A.6 CPU Normalization

CPU normalization allows the actual speed of a CPU to be considered for operations such as consolidation planning, instead of relying on the CPU clock frequency, which can be misleading. Different CPU manufacturers and models provide a wide array of performance results for CPUs with the same clock frequency. For example, there is a considerable difference between a Core 2 and a Pentium IV CPU with a clock frequency of 2.0 GHz. CPU normalization uses the SPEC data industry standard benchmarks to give real-world performance values. This is an important factor in realistic consolidation planning. See Section A.6.1, SPEC Data for more information.

In consolidation planning, when a scenario is created, the user is given an option to select between clock frequency and normalized speed as the unit of measurement for processor utilization and capacity. The consolidation planning algorithms use the appropriate unit of measurement when assigning workloads to containers, based on these selections. For more information see Section 6.3, Consolidation Scenarios.

NOTE:The data required to perform consolidation planning based on normalized speed is actually produced when a project is created. Projects from a pre-3.5 version of PlateSpin Recon, even if upgraded, cannot use normalized speed in consolidation planning (the option is disabled in the scenario creation wizard). To use normalization speeds with these projects, they must be re-created from scratch.

A.6.1 SPEC Data

PlateSpin Recon CPU normalized speed makes use of SPECint* and SPECfp* (98, 2000, 2006) CPU benchmarking data. The PlateSpin Recon CPU Normalization rating for specific CPUs are an average of data available from http://www.spec.org for those CPUs as of June 2008. For the latest SPECf* benchmark results, visit http://www.spec.org.

A.6.2 Normalization Speed

You can change default normalization speed for inventoried machines from the Custom Fields dialog box. You can also view normalization speed in server templates. Although you can’t directly change these values, you can change other values and see how the changes affect the normalization speed. For more information, see Section 6.2.2, Server Templates.

To view or edit normalization speed for an inventoried machine:

  1. In the Data Center Explorer, right-click a machine and select Properties.

    The Properties dialog box for that machine is displayed.

  2. Click the Custom Fields tab.

    In the top section you can see the default Normalized Speed for the machine.

  3. Click the Normalized Speed value and edit as desired.

    To reset the value to its default, click Reset Reference Values.

  4. Click OK.

CPU Normalization values can also be used as column values in relevant reports, although the columns are not shown by default. To display normalization-oriented columns, see Section 5.3, Editing Report Templates and Section 5.4.1, Creating and Editing Report Views.