VMware Notes

VMware, Inc. is a software company, well known in the field of system virtualization and cloud computing. VMware's software allows users to create multiple virtual environments, or virtual computer systems, on a single computer or server. Essentially, one computer or server could be used to host, or manage, many virtual computer systems, sometimes as many as one hundred or more..

Applications get deployed faster, performance and availability increase and operations become automated in VMware environment. VMware software can even virtualizes hardware components such as the network adapters, and hard drive.

VMware virtualization helps to reduce capital expenses through server consolidation and reduce operating expenses through automation, while minimizing lost revenue by reducing both planned and unplanned downtime.

Common terminology used in VMware

-VM: Virtual Machine
-ESXi: The vSphere Hypervisor from VMware
-iSCSI: Ethernet-based shared storage protocol.
-LUN: Logical unit number, identifies shared storage (Fibre Channel/iSCSI).
-SAN: Storage area network, a shared storage technique for block protocols (Fibre Channel/iSCSI).
-NAS: Network attached storage, a shared storage technique for file protocols (NFS).
-vSphere Client: Administrative interface of vCenter Server.
-ISO: Image file, taken from IS-9660file system for optical drives.
-vSphere HA: High Availability, will restart a VM on another host if it fails.
-Virtual Appliance: A pre-packed VM with an application on it.
-vCenter Server: Server application that runs vSphere.
-vSphere: Collection of VMs, ESXi hosts, and vCenter Server
-vMotion: A VM migration technique.

Installing of VMware ESXi 

Install the ESXi bare-metal hypervisor as the first step to creating a vSphere environment. In a typical interactive installation, you boot the ESXi installer and respond to the installer prompts to install ESXi to the local host disk.

Interactive installation is the preferred way to install ESXi in small environments. Interactive installation does not require the use of scripts or an existing VMware Aut-Deploy infrastructure. If you have not installed ESXi on the target disk, all data located on the drive is overwritten, including hardware vendor partitions, operating system partitions, and associated data.

Procedure

-Load the ESXi installer media in a physical or virtual drive on your host machine and restart the host machine.
-Set the BIOS to boot from the CD-ROM device.[See your hardware vendor documentation for information about changing boot order.]
-Select the ESXi installer in the boot menu and press Enter.
-to accept the EULA, press F11.
-Select the drive on which to install ESXi and press Enter.
-If you are installing ESXi on a disk that contains a previous installation of ESXi or ESX, or a VMFS datastore, the installer provides you with options for upgrading.
-to select the default keyboard layout for the host, press Enter.
-to set the host password, type “PASSWORD” and retype the password to confirm it.
-to begin installation, press F11.
-After the installation finishes, remove the installation media and press Enter to restart the host.

NOTE : Repeat above steps to install ESXi on another machine.

Configure the ESXi Host

You have installed ESXi on one of your machines, designated ESXi1. After you finish the interactive installation of ESXi, use the direct console to configure your host. Assign the host a specific IP address and review the configuration options that the direct console provides.
As part of the Getting Started with ESXi scenario, you must configure your host with a specific IP address. The direct console lets you configure networking on individual hosts without using the vSphere Client.
After the host finishes the auto configuration phase, the direct console appears on the host monitor. Key operations available t-you in the direct console include configuring hosts, setting up administrative access, and troubleshooting.

Procedure

-Start the direct console (DCUI) on the host ESXi1.
-Press F2 to access the configuration screen.
-Type your administrative login credentials.
-In the Login Name text box, type root.
-In the Password text box, type “PASSWORD”.[ administrative password set in Install ESXi]
-Use the keyboard to select Configure Management Network and press Enter.
-Select IP Configuration and press Enter.
-Verify that Set static IP address and network configuration is selected, and type the network configuration details.

-SET IP Address 192.168.10.12 / Subnet Mask / Default Gateway
-Press Enter to accept the IP configuration changes.
-The management network restarts.
-Repeat the steps for the host 2

Install the vSphere Client

You have installed and configured ESXi. To deploy virtual machines and perform administrative tasks, you must install the vSphere Client and use it to manage the host. You can download the vSphere Client installer binary from your host.

Use the standalone vSphere Client application to manage your host directly before you move on to more complex environments. You can use vCenter Server and the browser-based vSphere Web Client t-manage multihost environments.

Procedure

-Log in to a Windows system that can access the host network.
-Open a Web browser window and type the IP address of your host.
-Type https://192.168.10.12 [You set the IP address of the host during host configuration.]
-Click Download vSphere Client and save the installer t-a local directory.
-Double-click the installer executable.
-Accept all default settings in the installer, and click Finish.
-You have installed the vSphere Client on your local Windows machine.

Installing a New VM

Procedure

-Start the vSphere Client and type the login details for your host.
-In the IP address / Name text box, type 192.168.10.12
-In the User name text box, type User Credentials.
-In the Password text box, type password.
-Click Install this certificate and do not display any security warnings, and click Ignore.
-Click New Virtual Machine.
-Follow the Create New Virtual Machine wizard to create a Windows virtual machine.
-Click Typical, and click Next.
-Type My_Windows_VM, and click Next.
-To place the virtual machine files on the existing datastore, click Next.
-Select a Windows version that corresponds to the installation media that you own.
-Accept all default settings to finish the wizard.
-To install vCenter Server in the virtual machine, assign at least 4GB of RAM to the virtual machine.
-Select the My_Windows_VM virtual machine.
-Place your Windows installation disk in the optical media drive of your local machine.
-Click the Connect/disconnect CD/DVD devices of the virtual machine icon, and select the letter drive that corresponds to your DVD device.
-Click the Launch Virtual Machine Console icon.
-Select the My_Windows_VM console window, and click the Power on icon.
-Complete the Windows installation wizard.