How PVU Is Calculated on a 32 Core Host

The PVU formula

PVU equals the PVU rating per core multiplied by the cores allocated to the IBM software. The per core rating is not a single number; it comes from the IBM PVU table and depends on the processor brand, model and generation. Many common Intel server cores are rated at 70 PVU, while other processors carry higher ratings.

A worked example on a 32 core host

Take a host with 32 physical cores running a single eligible IBM product, on a processor rated at 120 PVU per core. The two outcomes sit far apart:

• Full capacity: 32 cores at 120 PVU each is 3,840 PVU.
• Sub-capacity, with the product confined to 4 cores: 4 cores at 120 PVU each is 480 PVU.

Same host, same software, same workload. The difference between 3,840 and 480 PVU is entirely a question of which number you can prove.

Why the per core rating matters

Because the rating is read from the IBM PVU table per processor, two hosts with the same core count can carry different PVU totals. A processor rated at 70 PVU per core gives 2,240 PVU at full capacity on the same 32 cores, against 3,840 for a 120 PVU processor. Identifying the correct rating for the actual silicon is the first place reconciliations recover money.

What turns 480 into 3,840

Sub-capacity is earned, not assumed. To hold the 480 PVU position you need an approved tool deployed within 90 days, running continuously, producing quarterly reports kept for two years. Miss any one and IBM is entitled to charge the full 3,840 PVU for the affected period, even if the software never touched the other 28 cores.

How we recalculate

An independent recalculation rebuilds the number from the evidence: the processor model and its true PVU rating, the cores actually available to the product, the hypervisor caps, and the ILMT history that proves them. Where the evidence supports sub-capacity, we hold the lower figure. Where it does not, we fix the configuration before the gap becomes a settlement line.