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Getting Started with BIG-IQ Virtual Edition
What is BIG-IQ Virtual Edition?
BIG-IQ Virtual Edition (VE) is a version of F5 BIG-IQ Centralized Management that runs as a guest on specifically-supported hypervisors. BIG-IQ VE emulates a hardware-based BIG-IQ system running a VE-compatible version of BIG-IQ software.
BIG-IQ VE compatibility with Amazon EC2
Each time there is a new release of BIG-IQ Virtual Edition (VE) software, it includes support for additional public and private cloud products. The Virtual Edition and Supported Hypervisors Matrix on the AskF5 website, support.f5.com , details which instance types are supported for each release.
BIG-IQ VE is compatible with the Amazon Web Services (AWS) EC2 hypervisors. These articles document the AWS interface as it exists just prior to the version 6.0.0 BIG-IQ software release.
Hypervisor guest definition requirements
The EC2 Manager virtual machine guest environment for the BIG-IQ Virtual Edition (VE), at minimum, must include:
- a 64-bit EC2 instance with at least 4 virtual cores (up to 16 are supported in this release)
- at least 16 GB RAM (64 GB has been tested, F5 recommends at least 2 GB per virtual core)
- 2 virtual network adapter cards (NICs) (up to 9
are supported) Important: F5 recommends three or more network adapters for most topologies, but the minimum requirement is two (one for management and one for traffic).
- 1 virtual private cloud (VPC). Note: To support multiple NICs on Amazon Web Services, you must create a virtual private cloud (VPC).
Determine the resources required for deployment
CPU, RAM, and disk space requirements are determined by the following factors.
- Are you deploying a BIG-IQ system or a data collection device (DCD)?
- If you are deploying a DCD, how much storage do you need? Refer to the for guidance.
- How much performance do you need?
Usually, the extra storage space is for DCDs. However, there are also situations in which BIG-IQ systems can use the extra space. For example, you might want to store a large number of UCS backups. Or, your business needs might require you to store multiple versions of the BIG-IQ software so you can upgrade back and forth between BIG-IQ versions.
| Deployment type | CPUs | RAM | Disk Space |
|---|---|---|---|
| BIG-IQ system | 4 or 8 See When do I need extra resources? |
16, 32, or 64 GB See When do I need extra resources? |
Generally, 95 GB; or if extra space is needed, 500 GB. |
| Data collection device | 4 | 16 GB |
Initially, 500 GB. |
| Higher performance and scale | 8 | 32 or 64 GB | VE disk space can be extended further as needed. |
When do I need extra resources?
When the BIG-IQ system you deploy manages a number of devices that exceeds specified thresholds, F5 recommends that you use 8 CPUs and either 32 or 64 GB of RAM. These thresholds vary depending on which modules are licensed on the devices that the BIG-IQ manages and where the devices are deployed.
The following table lists thresholds for each BIG-IP module that impacts the amount of RAM that a BIG-IQ requires. For example, if the BIG-IQ manages more than 32 devices provisioned with the Access module, you should use 32 GB instead of 16.
| A BIG-IQ managing devices... | Needs 32 GB to manage more than: |
|---|---|
| provisioned with Access | 32 devices |
| provisioned with ADC | 80 devices |
| provisioned with ASM | 40 devices |
| provisioned with DNS | 100 devices |
| provisioned with FPS | 50 devices |
| deployed in a VMware service scaling group | 100 devices |
| deployed in an AWS or Azure service scaling group | 50 devices |
