Best practices for deploying Server2025 Hyper-V Cluster on UCS X9508

[ahmed-essam23]

Hello,

I’m preparing to deploy a Windows Server 2025 Hyper-V cluster on a Cisco UCS X9508 chassis, and I’d like to understand the best practices for this setup.

In particular, I’d appreciate advice on the following points:

Recommended firmware versions and driver compatibility for Windows Server 2025

Best BIOS and adapter configurations for Hyper-V workloads

Whether to configure Switch Embedded Teaming (SET) inside the OS (for management, cluster, and live migration networks), or rely on vNICs created in UCS profiles to handle traffic separation and redundancy

Recommended network and storage configurations for high availability and performance

Any known issues or lessons learned when running a Hyper-V cluster on UCS X-Series

If anyone has deployed Hyper-V 2022 or 2025 on UCS X9508, I’d appreciate hearing your experience or seeing any Cisco documentation links.

Thanks in advance for your guidance!

[Wes Austin]

This document should help answer some of your questions:

https://www.netapp.com/media/136586-nva-1180-deploy-hyperv-shift.pdf 

[ahmed-essam23]

Thank you for sharing the document really helpful 

[BrianSekleckiGE]

On the topic of Hyper-V SET vs Traditional Windows Server NIC Teams + VLAN Sub-Interfaces:  I'll be interested to hear what you choose.  The VIC handles all of the [ VLAN Tagging ] and [ LACP / NIC Teaming ] , so I suppose that you could use S.E.T. without redundant uplinks.

(VICs interfaces are always pined status Up/Up, correct?)

Just map each Hyper-V virtual switch to a VIC-VLAN virtual interface, and the beauty is: No need to define the VLAN # again in the Virtual NIC Assigned to the Virtual Machine/VM.  As far as the Hyper-V virtual switch is concerned, it is all untagged traffic.

[ahmed-essam23]

Hello @BrianSekleckiGE , Thank you for your help. I will use SET switch instead of LBFO legacy teaming. i will deploy the configuration using Network ATC. then i will use SCVMM 2025 to manage the nodes. what do you recommend 

[BrianSekleckiGE]

> What do you recommend

I'm sorry; no suggestion for you at this time.  It will be a few months before I return to the UCS/datacenter world.  I'm currently starting to search for a contract/role at a UCS Shop.