Re: NetBSD & Xen 4 - where are we ?

[Manuel Bouyer <bouyer%antioche.eu.org@localhost>]

On Fri, May 25, 2012 at 01:00:34AM +0100, Hugo Silva wrote:
> Good night everyone,
> 
> 
> My NetBSD -current + Xen 3 + lvm machines have been running pretty
> smoothly for the past few months. Now there are a few new projects
> and some new hardware available next month or so, and I've decided
> to stick with NetBSD+Xen as I'm quite satisfied with it. A huge
> THANK YOU for everyone making this possible!
> 
> 
> Some months ago there were a few threads on the list about issues
> with Xen 4 and/or using xl to launch domains.

Yes, there are issues with xl. But xm works just fine.

> 
> While I'll be setting up a test box to confirm everything for
> myself, could we make a point of the situation ?
> 
> 
> Are HVM & PV domains working alright with Xen 4.1.2 + xl + lvm?

I've not tried lvm, but Xen 4.1.2 + xm + file: works fine. I guess
lvm would work as well if it works with xen 3.x. xl doesn't work yet.

> 
> Is the domU SMP code ready for use ? (according to the NetBSD/Xen
> page yes, but do tell about your personal experience!)

I have a SMP domU with 4 nodes, which I use to run anita tests,
and some NetBSD builds. I've not had a single panic at this time.

> 
> Are there plans to implement SMP for dom0 ?

Yes, some dom0-specific code needs to be made MP-safe. No ETA yet, though.

> 
> And if a developer would like to give an overview, what has been the
> target of the Xen port recently ? What are the next goals?

The recent big project that completed is domU SMP. There is suspend/resume
which is being worked on, but, as I understand it, is not completely stable
yet (jym@ can give more details on this).

For upcoming projects, there is SMP dom0, a working xl (this will
likely be in Xen 4.2, not with 4.1). 

-- 
Manuel Bouyer <bouyer%antioche.eu.org@localhost>
     NetBSD: 26 ans d'experience feront toujours la difference
--