System, method and program to migrate a virtual machine

• US 7,257,811 B2
• Filed: 05/11/2004
• Issued: 08/14/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/11/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Shultz, Steven, Hunt, Jennifer A.
• Primary Examiner(s): KIM, HONG CHONG
• Application Number:
  US10/843,931
• Publication Number:
  US 20050268298A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,190 Days
• Field of Search: 718/1, 718/107, 714/6, 714/15, 719/317, 711/162, 707/202, 707/204
• US Class Current: 718/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2009/4557 Distribution of virtual machine instances; Migration and load balancing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45558 Hypervisor-specific management and integration aspects
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4856 resumption being on a different machine, e.g. task migration, virtual machine migration G06F9/5088 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5077 Logical partitioning of resources; Management or configuration of virtualized resources specific details on emulation or internal functioning of virtual machines G06F9/455

Abstract

A system, method and program product for migrating a first virtual machine from a first real computer to a second real computer or from a first LPAR to a second LPAR in a same real computer. Before migration, the first virtual machine comprises an operating system and an application in a first private memory private to the first virtual machine. A communication queue of the first virtual machine resides in a shared memory shared by the first and second computers or the first and second LPARs. The operating system and application are copied from the first private memory to the shared memory. The operating system and application are copied from the shared memory to a second private memory private to the first virtual machine in the second computer or second LPAR. Then, the first virtual machine is resumed in the second computer or second LPAR.

Claims

1. A method for migrating a first virtual machine and a communication queue from a first logical partition (“

LPAR”

) to a second logical partition in a same real computer, before migration, said first virtual machine having an operating system and an application in a first private memory private to said first virtual machine, before migration, said communication queue residing in a first shared memory shared and accessible by said first virtual machine and a second virtual machine in said first LPAR, said method comprising the steps of;

stopping said first virtual machine and said second virtual machine in said first LPAR to prevent said first virtual machine and said second virtual machine from updating said communication queue in said first LPAR;

while said first and second virtual machines are stopped, said first LPAR communicating said operating system, said application and said communication queue to said second LPAR, and said second LPAR writing said operating system and application into a second private memory in said second LPAR, and said second LPAR writing said communication queue into a second shared memory in said second LPAR;

allocating said second private memory and other resources in said second LPAR for a migrated virtual machine corresponding to said first virtual machine, and granting said migrated virtual machine access to said communication queue in said second shared memory;

said second virtual machine supplying a work item to said communication queue before the step of stopping said first virtual machine and said second virtual machine;

while said first and second virtual machines are stopped, said first LPAR communicating an operating system and an application of said second virtual machine to said second LPAR, and said second LPAR writing said operating system and application of said second virtual machine into a third private memory in said second LPAR; and

allocating said third private memory and other resources in said second LPAR for another migrated virtual machine corresponding to said second virtual machine, and granting said other migrated virtual machine access to said communication queue in said second shared memory.

2. A system for migrating a first virtual machine and a communication queue from a first real LPAR to a second real LPAR, before migration, said first virtual machine having an operating system and an application in a first private memory private to said first virtual machine, before migration, said communication queue residing in a first shared memory shared and accessible by said first virtual machine and a second virtual machine in said first LPAR, said system comprising;

means for stopping said first virtual machine and said second virtual machine in said first LPAR to prevent said first virtual machine and said second virtual machine from updating said communication queue in said first LPAR;

said first LPAR including means, operable while said first and second virtual machines are stopped, for communicating said operating system, said application and said communication queue to said second LPAR, and said second LPAR including means for writing said operating system and application into a second private memory in said second LPAR, and said second LPAR including means for writing said communication queue into a second shared memory in said second LPAR;

means the allocating said second private memory and other resources in said second LPAR for a migrated virtual machine corresponding to said first virtual machine, and granting said migrated virtual machine access to said communication queue in said second shared memory;

means within said second virtual machine for supplying a work item to said communication queue before the stopping of said first virtual machine and said second virtual machine;

means within said first LPAR, operable while said first and second virtual machines are stopped, for communicating an operating system and an application of said second virtual machine to said second LPAR, and means within said second LPAR for writing said operating system and application of said second virtual machine into a third private memory in said second LPAR; and

means for allocating said third private memory and other resources in said second LPAR for another migrated virtual machine corresponding to said second virtual machine, and granting said other migrated virtual machine access to said communication queue in said second shared memory.

3. A computer program product for migrating a first virtual machine and a communication queue from a first real LPAR to a second real LPAR, before migration, said first virtual machine having an operating system and an application in a first private memory private to said first virtual machine, before migration, said communication queue residing in a first shared memory shared and accessible by said first virtual machine and a second virtual machine in said first LPAR, said prow-am product comprising:

a computer readable media;

first program instructions for execution within said first LPAR to stop said first virtual machine and said second virtual machine in said first LPAR to prevent said first virtual machine and said second virtual machine from updating said communication queue in said first LPAR;

second program instructions for execution within said first LPAR, operable while said first and second virtual machines are stopped, to communicate said operating system, said application and said communication queue to said second LPAR, and third program instructions for execution within said second LPAR to write said operating system and application into a second private memory in said second LPAR, and fourth program instructions for execution within said second LPAR to write said communication queue into a second shared memory in said second LPAR; and

fifth program instructions to allocate said second private memory and other resources in said second LPAR for a migrated virtual machine corresponding to said first virtual machine, and grant said migrated virtual machine access to said communication queue in said second shared memory;

sixth program instructions for execution within said second virtual machine to supply a work item to said communication queue before the first program instructions stop said first virtual machine and said second virtual machine;

seventh program instructions for execution within said first LPAR, operable while said first and second virtual machines are stopped, to communicate an operating system and an application of said second virtual machine to said second LPAR, and eighth program instructions for execution within said second LPAR to write said operating system and application of said second virtual machine into a third private memory in said second LPAR; and

ninth program instructions to allocate said third private memory and other resources in said second LPAR for another migrated virtual machine corresponding to said second virtual machine, and grant said other migrated virtual machine access to said communication queue in said second shared memory; and

wherein

said first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth program instructions are stored on said media in functional form.