ESXi can manage CPU and memory resources with three specific parameters that can change the priority or the effective amount of resources assigned to a VM:
- Limits: This is the maximum set of resources assignable to a VM. Note that there is an implicit limit for each VM, defined by the number of virtual cores and the amount of the virtual RAM configured for the VM.
- Reservations: This is the minimum set of resources guaranteed for a VM. For the memory, it's also possible to flag the "reserve all guest memory" option to pre-allocate the entire VM's memory.
- Shares: This is the priority of the resources, and each VM has an implicit priority depending on the configured ...