The nova-compute service is a component of the OpenStack cloud computing platform, specifically part of the Nova project. Nova is responsible for managing and orchestrating the compute resources in an OpenStack environment. The nova-compute service runs on each compute node and is responsible for launching and managing virtual machine instances.
Here are the key responsibilities of the nova-compute service:
- Instance Lifecycle Management:
nova-computeis responsible for creating, starting, stopping, pausing, and deleting virtual machine instances based on requests from the Nova API or other components of the OpenStack system. - Resource Management:
nova-computetracks and manages the compute resources on the node it runs on, such as CPU, memory, and disk space. It ensures that the available resources are properly allocated to instances and enforces resource quotas and limits. - Hypervisor Interaction:
nova-computeinteracts with the hypervisor, which is the software layer that controls the physical hardware and enables the creation and management of virtual machines. It communicates with the hypervisor to start, stop, and monitor instances. - Networking:
nova-computecoordinates with the OpenStack Networking service (Neutron) to configure the networking for instances. It sets up the appropriate network bridges, attaches virtual interfaces to instances, and manages network security groups. - Image Management:
nova-computeinteracts with the OpenStack Image service (Glance) to retrieve virtual machine images and store temporary disk images associated with instances. - Resource Scheduling:
nova-computeparticipates in the scheduling process to determine the best compute node for launching new instances based on factors like resource availability, workload balancing, and any defined policies.
Overall, the nova-compute service plays a crucial role in the OpenStack infrastructure, enabling the deployment and management of virtual machine instances across a distributed set of compute nodes.