23 Best Practices To Improve Hyper-V and VM Performance

23 Best Practices to improve Hyper-V and VM
Performance
altaro.com/hyper-v/23-best-practices-improve-hyper-v-vm-performance/
July 10,
2014
10 Jul 2014 by Nirmal Sharma

Best practices are the most obvious starting point for
improving your Hyper-V and Virtual Machine
performance and I’ve listed 23 of them for you below.
Did I miss out on any? Leave a comment and let me

know!
1. Avoid overloading Hyper-V Server

You must not overload Hyper-V Server. In other words, there is no need to host and run
virtual machines which have no functions or I would say you just should not configure
and install virtual machines for the sake of it. It is because VMMS.exe needs to maintain
the status of all virtual machines including virtual machines which do not perform any
business function.
2. Avoid creation of multiple Virtual Network Switches

VMMS.exe, running as Hyper-V Virtual Machine Management Service, keeps track of
virtual switches created and the communication between virtual machines. You must
always use the VLAN Tagging or other isolation mechanisms to separate communication
between virtual machines instead of creating a virtual switch.
3. Configure antivirus software to bypass Hyper-V

processes and directories
Antivirus software performs I/O operations for files being accessed by the Operating
System and Hyper-V processes. You must alter the Antivirus configuration to exclude
Hyper-V main processes and other directories as listed below:
1. Hyper-V Processes: VMMS.exe and VMWP.exe

2. All folders containing the Virtual Machine Hard disk files and configuration.
3. Snapshot/checkpoint folders.
4. Cluster Shared Volumes for path C:\ClusterStorage
1/6
4. Avoid Mixing Virtual Machines that can or cannot use
Integration Service components
There are two types of virtual machine communication taking place on the Hyper-V
Server 1) communication using VMBUS design 2) communication using emulation. The
former is faster and is available only if you install the Integration Components in the
virtual machine. In case if you need to run a virtual machine which is not supported by
the Hyper-V or Integration Services cannot be installed, it is recommended to follow
below guidelines:
1. If you have a free Hyper-V Server, then install such virtual machines on that Hyper-
V Server.
2. If you do not have a free Hyper-V Server, then connect such virtual machines to a
separate Hyper-V virtual switch.
5. Avoid storing system files on drives used for Hyper-V

storage
You must not store Hyper-V virtual machine files on drives used by the Operating
System. It is because of the I/O operation. Drives, where the system files are stored, are
accessed by the system processes continuously and this might cause delay in processing
the Hyper-V tasks.
6. Use separate volumes for each VM

Since the administrative tasks of a virtual machine are controlled by its own process
(VMWP.exe), keeping several virtual machines on a single volume will cause more Disk
I/O operations from each worker process. Hence, it is recommended to use separate
volumes for storing virtual machine files (VHD, VHDx, checkpoints, and XML).
7. Avoid single point of failure for network adapters

using NIC Teaming
Windows Server 2012 and later operating systems support NIC teaming. You must
ensure that the NIC teaming is configured for the host operating system. Virtual
Machines can also be configured to use the NIC Teaming feature.
8. Always use Network Isolation Mechanism rather than

creating a separate virtual switch
When you come across any networking requirement that needs to be configured on
Hyper-V Server, use the order of preference that is listed below to achieve the
configuration you need. The best way is to use the “Hyper-v Virtual Network Switch and
2/6
VLAN Tagging” method. Other methods can also be used depending on your
requirements, but consider them in this order:
1. Hyper-V Virtual Switch and VLAN Tagging Method

2. Hyper-V Virtual Switch Method
3. Firewall Method
4. Different subnet Method
5. Another Physical NIC Method
9. Install Multiple Network Interface cards on Hyper-V

Server
There are multiple types of communication taking place in the Hyper-V. For example,
communication between virtual machines, communication between virtual machines
and parent and communication to manage these virtual machines from a management
console. It is always recommended to dedicate a network interface card for managing
virtual machines and Hyper-V host. Use of fabric resources is considered nowadays.
10. Always use supported guest Operating Systems

VMBUS and VSP/VSC components are part of the Integration Services which help in
improving the performance of communication between virtual machines and parent
partition. Integration Components can be installed only on the Supported guest
operating systems. Hence, please only install operating systems which are supported. A
list of supported Guest Operating systems can be found here
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/954958
11. Always use Generation Type 2 Virtual Machines

“Generation Type 2” feature was introduced with Windows Server 2012 R2. Previously,
normal virtual machines allowed booting from IDE controller only, but with Generation
Type 2, you can boot virtual machines from a SCSI controller, which is much faster than a
virtual machine booting from an IDE controller. “Generation Type 2” virtual machine uses
VMBUS and VSP/VSC architecture at the boot level, which improves overall performance
of the virtual machines. “Generation Type 2” feature also allows paging file to be
relocated to a SCSI controller.
12. Always change the default location for storing

virtual machine configuration and VHD files
By default, when you enable the Hyper-V Role for the first time, the Hyper-V server is
configured to store the virtual machine configuration and VHD files on the local storage
under C:\ProgramData\Windows\Hyper-V\Virtual Machines folder. You must change this
3/6
location to appropriate drives before the Hyper-V servers are moved to the production
environment.
13. Monitor performance of Hyper-V Server for

optimization
There are several Hyper-V performance counters available which you can use to monitor
the performance of the Hyper-V Server, virtual machines, network communication, etc.
Please make use of these performance counters and fix any issues with the
performance.
14. De-fragment Hyper-V Server regularly or before

creating a virtual hard disk
It is advisable to defrag Hyper-V Server disks where the VHD and virtual machine
configuration files are stored regularly or before creating a large virtual hard disk file.
15. Always install the Integration Components on the

supported virtual machines
Integration Components provide VMBUS and VSP/VSC design to improve the
performance of virtual machines running on the Hyper-V Server. Always install the
Integration Components on supported Guest operating systems. For Linux distributions,
there are separate IC versions available which you can download from Microsoft site.
16. Always use Fixed VHD files

If storage is not an issue to get better performance for resource intensive applications, it
is recommended to deploy virtual machines over Fixed VHD files instead of using
Dynamic VHD files.
17. Use Dynamic Memory Feature

Although, the Dynamic Memory feature does not help directly in achieving better
performance of the virtual machines, but it allows you to balance the allocation of
memory resource dynamically. It is recommended to configure Dynamic Memory
parameters for each critical virtual machine running on a Hyper-V server.
18. Configure SCSI disks for Data volumes

Since SCSI is faster than IDE, it is recommended to relocate data volume disk on a SCSI
controller. For resource intensive applications like SQL Server, it is always recommended
to keep Log and data disk files on separate SCSI controllers.
4/6
19. Relocate paging file to a SCSI Disk Controller
For applications running inside virtual machines which requires frequent paging
operation, always relocate paging file to a SCSI Controller virtual hard drive. Paging file
can be relocated to a SCSI controller if you are running “Generation Type 2” Virtual
Machine.
20. Always exclude Paging file for virtual machines

participating in Hyper-V Replication
If you have enabled Hyper-V Replication for virtual machines, make sure to exclude
paging file from replication. Applications running inside virtual machines may do
frequent paging operation and this may cause paging file contents to be replicated which
are unnecessary.
21. Implement Hyper-V in Server Core in Production

environment
Since Windows Server Core Operating System does not have a GUI, it consumes less
resources. It is recommended to enable Hyper-V on a Windows Server Core installation
rather than using a full version of Windows Operating System.
22. Close unnecessary Windows

Please make sure to close the following windows on Hyper-V server so the system
resources are available to Hyper-V processes:
1. Virtual Machine Connection Window: Always remember to close Virtual Machine

connection window, once your task to the virtual machine is completed. Keeping
the virtual machine connection window opened consumes system resources which
could be utilized for other purpose by the hypervisor.
2. Minimize Hyper-V Manager Window: Keeping the Hyper-V Manager window
opened also consumes system resources. So close it after your task is over.
3. Any other Application Window: Make sure to close all other application windows on
Hyper-V Server so the enough system resources are available to the hypervisor.
23. Use Certified Hardware

Microsoft developers spent a lot of time in testing the server applications on the specific
hardware. It is recommended that we use only certified hardware, whenever possible.
The list can be found here: www.windowsservercatalog.com
Further Reading
5/6
6 Hardware Tweaks that will Skyrocket your Hyper-V Performance
Backing up your Hyper-V VMs
If you’d like to make backing up your Hyper-V VMs easy, fast and reliable, check out
Altaro VM Backup. It’s free for up to 2 VMs, packed with features, and the most
affordable backup solution for SMBs around.
Download a 30-day trial and get started in under 15 minutes
Sign up to the Hyper-V Dojo Newsletter
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content from the Hyper-V Dojo and become a Hyper-V master!
Nirmal Sharma
Nirmal is a MCSEx3, MCITP and Microsoft MVP in Directory Services. He is
specialized in Directory Services, Microsoft Clustering, Hyper-V, SQL and
Exchange. He has been involved in Microsoft Technologies since 1994 and
followed the progression of Microsoft Operating System and software. In
his spare time, he likes to help others and share some of his knowledge by
writing tips and articles. Nirmal can be reached at [email protected].
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23 Best Practices to improve Hyper-V and VM

10 Jul 2014 by Nirmal Sharma

Did I miss out on any? Leave a comment and let me

1. Avoid overloading Hyper-V Server

2. Avoid creation of multiple Virtual Network Switches

3. Configure antivirus software to bypass Hyper-V

1. Hyper-V Processes: VMMS.exe and VMWP.exe

5. Avoid storing system files on drives used for Hyper-V

6. Use separate volumes for each VM

7. Avoid single point of failure for network adapters

8. Always use Network Isolation Mechanism rather than

1. Hyper-V Virtual Switch and VLAN Tagging Method

9. Install Multiple Network Interface cards on Hyper-V

10. Always use supported guest Operating Systems

11. Always use Generation Type 2 Virtual Machines

12. Always change the default location for storing

13. Monitor performance of Hyper-V Server for

14. De-fragment Hyper-V Server regularly or before

15. Always install the Integration Components on the

16. Always use Fixed VHD files

17. Use Dynamic Memory Feature

18. Configure SCSI disks for Data volumes

20. Always exclude Paging file for virtual machines

21. Implement Hyper-V in Server Core in Production

22. Close unnecessary Windows

1. Virtual Machine Connection Window: Always remember to close Virtual Machine

23. Use Certified Hardware

Backing up your Hyper-V VMs

Download a 30-day trial and get started in under 15 minutes

Sign up to the Hyper-V Dojo Newsletter

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