Is Virtualization compatible with the intel xeon X6550?

[RedClaws]

I recently got a Dell PowerEdge R810 and i wanted to run Ubuntu on it, but Ubuntu doesn't have raid support
so i used freenas for the raid support and when i tried to fire up a VM for Ubuntu it said that is was having a issue with the Thread count (i dont remember and the server is already turned off)
a friend told me that the architecture was not compatible with freenas
can anyone help me fix this?

 

[Davvo]

You mean RAIDZ?
TrueNAS doesn't use RAID.
I suppose you are using SCALE.

 

[RedClaws]

You mean RAIDZ?
TrueNAS doesn't use RAID.
I suppose you are using SCALE.

no im using raid 5
a buddy of mine has like the last gen server that i have and his raid runs fine
should i use raid Z?

 

[sretalla]

im using raid 5

If that implies you're using the onboard hardware RAID adapter to present a volume to TrueNAS... you really should read this:

What's all the noise about HBA's, and why can't I use a RAID controller?

This is relevant to FreeNAS and TrueNAS CORE. Some parts of it might also be relevant to Scale, but I don't really know how reliable the Linux drivers are. 1) An HBA is a Host Bus Adapter. This is a controller that allows SAS and SATA devices to be attached to, and communicate directly with...

www.truenas.com

Right now, you're potentially a ticking time bomb for losing your data.

 

[Davvo]

You should also read this.

Introduction to ZFS

This is a short introduction to ZFS. It is really only intended to convey the bare minimum knowledge needed to start diving into ZFS and is in no way meant to cut Michael W. Lucas' and Allan Jude's book income. It is a bit of a spiritual...

www.truenas.com

 

[Redcoat]

To answer your question in the Subject of your post:

This from Intel's spec page for your processor

Please take @sretalla 's suggestion and warning seriously. @Davvo 's link will help you on your TrueNAS journey.

Good luck!

 

[Arwen]

Some BIOSes have an option to disable VM features. My work desktop, (from Dell), had VMs disabled by default. But, as a Unix SysAdmin I needed to run a VM for a specific work related purpose. So, my entire team has an exception. And Desktop support enabled that feature for me after I was hired, (and a few new hires later as well).

 

[RedClaws]

If that implies you're using the onboard hardware RAID adapter to present a volume to TrueNAS... you really should read this:

What's all the noise about HBA's, and why can't I use a RAID controller?

This is relevant to FreeNAS and TrueNAS CORE. Some parts of it might also be relevant to Scale, but I don't really know how reliable the Linux drivers are. 1) An HBA is a Host Bus Adapter. This is a controller that allows SAS and SATA devices to be attached to, and communicate directly with...

www.truenas.com

Right now, you're potentially a ticking time bomb for losing your data.

So you’re saying to use software raid?
But the raid worked fine in freenas when I did use it
It was the virtualization that didn’t work
It said something about the CPU

 

[RedClaws]

I

Some BIOSes have an option to disable VM features. My work desktop, (from Dell), had VMs disabled by default. But, as a Unix SysAdmin I needed to run a VM for a specific work related purpose. So, my entire team has an exception. And Desktop support enabled that feature for me after I was hired, (and a few new hires later as well).

was very sure before installing freenas to enable virtualization

 

[RedClaws]

To answer your question in the Subject of your post:

This from Intel's spec page for your processor

View attachment 57408

Please take @sretalla 's suggestion and warning seriously. @Davvo 's link will help you on your TrueNAS journey.

Good luck!

I’m not one to go and read an entire form for a simple yes or no answer
I’m just asking if my CPU is compatible with freenas virtualization

 

[Ericloewe]

So you’re saying to use software raid?
But the raid worked fine in freenas when I did use it
It was the virtualization that didn’t work
It said something about the CPU

The Moskva was sailing just fine until she sank, that doesn't mean the Russians don't regret cheaping out on countermeasures.

 

[RedClaws]

The Moskva was sailing just fine until she sank, that doesn't mean the Russians don't regret cheaping out on countermeasures.

?

 

[Samuel Tai]

I’m just asking if my CPU is compatible with freenas virtualization

@Redcoat already answered that. According to Intel ARK, your CPU supports VT-x and EPT, which is what the bhyve hypervisor expects. To quote from https://www.truenas.com/docs/core/coretutorials/jailspluginsvms/virtualmachines/creatingbasicvm/

TrueNAS VMs use the bhyve virtual machine software. This type of virtualization requires an Intel processor with Extended Page Tables (EPT) or an AMD processor with Rapid Virtualization Indexing (RVI) or Nested Page Tables (NPT). VMs cannot be created unless the host system supports these features.

To verify that an Intel processor has the required features, open the Shell and run grep VT-x /var/run/dmesg.boot. If the EPT and UG features are shown, this processor can be used with bhyve.

 

[danb35]

?

Eric was commenting that plenty of unwise configurations will appear to work just fine, until they catastrophically (and irrecoverably) fail. One example of such an unwise configuration is anything involving hardware RAID (with the possible exception of using it for the boot device). If you aren't willing to do the reading, TrueNAS really isn't the product for you.

 

[Redcoat]

@Redcoat already answered that.

Thank you, Samuel.

 

[Samuel Tai]

I’m not one to go and read an entire form for a simple yes or no answer

And this is why you'll quickly get in over your head. You're considering the research to be a chore, instead of an opportunity to increase your skills and understanding. You'll be dependent on the generosity of forum members to help bail you out, instead of knowing what to do to avoid the pitfall in the first place.

If you truly want a no fuss storage solution, TrueNAS is not the solution for you. Go look at QNAP or Synology. TrueNAS is for geeks who want to get under the hood and understand what makes storage tick, inside and out.

 

[Arwen]

So you’re saying to use software raid?
But the raid worked fine in freenas when I did use it
It was the virtualization that didn’t work
It said something about the CPU

TrueNAS is now built around OpenZFS for storage. ZFS has some unusual features when compared to many of the pre-cursor volume managers, RAID systems, and file systems.

One of those is the ability to detect data faults and automatically repair them. This is accomplished through a process of scrubbing the data. Aka, read all the blocks, including any parity or mirrors, verify checksums, and if any checksum fails to match, then attempt recovery using any redundancy available. That redundancy can be additional copies, RAID-Zx parity or Mirror(s). All metadata, like directory entries, has by default 2 copies and critical metadata has by default 3 copies.

Using hardware RAID as your redundancy means one important feature of ZFS is not available. To be fair, you may never need ZFS to deal with bad disk blocks. On the other hand, some hardware RAID controllers use advanced features to speed things up, like write cache & out of order writes. Both are potential problems for ZFS if either fails, (like a power outage, or OS crash), which could leave your ZFS pool in a partially corrupted state. (With no recourse.)


Note that ZFS' repair ability is also possible during a normal, everyday read, IF redundancy is available TO ZFS.


In any case, good luck.

 

[Davvo]

a friend told me that the architecture was not compatible with freenas

Your friend probably said something different.

Really, you give the impression of not knowing anything about TrueNAS, as if you casually tumbled here.
That wouldn't be a bad thing if you were willing to put in some effort to understand at least what TrueNAS is and what is used for.
If you are linked to resources it's because that link is the best thing that can help you.
I could say more about your efforts to understand, but I won't.
Until you read the introduction to ZFS we can't even talk the same language, and I do not mean this metaphorically.

Anyway, if you want to virtualize with TrueNAS you should use SCALE.
The issue you are having right now is probably stemming from not understanding TrueNAS or completely unrelated to it.

I want to add that this forum and its members make learning TrueNAS a pleasurable experience, you should try. Two months ago I didn't even knew what ZFS was, now I have my own (little) NAS, a great thirst of knowledge and an increasing love for ZFS.

I sincerely hope your first (blind?) approach won't stop you from experiencing a similar path.