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Frequently Asked Questions
About Charon PAR

Table Of Contents

    HP-UX Emulator

    1. What are the alternatives to running HP‑UX on old PA‑RISC hardware?

    HP-UX is the operating system that runs on the outdated HP 9000 and other PA-RISC hardware. Though the HP 9000 and other PA-RISC hardware have reached their end of life, the HP-UX OS is still operational. These legacy systems are no longer supported by HP and are becoming increasingly unreliable. For businesses that still need to run their critical HP-UX OS, and other legacy workloads, they are looking for reliable, sustainable, and cost-effective alternatives to run them other than the old PA-RISC hardware. Hardware refresh and completely overhauling the entire aging hardware can be very expensive, risky, and time-consuming. Hardware emulation is one of the most common legacy system modernization alternatives that eliminates the dependency on obsolete physical servers while preserving the existing investments.  

    Charon PAR is an innovative hardware emulation solution from Stromasys that replicates the PA-RISC systems environments on modern platforms while maintaining complete application compatibility. This approach is available for both on-premises and cloud ecosystems. It uses the lift and shift migration strategy of moving legacy applications and HP-UX operating systems to the new environment. It improves performance, reliability, and modern DR options with zero changes and disruptions.  

    People often confuse the term “HP-UX emulator.” The correct term is PA-RISC emulator, as it replicates the behavior of original PA-RISC hardware on modern platforms. This preserves critical applications, the operating system (HP-UX), data, and configurations when migrating from outdated PA-RISC hardware. 

    Here are key benefits of emulating legacy PA-RISC hardware:   

    • Hardware Independence: Eliminating the outdated PA-RISC systems and their components that can cause hardware failure, resulting in downtime.  
    • Improved Disaster Recovery (DR): Improved and simplified backup processes with VM snapshots and rapid DR capabilities.  
    • Reduced Physical Footprint: Multiple physical servers can be easily consolidated into a single modern host.  
    • Extending the Life of Legacy Applications: Preserves the life of critical applications by migrating them to a modern platform without expensive rewrites and replacements.  
    • Cost-Optimization: Eliminates hardware maintenance costs and overall operations costs that include reduced power consumption, cooling requirements, and data center space.  

    Charon PAR is one of the leading legacy PA-RISC hardware emulators introduced by Stromasys. It modernizes the outdated PA-RISC hardware, including HP 3000 and HP 9000, to ensure the continuity of HP-UX operating systems. This enables them to run unmodified on x86 servers or cloud environments like AWS, Azure, VMWare, or OCI.  Charon PAR reduces hardware‑failure risk, improves operational efficiency, simplifies DR, and lowers costs.  

    To migrate HP-UX operating system to a virtualized environment, organizations need to plan the objective of the migration. Apart from it, timeline expectations, migration challenges, budget allocations, and resource utilization are required for moving to the virtualized environment. Also, you need to check the possibility of operational downtime and application compatibility while transitioning.  

    Charon PAR uses a lift and shift migration strategy to move the HP-UX operating system from the legacy PA-RISC hardware to the modern platform. It recreates the environment on the legacy systems so that the existing critical applications and HP-UX OS can run as if it were the original server without any operational disruptions.  

    Yes, you can run your existing HP-UX operating system on a cloud platform by using an emulator of the original PA-RISC hardware without making any changes with a lift-and-shift migration that will allow you to extend the life of HP-UX operating systems and other PA-RISC workloads. They can be easily moved to cloud platforms like Azure, Google Cloud, OCI, or AWS. This will help you in leveraging cloud benefits like improved scalability, flexibility, agility, security, elimination of hardware dependencies, and cost optimization.  

    Charon‑PAR is designed to operate in both on-premises and cloud environments. So, you can efficiently run it on Linux-based cloud virtual machines (VMs), enabling the HP-UX operating system and critical legacy workloads to run without any code changes. Most of the cloud platform also offers a pay-as-you-go subscription model, which means you will only need to pay for the services you use. Apart from that, you can also leverage other advantages like cloud flexibility, scalability, security, agility, compatibility with modern applications, and easy integration.  

    PA-RISC Emulation

    1. How do I set up PA‑RISC emulation?

    Here is a checklist on how you can get a PA‑RISC emulation environment running from host preparation through guest installation.   

    • Choose an emulator,   
    • Select the modern platform from an on-premises or cloud environment.  
    • Install the emulator software.  
    • Migrate the PA‑RISC workloads and HP-UX operating systems.  
    • Post migration monitoring and optimization  

    Charon PAR is the leading PA-RISC hardware emulator that can seamlessly extend the life of the HP-UX or MPE/iX operating systems and PA‑RISC applications on modern x86 systems or cloud platforms. It usually involves the following steps:  

    • Installing a supported Linux distribution on a modern x86‑64 server or VM  
    • Deploying the Charon‑PAR   
    • Creating a virtual PA‑RISC machine environment similar to the existing system  
    • Move the existing HP‑UX system.  
    • Configure networking and storage mappings  
    • Validate performance and I/O behavior.  
    • Create backups and DR options.  

    There are no significant disadvantages of emulating the outdated PA-RISC hardware if they are properly tested, sized, and operated. This new modern emulated environment is more stable, reliable, and improves the performance of PA-RISC workloads. The disadvantages are mainly due to the challenges of incorrect planning and execution.  

    Here are some disadvantages:  

    • Performance can be impacted if the x86 host is under-provisioned compared to the original hardware.  
    • Misconfigured networks or inadequate application compatibility validation before the migration process can cause issues.  
    • Without proper training, clear guides, and updated backup processes, long-term operational challenges can result.  
    • Community-driven projects may fix bugs slowly and without proper SLAs, documentation gaps, or enterprise validation, making emulation risky.  
    • Misalignment between vendor and OS support can create complications.  

    Charon‑PAR is a widely recognized emulator for emulating legacy PA-RISC hardware that ensures the continuity of legacy workloads running HP‑UX and MPE/iX operating systems. This emulator significantly reduces migration risks as compared to other emulators. Challenges like host mis‑sizing, storage misconfiguration, or inadequate testing are addressed by the Stromasys experts through structured assessment, vendor best‑practice implementation, and ongoing monitoring. It uses commercial optimizations like dynamic instruction translation to boost performance near-native on Intel Xeon hosts, full HP-UX/MPE device coverage (including SCSI, LAN, tape), unlimited scaling up to N-class servers, HP-recognized support, patches, and cloud certification (Azure/AWS). This eliminates any general emulation risks and offers enterprise-grade reliability without code changes while improving the performance of existing legacy applications and workloads.  

    There are several benefits to emulating the outdated PA-RISC systems. It not only eliminates any legacy hardware dependencies but also extends the life of the critical applications, like HP-UX and MPE/iX OS. It also leverages the benefits of modern platforms, such as improved scalability, compatibility, agility, security, and vendor support without code changes, while cutting down on operational costs.  

    Charon PAR is an innovative emulating technology that transforms the outdated PA-RISC systems like HP‑9000 and HP‑3000 on standard x86 servers or cloud VMs, depending on the business requirements. It uses lift and shift migration technology that allows businesses to run unmodified HP‑UX and MPE/iX OS. There are several advantages of emulating PA-RISC with Charon PAR:  

    • Zero code changes as it requires no rewriting or expensive replacements.  
    • An HP-recognized platform that allows seamless operations of PA-RISC workloads like HP-UX and MPE/iX operating systems.   
    • Improves performance and delivers near-native speed.  
    • Replaces failing PA-RISC systems with stable and reliable x86 servers or cloud VMs, eliminating aging hardware maintenance costs.   
    • Available for both on-premises and cloud platforms.  
    • Cloud-ready scalability: Certified for Azure/AWS/OCI with elastic VMs, snapshots, HA clustering, and low-cost tape archiving.   

    HP-UX Virtualization  

    1. What are the available migration paths for moving to modern HP‑UX virtualization?

    Here are some common available migration paths for moving legacy workloads and HP-UX operating system to a modern platform: 

    • vPars on Integrity Servers: It converts the physical HP Integrity servers to multiple virtual partitions using vparcreate and vparmodify. It enables dynamic CPU/memory/IO reassignment across partitions for better utilization. Ideal for Itanium-based HP-UX on supported hardware.  
    • Integrity VM (HPVM): Creates guest virtual machines on Integrity hosts via hpvmcreate. It supports live migration (hpvmmigrate) and fine-grained resource sharing. Best for consolidating multiple physical/vPars into VMs on existing HP hardware.   
    • PA-RISC Emulation to x86 or Cloud: Using emulators on Linux/x86 hosts or Azure/AWS VMs. It runs HP-UX or MPE/iX operating systems without any modifications. This approach is best for end-of-life PA-RISC hardware.   
    • HP-UX Containers/SRP (Secure Resource Partitions): Isolates applications in containers on Itanium. It leverages Aries binary translation for some PA-RISC compatibility and is suited for lightweight application modernization.   

    Charon PAR is one of the cost-effective migration approaches to extend the life of HP-UX OS on a modern platform without any modifications. Charon PAR emulator uses lift and shift between legacy hardware and modern infrastructure without any operational disruptions or risky migration.   

    Here are different types of HP-UX virtualization approaches to transform the legacy PA-RISC hardware:  

    • Charon PAR: Businesses that want to transform their PA-RISC infrastructure while extending the life of their existing critical applications, and optimizing overall expenses. It uses a lift and shift migration strategy to modernize the legacy systems. 
    • HP vPars: This HP-UX virtualization strategy is best for those organizations that are already operating on the HP Integrity with short-term needs but require simple partitioning with minimal overhead.  
    • HP Integrity VM: It is the best option for businesses that are operating HP Integrity servers with flexible resource needs and need short-term dynamic allocation requirements.  
    • HP nPars: Organizations operating HP Superdome with mission-critical isolation requirements for a very short-term business requirement only.  

    The best practices include careful capacity planning, segregation of test and production, proper backup/DR design, and aligning patching and monitoring strategies with the chosen virtualization or emulation layer. As for native HP‑UX virtualization like vPars and Integrity VM, there are vendor administration guides describing how to create, manage, and monitor virtual servers safely.   

    Here are some best practices for businesses that are using Charon-PAR for virtualizing the HP‑UX:  

    • Thoroughly plan your migration strategy to create a well-defined migration plan, understand the HP-UX environment, identify application dependencies, assess hardware configurations, and determine licensing requirements.  
    • Validate all the critical applications for Charon PAR before the migration to check for compatibility. It ensures a smooth transition and avoids costly delays.  
    • Check for the host system compatibility with the existing applications and other resource dependencies. It helps in understanding if there are any chances of performance degradation post-migration.  
    • Checking for a parallel environment while transitioning from traditional physical PA-RISC hardware to a modern platform before completely decommissioning the outdated legacy infrastructure. This provides a safety net and allows for side-by-side validation of workloads.  
    • Create a robust backup and recovery plan to protect data from loss and minimize business downtime in the event of hardware failure.  
    • Securing the newly virtualized environment by managing the access controls, network segmentation, and regular patching of the host platform.  
    • Continuously monitor performance post migration to check for bottlenecks that can impact operations.  
    • Document the entire migration process, as it helps in ensuring that the configuration aligns with recommended guidelines to avoid any common pitfalls. 

    Technical Questions

    1. What is the new multi-tier DIT (Dynamic Instruction Translation) feature in Charon PAR 4.0?
    CHARON-PAR version 4.0 provides a new level of just-in-time code translation called multi-tier DIT. This feature can offer significant performance improvements for suitable workloads. The translation process can be offloaded to a dedicated server, which requires a free license. This enhancement represents an important step forward in optimizing emulation performance.

    CHARON-PAR emulates one or more SCSI controllers that are recognized by the guest operating system, such as LSI 53C8xx, LSI 53C7xx, or LSI 53C1xxx controllers. Storage devices can be mapped to:  

    • Container files  
    • Physical disks or tapes  
    • Generic physical SCSI storage devices  

    This flexibility of Charon PAR allows businesses to choose from different storage configurations based on their specific requirements.  

    The maximum configuration varies by model. Standard examples include:  

    • rp2400/rp2430: Up to 2GB RAM, 1-2 CPUs  
    • rp2450/rp2470: Up to 8GB RAM, 1-4 CPUs  
    • rp5450/rp5470: Up to 16GB RAM, 1-4 CPUs  
    • rp7400: Up to 32GB RAM, 1-8 CPUs  
    • rp4410+/rp4440+: Up to 128GB RAM, 1-8 CPUs  

    Some models are also available in “oversized” versions with up to 128 CPUs (rp7400 up to 64 CPUs) and 512GB RAM. But the availability should be checked with the representatives. 

    CHARON-PAR has three prominent product families and the list of operating systems they support:  

    CHARON-PAR/PA3:  

    • Emulates legacy PA-RISC systems for running MPE/iX 7.5  

    CHARON-PAR/PA9-64 (64-bit models):  

    • HP-UX 11v1 (11.11)  
    • HP-UX 11v2 (11.23)  
    • HP-UX 11v3 (11.31) – rp34xx and rp44xx models only  
    • HP-UX 11.00 – systems with 360 MHz or 440 MHz CPUs (e.g., rp2400-1-360, rp2400-1-440, rp7400-1-440)  

    CHARON-PAR/PA9-32 (32-bit models):  

    • Model 720: HP-UX 9.05, 9.07, 10.20, 11.00  
    • Model B132L: HP-UX 10.20, 11.00, 11v1 (11.11)  

    CHARON-PAR emulates different network adapters and SCSI controllers depending on the product family:  

    Network Adapters 

    The following emulated network adapters are recognized by the guest operating system as 10/100 Mbps links or Gigabit Ethernet (for E1000). As these adapters are virtualized, the emulated 10/100 Mbps adapters may exceed their nominal speed when connected to 1 Gbps or 10 Gbps network interfaces on the host system. Emulated network interfaces can be mapped to either physical host NICs or TAP (virtual bridge) interfaces.  

    • CHARON-PAR/PA9-64: Emulates DEC 21143-PD Tulip (10/100 Mbps) and E1000 Gigabit Ethernet adapters  
    • CHARON-PAR/PA3: Emulates DEC 21143 Tulip (10/100 Mbps) adapter  
    • CHARON-PAR/PA9-32: Emulates Cobra Core LAN (802.3) adapter  
    • Model B132L (32-bit): Emulates Intel 82596 and DEC 21143 Tulip adapters  

     

    SCSI Controllers 

    CHARON-PAR emulates one or more SCSI controllers that are recognized by the guest operating system as:  

    • LSI 53C8xx: Used in PA9-64 models (Dual SCSI-2 and Dual SCSI-3 LVD controllers) and PA3 models  
    • LSI 53C7xx: Used in PA9-32 Model 720 (Cobra Core SCSI)  
    • LSI 53C1xxx: Specifically LSI 53C1010 LVD controller used in rp3440+ and rp4440+ models  
    • LSI 53C710: Used in Model B132L 

    Access Exclusive Resources

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