Re: [gentoo-user] Re: Managing multiple Gentoo systems

[Grant]

>> >> After a frustrating experience with a Linksys WRT54GL, I've decided to
>> >> stick with Gentoo routers.  This increases the number of Gentoo
>> >> systems I'm responsible for and they're nearing double-digits.  What
>> >> can be done to make the management of multiple Gentoo systems easier?
>> >> I think identical hardware in each system would help a lot but I'm not
>> >> sure that's practical.  I need to put together a bunch of new
>> >> workstations and I'm thinking some sort of server/client arrangement
>> >> with the only Gentoo install being on the server could be appropriate.
>> >
>> > I maintain multiple Gentoo we mostly use as KVM hosts systems (and
>> > coming embedded routers). As KVM hosts, some of them are very sensible.
>> > Due to the contracts to our customers, I have to do with various update
>> > strategies on top of various hardware.
>>
>> Thanks to everyone for some very juicy tidbits.  I'm rearranging my
>> thinking on all of this.  I think the key for me may be to combine
>> systems with separate functions in the same physical location into a
>> single system.  Does the KVM thing work well?
>
> KVM itself works very well here, even with advanced features such as KSM
> pages sharing.
>
> The difficulties come with Microsoft products for both good integration
> and perfomance (I would recommend RAW format, iSCSI or plain physical
> partition instead of qcow2, for example). That beeing said, I finally
> have all working well for XP, NT2003 and 2008 servers.
>
> I use libvirt on top of KVM which is in the way to become very good AFA
> you don't rely on libvirt's API which tend to move a lot.
>
>>                                                Running a bunch of
>> workstations as nothing more than wireless KVM setups on the same
>> system?  I should be able to cut my Gentoo systems down to just a few.
>>  Basically one at each physical location.
>
> I would be much sceptical for both workstations and wireless guests than
> for servers:
>
> 1) For workstations, things are currently changing with the very recent
> and "not much usable with Gentoo, yet" spice software. I expect a lot of
> improvments in the coming months for this use case. I would say it's not
> ready for production, yet.
>
> 2) About wireless virtualization it's highly depending on what you aim
> to do, especially if you intend to use the PCI passthrough feature to
> give your wireless card to a guest. For this to work, you MUST have your
> hardware (CPU, motherboard and PCI card) VT-d compatible which is
> currently NOT a piece of cake, today. It relies on industry and
> manufacturers moving not as fast as software. I would expect more widely
> VT-d cards in the coming _years_.
>
> Now, if you intend to use the wireless card from you hosts and share
> networks using bridge utilities it _MAY_ be OK: Linux bridging does not
> always work with all wireless cards (see http://tinyurl.com/ylcutwv for
> more information).
>
>
> In a more general approach, when I hear "routers" and "wireless" I'm
> more thinking _embedded_. KVM/qemu would only help you to build your
> target systems.
>
>
> For embedded (or tiny, at least) systems, I would not use LXC.
>
> The drawback with Gentoo is that the current official uclibc stage3 for
> embedded/tiny systems is obsolete and marked as experimental. In facts,
> it's very _hard_ if not impossible to use it these days. Making your own
> cross-compilation environment is not a piece of cake (too), even with
> dedicated tools such as crossdev. This topic would ask its own book.
> So, if you want to try Gentoo embedded save your time by working on
> unofficial stage3.
>
> --
> Nicolas Sebrecht

I think I'm guilty of assumption regarding your original reference to
KVM.  I assumed you mean keyboard-video-mouse:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KVM_switch

but now I think you meant Kernel-based Virtual Machine:

http://www.linux-kvm.org/page/Main_Page

And now that I look more closely at KVM switches, it looks like they
provide a method of controlling multiple computers via a single
keyboard, monitor, and mouse.  I need sort of the inverse.  I'd like
to control a single Gentoo computer via multiple sets of keyboards,
monitors, and mice simultaneously.  It would basically be a way to
have the functionality of multiple workstations but the administration
hassle of only a single system.  Wireless communication between the
computer and each keyboard-monitor-mouse would be most convenient, but
that may not be possible so wired would be fine.  Does something like
this exist?

- Grant