cpuunits in Proxmox is a relative CPU scheduling weight: when runnable guests compete for host CPU, a higher weight gives the etcd guest a larger relative claim on that CPU. It is not a fixed reservation, dedicated core, or CPU ceiling. That distinction matters when investigating etcd heartbeat warnings—but CPU weight is relevant only if CPU contention is actually occurring.
What Proxmox cpuunits changes
Proxmox uses cpuunits to express the relative weight of a VM or container in CPU scheduling. The QEMU option synopsis describes the VM setting as a CPU weight; the container documentation describes a relative weight passed to the kernel scheduler. Its practical effect is about how competing, runnable workloads share CPU—not how much CPU capacity the host owns. See the Proxmox QEMU option synopsis and Proxmox container documentation.
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If the etcd guest and other guests need CPU at the same time, raising its weight can improve its relative share. If there is no competing runnable demand, a higher weight may change little. The setting does not bind etcd to a core, add physical capacity, or guarantee a particular amount of CPU time. Results depend on the guest workload and what else is runnable on the host.
Defaults depend on cgroup version
The maintained Proxmox QEMU synopsis documents a cgroup v2 default of 100 and a value clamp of 1–10000; for legacy cgroup v1 it documents a default of 1024. The current container documentation also records 100 as the cgroup v2 default. Do not assume the legacy default applies to a current host: Proxmox removed cgroup v1 in Proxmox VE 9.0. Confirm your Proxmox release, guest type, cgroup version, and configured value before comparing settings.
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cpuunits versus cpulimit
These controls solve different problems. Proxmox documentation maps cpuunits to systemd’s CPUWeight and cpulimit to CPUQuota.
| Control | Purpose | When CPU is contested | When host CPU is idle |
|---|---|---|---|
cpuunits / CPUWeight |
Relative scheduling priority | Changes the guest’s relative claim against other runnable workloads | Does not reserve CPU or create a guaranteed allocation |
cpulimit / CPUQuota |
CPU consumption limit | Caps how much CPU the guest may consume | Still acts as a ceiling; it does not raise another guest’s priority |
The mapping and distinction are documented in the Proxmox project documentation clarification. Increasing cpulimit is not the same intervention as increasing a relative weight: one changes a ceiling, the other changes priority under competition.
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Why CPU scheduling can matter to etcd
etcd depends on timely processing and communication among cluster members. Its FAQ lists CPU starvation among possible causes of long apply latency and missed-heartbeat warnings, alongside slow disks, large requests, network latency, and packet loss. A majority of members must participate in consensus, so delays in storage or peer communication can affect request completion too. The etcd v3.8 FAQ is marked as draft documentation; treat its thresholds and descriptions as version-specific guidance, not universal service objectives.
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Diagnose a missed heartbeat before changing weight
The warning “failed to send out heartbeat on time” identifies a timing problem, not its cause. Collect observations during the warning or latency incident so that the change addresses the bottleneck rather than masking it.
1. Verify the Proxmox and guest configuration
- Record the Proxmox release, whether etcd runs in a QEMU VM or LXC container, the cgroup version, assigned vCPUs, and configured
cpuunits. - Check host and guest CPU utilization and scheduling contention while the incident is happening. Look for other runnable guests consuming CPU at the same time.
- If the host is not CPU-contended, increasing relative weight is unlikely to address the observed delay.
2. Check etcd storage latency
The draft v3.8 FAQ recommends watching backend_commit_duration_seconds when investigating slow apply warnings, with p99 below 25 ms as a diagnostic indicator, and wal_fsync_duration_seconds for heartbeat warnings, with p99 below 10 ms as an indicator. These figures are troubleshooting guidance from that FAQ, not guaranteed performance targets. Also look for storage contention and slow disks, which can lead to timeouts and temporary leader loss.
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Consider raising the etcd guest’s weight only when measurements show CPU contention on its host and competing runnable workloads are consuming CPU during the incident. The setting changes the relative scheduling claim; it cannot fix a slow disk, packet loss, or insufficient total host capacity.
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- Capture a baseline during representative etcd load: host and guest CPU behavior, storage latency, peer RTT and packet loss, and the heartbeat or apply symptoms.
- If CPU contention is demonstrated, adjust only the etcd guest’s relative weight as a controlled change. Do not simultaneously change CPU limits, storage, or etcd timing values if you need to identify the effect.
- Repeat the same representative workload and compare the observed contention and etcd symptoms with the baseline. Keep the change only if the measurements improve without creating unacceptable CPU starvation for other guests.
- If symptoms persist, revisit disk, network, request size, and overall capacity rather than continuing to raise weight without evidence.
etcd’s v3.7 tuning guide notes that performance can be optimized on Linux by setting the CPU governor to performance or conservative mode. Treat this as another host-level tuning factor to evaluate carefully, not as proof that cpuunits is the problem.
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