login VSI Test Configuration Login VSI is an industry-standard solution that simulates typical user behavior in centralized virtualized desktop environments. When used for benchmarking, the software measures the total response time of several specific user operations being performed within a desktop workload in a scripted loop. The baseline is the measurement of the response time of specific operations performed in the desktop workload, which is measured in milliseconds (ms). There are two values in particular that are important to note: VSIbase and VSImax. 1. VSIbase A score reflecting the response time of specific operations performed in the desktop workload when there is little or no stress on the system. A low baseline indicates a better user experience, resulting in applications responding faster in the environment 2. VSImax The maximum number of desktop sessions attainable on the host before experiencing degradation in host and desktop performance Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 20

21 Based on the Login VSI guideline, this reference architecture uses the below logical infrastructure for using Login VSI and testing the desktops using Login VSI. Figure 10 : Login VSI test configuration 7. Conclusion The SnapVDI solution serves as an entry point for SMBs to migrate from the conventional desktop architecture to a more affordable and manageable virtual desktop infrastructure. The results in the document demonstrate how a modular office worker virtual desktop environment can be deployed using SnapVDI Manager. Extensive workload, operations, and resiliency testing shows that the SnapVDI solution delivers high levels of performance, a great end-user experience, and solid system resiliency, all at a low price point with failover built-in. Organizations can leverage this modular VDI solution to start small and then grow as needed with zero disruption. Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 21

22 8. References 1. Login VSI documentation IOMETER Performance Data collection and IOPS collection through Microsoft counters - and 4. Super Micro Servers datasheet and reference VDI workload - Iometer-to-Simulate-a-Desktop-Workload.aspx Login VSI, Inc. delivers industry-standard testing solutions for virtualized desktop and server environments. The world s leading virtualization vendors use the flagship product, Login VSI, to benchmark the performance and scalability of their solutions. Enterprise IT departments use Login VSI in all phases of their virtual desktop deployment from capacity planning, to load testing, to change impact prediction for more predictable performance, higher availability and a more consistent end user experience. With minimal configuration, Login VSI works in VMware Horizon View, Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp, Microsoft Remote Desktop Services (Terminal Services) and any other Windows-based virtual desktop solution. For more information, download a trial at Login VSI bears no responsibility for this publication in any way and cannot be held liable for any damages following from or related to any information in this publication or any conclusions that may be drawn from it. Copyright 2016 American Megatrends Inc. Technical White Paper 22