A few days ago Nutanix released an updated version of their VirtIO which is used for Windows based Virtual Machines (VMs) running on Nutanix hypervisor AHV. The VirtIO package is a bundle of paravirtual device drivers which adds functionality, performance and stability to the VMs.
This VirtIO driver requires the following operating system installed in the VM
- Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 or later
- Microsoft Windows 7 or later
See the section “Supported Guest VM types for AHV” to determine exact what versions of Windows AHV supported but e.g. Windows Server 2016 Standard and Windows Server 2016 Datacenter as well as Windows 10 are supported today.
The VirtIO 1.1.0 is available for download here and the documentation can be found here and it includes useful information about e.g.:
- Requiremnents
- Install process for both 64 bit operating system version via installer and the manual installation process required for 32 bit operating system versions.
- Upgrade process
- Create (new or via migration) a VM using VirtIO drivers
I have used the drivers myself for a while for internal testing purposes and can ensure you that the new version will add enhancements in all the areas mentioned initially in the blog post.