Server BIOS considerations

Typically, BIOS settings are needed to enable SR-IOV and to optimize resource usage.

As the exact configuration depends on the BIOS vendor and version used, researching these settings within the applicable vendor documentation is recommended. This document uses examples of settings based on a Dell PowerEdge R740.

• Ensure that hyperthreading is enabled. For the example hardware, the relevant setting is Logical Processor.

  

  The FortiGate-VM may perform better without hyperthreading due to the threads or vCPUs on the same core sharing CPU cache memory. Dealing with this with later tuning efforts is recommended if appropriate.

• Ensure that IOMMU (I/O memory management unit) is enabled. For the example hardware, the relevant setting is Virtualization Technology.

  

• Ensure that SR-IOV is enabled. For the example hardware, the relevant setting is SR-IOV Global Enable.

  

• Ensure that I/OAT DMA Engine is enabled. Intel and Mellanox hardware support this feature.

  

• High end servers have several modes of memory operation. You must select the mode that gives the most memory to the operating system and maximum performance. For the example hardware, Optimizer Mode is selected from the Memory Operating Mode dropdown list.

  

• High end servers differ in BIOS recommendations about achieving the highest performance and lowest latency for options such as power saving and turbo boost. For the example hardware, Performance Per Watt (OS) is selected from the System Profile dropdown list. This means that these settings are managed within the host OS.

  

• You should disable the BIOS turbo setting if vSPU is in use. PMD takes the CPU load to 100%, which means that the processor would continually be overclocked, which is undesirable. If not using vSPU, leaving this option disabled is still recommended to avoid unpredictable CPU usage. For the example hardware, Dell Controlled Turbo is disabled.

  

The BIOS tasks ensure key features are enabled to ensure that the generic performance settings are set correctly to get the system to best complement the FortiGate-VM.