One of our smaller customers had sent us this alert from their LogicMonitor system:
LMD436411 warn – BLACK-HV-HOST2 HyperV Virtual Machines – BLACK-TOR-SQL03 operationalStatus The Hyper-V host BLACK-HV-HOST2 is reporting that VM BLACK-TOR-SQL03 is in an operational state of 3.0, which puts this device in a state of warn.
What’s The Difference Between Operational State 0 and 3?
This brought up the question of what’s the difference between Operational State 0 which is “OK” and Operational State 3 which is “In Service”. Aren’t those two terms nearly synonyms? Well, it turns out there is a subtle difference, that boils down to Operational State 3: In Service means a slightly degraded performance can be expected.
An Explanation of All Hyper-V VM Operational State’s
Here are the detailed descriptions and examples for each Hyper-V operational state:
Operational State 0 (OK):
Description: The VM is operating normally without any issues.
Example: A VM running a web server is serving requests without any errors or performance issues.
Operational State 1 (Degraded):
Description: The VM is running but with some performance issues or minor problems that do not prevent it from functioning.
Example: A VM running a database server is experiencing higher-than-normal latency but is still able to process queries.
Operational State 2 (Critical):
Description: The VM is experiencing significant issues that could impact its performance or functionality. Immediate attention is required.
Example: A VM running an application server is frequently crashing or experiencing severe performance degradation.
Operational State 3 (InService):
Description: The VM is in service, possibly undergoing maintenance, updates, or other administrative tasks. It may not be fully available for regular use.
Example: A VM is being updated with the latest security patches and is temporarily unavailable for user access.
Operational State 4 (Stopped):
Description: The VM is not running. It has been intentionally stopped or shut down.
Example: A VM used for development purposes has been shut down after the workday to save resources.
Operational State 5 (Starting):
Description: The VM is in the process of starting up. It is transitioning from a stopped state to a running state.
Example: A VM is booting up after being powered on, and services are initializing.
Operational State 6 (Stopping):
Description: The VM is in the process of shutting down. It is transitioning from a running state to a stopped state.
Example: A VM is shutting down as part of a scheduled maintenance window.
Operational State 7 (Saved):
Description: The VM’s state has been saved. It is not running, but its current state has been preserved for later resumption.
Example: A VM’s state is saved before performing hardware maintenance on the host server.
Operational State 8 (Pausing):
Description: The VM is in the process of pausing. It is transitioning from a running state to a paused state.
Example: A VM is being paused to temporarily free up resources for another critical task.
Operational State 9 (Paused):
Description: The VM is paused. It is not running, but its state is preserved, allowing it to resume quickly.
Example: A VM is paused during off-peak hours to save resources and can be resumed when needed.
Operational State 10 (Resuming):
Description: The VM is in the process of resuming from a paused or saved state. It is transitioning back to a running state.
Example: A paused VM is resuming operations to handle incoming user requests.
Operational State 11 (ApplyingSnapshot):
Description: The VM is applying a snapshot. It is transitioning to a previous state captured in the snapshot.
Example: A VM is reverting to a snapshot taken before a major software update.
Operational State 12 (CreatingSnapshot):
Description: The VM is in the process of creating a snapshot. It is capturing its current state for future reference.
Example: A VM is creating a snapshot before applying a critical update.
Operational State 13 (DeletingSnapshot):
Description: The VM is in the process of deleting a snapshot. It is removing a previously captured state.
Example: A VM is deleting an outdated snapshot to free up storage space.
Operational State 14 (WaitingToStart):
Description: The VM is waiting to start. It is queued to start but has not yet begun the startup process.
Example: A VM is scheduled to start at a specific time but is currently in the queue.
Operational State 15 (MergingDisks):
Description: The VM is merging virtual disks. It is combining multiple virtual disk files into a single file.
Example: A VM is merging differencing disks into the parent disk to consolidate storage.
Operational State 16 (ExportingVirtualMachine):
Description: The VM is being exported. It is in the process of creating an export file for backup or migration.
Example: A VM is being exported to an external storage device for backup purposes.
Operational State 17 (MigratingVirtualMachine):
Description: The VM is being migrated. It is in the process of moving from one host to another.
Example: A VM is being live-migrated to another host to balance the load.
Operational State 18 (BackingUpVirtualMachine):
Description: The VM is being backed up. It is in the process of creating a backup copy.
Example: A VM is being backed up to ensure data protection and recovery.
Operational State 19 (ModifyingUpVirtualMachine):
Description: The VM is being modified. It is undergoing changes to its configuration or resources.
Example: A VM is being updated with additional memory or CPU resources.
Operational State 20 (StorageMigrationPhaseOne):
Description: The VM is in the first phase of storage migration. It is moving its storage to a new location.
Example: A VM is migrating its virtual disks to a new storage array.
Operational State 21 (StorageMigrationPhaseTwo):
Description: The VM is in the second phase of storage migration. It is completing the migration process.
Example: A VM is finalizing the migration of its virtual disks to the new storage array.
Operational State 22 (MigratingPlannedVm):
Description: The VM is being migrated as part of a planned operation. It is moving to a new host or storage location.
Example: A VM is being migrated to a new host during a planned maintenance window.
Operational State 23 (CheckingCompatibility):
Description: The VM is checking compatibility. It is verifying that it can run on the target host or storage.
Example: A VM is checking compatibility before being migrated to a new host.
Operational State 24 (ApplicationCriticalState):
Description: The VM is in an application-critical state. It is experiencing issues that affect its applications.
Example: A VM running a critical application is experiencing errors that impact its functionality.
Operational State 25 (CommunicationTimedOut):
Description: The VM’s communication has timed out. It is experiencing network connectivity issues.
Example: A VM is unable to communicate with other network resources due to a timeout.
Operational State 26 (CommunicationFailed):
Description: The VM’s communication has failed. It is unable to establish network connections.
Example: A VM is experiencing network failures and cannot connect to other devices.
Operational State 27 (NoIommu):
Description: The VM lacks IOMMU support. It cannot use certain hardware features.
Example: A VM is unable to use hardware-assisted virtualization features due to the lack of IOMMU support.
Operational State 28 (NoIovSupportInNic):
Description: The VM’s NIC lacks IOV support. It cannot use certain network features.
Example: A VM is unable to use advanced network features due to the lack of IOV support in its NIC.
Operational State 29 (SwitchNotInIovMode):
Description: The VM’s switch is not in IOV mode. It cannot use certain network features.
Example: A VM is unable to use advanced network features due to the switch not being in IOV mode.
Operational State 30 (IovBlockedByPolicy):
Description: The VM’s IOV is blocked by policy. It cannot use certain network features.
Example: A VM is unable to use advanced network features due to a policy blocking IOV.
Operational State 31 (IovNoAvailResources):
Description: The VM’s IOV has no available resources. It cannot use certain network features.
Example: A VM is unable to use advanced network features due to the lack of available IOV resources.
Operational State 32 (IovGuestDriversNeeded):
Description: The VM’s IOV requires guest drivers. It cannot use certain network features.
Example: A VM is unable to use advanced network features due to the lack of guest drivers for IOV.
Operational State 33 (CriticalIoError):
Description: The VM is experiencing a critical I/O error. It is unable to perform I/O operations.
Example: A VM is unable to read or write data due to a
