Chapter 2. Assigning virtual GPUs

Procedure

1. Download and install the NVIDIA-vGPU driver. For information on getting the driver, see vGPU drivers page on the NVIDIA website. An Nvidia enterprise account is required to download the drivers. Contact the hardware vendor if this is not available.
2. Unzip the downloaded file from the Nvidia website and copy it to the host to install the driver.
3. If the NVIDIA software installer did not create the /etc/modprobe.d/nvidia-installer-disable-nouveau.conf file, create it manually.

4. Open /etc/modprobe.d/nvidia-installer-disable-nouveau.conf file in a text editor and add the following lines to the end of the file:

   blacklist nouveau
   options nouveau modeset=0

5. Regenerate the initial ramdisk for the current kernel, then reboot:

   # dracut --force
   # reboot

   Alternatively, if you need to use a prior supported kernel version with mediated devices, regenerate the initial ramdisk for all installed kernel versions:

   # dracut --regenerate-all --force
   # reboot

6. Check that the kernel loaded the nvidia_vgpu_vfio module:

   # lsmod | grep nvidia_vgpu_vfio

7. Check that the nvidia-vgpu-mgr.service service is running:

   # systemctl status nvidia-vgpu-mgr.service

   For example:

   # lsmod | grep nvidia_vgpu_vfio
   nvidia_vgpu_vfio 45011 0
   nvidia 14333621 10 nvidia_vgpu_vfio
   mdev 20414 2 vfio_mdev,nvidia_vgpu_vfio
   vfio 32695 3 vfio_mdev,nvidia_vgpu_vfio,vfio_iommu_type1
   # systemctl status nvidia-vgpu-mgr.service
   nvidia-vgpu-mgr.service - NVIDIA vGPU Manager Daemon
      Loaded: loaded (/usr/lib/systemd/system/nvidia-vgpu-mgr.service; enabled; vendor preset: disabled)
      Active: active (running) since Fri 2018-03-16 10:17:36 CET; 5h 8min ago
    Main PID: 1553 (nvidia-vgpu-mgr)
    [...]

8. In the Administration Portal, click Compute → Virtual Machines.
9. Click the name of the virtual machine to go to the details view.
10. Click the Host Devices tab.
11. Click Manage vGPU. The Manage vGPU dialog box opens.
12. Select a vGPU type and the number of instances that you would like to use with this virtual machine.

13. Select On for Secondary display adapter for VNC to add a second emulated QXL or VGA graphics adapter as the primary graphics adapter for the console in addition to the vGPU.

    Note

    On cluster levels 4.5 and later, when a vGPU is used and the Secondary display adapter for VNC is set to On, an additional framebuffer display device is automatically added to the virtual machine. This allows the virtual machine console to be displayed before the vGPU is initialized, instead of a blank screen.

14. Click Save.

Procedure

1. Run the virtual machine and connect to it using the VNC console.

   Note

   SPICE is not supported on vGPU.

2. Download the driver to the virtual machine. For information on getting the driver, see the Drivers page on the NVIDIA website.

3. Install the vGPU driver, following the instructions in Installing the NVIDIA vGPU Software Graphics Driver in the NVIDIA Virtual GPU software documentation.

   Important

   Linux only: When installing the driver on a Linux guest operating system, you are prompted to update xorg.conf. If you do not update xorg.conf during the installation, you need to update it manually.

4. After the driver finishes installing, reboot the machine. For Windows virtual machines, fully power off the guest from the Administration portal or the VM portal, not from within the guest operating system.

   Important

   Windows only: Powering off the virtual machine from within the Windows guest operating system sometimes sends the virtual machine into hibernate mode, which does not completely clear the memory, possibly leading to subsequent problems. Using the Administration portal or the VM portal to power off the virtual machine forces it to fully clean the memory.

5. Run the virtual machine and connect to it using one of the supported remote desktop protocols, such as Mechdyne TGX, and verify that the vGPU is recognized by opening the NVIDIA Control Panel. On Windows, you can alternatively open the Windows Device Manager. The vGPU should appear under Display adapters. For more information, see the NVIDIA vGPU Software Graphics Driver in the NVIDIA Virtual GPU software documentation.
6. Set up NVIDIA vGPU guest software licensing for each vGPU and add the license credentials in the NVIDIA control panel. For more information, see How NVIDIA vGPU Software Licensing Is Enforced in the NVIDIA Virtual GPU Software Documentation.

Procedure

1. In the Administration Portal, click Compute → Virtual Machines.
2. Click the name of the virtual machine to go to the details view.
3. Click the Host Devices tab.
4. Click Manage vGPU. The Manage vGPU dialog box opens.
5. Click the x button next to Selected vGPU Type Instances to detach the vGPU from the virtual machine.
6. Click SAVE.