Support for Dell EMC PowerEdge Servers with GPUs and VMware vSphere

Summary

Virtualization technology removes hardware from the network equation, and allows you to host multiple and varied workloads that share the same hardware. In its infancy, virtualization technology was limited to CPU, memory, storage, and network applications. Now, however, virtualization can also benefit graphic workload balancing. The same common set of IT resources can be used to host multiple graphic workloads, or to provide virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) for loads as low as simple document editing and as large as gaming design.

Selecting hardware combinations and configurations can significantly impact the successful deployment of VDI over VMware. The following provides guidance on selecting VMware vSphere features for VDI, and discusses troubleshooting solutions for issues you might encounter during setup and deployment.

Hardware and software requirements

The hardware and software requirements for supported GPUs are:

• Hardware:
  • PowerEdge servers must be certified for VMware vSphere ESXi. See VMware Compatibility Guide
  • Supported graphics cards for PowerEdge servers. See VMware Compatibility Guide
  • Ensure the criteria are met for PCIe device pass-through, which is also known as VM DirectPath-I/O as listed in VMware KB2142307
• Software:
  • Supported VMware vSphere Hypervisor, ESXi versions
  • GPU drivers in guest operating system and host operating system
  • Specific CUDA software libraries
  • VMware Horizon client

Resources

• Features available in vShere with GPUs on PowerEdge servers
• How to for configuring the graphics card
• GPU support matrix with PowerEdge servers
• Known issues and resolutions