VMware Tutorial

Basic System Administration
ESX Server 3.0.1 and Virtual Center 2.0.1
This document supports the version of each product listed and supports all subsequent versions until the document is replaced by a new edition. To check for more recent editions of this document, see http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs.
VI-ENG-Q306-293
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Contents
Preface
11
GettingStarted
1 VMwareInfrastructureComponents 17
TwoApproachestoManagingVirtualMachines 17 ComponentsofVMwareInfrastructure 19 VirtualInfrastructureClientInterfaces 21 OptionalVirtualCenterComponents 21 ManagedComponents 22 FunctionalComponents 24 AccessPrivilegesComponents 25
2 UsingthisDocument 27
GettingStarted 27 VirtualMachineManagement SystemAdministration 29 Appendixes 29 28
3 StartingandStoppingtheVMwareInfrastructureComponents 31
ESXServer 31 VirtualCenterServer 33 VerifyingThatVirtualCenterServerStarted 33 RestartingtheVirtualCenterServer 34 StoppingtheVirtualCenterServer 34 VIClient 34 StartingtheVIClientandLoggingOn 35 StoppingtheVIClientandLoggingOff 36 VIWebAccess 36 LoggingInandOutofVIWebAccess 36 VMwareServiceConsole 37
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UsingDHCPfortheServiceConsole 38 ConnectingtotheServiceConsole 38 UsingCommandsontheServiceConsole 38
4 UsingtheVIClient 41
VIClientOverview 41 MenuBar 43 PopUpMenus 45 ConsoleMenu 45 NavigationBar 46 InventoryViewTabs 49 Toolbar 52 StatusBar,RecentTasks,andTriggeredAlarms 53 PanelSections 53 SortingandFilteringLists 54 UsingCustomAttributes 55 SelectingandViewingObjects 57 SelectingObjects 57 MonitoringObjects 58 PerformingActionsonObjects 59
5 SystemConfiguration 61
HostConfigurationforESXServerandVirtualCenter 61 ConfiguringaHost 62 HardwareTab 62 SoftwareTab 63 ViewingNetworkConfigurationInformation 64 ViewingStorageConfigurationInformation 64 ViewingSecurityConfigurationInformation 64 ViewingESXServerCommandInformation 65 VirtualCenterConfiguration 66 ConfiguringVirtualCenterCommunication 68 ConfiguringthePortThatVirtualCenterServerUses 69 ConfiguringVirtualCenterCommunicationoveraWebConnection 69 VirtualMachineConfiguration 71 WorkingwithActiveSessions 73 SNMPConfiguration 74 UsingMIBswithYourSNMPTraps 74 UnderstandingSNMPTrapandVariableDefinitions 75 UsingSNMPtoMonitortheComputerRunningESXServer 77
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InformationAboutthePhysicalComputer 77 InformationAbouttheVirtualMachines 78 SNMPTraps 78 SettingUpESXServerSNMP 79 InstallingtheESXServerSNMPModule 79 InstallingtheESXServerMIBModule 79 ConfiguringtheESXServerAgentfromtheServiceConsole 79 ConfiguringSNMPTrapDestinations 80 ConfiguringSNMPManagementClientSoftware 80 ConfiguringSNMPSecurity 81 UsingSNMPwithGuestOperatingSystems 81 SystemLogFiles 81 ViewingSystemLogEntries 82 ExternalSystemLogs 83 ExportingDiagnosticData 86 CollectingLogFiles 87
6 ManagingtheVIClientInventory 91
UnderstandingVIClientObjects 91 AddinganInventoryObject 96 MovingObjectsintheInventory 97 RemovinganInventoryObject 98
7 ManagingHostsinVirtualCenter 99
HostsOverview 99 UnderstandingHostStates 101 AddingaHost 101 ConnectingorDisconnectingaHost 104 AutomaticallyReconnectingaHost 106 RemovingaHostfromaCluster 106 RemovingaHostfromVirtualCenter 108 HostAdvancedConfigurationOptions 110
VirtualMachineManagement
8 CreatingVirtualMachines 113
UsingtheNewVirtualMachineWizard 114 CreatingTypicalVirtualMachines 115
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CreatingCustomVirtualMachines 121 MappingaSANLUN 130 InstallingaGuestOperatingSystem 132 InstallingandUpgradingVMwareTools 133 Limitations 133 VMwareToolsPropertiesDialogBox 135 OptionsTab 135 DevicesTab 136 ScriptsTab 136 AboutTab 138 AutomatedVMwareToolsUpgrades 138
9 ManagingVirtualMachines 141
ChangingVirtualMachinePowerStates 141 UnderstandingVirtualMachinePowerStates 142 UnderstandingTransitionalPowerStates 144 ManuallyPoweringaVirtualMachineOnandOff 144 UsingSuspendandResume 145 SchedulingaPowerStateChangeforaVirtualMachine 146 AddingandRemovingVirtualMachines 150 AddingExistingVirtualMachinestoVirtualCenter 150 RemovingandReturningVirtualMachinesfromVirtualCenter 151 ReturningaVirtualMachinetoVirtualCenter 152 StartingandShuttingDownVirtualMachines 155
10 ConfiguringVirtualMachines 159
VirtualMachinePropertiesEditor 159 ChangingtheHardwareConfigurationofaVirtualMachine ChangingVirtualMachineOptions 170 ChangingVirtualMachineResourceSettings 175 CPUResources 175 AdvancedCPUSettings 176 MemoryResources 178 DiskResources 179 ChangingtheAudioConfiguration 180 AddingNewHardware 181 AddingDVD/CDROMorFloppyDevices 183 160
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Contents
11 CustomizingGuestOperatingSystems 189
PreparingforGuestCustomization 190 CustomizingaWindowsGuestOperatingSystem 190 UsingtheCustomizationSpecificationWizard 196 UsingtheCloneVirtualMachineWizard 199 CompletingaGuestOperatingSystemCustomization 200 CompletingLinuxGuestOperatingSystemCustomization 200 CompletingWindowsGuestOperatingSystemCustomization 201
12 WorkingwithTemplatesandClones 203
UnderstandingTemplates 203 CreatingTemplates 204 EditingaTemplate 208 DeployingVirtualMachinesfromTemplates 209 DeletingaTemplate 212 RegainingTemplates 213 CloninganExistingVirtualMachine 215 CreatingaScheduledTasktoCloneaVirtualMachine
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13 UsingSnapshots 221
UnderstandingSnapshots 221 RelationshipBetweenSnapshots 222 SnapshotsandOtherActivityintheVirtualMachine 223 TakingaSnapshot 223 ChangingDiskModetoExcludeVirtualDisksfromSnapshots 225 UsingtheSnapshotManager 226 RestoringaSnapshot 227 ParentSnapshot 228 Revert toSnapshotCommand 229
14 MigratingVirtualMachines 231
Overview 231 Migration 233 MigrationwithVMotion 233 VMotionRequirements 234 SharedStorage 234 SharedVMFSVolumeorNASStorage CPUCompatibility 234 NetworkingRequirements 236
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VMotionCompatibility 237 CPUCompatibilityMasks 238 MigrationWizard 239
SystemAdministration
15 ManagingUsers,Groups,Permissions,andRoles 247
AccessElements 248 AccessRules 248 HierarchicalInheritance 249 MultiplePermissionSettings 249 TasksRequiringSettingsonMultipleObjects 250 Users 251 Groups 253 Permissions 254 Roles 254 CreatingRoles 257 CloningRoles 259 EditingRoles 260 RemovingRoles 261 RenamingRoles 262 AccessPermissions 262 AssigningAccessPermissions 263 AdjustingtheSearchListinLargeDomains 266 ChangingAccessPermissions 267 RemovingAccessPermissions 268
16 MonitoringYourVmwareInfrastructureEnvironment 269
MonitoringYourVMwareInfrastructureEnvironment PerformanceCharts 270 PerformanceChartResources 270 PerformanceChartView 271 SelectingPerformanceChartOptions 271 ViewingStackedGraphs 273 SettingtheStatisticsCollectionIntervals 274 ChangingtheStatisticsCollectionLevel 276 Maps 276 GlobalMaps 277 InventoryMaps 277
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VMotionResourceMaps 277 MapElementsandIcons 279 ViewingtheMaps 280 EditingtheMaps 280 PrintingMaps 284 ExportingMaps 285 NavigatingBetweenMaps 286 DisplayingObjectMenusinMaps 286
17 ManagingTasks,Events,andAlarms 289
ManagingTasks 289 UnderstandingTasks 290 ViewingandPerformingTasks 290 ManagingScheduledTasks 293 ReschedulingaScheduledTask 300 RemovingaScheduledTask 300 CancelingaTask 301 ManagingEvents 303 ViewingAllEventMessages 303 ViewingSelectedEventMessages 305 SortingandFilteringEventMessages 306 ExportingEventMessages 307 ManagingAlarms 308 UnderstandingAlarms 309 PreparingforEmailMessageSMTPAlarmNotification 311 PreparingforSNMPAlarmNotification 312 CreatingAlarms 314 EditingAlarms 320 RemovingAlarms 321
Appendixes
A DefinedPrivileges 325
AlarmManagement 326 Datacenter 327 Datastore 327 Folders 328 Global 329 HostConfiguration 330
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HostInventory 331 HostLocalOperations 332 Network 333 Performance 333 Permissions 334 Resource 334 ScheduledTask 336 Sessions 336 VirtualMachineConfiguration 337 VirtualMachineInteraction 339 VirtualMachineInventory 340 VirtualMachineProvisioning 341 VirtualMachineState 342
B InstallingtheMicrosoftSysprepTools 345 C PerformanceChartMeasurements 349

CPU 350 Disk 350 DRS 352 Memory 352 Network 354 ResourceGroup 354 System 355
Index 357
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Preface
ThisprefacedescribesthecontentsofBasicSystemAdministrationandprovidespointers toVMwaretechnicalandeducationalresources. Thisprefacecontainsthefollowingtopics:

AboutThisBookonpage 11 TechnicalSupportandEducationResourcesonpage 13
About This Book

Thismanual,BasicSystemAdministration,describeshowtostartandstoptheVirtual InfrastructureClientcomponents,buildyourVMwareInfrastructureenvironment, monitorandmanagetheinformationgeneratedaboutthecomponents,andsetuproles andpermissionsforusersandgroupsusingtheVMwareInfrastructureenvironment. Thismanualalsoprovidesinformationformanaging,creating,andconfiguringvirtual machinesinyourdatacenter. Inaddition,thismanualprovidesbriefintroductionstothevarioustasksyoucan performwithinthesystemaswellascrossreferencestothedocumentationthat describesallthetasksindetail.
Revision History
Thismanualisrevisedwitheachreleaseoftheproductorwhennecessary.Arevised versioncancontainminorormajorchanges.Table P1providesyouwiththerevision historyofthismanual.
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Table P-1. Revision History

Revision 20060615 20060921 Description ESXServer3.0andVirtualCenter2.0versionofVMwareInfrastructure3 BasicSystemAdministration.Thisisthefirsteditionofthismanual. ESXServer3.0.1andVirtualCenter2.0.1versionofVMwareInfrastructure 3BasicSystemAdministration.Thiseditionincludesminorchangesto virtualmachinetemplate,newvirtualmachinewizard,andmigration information.
Intended Audience
Theinformationpresentedinthismanualiswrittenforsystemadministratorswhoare experiencedWindowsorLinuxsystemadministratorsandwhoarefamiliarwith virtualmachinetechnologyanddatacenteroperations.
Document Feedback
Ifyouhavecommentsaboutthisdocumentation,submityourfeedbackto: docfeedback@vmware.com
VMware Infrastructure Documentation

TheVMwareInfrastructuredocumentationconsistsofthecombinedVirtualCenterand ESXServerdocumentationset. Youcanaccessthemostcurrentversionsofthismanualandotherbooksbygoingto: http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs
Conventions
Table P2illustratesthetypographicconventionsusedinthismanual. Table P-2. Conventions Used in This Manual
Style Blue(onlineonly) Blueboldface(onlineonly) Blackboldface Monospace Monospace bold Elements Crossreferencesandemailaddresses Links Userinterfaceelementssuchasbuttonnamesandmenuitems Commands,filenames,directories,andpaths Userinput
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Preface
Table P-2. Conventions Used in This Manual (Continued)

Style Italic <Name> Elements Documenttitles,glossaryterms,andoccasionalemphasis Variableandparameternames
Abbreviations Used in Graphics

ThegraphicsinthismanualusetheabbreviationslistedinTable P3. Table P-3. Abbreviations
Abbreviation VC VI server database hostn VM# user# dsk# datastore SAN tmplt Description VirtualCenter VirtualInfrastructureClient VirtualCenterServer VirtualCenterdatabase VirtualCentermanagedhosts Virtualmachinesonamanagedhost Userwithaccesspermissions Storagediskforthemanagedhost Storageforthemanagedhost Storageareanetworktypedatastoresharedbetweenmanagedhosts Template
Technical Support and Education Resources

Thefollowingsectionsdescribethetechnicalsupportresourcesavailabletoyou.
Self-Service Support
UsetheVMwareTechnologyNetwork(VMTN)forselfhelptoolsandtechnical information:

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Productinformationhttp://www.vmware.com/products/ Technologyinformationhttp://www.vmware.com/vcommunity/technology Documentationhttp://www.vmware.com/support/pubs VMTNKnowledgeBasehttp://www.vmware.com/support/kb Discussionforumshttp://www.vmware.com/community

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Usergroupshttp://www.vmware.com/vcommunity/usergroups.html
FormoreinformationabouttheVMwareTechnologyNetwork,goto http://www.vmtn.net.
Online and Telephone Support

Useonlinesupporttosubmittechnicalsupportrequests,viewyourproductand contractinformation,andregisteryourproducts.Goto http://www.vmware.com/support. Customerswithappropriatesupportcontractsshouldusetelephonesupportforthe fastestresponseonpriority1issues.Goto http://www.vmware.com/support/phone_support.html.
Support Offerings
FindouthowVMwaresupportofferingscanhelpmeetyourbusinessneeds.Goto http://www.vmware.com/support/services.
VMware Education Services

VMwarecoursesofferextensivehandsonlabs,casestudyexamples,andcourse materialsdesignedtobeusedasonthejobreferencetools.Formoreinformationabout VMwareEducationServices,gotohttp://mylearn1.vmware.com/mgrreg/index.cfm.
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Getting Started
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VMware Infrastructure Components
ThischapterintroducesVMwareInfrastructurecomponentsandtheoperationsthat youusewhenmanagingyourvirtualmachinesthroughESXServerorVirtualCenter Server. Thischaptercontainsthefollowingtopics:

TwoApproachestoManagingVirtualMachinesonpage 17 ComponentsofVMwareInfrastructureonpage 19 VirtualInfrastructureClientInterfacesonpage 21 OptionalVirtualCenterComponentsonpage 21 ManagedComponentsonpage 22 FunctionalComponentsonpage 24 AccessPrivilegesComponentsonpage 25
Two Approaches to Managing Virtual Machines

VirtualInfrastructureClient(VIClient)isaflexible,configurablesolutionformanaging yourvirtualmachines.Therearetwoprimarymethodsformanagingyourvirtual machines:
DirectlythroughanESXServer(asingleorstandalonehost)thatcanmanageonly thosevirtualmachines,andtheirresources,installedonit. ThroughaVirtualCenterServerthatmanagesmultiplevirtualmachinesandtheir resourcesdistributedovermanyESXServerhosts.
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ThefigurebelowillustratesthecomponentsinanESXServerVirtualInfrastructure.
VI Client VI Client
Host Agent
VM
VM
VM
ESX Server host
datastore
Figure 1-1. VMware Infrastructure Components with an ESX Server ThefigurebelowillustratesthecomponentsinaVirtualCenterServerVirtual Infrastructure.
VI Client VI Client VI Client VI Client VI Client
VirtualCenter License Server
VirtualCenter Server
VC database
VirtualCenter Agent
VirtualCenter Agent
VirtualCenter Agent
VM
VM
VM
VM
VM
VM
VM
VM
VM
ESX Server host
ESX Server host
ESX Server host
datastore
shared datastore
Figure 1-2. VMware Infrastructure Components with a VirtualCenter Server
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Chapter 1 VMware Infrastructure Components
Components of VMware Infrastructure

TorunyourVMwareInfrastructureenvironment,youneedthefollowingitems:
ESXServerThevirtualizationplatformusedtocreatethevirtualmachinesasa setofconfigurationanddiskfilesthattogetherperformallthefunctionsofa physicalmachine. ThroughESXServer,yourunthevirtualmachines,installoperatingsystems,run applications,andconfigurethevirtualmachines.Configurationincludes identifyingthevirtualmachinesresources,suchasstoragedevices. Theserverincorporatesaresourcemanagerandserviceconsolethatprovides bootstrapping,management,andotherservicesthatmanageyourvirtual machines. EachESXServerhasaVIClientavailableforyourmanagementuse.IfyourESX ServerisaregisteredhostwiththeVirtualCenterManagementServer,aVIClient thataccommodatestheVirtualCenterfeaturesisavailable.
VirtualCenterAservicethatactsasacentraladministratorforVMwareESX Serverhoststhatareconnectedonanetwork.VirtualCenterdirectsactionsonthe virtualmachinesandthevirtualmachinehosts(theESXServerhosts). VirtualCenterManagementServer(VirtualCenterServer)Theworkingcoreof VirtualCenter.VirtualCenterServerisasingleWindowsServiceandisinstalledto runautomatically.AsaWindowsService,theVirtualCenterServerruns continuouslyinthebackground,performingitsmonitoringandmanaging activitiesevenwhennoVIClientsareconnectedandevenifnobodyisloggedon tothecomputerwhereitresides.Itmusthavenetworkaccesstoallthehostsit managesandbeavailablefornetworkaccessfromanymachinewheretheVI Clientisrun. VirtualCenterdatabaseApersistentstorageareaformaintainingstatusofeach virtualmachine,host,andusermanagedintheVirtualCenterenvironment.The VirtualCenterdatabasecanberemoteorlocaltotheVirtualCenterServermachine. ThedatabaseisinstalledandconfiguredduringVirtualCenterinstallation. IfyouareaccessingyourESXServerdirectlythroughaVIClient,andnotthrough aVirtualCenterServerandassociatedVIClient,youdonotuseaVirtualCenter database.
DatastoreThestoragelocationsforthevirtualmachinefilesspecifiedwhen creatingvirtualmachines.Datastoreshidetheidiosyncrasiesofvariousstorage options(suchasVMFSvolumesonlocalSCSIdisksoftheserver,theFibreChannel SANdiskarrays,theiSCSISANdiskarrays,orNetworkAttachedStorage(NAS)
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arrays)andprovideauniformmodelforvariousstorageproductsrequiredby virtualmachines.
VirtualCenteragentOneachmanagedhost,softwarethatcollects, communicates,andexecutestheactionsreceivedfromtheVirtualCenterServer. TheVirtualCenteragentisinstalledthefirsttimeanyESXServerhostisaddedto theVirtualCenterinventory. HostagentOneachmanagedhost,softwarethatcollects,communicates,and executestheactionsreceivedthroughtheVIClient.ItisinstalledaspartoftheESX Serverinstallation. VirtualCenterlicenseserverServerthatstoressoftwarelicensesrequiredfor mostoperationsinVirtualCenterandESXServer,suchaspoweringonavirtual machine. VirtualCenterandESXServersupporttwomodesoflicensing:license serverbasedandhostbased.Inhostbasedlicensingmode,thelicensefilesare storedonindividualESXServerhosts.Inlicenseserverbasedlicensingmode, licensesarestoredonalicenseserver,whichmakestheselicensesavailabletoone ormorehosts.Youcanrunamixedenvironmentemployingbothhostbasedand licenseserverbasedlicensing. VirtualCenterandfeaturesthatrequireVirtualCenter,suchasVMotion,mustbe licensedinlicenseserverbasedmode.ESXServerspecificfeaturescanbelicensed ineitherlicenseserverbasedorhostbasedmode. Forcompleteinformationoninstallingthesecomponents,refertotheInstallation andUpgradeGuide.ForcompleteinformationonconfiguringESXServer,referto theServerConfigurationGuide.
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Virtual Infrastructure Client Interfaces

VirtualInfrastructureClientinterfaceoptionsinclude:
VirtualInfrastructureClient(VIClient)Arequiredcomponentandtheprimary interfaceforcreating,managing,andmonitoringvirtualmachines,theirresources, andtheirhosts.Italsoprovidesconsoleaccesstovirtualmachines. VIClientisinstalledonaWindowsmachinewithnetworkaccesstoyourESX ServerorVirtualCenterServerinstallation.Theinterfacedisplaysslightlydifferent optionsdependingonwhichtypeofserveryouareconnectedto.Whileall VirtualCenteractivitiesareperformedbytheVirtualCenterServer,youmustuse theVIClienttomonitor,manage,andcontroltheserver.AsingleVirtualCenter ServerorESXServercansupportmultiple,simultaneouslyconnectedVIClients.
VirtualInfrastructureWebAccess(VIWebAccess)AWebinterfacethrough whichyoucanperformbasicvirtualmachinemanagementandconfigurationand getconsoleaccesstovirtualmachines.ItisinstalledwithyourESXServer.Similar totheVIClient,VIWebAccessworksdirectlywithanESXServerhostorthrough VirtualCenter.RefertotheVIWebAccessAdministratorsGuideforadditional information. VMwareServiceConsoleAcommandlineinterfaceforconfiguringyourESX Server.Typically,thisisusedinconjunctionwithaVMwaretechnicalsupport representative.
Optional VirtualCenter Components

AdditionalVirtualCenterfeaturesinclude:
VMotionAfeaturethatenablesyoutomoverunningvirtualmachinesfromone ESXServertoanotherwithoutserviceinterruption.Itrequireslicensingonboth thesourceandtargethost.TheVirtualCenterServercentrallycoordinatesall VMotionactivities. VMwareHAAfeaturethatenablesaclusterwithHighAvailability.Ifahostgoes down,allvirtualmachinesthatwereonthehostarepromptlyrestartedon differenthosts. WhenyouenabletheclusterforHA,youspecifythenumberofhostsyouwould liketobeabletorecover.Ifyouspecifythenumberofhostfailuresallowedas1, HAmaintainsenoughcapacityacrosstheclustertotoleratethefailureofonehost. Allrunningvirtualmachinesonthathostcanberestartedonremaininghosts.By default,youcannotpoweronavirtualmachineifdoingsoviolatesrequired failovercapacity.SeeResourceManagementGuide.
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VMwareDRSAfeaturethathelpsimproveresourceallocationacrossallhosts andresourcepools.VMwareDRScollectsresourceusageinformationforallhosts andvirtualmachinesintheclusterandgivesrecommendations(ormigrates virtualmachines)inoneoftwosituations:
InitialplacementWhenyoufirstpoweronavirtualmachineinthecluster, DRSeitherplacesthevirtualmachineormakesarecommendation. LoadbalancingDRStriestoimproveresourceutilizationacrossthecluster byperformingautomaticmigrationsofvirtualmachines(VMotion)orby providingarecommendationforvirtualmachinemigrations.
VMwareInfrastructureSDKpackageAPIsformanagingvirtualinfrastructure anddocumentationdescribingthoseAPIs.TheSDKalsoincludesthe VirtualCenterWebServiceinterface,WebServicesDescriptionLanguage(WSDL), andexamplefiles.Thisisavailablethroughanexternallink.TodownloadtheSDK package,refertohttp://www.vmware.com/support/developer.
Managed Components
VirtualCentermonitorsandmanagesvariouscomponentsofyourvirtualandphysical infrastructure.Somecomponentsareavailablefororganizingpotentiallyhundredsof virtualmachinesandotherobjects.Theycanberenamedtorepresenttheirpurposes; forexample,theycanbenamedaftercompanydepartmentsorlocationsorfunctions. Themanagedcomponentsare:
VirtualMachinesandTemplatesAvirtualizedx86personalcomputer environmentinwhichaguestoperatingsystemandassociatedapplication softwarecanrun.Multiplevirtualmachinescanoperateonthesamemanagedhost machineconcurrently.Templatesareadesignatedtypeofvirtualmachine. HostsTheprimarycomponentuponwhichallvirtualmachinesreside.Ifthe VirtualInfrastructureClientisconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,therecanbe manyhosts.IftheVirtualInfrastructureClientisconnectedtoanESXServer,there canbeonlyonehost. WhenVirtualCenterreferstoahost,thismeansthephysicalmachineonwhichthe virtualmachinesarerunning.AllvirtualmachineswithintheVMware InfrastructureenvironmentarephysicallyonESXServerhosts.Thetermhostin thismanualmeanstheESXServerhostthathasvirtualmachinesonit. ResourcepoolsAstructurethatallowsdelegationofcontrolovertheresources ofahost.Resourcepoolsareusedtocompartmentalizeallresourcesinacluster. Youcancreatemultipleresourcepoolsasdirectchildrenofahostorclusterand
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configurethem.Thendelegatecontroloverthemtootherindividualsor organizations.ThemanagedresourcesareCPUandmemoryfromahostorcluster. Virtualmachinesexecutein,anddrawtheirresourcesfrom,resourcepools.
ClustersAcollectionofESXServerhostswithsharedresourcesandashared managementinterface.Whenyouaddahosttoacluster,thehostsresources becomepartoftheclustersresources.Theclustermanagestheresourcesofall hosts.RefertotheResourceManagementGuide. DatastoresVirtualrepresentationsofcombinationsofunderlyingphysical storageresourcesinthedatacenter.Thesephysicalstorageresourcescancome fromthelocalSCSIdiskoftheserver,theFibreChannelSANdiskarrays,theiSCSI SANdiskarrays,orNetworkAttachedStorage(NAS)arrays. NetworksNetworksthatconnectvirtualmachinestoeachotherinthevirtual environmentortothephysicalnetworkoutside. FoldersContainersusedtogroupobjectsandorganizethemintohierarchies. Thisisnotonlyconvenientbutalsoprovidesanaturalstructureuponwhichto applypermissions. Therearethreetypesoffolders,eachofwhichcancontainotherfolders(ofthe sametype)andexactlyoneothertypeofobject.Theseobjectsare:

Datacenters Virtualmachines(whichincludetemplates) Computeresources(whichincludehostsandclusters)
Thedatacenterfoldersformahierarchydirectlyundertherootnodeandallow userstogrouptheirdatacentersinanyconvenientway.Withineachdatacenteris onehierarchyoffolderswithvirtualmachinesand/ortemplatesandonehierarchy offolderswithhostsandclusters.
DatacentersUnlikeafolder,whichisusedtoorganizeaspecificobjecttype,a datacenterisanaggregationofallthedifferenttypesofobjectsneededtodowork invirtualinfrastructure:hosts,virtualmachines,networks,anddatastores. Withinadatacentertherearefourseparatehierarchies.Becauseitisnotpossibleto putnetworksordatastoresintofolders,thesefourhierarchiesarealwaysflatlists:

Virtualmachines(andtemplates) Hosts(andclusters) Networks Datastores
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Datacentersactasthenamespaceboundaryfortheseobjects.Youcannothavetwo objects(forexample,twohosts)withthesamenameinthesamedatacenter,but youcanhavetwoobjectswiththesamenameindifferentdatacenters.Becauseof thenamespaceproperty,VMotionispermittedbetweenanytwocompatiblehosts withinadatacenter,butevenpoweredoffvirtualmachinescannotbemoved betweenhostsindifferentdatacenters.Movinganentirehostbetweentwo datacentersispermitted.
Functional Components
Thefunctionalcomponentsmonitorandmanagetasks.Thefunctionalcomponentsare availablethroughanavigationbuttonbarintheVIClient.Theoptionsare:
InventoryAviewofallthemonitoredobjectsinVirtualCenter.Monitored objectsincludedatacenters,resourcepools,clusters,networks,datastores, templates,hosts,andvirtualmachines. ScheduledtasksAlistofactivitiesandameanstoschedulethoseactivities.This isavailablethroughVirtualCenterServeronly. EventsAlistofalltheeventsthatoccurintheVirtualCenterenvironment.Use theNavigationoptiontodisplayalltheevents.Useanobjectspecificpanelto displayonlytheeventsrelativetothatobject. AdminAlistofenvironmentlevelconfigurationoptions.TheAdminoption providesconfigurationaccesstoRoles,Sessions,Licenses,Diagnostics,and SystemLogs.WhenconnectedtoanESXServer,onlytheRolesoptionappears. MapsAvisualrepresentationofthestatusandstructureoftheVMware Infrastructureenvironmentandtherelationshipsbetweenmanagedobjects.This includeshosts,networks,virtualmachines,anddatastores.Thisisavailableonly throughVirtualCenterServer.
VariousinformationlistsaregeneratedandtrackedbyyourVirtualInfrastructure Clientactivity:
TasksTheseactivitiesarescheduledorinitiatedmanually.Tasksgenerateevent messagesthatindicateanyissuesassociatedwiththetask. EventsMessagesthatreportVirtualInfrastructureactivity.Eventmessagesare predefinedintheproduct. AlarmsSpecificnotificationsthatoccurinresponsetoselectedevents.Some alarmsaredefinedbyproductdefault.Additionalalarmscanbecreatedand appliedtoselectedinventoryobjectsorallinventoryobjects.
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LogsStoredreferenceinformationrelatedtoselectedeventmessages.Logsare predefinedintheproduct.Youcanconfigurewhetherselectedlogsaregenerated.
Access Privileges Components

EachuserlogsontoaVirtualCenteroranESXServerthroughtheVIClient.Eachuser isidentifiedtotheserverassomeonewhohasrightsandprivilegestoselectedobjects, suchasdatacentersandvirtualmachines,withintheVMwareInfrastructure environment.VirtualCenterServeritselfhasfullrightsandprivilegesonallhostsand virtualmachineswithintheVMwareInfrastructureenvironment.Theserverpasseson onlythoseactionsandrequestsfromauserthattheuserhaspermissiontoperform. TheservergrantsaccesstoeachVirtualInfrastructureClientobject,datacenter,folder, orvirtualmachine.Todothis,youassignaroleandauser(orgroup)toeachobject. IndividualpermissionsareassignedthroughtheVIClientbypairingauserandarole andassigningthispairtoaVirtualInfrastructureClientobject:
UsersandGroupsForVirtualCenter,usersandgroupsarecreatedand maintainedthroughtheWindowsdomainorActiveDirectorydatabase.Usersand groupsareregisteredwithVirtualCenter,orcreatedandregisteredwithanESX Server,throughtheprocessthatassignsprivileges. RolesAsetofaccessrightsandprivileges.Thereareselecteddefaultroles.You canalsocreaterolesandassigncombinationsofprivilegestoeachrole.
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Using this Document
BasicSystemAdministrationdescribesthetasksyoumustcompletetoconfigurethe VirtualInfrastructureClient(VIClient)andvirtualmachines.Beforeusingthe informationinBasicSystemAdministration,readtheIntroductiontoVMware Infrastructureforanoverviewofsystemarchitectureandthephysicalandvirtual devicesthatmakeupaVMwareInfrastructuresystem. Thisintroductionsummarizesthecontentsofthisguidesothatyoucanfindthe informationyouneed.Thisguidecoversthesesubjects:

VMwareInfrastructurecomponents Administrationtools Systemconfiguration Virtualmachinemanagementandconfiguration Accessandpermissionsmanagement Systemadministrationandmanagement
Getting Started
Theintroductorydiscussionspanssevenchaptersanddescribesthesystem components,systemmanagementtools,andthebasictasksyoumustcompleteto configureyourVirtualInfrastructureClient.Theintroductorypartcontainsthe followingchapters:
UsingthisDocumentSummarizesthecontentsofthisguidesothatyoucanfind theinformationyouneed.
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VMwareInfrastructureComponentsIntroducesyoutotheVMware Infrastructurecomponentsandoperationsyouusewhenmanagingyourvirtual machinesthroughESXServerorVirtualCenterServer. StartingandStoppingtheVMwareInfrastructureComponentsDescribeshowto startandstopeachoftheVMwareInfrastructurecomponents.Thisincludesthe ESXServer,VirtualCenterServer,VirtualInfrastructureClient,Virtual InfrastructureWebAccess,VirtualCenterhostagent,VirtualCenterlicenseserver, andtheVMwareServiceConsole. UsingtheVIClientDescribesthespecificlayoutandnavigationoftheVIClient. SystemConfigurationContainsinformationforconfiguringadministration options,VirtualCenterServersettings,andmanaginghostconfigurationoptions. Italsoincludessomebasicsystemconfigurationinformation,suchashowto accessandconfigurelogfilesandsetupSNMP. ManagingtheVIClientInventoryDescribeshowtoperformtaskswithobjectsin yourVMwareInfrastructureenvironment.Thisincludesfolders,datacenters, clusters,resourcepools,networks,anddatastores.Theseobjectsareusedto manageororganizethemonitoredandmanagedhostsandvirtualmachines. ManagingHostsinVirtualCenterDescribeshowtoperformmanaged hostrelatedtasks.
Virtual Machine Management

Thevirtualmachinemanagementdiscussionconsistsofsevenchaptersthatprovidea basicunderstandingofvirtualmachinesandhowtomanage,configure,andcustomize them.Thevirtualmachinemanagementpartcontainsthefollowingchapters:
CreatingVirtualMachinesDescribeshowtocreatevirtualmachinesbyusingthe NewVirtualMachinewizardandbycloningexistingvirtualmachines. ManagingVirtualMachinesDescribesvirtualmachinetasks,includingaddinga virtualmachinetoandremovingitfromtheVIClientandpoweringonandoff virtualmachines. ConfiguringVirtualMachinesDescribeshowtoeditandconfigureyourexisting virtualmachines.Italsodiscussesadvancedvirtualmachineconfiguration options. UsingSnapshotsExplainshowtocapturetheentirestateofthevirtualmachine usingthesnapshotsfeature. WorkingwithTemplatesandClonesDescribescreatingtemplatesandusing virtualmachinetemplatestocreateandprovisionnewvirtualmachines.
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Chapter 2 Using this Document
MigratingVirtualMachinesDescribestheprocessofmigratingormovinga virtualmachinefromonehosttoanother. CustomizingGuestOperatingSystemsExplainshowtocustomizetheidentity andnetworksettingsofyourvirtualmachinesguestoperatingsystemsothatitis readytobeginworkimmediatelyinyourtargetenvironment.
System Administration
Thesystemadministrationpartcontainsthefollowingchapters:
ManagingUsers,Groups,Permissions,andRolesDescribeshowtomanage accesstoVMwareInfrastructureinventoryobjects.Itexplainshowtoconfigure users,groups,roles,andpermissions. MonitoringYourVmwareInfrastructureEnvironmentDescribesthe performancemonitoringpiecesoftheVirtualInfrastructureClientdatapresented intheVIClient.ItalsodescribestheVirtualInfrastructureClientMapsfeature. ManagingTasks,Events,andAlarmsDescribeshowtocreate,configure,anduse tasks,events,andalarms.
Appendixes
BasicSystemAdministrationprovidesthesefourappendixeswithspecialized informationyoumightfindusefulwhenconfiguringyourVMwareInfrastructure environment:
DefinedPrivilegesIncludestableswiththepermissionsandrolesthatare availablewiththeVMwareInfrastructuresystem. InstallingtheMicrosoftSysprepToolsDescribeshowtoinstalltheMicrosoft SyspreptoolsonyourVirtualCenterServermachine.InstallingtheSyspreptools isarequirementifyouplantocustomizeaWindowsguestoperatingsystem. PerformanceChartMeasurementsIncludestableswiththemeasurementoptions foreachresourcemonitoredonahost.
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Starting and Stopping the VMware Infrastructure Components
Thischapterincludesinformationonhowtostartandstopeachoneofthemajor VMwareInfrastructurecomponents,ESXServerandVirtualCenterServer. Thischaptercontainsthefollowingtopics:

ESXServeronpage 31 VirtualCenterServeronpage 33 VIClientonpage 34 VIWebAccessonpage 36 VMwareServiceConsoleonpage 37
ESX Server
WhenyouinstallESXServer,itstartsitselfthroughtheinstallationrebootprocess.If yourESXServerisshutdown,youmustmanuallyrestartit. To start your ESX Server OnthephysicalboxwheretheESXServerisinstalled,pressthepowerbuttonuntilthe poweronsequencebegins. TheESXServerboots,discoversitsvirtualmachines,andproceedswithitsnormalESX Serverfunctions. Youhavetheoptiontopowerofforrestart(reboot)anyESXServerhostmanagedby VirtualCenter.PoweringoffamanagedhostdisconnectsitfromtheVirtualCenter Serverbutdoesnotremoveitfromtheinventory.
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To reboot or shut down your ESX Server 1 StartaVirtualInfrastructureClient. RefertoConfiguringVirtualCenterCommunicationonpage 68forinformation. 2 3 DisplaytheinventorypanelandtheappropriateESXServerhosts. IfconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,displaytheinventorys:Hosts&Clusters panel.Selecttheappropriaterootfolder(bydefaultlabeledHosts&Clusters)or subfolder. SelecttheappropriateESXServerintheinventorypanel. Fromthemainorrightclickpopupmenu,chooseRebootorShutDown,as appropriate.

4 5
IfRebootisselected,theESXServershutsdownandreboots. IfShutDownisselected,theESXServershutsdown.Youmustmanually powerthesystembackon.
Provideareasonfortheshutdown. Thisinformationisaddedtothelog.
To manually stop your ESX Server 1 LogontoyourESXServerserviceconsole. RefertoConnectingtotheServiceConsoleonpage 38forinformationon accessingtheserviceconsole. 2 Executetheshutdowncommand. Forexample:
: shutdown -h now
ESXServergracefullyshutsdown.Whenitisfinished,amessageindicatesthatit issafetopoweroffyoursystem. 3 Pressthepowerbuttonuntilthemachinepowersoff.
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Chapter 3 Starting and Stopping the VMware Infrastructure Components
VirtualCenter Server
VirtualCentermanagesmultiplehoststhatcancontainmultiplevirtualmachines.To performanyactivitieswiththeVirtualCenter,youmustusetheVirtualInfrastructure Client. TheVirtualCenterServerstartswhenyoustarttheWindowsmachineonwhichitis installed.Italsorestartswhenthismachineisrebooted. ThefollowingsectionsdiscussstartingandstoppingelementsrelatedtoVirtualCenter:

VerifyingThatVirtualCenterServerStartedonpage 33 RestartingtheVirtualCenterServeronpage 34 StoppingtheVirtualCenterServeronpage 34
NOTE
WhenVirtualCenterisinstalled,allusersinthelocalmachinesAdministratorsgroup areassignedtheAdministratorrolewithfullprivilegesintheVirtualCenter environment.AVirtualCenterAdministratormustsetpermissionsforallother VirtualCenterusers.RefertoAssigningAccessPermissionsonpage 263for additionalinformation.
Verifying That VirtualCenter Server Started

VirtualCenterisaservice,soproceedtoyourWindowsserviceslistandverifythatthe servicestarted. To verify that the VirtualCenter Server is running 1 GototheServicesdisplayforyourversionofWindows. Forexample,selectControlPanel>AdministrativeTools>Services.Click VMwareInfrastructureServer. TheStatuscolumnindicateswhethertheservicestarted. 2 RightclicktheVMwareInfrastructureServerandchooseProperties.Inthe VMwareVirtualCenterServicesPropertiesdialogbox,clicktheGeneraltaband viewtheservicestatus.
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Restarting the VirtualCenter Server

TheVirtualCenterServerservicestartswhenthemachineonwhichitisinstalledis booted.IfyouhavemanuallystoppedtheVirtualCenterServerserviceormuststartit foranyreason,performthestepsbelow. To restart the VirtualCenter Server through Windows Services 1 GototheServicesdisplayforyourversionofWindows. Forexample,selectControlPanel>AdministrativeTools>Services.Click VMwareInfrastructureServer. 2 3 RightclickVMwareInfrastructureServer,chooseStart,andwaitforstartupto complete. ClosethePropertiesdialogbox.
Stopping the VirtualCenter Server

TheVirtualCenterServerisaWindowsservice.YoucanusetheWindowsinterfaceto selecttheserviceandstopit. YoushouldnothavetostoptheVirtualCenterServer.ItisbestfortheVirtualCenter Servertohavecontinuousoperation.Continuousoperationensuresthatallmonitoring andtaskactivitiesareperformedasexpected. To stop the VirtualCenter Server 1 GototheServicesdisplayforyourversionofWindows. Forexample,selectStart>ControlPanel>AdministrativeTools>Services.Click VMwareVirtualCenterService. 2 3 RightclicktheVMwareVirtualCenterServer,chooseStop,andwaitforittostop. ClosethePropertiesdialogbox.
VI Client
TheVirtualInfrastructureClientisusedtologontoeitheraVirtualCenterServeroran ESXServer.EachserversupportsmultipleVIClientlogons.TheVIClientcanbe installedonanymachinethathasnetworkaccesstotheVirtualCenterServeroranESX server. Bydefault,administratorsareallowedtologontoaVirtualCenterServer. Administratorsherearedefinedtobeeither:
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MembersofthelocalAdministratorsgroupiftheVirtualCenterServerisnota domaincontroller. MembersofthedomainAdministratorsgroupiftheVirtualCenterServerisa domaincontroller.
Starting the VI Client and Logging On

TheVIClientistheinterfacetoboththeESXServerandtheVirtualCenterServer.When youstarttheVIClient,ithasasingleopeningpage.Whenyoulogon,theVIClient displaysonlythefeaturesandfunctionsthatareappropriatetothetypeofserveryou loggedonto. To start a VI Client session 1 2 LogontoyourWindowssystem. ThefirsttimeyoustarttheVIClient,logonastheadministrator. a Ifthemanagedhostisnotadomaincontroller,logonaseither<local host name>\<user>or<user>,where<user>isamemberofthelocal Administratorsgroup. Ifthemanagedhostisadomaincontroller,youmustlogonas <domain>\<user>,where<domain>isthedomainnameforwhichthe managedhostisacontrollerand<user> isamemberofthatdomains DomainAdministratorsgroup.Thispracticeofrunningonadomain controllerisnotrecommended.
3 4 5 6
LaunchtheVIClient. DoubleclickashortcutorchoosetheapplicationthroughStart>Programs> VMware>VMwareVirtualInfrastructureClient2. Logontothedesiredserver. Enterorchoosetheservername,yourusername,andyourpasswordforthat server.ClickLogIntocontinue. OnlypreviouslytypedserversappearintheServerpulldownlist. IfthisisthefirsttimeyouhaveloggedontotheVirtualCenterServer,anempty Inventoryscreenappears.Addadatacenterandhosttobeginmonitoringand managingyourvirtualmachinesthroughtheVirtualInfrastructureClient.Referto ManagingtheVIClientInventoryonpage 91foradditionalinformation.
NOTE
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Stopping the VI Client and Logging Off

WhenyounolongermustvieworaltertheactivitiesthatVirtualCenterisperforming, logoffoftheVIClient. To stop a VI Client session 1 Clicktheclosebox(X)inthecorneroftheVIClientwindow,orchooseFile>Exit. TheVIClientshutsdown.TheVIClientisloggedofftheserver.Theserver continuestorunallitsnormalactivitiesinthebackground.Anyscheduledtasks aresavedandperformedbytheVirtualCenterServer. NOTE ClosingaVIClientdoesnotstoptheserver.
VI Web Access
VI WebAccessistheWebinterfacethroughwhichyoucanmanageyourvirtual machines.VI WebAccessisinstalledwhenyouinstallESXServer.AswiththeVI Client,VIWebAccesscaneitherbeusedtoconnectdirectlytoanESXServerorto VirtualCenter.ThefunctionalityofVI WebAccessisasubsetofVIClientfunctionality. TheVI WebAccessconsoleprovidesaremotemousekeyboardscreen(MKS)forthe virtualmachines.Youcaninteractwithaguestoperatingsystemrunninginavirtual machineandconnectremotelytothevirtualmachinesmouse,keyboard,andscreen. ForinformationonhowtouseVI WebAccesstoconfigurevirtualmachinesforESX ServerandVirtualCenter,seetheVirtualInfrastructureWebAccessAdministratorsGuide.
Logging In and Out of VI Web Access

VIWebAccessusesaWebinterfaceandaninternetconnectiontoaccessyourESX ServerorVirtualCenterServer. To log in to VI Web Access 1 2 LaunchyourWebbrowser. EntertheURLofyourESXServeroryourVirtualCenterServerinstallation:
https://<host or server name>/ui
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TheVIWebAccessloginpageappears.
Theloginpagecontainsfieldsforyourusernameandpassword.Thisusername andpasswordarethesamecredentialsyouwoulduseifyouconnectedusingthe VIClient.Also,thesamepermissionsareusedtodetermineifausercanviewand manipulateobjects.VI WebAccessdoesnothaveitsownconceptofusersor permissions. 3 Typeyourusernameandpassword,andclickLogIn. TheVI WebAccesshomepageappears. AfteryourusernameandpasswordareauthorizedbyVI WebAccess,theVI Web Accesshomepageappears.TheVI WebAccesshomepagecontains:

Detailsaboutvirtualmachinesontheservertowhichyouareconnected. Theoptiontoaccessthedetailspageforavirtualmachinewhereyoufind informationaboutvirtualdevices,configurationoptions,andasummaryof recentevents.
To log out of VI Web Access ClicktheLogOutlinkfoundatthecornerofeverypage.Youarepromptedtoconfirm thatyouwanttologout. NOTE IfyouareusinganyremoteclientdevicesthroughVI WebAccess,theyare disconnectedwhenyoulogout.
VMware Service Console

InpreviousversionsofESXServer,theserviceconsolewasoneoftheinterfacestoESX Serverhosts.StartingwithESXServer3,manyofthecommandsaredeprecated. ServiceconsoleistypicallyusedonlyinconjunctionwithaVMwaretechnicalsupport representative. TheVMwareInfrastructureSDKisusedforscriptedmanipulationofyourVMware Infrastructureinstead.TheVirtualInfrastructureClientistheprimaryinterfacetoall
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nonscriptedactivities,includingconfiguring,monitoring,andmanagingyourvirtual machinesandresources.
Using DHCP for the Service Console

TherecommendedsetupistousestaticIPaddressesfortheserviceconsole.Youcanset uptheserviceconsoletouseDHCP,ifyourDNSserveriscapableofmappingthe serviceconsoleshostnametothedynamicallygeneratedIPaddress. IfyourDNSservercannotmapthehostsnametoitsDHCPgeneratedIPaddress,you mustdeterminetheserviceconsolesnumericIPaddressyourself.Anothercaution againstusingDHCPisthatthenumericIPaddressmightchangeasDHCPleasesrun outorwhenthesystemisrebooted.Forthisreason,VMwaredoesnotrecommend usingDHCPfortheserviceconsoleunlessyourDNSservercanhandlethehostname translation. CAUTION Donotusedynamic(DHCP)addressingwhensharingthenetworkadapter assignedtotheserviceconsolewithvirtualmachines.ESXServerrequiresa staticIPaddressfortheserviceconsolewhensharinganetworkadapter.
Connecting to the Service Console

Whetheryouusetheserviceconsolelocallyorthrougharemoteconnection,youmust logonusingavalidusernameandpassword. IfyouhavedirectaccesstothecomputerwhereESXServerisrunning,youcanlogon tothephysicalconsoleonthatcomputer. To log on to the ESX Server service console PressAltF2togettothelogonscreen. DependingonthesecuritysettingsforyourESXServercomputer,youmightbeableto connectremotelytotheserviceconsoleusingsshorTelnet.Formoreinformationonthe securitysettings,refertotheServerConfigurationGuide.
Using Commands on the Service Console

TheserviceconsolerunsamodifiedversionofLinux,andmanyofthecommands availableonLinuxorUNIXarealsoavailableontheserviceconsole.Detailedusage notesformostserviceconsolecommandsareavailableasmanualormanfiles. To view the man page for a particular command Attheserviceconsolecommandline,typethemancommandfollowedbythenameof thecommandforwhichyouwanttorefertoinformation,forexample:
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: man <command>
Foradditionalinformationoncommands,refertothefollowingresources:
FormoredetailedinformationonESXServerrelatedcommands,seetheServer ConfigurationGuide. FormoreinformationonLinuxcommands,consultaLinuxreferencebook.
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Using the VI Client
ThischapterdescribesthespecificlayoutandnavigationoftheVIClient.Italso containsinformationforconfiguringadminoptions,VirtualCenterServersettings,and managinghostconfigurationoptions. Thischaptercontainsthefollowingsections:

VIClientOverviewonpage 41 SortingandFilteringListsonpage 54 UsingCustomAttributesonpage 55 SelectingandViewingObjectsonpage 57
VI Client Overview
TheVirtualInfrastructureClientadaptstotheserveritisconnectedto.WhentheVI ClientisconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,theVIClientdisplaysalltheoptions availabletotheVMwareVirtualInfrastructureenvironment,basedonthelicensingyou haveconfiguredandthepermissionsoftheuser.WhentheVIClientisconnectedtoan ESXServer,theVIClientdisplaysonlytheoptionsappropriatetosinglehost management. ThedefaultVirtualInfrastructureClientlayoutisasinglewindowwithamenubar,a navigationbar,atoolbar,astatusbar,apanelsection,andpopupmenus.
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Menus Toolbar
Navigation bar
Console button
Inventory tabs
Pop-up menu
Inventory panel
Status bar
Status
Information panel
Figure 4-1. Virtual Infrastructure Client Layout TheVIClientareasarecoveredinthefollowingsections:

MenuBaronpage 43 PopUpMenusonpage 45 ConsoleMenuonpage 45 NavigationBaronpage 46 InventoryViewTabsonpage 49 Toolbaronpage 52 StatusBar,RecentTasks,andTriggeredAlarmsonpage 53 PanelSectionsonpage 53
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Chapter 4 Using the VI Client
Menu Bar
Themenubarprovidesaccesstoallcommandsandoperatesinamannerconsistent withotherWindowsapplications.Thetablesbelowlistallthemenuitemsavailable fromthesefivemenus.ThemenuitemsavailablevarydependinguponwhethertheVI ClientisconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServeroranESXServer.Themenubaroptions are:
FileMenuSimilartotheFilemenuinmostapplicationswithtwoexceptions:
AprintmenuitemisnotavailableontheFilemenu.Toprint,usethePrint ScreenmechanisminWindowstotakeacopyoftheVIClientwindowor exporttheVirtualCenterdatatoanotherformatandprintfromanother application. Asavemenuitemisnotavailable.TheVIClientissimilartoabrowser.Most usermanipulationsarepersistentinthedisplayoftheVirtualCenterdata.
InTable 41,anasterisk(*)indicatesitemsthatareavailableonlywhenconnected toVirtualCenterServer. Table 4-1. File Menu Items

File> File> File> File> New> Export> Report> Exit VirtualMachine|AddHost*|Cluster*|ResourcePool|Folder* |Datacenter*|Alarm*|ScheduledTask*|AddPermission ExportEvents*|ExportList|Licenses|ExportMaps* HostSummary|Performance
EditMenuDisplaysmenuitemsrelevanttotheselectedobject. Table 4-2. Edit Menu Items

Edit> Rename|Remove|CustomizationSpecifications|VIClientSettings
ViewMenuControlswhichpanelsarevisible.Thisprovidesamenuitemfor selectingoneofthenavigationbuttons. InTable 43,anasterisk(*)indicatesitemsthatareavailableonlywhenconnected toVirtualCenterServer. Table 4-3. View Menu Items
View> Toolbar|StatusBar|Inventory|ScheduledTasks*|Events|Administration |Maps*|Filtering
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WhenconnectedtotheVirtualCenterServer,theView>Inventorymenuparsesthe inventoryobjectviewsintogroups. Table 4-4. View Menu > Inventory Items

View> Inventory> Hosts&Clusters|VirtualMachines&Templates|Networks| Datastores
InventoryMenuDisplaysmenuitemsrelevanttotheselectedobjectinthe inventorypanel. InTable 45,anasterisk(*)indicatesitemsthatareavailableonlywhenconnected toVirtualCenterServer. Table 4-5. Inventory Menu Items
Inventory> Inventory> Datacenter> VirtualMachine> NewFolder|NewCluster|AddHost|Remove| Rename PowerOn|PowerOff|Suspend|Reset|Shut DownGuest|StandbyGuest|RestartGuest| Snapshot|Migrate|Clone|ClonetoTemplate| ConverttoTemplate|OpenConsole|Sent Ctrl+Alt+Del|AnswerQuestion|Report Performance|InstallVMwareTools|EditSettings |Rename|RemovefromInventory|Deletefrom Disk PowerOn|PowerOff|Suspend|Reset|Shut DownGuest|RestartGuest|Snapshot|Migrate |Clone|ClonetoTemplate|ConverttoTemplate |OpenConsole|SentCtrl+Alt+Del|Answer Question|ReportPerformance|InstallVMware Tools|EditSettings|Rename|Removefrom Inventory|DeletefromDisk NewVirtualMachine|Connect*|Disconnect*| EnterMaintenanceMode|ShutDown|Reboot| ReportSummary|ReportPerformance| AdvancedSettings|Remove*|RelocateVMFiles AddHost|NewVirtualMachine|NewResource Pool|EditSettings|Remove|Rename NewVirtualMachine|NewResourcePool| ReportPerformance*|Remove|Rename BrowseDatastore|Rename|Remove|Refresh Remove Add|Delete|Properties
Inventory>
Templates*>
Inventory>
Host>
Inventory> Inventory> Inventory> Inventory> Inventory>
Cluster*> ResourcePool> Datastore*> Network*> Permission>
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Table 4-5. Inventory Menu Items (Continued)

Inventory> Inventory> Alarm*> ScheduledTask*> Properties|Remove Run|Remove|Properties
AdministrationMenuDisplaysconfigurationoptionsthatapplyacrossthe VirtualInfrastructureenvironment. InTable 46,anasterisk(*)indicatesitemsthatareavailableonlywhenconnected toVirtualCenterServer. Table 4-6. Administration Menu Items
Administration> CustomAttributes*|VMwareVirtualCenterSettings*|Role| Session*|EditMessageoftheDay*|CollectDiagnostic Information*|LegacyTemplates*
HelpMenuDisplaystheonlinehelpoptions,linkstotheVMwareWebsite,and productversioninformation.
Pop-Up Menus
Popupmenusprovidedirectaccesstomanyofthemenuitems.Popupmenusare availablefrommostobjectsinboththeinventorypanelandtheinformationpanel. To view a pop-up menu RightclicktheselectedobjectorpressShift+F10.
Console Menu
Theconsoleofapoweredonvirtualmachineisavailablethroughaconnectedserver. To view the virtual machine console ClicktheInventoryNavigationbutton,clickapoweredonvirtualmachineinthe Inventorypanel,andclicktheConsoletabintheInformationpanel. To pop out the virtual machine console Clickthepopouticoninthenavigationbar. AcopyoftheConsolewindowseparatesfromtheVIClient.Additionalmenusappear.
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AdditionalmenuitemsareavailablefromthepopoutConsolewindow.
The message line indicates the number of active connections to this virtual machine.
Additional Console menu
Allconnectionstothevirtualmachineseethesamedisplayinformation.Themessage lineindicatesifothersareviewingthevirtualmachine. ThepopoutvirtualmachineConsolehasthefollowingmenuitems.Theembedded ConsolehassimilarmenuitemsbutdoesnotincludealloftheexternalConsolemenu items. Table 4-7. Virtual Machine Pop-Out Console Menu Items
File> View> VM> Exit Autofit|Fit|FitGuesttoWindow PowerOn|PowerOff|Suspend|Reset|ShutDownGuest|RestartGuest| Snapshot|Migrate|Clone|ClonetoTemplate|ConverttoTemplate|Open Console|SentCtrl+Alt+Del|AnswerQuestion|ReportPerformance|Install VMwareTools|EditSettings|Rename|RemovefromInventory|Deletefrom Disk
Navigation Bar
Thenavigationbarprovidesshortcutbuttonsthatloadthematchingtoolbarandpanel intotheVIClientwindow.Thenavigationbarcombinesanddisplaysassociatedtasks andinformation.Whenabuttonhasbeenselected,itremainsselectedtoindicatethe currentview.ThebuttonsrepresenttheVIClientfunctionalareas.Dependingupon whethertheVIClientisconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServeroranESXServer,thelisted buttonsvary. Eachnavigationbarbuttonhasaprimaryinformationpanelandassociatedtabs.The Inventorybuttonhasaninventorypanelfromwhichyoucanselectobjects.Each
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selectedobjecthasitsownsetofassociatedinformationpaneltabs.Thisinformationis inoneofthefollowingtwosetsofpanels: Navigationbarprovidesshortcutstogeneralizedareasofrelatedactivities.Theoptions areInventoryandAdmin,whentheVIClientisconnectedtoeitheranESXServerora VirtualCenterServer.WhentheVIClientisconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer additionaloptionsareavailable:ScheduledTasks,Events,andMapsandInventory buttonpulldownmenuitems(Hosts&Clusters,VirtualMachines&Templates, Networks,andDatastores).
Figure 4-2. Navigation bar shortcuts To view the Inventory button options ClickthearrowontheInventorynavigationbarbuttontorefertotheinventorygroup options.ChooseView>Inventory>HostsandClusters(orVirtualMachinesand Templates,Networks,orDatastores. RefertoManagingtheVIClientInventoryonpage 91forinformationonthe differencesbetweentheInventorybuttonviews.
InventorybuttonAviewofallthemonitoredobjectsinVirtualCenter. Monitoredobjectsincludedatacenters,resourcepools,clusters,networks, datastores,templates,hosts,andvirtualmachines. TheInventorybuttondisplaysaninventorypanelandaninformationpanel.The informationpanelcontainsseveraltabs.Thesetoftabsthatisdisplayedvaries dependingupontheinventoryobjectselectedintheinventorypanel. TherearefourdifferentInventorybuttonviews:
HostsandClustersdisplaystheinventoryhierarchyofallinventoryobjects excepttemplates,networks,anddatastores. VirtualMachinesandTemplatesdisplaysthelistofvirtualmachinesand templates. Networksdisplaysthelistofnetworks. Datastoresdisplaysthelistofdatastores.
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AllfouroftheInventoryoptionsaredividedintotwosubpanels,theinventory panelandtheinformationpanel.ThisInventoryoptiondisplaysalltheobjects containedwithinVirtualCenter,suchasfolders,datacenters,hosts,clusters, resourcepoolsandvirtualmachines.WhenconnectedtoanESXServerthe inventoryoptiondisplaysalltheobjectscontainedwithintheESXServer,suchas host,resourcepools,andvirtualmachines.Throughselectingobjectsineitherof thetwosubpanels,youperformandspecifyactions. Therearefourdifferentinventoryviews.Eachrelatestosomeoftheeightdifferent inventoryobjects:hosts,clusters,folders,datacenters,virtualmachinesand templates,resourcepools,networks,anddatastores. Allfourviewshavethe(single)rootnode,allowanyfoldersbelowtherootnode (thatcanonlycontainotherfoldersanddatacenters)anddatacenters.Below datacentersthehierarchyissplitupintonetworks,datastores,virtualmachineand templates,andhosts,clusters,andresourcepools.
ScheduledTasksbuttonAlistofactivitiesandameanstoschedulethose activities.ThisisavailablethroughVirtualCenterServeronly. TheScheduledTasksandEventsbuttons,availableonlywhenconnectedtoa VirtualCenterServer,displayasingleinformationpanel.
EventsbuttonAlistofalltheeventsthatoccurintheVirtualCenterenvironment. UsetheNavigationoptiontodisplayalltheevents.Useanobjectspecificpanelto displayonlytheeventsrelativetothatobject. AdminbuttonAlistofenvironmentlevelconfigurationoptions.TheAdmin optionprovidesconfigurationaccesstoRoles,Sessions,Licenses,Diagnostics,and SystemLogs.WhenconnectedtoanESXServeronly,theRolesoptionappears. TheAdminbuttondisplaysasetoftabbedinformationpanels.Selected configurationoptionsareavailablethroughthesetabs.
MapsbuttonAvisualrepresentationofthestatusandstructureoftheVirtual Infrastructureenvironment.Thisincludeshosts,networks,virtualmachines,and datastores.ThisisavailablethroughVirtualCenterServeronly. TheMapsbutton,availableonlywhenconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer, displaysaninventorypanelandatopologypanel.
To change the look of the navigation bar Rightclickthenavigationbarandchoosetheappropriateoption.
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Inventory View Tabs

Youcanaccessthegeneraldisplayofdataandactivitythroughtheinformationpanel oftheVIClientwindow.Theinformationpanelisthevisualcenterofyourmonitoring activities.Throughtheinformationpanel,youcanviewstatus,resourceusage,and performanceinformationaboutyourhosts,virtualmachines,anddatacenters.Inthe informationpanel,youcanalsoviewscheduledtasks,availabletemplates,andalistof events. WhentheVIClientisconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServeraMapsoptionisalso available.RefertoMonitoringYourVmwareInfrastructureEnvironmenton page 269forinformationontheMapsfeature. Whenanobjectisremovedfromtheinventory,itslogandeventhistoryremainsuntil purgedthroughtheagingprocesses.Dataiskeptforaspecifiedwindowoftime.Asthe timewindowshifts,olderdataispurged.
AdmintabsAsubsetoftheAdminbutton.TheAdmintabsareasetofpanels thatdisplayconfigurationorientedinformationpertainingtotheservethattheVI Clientisconnectedto.ThetaboptionsareRolesandSystemLogs.WhentheVI ClientisconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,aSessionsandLicensestabisalso available. InventorytabsAsubsetoftheInventorybutton.TheInventorytabsareasetof panelsthatdisplaytaskorientedinformationpertainingtotheselectedinventory object.Eachinventoryobjecthasitsownsetoftabs.Thetaboptionsare:Summary, Datacenters,VirtualMachines,Hosts,Migrations,ResourceAllocation, Performance,Configuration,Tasks&Events,Alarms,Console,Permissions,and Maps. WhenyouclicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar,aninformationpanel appearsontherightsideofthescreen.Whenyouselectanobject(host,virtual machine,folder,datacenter,cluster,resourcepool)fromtheinventorypanel,the informationpaneldisplaystabscorrespondingtotheselectedobject.Thisdata remainsuntilyouclickanotherInventorybutton.
NOTE
Youcanuseeitherthenavigationbarortheinformationpaneltabstoviewevents information.
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Table 48liststheavailablepanelsandtheirsourcemapping. Table 4-8. Inventory View Tabs

ESX Server or VirtualCenter Server both VirtualCenter VirtualCenter both both Button, Tab, or Toggle navigationbar button inventorypanel tab togglebutton inventorypanel tab inventorypanel tab
Panel Name Admin Alarms Alarms Configuration Console
Description Listsselectedconfigurationoptionsand information. Liststheconfiguredalarmsforthe selectedobject. Liststhetriggeredalarmsfortheselected object. Providesaccesstoconfiguringthe selectedhost. Displaysaremoteconsoletointeract directlywiththevirtualmachine. Throughtheremoteconsoleyoucantake selectedactionsuponthevirtualmachine. Liststhedatacentersorganizedunderthe selectedfolder. Providesaccessformanagingdatastores. Liststheeventmessagesthatreportonthe statusoftheselectedobject. Liststhehostsassignedtotheselected inventoryobject. Providesaccessformanagingallthe inventoryobjects. Liststhelicensesconfiguredinthelicense server. Displaysrelationshipsbetweenthe selectedinventoryobjects. Liststhemigrationssuggestedor completedfortheselectedcluster. Providesaccessformanagingnetworks.
Datacenters Datastores Events Hosts Inventory
VirtualCenter VirtualCenter ESXServer both both
inventorypanel tab navigationbar button:Datastores inventorypanel tab inventorypanel tab navigationbar button:Hosts& Clusters adminpaneltab navigationbar button inventorypanel tab navigationbar button:Networks
Licenses Maps Migrations Networks
VirtualCenter VirtualCenter VirtualCenter VirtualCenter
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Table 4-8. Inventory View Tabs (Continued)

ESX Server or VirtualCenter Server both Button, Tab, or Toggle inventorypanel tab
Panel Name Performance
Description Displaystheperformancechartsforthe selectedhostorvirtualmachineresources. Thechartsfordatacentersandhosts displaycombinedchartsthatshowthe usageofeachresource. Liststheusersandgroupsthathave permissionsontheselectedobjectandat whatlevelthepermissionwasassigned. Liststhedistributionoftheselectedhosts resources:CPU,memory. Providesaccessforconfiguringuserroles. Providesaccessforcreatingand managingscheduledtasks. ListstheVIClientsessionsconnectedto theVirtualCenterServer. Displaysacollectionofdataforthe selectedobject. Listsselectedlogfilesfortheservers. Liststherecenttasksfortheselected object. Liststhetaskscompletedandtheevent messagesthatreportonthestatusofthe selectedobject. Providesaccessformanagingtemplates.
Permissions
both
inventorypanel tab inventorypanel tab adminpaneltab navigationbar button adminpaneltab inventorypanel tab adminpaneltab togglebutton inventorypanel tab navigationbar button:Virtual Machines& Templates inventorypanel tab
Resource Allocation Roles ScheduledTasks Sessions Summary SystemLogs Tasks Tasks&Events
VirtualCenter both VirtualCenter VirtualCenter both both VirtualCenter VirtualCenter
Templates
VirtualCenter
Virtual Machines
both
Liststhevirtualmachinesassignedtothe selecteddatacenterorhostandgroup.To access,clicktheVirtualMachinestaband thevirtualmachinesinthegroupare displayed.
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Toolbar
Thetoolbarprovidesbuttonsforthemostcommonlyusedactions. To view or hide a toolbar ChooseView>Toolbars.
Differenttoolbarbuttonsaredisplayeddependingonthenavigationtaskand inventoryobjectselected.Sometoolbaroptionsmightbedimmeddependingonthe objectselected. To change the look of the toolbar Rightclickthetoolbarandchoosetheappropriateoption.
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Status Bar, Recent Tasks, and Triggered Alarms

Thestatusbarappearsatthebottomofthewindow.Itcontainsiconstoviewtriggered alarmsorrecenttasks.TheTasksbuttondisplaysanycurrentlyrunningorrecently completedactivetasks.Includedisaprogressbarindicatingthepercentagecomplete ofeachtask.Therecenttasksandthetriggeredalarmpanelsdisplayacrossthebottom oftheVIClientwindow. To hide or view the status bar ChooseView>Statusbar. To hide or view recent tasks or triggered alarms ClicktheTasksorAlarmsiconsinthestatusbar.
Panel Sections
InthebodyoftheVIClientpageisapanelsection.Inmostviews,thereisarightand aleftpanel:theinventorypanelandtheinformationpanel.Thesepanelscanberesized.
InventorypanelDisplaysahierarchicallistofVirtualInfrastructureobjects whentheInventoryorMapsbuttonisselectedfromthenavigationbar. InformationpanelsDisplaylistsandcharts.Dependingonthenavigation buttonorInventorybuttonitemselected,theinformationpanelisdividedinto tabbedelements.
To select an object Singleclicktheappropriateobjectineithertheinventorypanelorontheinformation panel.
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To close or open a panel Clickthearrowinthepanelmenubar. Whenthepanelishidden,thepanelmenubarisastripalongthesideoftheVIClient window. To resize a panel Clickaresizingpanelsideanddragittoanappropriatesize. YourchoicesforthepanelsarepersistentacrossVIClientsessions.Ifyourunmultiple VIClientsessionsusingdifferentusernames,thesettingsfromthelastsessiontoquit determinethevaluesforthenextVIClientsession.
Sorting and Filtering Lists

SortanylistintheVIClientbyclickingthecolumnlabelheading.Atriangleinthe columnheadshowsthesortorderasascendingordescending. Youcanalsofilteralist,sortingandincludingonlyselecteditems.Afilterissortedby akeyword.Choosethecolumnsyouwanttoincludeinthesearchforthekeyword. To sort a list Clickacolumnheadingtosortthelistbyentriesinthatcolumn.Thecurrentselection doesnotchange. To change between ascending and descending order Clickthetriangleinthecolumnheading. To choose items in a list Clickanindividualitem.PressShiftclickorCtrlclicktochoosemultipleitems.All listscanbesorted. To view or remove columns in a list Rightclickthecolumnheaderandchoosethecolumnnamefromthelist. To filter the list view 1 Clickthearrowtoviewalistofattributesfromwhichtochoose.Typetextdirectly intothefilteringfieldtospecifysearchcriteria. TheFilterfielddoesnotsupportbooleanexpressionsorspecialcharactersandis notcasesensitive.
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ClickOKtodisplayonlythosevirtualmachinesthatmatchthecriteria.ClickClear tochangethefilter.
NOTE
Thereisaonesecondintervalbetweenkeystrokes.Ifyoutypeinthetextandwaitfor onesecond,thesearchstartsautomatically.YoudonthavetoclickOKorEnter. Thelistisupdatedbasedonwhetherfilteringisonoroff.Forexample,ifyouareinthe VirtualMachinestab,youhavefilteredthelist,andthefilteredtextispoweredon, youonlyrefertoalistofvirtualmachineswhosestateissettopoweredon.Ifthestate ofanyofthesevirtualmachineschangestosomethingelse,theyareremovedfromthe list.Newvirtualmachinesthatareaddedarealsobeingfiltered.Filteringispersistent fortheusersession. To remove a filter ClickClear,ordeletetheentryinofthefilteringfieldandclickOK. TheVIClientdisplaysthefulllistofavailableitems. To choose columns to search for the filtering keyword Rightclickinthecontainsfield,andselectordeselecttheappropriatecolumnnames. Filteringisinclusive,notexclusive.Ifthekeywordisfoundinanyoftheselected columns,thelineitemisincludedinthelist. To export a list 1 2 3 Selectthelisttoexport. ChooseFile>Export>ExportList. Typeafilename,selectafiletypeinthedialogbox,andclickSave. Afileisstoredinthespecifiedfilename,filetype,andlocation.
Using Custom Attributes

Attributesaretheresourcesthataremonitoredandmanagedforallthemanagedhosts andvirtualmachinesinyourVirtualInfrastructureenvironment.Attributesstatusand statesappearonthevariousinventorypanels. Customattributescanbeusedtoassociateuserspecificmetainformationwithvirtual machinesandmanagedhosts.Afteryoucreatetheattributes,setthevalueforthe attributeoneachvirtualmachineormanagedhost,asappropriate.Thisvalueisstored withVirtualCenterandnotwiththevirtualmachineormanagedhost.Thenusethe newattributetofilterinformationaboutyourvirtualmachinesandmanagedhosts.If
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younolongerneedthecustomattribute,removeit.Acustomattributeisalwaysa string. Forexample,supposeyouhaveasetofproductsandyouwanttosortthembysales representative.Createacustomattributeforsalespersonname,Name.Addthecustom attribute,Name,columntooneofthelistviews.Addtheappropriatenametoeach productentry.ClickthecolumntitleNametosortalphabetically. ThecustomattributesfeatureisavailableonlywhenconnectedtoaVirtualCenter Server. To add a custom attribute 1 ChooseAdministration>CustomAttributes. ThisoptionisnotavailablewhenconnectedonlytoanESXServer. 2 AddacustomattributeandclickAdd.
Theattributeisaddedtothelistofvirtualmachinecharacteristics. 3 4 Tochangetheattributename,clickintheNamefieldandtypethenameyouwant toassigntotheattribute. Enterthevaluesforthecustomattribute.
Selecttheobject(onelevelupthehierarchy)thatcontainstheobjectstowhich youwanttoapplytheattribute.
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Forexample,ifyouwanttoenterattributevaluesformanagedhosts,selectthe datacenterandtheHoststabforalistofhosts. b Foreachmanagedhostorvirtualmachine,clickthenewattributescolumn. Intheinformationpanel,thenewattributeisaddedtotheheader. c Typetheattributevaluethatisappropriateforeachmanagedhostorvirtual machine.
Selecting and Viewing Objects

ThissectiondescribescommonWindowsproceduresthataffecttheVirtual InfrastructureClient.Navigationtopicsarediscussedinthefollowingsections:

SelectingObjectsonpage 57 MonitoringObjectsonpage 58 PerformingActionsonObjectsonpage 59
Selecting Objects
VirtualCenterobjectsaredatacenters,networks,datastores,resourcepools,clusters, hosts,andvirtualmachines.Selectinganobjectdoesthefollowing:

Allowsyoutoviewthestatusoftheobject. Enablesthemenussoyoucanchooseactionstotakeontheobject.
To select an object 1 2 ClicktheappropriatenavigationbaroptionsuchasInventory,ScheduledTasks, Events,Admin,orMaps. IfyouselectInventory,browsethroughthehierarchyintheinventorypaneluntil youseetheiconforanobject.Clickit. Whenanobjectisselected,theobjectlabelintheinventorypanelbackfillsandthe informationpanelupdatesitsdisplaytoreflectthedatafortheselectedobject. To view an object menu Selecttheappropriateobjectandchoosetheappropriateactionfromthemenubar. Alternatively,rightclicktheobject. Apopupmenuwiththeobjectsavailableactionsappears. Foreachtypeofobject,suchasdatacenter,host,orvirtualmachine,acorrespondingset oftabsappearsintheinformationpanel.Forexample:
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Ifyouselectamanagedhostintheinventorypanelwhileconnectedto VirtualCenter,theinformationpaneldisplaysSummary,VirtualMachines, ResourceAllocation,Performance,Configuration,Tasks&Events,Alarms, Permissions,andMapstabs. IfyouselecttheinventorypanelwhileconnectedtoanESXServer,theinformation paneldisplaysSummary,VirtualMachines,ResourceAllocation,Performance, Configuration,Users&Groups,SystemLogs,EventsandPermissionstabs. Ifyouselectadatacenter,theinformationpaneldisplaysVirtualMachines,Hosts, Tasks&Events,Alarms,Permissions,andMapstabs.
Theinventorypanelandinformationpanelshareasingleselectionlist.Selectingan objectinonepaneldeselectsanyotherobjectintheotherpanel. Menuactions,fromeitherthemenubarorapopupmenu,applytothecurrently selectedobject.Ifnoobjectisselected,nomenuactionsareavailable.Apopupmenu canappearonlyforaselectedobject.RefertoPopUpMenusonpage 45for additionalinformationonthepopupmenuoptions. To change the name of an object SelectanitemandpressF2orclickthetextoftheselecteditem.Typethenewname.
Monitoring Objects
VIClientmonitorsVirtualCenterorESXServeractivities.Forahosttobemonitoredby VirtualCenter,itmustberegisteredwiththeVirtualCenterServer.RefertoAddinga Hostonpage 101forinformationonaddingobjectstoyourVirtualCenterServer.Ifan ESXServerhostisnotregisteredwithaVirtualCenterServer,youcanconnecttothe ESXServerdirectly,alsousingtheVIClient. To check the status of an object 1 2 StarttheVIClient. Clicktheappropriatebuttoninthenavigationbar.
IfyouclicktheInventoryorMapsbutton,drillthroughtheinventorypanel liststoviewindividualobjectssuchashosts,datacenters,andvirtual machines. IfyouclicktheScheduledTasks,Events,orAdminbutton,theinformation paneldisplaysthescheduledtasks,events,oradministrativewizard appropriatetothechoice.
Clicktheobjecttoviewit.
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Whenyouselectanobject,theobjectlabelintheinventorypanelisshowninblue andtheinformationpanelupdatesitsdisplaytoreflecttheobjectsdata. 4 Clicktheappropriatetabintheinformationpanel. Thedatacorrespondingtotheobjectandtabselectedisshown.Clickthroughthe tabstoviewtheinformationabouttheobject,asneeded.
Performing Actions on Objects

ThissectiondescribesonlythebasicprocessforperformingtasksintheVirtual InfrastructureClient.Thissectiondoesnotdescribespecificsettingsandconditions. Refertothechapterorbookspecifictothetaskyouwanttoperformforadditional information. Toviewanobject,youmusthavethenecessarypermissionassignedforthatobject.The typeofactionyoucantakeonanobjectdependsuponthespecificprivilegesassigned toyourusernameandgroup. TherearethreemethodsfortakingactionsuponobjectsinVirtualCenter:
SelectingtheactionfromthemenubaratthetopoftheVirtualCenterwindow. RefertoMenuBaronpage 43. Selectingtheactionfromtheobjectspopupmenuorbutton.Theprocedurelisted belowdescribeshowtochoosetheactionfromtheobjectmenuorbutton. SchedulingtheactionthroughtheScheduledTaskspanel.RefertoManaging ScheduledTasksonpage 293toinformationonschedulingtasks.
To perform an action on a Virtual Infrastructure object 1 2 3 StarttheVirtualInfrastructureClient. Connecttotheappropriateserver. Toselectanobjectyouwanttovieworuponwhichyouwanttoperformanaction, selecttheappropriateinventoryview,browsethroughthehierarchyinthe inventorypaneluntilyouseeitsicon,andclickit. Anobjectcanbeselectedintheinventorypanelortheinformationpanel. Iftheobjectisnotintheview:

Verifyyouareloggedontothecorrectserver. AddthehosttoVirtualCentercontrol,ifneeded.RefertoManagingHostsin VirtualCenteronpage 99forinformation.
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Onceanobjectisselected:
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Chooseamenuitemfromthemainmenu. Rightclicktheobjectandchoosefromthepopupmenu.
Followtheprompts.
Dependingontheactionyouselected,eithertheviewintheinformationpanelchanges orawizardpromptsyouforinformationtocompletethetransaction.
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System Configuration
Thischapterincludesbasicsystemconfigurationinformation,suchashowtoaccess andconfigurelogfiles,configurefirewalls,andsetupSNMP.Sometopicshave extensiveinformationdiscussedinseparatechaptersorbooks.Wherethisoccurs, referencesareprovided. Someofthetopicsinthischapteraretypicallyonetimeconfigurationtasks,though certainlythesettingscanbealteredwhenneeded. Thischaptercontainsthefollowingtopics:

HostConfigurationforESXServerandVirtualCenteronpage 61 VirtualCenterConfigurationonpage 66 ConfiguringVirtualCenterCommunicationonpage 68 VirtualMachineConfigurationonpage 71 WorkingwithActiveSessionsonpage 73 SNMPConfigurationonpage 74 SystemLogFilesonpage 81
Host Configuration for ESX Server and VirtualCenter

ESXServerhostsareconfiguredandmanagedthroughtheVirtualInfrastructure Client.SomehostrelatedconfigurationisspecifictoVirtualCenter.Otherhost configurationappliestostandalonehostsaswellasVirtualCenterregisteredhost scenarios.
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TheServerConfigurationGuidedescribesthetasksyoumustcompletetoconfigureESX Serverhostnetworking,storage,andsecurity.Inaddition,itprovidesoverviews, recommendations,andconceptualdiscussionstohelpyouunderstandthesetasks.It explainshowtodeployanESXServerhosttomeetyourneeds.Beforeusingthe informationintheServerConfigurationGuide,readtheIntroductiontoVirtual Infrastructureforanoverviewofsystemarchitectureandthephysicalandvirtual devicesthatmakeupaVirtualInfrastructuresystem. ThissectionsummarizesthehostconfigurationoptionsandthecontentsoftheServer ConfigurationGuidesothatyoucanfindtheinformationyouneed.
Configuring a Host
SelectahostandtheConfigurationtabforthehost.Theconfigurationtabdisplaysall oftheconfigurationoptionsavailable.
Hardware Tab
Thehardwaretabdisplaysthefollowingconfigurationoptions:
ProcessorsDisplaysthehostsprocessorinformationsuchastype,speed, manufacturer.Thepropertiesdialogboxallowsyoutoenableordisable Hyperthreading. MemoryDisplaysthehostsmemoryconfiguration,includingtotalmemory available,amountsforthehostssystem,amountsforthevirtualmachines,and amountsfortheESXServerServiceConsole.Thepropertiesdialogboxallowsyou tosettheamountdedicatedtotheESXServerServiceConsole. Storage(SCSI,SAN,NFS)Displaysthestoragevolumesconfiguredforthehost anddetailsabouteachstoragedevice.Thisincludesvolumelabels,filesystem type,blocksize,extents,andcapacity.TheRefresh,Remove,AddStorage,and Propertiesdialogboxesallowyoutochangevolumeproperties,addextents, managepaths,adddiskorLUNdatastores,andaddnetworkfilesystem(NFS) datastores. NetworkingDisplayscurrentnetworksattachedtothehost.TheRefresh,Add Networking,Remove,andPropertiesdialogboxesallowyoutoconfigureports andnetworkadapters,anddefineconnectiontypestothehostsvirtualmachine, VMkernel,andserviceconsole. StorageAdaptersDisplaysstorageadapterconfiguration,suchasdevicetype, SANidentification,LUNidentification,path,andcapacity.TheRescan,Hide LUNs,andPropertiesdialogboxesallowyoutoscanfornewstoragedevicesor VMFSvolumes,hidetheLUNinformationforeachselectedstorageadapter,and viewVMotionconfigurationstatus.
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Chapter 5 System Configuration
NetworkAdaptersDisplaysnetworkadapterinformation,includingdevice type,speed,vSwitch,andnetworkidentification.
Software Tab
Thesoftwaretabdisplaysthefollowingconfigurationoptions:
LicensedFeatureDisplaysthecurrentstatusoflicensinginyourVirtual Infrastructureenvironment.Thisincludeslicensesources,licenseserver,orlicense file;licensetype;andaddonlicensing,suchasVMotionorHA.TheEditdialog boxesallowyoutospecifylicensesource,licensetypes,andlicensingfor additionalfeatures. DNSandRoutingDisplaysDNSandroutinginformation.Thisincludeshost nameanddomain,DNSserversconnectedtothehost,searchdomains,anddefault gateways.ThePropertiesdialogboxallowsyoutospecifytheseidentification items. VirtualMachineStartup/ShutdownDisplaysalistofvirtualmachinesonthe hostandtheirstartuporshutdownstatus.ThePropertiesdialogboxallowsyouto configurewhentopoweronandpoweroffeachresidentvirtualmachine.Options includestartingorstoppingatselectedtimesrelativetothehostpoweringoffor poweringon. SecurityProfileDisplaysthefirewallinformationforincomingandoutgoing connections.ThePropertiesdialogboxallowsyoutodefineremoteaccess conditions.ThisincludesShelltype,SNMP,andseveralassociatedclients,servers, andagentincomingandoutgoingcommunicationportsandprotocols. SystemResourceAllocationDisplaysthehostsresourceallocationsettings.This includesmemoryandCPUusage.TheEditdialogboxesallowyoutoconfigure amountsofCPUsharesandmemorysharesarereservedforhostuse.The Simple/Advancedtoggleddialogboxallowsyoutoconfigurethehostsresource poolsCPUandmemoryreservedsharesforselectedhostfunctions. RefertotheResourceManagementGuideforcompleteinformationonconfiguring andusingyourvirtualmachineresources. AdvancedSettingsDisplaysalistofsettingsthatVMwarerecommendsyouuse onlywhendirectedtobyVMwaretechnicalsupport.
NOTE
RefertotheServerConfigurationGuideforconfigurationinformationonconfiguring networking,storage,andsecurity.
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Viewing Network Configuration Information

TheESXServernetworkingchaptersprovideyouwithaconceptualunderstandingof physicalandvirtualnetworkconcepts,adescriptionofthebasictasksyoumust completetoconfigureyourESXServerhostsnetworkconnections,andadiscussionof advancednetworkingtopicsandtasks.Thenetworkingsectioncontainsthefollowing chapters:
NetworkingIntroducesyoutonetworkconceptsandguidesyouthroughthe mostcommontasksyoumustcompletewhensettingupthenetworkfortheESX Serverhost. AdvancedNetworkingCoversadvancednetworkingtaskssuchassettingup MACaddresses,editingvirtualswitchesandports,andDNSrouting.Inaddition, itprovidestipsonmakingyournetworkconfigurationmoreefficient. NetworkingScenariosandTroubleshootingDescribescommonnetworking configurationandtroubleshootingscenarios.
Viewing Storage Configuration Information

TheESXServerstoragechaptersprovideyouwithabasicunderstandingofstorage,a descriptionofthebasictasksyouperformtoconfigureandmanageyourESXServer hostsstorage,andadiscussionofhowtosetuprawdevicemapping.Thestorage sectioncontainsthefollowingchapters:
IntroductiontoStorageIntroducesyoutothetypesofstorageyoucanconfigure fortheESXServerhost. ConfiguringStorageExplainshowtoconfigurelocalSCSIstorage,Fibre Channelstorage,andiSCSIstorage.ItalsoaddressesVMFSstorageand networkattachedstorage. ManagingStorageExplainshowtomanageexistingdatastoresandthefile systemsthatcomprisedatastores. RawDeviceMappingDiscussesrawdevicemapping,howtoconfigurethistype ofstorage,andhowtomanagerawdevicemappingsbysettingupmultipathing, failover,andsoforth.
Viewing Security Configuration Information

TheESXServersecuritychaptersdiscusssafeguardsVMwarehasbuiltintoESXServer andmeasuresyoucantaketoprotectyourESXServerhostfromsecuritythreats.These measuresincludeusingfirewalls,leveragingthesecurityfeaturesofvirtualswitches, andsettingupuserauthenticationandpermissions.Thesecuritysectioncontainsthe followingchapters:
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SecurityforESXServerSystemsIntroducesyoutotheESXServerfeaturesthat helpyouensureasecureenvironmentforyourdataandgivesyouanoverviewof systemdesignasitrelatestosecurity. SecuringanESXServerConfigurationExplainshowtoconfigurefirewallports forESXServerhostsandVMwareVirtualCenter,howtousevirtualswitchesand VLANstoensurenetworkisolationforvirtualmachines,andhowtosecureiSCSI storage. AuthenticationandUserManagementDiscusseshowtosetupusers,groups, permissions,androlestocontrolaccesstoESXServerhostsandVirtualCenter.It alsodiscussesencryptionanddelegateusers. ServiceConsoleSecurityDiscussesthesecurityfeaturesbuiltintotheservice consoleandshowsyouhowtoconfigurethesefeatures. SecurityDeploymentsandRecommendationsProvidessomesample deploymentstogiveyouanideaoftheissuesyoumustconsiderwhensettingup yourownESXServerdeployment.Thischapteralsotellsyouaboutactionsyou cantaketofurthersecurevirtualmachines.
Viewing ESX Server Command Information

TheServerConfigurationGuideincludesappendixesthatprovidespecialized informationyoumightfindusefulwhenconfiguringanESXServerhost:
ESXServerTechnicalSupportCommandsCoverstheESXServerconfiguration commandsthatcanbeissuedthroughacommandlineshellsuchasSSH.While thesecommandsareavailableforyouruse,youshouldnotconsiderthemanAPI uponwhichyoucanbuildscripts.Thesecommandsaresubjecttochangeand VMwaredoesnotsupportapplicationsandscriptsthatrelyonESXServer configurationcommands.ThisappendixprovidesyouwithVMwareVirtual InfrastructureClientequivalentsforthesecommands. UsingvmkfstoolsCoversthevmkfstoolsutility,whichyoucanusetoperform managementandmigrationtasksforiSCSIdisks.
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VirtualCenter Configuration
Setsofpropertiesandsettingsdialogboxesmakeadjustmentstothecorresponding VirtualCenterenvironment. To view the VMware VirtualCenter Configuration SelectAdministration>ServerSettings. ChangestothissettingapplytothecurrentVirtualCenterServeronly.Ifyoulogout andlogontoanotherVirtualCenterServer,thesettingsarespecifictothat VirtualCenterServer. Thedialogboxtabsdisplayandallowyoutoconfigure:
LicenseServerSpecifythelicenseserverandwhetherahostlicenseserveris supersededwhenthehostisaddedtotheVirtualCenterinventory. RefertotheInstallationandUpgradeGuide.
StatisticsSpecifythecollectionintervals,statisticscollectionthreadlimit,and statisticscollectionlevel.Specifiesthenumberofthreadsusedforcollecting performancestatisticsfrommanagedhosts. Specifiesthelevelofdetailforperformancestatisticscollection.Legalvaluesare minimal,typical,andfull.Thedefaultisfull. Specifieshowoften,inseconds,VirtualCenterchecksifanyscheduledtasksare readytobeexecutedoralarmsshouldbetriggered.Thedefaultis5seconds. VerifiesthatallusersandgroupsknowntoVirtualCentercurrentlyexistin Windows.Forexample,ifuserSmithisassignedpermissionsandinthedomain theusersnameissubsequentlychangedtoSmith2,VirtualCenterconcludesthat Smithnolongerexistsandremovespermissionsforthatuser. RefertoSettingtheStatisticsCollectionIntervalsonpage 274.
RuntimeSettingsViewtheuniqueruntimesettingsfortheVirtualCenter installation.ThisincludestheVirtualCenteruniqueIDnumberandthe VirtualCenterTCP/IPportnumber. GeneratesuniqueMACaddressesandUUIDsforvirtualmachines.Insomecases, itispossibletohavemorethanoneVirtualCenterrunninginthesamecompany. EachoftheseVirtualCenterServersmusthaveitsownuniqueidentification.By default,anIDvalueisgeneratedrandomly.However,thisvalueiseditable.The onlyrequirementisthatitbeauniquenumberfrom0to63. SpecifiestheportthroughwhichaVirtualCenterclientsendsdatatothe VirtualCenterServer.
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RefertoConfiguringVirtualCenterCommunicationonpage 68.
ActiveDirectorySpecifytheactivedirectorytimeout,maximumnumberofusers andgroupstodisplayintheAddPermissionsdialogbox,andthefrequencyfor performingasynchronizationandvalidationofVirtualCentersknownusersand groups. SpecifiesthemaximumnumberofusersandgroupstheVirtualCenterstoresfrom theselecteddomain.Tospecifynomaximumlimit,enterzero(0). Specifies,inseconds,themaximumtimeVirtualCenterallowsthesearchtorunon theselecteddomain.Searchingverylargedomainscantakeaverylongtime.This valuemustbegreaterthanzero(0). RefertoChapter 15,ManagingUsers,Groups,Permissions,andRoles,on page 247.
MailSpecifytheSMTPserverandmailaccount. RefertoManagingEventsonpage 303.
SNMPSpecifytheSNMPreceiverURLs,ports,andcommunitystrings. RefertoSNMPConfigurationonpage 74.
WebServiceSpecifytheHTTPandHTTPSportsfortheWebServicetouse. RefertoConfiguringVirtualCenterCommunicationonpage 68.
TimeoutSettingsSpecifytheVIClientconnectiontimeoutvaluesfornormal operationsandlongoperations.Timeoutnormalspecifieshowlong,inseconds, theVirtualCenterclientwaitsforaresponsefromtheVirtualCenterServerbefore timingout.Thedefaultis30seconds.Timeoutlongspecifieshowlong,inseconds, theVirtualCenterclientwaitsforaresponsefromtheVirtualCenterServerforlong operations.Thedefaultis120seconds. RefertoStartingtheVIClientandLoggingOnonpage 35.
LoggingOptionsSpecifythedegreeofdetailandextentoflogscollectedduring normalVirtualCenteroperations.Specifiesverboseloggingwhensetto1.Usedfor advanceddebuggingandtroubleshooting.Usethisfieldonlywhendirectedby VMwaretechnicalsupport. RefertoSystemLogFilesonpage 81.
DatabaseSpecifythepasswordrequiredtoaccesstheVirtualCenterdatabase andthemaximumnumberofdatabaseconnectionstobecreated. RefertoUsingMIBswithYourSNMPTrapsonpage 74.
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Configuring VirtualCenter Communication

TheVirtualCenterServerandESXServerreceivesdatatransmissionsfromtheVIClient onport902.EnsurethisisproperlyconfiguredpriortoconnectingyourVIClientto yourVirtualCenterServerorESXServer. NOTE TheproceduresdescribedherearenotavailableforcommunicationwithanESXServer. ESXServeronlyusesport902.YoucannotchangetheportnumberESXServerusesto communicatewitheitheraVIClientortheVirtualCenterServer.RefertotheServer ConfigurationGuideforcompleteinformationonsecurity,communication,andport configurationwithanESXServerdirectly. IfafirewallispreventingtheVIClientfromconnectingtotheVirtualCenterServer,you havethreeoptionsforcorrectingthis:
ReconfigureyourfirewalltoallowtheVIClienttocommunicatethroughport902 ontheVirtualCenterServerorESXServer.Refertotheinstructionsforyour firewall. Usesomeportotherthan902(andifnecessary,configureyourfirewalltoopenthis otherport).TheVIClientandtheVirtualCenterServermustbothbeconfiguredto usethesameport. RefertoConfiguringthePortThatVirtualCenterServerUsesonpage 69for informationonchangingthisportnumberinyourVirtualCenterServer.
IfneitheroftheprecedingoptionsispossibleandyourfirewallallowsWebtraffic topasstotheserver,youcanconnecttheVIClienttotheVirtualCenterServer usingastandardWebconnection. CAUTION Ifyouusethisoptiontoopenacommunicationchannelbetweenyour VirtualCenterServerandVIClient,theVirtualCenterconsoledoesnot work. RefertoConfiguringVirtualCenterCommunicationoveraWebConnectionon page 69forinformationonsettinguptheWebsiteport.
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Configuring the Port That VirtualCenter Server Uses

Thereisadefaultportnumberassigned,902.Thisprocedureappliesonlyto communicationbetweenaVIClientandaVirtualCenterServer.Donotusethisto attempttochangetheportnumberforcommunicationbetweenaVIClientandanESX Server. NOTE Changingtheportnumberisaveryrareoperation. To change the default port number 1 StarttheVIClientandlogontotheVirtualCenterServer. RefertoUsingtheVIClientonpage 41. 2 3 4 ChooseAdministration>ServerSettings. ClicktheRuntimeSettingsoption. EntertheportnumberyourVIClientisusingtocommunicatewiththe VirtualCenterServer.ClicktheFinishoption.ClicktheFinishbutton. Theportmustbelessthan64000. 5 Toacceptthechanges,restarttheVirtualCenterServer. RefertoVirtualCenterServeronpage 33.
Configuring VirtualCenter Communication over a Web Connection

OnealternativetoconnectingtheVirtualCenterServerandVIClientonoppositesides ofafirewallisthroughastandardWebconnection. CAUTION Ifyouusethisoptiontoopenacommunicationchannelbetweenyour VirtualCenterServerandVIClient,theVirtualCenterconsoledoesnot work. ToenableyourVIClienttoconnectwiththeVirtualCenterServeracrossafirewall usingaWebtunnel,changetheWebsiteportaddressonyourVirtualCenterServer. To open a Web port between the VirtualCenter Server and the VI Client using IIS 1 OntheVirtualCenterServer,installInternetInformationServices(IIS)Manager. Typically,thisisinstalledbydefaultwiththeMicrosoftWindowsoperating system.
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EnableIIS. Forexample,chooseStart>ControlPanel>AdministrativeTools>Internet ServicesManager.SelectInternetInformationServices.
3 4 5 6
FromtheIISmanager,opentheWindowsdialogbox. Expandthe<server_name>.RightclickonDefaultWebSite.ChooseProperties> WebSitetab. SettheportvaluefortheVirtualCenterservice. IntheWebSiteDescriptionblock,enterthevalueoftheTCPPortor,ifallowed,the SSLport. Avalueof80isthedefaultnonsecureTCPWebsiteport.Avalueof443isthe defaultsecureSSLWebsiteport.
Setthedlldirectory. a Ifneeded,createthedirectory:
C:\inetpub\wwwroot\vpx\
b c
Setthepermissionsforthisdirectorytoallowexecution. CopythefileVmdbHttpProxy.dlltothisdirectory. Thefileisin\ProgramFiles\VMware\VMwareVirtualCenter.
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Verifythatthechangehasbeenapplied. StopandrestartthedefaultWebsite. EachtimeyouupdatetheVirtualCenterversion,repeatthisprocess. WhenyoustarttheVIClient,entertheVirtualCenterServerWebsiteaddressas listedintheServerfield.
IfyouareusingthesecureWebportoranyothernondefaultport,usethefull name:http:<server name>:<port>. Forexample,http:vcserver:443.
IfyouareusingthedefaultnonsecureWebsiteport,anyofthefollowing combinationswork:http:<server name>,<server name>80,orhttp:<server name>:80.
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Virtual Machine Configuration

Setsofpropertiesandsettingsdialogboxesmakeadjustmentstothecorresponding virtualmachineelement. To view the resources of a virtual machine Selectavirtualmachine.ClicktheSummarytab.RefertotheResourcessectionofthe Summarytab. ListedarethecurrentCPUandmemoryusage,inadditiontothedatastoresand networksassociatedwiththeselectedvirtualmachine. RefertotheResourceManagementGuideforcompleteinformationonconfiguringand usingyourvirtualmachineresources. To view the virtual machines on a host Selectahost.ClicktheVirtualMachinestab. Thisisalistofallthevirtualmachinesrunningontheselectedmanagedhostandthe percentageofresourcesallocatedtothevirtualmachine. To view the configuration of a virtual machine RefertothechaptersinVirtualMachineManagementonpage 111forcomplete informationaboutcreatingvirtualmachinesandeditingtheconfigurationofvirtual machines. SelectavirtualmachineandchooseEditSettings. ThisdisplaystheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogbox.Fromthisdialogboxyoucan editthefollowingvirtualmachineconfigurationitems:
HardwareAddsorremovesthehardwareelementstoyourvirtualmachine:

Memory CPU Floppydrive CD/DVDdrive Networkadapter SCSIcontroller Harddisk Serialport Parallelport Ethernetadapter
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SCSIdevice
OptionsListssomegeneralvirtualmachinesettings,actionstotakeduringa powerstatechange,andactionstakenfordebuggingduringaprocess.
GeneralContainsvirtualmachinename,virtualmachineconfigurationfile pathandname,virtualmachineworkinglocation,guestoperatingsystem, andversionoftheguestoperatingsysteminstalled. VMwareToolsContainspowercontrolsettingsforthevirtualmachines toolbarpowericonsandarunscriptsoptionspecifyingifandwhentoruna VMwareToolsscript. PowerManagementAllowsyoutospecifythevirtualmachinesresponse whentheguestoperatingsystemisonstandby. AdvancedContainssettingsforlogging,maskingtheCPUandmaskusage, andadditionalconfigurationparameters,whichareusedonlywhenindicated byVMwaretechnicalsupport.
ResourcesModifiestheresourcesharesonthemanagedhostofavirtual machine.
CPUAllowsyoutospecifytheCPUresourceallocationshares,reservation, andlimitfortheselectedvirtualmachine. MemoryAllowsyoutospecifythememoryresourceallocationshares, reservation,andlimitfortheselectedvirtualmachine. DiskAllowsyoutospecifythediskresourceallocationsharesandshares valuefortheselectedvirtualmachine. AdvancedCPUAllowsyoutospecifythehyperthreadingandscheduling affinityfortheCPUrunningtheselectedvirtualmachine.
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Working with Active Sessions

WhenyourVIClientisconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,youcanviewthelistof usersloggedontotheserver.ThisisnotavailablewhenyourVIClientisconnectedto anESXServerhost. To view the users that are currently logged on to a VirtualCenter Server FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,clicktheAdminbuttoninthe navigationbar.ThenclicktheSessionstab.
To terminate an active session 1 2 3 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,clicktheAdminbuttonin thenavigationbar.ThenclicktheSessionstab. Rightclickthesessiontoclose.ChooseTerminate. Toconfirmthetermination,clickOK.
To send a message to all users logged on to an active session 1 2 3 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,clicktheAdminbuttonin thenavigationbar.ThenclicktheSessionstab. TypeintotheMessageofthedayfield. ClicktheChangebutton.
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Thetextissentasanoticemessagetoallactivesessionusersandtonewusers whentheylogin.
SNMP Configuration
TheSNMPagentcontrolsadatabasecalledtheSNMPManagementInformationBase (MIB),astandardsetofstatisticalandcontrolvalues. ThefollowingsectionsdiscussSNMPconfiguration:

UsingMIBswithYourSNMPTrapsonpage 74 UnderstandingSNMPTrapandVariableDefinitionsonpage 75 UsingSNMPtoMonitortheComputerRunningESXServeronpage 77 SettingUpESXServerSNMPonpage 79 ConfiguringSNMPTrapDestinationsonpage 80 ConfiguringSNMPManagementClientSoftwareonpage 80 ConfiguringSNMPSecurityonpage 81 UsingSNMPwithGuestOperatingSystemsonpage 81
Using MIBs with Your SNMP Traps

VirtualCenterallowsyoutoconfigureSNMPversion1trapsforalarmnotificationof eventsoccurringinVirtualCenter.However,continuetouseyourESXServerMIBsfor hostrelatedalarms. Thetrapsdefinedherearesenttypicallytoothermanagementprograms.These managementprogramsmustknowhowtointerprettheSNMPtrapssentby VirtualCenter. To configure your management program to interpret VirtualCenter SNMP traps 1 Downloadthemanagementinformationbase(MIB)definitions:

VMWAREROOTMIB.mib VMWARETRAPSMIB.mib
TheMIBdefinitionfilescanbefoundatC:\Program Files\VMware\VMware VirtualCenter\MIBSwhenthedefaultinstallationdirectoryisused. 2 ModifyyourmanagementprogramtoincludeandinterprettheVMwareMIBs. Refertoyourmanagementprogramdocumentationforinformationonadding MIBdefinitionstoyourprogram.

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AtechnicalnotedescribingtheMIBdefinitionscanbefoundat www.vmware.com/pdf/vc_dbviews_11.pdf.
Understanding SNMP Trap and Variable Definitions

YoucandownloadtwogroupsofSNMPMIBdefinitions.TheSNMPtraptreeforVI Clientislocatedat:
.iso.dod.org.internet.private.enterprise.vmware.vmwTraps. (.1.3.6.1.4.1.6876.50.).
TheSNMPtraptypeforVMwareVirtualCenteris201. Table 51liststheidentificationmappingforeachVirtualCenterMIBgroup. Table 5-1. Identification Mapping

Identification Map 1.3.6.1.4.1.6876.50.301 1.3.6.1.4.1.6876.50.302 1.3.6.1.4.1.6876.50.303 1.3.6.1.4.1.6876.50.304 1.3.6.1.4.1.6876.50.305 1.3.6.1.4.1.6876.50.306 Label vpxdTrapType vpxdHostName vpxdVMName vpxdOldStatus vpxdNewStatus vpxObjValue
ThefollowingtablesdescribetheVMwareSNMPMIBrootandprimarysubtrees. CurrentlyeachsubtreehasitsownMIBfile.Thetableslistthevariablesusedinthe SNMPTrapgroups. Table 52liststhedefinitionmappingfromVMWAREROOTMIB.mib. Table 5-2. Definition Mapping

Label vmware vmwSystem vmwVirtMachines vmwResources vmwProductSpecific vmwTraps Identification Mapping enterprises6876 vmware1 vmware2 vmware3 vmware4 vmware50
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Table 5-2. Definition Mapping

Label vmwOID vmwExperimental Identification Mapping vmware60 vmware700
Table 53liststhetraptypesfromVMWARETRAPSMIB.mib.Thefirstfivetrapsare generatedfromtheESXServer,andthelastonefromtheVirtualCenterServer. Table 5-3. Trap Types

Trap Label vmPoweredOn Description Sentwhenavirtualmachineis poweredonfromasuspendedora poweredoffstate. Sentwhenavirtualmachineis poweredoff. Sentwhenavirtualmachinedetectsa lossinguestheartbeat. Sentwhenavirtualmachinedetectsor regainstheguestheartbeat. Sentwhenavirtualmachineis suspended. Sentwhenentitystatuschanged. Variables vmID,vmConfigFile
vmPoweredOff vmHBLost vmHBDetected vmSuspended vpxdTrap
vmID,vmConfigFile vmID,vmConfigFile vmID,vmConfigFile vmID,vmConfigFile vpxdTrapType,vpxdHostName, vpxdVMName,vpxdOldStatus, vpxdNewStatus,vpxdObjValue
Table 54describesthevariablesandparametersusedintheVMwareVirtual InfrastructureClientdefinedSNMPtraps.Allvariablesarereadonly.Thedatatype fieldreferstotheSNMPversion1typedescribedbythestructureofmanagement information(SMI).Andallvariablesandparametersaremandatory. Table 5-4. Variables and Parameters
Variable vmID Description TheIDoftheaffectedvirtualmachinegeneratingthe trap.IfthevirtualmachineIDisnonexistent,(suchasfor apowerofftrap)1isreturned. Theconfigurationfileoftheaffectedvirtualmachine generatingthetrap. Thetraptypeintheprecedingtraps. Thenameofthehostintheprecedingtraps. Syntax INTEGER
vmConfigFile vpxdTrapType vpxdHostName

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DisplayString DisplayString DisplayString

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Table 5-4. Variables and Parameters

Variable vpxdVMName vpxdOldStatus vpxdNewStatus vpxdObjValue Description Thenameofthevirtualmachineintheprecedingtraps. Theoldstatusintheprecedingtraps. Thenewstatusintheprecedingtraps. Thecurrentobjectvalueintheprecedingtraps. Syntax DisplayString DisplayString DisplayString DisplayString
Using SNMP to Monitor the Computer Running ESX Server

ESXServershipswithanSNMPagentthatallowsyoutomonitorthehealthofthe physicalmachinewhereESXServerisrunningandofvirtualmachinesrunningonit. ThisagentisbasedonNetSNMPwithenhancementstosupportdataspecifictoESX Server.BackgroundinformationonNetSNMPisavailableat netsnmp.sourceforge.net. TheESXServerSNMPagentcanbeusedwithanymanagementsoftwarethatcanload andcompileamanagementinformationbase(MIB)inSMIv1formatandcan understandSNMPv1trapmessages. ThelocationoftheVMwaresubtreeintheSNMPhierarchyis:
.iso.org.dod.internet.private.enterprises.vmware (.1.3.6.1.4.1.6876).
YoucanchoosetouseSNMPwithorwithoutanyESXServerMIBitems.
Information About the Physical Computer

SNMPgetvariablesallowyoutomonitorawidevarietyofitemsaboutthephysical computerandhowvirtualmachinesareusingitsresources.Someofthekeytypesof informationavailableare:

NumberofCPUsonthephysicalcomputer CPUresourcesonthephysicalcomputerbeingusedbyparticularvirtualmachines AmountofRAMinstalledonthephysicalcomputer Physicalmemoryusedbytheserviceconsole Physicalmemoryusedbyparticularvirtualmachines Physicalmemorythatisnotbeingused Usagedatafordisksonthephysicalcomputer,includingnumberofreadsand writesandamountofdatareadandwritten
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Usagedataonthephysicalcomputersnetworkadapters,includingpacketssent andreceivedandkilobytessentandreceived StateoftheVMkernel(loadedornotloaded)
NOTE
IfthevariableshowingwhethertheVMkernelisloadedsaysno,anyvaluesreported foranyothervariableshouldberegardedasinvalid.
Information About the Virtual Machines

SNMPgetvariablesallowyoutomonitoranumberofitemsaboutparticularvirtual machinesrunningonthecomputer.Someofthekeytypesofinformationavailableare:

Pathtothevirtualmachinesconfigurationfile Guestoperatingsystemrunningonthevirtualmachine Amountofmemorythevirtualmachineisconfiguredtouse Stateofthevirtualmachinespowerswitch:onoroff Stateoftheguestoperatingsystem:onoroff(runningornotrunning) Diskadaptersseenbythevirtualmachine Networkadaptersseenbythevirtualmachine Floppydiskdrivesseenbythevirtualmachine Stateofthefloppydrive:connectedordisconnected CDROMdrivesseenbythevirtualmachine StateoftheCDROMdrive:connectedordisconnected
SNMP Traps
FiveSNMPtrapsnotifyyouofcriticaleventsinparticularvirtualmachines.The affectedvirtualmachineisidentifiedbyIDnumberandconfigurationfilepath.The trapsnotifyyou:

Whenavirtualmachineispoweredonorresumedfromasuspendedstate. Whenavirtualmachineispoweredoff. Whenthevirtualmachinedetectsalossofheartbeatintheguestoperatingsystem. Whenavirtualmachineissuspended. Whenthevirtualmachinedetectsthattheguestoperatingsystemsheartbeathas startedorresumed.
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NOTE
VMwareToolsmustbeinstalledintheguestoperatingsystemtosupportthetrapsthat detectlossandresumptionoftheguestsheartbeat.
Setting Up ESX Server SNMP

ESXServerSNMPsupportisamoduleyoucanloadintoadaemonbasedonthe netsnmppackage.Itiscompiledforversion5.0.9.2.30E.19ofthatpackage.That versionofnetsnmpisinstalledintheVMwareserviceconsolebydefault.
Installing the ESX Server SNMP Module

TheVMwarespecificSNMPmodulesareautomaticallyinstalledwhenyouinstall ESX Server.Bydefaultonafreshinstall,ESXServercomponentsareenabledinSNMP, andVMwaretrapsarealwayson.
Installing the ESX Server MIB Module

YoumustmakemanualchangesafterupgradingESXServerbecausetheMIBmodule isnotpresentinupgrades,onlyfreshinstalls.Youmightalsohavetomakechanges afterinstallingthirdpartymanagementagentsbecausethestateoftheconfigurationis unknown.
Configuring the ESX Server Agent from the Service Console

Thefollowingproceduresmustbeperformedafterinstallingorupgradingthirdparty managementapplications. To enable or disable ESX Server MIB 1 2 3 Logontotheserviceconsoleastherootuser. Editthe /etc/snmp/snmpd.confconfigurationfile. AddorremovethefollowinglinetoenableordisableVMwareMIBitems:
dlmod SNMPESX /usr/lib/vmware/snmp/libSNMPESX.so
To start the SNMP agents automatically YoucansettheSNMPdaemontostartwheneverESXServerbootsbyloggingonasthe rootuserontheserviceconsoleandrunningthechkconfigcommand:

chkconfig snmpd on
To start the SNMP agents manually IfyoumuststarttheSNMPagentmanually,logonasrootintheserviceconsoleand runthefollowingcommand:
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/etc/rc.d/init.d/snmpd start
Bydefault,theagentstartsandrunsasbackgroundprocesses. To enable and disable traps 1 Edittheconfig.xmlfile. Theconfigurationparametersnmp/generateTrapsinthe /etc/vmware/host/config.xmlfiledetermineswhethertogenerateatrap.By default,atrapisgenerated. 2 Restartvmware_hostdtoseethechangetakeeffect.
Configuring SNMP Trap Destinations

VMwaretrapsaregeneratedtothedestinationsspecifiedintheconfigurationfile. To configure traps (SEE UPDATE) 1 2 3 Logontotheserviceconsoleastherootuser. Modifythe/etc/snmp/snmpd.conffile. Usingatexteditor,addthefollowingline,replacingmercury.solar.comwiththe nameofthehostonyournetworkthatwillreceivetraps.
trapsink mercury.solar.com
Repeatthislinetospecifymorethanonedestination. 4 Addthefollowingline,replacingpublicwithacommunitynameofyourchoice: trapcommunity public. Onlyoneinstanceofthislineisallowed. 5 Saveyourchanges.
Configuring SNMP Management Client Software

TouseyourSNMPmanagementsoftwarewiththeESXServeragent,takethesteps neededtoaccomplishthefollowing:
Inyourmanagementsoftware,specifytheESXServermachineasanSNMPbased manageddevice. Setupappropriatecommunitynamesinthemanagementsoftware.Thesemust correspondtothevaluessetinthemasterSNMPagentsconfigurationfile,for example,rocommunity,trapcommunity,andtrapsink.
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LoadtheESXServerMIBsintothemanagementsoftwaresoyoucanviewthe symbolicnamesfortheESXServervariables.YoucanfindtheMIBfileson ESX Server,inthe/usr/lib/vmware/snmp/mibsdirectory.
Configuring SNMP Security

TheESXServerSNMPpackagetakesthesimplestapproachtoSNMPsecurityinthe defaultconfiguration.Itsetsupasinglecommunitywithreadonlyaccess.Thisis denotedbytherocommunityconfigurationparameterintheconfigurationfileforthe snmpd daemon,snmpd.conf.Youshouldchangethisfile. OtherenhancementstotheSNMPsecuritymechanismallowanadministratortosetup amoreelaboratepermissionsscheme.Seethesnmpd.conf(5)manpagefordetails.
Using SNMP with Guest Operating Systems

TouseSNMPtomonitorguestoperatingsystemsorapplicationsrunninginvirtual machines,installtheSNMPagentsyounormallywoulduseforthatpurposeinthe guestoperatingsystems.NospecialconfigurationisrequiredonESXServer. Thevirtualmachineusesitsownvirtualhardwaredevices.Youshouldnotinstall agentsintendedtomonitorhardwareonthephysicalcomputerinthevirtualmachine.
System Log Files

Inadditiontolistsofeventsandalarms,VirtualInfrastructureClientgenerates assortedlogs.Theselogscontainadditionalinformationaboutactivitiesinyour VMwareInfrastructureenvironment. Thefollowingsectionsdiscusssystemlogfiles:

ViewingSystemLogEntriesonpage 82 ExternalSystemLogsonpage 83 ExportingDiagnosticDataonpage 86 CollectingLogFilesonpage 87
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Viewing System Log Entries

Thefollowingtwoproceduresdescribehowtoaccessandviewsystemlogs. To view system log entries 1 2 3 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoeitheraVirtualCenterServeroranESXServer, displaytheadministrationpanelandviewthesystemlogtab. ClicktheAdminbuttoninthenavigationbar.ClicktheSystemLogstab. Fromthedropdownlist,choosethelogandentryyouwanttoview.
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To search and list selected items 1 2 Withthelogyouwanttofilterdisplayed,chooseView>Filteringtorefertothe filteringoptions. Entertextintothedatafield.ClickCleartoemptythedatafield.
External System Logs

VMwaretechnicalsupportmightrequestseveralfilestohelpresolveanyissuesyou havewiththeproduct.Thefollowingtabledescribesadditionallogfilesyoumight need Table 5-5. External System Logs
Component ESXServer2.x Servicelog ESXServer3.x Servicelog VIClient Agentlog VIClient Installationlog VIClient Servicelog Operating System ESXServer ESXServer ESXServer Windows Windows temp_dir\viclient-x.log x(=0, 1, ... 9) File Name vmware-serverd.log hostd.log vpxa.log Location /var/log/vmware/ /var/log/vmware/ /var/log/vmware/vpx/ Virtual Infrastructure Client host. Tempdirectory
.
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Table 5-5. External System Logs (Continued)

Component Virtual Machine Consolelogs Operating System Windows File Name vmware-<username>-<PID>.log Location Tempdirectory Example: C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Local Settings\Temp Thepathtothisfileappearsinthe Aboutdialogbox.Inaconsole, chooseHelp>AboutVMware VirtualInfrastructureClient, andlookunderAdditional Information. Linux ui-<PID>.log Tempdirectory Example: /tmp/vmware-<username>/ Thepathtothisfileappearsinthe terminalwhenyoustartthe console. IfyouencounterproblemswiththeVMwareVirtualMachineconsoleonaremoteVI Client,pleasesubmitasupportrequestandthislogfile. Virtual Machine Console Installationlog Windows VMInst.log Tempdirectory Example: C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Local Settings\Temp. TheLocalSettingsfolderis hiddenbydefault.Torefertoits contents,openMyComputer, chooseTools>FolderOptions, clicktheViewtab,andchoose ShowHiddenFilesandFolders. Linux VMInst.log /etc/vmware/
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Component Virtual Machinelog Operating System Windows File Name vmware.log Location Inthesamedirectoryasthe configurationfile(.vmx)ofthe virtualmachinethathad problems. Thepathtothelogfileofthe activevirtualmachineappearsin theAboutdialogbox.Ina console,chooseHelp>About VMwareVirtualInfrastructure Client,andlookunder Additionalinformation. Linux vmware.log Inthesamedirectoryasthe configurationfile(.vmx)ofthe virtualmachinethathad problems.
Runthesupportscriptorsavethelogfilebeforeyoulaunchthefailedvirtualmachine again. Virtual Machines Eventlog Windows event-<path_to_ configuration_file> .vmx.log Onthevirtualmachinemanaged host. C:\Program Files\VMware\VMware Virtual Infrastructure\ vmserverdRoot\eventlog /var/log/vmware vmkernel-core.<date>and vmkernel-log.<date> /rootdirectoryafteryoureboot yourmachine.
Linux Virtual Machine KernelCore file Virtual Machine Configuration file Service Consolelog Service Console Availability report VMkernel Messages ESXServer
Windows andLinux
.vmx
Onthevirtualmachinemanaged host.
ESXServer ESXServer
/var/log/messages
ESXServer
/var/log/vmkernelinthe serviceconsole
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Component VMkernel Alertsand Availability report VMkernel Warning Operating System ESXServer File Name Location /var/log/vmkernelinthe serviceconsole
ESXServer
/var/log/vmkwarninginthe serviceconsole
Exporting Diagnostic Data

Thereisanoptionforexportingallorpartofyourlogfiledata. To export diagnostic data 1 2 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServerorESXServer,openthe SaveDiagnosticDatadialogbox. ClicktheAdminbutton,clicktheSystemLogstab,choosethelogtoexportfrom thepulldownlist,andclicktheExportDiagnosticDatabuttonontheAdmintask bar. IftheVIClientisconnectedtoVirtualCenterServer,specifythehostwhoselogyou wanttoexportandthelocationforstoringthelogfiles.
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IftheVIClientisconnectedtoanESXServer,specifythelocationforthelogfiles.
ClickOK.
Afileiscreatedoftheselecteddataandstoredatthespecifiedlocation,usingthe vm-supportscript.Ifnofileextensionisprovided,thedefaultisatextfile.Thefile containsType,Time,andDescription.
Collecting Log Files

VMwaretechnicalsupportmightrequestseveralfilestohelpresolveyourproblem. Thefollowingdescribesscriptprocessesforgeneratingandcollectingsomeofthese files. To set VirtualCenter verbose logging in the Virtual Infrastructure Client 1 2 3 ChooseAdministration.ClickServerSettings>LoggingOptions. ChooseVerbosefromthepopupmenu. ClickOK.
To collect Virtual Infrastructure log files Choosefromtheoptions:

Toviewtheviclient-*.logfiles,changetothedirectory,%temp%. IfyouarerunningtheVIClientontheVirtualCenterServermachine,download thelogbundle.
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To collect ESX Server VMkernel files
IftheVMkernelfails,normallyanerrormessageappearsforaperiodoftimeand thenthevirtualmachinereboots. IfyouspecifiedaVMwarecoredumppartitionwhenyouconfiguredyourvirtual machine,theVMkernelalsogeneratesacoredumpanderrorlog.
MoreseriousproblemsintheVMkernelcanfreezethemachinewithoutanerror messageorcoredump. To collect ESX Server Service Console files 1 Runthefollowingscriptontheserviceconsole: /usr/bin/vm-support ThisscriptcollectsandpackagesallrelevantESXServersystemandconfiguration informationandESXServerlogfiles.Thisinformationcanbeusedtoanalyzethe problemyouareencountering. 2 Savetheresultingfile: esx-<date>-<unique-xnumber>.tgz To collect ESX Server Service log files 1 Inatexteditor,openthefollowingfile:
OnaWindowshost,editconfig.ini,locatedinC:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\VMware\VMware Virtual Infrastructure\. OnaLinuxhost,edit/etc/vmware/config.
Addthefollowinglinestothefile:
vmauthd.logEnabled = TRUE log.vmauthdFileName = "vmauthd.log"
Thiscreatesafilecalledvmauthd.log.OnaWindowshost,thisfileappearsby defaultinC:\Windows\system32 or C:\WINNT\system32. OnaLinuxhost, thisfileappearsbydefaultin /var/log/vmware. 3 Saveandclosetheconfigurationfile. ThelogisenabledonaLinuxhost.YoucanenableloggingfortheVMware AuthorizationService(knownasvmware-authdonLinuxhosts)manually.
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OnaWindowshost,chooseStart>AdministrativeTools>Services.Rightclick VMwareAuthorizationServiceandchooseRestart. ThisenablesloggingontheWindowshost.
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Managing the VI Client Inventory
ThischapterdescribeshowtomanagetheobjectsinyourVMwareInfrastructure environment.Thisincludesfolders,datacenters,clusters,resourcepools,networks, anddatastores.Theseobjectsareusedtohelpmanageororganizethemonitoredand managedhostsandvirtualmachines. NOTE TheviewsandcapabilitiesdisplayedvarydependingonwhethertheVIClientis connectedtoaVirtualCenterServeroranESXServer.Unlessindicated,theprocess, task,ordescriptionappliestobothkindsofVIClientconnections. Thischapterdescribeshowtoaddorremoveinventoryobjects.Includedisareference tothedocumentationthatdescribestheseitemsandrelatedactivitiesindetail. EachobjectintheVirtualInfrastructureClienthasitsplaceintheoverallhierarchy.An objectspositionisdeterminedbytheobjectsfunctionality. Thischapterpresentsthefollowingtopics:

UnderstandingVIClientObjectsonpage 91 AddinganInventoryObjectonpage 96 MovingObjectsintheInventoryonpage 97 RemovinganInventoryObjectonpage 98
Understanding VI Client Objects

Thereareseveralwaystogetinsightintotherelationshipsbetweendifferentobjects:
ViewingthroughtheMapsfeatureshowstheinventoryobjectrelationshipsin graphicalform.
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Clickinganobjectintheinventoryprovidesalistoftabbedcontentthatlists relatedobjects. Forexample,adatastorehasavirtualmachinetabthatliststhevirtualmachines thatusethedatastore.Thereisalsoahosttabthatlistthehoststhatcanaccessthe datastore.
ViewingInventory>HostsandClustersprovidesaviewofthesetofvirtual machinesthatrunonaparticularhost,cluster,orresourcepool.Eachobjecthasa tabthatdisplaysallthevirtualmachinesassociatedorcontainedwithinin. However,theHostsandClustersviewisnotacompletelistofavailablevirtual machinesandtemplates.OnlytheInventory>VirtualMachinesandTemplates optiondisplaysallthevirtualmachineandtemplates.Throughthisviewyoucan organizevirtualmachinesintoarbitraryfolderhierarchies.
TheVirtualInfrastructureClientisusedtoconnectdirectlytoanESXServeror indirectlytoanESXServerthroughaVirtualCenterServer.TheVIClientdisplaysonly thosefunctionsthatareappropriatetothetypeofserverconnectedtoit.Forexample, iftheVIClientisconnectedtoanESXServer,theclustersfunctionalityisnotdisplayed. ThefigurebelowliststheobjectsofaVMwareInfrastructureenvironment.Theobjects areinhierarchicalorder.Templates,networks,anddatacentersaredisplayedontheir owninventorypanel.AllotherobjectsappearintheHosts&Clustersinventorypanel. Allfourpanelsarelinkedtotherootfolder.
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Chapter 6 Managing the VI Client Inventory
root folder folder folder datacenter folder cluster folder
host VM resource pool VM VM VM
host host
datacenter
cluster resource pool resource pool VM host VM
Hosts and Clusters
folder datacenter template template VM VM
template VM
Virtual Machines and Templates

network network
folder datacenter
network network network
Networks
datastore
folder datacenter
datastore datastore datastore datastore
Datastores
Figure 6-1. Virtual Infrastructure Client Hierarchy

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WhentheVIClientisconnectedtoanESXServer,therootisthehostitself.Contained objectsincludethehostrootresourcepool,childresourcepools,andvirtualmachines. Clusters,folders,datacenters,networks,anddatastoresdonotappearintheinventory whentheVIClientisconnectedonlytoanESXServer. Someobjectsserveonlyasorganizationalstructures.Theseprovideameansforyouto organizeyourobjectsbydepartment,group,companyfunction,location,andsoon. Otherobjectslimitagroupofcontainedobjects.Forexample,aVMotionfailovercan occuronlywithinacluster,notbetweenclusters.SimilarlyaVMotionfailovercanoccur onlywithinadatacenter,notbetweendatacenters. TheVirtualInfrastructureClientobjectsareasfollows:
RootfolderInVirtualCenterServeronly.Childobjectsaredatacentersor subfolders.TherootfolderissetasadefaultforeveryVirtualCenterServer.You canchangethename,butnotaddorremoveit. FoldersInVirtualCenterServeronly.Childobjectsaredatacenters,hosts, clusters,virtualmachines,orsubfolders. DatacentersInVirtualCenterServeronly.Childobjectsarefolders,clusters,or hosts. Adatacentercontainsclusters,hosts,andvirtualmachines.Allactionstakenupon managedhostsandvirtualmachinesareappliedwithintheirdatacenter.Withina datacenter,youcanmonitorandmanagevirtualmachinesseparatelyfromtheir hostsanduseVMotion.Youcannotperformmigrationbetweendatacenters.
ClustersInVirtualCenterServeronly.Childobjectsarehosts,virtualmachines, orresourcepools.
Ifyoursystemislicensed,youcanenablethefollowingclusterfeatures:
VMwareHAAllowsVirtualCentertomigrateandrestartavirtualmachine whenahostfails.VMwareHAisnotlistedasaninventoryobjectitself,butit allowstheclusterobjecttobeseen. VMwareDRSMonitorstheVirtualCenterenvironment,makesinitialplacement recommendations,makesvirtualmachinemigrationrecommendations,and enablesVirtualCentertoautomaticallyplaceandmigratevirtualmachineson hoststoattainthebestuseofclusterresources.VMwareDRSisnotlistedasan inventoryobjectitself,butitallowstheclusterobjecttobeseen. RefertotheResourceManagementGuideforcomprehensiveinformationonusing VirtualInfrastructureClientclusters.
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HostsChildobjectsarevirtualmachinesorresourcepools.HostsareESXServer systems.Thetermhostreferstothevirtualizationplatformthatisthehosttothe virtualmachines.HostisthedefaulttopstructureforastandaloneESXServer. WhentheVirtualCenterServerisconnectedtotheVirtualInfrastructureClient,all ESXServersystemsregisteredwithVirtualCenteraresimplyreferredtoashosts. ESXServersystemsdirectlyconnectedtotheVirtualInfrastructureClientare referredtoasstandalonehosts. RefertotheServerConfigurationGuideforcomprehensiveinformationon configuringyourESXServer.
ResourcepoolsChildobjectsarevirtualmachinesorresourcepools.Theyare availableonESXServerhostsaswellasthroughVirtualCenterServers. AVirtualInfrastructureClientresourcepoolisusedtoallocatehostprovidedCPU andmemorytothevirtualmachinesresidenttothehost. RefertotheResourceManagementGuideforcomprehensiveinformationonusing VirtualInfrastructureClientresourcepools.
VirtualmachinesLocatedwithinahost,virtualdisksonadatastore,associated withinaclusterorresourcepool.Canbelistedasachildobjecttohosts,clusters, orresourcepools.Canbemovedbetweenhostsorclusters.Whenaddingtoa clusterorresourcepool,youmustspecifyorhaveintheclusterorresourcepoola designatedtargethost. NetworksInVirtualCenterServeronly.Childobjecttodatacenters.Networksare discoveredwhenhostsareaddedtotheVMwareInfrastructureenvironment. RefertotheServerConfigurationGuideforcomprehensiveinformationon configuringyourESXServer.
DatastoresInVirtualCenterServeronly.Childobjecttodatacenters.Datastores arediscoveredwhenhostsareaddedtotheVMwareInfrastructureenvironment. Thisincludesthediscoveryofdatastoresthatarelocaltothemanagedhostaswell asdatastoresontheSANorNAS. RefertotheServerConfigurationGuideforcomprehensiveinformationon configuringyourESXServer.
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Adding an Inventory Object

Eachinventoryobjectcanbeaddedonlytoitscorrespondinghierarchicalparent.Only permissibleobjectsarelistedontheparentmenus.Thesepairingsareasfollows: To add an inventory object 1 2 FromaVIClient,displaytheappropriateinventoryview. Selecttheappropriateparenticonintheinventorypanel.Fromthepopupmenu, chooseNew <Object>where<Object>isafolder,datacenter,cluster,resource pool,host,orvirtualmachine. Ifthenewobjectisafolderordatacenter,anewiconisaddedtotheinventory. Forexample,anewdatacenterisaddedtothehierarchy.Typeinausefulname.
Iftheobjectisacluster,resourcepool,host,orvirtualmachine,awizardappears. AnswerthepromptsandclickFinish. Foradditionalinformation,refertotheappropriatemanual:

ClusterRefertotheResourceManagementGuide. ResourcepoolRefertotheResourceManagementGuide. HostRefertoManagingHostsinVirtualCenteronpage 99. VirtualmachineRefertoManagingVirtualMachinesonpage 141.
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Moving Objects in the Inventory

Someobjectscanbemanuallymovedbetweenfolders,datacenters,resourcepools,and hosts. To move an object using drag-and-drop 1 2 FromaVIClient,displaytheappropriateinventoryview. Selecttheobjecttobemovedfromtheappropriateinventoryviewbyclickingit. Aboxisdisplayedaroundit.Thisindicatestheobjectisselected. 3 Dragthemovingobjecttothetargetobject.
Ifthemovingobjectisallowedtomovetothetarget,thetargetobjectis displayedwithaboxaroundit,indicatingitisselected. Ifthemovingobjectisnotallowedtomovetothetarget,anaughtsign(zero withaslash)appears,andtheobjectisnotmoved.
Theinventoryobjectscanbemovedasfollows:
Rootfolder,roothost(ESXServer),networks,anddatastoresCannotbe moved. FoldersCanbemovedwithinadatacenter. DatacenterCanbemovedtofoldersatasiblingorparentlevel. ClusterCanbemovedbetweenfoldersandwithindatacentersatasibling orparentlevel. HostWhenmanagedbyaVirtualCenterServer,ifahostisinacluster,all virtualmachinesonthehostmustbeshutdownandthehostmustbeplaced intomaintenancemodebeforeitcanbemovedfromthecluster.Ahostcanbe movedbetweenclustersanddatacenters. ResourcepoolsCanbemovedtootherresourcepoolsandfolders. VirtualmachinesCanbemovedtootherresourcepools,clusters,folders, datacenters,orhosts.Whenaddingtoanythingotherthanahost,youmust specifyatargethost.
Correcttheconditionalsituation,ifneeded. Whenyoureleasethemousebuttonafterdraggingtheobjectmovestothenew locationoranerrormessageindicateswhatneedstobedonetopermitthemove.
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Removing an Inventory Object

Whenyouremoveanobject(suchasafolder,datacenter,cluster,orresourcepool), VirtualCenterremovesallchildinventoryobjects(suchasdatacenters,clusters,hosts, andvirtualmachinescontainedwithintheobject).Alltheassociatedtasksandalarms arealsoremoved.Assignedprocessorandmigrationlicensesarereturnedtoavailable status.Virtualmachinesthatwereonamanagedhostremainonthehost,butareno longermanagedbyVirtualCenter. NOTE Theremoveoptiondoesnotdeletevirtualmachinesfromitsdatastore. To remove an inventory object 1 2 3 FromaVIClient,displaytheappropriateinventoryview. Selecttheobject.Fromthepopupmenu,chooseRemove. Toconfirmthatyouwanttoremovetheobject,clickYesandfollowtheprompts, asneeded. Onceconfirmed,VirtualCenterremovesallclusters,hosts,andvirtualmachines withinthedatacenterfromthemanagedinventory.Inaddition,alltheassociated tasks,alarms,andeventsarealsoremoved.Assignedprocessorandmigration licensesarereturnedtoavailablestatus.Virtualmachinesthatwereonthe managedhostremainonthehost.Therootfoldercannotberemoved.
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Managing Hosts in VirtualCenter
ThischapterdescribeshowtohavehostsmanagedbyVirtualCenter.Forinformation onconfigurationmanagementofhosts,refertotheServerConfigurationGuide. NOTE TheviewsandcapabilitiesdisplayedvarydependingonwhethertheVIClientis connectedtoaVirtualCenterServeroranESXServer.Unlessindicated,theprocess, task,ordescriptionappliestobothkindsofVIClientconnections. Thissectioncontainsthefollowing:

HostsOverviewonpage 99 UnderstandingHostStatesonpage 101 AddingaHostonpage 101 ConnectingorDisconnectingaHostonpage 104 AutomaticallyReconnectingaHostonpage 106 RemovingaHostfromaClusteronpage 106 RemovingaHostfromVirtualCenteronpage 108 HostAdvancedConfigurationOptionsonpage 110
Hosts Overview
Ahostisavirtualizationplatform,anESXServer,thatsupportsvirtualmachines.A VirtualCentermanagedhostisanESXServerhostthatisregisteredwithVirtualCenter. ThetaskofmanagingahostisaccomplishedthroughtheVirtualInfrastructureClient.
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ThisVIClientcanbeconnectedeitherdirectlytoanESXServerhostorindirectlytoESX ServerhoststhroughaconnectiontoaVirtualCenterServer. NOTE ESXServersupportsamaximumoffivedirect,concurrentVIClientconnections. WhenESXServerhostsareconnectedtotheVIClientdirectly,youmanagethem individuallyasstandalonehosts.Mostofthehostconfigurationandvirtualmachine configurationfeaturesstillapply.Featuresthatrequiremultiplehosts,suchas migrationwithVMotionofavirtualmachinefromonehosttoanother,arenotavailable throughthestandalonehostconnection. WhenESXServerhostsaremanagedbyVirtualCenter,theyareaddedtotheVMware InfrastructureenvironmentthroughaVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer. Managedhostsarehierarchicallyplacedindatacenters,folders,orclustersunderthe rootnodefolder. CAUTION IfanESXServerhostisconnectedwithaVirtualCenterServerandyou attachedaVIClienttomanagetheESXServerhostdirectly,youreceivean errormessagebutareallowedtoproceed.Thismightresultinconflictson thehost,especiallyifthehostispartofacluster.Thisactionisstrongly discouraged. Allvirtualmachinesonmanagedhostsareautomaticallydiscoveredandimportedinto VirtualCenter.Whenyouaddmultiplemanagedhosts,theVirtualCenterServer identifiesanynamingconflictsthatexistbetweenvirtualmachinesandalertsthe systemadministrator,whocanthenrenamevirtualmachinesasnecessary.Configure thevirtualmachinedisplaynames.Thenamecanbeupto80characterslongandmay containalphanumericcharactersandtheunderscore(_)andhyphen()characters.The namemustalsobeuniqueacrossallvirtualmachineswithinavirtualmachinegroup. WhentheVirtualCenterServerconnectstoamanagedhost,itdoessoasaprivileged user.TheindividualVirtualInfrastructureClientuserdoesnotnecessarilyneedtobe anadministrativeuseronthemanagedhost.RefertoAssigningAccessPermissions onpage 263forinformationonsettingupVirtualInfrastructureClientusers.
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Understanding Host States

Actionstakenuponamanagedhostrequirethatthemanagedhostbeinaspecificstate. Wheneveranoperationisperformedonamanagedhost,thehoststatechanges.While thestateisintransition,thestatefielddisplaysatermthatdescribesthetransition. NOTE Disconnectingamanagedhostdiffersfromremovingthemanagedhostfromthe VirtualCenterServer.Disconnectingamanagedhostdoesnotremoveitfromthe VirtualCenterServer;ittemporarilysuspendsallVirtualCenterServermonitoring activities.Themanagedhostanditsassociatedvirtualmachinesremaininthe VirtualCenterServerinventory.Removingamanagedhostremovesthemanagedhost andallitsassociatedvirtualmachinesfromtheVirtualCenterServerinventory.
Adding a Host
Virtualmachinesexistonmanagedhostswithinthenetwork.Hostsareaddedtothe VMwareInfrastructureenvironment.TheVirtualCenterServerdiscoversandaddsall thevirtualmachinescontainedwithinthatmanagedhosttotheVMwareInfrastructure environment. IfyouareconnectingyourVIClienttoanESXServerdirectly,theproceduresinthis sectiondonotapply. NOTE Whenaddingorremovinghosts,makesureNFSmountsareactive.IfNFSmountsare unresponsive,theoperationfails. To add a host to the VirtualCenter Server 1 Ensureacommunicationchannelthroughafirewall,ifneeded. IfanymanagedhostintheVirtualCenterenvironmentisbehindafirewall,ensure thatthemanagedhostcancommunicatewiththeVirtualCenterServerandwith allotherhostsonport902oranotherconfiguredport.RefertoInstallationand UpgradeGuideandtheServerConfigurationGuideforadditionalinformation. 2 3 ClicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar.Expandtheinventoryasneeded, andclicktheappropriatedatacenter,folder,orcluster. Selecttheappropriatedatacenterorcluster,andchooseNewHostfromthemain orpopupmenu.
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Enterthemanagedhostconnectionsettings.
a b
TypethenameofthemanagedhostintheHostnamefield. EntertheUsernameandPasswordforauseraccountthathasadministrative privilegesontheselectedmanagedhost. VirtualCenterusestherootaccounttologontothesystemandthencreatesa specialuseraccount.VirtualCenterthenusesthisaccountforallfuture authentication.
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ToconfirmtheHostSummaryinformation,clickNext. Ifyouareaddingthehosttoacluster:
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Specifywhatshouldhappentotheresourcepoolsonthehost. Theoptionsare:

Putallthehostsvirtualmachinesintotheclustersrootresourcepool. Createnewresourcepoolforthehostsvirtualmachines.Thedefault resourcepoolnameisderivedfromthehostsname.Typeoverthetextto supplyyourownname.
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ClickNext. RefertotheResourceManagementGuide.
Ifyouareaddingthehosttoadatacenter: a b Identifythelocationofthehostsvirtualmachines. SelectfromthelistofinventoryobjectsdisplayedintheSelectionbox.
ToconfirmcompletingtheAddHostwizard,clickFinish. WhenthedialogboxiscompleteandyouclickNext,VirtualCenterdoesthe following:
Searchesthenetworkforthespecifiedmanagedhostandidentifiesallthe virtualmachinesonthemanagedhost.IfyouclickCancel,thehostisremoved fromtheVirtualCenterinventory. Connectstothemanagedhost.Ifthewizardcannotconnecttothemanaged host,themanagedhostisnotaddedtotheinventory. Verifiesthatthemanagedhostisnotalreadybeingmanaged.Ifitisalready beingmanagedbyanotherVirtualCenterServer,VirtualCenterdisplaysa message.Ifthewizardcanconnecttothemanagedhostbutforsomereason cannotremainconnectedtotheVirtualCenterServer,thehostisadded,butis inadisconnectedstate.Thisoccurs,forexample,ifthehostisalreadybeing managedbyanotherVirtualCenterServer. Readsthenumberofprocessorsonthemanagedhostandallocatesthe appropriatenumberoflicenses.Thenumberofprocessorsisstoredinthe VirtualCenterdatabaseandisverifieduponeachmanagedhostreconnection andVirtualCenterstartup. NewerprocessorshavetwoCPUcoresineachprocessorpackage.Systems withdualcoreprocessorsmustuseESXServer2.5.2orlater.VirtualCenter licensesareissuedbypairsofprocessorpackages,notbyprocessorcores. Therefore,ifthesystemisusingtwodualcoreprocessorsortwosinglecore processors,thesystemrequiresasingle2processorVirtualCenterlicense.
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Verifiesthatthemanagedhostversionissupported.Ifitisnot,andthe managedhostversioncanbeupgraded,VirtualCenterpromptsyouto performanupgrade. Importsexistingvirtualmachines.
Connecting or Disconnecting a Host

Youhavetheoptiontodisconnectandreconnectamanagedhostthatisbeingmanaged byaparticularVirtualCenterServer.Thissectiondescribeshowtoreconnecta managedhost. NOTE Disconnectingamanagedhostdiffersfromremovingthemanagedhostfrom VirtualCenter.DisconnectingamanagedhostdoesnotremoveitfromVirtualCenter;it temporarilysuspendsallVirtualCentermonitoringactivities.Themanagedhostandits associatedvirtualmachinesremainintheVirtualCenterinventory.Removinga managedhostremovesthemanagedhostandallitsassociatedvirtualmachinesfrom theVirtualCenterinventory. To connect or disconnect a managed host 1 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,clicktheInventorybutton inthenavigationbar.Expandtheinventoryasneeded,andclicktheappropriate managedhost. Selecttheappropriatemanagedhosticonintheinventorypanel,andchoose ConnectorDisconnectfromthepopupmenu. Whendisconnecting,confirmtheaction.ClickYes. WhenthemanagedhostsconnectionstatustoVirtualCenterischanged,the statusesofthevirtualmachinesonthatmanagedhostareupdatedtoreflectthe change.
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Ifthemanagedhostisdisconnected,theworddisconnectedisappendedtothe objectnameinparentheses,andtheobjectisdimmed.Allassociatedvirtual machinesaresimilarlydimmedandlabeled.
Ifthemanagedhostisconnected,thedisconnecteddesignationisremovedandthe objectnameisinfullblackprint.Allassociatedvirtualmachinesaresimilarly labeled.
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Automatically Reconnecting a Host

TheVirtualCenterServertriestoreconnecttoamanagedhostiftheconnectionislost. YoucandefinehowlongVirtualCentertriestoreestablishtheconnection.Thisfeature isnotavailablewhentheVIClientisconnecteddirectlytoanESXServer. To configure automatic managed host reconnection 1 2 FromtheVIClient,displaytheinventory. ChooseAdministration>ServerSettings.Whenthewizardopens,choosethe ConnectionOptionslistitem.
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EnteravalueinminutesintheHostReconnectThresholdbox. Toexitthewizard,clicktheFinishlistitem.ThenclickFinishagain.
Removing a Host from a Cluster

Hostscanberemovedfromaclusterbyselectingthemfromeithertheinventoryorlist viewsanddraggingthemtoanewlocationwithintheinventory(eithertoafolderasa standalonehostortoanothercluster).Whenahostisremovedfromacluster,the resourcesitprovidesaredeductedfromthetotalclusterresources.Thevirtual machinesdeployedonthehostareeithermigratedtootherhostswithintheclusteror remainwiththehostandareremovedfromthecluster,dependingontheircurrent state.Hostscanberemovedfromaclusteronlyifallofthevirtualmachinesonitare poweredoff,andthehostisplacedintomaintenancemode.
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RefertotheResourceManagementGuideforcompleteclusterinformation. To remove a host from a cluster 1 2 3 4 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,displaytheinventory. ToremovetheVirtualCenteragentfromthemanagedhost,ensurethatthe managedhostisinaconnectedstate. Poweroffallvirtualmachinesonthehost. Selecttheappropriatemanagedhosticonintheinventorypanel,andchooseEnter MaintenanceModefromthepopupmenu.ClickYes.
Thehosticonchangesandthetermmaintenancemodeisaddedtothenamein parentheses. 5 Movethehost: a Selectthehosticonintheinventorypanel,anddragittothenewlocation. Thehostcanbemovedtoanotherclusteroranotherdatacenter.Whenthenew locationisselected,ablueboxsurroundstheclusterordatacentername. b Releasethemousebutton. VirtualCentermovesthehosttothenewlocation.

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Selectthehost,andfromthepopupmenuchooseExitMaintenanceMode. Restartanyvirtualmachines,asneeded.
Removing a Host from VirtualCenter

RemovingamanagedhostfromVirtualCenterbreakstheconnectionandstopsall monitoringandmanagingfunctionsofthatmanagedhostandofallthevirtual machinesonthatmanagedhost.Themanagedhostanditsassociatedvirtualmachines areremovedfromtheinventory.HistoricaldataremainsintheVirtualCenterdatabase. NOTE Ifatallpossible,removemanagedhostswhiletheyareconnected.Removinga disconnectedmanagedhostdoesnotremovetheVirtualCenteragentfromthe managedhost. Removingamanagedhostdiffersfromdisconnectingthemanagedhostfrom VirtualCenter.DisconnectingamanagedhostdoesnotremoveitfromVirtualCenter;it temporarilysuspendsallVirtualCentermonitoringactivities.Themanagedhostandits associatedvirtualmachinesremainintheVirtualCenterinventory. RemovingamanagedhostfromVirtualCenterdoesnotremovethevirtualmachines fromthemanagedhostordatastore.ItremovesonlyVirtualCentersaccesstothe managedhostandvirtualmachinesonthatmanagedhost. Thefigurebelowillustratestheprocessforremovingamanagedhostfrom VirtualCenter.Intheexamplehere,noticethelostlinkbetweentheVirtualCenter Serverandtheremovedmanagedhost,whilethemanagedhostfilesremainonthe datastore.
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1. Registered host and virtual machines host A VM1 VM2 VirtualCenter host B VM3 VM4 shared datastore 2. Remove host. Virtual machines stay on the hosts datastore. host A VirtualCenter VM1 VM2 VM1.dsk VM2.dsk host B VM3 VM4 shared datastore VM3.dsk VM4.dsk VM1.dsk VM2.dsk VM3.dsk VM4.dsk
Figure 7-1. Removing a Host To remove a managed host 1 2 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,displaytheinventory. ToremovetheVirtualCenteragentfromthemanagedhost,ensurethatthe managedhostisinaconnectedstate. Themanagedhostcanbeinaconnectedordisconnectedstatewhenyouremove it.However,removingamanagedhostwhileitisdisconnecteddoesnotremove theVirtualCenteragentfromthemanagedhost. 3 4 Poweroffallvirtualmachinesonthehost. Ifthehostispartofacluster,selecttheappropriatemanagedhosticoninthe inventorypanelandchooseEnterMaintenanceModefromthepopupmenu. Confirmplacement.ClickYes.
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Selecttheappropriatemanagedhosticonintheinventorypanel,andchoose Removefromthepopupmenu.
ClickYestoremovethemanagedhost.ClickNotokeepthemanagedhost. IfyouclickYes,VirtualCenterremovesthemanagedhostandassociatedvirtual machinesfromtheVirtualCenterenvironment.VirtualCenterthenreturnsall associatedprocessorandmigrationlicensestoavailablestatus.
Host Advanced Configuration Options

RefertotheResourceManagementGuideforcompleteinformationonconfiguringand usingtheresourceallocationfeatures,whichincludeVMwareHAandVMwareDRS. RefertotheServerConfigurationGuideforcompleteinformationonconfiguringhosts.
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Virtual Machine Management
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Creating Virtual Machines
TheVirtualInfrastructureClient(VIClient)providesyouwiththeabilitytodeployand managevirtualmachinesasquicklyandsimplyaspossible.TheVIClientprovidesa simpleandflexibleuserinterfacefromwhichyoucancreatenewvirtualmachines throughmanualconfiguration,fromtemplates,orbycloningexistingvirtualmachines. Allvirtualmachinesarecreatedinplaceusingawizardthatguidesyouthroughthe stepstoproduceacompleteandworkingvirtualmachine. Theprocessofcreatingavirtualmachineincludesselectingthespecifictypeofvirtual machinecreationthatyouwantfromeitherthemainorpopupmenus. ThischapterdescribeshowtocreatevirtualmachinesusingtheNewVirtualMachine wizardandbycloninganexistingvirtualmachine.Thewizardwalksyouthroughthe stepsrequiredtodefineavirtualmachine.Thischapterincludesinformationonsetting parametersbasedontheguestoperatingsystemusedandtheresourcesallocated.After youcreatethevirtualmachine,youmustinstalltheguestoperatingsystemand VMwareTools. Thischaptercontainsthefollowingsections:

UsingtheNewVirtualMachineWizardonpage 114 InstallingaGuestOperatingSystemonpage 132 InstallingandUpgradingVMwareToolsonpage 133
Toperformtheactivitiesdescribedinthischapter,youmusthaveappropriate privilegesonthehostmachine.
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Using the New Virtual Machine Wizard

Thereareanumberofwaysinwhichyoucanstartthevirtualmachinecreationprocess. FromtheFile>Newmenu,youcanchoosetocreateanewvirtualmachine,deploya virtualmachinefromatemplate,orcloneavirtualmachinefromanexistingvirtual machine.Intheinventorypanel,youcanselectanobjectanduseitspopupmenuto completethetaskslistedintableTable 81. Dependingontheselection,youseeaslightlydifferentsetofscreenstailoredforthe particularprocessyouchose.Anychoicesthatarenotapplicablearedisabled.For example,Cloneisdisablediftherearenovirtualmachinesinyourinventory.Inall cases,however,thewidestrangeofchoicesisavailableforoptimalflexibility.
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Table 8-1. Inventory Object Options

Inventory Object Virtualmachine Virtualmachinefolder Item on Pop-Up menu CloneThisVirtualMachine CreateNewVirtualMachine DeployVirtualMachinefromTemplate CloneanExistingVirtualMachine Host CreateNewVirtualMachine DeployVirtualMachinefromTemplate CloneanExistingVirtualMachine Cluster CreateNewVirtualMachine DeployVirtualMachinefromTemplate CloneanExistingVirtualMachine Resourcepool CreateNewVirtualMachine DeployVirtualMachinefromTemplate CloneanExistingVirtualMachine Datastore CreateNewVirtualMachine DeployVirtualMachine CloneanExistingVirtualMachine Template DeployVirtualMachinefromthisTemplate
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Beforeyoucreatethevirtualmachine,checktheinstallationnotesfortheguest operatingsystemyouintendtoinstallinit.YoucanfindthisinformationintheGuest OperatingSystemInstallationGuide,availablefromtheHelpmenuorfromtheVMware Websiteat:http://www.vmware.com/support/guestnotes/doc/index.html
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Chapter 8 Creating Virtual Machines
Creating Typical Virtual Machines

NewvirtualmachinescanbeaddedtoclustersorhostsusingtheNewVirtualMachine Wizard.Thetypicalpathisabbreviatedbecausesomeassumptionsaremadeaboutthe virtualmachineconfiguration.Ifyouwanttofullycustomizeyourvirtualmachine,see CreatingCustomVirtualMachinesonpage 121. To create a new virtual machine through the typical path 1 2 FromtheVirtualCenterclient,clickInventoryinthenavigationbarandexpandthe inventoryasneeded. Intheinventorylist,selectthemanagedhosttowhichyouwanttoaddthenew virtualmachine. TheSummarytabforthehostappears. 3 ChooseFile>New>VirtualMachine. TheNewVirtualMachinewizardappears. 4 SelectTypical,andclickNext. TheTypicalchoiceshortenstheprocessbyskippingsomechoicesthatrarelyneed changingfromtheirdefaults.Thefollowingstepsguideyouthroughthetypical path.Thenextsectionguidesyouthroughthecustompath. 5 Typeavirtualmachinename,andclickNext.
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ThenameyouenterintheVirtualMachineNamefieldisthenamethatislisted intheVirtualCenterclientinventory.Itisalsousedasthenameofthevirtual machinesfiles.Thenamecanbeupto80characterslongandmaycontain alphanumericcharactersandtheunderscore(_)andhyphen()characters.This nameshouldbeuniqueacrosstheentiredatacenterandmustbeuniquewithinthe folder. 6 7 Selectafolderortherootofadatacenter,andclickNext. Iftheresourcepooloptionisavailable,selecttheresourcepoolinwhichyouwant torunthevirtualmachine,expandthetreeuntilyoulocatetheproperresource pool,highlightit,andclickNext. Resourcepoolsallowyoutomanageyourcomputingresourceswithinahostor hostsbysettingthemupinameaningfulhierarchy.Virtualmachinesandchild resourcepoolssharetheresourcesoftheparentresourcepool.Formore informationonresourcepools,seetheResourceManagementGuide.
Selectadatastoreinwhichtostorethevirtualmachinefiles,andclickNext.
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Youshouldchooseadatastorelargeenoughtoholdthevirtualmachineandallof itsvirtualdiskfiles.ForESXServerhosts,theDatastoreisconfiguredonthathost, includingVMFS,NAS,andiSCSIvolumes.
UnderGuestOperatingSystem,selecttheoperatingsystemfamily(Microsoft Windows,Linux,NovellNetWare,Solaris,orOther),selecttheversionfromthe pulldownmenu,andclickNext. Thisistheoperatingsystemforyourvirtualmachine.Yourchoiceshouldbebased onyourplanneduseofthevirtualmachine.
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IfyouareinstallingaLinuxoperatingsystem,usetheLSILogicadapter. RefertotheGuestOperatingSystemInstallationGuidefordetails.
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Thewizarddoesnotinstalltheguestoperatingsystemforyou.TheNewVirtual MachineWizardusesthisinformationtoselectappropriatedefaultvalues,suchas theamountofmemoryneeded.
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Selectthenumberofvirtualprocessorsinthevirtualmachinefromthepulldown list,andclickNext. LicensingisrequiredtopoweronSMP.SeetheInstallationandUpgradeGuidefor moreinformationonlicensing.
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TheVirtualCPUspagedoesnotappearifthehostissingleprocessorortheguest operatingsystemdoesnotsupportSMP(forexample,NetWareandWindowsNT 4.0). Configurethevirtualmachinesmemorysizebyselectingthenumberof megabytes.
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Theminimum,recommended,andmaximumsizesarebasedontheguest operatingsystem.Regardlessoftheguestoperatingsystem,theminimum memorysizeis4MB.Themaximumdependsonthehost,butforESXServer3.0it is16384MB(16GB).Thememorysizemustbeamultipleof4MB.
Thecoloredtrianglesalongthesliderrepresentthesethreeamountsasindicated bythekeyonthewizard.Youcanalsodragthesliderorselectthenumberusing theupanddownarrows. 12 ClickNext.
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Choosethenetworkstoconnecttoandtheiroptionsbyselectinghowmany networkadapters(NICs)youwanttoconnectto,thenamesofthenetworks,and whetheryouwanttoconnecttothematpoweron.
Ifyoudonotwantthevirtualnetworkadaptertoconnectwhenthevirtual machineispoweredon,deselecttheConnectatPowerOncheckbox. TheNetworkpulldownmenuliststheportgroupsthatareconfiguredforvirtual machineuseonthehost.Ifnovirtualmachineportgroupsareconfigured,a warningdialogboxappears,andyouarenotallowedtoconfigureanyvirtual networkcards. 14 15 ClickNext. Specifythesizeofthevirtualdisk.
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Enterthedisksizeinmegabytes(MB)orgigabytes(GB).Thedefaultis4GB.The availablespaceontheselectedVMFSvolumeislisted.Youcanconfigureadisk fromassmallas1MBtoaslargeas2TB(2048GB),usingawholenumberofMBor GB. Thevirtualdiskshouldbelargeenoughtoholdtheguestoperatingsystemandall ofthesoftwarethatyouintendtoinstallwithroomfordataandgrowth. Youcannotchangethevirtualdisksmaximumcapacitylater,butyoucaninstall additionalvirtualdiskslaterbyusingtheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogbox. Forexample,youneedabout1GBofactualfreespaceonthefilesystemcontaining thevirtualdisktoinstallWindowsServer2003andapplications,suchasMicrosoft Office,insidethevirtualmachine. 16 17 ClickNext. OntheReadytoCompletepage,reviewyouroptions,andclickFinish. Beforeyoucanuseyournewvirtualmachine,youmustpartitionandformatthe virtualdiskandtheninstallaguestoperatingsystemandVMwareTools.The operatingsystemsinstallationprogramcanhandlethepartitioningand formattingstepsforyou.
Creating Custom Virtual Machines

ThissectiondescribesthestepstakenwhenyouselectthecustompathintheNew VirtualMachinewizard.Thecustompathprovidesmoreflexibilityandoptions. To create a new virtual machine through the custom path 1 2 3 FromtheVirtualCenterclient,clickInventoryinthenavigationbar,andexpand theinventoryasneeded. Intheinventorylist,selectthemanagedhosttowhichyouwanttoaddthenew virtualmachine. ChooseFile>New>VirtualMachine. TheNewVirtualMachinewizardappears.Themenuintheleftpaneldiffersfrom themenuofferedinthetypicalvirtualmachineconfigurationwizard. 4 SelectCustom,andclickNext. Thefollowingstepsguideyouthroughthecustompath.
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Typeavirtualmachinename,andclickNext.
ThenameyouenterintheVirtualMachineNamefieldisthenamethatislisted intheVirtualCenterclientinventory.Itisalsousedasthenameofthevirtual machinesfiles.Thenamecanbeupto80characterslongandmaycontain alphanumericcharactersandtheunderscore(_)andhyphen()characters.This nameshouldbeuniqueacrosstheentiredatacenterandmustbeuniquewithinthe folder. 6 7 Selectafolderortherootofadatacenter,andclickNext. Toselecttheresourcepoolinwhichyouwanttorunthevirtualmachine,expand thetreeuntilyoulocatetheproperresourcepool,highlightit,andclickNext.
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Resourcepoolsallowyoutomanageyourcomputingresourceswithinahostor hostbysettingthemupinameaningfulhierarchy.Virtualmachinesandchild resourcepoolssharetheresourcesoftheparentresourcepool.
Selectadatastoreinwhichtostorethevirtualmachinefiles,andclickNext. Chooseadatastorelargeenoughtoholdthevirtualmachineandallofitsvirtual diskfiles.ForESXServerhosts,theDatastoreisconfiguredonthathost,including VMFS,NAS,andiSCSIvolumes.
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UnderGuestoperatingsystem,selecttheoperatingsystemfamily(Microsoft Windows,Linux,NovellNetWare,Solaris,orOther). Choosetheversionfromthepulldownmenu.
Thewizarddoesnotinstalltheguestoperatingsystemforyou.TheNewVirtual Machinewizardusesthisinformationtoselectappropriatedefaultvalues,suchas theamountofmemoryneeded. 11 12 ClickNext. Selectthenumberofvirtualprocessorsinthevirtualmachinefromthepulldown list,andclickNext. TheNumberofVirtualCPUspagedoesnotappearifthehostissingleprocessor ortheguestoperatingsystemdoesnotsupportSMP(forexample,Netwareand WindowsNT4.0). Configurethevirtualmachinesmemorysizebyselectingthenumberof megabytes. Theminimum,recommended,andmaximumsizesarebasedontheguest operatingsystem.Regardlessoftheguestoperatingsystem,theminimum
NOTE
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memorysizeis4MB.Themaximumdependsonthehost,butforESXServer3.0it is16384MB(16GB).Thememorysizemustbeamultipleof4MB.
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ClickNext. ChoosethenetworkstoconnecttoandtheiroptionsbyselectinghowmanyNICs youwanttoconnectto,thenamesofthenetworks,andwhetheryouwantto connecttothematpoweron.
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Ifyoudonotwantthevirtualnetworkadaptertoconnectwhenthevirtual machineispoweredon,deselecttheConnectatPowerOncheckbox. TheNetworkpulldownmenuliststheportgroupsthatareconfiguredforvirtual machineuseonthehost.Ifnovirtualmachineportgroupsareconfigured,a warningdialogboxappears,andyouarenotallowedtoconfigureanyvirtual networkcards. 16 17 ClickNext. ChoosethetypeofSCSIadapteryouwanttousewiththevirtualmachine. TwoIDEadaptersandaSCSIadapterareinstalledinthevirtualmachine.TheIDE adapterisalwaysATAPI.FortheSCSIadapter,youcanchoosebetweenaBusLogic orLSILogicSCSIadapter. NOTE IfyoucreateanLSILogicvirtualmachineandaddavirtualdiskthatusesBusLogic adapters,thevirtualmachinebootsfromtheadditionaldisk. IntheSelectI/OAdapterTypespage,thedefaultforyourguestoperatingsystem isalreadyselected.OlderguestoperatingsystemsdefaulttotheBusLogicadapter. TheLSILogicadapterhasimprovedperformance,worksbetterwithnondisk SCSIdevices,andisincludedwithWindowsServer2003. YoucandownloadthedriverfromtheLSILogicWebsite.SeetheGuestOperating InstallationGuidefordetailsaboutthedriverandtheguestoperatingsystemyou plantoinstallinthisvirtualmachine. NOTE ThechoiceofSCSIadapterdoesnotaffectwhetheryourvirtualdiskisanIDEor SCSIdisk. Selectthetypeofdisk,andclickNext. Youcanstorevirtualmachinedatainanewvirtualdisk,anexistingvirtualdisk, oramappedstorageareanetwork(SAN)logicalunitnumber(LUN). Avirtualdiskcomprisesoneormorefilesonthefilesystemthatappearasasingle harddisktotheguestoperatingsystem.Thesedisksareportableamonghosts. MappingaSANLUNgivesyourvirtualmachinedirectaccesstothatSAN, allowingyoutouseexistingSANcommandstomanagestorageforthedisk.
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SeetheSANConfigurationGuidefordetailsaboutSANLUNconfiguration.

Ifyouchoosetocreateanewvirtualdisk,gotoStep 19. Ifyouchoosetouseanexistingvirtualdisk,gotoStep 23. IfyouchoosetocreateamappedSANLUN,gotoMappingaSANLUNon page 130.
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Ifyouchosetocreateanewvirtualdisk,youmustselectthesizeofthevirtual disk,specifyadatastorelocationforthedisk,andclickNext.(SEEUPDATE)
Enterthedisksizeinmegabytes(MB)orgigabytes(GB).Thedefaultis4GB.The availablespaceontheselectedVMFSvolumeislisted.Youcanconfigureadisk fromassmallas1MBtoaslargeas2TB(2048GB),usingawholenumberofMBor GB. Thevirtualdiskshouldbelargeenoughtoholdtheguestoperatingsystemandall ofthesoftwarethatyouintendtoinstallwithroomfordataandgrowth. Youcannotchangethevirtualdisksmaximumcapacitylater,butyoucaninstall additionalvirtualdiskslaterbyusingtheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogbox. Forexample,youneedabout1GBofactualfreespaceonthefilesystemcontaining thevirtualdisktoinstallWindowsServer2003andapplications,suchasMicrosoft Office,insidethevirtualmachine.
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Youcanlocatethevirtualdiskonthesamedatastoreasthevirtualmachineor selectadatastoreinanotherlocation.UsetheBrowsebuttontolocateadatastore. TheBrowseforDatastoredialogboxappears.
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Selectthevirtualdevicenodeanddiskmodeforthevirtualdisk.
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IfyouselectIndependentdiskmode,chooseoneofthefollowing: a b PersistentChangesareimmediatelyandpermanentlywrittentothedisk. NonpersistentChangestothediskarediscardedwhenyoupoweroffor reverttothesnapshot.
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ClickNext,andclickFinish. Youhavefinishedcreatingavirtualmachinethatusesanewvirtualdisk.
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Beforeyoucanuseyournewvirtualmachine,youmustpartitionandformatthe virtualdiskandinstallaguestoperatingsystemandVMwareTools.Theoperating systemsinstallationprogrammighthandlethepartitioningandformattingsteps foryou.SeetheGuestOperatingSystemInstallationGuide. 23 24 Ifyouchosetouseanexistingvirtualdisk,clickBrowseandnavigatetothe virtualdiskyouwanttouse.ClickNext. Selectwhichvirtualdevicenodeshouldbeusedbyyourvirtualdisk.
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IfyouselectIndependentmode,chooseoneofthefollowing: a b PersistentChangesareimmediatelyandpermanentlywrittentothedisk. NonpersistentChangestothediskarediscardedwhenyoupoweroffor reverttothesnapshot.
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ClickNext. TheReadytoCompleteNewVirtualMachinewindowappears.
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ReviewtheoptionsforyournewvirtualmachineandclickFinish. Youhavefinishedcreatingavirtualmachinethatusesanexistingvirtualdisk.
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Mapping a SAN LUN

Insteadofstoringvirtualmachinedatainavirtualdiskfile,youcanstorethedata directlyonaSANLUN.Thisisusefulifyouarerunningapplicationsinyourvirtual machinesthatmustknowthephysicalcharacteristicsofthestoragedevice. WhenyoumapaLUNtoaVMFSvolume,VirtualCentercreatesafilethatpointstothe rawLUN.EncapsulatingdiskinformationinafileallowsVirtualCentertolockthe LUNsothatonlyonevirtualmachinecanwritetoit. NOTE Thisfilehasa.vmdkextension,butthefilecontainsonlydiskinformationdescribing themappingtotheLUNontheESXServersystem.Theactualdataisstoredonthe LUN. UsingVirtualCenter,youcannotdeployavirtualmachinefromatemplateandstoreits dataonaLUN.Whenyoudeployavirtualmachinefromatemplate,youcanstoreits datainavirtualdiskfile. To map a SAN LUN 1 2 3 FromtheSelectaDiskpage,selectMappedSANLUN. ClickNext. SelectaLUNfortherawdisk.
ClickNext.
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SelectadatastoreontowhichtomaptheLUN.
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ClickNext. Selectacompatibilitymode,eitherphysicalorvirtual.
Physicalcompatibilitymodeallowstheguestoperatingsystemtoaccessthe hardwaredirectly.PhysicalcompatibilityisusefulifyouareusingSANaware applicationsinthevirtualmachine.However,aLUNconfiguredforphysical compatibilitycannotbecloned,madeintoatemplate,ormigratedifthe migrationinvolvescopyingthedisk. VirtualcompatibilitymodeallowsthevirtualmachinetouseVMware snapshotsandotheradvancedfunctionality.Virtualcompatibilityallowsthe LUNtobehaveasifitwereavirtualdisk,soyoucanusefeatureslikedisk modes.Whenyouclonethedisk,makeatemplateoutofit,ormigrateit(ifthe migrationinvolvescopyingthedisk),thecontentsoftheLUNarecopiedinto avirtualdisk(.vmdk)file. Subsequentscreensofferdifferentoptions,dependingonyourchoice.
OntheSpecifyAdvancedOptionspage,youcanchangethevirtualdevicenode andclickNext. TheReadytoCompleteNewVirtualMachinepageappears.
Reviewtheoptionsforyournewvirtualmachine,andclickFinish. Youhavefinishedcreatingavirtualmachinewithavirtualdiskthatismappedto aLUN.
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Installing a Guest Operating System

Anewvirtualmachineislikeaphysicalcomputerwithablankharddisk.Beforeyou canuseit,youmustpartitionandformatthevirtualdiskandinstallanoperating system.Theoperatingsystemsinstallationprogrammighthandlethepartitioningand formattingstepsforyou. Installingaguestoperatingsysteminsideyourvirtualmachineisessentiallythesame asinstallingitonaphysicalcomputer.Thebasicstepsforatypicaloperatingsystem are: 1 2 StartVMwareVirtualCenter. InserttheinstallationCDROMforyourguestoperatingsystem,orcreateanISO imagefilefromtheinstallationCDROM.UsetheVirtualMachineSettingseditor toconnectthevirtualmachinesCDROMdrivetotheISOimagefileandpoweron thevirtualmachine. YoumightneedtochangethebootorderinthevirtualmachineBIOSsothatthe virtualmachineattemptstobootfromtheCD/DVDdevicebeforetryingotherboot devices.Todoso,pressF2whenpromptedduringvirtualmachinestartup. UsinganISOimageisfasterthanusingaCDROM. 3 Topoweronyourvirtualmachine,clickthePowerOnbutton. Whenavirtualmachineispoweredon,agreenrightarrowisdisplayednexttothe virtualmachineiconintheinventorylist,andtheoptionsintheCommandspanel changeasshowninthefollowingimage:
NOTE
Followtheinstructionsprovidedbytheoperatingsystemvendor. Tocustomizeaguestoperatingsystem,seeCustomizingGuestOperating Systemsonpage 189.
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Installing and Upgrading VMware Tools

VMwareToolsisasuiteofutilitiesthatenhancestheperformanceofthevirtual machinesguestoperatingsystemandimprovesmanagementofthevirtualmachine. InstallingVMwareToolsintheguestoperatingsystemisvital.Althoughtheguest operatingsystemcanrunwithoutVMwareTools,youloseimportantfunctionalityand convenience. WhenyouinstallVMwareTools,youinstall:

TheVMwareToolsservice(orvmware-guestdonLinuxguests). AsetofVMwaredevicedrivers,includinganSVGAdisplaydriver,thevmxnet networkingdriverforsomeguestoperatingsystems,theBusLogicSCSIdriverfor someguestoperatingsystems,thememorycontroldriverforefficientmemory allocationbetweenvirtualmachines,thesyncdrivertoquiesceI/Ofor ConsolidatedBackup,andtheVMwaremousedriver. TheVMwareToolscontrolpanelthatletsyoumodifysettings,shrinkvirtualdisks, andconnectanddisconnectvirtualdevices. Asetofscriptsthathelpsyoutoautomateguestoperatingsystemoperations.The scriptsrunwhenthevirtualmachinespowerstatechanges. Acomponentthatsupportscopyingandpastingtextbetweentheguestand managedhostoperatingsystemsinMicrosoftWindowsguestoperatingsystems. ThecopyandpasteoptionisnotsupportedinLinuxguestoperatingsystems.
ConfiguretheguestoperatingsystembeforeinstallingorreinstallingVMwareTools. ThisenablesVMwaretoolstodeterminethecorrectmouseconfigurationandmodule configuration. NOTE Iftheguestoperatingsystemisinstalledbutnotcorrectlyconfiguredwhenyouinstall VMwareTools,theVMwareToolsinstallationdoesnotworkcorrectly.Thiscancause theguestoperatingsystemtocrash.
Limitations
ThefollowingareVMwareToolslimitations:

Shrinkdiskisnotsupported. ForMicrosoftWindowsNT,thedefaultscriptsforsuspendandresumedonot work.
ThemousedriverinstallationfailsinXwindowsversionsearlierthan4.2.0.
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Thissectionincludesthefollowinginformation:

VMwareToolsPropertiesDialogBoxonpage 135 AutomatedVMwareToolsUpgradesonpage 138
NOTE
IfyoudonothaveVMwareToolsinstalledinyourvirtualmachine,youcannotusethe shutdownorrestartoptions.YoucanuseonlythePoweroptions.Ifyouwanttoshut downtheguestoperatingsystem,shutitdownfromwithinthevirtualmachineconsole beforeyoupoweroffthevirtualmachine. TheinstallersforVMwareToolsforWindows,Linux,andNetWareguestoperating systemsarebuiltintoESXServerasISOimagefiles.AnISOimagefilelookslikea CDROMtoyourguestoperatingsystemandevenappearsasaCDROMdiscin WindowsExplorer.YoudonotuseanactualCDROMdisctoinstallVMwareTools,nor doyouneedtodownloadtheCDROMimageorburnaphysicalCDROMofthis imagefile. WhenyouchooseVirtualMachine>InstallVMwareToolsfromtheVMware VirtualCentermenu,VMwareVirtualCentertemporarilyconnectsthevirtual machinesfirstvirtualCDROMdiskdrivetotheISOimagefilethatcontainsthe VMwareToolsinstallerforyourguestoperatingsystem.Youarereadytobeginthe installationprocess. To install or upgrade VMware Tools (SEE UPDATE) 1 2 3 FromVirtualCenter,poweronthevirtualmachine. Whentheguestoperatingsystemstarts,chooseVirtualMachines>Install VMwareTools. Frominsidethevirtualmachine,clickYestolaunchtheInstallShieldWizard.
Ifyouhaveautorunenabledinyourguestoperatingsystem(thedefault settingforWindowsoperatingsystems),adialogboxappears. Ifautorunisnotenabled,runtheVMwareToolsinstaller.ClickStart>Run andenterD:\setup.exe,whereD:isyourfirstvirtualCDROMdrive.
Followtheonscreeninstructions.
OnWindowsServer2003,theSVGAdriverisinstalledautomatically,andthe guestoperatingsystemusesitafteritreboots. AfteryouinstallVMwareTools,Windows2000andWindowsXPguest operatingsystemsmustberebootedtousethenewdriver.
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VMware Tools Properties Dialog Box

WhenVMwareToolsisinstalledinyourvirtualmachine,aVMwareToolsiconis displayedinthevirtualmachinessystemtray. To display the VMware Tools Properties dialog box DoubleclicktheVMwareToolsiconinthesystemtrayfrominsidetheguestoperating system. TheVMwareToolsPropertiesdialogboxappearswiththeOptionstabdisplayed.
Options Tab
Fromthistabyoucansynchronizethetimebetweentheguestandserviceconsoleand showVMwareToolsinthetaskbar. To synchronize the time between the guest and service console Theguestservicecansynchronizethedateandtimeintheguestoperatingsystemwith thetimeintheserviceconsoleonceeveryminute. 1 IntheVMwareToolscontrolpanel,selecttheOthertab(OptionsinaLinuxguest), andselectTimesynchronizationbetweenthevirtualmachineandthehost operatingsystem. Inaddition,theguestservicecansynchronizethedateandtimeintheguestwith theserviceconsoleinresponsetovarioussystemevents,(forexample,whenyou resumefromdisk).Youcandisablethisintheconfigurationfilebysetting:
time.synchronize.resume.disk = FALSE
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2 3 4
ClickApply. ToshowVMwareToolsinthetaskbar,selectthecheckboxandclickApply. ClickOKtoexitthePropertiesdialogbox.
Devices Tab
OntheDevicestabyoucanviewalistofallremovabledevices(suchasfloppyand CDROMdrives)availabletothevirtualmachineandwhethertheyareconnectedor disconnected.Youcanalsoconnectordisconnectanyofthelisteddevices. To connect a device to the virtual machine 1 2 SelecttheDevicestab. Selectthecheckboxbythedeviceyouwanttoconnect.
3 4
ClickApply. ClickOKtoexitthePropertiesdialogbox.
Scripts Tab
ThroughVMwareToolsyoucanrunscriptsthatexecutewhenyouchangethepower stateofyourvirtualmachine(thatis,whenyoupoweron,poweroff,suspend,or resumethevirtualmachine). AdefaultscriptforeachpowerstateisincludedinVMwareTools.Thesescriptsare locatedintheguestoperatingsysteminC:\Program Files\VMware
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Table 8-2. VMware Tools Scripts

Default Script suspend-vm-default.bat resume-vm-default.bat poweroff-vm-default.bat poweron-vm-default.bat
Task Suspendtheguestoperatingsystem Resumetheguestoperatingsystem Shutdowntheguestoperatingsystem Powerontheguestoperatingsystem
To run a script event 1 ClicktheScriptstab.
2 3
ChooseapoweroperationfromtheScriptEventpulldownmenu. Selectascripttoassociatewiththisevent.Toselectascriptotherthanthedefault, clickCustomScript,clickBrowse,andselectthenewscript. Onceyouhaveselectedascript,youcanedititorrunittotestit.
Toeditascript,clickEdit. Thescriptopensinyourdefaulteditor.Makeyourchangesthere.
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Totestthescript,clickRunNow. Todisabletherunningofascript,cleartheUseScriptcheckbox. ClickApplytosaveyoursettings. ClickOKtoexitthepropertiesdialogbox.
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About Tab
TheAbouttabcontainsinformationaboutVMwareTools,suchasthebuildnumber.
Automated VMware Tools Upgrades

InESXServer3,VMwareToolsandvirtualhardwarecanbeupgradedsimultaneously formultiplevirtualmachineswithoutinteractingwiththevirtualmachinefromthe virtualmachineconsole.ThisnewfeatureallowsyoutoupgradeVMwareToolsand virtualhardwareforoneormorevirtualmachinefromearlierreleases.Theuser performingtheupgrademusthavepermissiontodoso. ThefollowingarelimitationsonVMwareToolsmassupgrades:

OnlyvirtualmachinesmanagedbyVirtualCenter2canbeupgraded. MassupgradesareavailableonlyforLinuxandMicrosoftWindows2000andlater. FreeBSD,NetWare,andWindowsNTarenotsupported. ThevirtualdiskmustbeonaVMFS3volume. Virtualmachinesmustbepoweredoff. Becausethemassupgradescommandlinetoolisinstalledaspartofthe VirtualCenter2serverinstallationandrunsonVirtualCenterServer,theupgrader runsonMicrosoftWindowsonly.
To mass upgrade tools and virtual hardware on multiple virtual machines Thistool,availablefromtheVirtualCenterinstallationdirectory,canbeusedonlyfrom thecommandlinewiththefollowingoptions:
vmware-vmupgrade.exe -u user [-p password] [-n vmname] [-h host] [-m maxpowerons] [-s] [-q]
Table 8-3. Command-Line Options

Option -u user Description Specifiesauserwithsufficientprivilegesonthetargetvirtualmachine, includingVirtualMachine.Config.*,VirtualMachine.Interact.*,and VirtualMachine.Provisioning.* Specifiesapasswordonthecommandline.Ifthisisomitted,thetool immediatelypromptsforapassword. Thenameofthevirtualmachinetoupgrade.Thisnamecorresponds tothedisplaynameofavirtualmachine.Specifymultiplevirtual machinesusingmultiplenparameters.Thenoptionisignoredifh isspecified.
-p password -n vmname
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Table 8-3. Command-Line Options (Continued)

Option -h host -m maxpowerons -o port -t maxpowerontime Description Attemptstoupgradeallthevirtualmachinesonaparticularhost.Fails ifthespecifiedhostifnotversionESX3.0orgreater. Onaparticularhost,powerononlythisnumberofvirtualmachines atatime. SpecifiestheVirtualCenterServerport,ifoneotherthanthedefault port902hasbeenconfigured. Afterthetoolsupgradeisscheduledonavirtualmachine,thevirtual machineispoweredonandallowedtorunthroughthetools installationprocess.Inmostcases,theguestpowersdownthemachine automaticallywhentheprocesscompletes.Thisparameterallowsa usertosetthemaximumamountoftimeforavirtualmachinetobe poweredonincasetheguestisunabletoshutdownthemachineitself. Skipsthetoolsandonlydoesthevirtualhardwareupgrade. Worksquietly.Doesntproducestatusorcompletionmessageson shutdown.
-s -q
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Managing Virtual Machines
Thischapterdescribesvirtualmachinetasks,includingaddingandremovingvirtual machinesandpoweringvirtualmachinesonandoff. NOTE TheviewsandcapabilitiesdisplayedvarydependingonwhethertheVIClientis connectedtoaVirtualCenterServeroranESXServer.Unlessindicated,theprocess, task,ordescriptionappliestobothkindsofVIClientconnections. Thischaptercontainsthefollowingsections:

ChangingVirtualMachinePowerStatesonpage 141 AddingandRemovingVirtualMachinesonpage 150 StartingandShuttingDownVirtualMachinesonpage 155
Changing Virtual Machine Power States

Thepowerstateofavirtualmachineindicateswhetherthevirtualmachineisactiveand functional.Therearethreebasicstates:on,off,andsuspend.Toachievetheonstate, youcanpoweronthemachine,resetthemachine,orresumeactivityfromasuspended state.Toachievetheoffstate,youcanpoweroffthemachineorsuspendallvirtual machineactivity.Eachvirtualmachinepowerstatechangehasadifferenteffectonthe guestoperatingsysteminthevirtualmachine. Therearealsoseveralaccesspointsformakingchangestothesepowerstates.Youcan changeapowerstatechangeby:
SelectingthevirtualmachineandthepoweroptionfromtheInventory>Virtual Machinemenu.
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SelectingPoweronfromtheCommandsarea. Selectingthepoweroptionfromthepopupmenu. SchedulingapowerstatechangethroughtheScheduledTasksbuttoninthe navigationbar.
Thepowerstatetopicsarecoveredinthefollowingsections:

UnderstandingVirtualMachinePowerStatesonpage 142 UnderstandingTransitionalPowerStatesonpage 144 ManuallyPoweringaVirtualMachineOnandOffonpage 144 UsingSuspendandResumeonpage 145 SchedulingaPowerStateChangeforaVirtualMachineonpage 146
Understanding Virtual Machine Power States

Thebasicpowerstateoptionsinclude:
PoweronPowersonthevirtualmachineandbootstheguestoperatingsystemif theguestoperatingsystemisinstalled. PoweroffPowersoffthevirtualmachine.Thevirtualmachinedoesnotattempt toshutdowntheguestoperatingsystemgracefully. SuspendPausesthevirtualmachineactivity.Alltransactionsarefrozenuntilyou issuearesumecommand. ResumeAllowsvirtualmachineactivitytocontinueandreleasestheSuspended state. ResetShutsdowntheguestoperatingsystemandrestartsit.Thisoperation dependsontheoperatingsystembeingshutdown.Ifshutdownisnotautomatic forthatoperatingsystem,VMwareToolsmustbeinstalled.
Thefollowingpoweroptionsperformextrafunctionsinadditiontothebasicvirtual machinepoweroperations.VMwareToolsmustbeinstalledinthevirtualmachineto performthesefunctions:

ShutdownguestShutsdowntheguestoperatingsystemgracefully. StandbyguestSuspendstheguestoperatingsystemandrunVMwaretools suspendscripts. RestartguestShutsdownandrestartstheguestoperatingsystemwithout poweringoffthevirtualmachine.
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Chapter 9 Managing Virtual Machines
Toolbarpowerbuttonsperformasfollows:
PoweroffPowersoffthevirtualmachine.Apoweroffoperationdisplaysa confirmationdialogboxindicatingthattheguestoperatingsystemmightnotshut downproperly. PoweronPowersonavirtualmachinewhenavirtualmachineisstopped,or resumesthevirtualmachineandrunsascriptwhenitissuspendedandVMware Toolsisinstalledandavailable.Resumesthevirtualmachineanddoesnotruna scriptwhenVMwareToolsisnotinstalled. SuspendSuspendsthevirtualmachinewithoutrunningascriptwhenVMware Toolsisnotinstalled,orrunsascript,andsuspendsthevirtualmachinewhen VMwareToolsisinstalledandavailable. ResetResetsthevirtualmachinewhenVMwareToolsisnotinstalled,and restartstheguestoperatingsystemwhenVMwareToolsisinstalledandavailable. Aresetoperationdisplaysaconfirmationdialogboxindicatingthattheguest operatingsystemisnotshutdownproperly. Thespecificformofthepowerstateactioncanbemodifiedtoincludeguest operatingsystemshutdownsornotandtoincluderunningscriptsornot.To configurepoweroperationsettingschoosehost>Configuration>Virtual Machinestartup/shutdown.
NOTE
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Understanding Transitional Power States

Actionstakenonavirtualmachinerequirethatthevirtualmachinebeinspecificpower states.Wheneverapoweroperationisperformedonavirtualmachine,thevirtual machinepowerstatechangesandallothercommandsarelockedoutuntilthefirst commandiscompleted. Thefigurebelowillustratesstates,transitions,andstatechangingcommandsfor virtualmachines.
powered off remove
power on
power off
powered on
resume
suspend state
suspended
command
Figure 9-1. Virtual Machine Power State Changes
Manually Powering a Virtual Machine On and Off

Beforechanginganypowerstateonavirtualmachine,youmusthaveaddedthevirtual machinetoyourVirtualInfrastructureenvironment.RefertoAddingandRemoving VirtualMachinesonpage 150. To manually change the power state of a virtual machine 1 2 3 ClicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar. Expandtheinventoryasneeded,andclicktheappropriatevirtualmachine. Choosefromthefollowingoptions:
Clickthepoweroptionfromthetoolbar.
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NOTE
ThePowerOffbuttononthetoolbar,bydefault,performsahardpoweroff. Toperformagracefulshutdownofaguestoperatingsystem,usethe rightclickoptionorshutdowntheoperatingsystemdirectlyfrominsidethe guest.Alternatively,thebehaviorofthepowerbuttoncanbechangedona pervirtualmachine. Rightclickthevirtualmachineandchooseapoweroption. Thepopupmenuonavirtualmachinedisplaystwooptions:PowerOffand ShutDown.PowerOff,sometimescalledhardpoweroff,isanalogousto pullingthepowercableonaphysicalmachine,andalwaysworks.Shut Down,orsoftpoweroff,leveragesVMwaretoolstoperformagraceful shutdownofaguestoperatingsystem.Incertainsituations,suchaswhen VMwareToolsisnotinstalledortheguestoperatingsystemishung, shutdownmightnotsucceed.
NOTE
Ifanoptionisnotcurrentlyavailable,itisdimmedandunselectable. Afterthepoweroptionisselected,VirtualInfrastructureClientdisplaysmessages inRecentTasksindicatingthetransitionmodes.
Using Suspend and Resume

Thesuspendandresumefeatureismostusefulwhenyouwanttosavethecurrentstate ofyourvirtualmachineandpickupworklaterwiththevirtualmachineinthesame state. Onceyouresumeanddoadditionalworkinthevirtualmachine,youcannotreturnto thestatethevirtualmachinewasinatthetimeyoususpended.Topreservethestateof thevirtualmachinesoyoucanreturntothesamestaterepeatedly,takeasnapshot. RefertoUsingSnapshotsonpage 221formoreinformation. Thespeedofthesuspendandresumeoperationsdependsonhowmuchdatachanged whilethevirtualmachinewasrunning.Ingeneral,thefirstsuspendoperationtakesa bitlongerthanlatersuspendoperationsdo. Whenyoususpendavirtualmachine,afilewitha.vmssextensioniscreated.Thisfile containstheentirestateofthevirtualmachine.Whenyouresumethevirtualmachine, itsstateisrestoredfromthe.vmssfile.
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To suspend a virtual machine 1 2 Ifyourvirtualmachineisrunninginfullscreenmode,returntowindowmodeby pressingtheCtrlAltkeycombination. ClickSuspendontheVMwareVirtualInfrastructureClienttoolbar. WhenVMwareVirtualInfrastructureClientcompletesthesuspendoperation,itis safetoexitVMwareVirtualInfrastructureClient. 3 ChooseFile>Exit.
To resume a virtual machine that you have suspended 1 2 StartVMwareVirtualInfrastructureClient,andselectavirtualmachinethatyou havesuspended. ClickthePowerOnbuttonontheVMwareVirtualInfrastructureClienttoolbar,or choosethePowerOnoptionfromthepopupmenuortheCommandswindow. Applicationsyouwererunningatthetimeyoususpendedthevirtualmachineare running,andthecontentisthesameasitwaswhenyoususpendedthevirtual machine.
NOTE
Scheduling a Power State Change for a Virtual Machine

Dependinguponyourpermissions,youcancreateascheduledtasktochangethe powerstateofthevirtualmachineintheVIClient. To create a scheduled task that changes the power state 1 ClicktheScheduledTasksbuttoninthenavigationbar. Thelistofscheduledtasksappears. 2 RightclickandchooseNewScheduledTask,orchooseFile>New>Scheduled Task. TheSelectaTasktoSchedulewindowappears.
SelectChangethepowerstateofavirtualmachine,andclickOK.
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TheChangeaVirtualMachinesPowerStatewizardappearsanddisplaysthe SelectanEntitypage.
Selectthevirtualmachinewhosestateyouwanttochange. TheSelectaPowerOperationscreenappears.
ClickaPowerOperationoption.
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6 7
ClickNext. Selectthevirtualmachinewhosepowerstatechanges.
ClickNext. TheScheduletheTaskscreenappears.
Namethetask,giveadescription,andspecifythetimingofthetask.
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Torefertothecalendar,clickLater,andclickthedropdownarrowtochooseadate fromthedisplayedcalendar.Aredcircleindicatestodaysdateandadarkcircle indicatesthescheduleddate.
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ClickNext. ClickFinish.(SEEUPDATE) VirtualInfrastructureClientaddsthenewtasktothescheduledtasklistand completesitatthedesignatedtime.Whenitistimetoperformthetask,Virtual InfrastructureClientfirstverifiesthattheuserwhocreatedthetaskstillhas permissiontocompletethetask.Ifthepermissionlevelsarenotacceptable,a messageisgeneratedandthetaskisnotperformed.
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Adding and Removing Virtual Machines

VirtualmachinescanbeaddedtoVirtualInfrastructureClientthroughtheirmanaged hosts.TheycanberemovedfromVirtualInfrastructureClientcontrolandoptionally fromtheirmanagedhostsstorage. Thefollowingsectionsdiscussaddingandremovingvirtualmachines:

AddingExistingVirtualMachinestoVirtualCenteronpage 150 RemovingandReturningVirtualMachinesfromVirtualCenteronpage 151 ReturningaVirtualMachinetoVirtualCenteronpage 152
Adding Existing Virtual Machines to VirtualCenter

WhenyouaddamanagedhosttoVirtualInfrastructureClient,VirtualInfrastructure Clientdiscoversallthevirtualmachinesonthatmanagedhostandaddsthemtothe VirtualInfrastructureClientinventory.Ifamanagedhostisdisconnected,thealready discoveredvirtualmachinescontinuetobelistedaspartofVirtualInfrastructure Client. Ifamanagedhostisdisconnectedandreconnected,anychangestothevirtual machinesonthatmanagedhostareidentified,andVirtualInfrastructureClient updatesthelistofvirtualmachines.Forexample,ifnode3isremovedandnode4is added,thenewlistofvirtualmachinesaddsnode4andshowsnode3asorphaned.
Figure 9-2. An Orphaned Virtual Machine
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Removing and Returning Virtual Machines from VirtualCenter

RemovingVirtualMachinesfrominventoryunregistersthemfromthehostand VirtualCenter.Virtualmachinefilesremainatthesamestoragelocationandthevirtual machinecanbereregisteredusingthedatastorebrowser. RemovingVirtualMachinesfromdisk,ontheotherhand,deletesthemcompletely. To remove a virtual machine from VirtualCenter but not the datastore 1 2 3 4 5 FromtheVirtualInfrastructureClient,clicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigation bar. Expandtheinventoryasneeded,andclicktheappropriatevirtualmachine. Makesurethatthevirtualmachineispoweredoff. Selectthevirtualmachineintheinventorypanel. ChooseInventory>VirtualMachine>RemovefromInventory. CAUTION TheEdit>Removemenucommandremovesyourvirtualmachine fromthedisk. 6 ToconfirmthatyouwanttoremovethevirtualmachinefromVirtual InfrastructureClient,clickOK.
VirtualInfrastructureClientremovesreferencestothevirtualmachineandno longertracksitscondition. NOTE TheRemovefromInventorycommandremovesthevirtualmachineonlyfrom VirtualInfrastructureClient.Itdoesnotremovethevirtualmachinefromits datastore.
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Returning a Virtual Machine to VirtualCenter

IfyouhaveremovedavirtualmachinefromaVirtualInfrastructureClientserverbut didnotremoveitfromthemanagedhostsdatastoreandyouwanttoreturnittoVirtual InfrastructureClient,usetheNewVirtualMachineWizard. To return a virtual machine to VirtualCenter 1 2 3 4 5 6 ClicktheInventorybutton. ClicktheSummarytab. Selectahost,andstarttheNewVirtualMachinewizard. ChooseCustom,andclickNext. Proceedthroughthewizardasthoughyouarecreatinganewvirtualmachine. WhentheSelectaDiskpageappears,clicktheUseanexistingvirtualdiskradio button,andclickNext.
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Browsetotheexistingvirtualdisk,andclickNext.
Browseforadatastore.
Whenyouhavelocatedacompatiblevirtualdisk,selectitandclickOpen. CAUTION Usecarewhenattachingvirtualdiskstovirtualmachines.Attaching thewrongvirtualdisktoavirtualmachineyieldsunpredictable results.Thefirstvirtualdiskshouldbeasystemdiskthatthevirtual machinecanbootfrom.
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Proceedthroughtherestofthewizardasthoughyouwerecreatinganewvirtual machine. ClickFinishtoexitthewizard.
To remove a virtual machine from Virtual Infrastructure Client and the datastore 1 2 3 4 NOTE FromtheVirtualInfrastructureClient,clicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigation bar. Expandtheinventoryasneeded,andclicktheappropriatevirtualmachine. Makesurethatthevirtualmachineispoweredoff. ChooseDeleteFromDiskfromthevirtualmachinespopupmenu. Thisremovesallthefilesfortheselectedvirtualmachine,includingthe configurationfileandthevirtualdiskfiles. ToconfirmremovingthevirtualmachinefromVirtualInfrastructureClientand thedatastore,clickOK.
VirtualInfrastructureClientremovesthevirtualmachinefromitsdatastore entirely.
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Starting and Shutting Down Virtual Machines

Youcanconfigureyourvirtualmachinetostartupandshutdownautomatically,oryou candisablethisfunction.Youcanalsosetthedefaulttimingaswellasthestartuporder forspecifiedvirtualmachineswhenthesystemhoststarts. To configure virtual machine startup and shutdown 1 2 3 SelecttheInventorybutton. Selectahostmachine. ClicktheConfigurationtab. Configurationinformationforthehostappears.
ClicktheVirtualMachineStartup/Shutdownlink.
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Thevirtualmachinestartupandshutdowninformationappears.
ClickProperties. TheVirtualMachineStartupandShutdowndialogboxappears.
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Ifyouwanttoallowvirtualmachinestostartandstopautomatically,clickthe checkboxatthetopofthedialogboxandenteratimeinsecondsforthedefault startupdelayandthedefaultshutdowndelay. Ifyouwanttheoperatingsystemtostartafterabriefdelay,specifyadelaytimein theDefaultStartupDelaybox. ThisallowstimeforVMwareToolsorthebootingsystemtorunscripts.
8 9
Clickthecheckboxifyouwanttheoperatingsystemtobootimmediatelyafter VMwareToolsstarts. Next,specifytheorderinwhichthevirtualmachinesstartwhenthesystemstarts. UsetheMoveUp,MoveDown,andEditbuttonstorearrangethevirtual machinesinthedisplay.(SEEUPDATE) Thevirtualmachinesarestoppedinreverseorder.
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ClickOKtoexitthedialogboxwhenyouarethroughchangingthesystem settings.
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Configuring Virtual Machines
10
ThischapterdescribestheVirtualMachinePropertieseditorandtheAddHardware wizard.Theseallowyoutoeditandconfigureyourexistingvirtualmachines.Italso discussesadvancedvirtualmachineconfigurationoptions.Theseactivitiesare performedafteryoucreatethevirtualmachineandinstalltheguestoperatingsystem. Youmusthavesufficientpermissiontoperformtheactivitiesdescribedinthischapter. Thischaptercontainsthefollowingtopics:

VirtualMachinePropertiesEditoronpage 159 AddingNewHardwareonpage 181
Virtual Machine Properties Editor

TheVirtualMachinePropertiesEditorallowsyoutochangenearlyeverycharacteristic thatyouchoosewhenyoucreatedthevirtualmachine.Thissectiondescribeshowto usethispowerfuleditor. To edit an existing virtual machine configuration 1 2 3 FromtheVIClient,clickInventoryinthenavigationbar. Expandtheinventoryasneeded,andselectthevirtualmachineyouwanttoedit. (Optional)Poweroffthevirtualmachine. Changingmostofthepropertiesofavirtualmachineispossiblewhileitis poweredoff,butyoucanopenthepropertieseditorregardlessofthepowerstate. Manyofthecontrolsarereadonlyifthevirtualmachineisnotpoweredoff. 4 TodisplaytheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogbox,clicktheEditSettingslinkin theCommandspanel.
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TheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogboxisdisplayed.Therearethreetabs: Hardware,Options,andResources. 5 Selectatabandproceedtooneofthefollowingsections:

ChangingtheHardwareConfigurationofaVirtualMachineonpage 160 ChangingVirtualMachineOptionsonpage 170 ChangingVirtualMachineResourceSettingsonpage 175 ChangingtheAudioConfigurationonpage 180
Changing the Hardware Configuration of a Virtual Machine

Thissectiondescribeshowtochangetheconfigurationofexistingvirtualhardware devicesinavirtualmachine. Youcanadd,edit,orremovehardwarefromyourvirtualmachineusingthiswizard. Thestatusofthedevice,suchaseditedoradding,isdisplayedinparenthesesnextto thehardwarelisting.Thedevicesthatcanbeaddedare:

Serialport Parallelport Floppydrive DVD/CDROMdrive
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Ethernetadapter Harddisk SCSIdevice
To change the DVD/CD-ROM drive configuration 1 2 ClicktheHardwaretab. ClicktheDVD/CDROMdriveintheHardwarelist.
3 4 5
Makechangesasneededtothedevicestatus,connection,orvirtualdevicenodefor thevirtualmachinetouse. IfyoudonotwanttheCDROMdriveconnectedwhenthevirtualmachinestarts, deselectConnectatpoweron. SelecttheUsephysicaldriveradiobuttontoconnectthevirtualmachinesdriveto aphysicaldriveonthehostcomputer. YoucanaccessaclientCDROMdeviceorhostCDROMdevice.Therearetwo typesofDVD/CDROMaccess: a b UsePassthrough(raw)modeonlyforremoteclientdeviceaccess. UseATAPIemulationtoaccessahostCDROMdevice.
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ThelocalorhostCDROMdeviceisaccessedthroughemulationmode. PassthroughmodeisnotfunctionalforlocalhostCDROMaccess.Youcan writeorburnaremoteCDonlythroughpassthroughmodeaccess,butin emulationmodeyoucanonlyreadaCDROMfromahostCDROMdevice. 6 7 8 9 10 Ifyouelectedtouseaphysicaldrive,choosethedrivetousefromthedropdown list. Alternatively,selectUseISOImagetoconnectthevirtualmachinesdrivetoan ISOimagefile. IfyouselectedUseISOImage,clickBrowsetonavigatetothefile. UnderVirtualdevicenode,usethepulldownmenutochoosethedevicenodethe driveusesinthevirtualmachine. ClickOKtosaveyourchanges. TheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogboxcloses. To change the floppy drive configuration 1 2 ClicktheHardwaretab. ClickthefloppydriveintheDevicelist.
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3 4 5 6
UnderDeviceStatus,selectConnectatpowerontoconnectthisvirtualmachine tothefloppydrivewhenthevirtualmachineispoweredon. UnderConnection,selectUsephysicaldrivetouseaphysicaldrive,chooseClient orHost,andchoosethedrivefromthelist. Touseafloppyimage,selectUseexistingfloppyImageorCreateanewfloppy image,andbrowsetothedesiredfloppyimage. ClickOKtosaveyourchanges. TheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogboxcloses.
To change the SCSI device configuration 1 2 ClicktheHardwaretab. SelecttheSCSIdeviceinthehardwarelist.
3 4
ToconnectthisvirtualmachinetotheserversSCSIdevicewhenthevirtual machineispoweredon,selectConnectatpoweron. UnderConnection,selectthephysicaldeviceyouwanttouse. UnderVirtualdevicenode,selectthevirtualdevicenodewhereyouwantthis devicetoappearinthevirtualmachine.
ClickOKtosaveyourchanges. TheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogboxcloses.
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To change the virtual disk configuration 1 2 ClicktheHardwaretab. ClicktheappropriateHardDiskintheHardwarelist.
3 4
Usethepulldownmenutochangethevirtualdevicenode. Forindependentmode,whichisunaffectedbysnapshots,selectthecheckbox. ThenchoosePersistentorNonpersistentmodetodeterminethepersistenceof changes. ClickOKtosaveyourchanges. TheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogboxcloses.
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To change the memory configuration 1 2 ClicktheHardwaretab. ClickMemoryintheHardwarelist.
Adjusttheamountofmemoryallocatedtothevirtualmachine. Therangeofmemorysupportedis128MBto16384MBandisnotlimitedtothe physicalmemoryofthehostwherethevirtualmachineresides.
To change the virtual Ethernet adapter (NIC) configuration 1 2 ClicktheHardwaretab. ClicktheappropriateNICintheHardwarelist.
3 4
ToconnectthevirtualNICwhenthevirtualmachineispoweredon,selectConnect atpoweron. UnderNetworkconnection,usethepulldownmenutochoosethenetworklabel youwantthevirtualmachinetouse.

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To change the parallel port configuration 1 2 ClicktheHardwaretab. ClicktheappropriateParallelportintheHardwarelist.
DeselecttheConnectatpoweroncheckboxifyoudonotwanttheparallelport devicetobeconnectedwhenthevirtualmachinepowerson. ThedefaultsettingisConnectatpoweron.
UnderConnection,selectaradiobuttontoindicateaphysicalparallelportorto connectthevirtualparallelporttoafile. a b IfyouselectUsephysicalparallelport,choosetheportfromthepulldown menu. IfyouselectUseoutputfile,browsetothefilelocation.
To change the SCSI controller configuration YoucanchangetheSCSIcontrollerconfigurationforavirtualmachineonanESX Serverhostonly. CAUTION ChangingtheSCSIcontrollertypemightresultinavirtualmachineboot failure.
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YoucanalsospecifywhethertheSCSIbusisshared.Dependingonthetypeofsharing, virtualmachinescanaccessthesamevirtualdisksimultaneouslyonthesameserveror anyserver. 1 2 ClicktheHardwaretab. ClicktheappropriateSCSIControllerintheDevicelist.
SelecttheSCSIcontrollertypeinthelist. CAUTION ChangingtheSCSIcontrollertypemightresultinavirtualmachine bootfailure.
SelectthetypeofsharingintheSCSIBusSharinglist:

NoneVirtualdiskscannotbesharedbyothervirtualmachines. VirtualVirtualdiskscanbesharedbyvirtualmachinesonsameserver. PhysicalVirtualdiskscanbesharedbyvirtualmachinesonanyserver.
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To change the serial port configuration 1 2 ClicktheHardwaretab. ClicktheappropriateSerialportintheHardwarelist.
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IfyouselectedUsephysicalserialport,usethepulldownmenutochoosetheport onthehostcomputerthatyouwanttouseforthisserialconnection. IfyouselectedUseoutputfile,browsetothelocationofthefileonthehostthat youwanttousetostoretheoutputofthevirtualserialport. IfyouselectedUsenamedpipe,usethedefaultpipenameorenteranotherpipe nameofyourchoiceinthePipeNamelist. ForaserialpipeforavirtualmachineonanESXServerhostforLinuxhost,enter /tmp/<socket>oranotherUNIXsocketnameofyourchoice. Thendecidewhetheryouareconnectingtwovirtualmachinesorconnectinga virtualmachinetoanapplicationonthehost.
Ifyouareconnectingtwovirtualmachines,youmustconfigureaserialportasa namedpipeintwovirtualmachines:aservervirtualmachineandaclientvirtual machine. a b Fortheservervirtualmachine,selectServerintheNearendlist. Fortheclientvirtualmachine,selectClientintheNearendlist.

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SelectAvirtualmachineintheFarendlist.
Ifyouareconnectingtoanapplicationonthehost,selectServerorClientinthe Nearendlist.Ingeneral,selectServerifyouplantostartthisendoftheconnection first. a SelectAnapplicationintheFarendlist.
Bydefault,theserialportisconnectedwhenyoupoweronthevirtualmachine. YoumightdeselecttheConnectatpoweroncheckbox(optional). 8 UnderI/OMode,decidewhethertoconfigurethisserialporttouseinterrupt modeorpolledmode. Polledmodeisofinterestprimarilytodeveloperswhoareusingdebuggingtools thatcommunicateoveraserialconnection. Polledmodecausesthevirtualmachinetoconsumeadisproportionateshareof processor(orCPU)time.Thismakesthehostandotherguestsrunsluggishly.To maintainbestperformanceforapplicationsonthehost,selecttheYieldCPUon pollcheckbox.Thisforcestheaffectedvirtualmachinetouseinterruptmode, whichyieldsprocessor(orCPU)timeiftheonlytaskitistryingtodoispollthe virtualserialport. 9 ClickOKtosaveyourchanges. TheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogboxcloses. To change the virtual processor or CPU configuration IfthevirtualmachineisonanESXServerhostandyouhaveVMwareVirtualSMPfor ESXServer,whichsupportssymetricmultiprocessors(SMP),youcanconfigurea virtualmachinetohaveuptofourvirtualprocessorsorCPUs.VirtualSMPcanuse twowayorfourwaySMP. CAUTION NotallguestoperatingsystemssupportSMP,andmostthatdorequire reinstallationifthenumberofprocessorsorCPUschanges.
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1 2
ClicktheHardwaretab. ClickVirtualProcessororCPUintheHardwarelist.
Selectthenumberofvirtualprocessorsforthevirtualmachine. YoumusthaveVMwareVirtualSMPforESXServerifyouwantmorethanone virtualprocessororCPUforthevirtualmachine.IfyoudonothaveVMware VirtualSMPforESXServer,thevirtualmachinecanhaveonlyonevirtual processororCPU.
Changing Virtual Machine Options

OntheOptionstab,youcanchangetheGeneral,Power,PowerManagement,and Advancedsettings.Thevirtualmachinesettingsallowyoutodefineactionsthatoccur invariousvirtualmachinepowerstates. To change general settings 1 2 ClicktheOptionstab. Toviewthegeneraloptions,clickGeneralintheSettingslist. ThevirtualmachinenameisdisplayedintheVirtualmachinenamefield. Changingthenamedoesnotchangethenameofanyvirtualmachinefilesorthe associateddirectory. 3 4 5 Selectthevirtualmachinesworkinglocation. SelecttheoperatingsystemfromtheGuestoperatingsystemlist.Usethe pulldownmenutochoosetheversion. ClickOKtosaveyourchanges. TheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogboxcloses.
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To change power state options 1 2 3 ClicktheOptionstab. Viewthepoweroptions. ClickPowerintheSettingslist.
Thestopbuttononthetoolbarcanbeconfiguredtopoweroffthevirtualmachine orshutdowntheguestoperatingsystem.Theresetbuttononthetoolbarcanbe configuredtoresetthevirtualmachineorrestarttheguestoperatingsystem. 4 5 ChoosethedesiredactionsinthelistsunderPowerControls. (Optional)ConfigureVMwareToolsscriptstorunautomaticallywhenyouchange thevirtualmachinespowerstatebycheckingtheappropriateoptionsunderRun VMwareToolsscripts. ForESXServervirtualmachines,therearenoscriptsforresumingandsuspending virtualmachines. ClickOKtosaveyourchanges. TheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogboxcloses.
NOTE
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To change power management options 1 2 3 ClicktheOptionstab. Viewthepowermanagementoptions. ClickPowerManagementintheSettingslist.
GuestPowerManagementallowsyoutodeterminehowthevirtualmachine respondswhentheguestoperatingsystem(OS)isplacedonstandby. 4 5 6 UnderGuestPowerManagement,selecteitherSuspendtheVirtualMachineor StandbytheguestOS,andleavethevirtualmachinepoweredon. (Optional)Ifyouelectedtoleavethevirtualmachineon,selectWakeonLANfor virtualmachinetrafficonyourvirtualmachinenetworkbyselectingthecheckbox. ClickOKtosaveyourchanges. TheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogboxcloses. To change advanced virtual machine settings 1 2 3 ClicktheOptionstab. Viewtheadvancedoptions. ClickAdvancedintheSettingslist.
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TheAdvancedpaneappearswiththefollowingoptions:
Toenabledebuggingmode,selecttheEnabledebugginginformationcheck box. Youcanrunavirtualmachinesoitcollectsadditionaldebugginginformation thatishelpfultoVMwaretechnicalsupportinresolvingissues.
Todisableacceleration,selecttheDisableaccelerationcheckbox. Youcanenableanddisableaccelerationwhilethevirtualmachineisrunning. Inrareinstances,youmightfindthatwhenyouinstallorrunsoftwareinside avirtualmachine,thevirtualmachineappearstohang.Generally,the problemoccursearlyintheprogramsexecution.Inmanycases,youcanget pasttheproblembytemporarilydisablingaccelerationinthevirtualmachine. Thissettingslowsdownvirtualmachineperformance,souseitonlyfor gettingpasttheproblemwithrunningtheprogram.Aftertheprogramstops encounteringproblems,deselectDisableacceleration.Youmightthenbeable toruntheprogramwithacceleration.
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Toenablelogging,selecttheEnableloggingcheckbox. Thisoptionstartslogstocollectdata.
ClicktheAdvancedtoviewthemask,whichspecifiestheCPUcapabilitiesthat thisvirtualmachinerequires. ThismaskandtheguestOSmaskareusedbyVirtualCentertodeterminewhether adestinationhostisviableformigrationormigrationwithVMotion.
RefertoMigrationwithVMotiononpage 233formoreinformationonVMotion compatibilityandCPUmasks. 5 ClicktheLegendbuttontoviewthelegendforthedialogbox.
Clicktheclosebuttontoexitthelegend.
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Tomodifyoraddconfigurationparametersasneededforexperimentalfeaturesor asinstructedbytechnicalsupport,clicktheConfigurationParametersbutton. TheConfigurationParametersdialogboxappears.
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Whenyouarethrough,clickOKtoexitthedialogbox. ClickOKtosaveyourchanges. TheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogboxcloses.
Changing Virtual Machine Resource Settings

IntheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogbox,youcanadjustthehostresource allocationfortheselectedvirtualmachine.YoucanchangeCPU,memory,disk,and advancedCPUresourcesfromthistab. Formoreinformationonresources,refertotheResourceManagementGuide.
CPU Resources
TheCPUResourcespanelletsyouallocateprocessorresourcesforavirtualmachine, specifyingreservations,limits,andshares.Youcaneditsomeofthesameinformation ontheResourcePoolstabofthemainVIClientwindow,whichyoumightdotoedit resourcesettingsatthesametimeyoueditedothervirtualmachinesettings.
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To change CPU settings 1 2 ClicktheResourcestab. SelectCPUintheSettingslist.
Selectasharesvalue,whichrepresentsarelativemetricforallocatingCPU capacity.
SharesThevaluesLow,Normal,High,andCustomarecomparedtothe sumofallsharesofallvirtualmachinesontheserverandtheserviceconsole. Shareallocationsymbolicvaluescanbeusedtoconfiguretheirconversion intonumericvalues. ReservationGuaranteedCPUallocationforthisvirtualmachine. LimitUpperlimitforthisvirtualmachinesCPUallocation.Select Unlimitedtospecifynoupperlimit.
Formoreinformationonsharevalues,refertotheResourceManagementGuide. 4 ClickOKtosaveyourchanges. TheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogboxcloses.
Advanced CPU Settings

TheAdvancedCPUResourcespanelletsyousetlowleveloptionsthatinvolve schedulingthevirtualmachineprocessingtophysicalprocessorcoresand hyperthreads.ThispaneldoesnotappearforvirtualmachinesinaDRSclusterorwhen thehosthasonlyoneprocessorcoreandnohyperthreading.
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Hyperthreadingtechnologyallowsasinglephysicalprocessortobehaveliketwo logicalprocessors.Theprocessorcanruntwoindependentapplicationsatthesame time.Whilehyperthreadingdoesnotdoubletheperformanceofasystem,itcan increaseperformancebybetterutilizingidleresources.Fordetailedinformationabout hyperthreadinganditsuseinVMwareInfrastructure,seetheResourceManagement Guide(chooseHelp>Manuals). VMwareESXServergenerallymanagesprocessorschedulingwell,evenwhen hyperthreadingisenabled.Thesettingsonthispageareusefulonlyforfinegrained tweakingofcriticalvirtualmachines. TheHyperthreadingSharingoptionprovidesdetailedcontroloverwhetheravirtual machineshouldbescheduledtoshareaphysicalprocessorcore(assuming hyperthreadingisenabledonthehostatall). TheSchedulingAffinityoptionallowsfinegrainedcontroloverhowvirtualmachine CPUsaredistributedacrossthehostsphysicalcores(andhyperthreadsif hyperthreadingisenabled). To change Advanced CPU settings 1 2 ClicktheResourcestab. SelectAdvancedCPUintheSettingslist.
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ChooseHyperthreadingSharingModefromthepulldownmenu.Theoptionsare:
Any(default)ThevirtualCPUsofthisvirtualmachinecanfreelysharecores withothervirtualCPUsofthisorothervirtualmachines. NoneThevirtualCPUsofthisvirtualmachinehaveexclusiveuseofa processorcorewhenevertheyarescheduledtoit.Theotherhyperthreadof thecoreishaltedwhilethisvirtualmachineisusingthecore. InternalOnavirtualmachinewithexactlytwovirtualprocessors,thetwo virtualprocessorsareallowedtoshareonephysicalcore(atthediscretionof theESXServerscheduler),butthisvirtualmachineneversharesacorewith anyothervirtualmachine.Ifthisvirtualmachinehasanyothernumberof processorsotherthantwo,thissettingisthesameastheNonesetting.
4 NOTE
ChoosetoscheduleaffinitybyselectingtheRunonprocessor(s)radiobutton. ThisoptionisnotallowedwhenthevirtualmachineresidesonaDRScluster,and itsvaluesareclearedwhenavirtualmachineismigratedtoanewhost.Thevalue oftheoptionisonlyintuningtheperformanceofaprecisesetofvirtualmachines onthesamehost. Thecheckboxesfortheindividualprocessorsrepresentphysicalcoresif hyperthreadingisdisabledorlogicalcores(twoperphysicalcore)if hyperthreadingisenabled.Checkingalltheboxesisthesameasnotapplyingany affinity.Youmustprovideatleastasmanyprocessoraffinitiesasthenumberof virtualCPUsinthevirtualmachine.
Memory Resources
TheMemoryResourcespanelletsyouallocatememoryresourcesforavirtualmachine andspecifyreservations,limits,andshares.Youcaneditsomeofthesameinformation ontheResourcePoolstabofthemainVIClientwindow,whichyoumightdotoedit resourcesettingsatthesametimeasothervirtualmachinesettings.
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To change memory settings 1 2 ClicktheResourcestab. SelectMemoryintheSettingslist.
FromthepulldownmenuintheResourceallocationpanel,choosearelative metricforallocatingmemorytoallvirtualmachines. SymbolicvaluesLow,Normal,High,andCustomarecomparedtothesumofall sharesofallvirtualmachinesontheserverandtheserviceconsole.Share allocationsymbolicvaluescanbeusedtoconfiguretheirconversionintonumeric values.
IntheResourceallocationpanel,usetheslidertoselecttheamountofreserved memoryandthememorylimit,orusetheupanddownarrowstoenterthe numberofMBsallocated. Formoreinformationonmemoryvalues,refertothememmanpage.
Disk Resources
TheDiskResourcespanelletsyouallocatehostdiskI/Obandwidthtothevirtualhard disksofthisvirtualmachine.DiskI/Oisahostcentricresourceandcannotbepooled acrossacluster.However,CPUandmemoryresourcesaremuchmorelikelyto constrainvirtualmachineperformancethandiskresources.
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To change disk settings 1 2 ClicktheResourcestab. SelectDiskintheSettingslist. Onthisdialogbox,youcanadjustthehostdiskallocationforthisvirtualmachine.
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IntheResourceAllocationpanel,selectthevirtualharddiskfromthelist. ClickintheSharesfield.Usethepulldownmenutochangethevaluetoallocate anumberofsharesofitsdiskbandwidthtothevirtualmachine. Sharesisavaluethatrepresentstherelativemetricforcontrollingdiskbandwidth toallvirtualmachines.ThevaluesLow,Normal,High,andCustomarecompared tothesumofallsharesofallvirtualmachinesontheserverandtheserviceconsole. Shareallocationsymbolicvaluescanbeusedtoconfiguretheirconversioninto numericvalues.
Changing the Audio Configuration

(SEEUPDATE)Whetheryouhavesoundonyourvirtualmachinedependsonyourguest operatingsystem(guestOS).IfthevirtualmachineislocatedonESXServerandyou areusingWindowsXP,soundisavailable.However,ifyourguestOSisWindows2000 or2003,soundisnotavailabletoyou. To change the audio configuration 1 2
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FromtheVirtualCenterclient,clickInventoryinthenavigationbar. Expandtheinventoryasneeded,andclicktheappropriatevirtualmachine.
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TodisplaytheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogbox,intheSummarytab,click EditPropertiesorchooseEdit>Properties. ClicktheHardwaretab. ClickAudiointheDevicelist. UnderDevicestatus,thedefaultsettingisConnectatpoweron.
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Deselectthecheckboxifyoudonotwantthesoundadaptertobeconnectedwhen thevirtualmachinepowerson. SelectUsedefaulthostsoundadaptertousethedefaulthostsoundadapter,or selectSpecifyhostsoundadapterandselectaspecificadapterfromthelist. ClickOKtosaveyourchanges. TheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogboxcloses.
Adding New Hardware

YoucanaddvirtualhardwaretoavirtualmachineusingtheAddHardwarewizard. ThevirtualhardwarethatyouaddappearsinthehardwarelistdisplayedintheVirtual MachinePropertieswizard. To start the wizard 1 2 3 FromtheVirtualCenterclient,clickInventoryinthenavigationbar.Expandthe inventoryasneeded,andclicktheappropriatevirtualmachine. TodisplaytheVirtualMachinePropertiesdialogbox,clicktheEditSettingslinkin theCommandspanel. ClicktheHardwaretab.
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ClickAddtostarttheAddHardwarewizard.
Followthestepsinthefollowingsectionstoaddvarioustypesofvirtualhardware toyourvirtualmachine. To add a serial port 1 2 3 4 5 StarttheAddHardwarewizard. SelectSerialPort,andclickNext. Selectthetypeofmediayouwantthevirtualporttoaccess:useaphysicalserial portonthehost,outputtoafile,orconnecttoanamedpipe. ClickNext. IfyouselectedUsephysicalserialportonthehost,usethepulldownlistto choosetheportonthehostcomputerthatyouwanttouseforthisserial connection. IfyouselectedOutputtofile,browsetothefileonthehostthatyouwanttouseto storetheoutputofthevirtualserialport. IfyouselectedConnecttonamedpipe,enterapipenameinthePipeNamefield andusethepulldownmenustochoosethenearandfarendsofthepipe.
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Theoptionsforthenearendareclientorserver.Theoptionsforthefarendarea processoravirtualmachine. Bydefault,theserialportisconnectedwhenyoupoweronthevirtualmachine. 8 9 (Optional)YoumaydeselecttheConnectatpoweroncheckbox. (Optional)DeselecttheI/OmodeYieldCPUonpollcheckboxifyouwantto configurethisserialporttouseinterruptmodeasopposedtopolledmode. Polledmodeisofinterestprimarilytodeveloperswhoareusingdebuggingtools thatcommunicateoveraserialconnection.Polledmodecausesthevirtualmachine toconsumeadisproportionateshareofCPUtime.Thismakesthehostandother guestsrunsluggishly. 10 (Optional)Tomaintainbestperformanceforapplicationsonthehost,selectthe YieldCPUonpollcheckbox. Thisforcestheaffectedvirtualmachinetouseinterruptmode,whichyieldsCPU timeiftheonlytaskitistryingtodoispollthevirtualserialport. 11 ReviewtheinformationontheReadytoCompletewindow,andclickFinish.
To add a parallel port 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 StarttheAddHardwarewizard. SelectParallelPort,andclickNext. SelectphysicalparallelportonthehostorOutputtofile. ClickNext. IfyouselectedUsephysicalparallelportonthehost,choosetheportfromthe pulldownlist.IfyouselectedOutputtofile,browsetothelocationofthefile. UnderDevicestatus,deselecttheConnectatpoweroncheckboxifyoudonot wanttheparallelportdevicetobeconnectedwhenthevirtualmachinepowerson. ClickNext. ReviewtheinformationontheReadytoCompletewindow,andclickFinish.
Adding DVD/CD-ROM or Floppy Devices

UsingtheVIClient,youcangiveavirtualmachineaccesstoaCDorfloppydevicefrom theclientsmachine.Thismeans,forexample,thatyoucouldinstallaprogramina virtualmachinerunningonaremoteESXServerbyputtingaCDinadriveona desktoporlaptopmachine.
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To add a DVD/CD-ROM drive 1 2 3 StarttheAddHardwarewizard. SelectDVD/CDROMDrive,andclickNext. SelecteitherUsephysicaldriveorUseISOimage. a IfyouselectedUsephysicaldrive,selecteitherclientorhostasthedevice location.Choosethedriveyouwanttousefromthepulldownlist. Selectpassthroughandusethecheckboxtoindicatewhethertoconnect exclusivelytothevirtualmachine,orselectATAPIemulation.
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IfyouselectedUseISOImage,enterthepathandfilenamefortheimagefile, orclickBrowsetonavigatetothefile.
IfyoudonotwanttheCDROMdriveconnectedwhenthevirtualmachinestarts, deselectConnectatpoweron. ClickNext. Specifythevirtualdevicenodethedriveusesinthevirtualmachine,andclick Next. ReviewtheinformationontheReadytoCompletewindow,andclickFinishor Backifyouwanttochangeanyinformation.
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To add a floppy drive 1 2 3 StarttheAddHardwarewizard. SelectFloppyDrive,andclickNext. Selectthetypeoffloppymediatouse:

Aphysicalfloppydrivetogivetheguestaccesstothefloppyonthehost. Afloppyimage,whichisafileonthehostthatstoresdatainthesameformat asaphysicalfloppydisk. Ablankfloppyimagetocreateanduseablankfloppyimage.
ClickNext.
IfyouselectedUseaphysicalfloppydrive,selecteitherclientorhostasthedevice locationandchoosethedrivefromthepulldownlist. a b IfyouselectedUseafloppyimage,browsetothefloppyimage. IfyouselectedCreateablankfloppyimage,browsetothefloppyimage.
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Tohavethefloppydriveconnectedtothevirtualmachinewhenyoupoweriton, selectConnectatpoweron. ClickNext. ReviewtheinformationontheReadytoCompletewindow,andclickFinish.
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To add an Ethernet adapter (NIC) 1 2 StarttheAddHardwarewizard. SelectEthernetAdapter,andclickNext.
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IntheNetworkconnectionpanel,chooseeitheranamednetworkwithaspecified labeloralegacynetwork. ToconnectthevirtualNICwhenthevirtualmachineispoweredon,selectConnect atpoweron. Tocompletethewizard,clickFinish.
To add a hard disk 1 2 3 StarttheAddHardwarewizard. SelectHardDisk,andclickNext. Selectthetypeofstorageforthevirtualmachinesdisk,andclickNext. Youcanstorevirtualmachinedatainanewvirtualdisk,anexistingvirtualdisk, oraMappedSANLUN.Avirtualdisk,whichappearsasasingleharddisktothe guestoperatingsystem,iscomposedofoneormorefilesonthehostfilesystem. Virtualdiskscaneasilybecopiedormovedonthesamehostorbetweenhosts.
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IfyouselectedCreateanewvirtualdisk,enterthediskcapacityandselectthe locationaseitherStorewiththevirtualmachineorSpecifyadatastore. Browseforthedatastorelocation,andclickNext. Ifyouselectedanexistingdisk,browseforthediskfilepathandclickNext. IfyouchoseMappedSANLUN: a b c SelecttheLUNthatyouwanttousefortherawdisk,andclickNext. SelectadatastoreandclickNext. Selectthecompatibilitymode:physicaltoallowtheguestoperatingsystemto accessthehardwaredirectlyorvirtualtoallowthevirtualmachinetouse VMwaresnapshotsandotheradvancedfunctions.
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ClickNext. Specifythevirtualdevicenode,andclickNext. Reviewtheinformation,andclickFinish.
To add a SCSI device 1 2 3 4 5 StarttheAddHardwarewizard. SelectSCSIDevice,andclickNext. UnderConnection,usethepulldownmenutochoosethephysicaldeviceyou wanttouse. ToconnectthisvirtualmachinetotheserversSCSIdevicewhenthevirtual machineispoweredon,selectConnectatpoweron. UnderVirtualdevicenode,selectthevirtualdevicenodewhereyouwantthis devicetoappearinthevirtualmachine. Youcanalsoselectthecheckboxtoindicatethatthevirtualdeviceissetupinthe samewayasthephysicalunit. 6 ReviewtheinformationontheReadytoCompletewindow,andclickFinish.
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11
Customizing Guest Operating Systems
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Nowthatyouhavecreatedandconfiguredavirtualmachine,youhavetheoptionto customizetheidentityandnetworksettingsofyourvirtualmachinesguestoperating systemsothatitisreadytobeginworkimmediatelyinyourtargetenvironment. Youcansaveyourvirtualmachinesettingsinaspecificationthatyoucanrecalllater andreuse.Youdothisusingthecustomizationwizard.Therearetwowaystoaccess thecustomizationwizard:usingthecustomizationspecificationmanager,whichlets youcreatespecificationsandstoretheminthedatabaseforlateruse,andusingthe wizardwhenyourecloninganewvirtualmachine. NOTE Customizingtheguestoperatingsystemisanoptionalstepinthecloningprocess. ThischapterdescribeshowtousetheCustomizationSpecificationManagerto customizeyourguestoperatingsystems. Thischaptercontainsthefollowingsections:

PreparingforGuestCustomization(SEEUPDATE)onpage 190 CustomizingaWindowsGuestOperatingSystemonpage 190 UsingtheCustomizationSpecificationWizardonpage 196 UsingtheCloneVirtualMachineWizardonpage 199 CompletingaGuestOperatingSystemCustomizationonpage 200
(SEEUPDATE) Formoredetailsoninstallingaguestoperatingsystem,seetheGuestOperatingSystem InstallationGuide.
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Preparing for Guest Customization (SEE UPDATE)

Whenyoudeployanewvirtualmachinefromatemplateorcloneanexistingvirtual machine,youhavetheopportunitytocustomizethenewguestoperatingsystem.The GuestCustomizationwizardguidesyouthroughtheconfigurationoptions. BeforeyouruntheGuestCustomizationwizard,ifyouintendtoperformaguest customization,dothefollowing:
Verifythatyoursystemmeetstheguestcustomizationrequirements.Ifyouplanto customizeaWindowsguestoperatingsystem,youmustinstallthecomponents requiredtosupportaWindowsguestoperatingsystemcustomization.Thisis describedinAppendix B,InstallingtheMicrosoftSysprepTools,onpage 345. InstalltherequiredcomponentsontheWindowsmachinewheretheVirtualCenter serverisinstalled. AfterdeployingandcustomizingnonvolumelicensedversionsofWindows XPor Windows 2003,youmightneedtoreactivateyourMicrosoftoperatingsystemon thenewvirtualmachine.
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Customizing a Windows Guest Operating System

Thecustomizingprocessvaries,dependingupontheguestoperatingsystemtobeused inthenewvirtualmachine.TocustomizeaWindows2000,WindowsXPProfessional, orWindowsServer2003guestoperatingsystemwhiledeployingatemplateorcloning avirtualmachine,performthefollowingsteps. To customize a Windows guest operating system YoucannotstarttheGuestCustomizationwizardfromamenuortoolbaroption.The GuestCustomizationwizardstartsindirectlyfromtheDeployTemplateWizardor CloneVirtualMachineWizard. 1 StarttheGuestCustomizationwizard.
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Chapter 11 Customizing Guest Operating Systems
OntheRegistrationInformationpage,enterthevirtualmachineownersname andorganization.ClickNext.
Thisinformationisforreferencepurposes.Itdoesnotaffecthowthevirtual machinefunctions.IntheNamefield,youcanenterthenameofaperson,user,or group. 3 OntheComputerNamepage,specifytheComputerNameforthevirtual machine.ClickNext.
Thecomputernameisthenamegiventotheparticularinstanceofaguest operatingsystem.Theoperatingsystemusesthisnametoidentifyitselfonthe
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network.OnWindowssystems,itiscalledthecomputername.Onmostother operatingsystems,itiscalledthehostname.Thisisnotthesameasthevirtual machinenamethatwasdeclaredearlierintheDeployTemplateWizardorClone VirtualMachineWizard.Youcanspecifythecomputernameintheseways:
ByassigningaspecificnameThenamecancontainalphanumeric charactersandtheunderscore(_)andhyphen()characters.Itcannotcontain periods(.)orblankspacesandcannotbemadeupofdigitsonly.Ifyouwant toensurethatthenameisuniquesothatyoudonotincurconflicts,select Appendanumericvaluetoensureuniqueness. ByusingthevirtualmachinesnameThecomputernamethat VirtualCentercreatesisidenticaltothenameofthevirtualmachineonwhich theguestoperatingsystemisrunning. ByrespondingtopromptsforanameTheVIClientpopulatestheDeploy VirtualMachineWizardwithapromptforthecomputernameafteryou completeallthestepsinthewizard. ByusingacustomapplicationtogenerateanameTheVIClientcallsa customapplicationstoredontheVirtualCenterServertogenerateaname.If youselectthisoption,entertheabsolutepathtothecustomapplicationinthe associatedtextfield.
OntheWindowsLicensepage,specifytheWindowslicensekeyforthenewguest operatingsystem.ClickNext.
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IfyouarecustomizingaWindowsServeroperatingsystem,selecttheappropriate licensemode,PerseatorPerserver.IfyouselectPerserver,specifythemaximum numberofsimultaneousconnectionsyouwanttheservertoaccept. 5 OntheAdministratorPasswordpage,typeandconfirmtheadministrator passwordforthevirtualmachine.ClickNext.
Ifyouleavethepasswordblank,theVIClientasksyoutoconfirmthat Administratorusersarentrequiredtoprovideapassword. NOTE IfyouspecifyanewadministratorpasswordandthesourceWindowsvirtual machineortemplatealreadyhasone,youmustselectDeletealluseraccountsin Step 11.Otherwise,theoldadministratorpassworddoesnotchange. Ifyouwanttoautomaticallylogonasadministratorwhenthevirtualmachine boots,selectAutomaticallylogonastheadministratorandspecifyhowmany timesautomaticlogonistobeperformed.Thisisusefulifyouknowyouwillhave aseriesofrebootsbeforethevirtualmachineisreadyfornormallogonusers. 6 7 OntheTimeZonepage,choosethetimezoneforthevirtualmachine.ClickNext. OntheRunOncepage,typeanycommandsyouwanttorunaspartofthefirst startupforthenewvirtualmachine.Afteryoutypeeachcommand,clickAdd.Use theDeleteandMoveoptionstocreatetherunorderforthecommands.Whenyou aredonewiththecommandlist,clickNext. IfyouwantVirtualCentertoautomaticallyconfigureallnetworkinterfacesfroma DHCPserver,selectTypicalsettingsontheNetworkpage.ClickNext.
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IfVirtualCenterconfigurationisnotappropriateforyourenvironment,select Customsettings,selectthenetworkinterfacecard(NIC)tocustomizeandclick Customizetomakeadditionalspecifications. TheNetworkPropertiesdialogboxopens.
UsetheNetworkPropertiesdialogboxtoperformthesesteps: a OntheGeneraltab,selectwhetheryouwanttouseDHCPtoobtainanIP addressautomaticallyorentertheIPaddressesmanually.Alsoselectwhether youwanttouseDHCPtoobtainanDNSserveraddressautomaticallyorenter theDNSserveraddressesmanually. OntheDNStab,specifytheDNSconnectionsbyenteringDNSsuffixes.For eachDNSsuffixyouenter,clickAdd.IfyouareaddingmultipleDNS connections,useMoveUpandMoveDowntospecifytheorderinwhicha virtualmachineistousetheconnections. OntheWINStab,specifytheprimaryandsecondaryWINSaddressesby typingtheIPaddressesintheentryboxes. ClickOKtoreturntothepreviousdialogbox.ClickNextontheNetwork GuestCustomizationsdialogbox.
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OntheWorkgrouporDomainpage,completeoneofthesesteps:
Tojoinaworkgroup,selectWorkgroup,typetheworkgroupname,andclick Next.
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Tojoinadomain,selectWindowsServerDomain,specifytheusernameofa userwhocanaddcomputerstotheWindowsdomain,andspecifytheusers password.ClickNext.
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OntheOperatingSystemOptionspage,selecttheguestoperatingsystemoptions asfollows:
GenerateNewSecurityID(SID)GeneratesanewsecurityIDforthevirtual machine. DeletealluseraccountsDeletesanyolduseraccountsfoundonthesystem. IfyouspecifiedanewadministratorpasswordinStep 5andthesource Windowsvirtualmachineortemplatealreadyhasone,thenyoumustselect theDeletealluseraccountsoptionhere.Otherwise,theoldadministrator passworddoesnotchanged.
ClickNext. 12 (Optional)OntheSaveSpecificationpage,savethecustomizedoptionsasan .xmlfilebycompletingthesesteps: a b SelectSavethiscustomizationspecificationforlateruse. Specifythepathandfilenameforthespecification,andclickNext.
VirtualCentersavesthecustomizedconfigurationparametersinan.xmlfile. Later,youcanimportthesepredefinedcustomizedparameterswhendeployinga templateorcloninganexistingvirtualmachine.Ifthecustomizationsettingsare savedtoafile,theadministratorpasswordoftheWindowsvirtualmachineand thedomainadministratorspassword,asapplicable,arestoredinencrypted formatinthe.xmlfile.SavedcustomizationfilesareuniquetoeachVirtualCenter ServerandtoeachversionofVirtualCenterduetoencryption.Youmustrecreate thecustomizationfilesforeachVirtualCenterServer.Encryptionispreserved betweenupgradeversionsonthesameVirtualCenterServer.Thismeansyoucan usethesamefilesbetweenupgradesofVirtualCenter. 13 ClickFinish. VirtualCenterclosestheGuestCustomizationwizardandreturnsyoutothe DeployTemplateWizardorCloneVirtualMachineWizard. 14 ClickFinishtodeploythevirtualmachinefromthetemplateorcreatetheclone.
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Using the Customization Specification Wizard

Thefollowingprocedurehelpsyousetupacustomizationspecificationthatcanbe usedlatertocustomizeaguestoperatingsystem. To start the Guest Customization wizard 1 ChooseEdit>CustomizationSpecifications. TheCustomizationSpecificationManagerwindowappears.Fromhere,youcan viewthepropertiesofaspecificationandcreate,edit,copy,delete,import,or exportspecifications.UsetheRefreshbuttontorefreshthedisplay. 2 Tocreateanewspecification,clicktheNewicon. TheGuestCustomizationwizardappears.
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Choosethetargetvirtualmachineoperatingsystemfromthepulldownmenu. SelectthecheckboxifyouwanttouseacustomSysprepanswerfile. Typeanameforthenewcustomizationspecificationandanoptionaldescription. ClickNext. Typetheownersnameandorganizationtoregisterthiscopyoftheguest operatingsystem.ClickNext. TheComputerNamepageappears.Inthispageyouspecifyacomputernameto identifythisvirtualmachineonanetwork.
Tospecifyanameforthecomputer,selecttheradiobuttonforoneofthefollowing:
Useaspecificname
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Withthisoption,youmusttypeanameinthetextfield.Selectthecheckbox ifyouwanttoappendanumericvaluetothespecificcomputernameto ensureuniquenessofname.

UsetheVirtualMachineName PrompttheuserforanameintheDeploywizard UseacustomapplicationconfiguredwiththeVirtualCenterserverto generateaname Withthisselection,yousupplyanargument.
ClickNext. TheoperatingsystemLicensepageappears.
IntheLicensepage,typetheproductIDifthevirtualmachinerequireslicensing information. Somevirtualmachinesmightnotrequirelicensinginformation.Inthatcase,leave thesefieldsblank.
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SelectthecheckboxforIncludeServerLicenseInformationifyouare customizingaserverguestoperatingsystem. Selecteitherperseatorperserveroperatingsystem,enterthemaximum connectionsforserverlicensemode,andclickNext. OntheAdministratorPasswordpanel,typeapasswordandconfirmitforthe administratoraccount. Ifyoudonotenterapassword,awarningdialogboxappears.
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Selectthecheckboxifyouwanttoautomaticallylogonastheadministrator,and choosethenumberoftimestologon. ClickNext. Usethepulldownmenutochooseatimezone,andclickNext. IntheRunOncepage,specifycommandstoberunthefirsttimeauserlogson. Usethenavigationbuttonstoadd,delete,andmovecommandsupordown. ClickNext. Specifythenetworkinterfacesettingsifyouwanttocustomizethesoftware settingsforeachnetworkinterface.Selecttheradiobuttonfortypicalsettingsto enableDHCPforallnetworkinterfacesortheradiobuttonforcustomsettingsto manuallyconfigureeachnetworkinterface.
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ClickNext. IntheWorkgrouporDomainpage,selectthewayinwhichthevirtualmachine participatesinthenetwork,selecttheradiobuttonforworkgroupandentera workgroupname,orselecttheradiobuttonforWindowsserverdomainandenter thedomain. Inthelattercase,youmustalsoenterausernameandpasswordforauseraccount thathaspermissiontoaddacomputertothespecifieddomain.
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ClickNext. IntheOperatingSystemOptionspage,selectGenerateNewSecurityID(SID)to generateanewsecurityidentifieroryoucandeletealluseraccountstoremoveall useraccounts,includingAdministrator. SelectthesecondoptionifyouarechangingtheAdministratorpasswordandthe templatevirtualmachinehasanonemptyAdministratorpassword.
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ClickNext. Reviewtheinformationyouhaveentered,andclickFinish. ThespecificationappearsintheCustomizationSpecificationManagerpageand canbeusedtocustomizeaguestoperatingsystem.
SavedcustomizationfilesareuniquetoeachVirtualCenterServerandtoeach versionofVirtualCenterduetoencryption.Youhavetorecreatethecustomization filesforeachVirtualCenterServer.Encryptionispreservedbetweenupgrade versionsonthesameVirtualCenterServer.Thismeansyoucanusethesamefiles betweenupgradesofVirtualCenter.However,ifyouuninstallVirtualCenterand laterdoafreshinstallation,theabilitytodecryptpasswordsfromtheearlier installationislost. 25 Toviewthepropertiesofaspecification,clickthePropertiesicon.
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TheCustomizationSpecificationPropertiesdialogboxappears.
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ClickOKtoclosethedialogbox. ClicktheEditicontoredisplaytheGuestCustomizationwizard,andchangethe informationforthespecification. ClicktheCopyicontocreateacopyofthespecificationlabeledCopyof<spec name>,whichisdisplayedinthespecificationmanager. Todeleteaspecification,selectitandclicktheDeleteicon. Thespecificationisdeletedfromthespecificationmanager.
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Toimportanexistingspecificationintothemanager,clicktheImporticonand selectthespecificationintheBrowsedialogbox. Toexportaspecification,clicktheExporticonandchooseaSaveAslocation. Usethemaximize,minimize,andclosebuttonstomaximize,minimize,orexitthe specificationmanager.
Using the Clone Virtual Machine Wizard

YouhaveasecondopportunitytoaccesstheGuestCustomizationwizardattheendof thedeploymentwizard.Here,youhavetheabilitytoloadasavedcustomization specification.Youcanchoosetogetthespecificationfromthelocaldiskorfromthe server.Ifyouchoosenottoloadasavedspecification,thewizardopenswithblank fields. Usethefollowingprocedurewhenyouaresettingupyournewvirtualmachine.You usethespecificationthatyousetupintheprevioussectionasyousetupavirtual machineinthefollowingprocedure.
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Formoreinformationonusingthecustomizationwizard,seeCustomizinga WindowsGuestOperatingSystemonpage 190. To load a saved customization specification using the Clone Virtual Machine wizard 1 ChooseInventory>VirtualMachine>Clone. TheCloneVirtualMachinewizardappears. 2 MovethroughthewizarduntilyoureachtheSelectGuestCustomizationOption pagefromwhichyoucancustomizeusingtheCustomizationwizardorcustomize usinganexistingcustomizationspecificationselectedfromthespecification managerslist.
Completing a Guest Operating System Customization

Thefinalcustomizationstepsoccurwhenthenewvirtualmachinebootsforthefirst time.Aspartofthisprocess,themachinemightrebootanumberoftimes.The customizationprocessdoesnotcompleteuntiltheguestoperatingsystemboots,runs thefinalizationscripts,andreachesthelogonpage. Ifthenewvirtualmachineencounterscustomizationerrorswhileitisbooting,the errorsarereportedusingtheguestssystemloggingmechanism.InLinux,theseerrors areloggedto/var/log/vmware/customization.log.InWindows,theyarewritten totheapplicationeventlog. Thestepsrequiredtofinalizeguestoperatingsystemcustomizationarecoveredinthe followingsections:

CompletingLinuxGuestOperatingSystemCustomizationonpage 200 CompletingWindowsGuestOperatingSystemCustomizationonpage 201
Completing Linux Guest Operating System Customization

AcustomizedLinuxvirtualmachinedoesnotneedanyadditionalrebootingandis operationalassoonasthelogonpageappearsafterthefirstboot.Ifconfigurationerrors occur,theyaredisplayedonthevirtualmachinesconsolewindowwhiletheguest operatingsystemisbooting.
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Completing Windows Guest Operating System Customization

Whenacustomizedvirtualmachineispoweredonforthefirsttime,itsguestoperating systemrunsasetofscriptsthatfinalizesthecustomizationandconfigurationprocess. Dependingontheguestoperatingsystemtype,thisprocessmightrequireadditional rebooting,whichisautomaticallyperformedbythescripts. Thecustomizationprocessinstallsscriptsthatrunonceinthetargetvirtualmachine whenitpowersonorbootsforthefirsttimeafterbeingcreatedorcloned.Thosescripts completethecustomizationprocessbyperformingfinalconfigurationoperationson theguestoperatingsystem. Afterpoweringonforthefirsttime,acustomizedWindowsvirtualmachine automaticallyrebootstwicetofinalizetheconfigurationprocess.Itbecomes operationalwhenthelogonpageappearsafterthesecondreboot.Thisprocesscantake severalminutes,dependingonthespeedandloadofthehost.Ifanyerrorsoccur duringthefinalconfigurationprocess,eventsareloggedtotheguestoperating systemseventdatabase.Toviewtheseerrors,chooseStart>Program>Administrative Tools>EventViewerfromtheWindowsStartmenu. Ifanyoftheinformationrequiredintheconfigurationfinalizationprocessisnot correct,theguestoperatingsystempauseswhenthenewvirtualmachinebootsand waitsforyoutoenterthecorrectinformation.Incorrectinformationmightinclude:
Thecomputernameisnotunique.Thecomputernamemustbeuniqueforthe networkonwhichthemachineisdeployed. Theproductkeyisincorrect. Theuserspecifiedtojoinadomainthatdoesnotexist. TheDHCPserverforthenetworkisnotfunctioningproperly.
To determine if the system is waiting for information Openthevirtualmachinesconsoletoseeifthesystemiswaitingforinformation.
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Working with Templates and Clones
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Thischapterdescribescreatingtemplatesandcloningvirtualmachines. Thischaptercontainsthefollowingsections:

UnderstandingTemplatesonpage 203 CreatingTemplatesonpage 204 EditingaTemplateonpage 208 DeployingVirtualMachinesfromTemplatesonpage 209 DeletingaTemplateonpage 212 RegainingTemplatesonpage 213 CreatingaScheduledTasktoCloneaVirtualMachineonpage 218
Understanding Templates
Atemplateisagoldenimageofavirtualmachinethatcanbeusedasamastercopyto createandprovisionnewvirtualmachines.Thisimagetypicallyincludesaspecified operatingsystemandconfigurationthatprovidesvirtualcounterpartstohardware components.Typically,atemplateincludesaninstalledguestoperatingsystemanda setofapplications. Templatescoexistwithvirtualmachinesatanylevelwithinthetemplateandvirtual machinedomain.Youcanordercollectionsofvirtualmachinesandtemplatesinto arbitraryfoldersandapplyavarietyofpermissionstobothvirtualmachinesand templates.Virtualmachinescanbetransformedintotemplateswithoutrequiringafull copyofthevirtualmachinefilesandthecreationofanewobject.
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Youcanusetemplatestocreatenewvirtualmachinesbydeployingthetemplateasa virtualmachine.Whencomplete,thedeployedvirtualmachineisaddedtothefolder chosenbytheuserwhenthetemplatewascreated. Toviewtemplates,selectthedatacenterandselecttheVirtualMachinestab.Allvirtual machinesandtemplatesforthedatacenterarevisiblefromhere.Virtualmachinesand templateshavedifferenticons.
virtual machine icon
template icon
Creating Templates
Therearethreewaystocreateatemplate:
Usinganexistingvirtualmachineinplace.Thisprocessconvertstheoriginal virtualmachine. Cloningavirtualmachinetoatemplate. Cloninganexistingtemplate.
To create a template in place from a virtual machine 1 2 StarttheVIClientandlogontotheVirtualCenterServer. ClicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar.
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Chapter 12 Working with Templates and Clones
Theinventorypanelandtheinformationpaneldisplayinformationabout manageddatacenters,hosts,resourcepools,andvirtualmachines.Theinventory toolbarappears. 3 4 5 Expandtheinventoryasneeded,andselectavirtualmachine. Poweroffthevirtualmachine. FromtheCommandsareaorthepopupmenu,clickConverttoTemplate. VirtualCentermarksthatvirtualmachineasatemplateanddisplaysthetaskinthe RecentTaskspane.
To clone a virtual machine to a template 1 2 3 4 StarttheVIclient,andlogontotheVirtualCenterServer. ClickInventoryinthenavigationbartodisplaytheinventorypanel. Ifthevirtualmachineyouwanttocloneispoweredon,rightclickitandclick PowerOff. RightclickthevirtualmachineandclickClonetoTemplate.
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TheCloneVirtualMachinetoTemplatewizardappears.
Givethenewtemplateanameanddescription,andclickNext. Enterausefulnamethatdescribesthetemplate.Descriptioninformationcan include,forexample,theoperatingsystem,applications,versions,andintended usesforthetemplate.Thenamecanbeupto80characterslongandcancontain alphanumericcharactersandtheunderscore(_)andhyphen()characters.It shouldalsobeuniqueacrossalltemplatesandvirtualmachinesinthedatacenter.
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Passthroughthetargetlocationpage.ClickNext. ClickFinish. VirtualCenterdisplaystheTasksinventorypanelforreferenceandaddsthecloned templatetothelistintheinformationpanel.
To clone an existing template 1 2 3 StarttheVIclient,andlogontotheVirtualCenterServer. ClicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar. Selectthedatacenterthatcontainsthetemplate. Thevirtualmachinesandtemplatesassociatedwiththedatacenterappearinthe datacenterpanel. 4 RightclickthetemplateandchooseClone.
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TheCloneTemplatewizardappears.
Givethenewtemplateanameanddescription,andclickNext. Enterausefulnameandabriefdescriptionofthetemplate.Description informationcaninclude,forexample,theoperatingsystem,applications,versions, andintendedusesforthetemplate.Thenamecanbeupto80characterslong,and cancontainalphanumericcharactersandtheunderscore (_)andhyphen()characters.Itshouldalsobeuniqueacrossalltemplatesand virtualmachinesinthedatacenter.
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Selectthehostorcluster,andclickNext. Chooseadatastoreforthetemplate.ClickNext.
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SelectaradiobuttontoeitherleavethevirtualdisksintheirNormalvirtual machineformatortoCompactthevirtualdiskstominimizestorage.ClickNext.
OntheReadytoCompletewindow,reviewtheinformationforyournewvirtual machine,andclickFinish. Youcannotusethenewtemplateuntilthecloningtaskcompletes.VirtualCenter addstheclonedtemplatetothelistintheVirtualMachinestab.
Editing a Template
Youmightwanttoedityourtemplate(toupgradeanapplication,forexample). However,templatescannotbeeditedastemplates.Youmustconvertthetemplatetoa virtualmachine,editit,andconverttheeditedvirtualmachinetoatemplate. To edit the template 1 2 3 Ifyouwanttoeditthepropertiesofatemplate,convertthetemplatetoavirtual machine. Editthevirtualmachine. Convertthevirtualmachinetoatemplate.
Youcandirectlychangethenameofatemplateusingtheprocedurebelow.
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To change the name of a template 1 2 3 4 5 6 FromtheVirtualCenterclient,clicktheInventorybutton. Selectthedatacenterthatcontainsthetemplate. SelecttheVirtualMachinestab. Clickonthetemplate.Clickthetemplateagain. Thenameofthevirtualmachineisnowaneditablefield. Changethename,andclickoutsidethefield.
Deploying Virtual Machines from Templates

Thisproceduredeploysavirtualmachinefromanexistingtemplate. To deploy a virtual machine from a template 1 2 StarttheVIClient,andlogontotheVirtualCenterServer. ClicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar. Theinventorypanelandtheinformationpaneldisplayinformationabout manageddatacenters,hosts,resourcepools,andvirtualmachines.Theinventory toolbarappears. 3 Selectthedatacenterthatcontainsthetemplate,andclicktheVirtualMachines tab. Thevirtualmachinesandtemplatesassociatedwiththedatacenterappearinthe datacenterpanel. 4 Rightclickthetemplate,andchooseDeployVirtualMachinefromthis Template.
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TheDeployTemplatewizardappears.
Givethenewvirtualmachineaname,selectalocation,andclickNext. Thenamecanbeupto80characterslongandcancontainalphanumericcharacters andtheunderscore(_)andhyphen()characters.Itshouldalsobeuniqueacross alltemplatesandvirtualmachinesinthedatacenter.
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OntheHost/Clusterpage,selectthehostonwhichyouwanttostorethetemplate andclickNext. Selectaresourcepool(ifapplicable)inwhichyouwanttorunthevirtualmachine, andclickNext. Resourcepoolsallowhierarchicalmanagementofresourceswithinahostor cluster.Virtualmachinesandchildpoolssharetheresourcesoftheirparentpool.
Chooseadatastoreforthevirtualmachine,andclickNext. Youarechoosingthedatastoreinwhichtostorethefilesforthevirtualmachine. Youshouldchooseonethatislargeenoughtoaccommodatethevirtualmachine andallofitsvirtualdiskfilessothattheycanallresideinthesameplace. TheAdvancedbuttonallowsyoutostoreindividualfilesinseparatelocations.To returntothedatastoreselectionpage,clicktheBasicbutton.
OntheSelectGuestCustomizationOptionpage,performoneoftheseactions:
Ifyoudonotwanttocustomizeyourguestoperatingsystem,selectDonot customizeandclickNext. Ifyouwanttocustomizeyourguestoperatingsystem,clickoneoftheother selectionsasappropriate.Youcustomizeguestoperatingsystemsthroughthe GuestCustomizationWizardorbyusinganexistingcustomization

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specificationthatyoucreate.Forinstructions,seeCustomizingGuest OperatingSystemsonpage 189. TheVIClientmightdisplayerrormessagesonthispageofthewizardiftheguest isnotcustomizable. 10 OntheReadytoCompletewindow,reviewtheinformationforyournewvirtual machine,selectthePoweronthenewVirtualMachineaftercreationcheckboxif youwanttopoweronthevirtualmachineimmediately,andclickFinish. AfteryouclickFinish,youcannotuseoreditthevirtualmachineuntilthetask completes.Thismighttakeseveralminutes.Thevirtualmachineisaddedtothe datastore. To convert a template to a virtual machine 1 2 StartVirtualCenterclient,andlogontotheVirtualCenterServer. ClicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar. Theinventorypanelandtheinformationpaneldisplayinformationabout manageddatacenters,hosts,resourcepools,andvirtualmachines.Theinventory toolbarappears. 3 Selectthedatacenterthatcontainsthetemplate. Thevirtualmachinesandtemplatesassociatedwiththedatacenterappearinthe datacenterpanel. 4 ClicktheVirtualMachinestab.
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Fromthepopupmenu,chooseConverttoVirtualMachine.
Thetemplateisconvertedtoavirtualmachine.
Deleting a Template
Thisprocedureunregistersanddeletesthetemplate. To delete an existing template 1 2 3 4 ClicktheInventorybutton. Selecttheappropriatetemplate. Rightclickthetemplate,andchooseRemovefromInventory. ConfirmremovingthetemplatefromtheVirtualCenterdatabase.ClickOK.
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AllnondatastoretemplatefilesareremovedfromtheVirtualCenterinventory.
To delete a template from disk CAUTION Afteratemplateisdeletedfromahost,thereisnowaytorecoverit.
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StartVirtualCenterclient,andlogontotheVirtualCenterServer. ClicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar,andselectthehostthatcontains thetemplate. RightclickthedatastorethatcontainsthetemplateandselectBrowseDatastore. Browsethroughthedatastorefolderstofindthe.vmtxfile. Rightclickthe.vmtxfileandselectDeletefromDisk. Thetemplateisdeletedfromthediskandcannotberecovered.
Regaining Templates
Templatesareassociatedwithhosts,andtheonlywaytoregainorregistertemplates afterremovingandaddingahostistousethedatastorebrowsertolocatethetemplate. Thenusetheinventorywizardtonameandregisterthe.vmtxfileasatemplateback intoVirtualCenter. To regain a template: 1 2 3 4 StartVirtualCenterclient,andlogontotheVirtualCenterServer. ClicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar,andselectthehostthatcontains thetemplate. RightclickthedatastorethatcontainsthetemplateandselectBrowseDatastore. Browsethroughthedatastorefolderstofindthe.vmtxfile.
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Rightclickthe.vmtxfileandselectAddtoInventory.
TheAddtoInventorywizardappears.
Enteratemplatemachinename,selectalocation,andclickNext. Selectahostorclusteronwhichtostorethetemplate,andclickNext.
Reviewyourselections,andclickFinish.
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ThetemplateisregisteredtothehostandcanbeviewedfromthehostsVirtual Machinetab.
Cloning an Existing Virtual Machine

Acloneisacopypluscustomizationofavirtualmachine.Whenyoucreateaclone, VirtualCenterprovidesanoptiontocustomizetheguestoperatingsystemofthat virtualmachine.Youcanplacethenewcloneonanyhostwithinthesamedatacenter astheoriginalvirtualmachine. To clone a virtual machine 1 2 StartVirtualCenterandlogontotheVirtualCenterServer. Fromtheinventorypanel,clicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar. Theinventorypanelandtheinformationpaneldisplaythedatastores,resource pools,hosts,andvirtualmachineinformation.Theinventorytoolbarappears. 3 4 5 Expandtheinventoryasneeded,andclickthesourcevirtualmachine. Poweroffthevirtualmachine. TostarttheCloneaVirtualMachinewizard,clicktheClonetoNewVirtual MachinelinkintheCommandsarea,orchooseClonefromthepopupmenu.
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TheCloneVirtualMachinewizardappears.
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Enteravirtualmachinename,selectalocation,andclickNext. Selectahostorclusteronwhichtoruntheclone,andclickNext.
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Ifyouchooseacluster,youmustchooseaspecifichostwithinthecluster,andclick Next.
Selectaresourcepoolinwhichtoruntheclone,andclickNext.
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Selectthedatastorelocationwhereyouwanttostorethevirtualmachinefiles,and clickNext.
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ClicktheAdvancedbuttonformoreoptions,andclickNext.
TheSelectGuestCustomizationOptionpageappears.Youcanchooseto customizetheguestoperatingsystemusingthewizardorusinganexisting customizationspecification.Youcanalsochoosenottocustomize. Formoreinformation,seeCustomizingGuestOperatingSystemsonpage 189. 12 13 Selecttheappropriateradiobutton,andclickNext. Reviewyourselections,andclickFinish. OntheReadytoCompleteNewVirtualMachinepage,youcanselectthecheckbox topoweronthenewvirtualmachineaftercreation.AfteryouclickFinish,you cannotuseoreditthevirtualmachineuntilthetaskcompletes.Ifthetaskinvolves thecreationofavirtualdisk,itcouldtakeseveralminutestocomplete.
Creating a Scheduled Task to Clone a Virtual Machine

Thisprocedurecreatesascheduledtasktocloneavirtualmachine. To create a scheduled task to clone a virtual machine 1 ClicktheScheduledTasksbuttoninthenavigationbar. Thelistofscheduledtasksappears. 2 ChooseFile>New>ScheduledTask,orclicktheNewbutton. TheSelectaTasktoScheduledialogboxappears. 3 UsethepulldownmenutochooseCloneavirtualmachine,andclickOK. TheCloneVirtualMachinewizardappears.
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Selectthevirtualmachinetoclone,andclickNext. Followthewizardthroughthesamestepsasthoseintheprevioustaskinwhich youclonedavirtualmachine.ThepageafterGuestCustomizationistheSchedule theTaskpage.
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Enteranameandataskdescriptioninthetextbox. Selecttheradiobuttonforthefrequencyofthetask. SelecttheradiobuttonforNoworLater.Iflater,enterthetimeanddatewhenyou wantthevirtualmachinetobedeployed,andclickNext. Toseethecalendar,clickLater,andclickthedropdownarrowtoselectadatefrom thedisplayedcalendar.Aredcircleindicatestodaysdate,andadarkcircle indicatesthescheduleddate.
ReviewtheinformationontheReadytoCompleteNewVirtualMachinepage, andclickFinish. Optionally,youcanselectthecheckboxtopoweronthenewvirtualmachineafter itiscreated. VirtualCenteraddsthenewtasktothescheduledtasklistandcompletesitatthe designatedtime.Whenitistimetoperformthetask,VirtualCenterfirstverifies thattheuserwhocreatedthetaskstillhaspermissiontocompletethetask.Ifthe permissionlevelsarenotacceptable,VirtualCentersendsamessagetothelogand thetaskisnotperformed.
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Using Snapshots
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VMwareVirtualCentersnapshotsallowyoutopreservethestateofthevirtualmachine soyoucanreturntothesamestaterepeatedly.SnapshotsareanewfeatureforESX Server3. Thefollowingsectionsareincludedinthischapter:

UnderstandingSnapshotsonpage 221 UsingtheSnapshotManageronpage 226 RestoringaSnapshotonpage 227
Understanding Snapshots
Asnapshotcapturestheentirestateofthevirtualmachineatthetimeyoutakethe snapshot.Thisincludes:

MemorystateThecontentsofthevirtualmachinesmemory. SettingsstateThevirtualmachinesettings. DiskstateThestateofallthevirtualmachinesvirtualdisks.
Snapshotsoperateonindividualvirtualmachines.Inateamofvirtualmachines,taking asnapshotpreservesthestateofonlytheactivevirtualmachine. Whenyoureverttoasnapshot,youreturnalltheseitemstothestatetheywereinatthe timeyoutookthatsnapshot.Ifyouwantthevirtualmachinetobesuspended,powered on,orpoweredoffwhenyoulaunchit,besureitisinthedesiredstatewhenyoutake thatsnapshot.
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NOTE
Snapshotsofrawdisks,RDMphysicalmodedisks,orindependentdisksarenot supported. Snapshotsareusefulwhenyouneedtorevertrepeatedlytothesamestatebutyoudont wanttocreatemultiplevirtualmachines.Withsnapshots,youcreatebackupand restorepositionsinalinearprocess.Youcanalsopreserveabaselinebeforediverging avirtualmachineinaprocesstree. Snapshotscanbeusedasrestorationpointsduringalinearoriterativeprocess,suchas installingupdatepackages,orduringabranchingprocess,suchasinstallingdifferent versionsofaprogram.Takingsnapshotsensuresthateachinstallationbeginsfroman identicalbaseline. Multiplesnapshotsreferstotheabilitytocreatemorethanonesnapshotofthesame virtualmachine.Totakesnapshotsofmultiplevirtualmachines,(forexample, snapshotsforallmembersofateam)requiresthatyoutakeaseparatesnapshotofeach teammember. Multiplesnapshotsarenotsimplyanewwayofsavingyourvirtualmachines.With multiplesnapshots,youcansavemanypositionstoaccommodatemanykindsofwork processes. Althoughyoucantakesnapshotsupto32levels,theamountoftimeittakestocommit ordeletethosesnapshotsincreasesasthelevelsgetdeeper.Therequiredtimeisdirectly proportionaltotheamountofdata(committedordeleted)andthevirtualmachines RAMsize.
Relationship Between Snapshots

Therelationshipbetweensnapshotsislikethatofaparenttoachild:
Inthelinearprocess,eachsnapshothasoneparentandonechild,exceptforthe lastsnapshot,whichhasnochildren. Intheprocesstree,eachsnapshothasoneparent,butonesnapshotmayhave morethanonechild.Manysnapshotshavenochildren.
Youcanreverttoaparentorachild.
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Chapter 13 Using Snapshots
Snapshots and Other Activity in the Virtual Machine

Whenyoutakeasnapshot,beawareofotheractivitygoingoninthevirtualmachine andthelikelyeffectofrevertingtothatsnapshot.Ingeneral,itisbesttotakeasnapshot whennoapplicationsinthevirtualmachinearecommunicatingwithothercomputers. Thepotentialforproblemsisgreatestifthevirtualmachineiscommunicatingwith anothercomputer,especiallyinaproductionenvironment. Forexample,ifyoutakeasnapshotwhilethevirtualmachineisdownloadingafile fromaserveronthenetwork,thevirtualmachinecontinuesdownloadingthefile, communicatingitsprogresstotheserver.Ifyoureverttothesnapshot,communications betweenthevirtualmachineandtheserverareconfusedandthefiletransferfails. Anotherexampleistakingasnapshotwhileanapplicationinthevirtualmachineis sendingatransactiontoadatabaseonaseparatemachine.Ifyoureverttothat snapshotespeciallyifyourevertafterthetransactionstartsbutbeforeithasbeen committedthedatabaseislikelytobeconfused.
Taking a Snapshot
Takingasnapshotisasynchronousoperation.Alluseroperationstothevirtual machineduringthisperiodareblockedforsnapshotanddataconsistency.Thetime takentodevelopasnapshotdependsontheamountofdataandtheloadontheserver. Onaverage,thetimerangesfrom30to40secondsforminimalsnapshotcreation. Youcantakeasnapshotwhileavirtualmachineispoweredon,poweredoff,or suspended.Ifyouaresuspendingavirtualmachine,waituntilthesuspendoperation hasfinishedbeforetakingasnapshot. Youmustpoweroffthevirtualmachinebeforetakingasnapshotifthevirtualmachine hasmultipledisksindifferentdiskmodes.Forexample,ifyouhaveaspecialpurpose configurationthatrequiresyoutouseanindependentdisk,youmustpoweroffthe virtualmachinebeforetakingasnapshot. To take a snapshot 1 ChooseInventory>VirtualMachine>Snapshot>TakeSnapshot. YoucanalsoclicktheTakeasnapshotofthisvirtualmachinebutton,orrightclick thevirtualmachineandchooseSnapshot>TakeSnapshot.
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TheTakeVirtualMachineSnapshotwindowappears.
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Typeanameforyoursnapshot. (Optional)Typeadescriptionforyoursnapshot. Descriptionsareusefultoidentifydifferencesbetweensimilarlynamedsnapshots. DescriptionsappearintheSnapshot Manager.
ClickOK. Aprogresspopupmenuboxappears.Whenthesnapshothasbeensuccessfully taken,itislistedintheRecentTasksfieldatthebottomofVirtualCenter.
Clickthetargetvirtualmachinetodisplaytasksandeventsforthismachineor, whilethevirtualmachineisstillselected,clicktheTasks&Eventstab.
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Changing Disk Mode to Exclude Virtual Disks from Snapshots

Youmustpoweroffanddeleteanyexistingsnapshotsbeforeyouattempttochangethe diskmode.Deletingasnapshotinvolvescommittingtheexistingdataonthesnapshot disktotheparentdisk. To exclude a disk from a snapshot 1 2 ChooseInventory>VirtualMachine>EditSettings. ClicktheHardwaretab,andselecttheharddiskyouwanttoexclude.
UnderMode,selectIndependent.Independentdisksarenotaffectedby snapshots. Youhavethefollowingpersistenceoptionsforanindependentdisk:
PersistentChangesareimmediatelyandpermanentlywrittentothedisk. Allchangestoanindependentdiskinpersistentmoderemain,evenwhenyou reverttothatsnapshot. NonpersistentChangestothediskarediscardedwhenyoupoweroffor reverttothatsnapshot.
ClickOK.
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Using the Snapshot Manager

TheSnapshotManagerletsyoureviewallsnapshotsfortheactivevirtualmachineand actonthemdirectly. TheSnapshotManagerwindowcontainsthefollowingareas:Snapshottree,Details region,Commandbuttons,Navigationregion,andaYouarehereicon.
Figure 13-1. Snapshot Manager

SnapshottreeDisplaysallsnapshotsforthevirtualmachine. YouarehereiconRepresentsthecurrentoperationalstateofthevirtualmachine. TheYouarehereiconisalwaysselectedandvisiblewhenyouopentheSnapshot Manager. TheYouarehereiconrepresentsastatethatisneverasnapshotitselfbutrather thevirtualmachinestateaftertheparentsnapshot.Asnapshotisalwaysastatic recordofavirtualmachinestate.TheYouareherestatecanbeoperationaland changing.Evenwhenyoucreateasnapshotofapoweredofforsuspendedvirtual machine,theYouareherestateisnotidenticaltothesnapshot. YoucannotgotoorselecttheYouareherestate.Youareherealwaysrepresents thecurrentandactivestate.
CommandButtonsTheSnapshotManagerhasthreecommandbuttonsintheleft pane:Goto,Delete,andDeleteAll.
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DetailsDisplaysthenameanddescriptionoftheselectedsnapshot.Thesefields areblankifyouhavenotselectedasnapshot. NavigationRegionContainsbuttonsfornavigatingoutofthedialogbox:

CloseClosestheSnapshotManager. HelpOpensthehelpsystem.
To use the Snapshot Manager 1 2 3 ChooseInventory>VirtualMachine>Snapshot>SnapshotManager. IntheSnapshotManager,selectasnapshotbyclickingit. Togotoasnapshot,clicktheGotobuttontorestorethevirtualmachinetoany arbitrarysnapshot. TheGotocommandallowsyoutorestorethestateofanysnapshot. 4 5 6 7 ClickYesintheconfirmationdialogbox. Todeleteasnapshot,clicktheDeletebuttontopermanentlyremoveasnapshot fromVirtualCenteruse. ClickYesintheconfirmationdialogbox. Todeleteallsnapshots,clicktheDeleteAllbuttontopermanentlyremoveall snapshotsfromVirtualCenteruse. Deletecommitsthesnapshotdatatotheparentandthenremovestheselected snapshot.DeleteAllcommitsalltheimmediatesnapshotsbeforetheYouarehere currentstatetothebasediskandremovesallexistingsnapshotsforthatvirtual machine. ClickYesintheconfirmationdialogbox. ClickClosetoexittheSnapshotManager.
NOTE
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Restoring a Snapshot
VMwareVirtualCenterincludesthefollowingsnapshotmethodstoallowyoutoreturn totheoriginalvirtualmachine:
TheInventory>VirtualMachine>SnapshotmenucontainsthecommandRevert toSnapshot. TheSnapshotManagerhasaGotobutton.
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Parent Snapshot
TodiscernbetweentheReverttoSnapshotandGotocommands,youmust understandwhatismeantbytheparentsnapshot. Theparentsnapshotisthemostrecentlysavedversionofthecurrentstateofthevirtual machine.Ifyouhavejusttakenasnapshot,thatstoredstateistheparentsnapshotof thecurrentstate.Ifyourevertorgotoasnapshot,thatsnapshotbecomestheparentof thecurrentstate. TheparentsnapshotisalwaysthesnapshotappearingimmediatelyabovetheYouare hereiconintheSnapshotManager.
Parent Snapshot
Figure 13-2. Parent Snapshot NOTE Theparentsnapshotisnotalwaysthesnapshotyoutookmostrecently.Forexample,if youtakeasnapshottodayandthenGotoasnapshotyoutookyesterday,thesnapshot youtooktodayisnolongertheparentofthecurrentstateofthevirtualmachine.The parentsnapshothasbecomethesnapshotyoutookyesterday.
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Revert to Snapshot Command

ReverttoSnapshotisessentiallyashortcuttotheparentsnapshotofYouarehere.This commandimmediatelyactivatestheparentsnapshotofthecurrentstateofthevirtual machine. Thecurrentdiskandmemorystatesarediscardedandrestoredastheywerewhenyou tookthatsnapshot.Ifyourparentsnapshotwastakenwhenthevirtualmachinewas poweredoff,choosingSnapshot>ReverttoSnapshotmovesthepoweredonvirtual machinetothatparentstate,thatis,toapoweredoffstate.
Virtual machine with no snapshots.
take a snapshot
The new snapshot (snapshot_a) is now the parent of the You are here state. The parent snapshot of the You are here state is the parent snapshot of the virtual machine.
take a snapshot
go to snapshot_a
When you take a snapshot from the snapshot_a state, snapshot_a becomes the parent of the new shapshot (snapshot_b) and snapshot_b is the parent shapshot of the You are here state. If you take a snapshot now, the new snapshot will be based on the snapshot_b state.
When you go to snapshot_a, snapshot_a becomes the parent of the You are here state. If you take a snapshot now, the new snapshot will be based on the snapshot_a state. When you revert a virtual machine, the virtual machine returns to the parent snapshot of the virtual machine (that is, the parent of the current You are here state).
Figure 13-3. Revert to Snapshot
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Therearethreewaystoreverttotheparentsnapshot:

ChooseInventory>VirtualMachine>Snapshot>ReverttoSnapshot. ClicktheReverttosnapshotbuttononthetoolbar. Rightclickthevirtualmachine,andchooseSnapshot>ReverttoSnapshot.
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Migrating Virtual Machines
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Thischapterdescribestheprocessofmigratingmovingavirtualmachinefromone hosttoanother.Thischaptercontainsthefollowingsections:

Overviewonpage 231 Migrationonpage 233 MigrationwithVMotiononpage 233 MigrationWizardonpage 239
Theuserinitiatingthemigrationmusthaveappropriatepermissiontoperform migrationwithVMotiononbothmachines. RefertoManagingUsers,Groups,Permissions,andRolesonpage 247for informationonpermissions. NOTE Copyingavirtualmachineiscreatinganewvirtualmachine.Itisnotaformof migration.
Overview
Inthisrelease,youcanmigrateavirtualmachineonanESXServerhostinasuspended stateusingthemigrationAPI.Migratingapoweredoffvirtualmachineiscalled migration.MigratingapoweredonvirtualmachineiscalledmigrationwithVMotion. MigrationwithVMotion,designedtobeusedbetweencompatiblesystems,allowsyou tomigratevirtualmachineswithnodowntimebutrequiresVMotionlicensingand specificconfiguration. InVirtualCenter2,youhavetwomigrationoptions:
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MigrationMovingapoweredofforsuspendedvirtualmachine(configuration filesbutnodiskmovement).Optionally,duringmigration,youcanrelocate configurationanddiskfiles. MigratingsuspendedvirtualmachinesissupportedinESXServer3.0only.Virtual machinescreatedusingESXServer2.xmustbepoweredoffbeforemigration. Virtualmachinesdonotneedtobeavailableonsharedstorage. MigrationwithVMotionMovingavirtualmachinethatispoweredon. Virtualmachinesmustbeavailableanyfromanyformofsharedstorage,suchas SAN,iSCSI,orNAS.
NOTE
NOTE
NOTE
Virtualmachinescanbemovedbetweenhostswithinthesamedatacenter.Virtual machinescannotbemovedbetweendatacenters. ThefollowingtableliststheVMotioncapabilitiesfor32and64bitguestvirtual machines. Table 14-1. VMotion Support

32-bit Guest Virtual Machines VMotion (poweredon) Fullysupportedwithin VMotioncompatible32bitCPUs AND64bitCPUs(InteltoIntelor AMDtoAMD). Fullysupportedwithinsupported 32bitCPUsand64bitCPUsand abletopoweronirrespectiveofany CPUincompatibilities (InteltoAMDOK). 64-bit Guest Virtual Machines Fullysupportedwithin VMotioncompatible64bitCPUs (InteltoIntelorAMDtoAMD). Fullysupportedwithin VMotioncompatible64bitCPUs (InteltoAMDOK).
Cold Migration (poweredoff)
NOTE
MigrationwithVMotioncannotbeusedtomigratevirtualmachinesusingrawdisks forclusteringpurposes.
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Chapter 14 Migrating Virtual Machines
Migration
Thevirtualmachineyouwanttomigratemustbepoweredofforsuspendedpriorto beginningthemigrationprocess.Withamigration,youalsohavetheoptionofmoving theassociateddisksfromonehosttoanother.Amigrationconsistsofthefollowing steps: 1 Theconfigurationfiles,includingtheNVRAMfile(BIOSsettings),logfiles,and thesuspendfileforsuspendedvirtualmachinesaswellasthedisksofthevirtual machinearemovedfromthesourcehosttothedestinationhostsassociated storagearea. Thevirtualmachineisassociated(registered)withthenewhost. Afterthemigrationiscompleted,theoldversionofthevirtualmachineisdeleted fromthesourcehost.
2 3
Ifanyerroroccursduringmigration,thevirtualmachinesreverttotheiroriginalstates andlocations. Youcanmovevirtualmachinesmanuallyorsetupascheduledtasktoperformthe migration.RefertoManagingTasks,Events,andAlarmsonpage 289forinformation onschedulingtasks.
Migration with VMotion

VMotionallowsworkingprocessestocontinuethroughoutamigrationwithVMotion. Theentirestateofthevirtualmachineaswellasitsconfigurationfile,ifnecessary,are movedtothenewhostevenwhilethedatastorageremainsinthesamelocationonthe SAN.TheassociatedvirtualdiskremainsinthesamelocationontheSANstoragethat issharedbetweenthetwohosts.Oncetheconfigurationfileismigratedtothealternate host,thevirtualmachinerunsonthenewhost. Thestateinformationincludesthecurrentmemorycontentandalltheinformationthat definesandidentifiesthevirtualmachine.Thememorycontentincludestransaction dataandwhateverbitsoftheoperatingsystemandapplicationsareinthememory.The definingandidentificationinformationstoredinthestateincludesallthedatathat mapstothevirtualmachinehardwareelements,suchasBIOS,devices,CPU,MAC addressesfortheEthernetcards,chipsetstates,registers,andsoforth. MigrationwithVMotionhappensinthreestages: 1 2 WhenthemigrationwithVMotionisrequested,VirtualCenterverifiesthatthe existingvirtualmachineisinastablestatewithitscurrenthost. Thevirtualmachinestateinformation(thatis,memory,registers,andnetwork connections)iscopiedtothetargethost.
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Thevirtualmachineresumesitsactivitiesonthenewhost.
Ifanyerroroccursduringmigration,thevirtualmachinesreverttotheiroriginalstates andlocations.
VMotion Requirements
TobeconfiguredforVMotion,eachhostintheclustermustmeetthefollowing requirements.
Shared Storage
Ensurethatthemanagedhostsusesharedstorage.Sharedstorageistypicallyona storageareanetwork(SAN),butcanalsobeimplementedusingiSCSIandNASshared storage.SeetheVMwareSANConfigurationGuideforadditionalinformationonSAN andtheServerConfigurationGuideforinformationonothersharedstorage.
Shared VMFS Volume or NAS Storage

ConfigureallmanagedhoststousesharedVMFSvolumesortobelocatedonNAS storage.IfusingsharedVMFSvolumes:
PlacethedisksofallvirtualmachinesonVMFSvolumesthatareaccessiblebyboth sourceandtargethosts. EnsurethattheVMFSvolumeissufficientlylargetostoreallvirtualdisksforyour virtualmachines.
CPU Compatibility
Makesurethatthesourceanddestinationhostshaveacompatiblesetofprocessors. VMotiontransferstherunningarchitecturalstateofavirtualmachinebetween underlyingVMwareESXServersystems.VMotioncompatibilityrequiresthatthe processorsofthetargethostbeabletoresumeexecutionusingtheequivalent instructionsthattheprocessorsofthesourcehostwereusingwhensuspended. Processorclockspeedsandcachesizes,andthenumberofprocessorcoresmayvary, butprocessorsmustcomefromthesamevendorclass(IntelorAMD)andsame processorfamily(P3,P4,orIntelcore)tobecompatibleformigrationwithVMotion. ProcessorfamiliessuchasIntelXeonandAMDOpteronaredefinedbytheprocessor vendors. Youcandistinguishdifferentprocessorversionswithinthesamefamilybycomparing theprocessorsmodel,steppinglevel,andextendedfeatures:
Inmostcases,differentprocessorversionswithinthesamefamilyaresimilar enoughtomaintaincompatibility.
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Insomecases,processorvendorshaveintroducedsignificantarchitectural changeswithinthesameprocessorfamily,suchastheSSE3andSSE4instructions, andNx/XDCPUsecurityfeatures.Bydefault,VMwareidentifiesmismatcheson SSE3,SSE4,andNx/XDasincompatibletoguaranteethestabilityofvirtual machinesaftermigrationswithVMotion.
ServerhardwaresCPUspecificationswillusuallyindicatewhetherornottheCPUs containtheSSE3,SSE4,andNx/XDfeaturesthataffectVMotioncompatibility.Ifthe specificationsofaserveroritsCPUfeaturesareunknown,VMwaresbootableCPU identificationutility(availablefordownloadwithESXServer)canbeusedtoboota serveranddeterminewhetheritsCPUscontainfeaturessuchasSSE3,SSE4,and NX/XD. NOTE VMware,inpartnershipwithCPUandhardwarevendors,isworkingtomaintain VMotioncompatibilityacrossthewidestrangeofprocessors.Foradditional information,checktheVMwareKnowledgeBase. Nx/XD Considerations
AMDsNoeXecute(NX)andIntelseXecuteDisable(XD)technologyservethe samesecuritypurpose:tomarkmemorypagesasdataonlytopreventmalicious softwareexploitsandbufferoverflowattacks. ThefollowingoperatingsystemssupportNXandXD: WindowsServer2003(SP1),Windows*XP(SP2),WindowsVista,RHEL4,RHEL3 (Update3),SUSE10,SUSELinux9.2,Solaris10,Linuxkernels2.6.6orlater(or2.4 kernelswithapatch).
InESXServer3.0,NXandXDtechnologyisexposedbydefaultforallguest operatingsystemsthatcanuseit(tradingoffsomecompatibilityforsecurityby default).HostspreviouslycompatibleinESXServer2.xmaybecomeincompatible afterupgradingtoESXServer3.0ifNXmismatched,butperVMCPU compatibilitymasksspecifiedintheVMotionCPUCompatibilityMatrixcanbe usedtorestorecompatibility.
SSE3 Considerations
WithintheIntelP4andAMDOpteronprocessorfamilies,VMwareplacesa restrictionbetweenprocessorsthatdosupporttheSSE3instructionsand processorsthatdonotsupporttheSSE3instructionsbecausetheyareapplication levelinstructionsthatbypassthevirtualizationlayer,andcouldcauseapplication instabilityifmismatchedafteramigrationwithVMotion.
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SSE4 Considerations
WithintheIntelP4andIntelCoreprocessorfamilies,VMwareplacesarestriction betweenprocessorsthatdosupporttheSSE4instructionsandprocessorsthatdo notsupporttheSSE4instructionsbecausetheyareapplicationlevelinstructions thatbypassthevirtualizationlayer,andcouldcauseapplicationinstabilityif mismatchedafteramigrationwithVMotion.
NOTE
VMwareisworkingonmaintainingVMotioncompatibilityacrossthewidestrangeof processorsthroughpartnershipswithprocessorandhardwarevendors.Foradditional information,checktheVMwareKnowledgeBase.
Networking Requirements
1 VMotionrequiresaGigabitEthernetnetworktoensurerapidmigration:
Adedicatednetworkisrecommendedtokeepvirtualmachinememorystate secure. VMotionrequiresaprivateGigabitEthernetmigrationnetworkbetweenallof theVMotionenabledmanagedhosts.WhenVMotionisenabledona managedhost,configureauniquenetworkidentityobjectforthemanaged hostandconnectittotheprivatemigrationnetwork. TwohostswithcrossconnectedGigEcardscanbeusedfordemopurposes.
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Virtualmachinesmusthaveaccesstothesamesubnetsonthesourceand destinationESXServerhosts. NetworklabelsforeachvirtualNICmustbecreatedthroughtheESXServer configurationsettings:

Networklabelsareglobalacrossdatacenters. VMotionautomaticallymapsvirtualmachinestoappropriatevirtualNICs basedonnetworklabels. ForESXServer2.xhosts,networklabelscanbeconfiguredthroughthe WebbasedVMwareManagementInterface.
Minimum Network Requirements

TwoNICswithatleastoneGigENICdedicatedtoVMotion. Forbestsecurity,dedicatetheGigENICtoVMotionanduseVLANstodividethe VirtualmachineandmanagementtrafficontheotherNIC.
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Forbestavailability,combinebothNICsintoabond,anduseVLANStodivide trafficintoatleastthreenetworks(Oneormoreforvirtualmachines,oneforthe serviceconsole,andoneforVMotion).
Network Best Practices

OnededicatedNICfortheserviceconsole(10/100orGigE). OnededicatedNICforVMotion(GigE). OneormoreNICsforvirtualmachines(10/100orGigE).
VMotion Compatibility
VMotioncompatibilityrequiresthatbothsourceanddestinationhostsmatchincertain criteria.PossibledestinationhostsincludehostsandfullyautomatedDRSclusters.A nonautomatedclustercanalsobeselectedasadestination. Whenyouselectahost,theCompatibilitypanelatthebottomoftheMigrationwizard displaysinformationaboutthecompatibilityoftheselectedhostorclusterwiththe virtualmachinesconfiguration. Ifthevirtualmachineiscompatible,thepanelisblank.Ifthevirtualmachineisnot compatiblewitheitherthehostsorclustersconfigurednetworksordatastores,the compatibilitywindowcandisplaybothwarningsanderrors:
Warningmessagesdonotdisablemigration.Oftenthemigrationisjustifiedand youcancontinuewiththemigrationdespitethewarnings.
Compatibility panel
Warning messages
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Errorscandisablemigrationiftherearenoerrorfreedestinationhostsamongthe selecteddestinationhosts.Inthiscase,theNextbuttonisdisabled.
Error message
Forclusters,thenetworkanddatastoreconfigurationsaretakenintoaccountwhen checkingcompatibilityissues.Forhosts,theindividualhostsconfigurationisused.A possibleproblemmightbethatVMotionisnotenabledononeorbothhosts. AspecifichostfeatureseffectsoncompatibilityaredependentonwhetherornotESX Serverexposesorhidesthemfromvirtualmachines:
Featuresthatareexposedtovirtualmachinesarenotcompatiblewhentheyare mismatched. Featuresthatarenotexposedtovirtualmachinesarecompatibleregardlessof mismatches.
CPU Compatibility Masks

VirtualCentercomparestheCPUfeaturesoftwohoststodeterminewhethertoallow ordisallowmigrationswithVMotion.AnewcapabilityinVirtualCenter2.0calledCPU compatibilitymasksallowspervirtualmachine,advancedcustomizationoftheCPU featuresthatavirtualmachineshouldrequireforCPUcompatibilityduringa migrationwithVMotion. NOTE EditingavirtualmachinesCPUcompatibilitymaskissupportedinESXServer3.0only.
DefaultvaluesfortheCPUcompatibilitymasksaresetbyVMwaretoguarantee thestabilityofvirtualmachinesafteramigrationwithVMotion.Changestothese defaultmasksaremadeveryconservativelybyVMware,andonlywhennewCPU
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featuresareintroducedandversionsofESXServerareupdatedtoexposeorhide themfromvirtualmachines.
Insomecases,whereachoicebetweenCPUcompatibilityorguestoperating systemfeatures(suchasNX/XD)exists,VMwareprovidescheckboxoptionsto configureindividualvirtualmachinesthroughthevirtualmachinesAdvanced Settingsoption.Advancedvirtualmachinevirtualhostmodificationscanbeused bydevelopers.

Choose between Nx/xD Security features or Broadest VMotion Compatibility For future CPU features, edit mask at the bit level
Forothercases,andadvancedpurposes(intendedtobeusedusingspecific instructionsfromVMwareorbyCPUandoperatingsystemdeveloperswhomay needtocontrolthecharacteristicsofvirtualCPUs).VMwarealsoprovidesa mechanismtomanuallyedittheCPUcompatibilitymasksusedbyavirtual machine.ManualeditoftheCPUcompatibilitymaskswithouttheappropriate documentationandtestingisNOTrecommendedandmayleadtoanunsupported configuration.
Migration Wizard
TheMigrationwizardtakesyouthroughtheprocessofmigratingavirtualmachine fromonehosttoanother.BothsourceanddestinationhostsmusthaveVMotion enabledonthem.Ifthedestinationisacluster,theremustbeatleastonevalid destinationhostinthecluster,soatleastonehostintheclustermusthaveVMotion enabled.PreferablyallhostsinaclusterwillhaveVMotionenabled,especiallyforDRS clusters. Themenuoptionsdifferslightly,dependingonwhetheryouareperformingmigration ormigrationwithVMotion. To migrate a powered-off or suspended virtual machine 1 2 FromtheVirtualCenterclient,clicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar. ChooseMigratefromthepopupmenu.
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TheMigrateVirtualMachinewizardstarts. 3 Selectthedestinationhostorclusterforthisvirtualmachinemigration. AnycompatibilityproblemisdisplayedintheCompatibilitypanel.Fixthe problem,orchooseanotherhostorcluster. PossibletargetsincludehostsandDRSclusterswithanylevelofautomation.Ifa clusterhasnoDRSenabled,selectaspecifichostintheclusterratherthanselecting theclusteritself. Ifthewizardisinvokedthroughdraganddrop,theSelectDestinationhostor clusterwindowisskippedifthedraganddroptargetisastandalonehostora poolassignedtoastandalonehost.Ifaclusteroraclusterspoolisthe draganddroptarget,theSelectDestinationhostorclusterwindowappears. NOTE Movingavirtualmachinefromthehostwhereitssnapshotsarelocatedmight renderthosesnapshotsinaccessible.
4 NOTE
ClickNext. Theresourcepoolselectionpaneofthewizardperformsacompatibilitycheckthat candisplaywarningsorerrors. Selectthedestinationresourcepoolforthevirtualmachinemigration,andclick Next.
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TheResourcePoolSelectionpagedoesnotappearifavirtualmachinewas droppedonaresourcepool. 6 Selectthedestinationdatastore. Thedatastoresthatareaccessiblefromthenewdestinationarelisted.
Selecttheradiobuttontokeepthevirtualmachineconfigurationfilesandvirtual disksintheircurrentlocationsortheradiobuttontomovethevirtualmachine configurationfilesandtheirvirtualdisks. VirtualCentermovesthevirtualmachine,includingthevirtualdisks,tothenew host.EventmessagesappearintheEventstab.ThedatadisplayedontheSummary tabshowsthestatusandstatethroughoutthemigration.
NOTE
Youcanrelocateonlypoweredoffandsuspendedvirtualmachines.Youcannot relocatevirtualmachinesthatarebeingmigratedwithVMotion. ClickNext. Reviewthesummary,andclickFinish.
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To migrate a powered-on virtual machine NOTE Beforeyoubegin,disconnectanyperipheraldevicesconnectedtothevirtualmachine. Ifthevirtualmachineisusingaphysicaldeviceonthesourcehost,thatdevicewillnot beaccessibleonthedestinationhost.Thisisanincompatibilitythatwillpreventuseof VMotion.Forexample,ifthevirtualmachineisreadingfromaCDROMdriveonthe sourcehost,itcannotaccessthatdrivefromthedestinationhost. 1 2 FromtheVIClient,clicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar.Expandthe inventoryasneeded,andclicktheappropriatevirtualmachine. MakesurethatboththesourceandtargethostsareVMotionenabledandusing thesameshareddatastore.
3 4 5
Selecteachhost. SelecttheSummarytab. ChecktheVMotionEnabledfieldandtheDatastoresection. TheVMotionEnabledfieldshouldsayYes.Datastoresonbothhostsshouldlistthe samename. InmigrationwithVMotion,ahostmusthaveVMotionenabledonittomigratea poweredonvirtualmachinetoorfromthehost.VMotioninterfacesare configuredandenabledusingthenetworkconfigurationoptionsforthehost.
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6 7 8
Displaytheinventorypanel,andselecttheappropriatedatacenter. ClicktheInventoryoptioninthenavigationbar.Expandtheinventory,asneeded, andclicktheappropriatevirtualmachine. StarttheMigrateVirtualMachinewizard. Intheinventorypanel,selectthedesiredvirtualmachine.Thendooneofthe following:

Fromthepopupmenu,choosetheMigrateoption. FromtheinformationpanelSummarytab,clicktheMigratetoNewHost button. Dragthevirtualmachineontothetargetstandalonehost,cluster,orresource pool.
ThemigrationwithVMotionwizardstarts. Virtualmachinescanalsobedroppedintoresourcepoolsforanyhostorcluster, inwhichcasethewizardskipstheResourcePoolSelectionpage. Intheeventthatthevirtualmachinesaredroppedontoaresourcepoolonthe samehostorcluster,theMigrationwizardisnotinvoked.Instead,thevirtual machinesarereassignedtothenewresourcepool,pendingadmissioncontrolto thenewpool. NOTE Ifmultiplevirtualmachinesareselectedandthewizardisinvokedthrough draganddrop,thevirtualmachinesmustallbeinthesamepowerstate. Otherwise,anerrormessageisdisplayed,andthewizardstops. ClickNext. Selectadestinationhostorclusterforthevirtualmachine. PossibletargetsincludehostsandfullyautomatedDRSclusters.Anonautomated clustercanalsobeselectedasatarget.Youarepromptedtoselectahostwithinthe nonautomatedcluster. NOTE Ifthewizardisinvokedthroughdraganddrop,theSelectdestinationhostor clusterwindowisskippedunlessthedroptargetisanonautomatedcluster. Whenyouselectahost,theCompatibilitysectionatthebottomofthewizard displaysinformationaboutthecompatibilityoftheselectedhostorclusterwiththe virtualmachinesconfiguration.Ifthevirtualmachineiscompatible,thepanelis blank.Ifthevirtualmachineisnotcompatiblewitheitherthehostsorclusters
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configurednetworksordatastores,awarningmessageappears.Apossible problemmightbethatVMotionisnotenabledononeorbothhosts. 11 Selectaresourcepool,andclickNext. TheResourcePoolSelectionpagedoesnotappearifavirtualmachinewas droppedonaresourcepool. 12 Selectthemigrationprioritylevel.
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SetthepriorityofthemigrationtoensurethatsufficientCPUresourcesare availableonboththesourceandtargethoststoperformthemigration. Clicktheappropriatebutton,andclickNext. Oncealloptionshavebeenselected,aReadytoCompletepageappearsthatshows asummaryoftheselectedchoices.
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Reviewthepage,andclicktheFinishbutton. WhenyouclicktheFinishbutton,ataskiscreatedthatbeginsthevirtualmachine migrationprocess.Whilethevirtualmachineisintheprocessofbeingmigrated, youhaveonlylimitedaccesstoitsfunctions. Ifyouwanttochangeanyoptions,clicktheBackbuttontostepbackthroughthe wizardorclickanyofthelinksintheleftpanetogobacktoaspecificpage.Ifyou clickalink,thesubsequentlinksthatfollowitreverttounseenpageentries,and youmustmovesequentiallythroughthewizardusingtheNextbutton.
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System Administration
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Managing Users, Groups, Permissions, and Roles
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Thischapterdescribesusers,groups,permissionsandroles.VirtualCenterandESX Serverhostsdeterminethelevelofaccessfortheuserbasedonthepermissions assignedtotheuser.Thecombinationofusername,password,andpermissionsisthe mechanismbywhichVirtualCenterandESXServerhostsauthenticateauserforaccess andauthorizetheusertoperformactivities.TheVirtualCenterandESXServerhost maintainlistsofauthorizedusersandthepermissionsassignedtoeachuser. Privilegesdefinebasicindividualrightsrequiredtoperformactionsandread properties.ESXServerandVirtualCenterusesetsofprivileges,orroles,tocontrol whichindividualusersorgroupscanaccessparticularVmwareInfrastructureobjects. ESXServerandVirtualCenterprovideasetofpreestablishedroles.Youcanalsocreate newroles. TheprivilegesandrolesassignedonanESXServerareseparatefromtheprivilegesand rolesassignedonaVirtualCenterServer.Ifyouhaveprivilegesandrolesassignedon anESXServerandthenaddthatESXServertotheVirtualCenterServerinventory,only theprivilegesandrolesassignedthroughtheVirtualCenterServerarerecognized.If youthenremovetheESXServerfromtheVirtualCenterServerinventory,the previouslysetESXServerprivilegesandrolesareused. Foracompletelistofprivilegesavailable,refertoAppendix A,DefinedPrivileges, onpage 325. Thischaptercontainsthefollowingtopics:

AccessElementsonpage 248 AccessRulesonpage 248 Usersonpage 251
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Groupsonpage 253 Permissionsonpage 254 Rolesonpage 254 AccessPermissionsonpage 262
NOTE
YoumustbeinAdminviewfortheAdmin>Rolesmenuitemtobeenabled.
Access Elements
AccesstoVMwareInfrastructureobjectsandactivitiesisestablishedthroughthe combinationof:

LogoninformationUsernameandpassword. GroupsAmethodforgroupingindividualusers. Youcanmanageusersmoreeasilybyassigningthemtogroups.Ifyoucreate groups,youcanapplyaroletothegroup,andthisroleisinheritedbyalltheusers inthegroup.
RolesAdefinedcollectionofprivileges. Rolesareacollectionofdefinedprivilegesthatcontrolindividualuserorgroup accesstoparticularVMwareInfrastructureobjects.ESXServerandVirtualCenter Serverprovideasetofdefaultroles.Youcanalsocreatenewroles.
PrivilegesAparticularrightcorrespondingtoasetofoperationsormethodson aclassofobjects. PermissionsThecombinationoftheroleplususerorgroupnameassignedtoa VMwareInfrastructureinventoryobject. Theroleandauserorgroupnamemakeapair.ThispairisassignedtoaVMware Infrastructureobject.Typically,thisroleanduserpairingispropagatedtothe childrenintheinventoryhierarchy.Thepairiscalledapermission.
Access Rules
Thefollowingisalistofgeneralrulestoconsiderwhenconfiguringyourusersand groupspermissions. Usersdonotneedtologoffandlogonforchangestotakeeffect.Allchangestakeeffect immediately.
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Chapter 15 Managing Users, Groups, Permissions, and Roles
Hierarchical Inheritance
Propagationissetperpermissionrule,notuniversallyapplied.Permissionsdefinedfor asubobjectalwaysoverridethosepropagatedfromparentobjects. Withrespecttopermissions,therearethreetypesofelementsinthehierarchy.Theyare:
ManagedentityThesecanhavepermissionsdefinedonthem.

Virtualmachines Folders Datacenters Clusters Hosts ResourcePools Templates
RelatedtoamanagedentityThesecannothavepermissionsdefinedonthem, butinheritaccessfromtheobjecttheyarerelatedto.Examplesinclude:

Networks Datastores
GlobalentityThesealwaysgettheirpermissionsfromtherootnode.Examples include:

Customfields Licenses Statisticsintervals Roles Sessions
Multiple Permission Settings

Objectsmighthavemultiplepermissions,butatmostoneforeachuserorgroup. Ifyouapplypermissions,theyoverrideeachotherdownthehierarchy.Ifpermissions aredefinedonthesameentity,acoupleofsituationsarepossible:
Ifauserisamemberofmultiplegroupswithdifferentpermissions.Foreach objectthegrouphaspermissionson,thesamepermissionsapplyasifgrantedto theuserdirectly. Ifmultiplegrouppermissionsaredefinedonthesameobjectandtheuser belongstotwoormoreofthosegroups:
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Ifthereisnopermissiondefinedexplicitlyfortheuseronthatobject,theuser isassignedtheunionofprivilegesassignedtothegroupsforthatobject. Ifthereisapermissiondefinedexplicitlyfortheuseronthatobject,that permissiontakesprecedenceoverallgrouppermissions.
Example1:Expandingauserspermissions

Role1canpoweronvirtualmachines. Role2cantakesnapshotsofvirtualmachines. GroupAisgrantedRole1onvirtualmachine. GroupBisgrantedRole2onvirtualmachine.
User1isnotassignedspecificpermission:

User1,whobelongstogroupsAandB,logson. User1canbothpoweronandtakesnapshotsofvirtualmachine.
Example2:Limitingauserspermissions

Role1canpoweronvirtualmachines. Role2cantakesnapshotsofvirtualmachines. GroupAisgrantedRole1onvirtualmachineparentfolder. GroupBisgrantedRole2onvirtualmachine.
User1ReadOnlypermissionisremovedonvirtualmachine:
User1cantakesnapshotsbutnotpoweron.
Tasks Requiring Settings on Multiple Objects

Whensettingpermissions,verifythatalltheobjecttypesaresetwithappropriate privilegesforeachparticularaction.Someoperationsrequireaccesspermissionatthe rootfolderinadditiontoaccesspermissionsontheobjectbeingmanipulated.Some operationsrequireaccessorperformancepermissionataparentfolderandarelated object. RefertoAppendix A,DefinedPrivileges,onpage 325foralistofpredefinedroles andassociatedprivileges.Usethesepredefinedrolestohelpdeterminetherole+object pairingrequiredtoperformyourchosentask. Example3:Addingavirtualmachine
Role3canaddvirtualmachines.
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Role4isreadonly. GroupCisgrantedRole3onHost1. GroupCisalsograntedRole4ontheparentfolderordatacenterforHost1s associateddatastoresandnetworks.
Theseobjectsinherittheirpermissionsfromtheirparentfolderordatacenter. SettingbothpermissionsallowsGroupCuserstoaddavirtualmachinetothe host. Example4:Delegatingresources
UsingdefaultrolesforResourcePoolAdministrator,VirtualMachineUser, andReadOnly GrantUser1theroleofResourcePoolAdministratoronResourcePoolA. GrantUser1theroleofVirtualMachineUseronallthevirtualmachinesin ResourcePoolA. GrantUser1therole,ReadOnlyonthefolderordatacentercontainingthe datastoresandnetworksassociatedwithResourcePoolA.
Becauseresourcepoolsaffectmultipleinventoryobjectsyoumustassignvarious privilegesonselectedobjectstoeffectivelyperformtasks(inthiscase,delegating resourceswithinaresourcepoolontothevirtualmachinesinthatresourcepool).
Users
AuserisanindividualauthorizedtologontoeitheranESXServerhostorto VirtualCenter.ESXServerusersfallintotwocategories:thosewhocanaccesstheESX ServerhostthroughVirtualCenterandthosewhocanaccesstheESXServerhostby directlyloggingontothehostfromVIClient,VIWebAccess,athirdpartyclient,ora commandshell.Thesetwocategoriesdrawusersfromdifferentsources:
VirtualCenterusersAuthorizedusersforVirtualCenterarethoseincludedinthe WindowsdomainlistreferencedbyVirtualCenterorlocalWindowsusersonthe VirtualCenterhost. YoucannotuseVirtualCentertomanuallycreate,remove,orotherwisechange users.Ifyouneedtomanipulatetheuserlistorchangeuserpasswords,youmust dosothroughthetoolsyounormallyusetomanageyourWindowsdomain. AnychangesyoumaketotheWindowsdomainarereflectedinVirtualCenter. BecauseyoucannotdirectlymanageusersinVirtualCenter,theuserinterface doesntprovideauserlistforyoutoreview.Youseethesechangesonlywhenyou selectuserstoconfigurepermissions.
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DirectaccessusersUsersauthorizedtoworkdirectlyonanESXServerhostare thoseaddedtotheinternaluserlistbydefaultwhenESXServerisinstalledorby asystemadministratorafterinstallation. Ifyoulogontothehostasroot,youcanperformavarietyofmanagementactivities fortheseusers,suchaschangingpasswords,groupmemberships,permissions, andsoforth.Youcanalsoaddandremoveusers.
EvenifthelistsmaintainedbyanESXServerhostandVirtualCenterappeartohave commonusers(forinstance,ausercalleddevuser),theseusersshouldbetreatedas separateuserswhohavethesamename.TheattributesofdevuserinVirtualCenter, includingpermissions,passwords,andsoforth,areseparatefromtheattributesof devuserontheESXServerhost.IfyoulogontoVirtualCenterasdevuser,youmighthave permissiontoviewanddeletefilesfromadatastore.IfyoulogontoanESXServerhost asdevuser,youmightnot. UsersandgroupsintheVMwareInfrastructureenvironmentarecreatedusingtwo methods:
WhentheVIClientisconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,usersandgroupsare definedthroughthestandardmethodsforWindowsdomainsorActiveDirectory. YoudonotcreateusersandgroupsforaccesstotheVirtualCenterServerthrough theVIClient. WhentheVIClientisconnectedtoanESXServer,usersandgroupsaredefined throughtheUsersandGroupstab.
UsersandgroupsdefinedwhenconnectedtoanESXServerareapplicabletothatESX Serveronly.TheyarenotinthelistofavailableusersforaVirtualCenterServer connectioneveniftheESXServerisregisteredwiththeVirtualCenterServer. EachESXServerhastwodefaultusers:
Therootuserhasfulladministrativeprivileges.Administratorsusethislogonand itsassociatedpasswordtologontoanESXServerthroughtheVIClient.Root usershaveacompleterangeofcontrolactivitiesonthespecificESXServerhost thattheyareloggedonto,includingmanipulatingpermissions,creatinggroups andusers,workingwithevents,andsoforth.
WARNING RefertotheAuthenticationandUserManagementchapteroftheServer ConfigurationGuideforinformationaboutrootusersandyourESXServer beforeyoumakeanychangestotherootuser.Mistakesherecanhaveserious accessconsequences.
ThevpxuseruserisaVirtualCenterentitywithrootrightsontheESXServerhost, allowingittomanageactivitiesforthathost.Thevpxuseriscreatedatthetimethat
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anESXServerhostisattachedtoVirtualCenter.ItisnotpresentontheESX Server hostunlessthehostisbeingmanagedthroughVirtualCenter. CAUTION Donotchangevpxuseranddonotchangeitspermissions.Ifyoudoso,you mightexperienceproblemsworkingwiththeESXServerhostthrough VirtualCenter. ForinformationoncreatingusersandgroupsforusewithyourVirtualCenterServer, refertoyourMicrosoftdocumentation. ForinformationaboutcreatingusersandgroupforusewithyourESXServer,referto theSecuritysectionoftheServerConfigurationGuide.
Groups
Youcanefficientlymanagesomeuserattributesbycreatinggroups.Agroupisasetof usersthatyouwanttomanagethroughacommonsetofrulesandpermissions.When youassignpermissionstoagroup,theyareinheritedbyallusersinthegroup.Using groupscansignificantlyreducethetimeittakestosetupyourpermissionsmodel. ThegrouplistsinVirtualCenterandanESXServerhostaredrawnfromthesame sourcesastheuserlists.IfyouareworkingthroughVirtualCenter,thegrouplistis calledfromtheWindowsdomain.IfyouareloggedontoanESXServerhostdirectly, thegrouplistiscalledfromatablemaintainedbythehost. TheVirtualCenterServergrantsaccesstoeachinventoryobjectbyassigningarolewith definedprivilegesandauserorgrouptoeachobject.Rolesareadefinedsetofaccess privileges. IndividualpermissionsareassignedthroughtheVirtualCenterServerortheESX Serverbypairingauserandaroleandassigningthispairtoaninventoryobject:
UsersandgroupsarecreatedfortheVirtualCenterServerthroughtheWindows domainorActiveDirectorydatabase. UsersandgroupsarecreatedfortheESXServerthroughtheUsersandGroupstab whenconnecteddirectlytotheESXServer.VirtualCenterServercannotviewany usersandgroupsthatarecreatedforandontheESXServer.RefertotheServer ConfigurationGuide.
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Permissions
ForESXServerandVirtualCenter,apermissionisdefinedasanaccessrolethatconsists ofauserandtheusersassignedroleforanobject,suchasavirtualmachineorESX Serverhost.Permissionsgrantuserstherighttoperformspecificactivitiesandmanage specificobjectsonanESXServerhostor,ifusersareworkingfromVirtualCenter,all VirtualCentermanagedobjects.Forexample,toconfigurememoryforanESXServer host,youmusthavehostconfigurationpermissions. MostVirtualCenterandESXServerusershavelimitedabilitytomanipulatetheobjects associatedwiththehost.However,ESXServerprovidesfullaccessrightsand permissionsonallvirtualobjects,suchasdatastores,hosts,virtualmachines,and resourcepools,totwousers:rootandvpxuser.
Asroot,youcangrantpermissionsonanESXServerhosttoindividualusersor groups.TheseusersandgroupsareaddedtotheESXServeruserlistandgroup listintwoways.TheycanbeaddedbydefaultwhenESXServerisinstalled.They canalsobemanuallyaddedtothehostafterinstallation. ThroughVirtualCenter,youcangrantpermissionstoanyuserorgroupincluded intheWindowsdomainlistreferencedbyVirtualCenter. VirtualCenterregistersanyselectedWindowsdomainuserorgroupthroughthe processofassigningpermissions.Bydefault,alluserswhoaremembersofthe WindowsAdministratorsgroupontheVirtualCenterServeraregrantedthesame accessrightsasanyuserassignedtotheAdministratorrole.Userswhoare membersoftheAdministratorsgroupcanlogonasindividualsandhavefull access.
NOTE
ThemethodyouusetoconfigurepermissionsdirectlyonanESXServerhostisidentical tothemethodyouusetoconfigurepermissionsinVirtualCenter.Thelistofprivileges isthesameforbothESXServerandVirtualCenter. ThetableinAppendix Aliststheaccesspermissions.
Roles
VirtualCenterandESXServergrantaccesstoobjectsonlytouserswhohavebeen assignedpermissionsfortheobject.Whenyouassignauserorgrouppermissionsfor theobject,youdosobypairingtheuserorgroupwitharole.Aroleisapredefinedset ofprivileges. VirtualCenterandESXServerhostsprovidedefaultroles:
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SystemrolesSystemrolesarepermanentandtheprivilegesassociatedwith theserolescannotbechanged. SamplerolesSamplerolesareprovidedforconvenienceasguidelinesand suggestions.Theserolescanbemodifiedorremoved.
Youcanalsocreatecompletelynewroles.Table 151liststhedefaultrolesthatcanbe pairedwithauserandassignedtoanobject. Table 15-1. Default Roles

Role NoAccessUser Role Type system Description User Capabilities Cannotvieworchangetheassignedobject. VIClienttabsassociatedwithanobjectdisplay withoutcontent. Thisisthedefaultroleforallusersexceptthoseusers intheAdministratorsgroup. ReadOnlyUser system Viewthestateanddetailsabouttheobject. ViewallthetabpanelsintheVIClientexceptthe consoletab.Cannotperformanyactionsthroughthe menusandtoolbars. Administrator system Allprivilegesforallobjects. Add,remove,andsetaccessrightsandprivilegesfor alltheVirtualCenterusersandallthevirtualobjectsin theVMwareInfrastructureenvironment. Thisisthedefaultroleforallmembersofthe Administratorsgroup. VirtualMachine User sample Performactionsonvirtualmachinesonly. Interactwithvirtualmachines,butnotchangethe virtualmachineconfiguration.Thisincludes:

Allprivilegesforthescheduledtasksprivileges group. Selectedprivilegesfortheglobalitemsandvirtual machineprivilegesgroups. Noprivilegesforthefolder,datacenter,datastore, network,host,resource,alarms,sessions, performance,andpermissionsprivilegesgroups.
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Table 15-1. Default Roles (Continued)

Role VirtualMachine PowerUser Role Type sample Description User Capabilities Performactionsonthevirtualmachineandresource objects. Interactandchangemostvirtualmachine configurationsettings,takesnapshots,andschedule tasks.Thisincludes:

Allprivilegesforscheduledtaskprivilegesgroup. Selectedprivilegesforglobalitems,datastore,and virtualmachineprivilegesgroups. Noprivilegesforfolder,datacenter,network,host, resource,alarms,sessions,performance,and permissionsprivilegesgroups.
ResourcePool Administrator
sample
Performactionsondatastores,hosts,virtualmachines, resources,andalarms. Providesresourcedelegationandisassignedto resourcepoolinventoryobjects.Thisincludes:

Allprivilegesforfolder,virtualmachine,alarms, andscheduledtaskprivilegesgroups. Selectedprivilegesforglobalitems,datastore, resource,andpermissionsprivilegesgroups. Noprivilegesfordatacenter,network,host, sessions,orperformanceprivilegesgroups.
Datacenter Administrator
sample
Performactionsonglobalitems,folders,datacenters, datastores,hosts,virtualmachines,resources,and alarms. Setupdatacenters,butwithlimitedabilitytointeract withvirtualmachines.Thisincludes:
Allprivilegesforfolder,datacenter,datastore, network,resource,alarms,andscheduledtask privilegesgroups. Selectedprivilegesforglobalitems,host,and virtualmachineprivilegesgroups. Noprivilegesforsession,performance,and permissionprivilegesgroups.
VirtualMachine Administrator
sample
Performactionsonglobalitems,folders,datacenters, datastores,hosts,virtualmachines,resources,alarms, andsessions.Thisincludes:
Allprivilegesforallprivilegegroups,except permissions.
Allrolespermittheusertoscheduletasksbydefault.Userscanscheduleonlytasks theyhavepermissiontoperformatthetimethetasksarecreated.Usetheroleediting
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facilitiesintheVIClienttocreateprivilegesetsthatmatchyouruserneeds.Ifyouuse theVIClientconnectedtoVirtualCentertomanageyourESXServerhosts,youhave additionalrolestochoosefromVirtualCenter.TherolesyoucreatedirectlyonanESX ServerhostarenotaccessiblewithinVirtualCenter.Youcanworkwiththeserolesonly ifyoulogontothehostdirectlyfromtheVIClient. Thereareseveralactivitiesyoucanperformwithroles. Theactivityoptionswithrolesaredescribedinthefollowingsections:

CreatingRolesonpage 257 CloningRolesonpage 259 EditingRolesonpage 260 RemovingRolesonpage 261 RenamingRolesonpage 262
NOTE
Changestopermissionsandrolesareimplementedimmediately,eveniftheusers involvedareloggedon.
Creating Roles
Someofthedefaultrolesarepreconfiguredandcannotbechanged.Ifyouhave situationsthatrequireadifferentcombinationofaccessprivileges,createanadditional roleormodifytheprovidedsamplerolestosuityourneeds. To create a role 1 2 LogontotheVIClientconnectedtoeitheraVirtualCenterServeroranESXServer asauserwithAdministratorprivileges. FromtheVIClient,clicktheAdminbuttoninthenavigationbar.ClicktheRoles tab.
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RightclickintheRolestabinformationpanel.ChooseAdd. TheAddRoledialogboxappears.
Typeanameforthenewrole.
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Selecttheprivilegesyouwantthenewroletohave,andclicktheitemsdesired. Clicktheplus(+)signstoexpandthelists,asneeded.ClickOKtocompletethe process.
Cloning Roles
Youcanmakeacopyofanexistingrole,renameit,andlatereditit.Whenyoumakea copy,thenewroleisnotautomaticallyappliedtothesameuserorgroupsandobjects. To clone a role 1 2 3 FromtheVIClient,clicktheAdminbuttoninthenavigationbar.ClicktheRoles tab. Toselecttheroletoduplicate,clicktheobjectinthelistofRoles. Toclonetheselectedrole,chooseAdministration>Role>Clone. Aduplicateoftheroleisaddedtothelistofroles.ThenameisCopy of <rolename>.
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Editing Roles
Whenyoueditarole,youhavetheoptiontochangeanyoralloftheprivilegesselected forthatrole.Oncecompleted,thesenewprivilegesareappliedtoanyuserorgroup assignedtheeditedrole. To edit a permissions role 1 2 3 4 5 FromtheVIClient,clicktheAdminbuttoninthenavigationbar.ClicktheRoles tab. Toselecttheroletoedit,clicktheobjectinthelistofRoles. ChooseAdministration>Role>EditRole. Selecttheprivilegesyouwantthenewroletohave.Clicktheplus(+)signsto expandthelists,asneeded. ClickOKtocompletetheprocess.
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Removing Roles
Whenyouremovearole,ifitisnotassignedtoanyusersorgroups,thedefinitionis removedfromthelistofpossibleroles.Whenyouremovearolethatisassignedtoa userorgroupyoucanremoveallassignmentsorreplacethemwithanassignmentto anotherrole. CAUTION Besurethatyouunderstandhowuserswillbeaffectedbeforeremovingall assignmentsorreplacingthem. To remove an existing role 1 2 FromtheVIClient,clicktheAdminbuttoninthenavigationbar.ClicktheRoles tab. Toselecttheroletoremove,clicktheobjectinthelistofroles. YoucanselectmultiplerolesusingtheCtrlorShiftkeys. 3 4 ChooseAdministration>Role>Remove. Toconfirmthatyouwanttodeletetheselectedrole,clickOK. Theroleisremovedfromthelistandisnolongeravailableforassigningtousers orgroups. Iftheroleisassignedtoauserorgroup,awarningmessageappears. 5 SelectoneoftheradiobuttonoptionsandclickOK.
Theoptionsare:
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RemoveRoleAssignmentsThisoptionremovesanyconfigureduseror group+rolepairingsontheserver.Ifauserorgroupdoesnothaveanyother permissionsassigned,theyloseallprivileges. ReassignaffecteduserstoThisoptionreassignsanyconfigureduseror group+rolepairingstotheselectednewrole.
Renaming Roles
Roles,likemostotherVMwareInfrastructureobjects,canberenamed. To rename an existing role 1 2 3 4 FromtheVIClient,clicktheAdminbuttoninthenavigationbar.ClicktheRoles tab. Toselecttheroletorename,clicktheobjectinthelistofroles. ChooseAdministration>Role>Rename. Typethenewname.PressReturnorclickanotherobject.
Access Permissions
ForeachobjectintheVMwareInfrastructurehierarchy,determinethepermissionsfor eachVirtualCenteruserandgroup. NOTE SeveraluserscanaccesstheVirtualCenterServerfromdifferentVirtualInfrastructure Clientsatthesametime.VMwareInfrastructuredoesnotexplicitlyrestrictuserswith thesameloginandpasswordfromaccessingandtakingactionwithintheVMware Infrastructureenvironment. IfyouremoveusersfromtheESXServer,refertotheSecuritychapterintheServer ConfigurationGuideforprocessandconsequences. IfyouremoveusersfromtheVirtualCenterdomain,theylosepermissionstoallobjects intheVMwareInfrastructureandwillnotbeabletologonagain.Userswhoare currentlyloggedonandareremovedfromthedomainretaintheirVMware Infrastructurepermissionsonlyuntilthenextvalidationperiod(thedefaultisevery24 hours).Individualpermissions,orthosegrantedaspartofinclusioninanothergroup, arenotaffected. Ifyouchangeausersnameinthedomain,theexistingusernamebecomesinvalidin theVMwareInfrastructuresystem.Thesamemethodologyappliestogroups,butthis appliestoagrouponlyafterVirtualCenterServerhasbeenrestarted.
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Assigning Access Permissions

Afteranyadditionalrolesaredefinedandusersandgroupsarecreated,youmust assigntheusersandgroupstheirroles,withassociatedpermissions,totherelevant inventoryobjects. ForinformationoncreatingusersandgroupsforusewithyourVirtualCenterServer, refertoyourMicrosoftdocumentation. ForinformationoncreatingusersandgroupforusewithyourESXServer,refertothe SecuritysectionoftheServerConfigurationGuide. To assign a user or group permission 1 2 LogontotheVIClientasauserwiththeAdministratorprivileges. FromtheVIClient,clicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar.Expandthe inventoryasneeded,andclicktheappropriateobject. Theobjectsthatcanhavepermissionsassignedtothemare:
InVirtualCenterFolders,datacenters,clusters,resourcepools,hosts,virtual machines InESXServerResourcepools,thehost,virtualmachines.
Withtheappropriateobjectselected,clickthePermissionstab.
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ChooseInventorymenu>New>AddPermission.
ChoosearolefromtheAssignedRolepulldownmenu. Thismenudisplaysalltherolesthathavebeenassignedtothathost.Whentherole isdisplayed,theprivilegesgrantedontherolearelistedinthesectionbelowthe roletitleforreferencepurposes.
(Optional)SelectthePropagatetoChildObjectscheckbox. Ifthischeckboxisselected,theroleisalsoappliedtoallchildobjectsoftheselected inventoryobject.Mostofthetimeselectingthisboxisappropriate.
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OpentheSelectUsersorGroupsdialogbox.ClicktheAddbutton.
RefertoAdjustingtheSearchListinLargeDomainsonpage 266forinformation onadjustingthelistofusersandgroupsyouselectfrom. 8 Identifytheuserorgroupthatisbeingassignedthisrole: a b c ChoosethedomainwheretheuserorgroupislocatedfromtheDomain pulldownmenu. TypeanameintheSearchboxorselectanamefromtheNamelist. ClickAdd. ThenameisaddedtoeithertheUsersorGroupslist. d e RepeatstepathroughStep ctoaddadditionalusersorgroups. ClickOKwhenfinished.
Ifyouknowtheuserorgroupname,youcantypeitintheNamefieldmanually. 9 10 Verifytheusersandgroupsareassignedtotheappropriatepermissions,andclick OK. Tofinishthetask,clickOK. Theserveraddsthepermissiontothelistofpermissionsfortheobject.
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Thelistofpermissionsreferencesallusersandgroupsthathaverolesassignedto theobject,andindicateswhereintheVirtualCenterhierarchytheroleisassigned.
Adjusting the Search List in Large Domains

Ifyouhavedomainswiththousandsofusersorgroupsinthem,adjustthesearch settingsforuseintheSelectUsersorGroupsdialogbox. NOTE ThisprocedureappliesonlytoVirtualCenteruserlists.ESXServeruserlistscannotbe searchedinthesameway. To adjust users and groups search parameters 1 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,chooseAdministration> VirtualCenterManagementServerConfiguration. TheVirtualCenterConfigurationwizardappears. 2 Whenthewizardisdisplayed,clicktheActiveDirectorylistitem.
Changethevaluesasneeded:
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ActiveDirectoryTimeoutSpecifiesinsecondsthemaximumamountof timeVirtualCenterallowsthesearchtorunontheselecteddomain.Searching verylargedomainscantakeaverylongtime. EnableQueryLimitandUsers&GroupsvalueSpecifiesthemaximum numberofusersandgroupsVirtualCenterdisplaysfromtheselecteddomain intheSelectUsersorGroupsdialogbox.Tospecifynomaximumlimit, deselectthecheckbox. EnableValidationandValidationPeriodSpecifiesthetimeinminutes betweenpermissionschecks.VirtualCenterverifiesthatallusersandgroups knowntoVirtualCentercurrentlyexistinWindows. Forexample,ifuserSmithwasassignedpermissionsandinthedomainthe usersnamewaschangedtoSmith2,VirtualCenterconcludesthatSmithno longerexistsandremovespermissionsforthatuser. Similarly,ifuserSmithisremovedfromthedomain,allpermissionsare irrelevant.ThatisuntilanewuserSmithisaddedtothedomain.Thenewuser SmithreceivesallthepermissionstheolduserSmithwasassigned,unlessyou usethisoptiontodeleteolduserSmithfromthesystem. Todeactivatethevalidationfunctions,deselectthecheckbox.
NOTE
Permissionsarealwaysvalidatedwhentheserverstarts.Eveniftheserveris disabled.
ClicktheFinishlistitem.ThenclickFinish.
Changing Access Permissions

Afterauserorgroup+rolepairissetforaninventoryobject,theonlychangeyoucan makeistotherolepairedwiththeuserorgroupandthePropagatecheckbox.Youdo havetheoptiontoremovethepermissionsetting.RefertoRemovingAccess Permissionsonpage 268forinformation. To change the permission role for a user or group 1 2 3 4
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FromtheVIClient,clicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar.Expandthe inventoryasneeded,andclicktheappropriateobject. Withtheobjectselected,clickthePermissionstab. Toselecttheuserorgroup+rolepairthatyouwanttochange,clicktheappropriate lineitem. ChooseInventory>Permissions>Properties.

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Toselecttheappropriaterolefortheuserorgroup,choosefromthepulldown menu.ClickOK.
Topropagatetheprivilegestothechildrenoftheassignedinventoryobject,click thePropagatecheckbox.
Removing Access Permissions

Removingapermissionforauserorgroupdoesnotremovetheuserorgroupfromthe listofthoseavailable.Italsodoesnotremovetherolefromthelistofavailableitems.It removestheuserorgroup+rolepairfromtheselectedinventoryobject. To remove a permission role for a user or group 1 2 3 4 FromtheVIClient,clicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar.Expandthe inventoryasneeded,andclicktheappropriateobject. Withtheobjectselected,clickthePermissionstab. Toselecttheuserorgroup+rolepairthatyouwanttodelete,clicktheappropriate lineitem. ChooseInventory>Permissions>Delete. TheVMwareInfrastructureserverremovesthepermissionsetting. NOTE Thereisnoadditionalwarningthatthepermissionisgoingtoberemoved.
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Monitoring Your Vmware Infrastructure Environment
16
ThischapterdescribeshowtomonitorperformanceofthedatapresentedintheVI Client.ItalsodescribesusingtheVIClientMapsfeature.Thischaptercontainsthe followingtopics:

MonitoringYourVMwareInfrastructureEnvironmentonpage 269 PerformanceChartsonpage 270 Mapsonpage 276
Monitoring Your VMware Infrastructure Environment

AfteryouaddhoststoVirtualCenterandcreateandpoweronvirtualmachines,you mustcustomizeandmonitoryourenvironment.Thissectionlooksatsomeavailable options. To monitor your Virtual Infrastructure environment 1 SelecttheDatacenter. NoticethatyoucanclickeithertheTasksortheEventsbuttonbelowthelineof tabs.Youcanthenselectindividualtasksoreventstoseeadditionalinformationin theDetailspaneatthebottomofthewindow. 2 Toviewjustevents,clickEventsinthenavigationbar. SelectingEventsdisplaysalarmsorinformationalmessages.Youcanexportthem toafilebyclickingExportEvents.SeetheVIClientOnlineHelpformore information.
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WhenyouarereadytoexpandorrestructureyourVirtualInfrastructure environment,youmightfinditusefultoviewamapofhostsandvirtualmachines, hostsandstoragedevices,orotherinformation. 3 SelecttheitemforwhichyouwantmoreinformationandclicktheMapstab. TheVIClientdisplaysamap,whichyoucancustomizeasneeded.
Performance Charts
ThissectiondescribestheperformancemonitoringfeaturesoftheVirtual InfrastructureClientdata. NOTE TheviewsandcapabilitiesdisplayedvarydependingonwhethertheVIClientis connectedtoaVirtualCenterServeroranESXServer.Unlessindicated,theprocess, task,ordescriptionappliestobothkindsofVIClient. ThePerformancetabisavailablewhenyouselectacluster,resourcepool,host,or virtualmachinefromtheinventorypanel.ThePerformancetabdisplaystheselected objectsresourceperformanceingraphandlistform.Performanceviewsshowgraphs forresourcesspecifictotheselectedinventoryobject. ESXServersystemsconnectedtoaVIClientdirectlyhavelimitedstatistical informationthatisdisplayedinthePerformancetabs.Togetthefullchartfunctionality, havetheVirtualCenterServermanagetheESXServer. RefertoPerformanceChartMeasurementsonpage 349forareferencelistofthe valuesmeasures. Thischaptercontainsthefollowingtopics:

PerformanceChartResourcesonpage 270 PerformanceChartViewonpage 271
Performance Chart Resources

Theresourcesthataremonitoredandreportedintheperformancechartsare:
CPUShowstheCPUusageinMHzoftheselectedinventoryobject.Availablefor cluster,resourcepool,host,andvirtualmachine. MemoryShowstheamountofmemorygrantedtotheselectedinventoryobject. Availableforcluster,resourcepool,host,andvirtualmachine. DiskShowstheaggregatedstorageperformancestatisticsoftheselected inventoryobject.Availableforhostandvirtualmachine.
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Chapter 16 Monitoring Your Vmware Infrastructure Environment
NetworkShowstheaggregatednetworkperformancestatisticsoftheselected inventoryobject.Availableforhostandvirtualmachine. SystemAvailableforhostandvirtualmachine. DRSAvailableforclustersandhoststhathaveDRSclusters.
Performance Chart View

Allperformancechartshaveatablelistingtheresourcesandmeasurementsincluded intheirchart.
Figure 16-1. Inventory > Virtual Machine > Performance Tab
Selecting Performance Chart Options

Severalitemsareselectableforinclusioninyourperformancechartdisplay.Youcan specifytheresource,timerange,measuredresourceelements,andwhethertoexport thechartasanExcelfile. Toseethemeasurementoptionsforeachresourcemonitoredonahost,refertothe performancechartmeasurementtablesinAppendix C.
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To select the resource whose performance is shown in the performance charts TheresourceoptionsareCPU,memory,disk,network,system,andresourcegroup CPU. 1 2 FromtheVIClient,selecttheappropriateinventoryobject.ClickthePerformance tab. Choosefromtheresourceoptionspulldownmenu.
ThetimerangeoptionsfortheperformancechartsareRealtime,PastHour,PastDay, Week,Month,Year,andCustom.Whichoptionsareavailabledependsonthefeature beingmeasured.Thesecanbeconfigured.Formoreinformation,seeTochange collectionintervalsforstatisticsonpage 275. To specify the time range for the performance charts 1 2 FromtheVIClient,selecttheappropriateinventoryobject.ClickthePerformance tab. Choosefromthetimeoptionspulldownmenu.
To export an .xls file of the performance chart data 1 2 FromtheVIClient,selecttheappropriateinventoryobject.ClickthePerformance tab. ClicktheExportChartlink. AnExportPerformancedialogboxappears.
Whenyouselectmorethanonecategory,thechartsareaddedondifferent spreadsheetsinthesamefile. 3 Selecttheoptionsdesired.Clickthecharttoexport.Specifyafilenameand location.Specifythesizeofthefiletobeexported.
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4 5
Ifthechartoptionyouselecthassuboptions,clicktheAdvancedbuttonandchoose fromthelistpresented.ClickOK. Tocompletetheexport,clickOK.
Thechartoptionsincludelinegraphorstackedgraph,resourceobjectsfoundingroup, andmeasurementsspecifictotheresourceselected. To specify the measured elements in the display of a performance chart 1 2 FromtheVIClient,selecttheappropriateinventoryobject.ClickthePerformance tab. ClicktheChangePerformanceCounterslink. ACustomizePerformanceChartappears.
Clicktheitemstodisplayasneeded.ClickApplytoviewthechange.ClickOKto acceptthechange.
Viewing Stacked Graphs

Astackedgraphisanotherwaytoviewthestatisticalinformation.Whenselectingthe stackedgraphoption,considerthefollowing:
Onlyoneitemcanbeselectedfromthelistofmeasurements.Astackedgraph cannotchartmorethanonemeasurementoverasetofobjects.
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Pervirtualmachinestackedgraphsareavailableonlyforhosts.Inthesegraphs,the objectslistcontainsthehostandallthevirtualmachinescurrentlypresentonthat host. Notallmetricsmakesenseforvirtualmachinestackedcharts.Themeasurements thatdonotapplyarenotincludedinthelistofselectablemeasurements.
To view the stacked graph 1 2 3 4 FromtheVIClient,selecttheappropriateinventoryobject.ClickthePerformance tab. ClicktheChangePerformanceCounterslink. ClickoneoftheLinegraph,Stackedgraph,orStackedgraph(perVM)options. ClickApplytoseetheresults.
ClickOKtoaccepttheresults.
Setting the Statistics Collection Intervals

Thetimeelementsthatareusedtotrackandcollectperformanceinformationare configurable.
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To change collection intervals for statistics 1 2 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,chooseAdministration> VMwareVirtualInfrastructureClientSettings. ClicktheStatisticslink.
3 4
Removeorcreateanewcollectioninterval. ClickOK.
To create a new statistic sampling period 1 2 3 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,chooseAdministration> VMwareVirtualInfrastructureClientSettings. ClicktheStatisticslink. FromtheStatisticslinkintheVirtualCenterConfigurationpanel,clickAdd. TheAddCollectionIntervaldialogboxappears.
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Anewcollectionintervalrequiresthatthe:

Newsamplingperiodmustbethemultipleofapreviousone Newsamplinglengthmustbelongerthanthepreviousone Newsamplingnamemustbeunique
4 5
Enteracollectionfrequency,specifyinghowoftentocollecttheinformation.Select theunitofmeasure. Enterthecollectionsize,specifyingtheamountofdatatostoreinthelengthoftime statisticsarecollectedbeforeolddataisreplacedwithnewdata.Selecttheunitof measure. Tocompletethenewsamplingperiod,clickOK.
Changing the Statistics Collection Level
Level1Basicmetrics,includingtheaverageusageforCPU,memory,disk,and network;systemuptimeandheartbeat;andDRSmetrics.Statisticsfordevicesare notincludedinlevel1. Level2AllmetricsforCPU,memory,disk,andnetworkcounters;systemuptime andheartbeat;DRSmetrics;anddevicestatistics. Level3Allmetricsforallcountergroups.Maximumandminimumrolluptypes areexcluded. Level4AllmetricssupportedbyVirtualCenter.
Maps
TheMapsfeatureofVIClientprovidesavisualunderstandingoftherelationships betweenthevirtualandphysicalresourcesavailableinVirtualCenter.Mapsofthe itemswithinVirtualCenterareavailableintheInventorythroughtheMapstabsfor hosts,virtualmachines,networks,anddatastores,(InventoryMaps)andthroughthe Mapsbuttoninthenavigationbar(GlobalMaps). Therearethreemaptypes:

Global Inventory VMotionResourceMaps
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Global Maps
Globalmapsareaccessiblefromthebuttoninthelargetoolbarandprovideahighlevel viewoftherelationshipsbetweenallphysicalandvirtualelementsintheentire VirtualCenterenvironment.Byselectingordeselectingtheboxesonthesideofthe inventory,youcanseewhichclustersorhostsaremostdenselypopulated,which networksaremostcritical,andwhichstoragedevicesarebeingutilized(ornot). Physical,Virtual,andCustommaptypesexistforbothinventorymapsandglobal maps.TheyconstrainandfilterinformationonaVirtualCenterwidelevelfortheglobal maps.
Inventory Maps
Inventorymapsareaccessiblefromtheinventoryviewandshowaselecteditems relevanthost,virtualmachine,network,andstoragerelationships.Thismakesiteasy tounderstandwhatitemsareaffectedorattachedtotheiteminquestion.Thesemaps appearforfolders,datacenters,clusters,resourcepools,andhosts. Physical,Virtual,andCustommaptypesexistforbothinventorymapsandglobal maps.TheyconstrainandfilterinformationonanitemspecificlevelfortheInventory maps. TheMapstabisavailablewhenyouselectfolders,datacenters,clusters,resourcepools, hosts,orvirtualmachinesfromtheinventorypanelofthenavigationbar.
VMotion Resource Maps

VMotionresourcemapsappearonlyinthetabsforvirtualmachinesselectedinthe inventory.Inadditiontovisualrepresentationsoftheresources(hosts,datastores,and networks)associatedwithavirtualmachine,thesemapsdisplaywhichhostsina virtualmachinesclusterordatacenterarecandidatehoststowhichavirtualmachine canmigrate.ThoughtheVMotionmapisnotthelastwordonwhetherVMotionis possible,itprovidesinformationaboutwhichhostsareheavilyloaded,whichare connectedtoallthesameresourcesthatthetargetvirtualmachineisconnectedto,and whichhostshavecompatibleCPUandsoftwarewiththetargetvirtualmachine. NOTE TheviewsandcapabilitiesdisplayedvarydependingonwhethertheVIClientis connectedtoaVirtualCenterServeroranESXServer.Mapsareavailableonlywhenthe VIClientisconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer. ThemapconsidersfourcriteriawhenmarkingthehostasacandidateforVMotion migration:
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Datastorecompatibilitythehostmustbeconnectedtoallthesamedatastoresas thevirtualmachine. Networkcompatibilitythehostmustbeconnectedtoallthesamenetworksas thevirtualmachine. Softwarecompatibilitythehostmusthavecompatiblesoftwarewiththevirtual machine. CPUcompatibilitythehostmusthaveacompatibilityCPUwiththevirtual machine.
Ifanyofthefourislacking,thehostismarkedwitharedXtodenoteunsuitability.If thecauseoftheunsuitabilityisfromnetworking/datastoreincompatibility,theusercan discernthisfromthelackofedgesconnectingthathostandthevirtualmachines networksanddatastores.IfthecauseoftheunsuitabilityisfromCPUorSoftware incompatibility,theinformationappearsinatooltipwhenthepointerhoversoverthe hostinquestion. Ifahostiscompatibleinallfouraspects,agreencircleappearsbehindit.Thiscircle variesinintensitybasedonthehostscurrentload.Heavilyusedhostsarepale; lowloadhostsaresaturatedgreen. Itmighttakeafewsecondsforthemaptoretrieveload,CPU,andsoftware information.Thestateofthemapsinformationretrievalprocessisdisplayedinthe lowerleftcornerofthemap.Asinformationarrives,themapisupdated.Ahostthat lookslikeagoodVMotioncandidate(displayedasgreen)mightbecomeabad candidate(displayedasred)asinformationfiltersin. Iftheinformationretrievalistakingtoolong,youcancanceltheoperation. TheVMotionmapisnotaconclusivestatementastowhetherVMotionispossible betweenavirtualmachineandatargethost.However,itseekstoprovideinformation astowhetherVMotionmightbepossible,andifnot,whatanadministratormightdo toremedythesituation.
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Map Elements and Icons

Allmapshaveelementsthatareselectabledependingontheinventoryitemand whetheryouapproachthemapthroughtheInventorytabortheNavigationbarbutton. TheVMwareInfrastructuremapelementsaredescribedinthefollowingtable. Table 16-1. Map Elements and Icons
.
Attribute
Description Hosticon.
AhostthatiscompatibleforVMotionmigration.
AhostthatisnotcompatibleforVMotionmigration.
Virtualmachineicon.
Networkicon.
Datastoreicon.
Overviewsection MapRelationships section Refreshlink
Thumbnailgraphicofthefullscalemap. Sectionthatisdisplayedwhenmorethanonemaptypeisavailable fortheselectedinventoryobject.Providesselectionofthetypeof resourcemaptodisplay. Mapsdonotautorefreshbecauseaddingorremovingelements mightbedisruptive.Toreorganizeyourmaptothecurrentstateof theinventoryandcenterthemapviewintheinformationmappanel, clicktheRefreshlink. WhenselectingthroughtheInventorynavigationbar,aselecteditem stayshighlightedtoindicatemapfocus. WhenselectingthroughtheMapsnavigationbar,allitemsinthe inventoryarelistedwithacheckbox.Youcanselectordeselectany inventoryitemsyoudonotwantincludedinthemap.
Inventorypanel
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Viewing the Maps

Therearetwoviewsofthemapinanymappanel.Alargerviewfillsthepanelanda miniatureviewfitsintoafixedwindow. To view global maps ClicktheMapsbuttoninthenavigationbar. To view inventory maps ClickInventoryinthenavigationbarandselecttheInventoryHostsandClustersor VirtualMachinesandTemplatesoptions.Selectafolder,datacenter,cluster,resource pool,orhostinventoryobject.ClicktheMapstab. To view VMotion maps ClickInventoryinthenavigationbarandselecttheInventoryHostsandClustersor VirtualMachinesandTemplatesoptions.Selectavirtualmachine.ClicktheMapstab.
Editing the Maps

Editingmapoptionsinclude:

Includingorexcludinginventoryobjects Shiftingtheorientation,hostcentricorvirtualmachinecentric Zoominginorout Shiftingtheareaofthemapbeingviewed
To view or hide content of a map using Map Relationships 1 FromtheVIClient,selecttheappropriateinventoryobject.ClicktheMapstab. Allinventoryitemsareselectedbydefault.
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ChooseanitemfromtheMapRelationshipspulldownmenu:Releasingthe mousebuttonacceptsthechangeandthemapshiftstothenewconfiguration.
TheMapRelationshipspanelcomeswithtwopresetsmapsandavariableoption:

HostResourcesShowshostcentricphysicalrelationships. VirtualMachineResourcesShowsvirtualmachinecentricrelationships. CustomMapAllowsyoutochooseanycombinationofrelationshipsother thanthehostandvirtualmachinecentricversions.TheCustomMapoption comespresetwithallrelationshipsselected.
ClickthecheckboxesavailableunderHostOptionsorVMOptions. ThemaplistingchangestoCustomMap.ClickApplyRelationshipstoupdatethe mapdisplay.
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To view or hide content of a global map using inventory checkboxes 1 2 FromtheVIClient,clicktheMapsbuttoninthenavigationbar. Selectordeselectanyinventoryitemstoindicatetheitemsyouwantincludedin themap. Bydefault,selectingordeselectingselectsordeselectstheitemsbelowtheobject. Themapremovesoraddstheobjectsautomatically.
Asyouclickitems,theyappearordisappearfromthemap.
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Refreshthemaptoorganizethenewlistofitems.ClicktheRefreshlink.
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To zoom in or out of your map view ClickanddragintheOverviewpanel. Whenyouzoominoroutofamap,VirtualCenterdetectsifthemapcannotfitonthe screen.Ifthemapistoobigtofitonthescreen,youcanchangethezoomlevelby manipulatingthesizeoftheviewingwindowinsidetheOverviewpanel.Insidethe Overviewpanel,asubsetboxrepresentswhatpartofthetotalmapisvisible.Changing thesizeofthissubsetboxchangesthedegreeofzoom.Youcanonlyzoomintoacertain point,butyoucanzoomoutuntilthemapfitsentirelyintothewindow. TheOverviewmapdisplaysanareaindicatorbox.Thelargemapshiftstodisplayonly theareacontainedintheindicatorbox.Theimagesinthelargemapshrinkorexpand tofittheinformation.Thisismorenoticeableinlargenetworkenvironments.
Themapdisplaysinthebackgroundoftheinformationpanel.Themaphasaspecific scale,andsometimesthefullmapdoesnotfitinthesizetheofwindow.TheOverview andMapRelationshipspanelsdonotmovefromtheirupperrightlocationinthe informationpanel.
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To move the map within the information panel Youcanmovethemaptwoways:
Clickanddraginthebodyoftheinformationpanel. Thedefaultpointerchangesfromanarrowtoahand.Themapshiftsdirection correspondingtothemousedrag.Scrollbarsdisplaywhenthemapextends beyondtheinformationpanelframe.
Alternatively,clickintheOverviewmap.Thelargermapshiftsitscentertothe locationyouclick.
Printing Maps
Youcanprintthecurrentlyvisiblemaptoanyordinaryprinter. To print a map Youhavetwowaystoprint:
Fromanyscreenonwhichanytypeofmapispresent,chooseFile>Export>Print Maps. FromtheGlobalMapstoolbar,clickthePrintbutton.
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To alter print settings or see a print preview Fromanywindowonwhichanytypeofmapispresent,chooseFile>Export>Print Preview.
Exporting Maps
Youcansaveorexportanymapasa.jpgfile. To export a graphical image of the performance chart 1 2 FromtheVIClient,selecttheappropriateinventoryobject. ClicktheGlobalMapsbuttoninthenavigationbar,andclicktheExportMap buttonintheMapstaskbar. ASaveAsImagedialogboxappears.
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Selecttheoptionsdesired.Clicktheformattoexport.Specifyafilenameand location.Selectthesizeofthefiletobeexported. Completetheexport.ClickOK.
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Navigating Between Maps

DoubleclickahostorvirtualmachineiconinamapfromtheMapsbuttondisplay.The VIClientshiftstothaticonintheinventoryanddisplaysthatelementsmapstab,if applicable.Intheexamplebelow,fromtheMapsbuttondisplay,avirtualmachinewas doubleclicked.TheviewshiftstothevirtualmachineMapstabinformation.
Displaying Object Menus in Maps

Mapssupportinventoryobjectpopupmenus.Thefunctionsonhosts,virtual machines,networks,anddatastorescanbeperformedthroughanyoftheMaps windows. To display an inventory object menu RightclickanyiconintheMapspanel.
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Thecorrespondingpopupmenuappears.
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Managing Tasks, Events, and Alarms
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Thischapterdescribestasks,events,andalarms.Thischaptercontainsthefollowing topics:

ManagingTasksonpage 289 ManagingEventsonpage 303 ManagingAlarmsonpage 308
Managing Tasks
ThissectiondescribeshowtoviewandscheduleVirtualCentertasks.Tasksareplanned activities.Theseactivitiesarescheduledorinitiatedmanually.Tasksgenerateevent messagesthatindicateanyissuesassociatedwiththetask.Therearetwokindsoftasks:
Anunscheduledtask,whichcanresultfromperforminganoperationthatmight takeawhile,likeaddingahost. Ascheduledtask,whichyousetuptotriggeratadifferenttime. TheviewsandcapabilitiesdisplayedvarydependingonwhethertheVIClientis connectedtoaVirtualCenterServeroranESXServer.Unlessindicated,theprocess, task,ordescriptionappliestobothkindsofVIClientconnections.TheTasks optionisnotavailablewhentheVIClientisconnectedtoanESXServer,butitdoes offertherecenttaskswindowatthebottomoftheVIClientwindow.
NOTE
Thissectioncontainsthefollowingsections:

UnderstandingTasksonpage 290 ViewingandPerformingTasksonpage 290

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ManagingScheduledTasksonpage 293 ReschedulingaScheduledTaskonpage 300 RemovingaScheduledTaskonpage 300 CancelingaTaskonpage 301
Understanding Tasks
ThescheduledtasksoptionallowsyoutoconfigureselectedVirtualCenteractivitiesto occuratdesignatedtimes.Thetimingoptionsincludeimmediately,later,orona recurringbasis.Scheduledtasksareperformedinadditiontomanuallydriven activities. CreateascheduledtaskthroughtheNewTaskwizard,whichdisplaystheavailable taskoptions.Afteryouselectanoption,thewizarddisplaysthepagesthatarerelevant tothetypeoftaskyouarescheduling.TheNewTaskwizardendswhenyousetthe timingofthetask.Youcanrescheduletasks. Ifthedirectionsofmanuallydrivenandscheduledactivitiesconflict,VirtualCenter performswhicheveractivityisduefirst.Ifavirtualmachineisinanincorrectstateto performanyactivity,manualorscheduled,VirtualCentersendsamessagetothelog anddoesnotperformthetask. Whenyoucreateascheduledtask,VirtualCenterverifiesthatyouhavethecorrect permissionstoperformtheactionsontherelevantdatacenters,hosts,andvirtual machines.Oncethetaskiscreated,thetaskisperformedevenifyounolongerhave permissiontoperformthetask. WhenanobjectisremovedfromVirtualCenter,allassociatedtasksarealsoremoved. Eventsareloggedtotheeventlogatstartandcompletionofthetasks.Anyerrorsthat occurduringthetaskarealsorecordedintheeventlog. CAUTION Donotschedulemultipletaskstobeperformedatthesametimeonthe sameobject.Theresultsareunpredictable.
Viewing and Performing Tasks

Youhavetheoptiontoviewthelistoftasksassociatedwithparticularinventoryobjects orthecompletelistoftasksassignedtotheentireVirtualCenterinventory.Tasks includeactivitiessuchaspoweringonoroffavirtualmachine,cloningavirtual machine,oraddingavirtualmachinetoaresourcepool. TasksarenottrackedorscheduledonyourESXServerhostunlesstheESXServeris registeredandconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer.
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Chapter 17 Managing Tasks, Events, and Alarms
To view recent tasks FromtheVIClientconnectedtoanESXServeroraVirtualCenterServer,clicktheTasks togglebuttononthelowerleftsideoftheVIClientwindow.
To perform a task on an ESX Server 1 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoanESXServer,clicktheInventorybuttoninthe navigationbar.Expandtheinventoryasneeded,andclicktheobjectwherethe actionistobeperformed. Choosetheactivityfromthemainorpopupmenuassociatedwiththeobject. Forexample,selectavirtualmachine,rightclick,andchoosethePowerOnoption. To schedule or view a list of tasks on an ESX Server AddthehosttotheVirtualCenterinventory. RefertoAddingaHostonpage 101formoreinformation. ToscheduleataskonaVirtualCenterServer,refertoManagingScheduledTaskson page 293. To view a list of tasks completed on a VirtualCenter Server 1 2 3 FromtheVIClient,clicktheInventory,andclicktherootfolder. ClicktheTask&Eventstab.ClicktheTasksbuttonontheTasks&Eventspanel. Clickataskinthepanel.
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DetailedinformationappearsintheTaskDetailspane.
To sort the list of tasks 1 2 FromtheVIClient,displaytheinventorypanel,selecttheappropriateobjectand viewtheTasks&Eventspanel. Clickthecolumntitle.Ittogglesbetweenascendinganddescendingsort.
To filter the list of tasks 1 2 3 4 5 FromtheVIClient,expandtheinventoryasneeded,andclicktheappropriate object. ClicktheTask&Eventstab.ClicktheTasksbuttonontheTasks&Eventspanel. ChooseView>Filtering,ifneeded. Clickthelistarrow,andclickthecolumntoincludeinthefiltersearch. Typeakeywordintothebox,andpressReturn.
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Thelistoftasksdisplaysonlythoseitemsthatcontainthekeywordyoutyped. NoticeintheexamplebelowhowtheNameandReasoncolumnsbothhaveitems thatcontainthefilterkeyword,power.
Managing Scheduled Tasks

Youcanscheduletaskstooccuratdesignatedtimes.Eachscheduletaskoptionrunsthe correspondingwizardforthetaskandaddsaschedulingtimeoptionattheendofthe wizard.ThepossibletasksthatcanbescheduledthroughtheNewTaskwizardare listedbelow.Refertothelisteddocumentforinformationoncompletingtheindividual taskwizards:
Changethepowerstateofavirtualmachine(refertoChangingVirtualMachine PowerStatesonpage 141) Createavirtualmachinetemplate(refertoCreatingTemplatesonpage 204) MoveavirtualmachinewithVMotion(refertoMigrationwithVMotionon page 233) Createavirtualmachine(refertoUsingtheNewVirtualMachineWizardon page 114) Makeasnapshotofavirtualmachine(refertoUnderstandingSnapshotson page 221)
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Customizeavirtualmachine(refertoPreparingforGuestCustomization(SEE UPDATE)onpage 190) Addahost(refertoAddingaHostonpage 101) AnyoperationcanbesetasascheduledtaskthroughtheVMwareInfrastructure API.However,onlyasubsetofalloperationscanbepartofascheduledtask throughtheVIClient.
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To create a scheduled task 1 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,clicktheScheduledTasks optioninthenavigationbar. Thecurrentlistofscheduledtasksappears. 2 3 ClickNewinthetoolbar,orchooseFile>New>ScheduledTask. Clickthepulldownmenu,andchoosetheappropriateoption.ClickNext.
Completethetaskspecificinformation. TheNewTaskwizarddisplaysaseriesofpagesthatcorrespondtothepagesyou refertowhenyouperformthetaskstartingfromtheselectedobject. Refertothesectionorthemanualthatisappropriateforeachoptionforspecific informationoneachtask.Mostoftheschedulingprocessesdifferfrommanually performedtasksonlyinthatyoumustspecifythevirtualmachine,host,or datacentertowhichthetaskappliesandspecifythetimetoperformthetask.
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Specifythetimingofthetask.
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Onlyonetimingschedulecanbesetpertask.Tosetmorethanonefrequencytype, setupadditionaltasks. ThedefaultfrequencyandscheduledtimeisNow.Thetaskstartswhenyoufinish creatingthetask.
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ThetimewhenascheduledtaskoccursisrelativetotheVirtualCenterServerand nottothelocalVIClientfromwhichyouconfigurethetask. Toscheduleaonetimeoccurrence,settheFrequencytoOnce.SettheStartTime toLater.TypeaclocktimeintheTimefield. Toviewthecalendar,clicktheDatearrow.
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Clicktheleftandrightarrowstoviewadditionalmonths.Clickthemonthand choosefromthelist.Clicktheyear,andclicktheupanddownarrows.
Whenyouclickthecalendardate,thecalendaracceptsthenewdateandcloses. NOTE 8 ThetimesetisrelativetotheVirtualCenterServerandnottotheVIClient. Torunthetaskafterstartup,clickAfterStartupandentertheamountofthedelay.
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Torunthetaskhourly,clickHourly.Enterthestarttimeafterthebeginningofthe hourandtheinterval(forexample,15minutesaftereveryeighthours).
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Torunthetaskdaily,clickDaily.Enterthestarttimeandinterval. Forexample,enter14:30everyfourthdaytorunthetaskat2:30pmeveryfour days.
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Torunthetaskweekly,clickWeekly.Enterthestarttime,dayoftheweek,and interval.
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Forexample,TuesdaysandThursday,8:00am,everysecondweek.Youcanselect multipledaysoftheweek.
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Torunthetaskmonthly,clickMonthly.Enterthestarttime,dayofthemonth,and interval. Forexample,entersecondThursdayofthemonth,11:00everythirdmonth. Ifyouselectadayhigherthan28,awarningmessageisdisplayedbecausesome monthsare29,30,or31days.
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Thelast<day>ofthemonthselectsthelastweekinthemonththatthedayoccurs. IfyouselectthelastMondayofthemonth,andthemonthendsonaSunday,the lastMondaywillbesixdaysbeforetheendofthemonth.
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Tocompletethewizard,clickFinish. VirtualCenteraddsthetasktothelistintheScheduledTaskstab.
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Rescheduling a Scheduled Task

Afterascheduledtaskiscreated,youcanchangeitstimingandfrequency,aswellas thespecificsofthetask. To reschedule a scheduled task 1 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,clicktheTasksoptionin thenavigationbar. Thelistofscheduledtasksappears. 2 Tochoosetheappropriatetaskfromthelist,clickPropertiesinthetoolbar. TheChangea<task>wizard,correspondingtothetask,appears. 3 NOTE ClickthroughthewizardusingtheNextbutton,andmakechangesasneeded. Scheduledtaskcalculationandexecutionarebasedontimezoneandthetimeset intheVirtualCenterServer.IftheVIClientandVirtualCenterServerarein differenttimezones,thetaskscheduleisoffsetbythedifferenceintimezonesof theVirtualCenterServerandVIClient.
Removing a Scheduled Task

Removingascheduledtaskremovesallfutureoccurrencesofthetask.Thehistory associatedwithallpreviousexecutionsofthetaskremainsintheVirtualCenter database. NOTE Removingataskdiffersfromcancelingatask.Cancelingataskstopsataskcurrently occurring,whetherstartedmanuallyorschedule.Removingataskremovesfuture occurrencesofascheduledtask. To remove a task that has been scheduled 1 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,clicktheScheduledTasks optioninthenavigationbar. Thelistofscheduledtasksappears. 2 Selecttheappropriatetaskfromthelist.ChooseInventory>ScheduledTask> Remove. VirtualCenterremovesthetaskfromthescheduledtasklist. 3 Toverifythatyouwanttoremovethetask,clickOK. Thetaskisdeletedfromthelistoftasks.
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Canceling a Task
Onlytasksthatareinprocesscanbecanceled.Andonlyselected(scheduledor manuallyinitiated)taskscanbecanceledwhileinprocess.Cancelingataskwhileitis runningrequiresthatyouhavetheappropriatepermissionsassignedtothehostwhere thetaskisoccurring. NOTE ThecancelingoperationisnotallowedifoneorbothofthehostsinvolvedisanESX Serverversion2.0.1. Cancelingataskdiffersfromremovingatask.Cancelingataskstopsataskcurrently occurring,whetherstartedmanuallyorscheduled.Removingataskremovesfuture occurrencesofascheduledtask. Thetasksthatcanbecanceledaftertheystartare:

Connectingtoahost Cloningavirtualmachine Migratingavirtualmachine Deployingatemplate Creatingatemplatefromavirtualmachine Cloningatemplate
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To cancel a task that is currently running 1 2 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,viewtheRecentTasks panel. ClickShowtoggleatthelowerrightcorneroftheinventorypanel.
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Selecttheappropriatetaskfromthelist. Rightclickthetask,andchooseCancel.
VirtualCenterstopsprogressonthetask,returnstheobjectstotheirprevious states,anddisplaysthetaskascanceled.
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Managing Events
AneventisanyactionthatisofinteresttotheVirtualCenterServerortheESXServer. Eacheventtriggersaneventmessage.Alleventmessagesarearchivedonthe VirtualCenterServersdatabase.Vieweventmessagesfromtwolocations:
TheEventsoptioninthenavigationbardisplaysalleventsthathaveoccurredon theVirtualCenterServer. AnEventstabforanyobjectundertheInventorybutton.TheseEventstablistings showonlytheeventsthatoccurredonortotheselecteddatacenter,host,orvirtual machine.
Themostrecenteventsappearattheendofascrollablelist.Messagesareidentifiedby type:Information,Error,orWarning.Messagesarealsocolorcoded.Ashortenedevent messageappearsinthedescriptionportionofthepanel.Amoredetailedversionofa selectedeventmessageappearsintheEventDetailsportionofthepanel.Typically,the EventDetailentryindicatesthehostorvirtualmachineonwhichtheeventoccurred anddescribestheactionthatoccurred.Theobjectoftheeventisalinktotheobjects individualeventpage. Thissectioncontainsthefollowing:

ViewingAllEventMessagesonpage 303 ViewingSelectedEventMessagesonpage 305 SortingandFilteringEventMessagesonpage 306 ExportingEventMessagesonpage 307
Viewing All Event Messages

TheEventstabisavailablewhenyouselectaresourcepool,host,orvirtualmachine objectfromtheInventorypanel.ThisviewoftheeventsisavailablewhentheVIClient isconnectedtoanESXServer. NOTE WhenconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,EventsarecombinedwiththeTaskstab.
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Figure 17-1. VI Client Connected to ESX Server > Inventory > Virtual Machine > Events Tab To view event details FromtheInventorypanel,clicktheEventstab.Clickanevent. TheEventDetailsfielddisplaysadditionalinformationabouttheevent:
EventsaremessagesthatreportVirtualInfrastructureClientactivity.Event messagesarepredefinedintheproduct. Logsarestoredreferenceinformationrelatedtoselectedeventmessages.Logsare predefinedintheproduct.Youcanconfigurewhetherselectedlogsaregenerated ornot. TheviewsandcapabilitiesdisplayedvarydependingonwhethertheVIClientis connectedtoaVirtualCenterServeroranESXServer.Unlessindicated,theprocess, task,ordescriptionappliestobothkindsofconnections.
NOTE
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Viewing Selected Event Messages

EachobjectintheinventorypanelhasanEventstabintheinformationpanel.Each eventthatappearsisanobjectspecificsubsetofalltheserverevents. To view the event messages and event detail for an object 1 2 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoeitheraVirtualCenterServeroranESXServer, clicktheInventorybuttoninthenavigationbar.Expandtheinventoryasneeded. Intheinventorypanel,selectafolder,cluster,resourcepool,host,orvirtual machine,asappropriate. Ifyouselectahost,theeventmessagesforallthevirtualmachinesonthathostare includedintheEventslog. 3 4 ClicktheEventstab. Clicktheevent. AfulltextmessagewithlinkstorelatedobjectsappearsintheEventDetailsbox.
ClickanyofthebluehighlighteditemsintheEventsDetailsbox. Theviewchangestodisplaytheselectedlinkedobject.
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Sorting and Filtering Event Messages

Sortallitemsinthelistbyclickinginthecolumnlabelheading.Atriangleinthecolumn headshowsthesortorderasascendingordescending. To sort a list Clickthecolumnheadingtoresortthelistbytheentriesinthatcolumn.Thecurrent selectiondoesnotchange. To change ascending or descending order Clickthecolumnheadingtotogglebetweenascendinganddescendingorder. To choose items in a list Clickanindividualitem.UseShiftclickorCtrlclicktochoosemultipleitemsinthe Eventspanel. To view selected columns only Rightclickanycolumnhead,andchoosefromthelistofdatafieldstobedisplayed. To search and list selected items 1 2 ChooseView>Filteringtoseethefilteringoptions. Entertextintothedatafield.ClickCleartoemptythedatafield.
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Entriesinmultiplecolumnsthatmatchthesearchtermaredisplayed.Inthe example,thesearchwordpowerisfoundinboththeDescriptionandtheTask columnentries.
Exporting Event Messages

Thereisanoptionforexportingallorpartofyoureventslogfile. To export the events file 1 2 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,chooseFile>Export> ExportEvents. Specifythetimerangeofmessagesandthetypeofmessagestoexport.
Specifyafilename,filetype,andlocationfortheexportedfile.ClicktheBrowse buttontoviewtheSaveAsdialogbox. Thefileissavedasatextfile.
SelecttheTyperadiobuttontoindicatethetypeoferrorstoincludeintheexported file. Youcanspecifywhethertoincludeusergeneratedorsystemgeneratedevents. Youcanspecifyallusers,oryoucanspecifyTheseusersandclickBrowsetoselect asubsetofusers.
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Specifythetimerangeofeventstoexport.OptionsareHours,Days,Weeks, Months,andFrom/Todateranges. Specifythenumberofeventstoexport,eitheralloraspecificnumber. ClickOKtocreateafileoftheselecteddata.
VirtualCentercreatesafileoftheselecteddatabasedonthefileextensionprovidedand storesthefileatthespecifiedlocation.Ifnofileextensionisprovided,thedefaultisa textfile.ThefilecontainsType,Time,andDescription.
Managing Alarms
Alarmsarespecificnotificationsthatoccurinresponsetoselectedevents.Somealarms aredefinedbyproductdefault.Additionalalarmscanbecreatedandappliedto selectedinventoryobjectsorallinventoryobjects. NOTE TheviewsandcapabilitiesdisplayedvarydependingonwhethertheVIClientis connectedtoaVirtualCenterServeroranESXServer.TheAlarmsoptionisnotavailable whentheVIClientisconnectedtoanESXServer. Thissectioncontainsthefollowingtopics:

UnderstandingAlarmsonpage 309 PreparingforEmailMessageSMTPAlarmNotification(SEEUPDATE)on page 311 PreparingforSNMPAlarmNotificationonpage 312 CreatingAlarmsonpage 314 EditingAlarmsonpage 320 RemovingAlarmsonpage 321
TheAlarmstabintheinventorypaneldisplaysthelistofalarmsfortheselectedobject thatareactivatedupondesignatedevents.Alarmscanapplytohostsandvirtual machines,andcanbedefinedinparententitiessuchasfoldersorresourcepools. NOTE AlarmsareconfigurableonlythroughtheVirtualCenterServer.ESXServerhosts connectedtoaVIClientdirectlydonothavethealarmsfunctionality.Togetthealarm features,havetheVirtualCenterServermanagetheESXServer. TheAlarmstabhastwoviewsavailablethroughbuttons:
AlarmsDisplaystriggeredalarmsagainsttheselectedinventoryitem.
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Figure 17-2. VI Client Connected to VirtualCenter Server > Inventory: Hosts and Clusters > Host > Alarms Tab > Alarms Button
DefinitionsDisplaysthealarmsthataremonitoringtheselectedinventoryitem. Iftheeventconfiguredinanalarmoccurs,thealarmistriggeredandtheserver takestheconfiguredaction(forexample,sendsanemailnotification).
Figure 17-3. VI Client Connected to VirtualCenter Server > Inventory: Hosts and Clusters > Host > Alarms Tab > Definitions Button
Understanding Alarms
Alarmssendnotificationmessageswhenselectedeventsoccurtooronhostsorvirtual machines.Alarmsindicatethestatuslevelsofanobjectorcollectionofobjectsinthe hierarchy.Alarmscanbedefinedatallhierarchicallevels,includingfolders, datacenters,clusters,resourcepools,hosts,andvirtualmachines. Alarmsareinheritedfromparentlevelsandcannotbechangedoroverriddenatachild level.Whenyouaddnewalarmstoanyobjectyoucontributetothecollectionofalarms thatareinforceatanyofitschildlevels.
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Whenanalarmiscreated,VirtualCenterverifiestheuserpermissionstoperformthe actionsontherelevantdatacenters,hosts,andvirtualmachines.Afterthealarmis created,thealarmisperformedevenifthecreatingusernolongerhaspermissionto createthealarm. Alarmsareappliedtoeitherhostsorvirtualmachines.Eachalarmhasatriggering eventandanotificationmethod. Therearetwokindsofalarmtriggers:
PercentageMonitorshostprocessor(orCPU)usage,hostmemoryusage, virtualmachineprocessor(orCPU)usage,virtualmachinememory,andvirtual machineheartbeat. ThetriggeringoptionsareIsAbove(percent)andIsBelow(percent).Thedefault monitorforvirtualmachineheartbeatissettoIsBelow.Thedefaultmonitorforall otherpercentageoptionsissettoIsAbove.
StateMonitorhoststateandvirtualmachinestate. Thetriggeringoptionsare:Is(state)andIsNot(state).
Thereareseveraltypesofalarmnotificationmethods:
Sendanotificationemailmessage SMTPsendsanemailmessage.TheSMTPmustbereadywhentheemailmessage issent.TherearetwowaystosetSMTP:throughVirtualCenterorthrough MicrosoftOutlookExpress.TheVirtualCentersetupisnotalwaysneededifthe SMTPsettinginOutlookExpressiscorrect. TheVirtualCenterServergeneratesthesubjectandbodytextoftheemailmessage. OnlytheTolist(receiver)isrequiredfromuserinput.Specifytheemailmessage addresswherethemessageshouldbesent.Separatethenamesofmultiple recipientswithcommasorsemicolons.
Sendanotificationtrap TheVirtualCenterServeristhedefaultSNMPnotificationreceiver.AnSNMPtrap viewerisrequiredtoviewasenttrap.TheVirtualCenterServerhostmustbe configuredtoreceiveSNMPtraps.RefertoPreparingforSNMPAlarm Notificationonpage 312.
Runascript Theuserscriptcommandanditsargumentsmustbeformattedintoonestring.
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TheuserscriptisrunningasseparateprocessanddoesnotblocktheVirtualCenter Serverprocesses.Butthescriptdoesrunandconsumetheresourcesonthe VirtualCenterServermachine,suchasprocessorandmemory.

Suspendthevirtualmachine Poweroffthevirtualmachine Resetthevirtualmachine
Theactionsavailablewithalarmsaredescribedinthefollowingsections:
PreparingforEmailMessageSMTPAlarmNotification(SEEUPDATE)on page 311 PreparingforSNMPAlarmNotificationonpage 312 CreatingAlarmsonpage 314 EditingAlarmsonpage 320 RemovingAlarmsonpage 321
Preparing for Email Message SMTP Alarm Notification (SEE UPDATE)

IfyouarewanttouseemailmessagestosendSMTPnotifications,youmust:

DefinetheSMTPandemailmessageaddressinginformation. Specifytheemailmessageaddressforthoseintendedtoreceivethenotification whenyoucreatethealarm.
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To define the SMTP and email message addressing information 1 FromtheVIClient,chooseAdministration>ServerSettings>Mail.
Foremailmessagenotification,settheSMTPserverandSMTPport:
SMTPServerTheDNSnameorIPaddressoftheSMTPgatewaytousefor sendingemailmessages. SenderAccountTheemailaddressofthesender,forexample,mail_server datacenter.com.
ClickOK.
Preparing for SNMP Alarm Notification

TouseSNMPtraps,youmustconfigure:

TheVirtualCenterServerhost. TheSNMPreceiverservertoacceptthetrapsfromVirtualCenter.
Whenyoucreateanalarm,onlyonetrapistriggeredandsent.Thealarmparameters include:
TypeThestateVirtualCenterismonitoringforthealarm.OptionsincludeHost Processor(orCPU)usage,HostMemoryusage,HostState,VirtualMachine Processor(orCPU)usage,VirtualMachineMemoryusage,VirtualMachineState, VirtualMachineHeartbeat.
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NameThenameofthehostorvirtualmachinethattriggersthealarm. OldStatusThealarmstatusbeforethealarmwastriggered. NewStatusThealarmstatuswhenthealarmistriggered. ObjectValueTheobjectvaluewhenthealarmistriggered.
To define the SNMP information 1 2 FromtheVIClient,chooseFile>VirtualCenterSettings,andclicktheAdvanced tab. EntertheSNMPandmailaddressing,asappropriate.
ConfigureuptofourreceiversofSNMPtraps.Theymustbeconfiguredin numericalorder,1,2,3,and4.EachSNMPtraprequiresacorrespondinghost name,portandcommunity.Forexample:

ReceiverURLTheDNSnameandIPaddressoftheSNMPreceiver. ReceiverportTheportnumberofthereceiver. Iftheportvalueisempty,VirtualCenterusesthedefaultport.Thedefaultport is902.
CommunityStringThecommunityidentifier.
ClickOK.
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Creating Alarms
IfyouplantouseemailmessageorSNMPnotification,refertoPreparingforEmail MessageSMTPAlarmNotification(SEEUPDATE)onpage 311anddefinetheaddress informationbeforeyoucreateyouralarm. To create an alarm 1 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,clicktheInventorybutton. Expandtheinventoryasneeded,clicktheappropriateobject,clicktheAlarmstab, andclicktheDefinitionsbutton.
ChooseFile>New>Alarm. Ifyoustartfromafolder,datacenter,orcluster,theAlarmPropertiesdialogbox displaystheoptiontocreateanalarmforeitherahostoravirtualmachine.Ifyou startfromaresourcepool,host,oravirtualmachine,MonitorahostorMonitora VMispreselectedandtheotheroptionisdimmed.
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Selectthealarmtype.
IntheGeneraltab,specifyanameforthealarm,theobjecttobemonitored(host orvirtualmachine),thetriggerpriority,andwhethertoenablethisalarm. TriggerprioritiescanbesettoRedorGreen:
RedThedefault,triggersthealarmsprioritizedredasfirst,thenyellow,and greenalarmslast. GreenTriggersthealarmsprioritizedasgreenfirst,thenyellow,andred alarmslast.
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Todefinethealarmbutnotmakeitactive,deselecttheEnablebox. ClicktheTriggerstabandtheAddbutton.
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IntheTriggerstab,therearefourpulldownmenus:
TriggerType Theoptionslistedapplytoeitherthehostorvirtualmachine. Forhostalarms,theoptionsareHostProcessor(orCPU)Usage,Host MemoryUsage,HostNetworkUsage,HostDiskUsage,andHostState. Forvirtualmachinealarms,theoptionsareVMProcessor(orCPU)Usage, VMMemoryUsage,VMNetworkUsage,VMDiskUsage,andVMState.
Condition TheoptionsforpercentagetriggersareIsAbove(percent)andIsBelow (percent). TheoptionsforstatetriggersareIs(state)andIsNot(state).
Warning(Yellow)stateorpercentageandAlert(Red)stateorpercentage Percentageoptionsrangefrom5percentto100percentin5percent increments.Exitingconditionisconsideredayellowconditionatn percentage. Virtualmachinestateoptionscorrespondtotheseactivities:Creating, Migrating,Connecting,Disconnecting,MigratingwithVMotion, Reconnecting,Removing,Resetting,Resuming,Starting,Stopping, Suspending,Disconnected,Initial,Orphaned,PoweredOff,PoweredOn,and Suspended.Hoststateoptionscorrespondtotheseactivities:Connecting, Disconnecting,Reconnecting,Removing,Shuttingdown,Connected,and Disconnected.Exitingstateisconsideredayellowconditionatselectedstate. Thecolorscorrespondingtotheexiting/fromandentering/tostatesaresetin theActionstab.ThedefaultisFromyellowtored.
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(Optional)Definemultipleconditionsforthealarmtriggeringevent.ClickAdd. Entertheparametersforeachcondition.
Specifythereportingfrequencywhenthealarmistriggered.Enteravaluefor ToleranceandoneforFrequency.
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Specifytheactiontobetakenwhenthealarmistriggered.
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ClicktheActionstab.ClicktheAddbutton.Clicktheappropriatecheckbox. Therearefourdifferentlevelchanges:greentoyellow,yellowtored,redtoyellow, andyellowtogreen.Attachanactionforeachchangefromoneleveltoanother.
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Choosetheactiontobetakenwhentheeventistriggeredandspecifythe associatedinformation. Theoptionsare:
Sendanotificationemail. ProvidetheemailaddressofthenotificationrecipientintheValuefield. SMTPsendsanotificationemail.TheSMTPmustbereadywhentheemailis sent.TherearetwowaystosetSMTP:throughVirtualCenterorthrough MicrosoftOutlookExpress.VirtualCentersetupisnotalwaysneededifthe SMTPsettinginOutlookExpressiscorrect. VirtualCenterServergeneratestheemailmessagesubjectandbodytext.Only thetolist(receiver)isrequiredfromuserinput.Specifytheemailaddress towhichthemessageshouldbesent.Separatemultiplerecipientswith commasorsemicolons.RefertoPreparingforEmailMessageSMTPAlarm Notification(SEEUPDATE)onpage 311.
Sendanotificationtrap. ThereisadefaultSNMPnotificationreceiver,theVirtualCenterServer.An SNMPtrapviewerisrequiredtoviewasenttrap.TheVirtualCenterServer
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hostmustbeconfiguredtoreceiveSNMPtraps.RefertoPreparingforSNMP AlarmNotificationonpage 312.
Runascript.(SEEUPDATE) Providethepathtothescript. Theuserscriptcommandanditsargumentsmustbeformattedintoone string. TheuserscriptrunsinotherprocessesanddoesnotblocktheVirtualCenter Serverfromrunning.However,thescriptconsumesserverresources,suchas processorandmemory.

{eventDescription} full formatted message for alarm triggering event {entityName} name of the entity name where the alarm is triggered {alarmName} name of the alarm that is triggered {triggeringSummary} summary info of the alarm with triggering values {declaringSummary} summary info of the alarm declaration {oldStatus} alarm status before it is triggered {newStatus} alarm status after it is triggered {entityObject} inventory object as triggering alarm Example scripts: "c:\MyAlarmProcess.bat {entityName} {alarmName}"
Twoalarmtriggeringparametersarepassedtothebackfile.Thefirst parameteristhenameoftheentity,andthesecondisthenameofthealarm. WhentheentitynameisMyEntityandalarmnameisMyAlarm,thescript becomes"c:\MyAlarmProcess.bat MyEntity MyAlarm".

"d:\tools\alarm.exe '{entityName}' '{alarmName}' {newStatus}"
Threealarmtriggeringparametersarepassedtotheexecutionfile.Thefirstis theentityname,thesecondisthealarmname,andthethirdisthealarmstatus aftertriggering.Whentheentitynameismy dummy vm,thealarmnameismy test alarm,andthenewstatusisred,thescriptbecomes:

"d:\tools\alarm.exe my dummy vm my test alarm red
Poweron,Poweroff,Suspend,orResetthevirtualmachine. Theseapplyonlytoavirtualmachinealarm.
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Tocompletethealarm,clickOK.
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VirtualCenterverifiestheconfigurationofthealarmandaddsthealarmtothelist ofalarmsfortheselectedobject.
NoticethattheDefinedIncolumnindicateswhereintheinventoryhierarchythe alarmisdefined.
Editing Alarms
Alarmscanbemodified,butyoumusteditthematthehierarchicallevelwherethey werecreated.Asimplechangeistoenableordisablethealarm.Ifanalarmisdisabled, anXappearsonthealarmlistingicon. To edit an existing alarm 1 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,clicktheInventorybutton inthenavigationbar.Expandtheinventoryasneeded,clicktheAlarmstab,and clicktheDefinitionsbutton. Ifthealarmyouwanttochangeisnotdefinedatthecurrentlocation,clickthe linkedobjectintheDefinedincolumn. VirtualCenterdisplaystheAlarmspanelfortheobjectwherethealarmwas defined.
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Selectthealarmtoedit.ChooseInventory>Alarm>EditSettings.Theentryin theDefinedincolumnforthealarmmustbeThisobject.
Editthealarmgeneralsettings,triggers,oractions,asneeded.ClickOK. VirtualCenterverifiestheconfigurationofthealarmandeditsthealarmforthe selectedobject.RefertoCreatingAlarmsonpage 314foradditionalinformation.
Removing Alarms
Removealarmsfromtheobjectinwhichtheyweredefined.Youcannotremovethem fromachildthatinheritedthealarm. To remove an alarm 1 FromtheVIClientconnectedtoaVirtualCenterServer,clicktheInventorybutton inthenavigationbar.Expandtheinventoryasneeded,clicktheAlarmstab,and clicktheDefinitionsbutton. Ifthealarmyouwanttochangeisnotdefinedatthecurrentlocation,clickthe linkedobjectintheDefinedincolumn.VirtualCenterdisplaystheAlarmspanel fortheobjectwherethealarmwasdefined.
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Toremovethealarm,selectthealarm,andchooseInventory>Alarm>Remove.
Aconfirmationpopupwindowappears. 4 ClickYes. Thealarmisremoved.
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Appendixes
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Defined Privileges
Thefollowingtableslistthedefaultprivilegesthat,whenselectedforarole,canbe pairedwithauserandassignedtoanobject.ThefollowingtablesuseVCtoindicate VirtualCenterServerandHCtoindicateHostClient,astandaloneESXServer. Whensettingpermissions,verifyalltheobjecttypesaresetwithappropriateprivileges foreachparticularaction.Someoperationsrequireaccesspermissionattherootfolder orparentfolderinadditiontoaccesstotheobjectbeingmanipulated.Someoperations requireaccessorperformancepermissionataparentfolderandarelatedobject.Refer toChapter 15,ManagingUsers,Groups,Permissions,andRoles,onpage 247for informationonapplyingprivilegestoinventoryobjects. RefertoTable 151,DefaultRoles,onpage 255foralistofpredefinedgrouped privileges. Thisappendixcontainsthesetopics:

AlarmManagementonpage 326 Datacenteronpage 327 Datastoreonpage 327 Foldersonpage 328 Globalonpage 329 HostConfigurationonpage 330 HostInventoryonpage 331 HostLocalOperationsonpage 332 Networkonpage 333
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Permissionsonpage 334 Performanceonpage 333 Permissionsonpage 334 ScheduledTaskonpage 336 Sessionsonpage 336 VirtualMachineConfigurationonpage 337 VirtualMachineInteractiononpage 339 VirtualMachineInventoryonpage 340 VirtualMachineProvisioningonpage 341 VirtualMachineStateonpage 342
Alarm Management
Table A-1. Alarm Management Privileges
Privilege Name CreateAlarm1 Description Createsanewalarm. UserinterfaceelementAlarmtab popupmenu,Filemenu DeleteAlarm Deletesanexistingalarm. UserinterfaceelementAlarmtab popupmenu,Filemenu ModifyAlarm Changesthepropertiesofanexisting alarm. UserinterfaceelementAlarmtab popupmenu,Filemenu
1
Used VConly
Pair with Object Alarm object parent Alarm object parent Alarm object parent
Effective on Object All inventory items All inventory items All inventory items
VConly
VConly
Whencreatingalarmswithacustomaction,privilegetoperformtheactionisverifiedwhentheuse createsthealarm.
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Appendix A Defined Privileges
Datacenter
Table A-2. Datacenter Privileges
Privilege Name Create Datacenter Description Createsanewdatacenter. UserinterfaceelementInventory popupmenu,toolbarbutton,andFile> NewDatacenter Removesadatacenter. UserinterfaceelementInventory popupmenu,Inventory>Datacenter> Remove,Edit>Remove Movesadatacenter. Privilegemustbepresentatboththe sourceanddestination. UserinterfaceelementInventory draganddrop Rename Datacenter Changesthenameofadatacenter. UserinterfaceelementInventory object,inventorypopupmenu,Edit> Rename,Inventory>Datacenter> Rename VConly Datacenter Datacenters VConly VConly Datacenter plusparent object Datacenter, sourceand destination Affects VConly Pair with Object Datacenter Effective on Object Datacenter folders
Delete Datacenter
Datacenters
Move Datacenter
Datacenters, Datacenter folders
Datastore
Table A-3. Datastore Privileges
Privilege Name Browse Datastore Description Browsesfilesonadatastore. UserinterfaceelementAddexisting disk,browseforCDROMorFloppy media,serialorparallelportfiles Removesadatastore. UserinterfaceelementInventory datastorepopupmenu,Edit>Remove, Inventory>Datastore>Remove HCandVC Datastores Datastores Affects HCandVC Pair with Object Datastores Effective on Object Datastores
Delete Datastore
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Table A-3. Datastore Privileges (Continued)

Privilege Name Delete DatastoreFile Description Deletesafileinthedatastore. UserinterfaceelementDatastore BrowsertoolbarbuttonandDatastore popupmenu Renamesadatastore. UserinterfaceelementDatastore PropertiesdialogChangebutton,host Summarytabpopupmenu HCandVC Datastores Datastores Affects HCandVC Pair with Object Datastores Effective on Object Datastores
Rename Datastore
Folders
Table A-4. Folder Privileges
Privilege Name CreateFolder Description Createsanewfolder. UserinterfaceelementTaskbar button,Filemenu,popupmenu DeleteFolder Deletesafolder. UserinterfaceelementFilemenu, popupmenu MoveFolder Movesafolder. Privilegemustbepresentatboththe sourceanddestination. UserinterfaceelementInventory draganddrop RenameFolder Changesthenameofafolder. UserinterfaceelementInventory paneobjecttextfield,popupmenu,File menu VConly Folders Folders VConly VConly Foldersplus parentobject Folders, sourceand destination Folders Affects VConly Pair with Object Folders Effective on Object Folders
Folders
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Global
Table A-5. Global Privileges
Privilege Name CancelTask Description Cancelsarunningorqueuedtask. UserinterfaceelementRecenttasks panepopupmenu,Tasks&Events popupmenu.Cancurrentlycancel cloneandclonetotemplate. Diagnostics Getslistofdiagnosticfiles,logheader, binaryfiles,ordiagnosticbundle. UserinterfaceelementFile>Export> ExportDiagnosticData,AdminSystem Logstab Licenses Seeswhatlicensesareinstalledand addsorremoveslicenses. UserinterfaceelementLicensestab, Configuration>LicensedFeatures LogEvent Logsauserdefinedeventagainsta particularmanagedentity. UserinterfaceelementShouldaskfor areasonwhenshuttingdownor rebootingahost. Manage Custom Properties SetCustom Properties Adds,removes,renamescustomfields foramanagedentity. Userinterfaceelement Administration>CustomAttributes Views,creates,andremovescustom fields. UserinterfaceelementAnylistview showsthefieldsdefinedandallows settingthem Settings ReadsandmodifiesruntimeVC configurationsettings. Userinterfaceelement Administration>VMware VirtualCenterSettingsfilemenu VCServer PreparesorinitiatesaVMotionsend operationoraVMotionreceive operation. NouserVIClientinterfaceelementsare associatedwiththisprivilege.
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Affects HCandVC
Pair with Object Anyobject
Effective on Object Inventory object relatedtothe task Rootfolder
VConly
Anyobject
HCandVC
Anyobject
Rootfolder
HCandVC
Allobjects
All inventory objects
VConly
Allobjects
Rootfolder
VConly
Allobjects
All inventory objects
VConly
Allobjects
Rootfolder
VConly
Allobjects
Rootfolder
Host Configuration
Table A-6. Host Configuration Privileges
Privilege Name Advanced Configuration Description Setsadvancedoptionsinhost configuration. UserinterfaceelementHostConfig> AdvancedSettings,Inventoryhierarchy popupmenu ChangeSNMP Settings Connection Edits,restarts,andstopsSNMPagent. NouserVIClientinterfaceelementsare associatedwiththisprivilege. Changestheconnectionstatusofahost (connectedordisconnected). UserinterfaceelementRightclick Host Hyper Threading Enablesanddisableshyperthreadingin thehostCPUscheduler. UserinterfaceelementHostConfig> Processors Maintenance Putsthehostinandoutofmaintenance mode,shutsdownandrestartsthehost. UserinterfaceelementHostpopup menu,Inventory>Host>Enter MaintenanceMode Memory Configuration Setsconfiguredserviceconsolememory reservation. UserinterfaceelementHostConfig> Memory Internet Service Enablesanddisablesinternetservices providedbyserviceconsole,suchas SSH,Telnet,SNMP. UserinterfaceelementHostConfig> SecurityProfile Network Configuration Configuresnetwork,firewall,and VMotionnetwork. UserinterfaceelementHostConfig> Networking,NetworkAdapter,DNS andRouting HCandVC Hosts Hosts HCandVC Hosts Hosts HCandVC Hosts Hosts HCandVC Hosts Hosts HCandVC Hosts Hosts VConly Hosts Hosts HCandVC Hosts Hosts Affects HCandVC Pair with Object Hosts Effective on Object Hosts
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Table A-6. Host Configuration Privileges (Continued)

Privilege Name System Resource Settings Storage Partition Configuration Description Updatestheconfigurationofthesystem resourcehierarchy. UserinterfaceelementHostConfig> SystemResourceAllocation ManagesVMFSdatastoreand diagnosticpartitions.Scansfornew storagedevices.ManagesiSCSI. UserinterfaceelementHostConfig> Storage,StorageAdapters,Host Configurationtabdatastorepopup menu Virtual Machine Autostart Configuration Changesautostartandautostoporder ofvirtualmachinesonasinglehost. UserinterfaceelementHostConfig> VirtualMachineStartuporShutdown HCandVC Hosts Hosts HCandVC Hosts Hosts Affects HCandVC Pair with Object Hosts Effective on Object Hosts
Host Inventory
Table A-7. Host Inventory Privileges
Privilege Name AddHostTo Cluster Add standalone Host Description Addsahosttoanexistingcluster. UserinterfaceelementInventory popupmenu Addsastandalonehost. UserinterfaceelementToolbar button,inventorypopupmenu, Inventory>Datacenter>AddHost,File >New>AddHost,Hosttabpopup menu Createsanewcluster. UserinterfaceelementToolbar button,inventorypopupmenu, Inventory>Datacenter>NewCluster, File>New>Cluster DeleteCluster Deletesaclusterorstandalonehost. UserinterfaceelementInventory popupmenu,Edit>Remove, Inventory>Cluster>Remove VConly Clustersplus parentobject VConly Clusters VConly Hosts Datacenters, Hostfolders Affects VConly Pair with Object Hosts Effective on Object Clusters
CreateCluster
Datacenters, Hostfolders
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Table A-7. Host Inventory Privileges (Continued)

Privilege Name Modify Cluster Description Changesthepropertiesofacluster. UserinterfaceelementInventory popupmenu,Inventory>Cluster> EditSettings,Summarytab Movesaclusterbetweenfolders. Privilegemustbepresentatboththe sourceanddestination. UserinterfaceelementInventory hierarchy MoveHost Movesasetofexistinghostsintoa cluster. Privilegemustbepresentatboththe sourceanddestination. UserinterfaceelementInventory hierarchydraganddrop RemoveHost FromCluster Destroysahostinaclusteror standalonehost. UserinterfaceelementInventory draganddropoutofcluster,popup menu,Inventory>Host>Remove Rename Cluster Renamesacluster. UserinterfaceelementInventory singleclick,inventoryhierarchypopup menu,Inventory>Cluster>Rename VConly Clusters Clusters VConly Clustersplus parentobject Clusters, Hostfolders VConly Hosts,source and destination Clusters, Hostfolders VConly Clusters, sourceand destination Clusters, Hostfolders Affects VConly Pair with Object Clusters Effective on Object Clusters
MoveCluster
Host Local Operations

Table A-8. Host Local Operations Privileges
Privilege Name CreateVirtual Machine Description Createsanewvirtualmachinefrom scratchonadiskwithoutregisteringit onthehost. NouserVIClientinterfaceelementsare associatedwiththisprivilege. DeleteVirtual Machine Deletesavirtualmachineondisk, whetherregisteredornot. NouserVIClientinterfaceelementsare associatedwiththisprivilege.
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Affects HConly
Pair with Object Rootfolder
Effective on Object Rootfolder
HConly
Rootfolder
Rootfolder
Table A-8. Host Local Operations Privileges (Continued)

Privilege Name InstallAgent Description Installsanduninstallsvariousagentson ahost,forexample,vpxaandaam. NouserVIClientinterfaceelementsare associatedwiththisprivilege. ManageUser Groups Manageslocalaccountsonahost. UserinterfaceelementUsers& Groupstab(onlypresentiftheVIClient logsontothehostdirectly) HConly Rootfolder Rootfolder Affects HConly Pair with Object Rootfolder Effective on Object Rootfolder
Network
Table A-9. Network Privileges
Privilege Name Delete Network Description Removesanetwork. UserinterfaceelementInventory networkpopupmenu,Edit>Remove, Inventory>Network>Remove Affects HCandVC Pair with Object Datacenter Effective on Object Datacenters
Performance
Table A-10. Alarm Management Privileges
Privilege Name Modify Intervals Description Creates,removes,andupdates performancedatacollectionintervals. UserinterfaceelementVCSettings> Statistics Affects VConly Pair with Object Rootfolder Effective on Object Rootfolder
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Permissions
Table A-11. Permissions Privileges
Privilege Name Modify Permission Description Definesoneormorepermissionrules onanentity,orupdatesrulesifalready presentforthegivenuserorgroupon theentity. UserinterfaceelementPermissions tabpopupmenu,Inventory> Permissionsmenu ModifyRole Updatesarolesnameandthe privileges. UserinterfaceelementRolestab popupmenu,toolbarbutton,File menu ReassignRole Permissions Reassignsallpermissionsofaroleto anotherrole. UserinterfaceelementDeleteRole dialogboxradiobuttonandassociated menu HCandVC Anyobject Rootfolder HCandVC Anyobject Rootfolder Used HCandVC Pair with Object Anyobject plusparent object Effective on Object All inventory items
Resource
Table A-12. Resource Privileges
Privilege Name Apply Recommenda tion AssignVirtual MachineTo Pool ColdMigrate Description Askstheservertogoaheadwitha suggestedVMotion. UserinterfaceelementCluster Migrationstab Assignsvirtualmachinestoaresource pool. UserinterfaceelementVMCreation wizard Migratesavirtualmachinesexecution toaspecificresourcepoolorhost. UserinterfaceelementInventory popupmenu,VMSummarytab, Inventory>VM>Migrate,dragand drop VConly Virtual machines Virtual machines HCandVC Resource pools Resource pools Affects VConly Pair with Object Clusters Effective on Object Clusters
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Table A-12. Resource Privileges (Continued)

Privilege Name CreatePool Description Createsanewresourcepool. UserinterfaceelementFilemenu, popupmenu,Summarytab,Resources tab DeletePool Deletesaresourcepool. UserinterfaceelementEdit> Remove,Inventory>ResourcePool> Remove,inventorypopupmenu, Resourcestab EditPool Changestheallocationsofaresource pool. UserinterfaceelementInventory> ResourcePool>Remove,Resourcestab HotMigrate Migratesavirtualmachinesexecution toaspecificresourcepoolorhost. UserinterfaceelementInventory popupmenu,VMSummarytab, Inventory>VM>Migrate,dragand drop MovePool Movesaresourcepool. Privilegemustbepresentatboththe sourceanddestination. Userinterfaceelement Draganddrop Query VMotion InvestigatesthegeneralVMotion compatibilityofavirtualmachinewith asetofhosts. UserinterfaceelementRequired whendisplayingthemigrationwizard forapoweredonVM,tocheck compatibility RenamePool Renamesaresourcepool. UserinterfaceelementEdit> Rename,Inventory>ResourcePool> Rename,singleclick,popupmenu HCandVC Resource pools Resource pools VConly HCandVC Resource pools, sourceand destination Resource pools VConly HCandVC HCandVC Affects HCandVC Pair with Object Resource pools, clusters Resource poolsplus parent object Resource poolsplus parent object Virtual machines Effective on Object Resource pools, clusters Resource pools
Resource pools
Virtual machines
Rootfolder
Rootfolder
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Scheduled Task
Table A-13. Scheduled Task Privileges
Privilege Name CreateTasks1 Description Schedulesatask.Requiresthe privilegestoperformthescheduled actionatthetimeofscheduling. UserinterfaceelementScheduled Taskstoolbarbuttonandpopupmenu DeleteTask Removesascheduledtaskfromthe queue. UserinterfaceelementScheduled Taskspopupmenu,Inventory> ScheduledTask>Remove,Edit> Remove ModifyTask Reconfiguresthescheduledtask properties. UserinterfaceelementInventory> ScheduledTasks>Edit,Scheduled Taskstabpopupmenu RunTask Runsthescheduledtaskimmediately. UserinterfaceelementScheduled Taskspopupmenu,Inventory> ScheduledTask>Run
1
Affects VConly
Pair with Object Allinventory objects
Effective on Object Allinventory objects
VConly
Allinventory objects
VConly
VConly
Creatingandrunningatask(ondemand)requirespermissiontoinvoketheassociatedaction.For example,Alarmsrequirespermissionsonafoldertocreatealarmsonobjectsinthatfolder.
Sessions
Table A-14. Session Privileges
Privilege Name Global Message Description Setsthegloballogonmessage. UserinterfaceelementSessionstab, Administration>EditMessageofthe Day Forceslogoffofoneormoreloggedon users. UserinterfaceelementSessionstab VConly Rootfolder Rootfolder Affects VConly Pair with Object Rootfolder Effective on Object Rootfolder
Terminate Session
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Virtual Machine Configuration

Table A-15. Virtual Machine Privileges
Privilege Name AddExisting Disk Description Addsavirtualdiskthatreferstoan existingvirtualdisk. UserinterfaceelementVM Configuration AddNewDisk Addsavirtualdiskthatcreatesanew virtualdisk. UserinterfaceelementVM Configuration Addor Remove Device Advanced Addsorremovesanynondiskdevice. UserinterfaceelementVM Configuration ChangesvaluesinextraConfig. UserinterfaceelementVM ConfigurationWizard>Optionstab> AdvancedlookforConfiguration Parametersbutton ChangeCPU Count DiskLease ChangesthenumberofvirtualCPUs. UserinterfaceelementVM Configuration LeasesdisksforVMwareConsolidated Backup. NouserVIClientinterfaceelementsare associatedwiththisprivilege. Memory Changestheamountofmemory allocatedtotheVM. UserinterfaceelementVM Configuration>Memory ModifyDevice Settings Changesthepropertiesofanexisting device. UserinterfaceelementVM ConfigurationSCSI/IDEnode selection RawDevice1 Addsorremovesarawdiskmapping orSCSIpassthroughdevice. UserinterfaceelementVM Configuration>Add/Removerawdisk mapping HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines HCandVC HCandVC HCandVC HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines Virtual machines Virtual machines HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines Affects HCandVC Pair with Object Virtual machines Effective on Object Virtual machines
Virtual machines Virtual machines
Virtual machines Virtual machines
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Table A-15. Virtual Machine Privileges (Continued)

Privilege Name RemoveDisk Description Removesavirtualdiskdevice. UserinterfaceelementVM Configuration>HardDisk(butnota rawdiskmapping) Rename Renamesavirtualmachineormodifies theassociatednotesofavirtual machine. UserinterfaceelementVM Configuration,inventory,inventory popupmenu,Filemenu,Inventory menu ResetGuest Information Resource Settings Clearsguestinfovariables. NouserVIClientinterfaceelementsare associatedwiththisprivilege. Changesresourceconfigurationofaset ofVMnodesinagivenresourcepool. ChangesgeneralVMsettings. UserinterfaceelementVM Configuration>Optionstab(exceptVM name) Upgrade Virtual Hardware Upgradesthevirtualmachinesvirtual hardwareversionfromaprevious versionofVMware. UserinterfaceelementPopupmenu, Filemenu(appearsonlyifvmxfile showsalowerconfigurationnumber)
1
Affects HCandVC
Pair with Object Virtual machines
Effective on Object Virtual machines
HCandVC
Virtual machines
Virtual machines
HCandVC
Virtual machines Virtual machines Virtual machines
Virtual machines Virtual machines Virtual machines
HCandVC HCandVC
HCandVC
Virtual machines
Virtual machines
Settingthisparameteroverridesanyotherprivilegeformodifyingrawdevices,includingconnection states.
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Virtual Machine Interaction

Table A-16. Virtual Machine Interaction
Privilege Name Answer Question Description ResolvesissueswithVMstate transitionsorruntimeerrors. UserinterfaceelementSummarytab, Inventorymenu,popupmenu Console Interaction Interactswiththevirtualmachines virtualmouse,keyboard,andscreen; getsscreenshotinformation. UserinterfaceelementConsoletab, toolbarbutton,Inventory>Virtual Machine>OpenConsole,inventory popupmenu Device Connection Changestheconnectedstateofavirtual machinesdisconnectablevirtual devices. UserinterfaceelementVM Configuration PowerOff Powersoffapoweredonvirtual machine,shutsdownguest. UserinterfaceelementFilemenu item,popupmenu,popupconsole menu,toolbarbutton,Summarytab PowerOn Powersonapoweredoffvirtual machine,resumesasuspendedvirtual machine. UserinterfaceelementFilemenu item,popupmenu,popupconsole menu,toolbarbutton,Summarytab Reset ResetsVM,rebootsguest. UserinterfaceelementFilemenu item,popupmenu,popupconsole menu,toolbarbutton,Summarytab SetCDMedia ChangesthebackingofaCDROM device. UserinterfaceelementVM Configuration>DVD/CDROM SetFloppy Media Changesthebackingofafloppydevice. UserinterfaceelementVM Configuration HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines HCandVC HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines Affects HCandVC Pair with Object Virtual machines Effective on Object Virtual machines
Virtual machines
Virtual machines
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Table A-16. Virtual Machine Interaction (Continued)

Privilege Name Suspend Description Suspendsapoweredonvirtual machine,putsguestinstandbymode. UserinterfaceelementFilemenu item,popupmenu,popupconsole menu,toolbarbutton,Summarytab ToolsInstall MountsandunmountstheVMware ToolsCDinstallerasaCDROMforthe guestoperatingsystem. UserinterfaceelementFilemenu item,popupmenu,popupconsole menu HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines Affects HCandVC Pair with Object Virtual machines Effective on Object Virtual machines
Virtual Machine Inventory

Table A-17. Virtual Machine Inventory Privileges
Privilege Name Create Description Createsanewvirtualmachineand allocatesresourcesforitsexecution. UserinterfaceelementFilemenu, popupmenu,SummarytabNew VirtualMachinelinks Delete Deletesavirtualmachine,optionally removesunderlyingfilesfromdisk. UserinterfaceelementFilemenu, popupmenu,Summarytab Move Relocatesavirtualmachineinthe hierarchy. Privilegemustbepresentatboththe sourceanddestination. UserinterfaceelementInventory hierarchydraganddropinVirtual Machines&Templatesview VConly HCandVC Virtual machines plusparent folders Virtual machines, parent folders Affects HCandVC Pair with Object Parent folders Effective on Object Virtual machine folders
Virtual machines
Virtual machines, virtual machine folders
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Virtual Machine Provisioning

Table A-18. Virtual Machine Provisioning Privileges
Privilege Name AllowDisk Access Description Opensadiskonavirtualmachinefor randomreadandwriteaccess.Used mostlyforremotediskmounting. NouserVIClientinterfaceelementsare associatedwiththisprivilege. AllowReadOnly DiskAccess Opensadiskonavirtualmachinefor randomreadaccess.Usedmostlyfor remotediskmounting. NouserVIClientinterfaceelementsare associatedwiththisprivilege. AllowVirtual MachineFiles Download Readsfilesassociatedwithavirtual machine,includingvmx,disks,logs, andnvram. NouserVIClientinterfaceelementsare associatedwiththisprivilege. AllowVirtual MachineFiles Upload Writesfilesassociatedwithavirtual machine,includingvmx,disks,logs, andnvram. NouserVIClientinterfaceelementsare associatedwiththisprivilege. Clone Clonesanexistingvirtualmachineand allocatesresources. UserinterfaceelementFilemenu, popupmenu,Summarytab CloneTemplate Clonesatemplate. UserinterfaceelementFilemenu, popupmenu,VirtualMachinestab CreateTemplate FromVirtual Machine Createsanewtemplatefromavirtual machine. UserinterfaceelementCloneto template...Filemenu,popupmenu, Summarytabitems Customizesavirtualmachinesguest operatingsystemwithoutmovingthe VM. UserinterfaceelementCloneVirtual MachineWizard:GuestCustomization VConly Virtual machines Virtual machines VConly VConly Virtual machines Virtual machines Virtual machines Virtual machines VConly Virtual machines Virtual machines HCand VC Virtual machines Rootfolders HCand VC Virtual machines Rootfolders n/a Virtual machines Virtual machines Affects n/a Pair with Object Virtual machines Effective on Object Virtual machines
Customize
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Table A-18. Virtual Machine Provisioning Privileges (Continued)

Privilege Name DeployTemplate Description Createsanewvirtualmachinefroma template. UserinterfaceelementDeployto templatefilemenu,popupmenu items,VirtualMachinestab MarkAs Template Marksanexisting,poweredoffVMasa template. UserinterfaceelementConvertto template...Filemenu,popupmenu items,VirtualMachinestab,Summary tab MarkAsVirtual Machine MarksanexistingtemplateasaVM. UserinterfaceelementConvertto VirtualMachine...Filemenu,popup menuitems,VirtualMachinestab Creates,modifies,ordeletes customizationspecifications. Userinterfaceelement CustomizationSpecificationsManager Viewsthecustomizationspecifications definedonthesystem. UserinterfaceelementEdit> CustomizationSpecifications VConly Rootfolder Rootfolder VConly VConly Virtual machines Virtual machines VConly Virtual machines Virtual machines Affects VConly Pair with Object Virtual machines Effective on Object Virtual machines
Modify Customization Specs Read Customization Specs
Rootfolder
Rootfolder
Virtual Machine State

Table A-19. Virtual Machine State Privileges
Privilege Name Create Snapshot Description Createsanewsnapshotfromthevirtual machinescurrentstate. UserinterfaceelementPopupmenu, toolbarbutton,Inventorymenu Remove Snapshot Removesasnapshotfromthesnapshot history. UserinterfaceelementPopupmenu, toolbarbutton,Inventorymenu HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines Affects HCandVC Pair with Object Virtual machines Effective on Object Virtual machines
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Table A-19. Virtual Machine State Privileges (Continued)

Privilege Name Rename Snapshot Description Renamesthissnapshotwitheithera newnameoranewdescriptionorboth. NouserVIClientinterfaceelementsare associatedwiththisprivilege. RevertTo Snapshot SetstheVMtothestateitwasinata givensnapshot. UserinterfaceelementPopupmenu, toolbarbutton,Inventorymenu,Virtual Machinestab HCandVC Virtual machines Virtual machines Affects HCandVC Pair with Object Virtual machines Effective on Object Virtual machines
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Installing the Microsoft Sysprep Tools
IfyouplantocustomizeaWindowsguestoperatingsystem,youmustfirstinstallthe MicrosoftSyspreptoolsonyourVirtualCenterServermachine. MicrosoftincludestheSyspreptoolsetontheinstallationCDROMdiscsforWindows 2000,WindowsXP,andWindows2003.ItalsodistributesSysprep1.1fromthe MicrosoftWebsite.ToperformaWindowscustomization,youmustinstalltheSysprep toolseitherfromyourinstallationdisc,orfromthe1.1downloadpackage. Duringcustomization,VirtualCentersearchesfortheSyspreppackagecorresponding toyourguestoperatingsystem.IftheSyspreptoolsarenotfoundunderthe correspondingoperatingsystemdirectory,VirtualCentersearchesintheprovided \1.1directory.IfVirtualCenterdoesnotfindanySyspreptools,theWindowsvirtual machinecustomizationdoesnotproceed. To install the Microsoft Sysprep tools from a Microsoft Web site download 1 DownloadtheSyspreppackagefrom: http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/downloads/tools/sysprep/default.asp AlthoughtheSysprepversionindicatesWindows2000,itworkswithboth WindowsXPProfessionalandWindowsServer2003. 2 3 4 5 6 ClickNexttocontinue. ClickIagreetoacceptthetermsandconditions. ClickDownload. Savethefiletoyourlocaldisk. RuntheMicrosoftinstaller:
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Q257813_w2k_spl_x86_en.exe
Extractthefilestotheprovideddirectory. ThefollowingSysprepsupportdirectorieswerecreatedduringVirtualCenter installation:

C:\<ALLUSERSPROFILE>\Application Data\Vmware\VMware VirtualCenter\sysprep ...\1.1\ ...\2k\ ...\xp\ ...\svr2003\ where <ALLUSERSPROFILE> is usually \Documents And Settings\All Users\. This is where vpxd.cfg is also located.
Selectthe1.1subdirectory. 8 ClickOKtoexpandthefiles. AfteryouhaveextractedthefilesfromQ257813_w2k_spl_x86_en.exetothe \1.1directory,youshouldsee:

...\1.1\docs\ ...\1.1\samples\ ...\1.1\tools\ ...\1.1\contents.txt
To install the Microsoft Sysprep tools from the Windows operating system CD 1 2 3 4 InserttheWindowsoperatingsystemCDintotheCDROMdrive(oftentheD: drive. LocatetheDEPLOY.CABfileintheCDdirectory,\Support\Tools. OpenandexpandtheDEPLOY.CABfile,usingatoolsuchasWinzip.exeoranother toolcapableofreadingMicrosoftCABfiles. ExtractthefilestothedirectoryappropriatetoyourSysprepguestoperating system. ThefollowingSysprepsupportdirectorieswerecreatedduringVirtualCenter installation:
C:\<ALLUSERSPROFILE>\Application Data\Vmware\VMware VirtualCenter\sysprep ...\1.1\ ...\2k\ ...\xp\ ...\svr2003\
where<ALLUSERSPROFILE>isusually\Documents And Settings\All Users\. Thisiswherevpxd.cfgisalsolocated.
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Appendix B Installing the Microsoft Sysprep Tools
Selectthesubdirectorythatcorrespondstoyouroperatingsystem. 5 ClickOKtoexpandthefiles. AfteryouhaveextractedthefilesfromDEPLOY.CAB,youshouldsee:

...\<guest>\deptool.chm ...\<guest>\readme.txt ...\<guest>\setupcl.exe ...\<guest>\setupmgr.exe ...\<guest>\setupmgx.dll ...\<guest>\sysprep.exe ...\<guest>\unattend.doc
where<guest>iseither2k,xp,orsvr2003. 6 RepeatthisproceduretoextractSysprepfilesforeachoftheWindowsguest operatingsystems(Windows2000,WindowsXP,orWindows2003)youplanto customizeusingVirtualCenter.
YouarenowreadytocustomizeanewvirtualmachinewithasupportedWindows guestoperatingsystemwhenyoucloneanexistingvirtualmachine.
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Performance Chart Measurements
Thefollowingtableliststhemeasurementoptionsforeachresourcemonitoredona host.ThefollowingtablesuseVCtoindicateVirtualCenterServerandHtoindicate HostClient,astandaloneESXServer.
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CPU
Table C-1. CPU Performance Chart
Inventory Cluster R Pool VM Host Name Resource Item Measured
CPUPerformanceChart VCH VC VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH CPUusageaspercentageoverthecollected interval CPUusageinMHzoverthecollected interval CPUreservedcapacity CPUtimespentonwaitstate CPUtimespentonreadystate CPUtimespentonsystemprocesses CPUtimethatisextra CPUtimethatisguaranteed
Disk
Table C-2. Disk Performance Chart
Inventory Object Cluster R Pool VM Host Name Resource Item Measured
DiskPerformanceChart VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH Amountofdatareadfromthediskinthe period Amountofdatawrittentothediskinthe period Aggregatedstorageperformancestatistics Numberofdiskwritesintheperiod Numberofdiskreadsintheperiod ResourceGroupCPUsamplecount ResourceGroupCPUschedulinglimitover oneminute ResourceGroupCPUschedulinglimitover 5minutes
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Appendix C Performance Chart Measurements
Table C-2. Disk Performance Chart (Continued)

Inventory Object Cluster R Pool VM VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH Host VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH Name Resource Item Measured ResourceGroupCPUschedulinglimitover 15minutes ResourceGroupCPUrunningpeakover1 minute ResourceGroupCPUrunningpeakover5 minutes ResourceGroupCPUrunningpeakover15 minutes ResourceGroupCPUrunningaverageover 1minute ResourceGroupCPUrunningaverageover 5minutes ResourceGroupCPUrunningaverageover 15minutes ResourceGroupCPUactivepeakover1 minute ResourceGroupCPUactivepeakover5 minutes ResourceGroupCPUactivepeakover15 minutes ResourceGroupCPUactiveaverageover1 minute ResourceGroupCPUactiveaverageover5 minutes ResourceGroupCPUactiveaverageover15 minutes
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DRS
Table C-3. DRS Performance Chart
Inventory Object Cluster R Pool VM Host Name DRS VC VC VC DRSeffectiveCPUresourcesavailable DRSeffectivememoryresourcesavailable DRSnumberoffailuresthatcanbetolerated Resource Item Measured
Memory
Table C-4. Memory Performance Chart
MemoryPerformanceChart VC VC VC VC VC VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VC VC VCH VCH VC VC VC VC VC VC VC VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH Memoryusageaspercentageoftotal availablememory Memoryzero Memorystate Freespaceinmemoryheap Memoryreservedcapacity Amountofmemorygranted Amountofmemoryusedbymemory control Amountofmemorythatcanbeusedby memorycontrol Amountofmemorythatisunreserved Amountofmemorythatisunreservedby swap Amountofmemorythatisactivelyused Amountofmemorythatisshared Amountofmemorythatisusedbyswap Amountofmemorythatcanbeswapped
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Table C-4. Memory Performance Chart (Continued)

Inventory Object Cluster R Pool VCH VC VC VC VC VCH VM VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH Host Name Resource Item Measured Amountofmemorythatisswapped Amountofmemorythatisswappedin Amountofmemorythatisswappedout Amountofmemorythatisanoverhead Amountofmemorythatisallocatedforheap Amountofmemorythatissharedby common
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Network
Table C-5. Network Performance Chart
NetworkPerformanceChart VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH Aggregatednetworkperformancestatistics Amountofdatareceivedintheperiod Amountofdatatransmittedintheperiod Numberofpacketstransmittedintheperiod Numberofpacketsreceivedintheperiod
Resource Group
Table C-6. Resource Group Performance Chart
ResourceGroupCPUPerformanceChart VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH ResourceGroupCPUsampleperiod ResourceGroupCPUsamplecount ResourceGroupCPUschedulinglimitover oneminute ResourceGroupCPUschedulinglimitover 5minutes ResourceGroupCPUschedulinglimitover 15minutes ResourceGroupCPUrunningpeakover1 minute ResourceGroupCPUrunningpeakover5 minutes ResourceGroupCPUrunningpeakover15 minutes ResourceGroupCPUrunningaverageover 1minute
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Table C-6. Resource Group Performance Chart

Inventory Object Cluster R Pool VM VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH Host VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH VCH Name Resource Item Measured ResourceGroupCPUrunningaverageover 5minutes ResourceGroupCPUrunningaverageover 15minutes ResourceGroupCPUactivepeakover1 minute ResourceGroupCPUactivepeakover5 minutes ResourceGroupCPUactivepeakover15 minutes ResourceGroupCPUactiveaverageover1 minute ResourceGroupCPUactiveaverageover5 minutes ResourceGroupCPUactiveaverageover15 minutes
System
Table C-7. System Performance Chart
SystemPerformanceChart VCH VCH VCH VCH Numberofsecondssincestartup Numberofheartbeatsinthisperiod ResourceCPUusage
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Index
A
access permissions 262 rules 248 access permissions assigning 263 changing 267 removing 268 active sessions 73 sending messages 73 terminating 73 adding DVD/CD-ROMs 183 existing virtual machines 150 floppy devices 183 hosts 101 inventory objects 96 parallel port 183 serial port 181, 182 virtual machines 150 advanced configuration hosts 110 alarms 24, 309 creating 314 editing 320 email notification 309 preparing SMTP notification 311 preparing SNMP notification 312 removing 321 tab 49
assigning access permissions 263 audio configuring 180 automating upgrades VMware Tools 138
B
BusLogic SCSI adapter in virtual machine 126
C
canceling scheduled task 301 changing access permissions 267 CPU configuration 169 Ethernet adapter 165 floppy drive 162 memory 165 parallel port 166 port number 69 SCSI controllers 166 SCSI device 163 serial port 168 virtual disk 164 virtual machine power states 141 charts performance 270 cloning existing templates 206
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existing virtual machines 215 roles 259 virtual machines to a template 205 clusters 23 removing hosts 106 shared storage 234 collecting log files 87 commands service console 38 configuring audio 180 communication through a firewall 68 hosts 62 SMTP 311 SNMP 74 virtual machine hardware 160 virtual machines 159 VirtualCenter Server port 69 connecting hosts 104 Console tab 49 CPU advanced settings 176 changing 169 compatibility 238 configuration 169 CPUs monitoring with SNMP 77 creating alarms 314 roles 257 templates 204 virtual machines 114 custom virtual machines 121
D
datacenters 23 datastores 23 deleting exiting template 212 DHCP 38 disconnecting hosts 104 disk resources 179 disks independent 225 monitoring with SNMP 77 DVD/CD-ROMs adding 183 changing 161
E
editing alarms 320 maps 280 roles 260 templates 208 email notification option 311, 312 notification type 309 ESX Server rebooting 32 ESX Server commands viewing 65 Ethernet adapter changing 165 events 24, 306 exporting 86, 307 navigation bar 49 tab 49 viewing messages 303
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Index
viewing selected 305 exporting events 86, 307 maps 285
removing from clusters 106 removing from VirtualCenter 108 states 101 tab 49
F
firewall configuring communication 68 floppy devices adding 183 floppy drive changing 162 folders 23
I
image files ISO 162 independent disks 225 installing guest operating system 132 VMware Tools 133 inventory maps 277 navigation bar 49 tabs overview 49 VirtualCenter 24 inventory objects adding 96 moving 97 removing 98 ISO image files 162
G
global maps 277 graphs viewing 273 groups 248, 253 guest operating system installing 132
H
hardware new 181 virtual machines 160 heartbeat monitoring with SNMP 78 host network configuration viewing 64 hosts 22 about 99 adding 101 advanced configuration 110 automatically reconnecting 106 configuring 62 connecting 104 disconnecting 104
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K
knowledge base accessing 13
L
license server 20 log files collecting 87 logging off VI Client 36 VI Web Access 36 logging on VI Client 35 VI Web Access 36 logs 25
359
LSI Logic SCSI adapter in virtual machine 126
maps 286 navigation bar overview 47 network monitoring with SNMP 78 network requirements VMotion 236 networks 23 notification alarm options 309 run script option 310 SNMP trap 310 notification option email 311 power off virtual machine 311 reset virtual machine 311 SMTP 311 SNMP 312 suspend virtual machine 311
M
man pages service console 38 managed hosts removing 109 managing scheduled tasks 293 tasks 289 virtual machines 141 mapping SAN LUN 130 maps 24, 276 editing 280 elements 279 exporting 285 global 277 inventory 277 navigating 286 printing 284 viewing 280 VMotion resources 277 memory changing 165 monitoring with SNMP 77 resources 178 migration 232 wizard 239 monitoring VI environment 269 moving inventory objects 97
O
options virtual machines 170
P
parallel port adding 183 changing 166 parent snapshot 228 parent snapshots 228 percentage alarm types 309 performance charts 270 tab 49 performance charts resources 270
N
navigating
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Index
viewing 271 permissions 248, 254 access 262 settings 249 tab 49 port configuration VirtualCenter Server 69 Web connection 69 power off notification option 311 toolbar 143 power on toolbar 143 power states transitional 144 virtual machines 141, 146 preparing SMTP notification 311 SNMP notification 312 printing maps 284 privileges 248 properties VMware Tools 135
virtual machines 150 requirements VMotion 234 rescheduling scheduled tasks 300 reset notification option 311 toolbar 143 resource disk 179 resource pools 22 resource settings virtual machines 175 resources CPU 175 memory 178 performance charts 270 restarting VirtualCenter 34 restoring snapshots 227 resume virtual machines 145 reverting snapshots 229 roles 248, 254 cloning 259 creating 257 default 255 editing 260 removing 261 renaming 262 rules access 248
R
rebooting ESX Server 32 removing access permissions 268 alarms 321 hosts from VirtualCenter 108 inventory objects 98 managed hosts 109 roles 261 scheduled task 300 scheduled tasks 300
S
SAN LUN
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mapping 130 scheduled task about 24 removing 300 rescheduling 300 scheduled tasks canceling 301 clone virtual machine 218 managing 293 overview 290 removing 300 rescheduling 300 scheduling power states 146 script notification option 310 SCSI controllers changing 166 security viewing configuration 64 serial port adding 181, 182 changing 168 service console 37 commands 38 connecting 38 DHCP 38 man pages 38 using DHCP 38 SMTP notification option 311, 312 snapshots changing disk mode 225 parent 228 restoring 227 reverting 229 snapshot manager 226
362
taking 223 understanding 221 SNMP and VMware Tools 79 configuring 74 location of the VMware sub-tree 77 notification option 310 software components datastore 19 ESX Server 19 host agent 20 license server 20 VirtualCenter agent 20 VirtualCenter database 19 VirtualCenter Server 19 sorting 306 event messages 306 starting VI Client 35 VirtualCenter 33 states alarm type 309 statistics collection level 276 setting collection intervals 274 stopping VI Client 36 VirtualCenter 33 VirtualCenter Server 34 storage information viewing 64 Summary tab 49 suspend notification option 311 toolbar 143 virtual machines 145
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Index
T
tabs Admin tab 49 Summary 49 tasks 24 canceling 301 managing 289 navigation bar 49 viewing 290 templates 22 converting to a virtual machine 211 creating 204 deploying virtual machines 209 editing 208 navigation bar 49 terminating active sessions 73 toolbar power off 143 power on 143 reset 143 suspend 143
logging off 36 logging on 36 viewing ESX Server commands 65 event messages 303 graphs 273 host network configuration 64 maps 280 performance charts 271 storage information 64 tasks 290 VirtualCenter events 305 virtual machine logs 85 wizard 114 virtual machine name 116, 122 virtual machines adding 150 adding existing 150 advanced settings 172 cloning 215 configuring 159 creating custom 121 deploying from templates 209 managing 141 manually powering on and off 144 monitoring with SNMP 78 options 170 power states 141 properties editor 159 removing 150 resource settings 175 resume 145 returning 152 scheduling power states 146 shutdown 155 logging off 36 logging on 35 starting 35
U
Upgrading VMware Tools 134 user groups accessing 14 users 251
V
VI Client 34
stopping 36 VI Web Access 21, 36
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startup 155 suspend 145 tab 49 viewing configuration 71 Virtual SCSI adapter, BusLogic or LSI Logic 126 VirtualCenter inventory 24 restarting 34 starting 33 stopping 33 VirtualCenter Server stopping 34 viewing configuration 66 VMotion 21, 232, 233 compatibility 237 CPU requirements 234 network best practices 237 network requirements 236 Nx/XD considerations 235 requirements 234 resource maps 277 shared storage requirements 234 SSE3 considerations 235 VMware Authorization Service log 88 VMware community forums accessing 13 VMware DRS 22 VMware High Availability (HA) 21 VMware SDK 22 VMware Service Console 21 VMware Tools About tab 138 and SNMP 79 automating upgrades 138 Devices tab 136
364
installing 133 Options tab 135 properties 135 Scripts tab 136 upgrading 134
W
Web connection port configuration 69
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Updates for Basic System Administration

LastUpdated:February12,2010 ThisdocumentprovidesyouwithupdatestoESXServer3.0.1andVirtualCenter2.0.1 versionofBasicSystemAdministration.Updateddescriptions,procedures,andgraphics areorganizedbypagenumbersoyoucaneasilylocatetheareasoftheguidethathave changes.Ifthechangespansmultiplesequentialpages,thisdocumentprovidesthe startingpagenumberonly. ThefollowingisalistofBasicSystemAdministrationpageupdatesinthisdocument:

UpdatesfortheConfiguringSNMPTrapDestinationsProcedureonPage 80 UpdatesfortheCreatingCustomVirtualMachinesProcedureonPage 127 UpdatesfortheInstallingandUpgradingVMwareToolsProcedureonPage 134 UpdatesfortheSchedulingaPowerStateChangeforaVirtualMachine ProcedureonPage 149 UpdatesfortheStartingandShuttingDownVirtualMachinesProcedureon Page 157 UpdatesfortheChangingtheAudioConfigurationonPage 180 AdditionoftheCustomizingaLinuxGuestOperatingSystemProcedureon Page 189 UpdatesforthePreparingforGuestCustomizationDiscussiononPage 190 UpdatesfortheCreatinganAlarmProcedureonPage 319
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Update1
Updates for the Configuring SNMP Trap Destinations Procedure on Page 80

TheprocedureConfiguringSNMPTrapDestinationsonpage 80containserrors.The correctprocedurefollows. To enable and disable traps 1 Edittheconfig.xmlfile. Theconfigurationparametersnmp/generateTrapsinthe /etc/vmware/hostd/config.xmlfiledetermineswhethertogenerateatrap.By default,atrapisgenerated. 2 Todisabletraps,addthefollowingentrytothefile:
<plugins> <snmpsvc><generateTraps>false</generateTraps></snmpsvc> </plugins>
3 4
Toreenabletraps,removetheentryfromthefile. Restartvmware-hostdtoseethechangetakeeffect.
Updates for the Creating Custom Virtual Machines Procedure on Page 127
Step 19showsanincorrectscreenshotfortheVirtualDiskCapacitypageoftheNew VirtualMachinewizard.Thecorrectscreenshotfollows:
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Updates for the Installing and Upgrading VMware Tools Procedure on Page 134
TheprocedureToinstallorupgradeVMwareTools(SEEUPDATE)describesinstalling orupgradingVMwareToolsonWindowsguestoperatingsystemsonly.Theheading forthisprocedureshouldreadToinstallorupgradeVMwareToolsonaWindows guestoperatingsystem. ThissectionofthemanualomittedproceduresforinstallingandupgradingVMware ToolsonLinux,Solaris,andNetwareguestoperatingsystems.Theseprocedures follow. To install or upgrade VMware Tools on a Linux guest operating system from X with the RPM installer 1 2 3 Openaconsoletothevirtualmachine. Poweronthevirtualmachine. Aftertheguestoperatingsystemstarts,rightclickthevirtualmachineandchoose InstallVMwareTools. Theremainingstepstakeplaceinsidethevirtualmachine. 4 Dooneofthefollowing:
IfyouseeaVMwareToolsCDicononthedesktop,doubleclickit,andafter itopens,doubleclicktheRPMinstallerintherootoftheCDROM. Ifyouseeafilemanagerwindow,doubleclicktheRPMinstallerfile.
InsomeLinuxdistributions,theVMwareToolsCDiconmightfailtoappear.In thiscase,continuetoinstallVMwareToolsfromthecommandline. 5 Whenprompted,entertherootpasswordandclickOK. Theinstallerpreparesthepackages. 6 ClickContinuewhentheinstallerpresentsadialogboxthatshowsCompleted SystemPreparation. Adialogboxappearswithaprogressbar.Whentheinstallerisdone,VMware Toolsisinstalled.Thereisnoconfirmationorfinishbutton. 7 InanXterminal,asroot(su -),runthefollowingfiletoconfigureVMwareTools:
vmware-config-tools.pl
Respondtothequestions.PressEntertoacceptthedefaultvalue.
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Update3
Exitfromtherootaccount:
exit
InanXterminal,opentheVMwareToolsPropertiesdialogbox:
vmware-toolbox &
To install or upgrade VMware Tools on a Linux guest operating system with the tar installer or RPM installer 1 Ifyouhaveapreviousinstallation,deletethepreviousvmware-tools-distrib directorybeforeinstalling.Thedefaultlocationofthisdirectoryis: /tmp/vmware-tools-distrib 2 3 4 Openaconsoletothevirtualmachine. Poweronthevirtualmachine. Aftertheguestoperatingsystemstarts,rightclickthevirtualmachineandchoose InstallVMwareTools. Theremainingstepstakeplaceinsidethevirtualmachine. 5 Asroot(su -),mounttheVMwareToolsvirtualCDROMimageandchangetoa workingdirectory(forexample,/tmp),asfollows. SomeLinuxdistributionsautomaticallymountCDROMs.Ifyourdistribution usesautomounting,donotusethemountandumountcommandsdescribedinthis procedure.YoustillmustuntartheVMwareToolsinstallerto/tmp. SomeLinuxdistributionsusedifferentdevicenamesororganizethe/dev directorydifferently.Modifythefollowingcommandstoreflecttheconventions thatyourdistributionuses:
mount /dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom cd /tmp
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UncompresstheinstallerandunmounttheCDROMimage. DependingonwhetheryouareusingthetarinstallerortheRPMinstaller,doone ofthefollowing:
Forthetarinstaller,atthecommandprompt,enter:
tar zxpf /mnt/cdrom/VMwareTools-5.0.0-<xxxx>.tar.gz umount /dev/cdrom
where <xxxx> isthebuildorrevisionnumberoftherelease.
FortheRPMinstaller,atthecommandprompt,enter:
rpm -Uhv /mnt/cdrom/VMwareTools-5.0.0-<xxxx>.i386.rpm umount /dev/cdrom
where <xxxx> isthebuildorrevisionnumberoftherelease. Ifyouattempttoinstallanrpminstallationoveratarinstallation,orthe reverse,theinstallerdetectsthepreviousinstallationandmustconvertthe installerdatabaseformatbeforecontinuing. 7 Dooneofthefollowing:
Forthetarinstaller,runtheVMwareToolstarinstaller:
cd vmware-tools-distrib ./vmware-install.pl
Answerthequestions.PressEntertoacceptthedefaultvalue.
FortheRPMinstaller,configureVMwareTools:
vmware-config-tools.pl
Answerthequestions.PressEntertoacceptthedefaultvalue. 8 Logofffromtherootaccount.
exit
9 10
Startyourgraphicalenvironment. InanXterminalwindow,opentheVMwareToolsPropertiesdialogbox:
vmware-toolbox &
To install or upgrade VMware Tools on a Solaris guest operating system 1 2 Openaconsoletothevirtualmachine. Poweronthevirtualmachine.
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Update5
Aftertheguestoperatingsystemstarts,rightclickthevirtualmachineandchoose InstallVMwareTools. Theremainingstepstakeplaceinsidethevirtualmachine.
Loginasroot(su -)and,ifnecessary,mounttheVMwareToolsvirtualCDROM image,asfollows. Usually,theSolarisvolumemanager(vold)mountstheCDROMin /cdrom/vmwaretools.IftheCDROMisnotmounted,restartthevolume managerbyusingthefollowingcommands:

/etc/init.d/volmgt stop /etc/init.d/volmgt start
AftertheCDROMismounted,changetoaworkingdirectory(forexample,/tmp) andextractVMwareTools,asfollows:
cd /tmp gunzip -c /cdrom/vmwaretools/vmware-solaris-tools.tar.gz | tar xf -
RuntheVMwareToolstarinstaller:
cd vmware-tools-distrib ./vmware-install.pl
Answerthequestions.PressEntertoacceptthedefaultvalue. 7 Logofffromtherootaccount.
exit
8 9
Startyourgraphicalenvironment. InanXterminalwindow,opentheVMwareToolsPropertiesdialogbox:
vmware-toolbox &
To install VMware Tools on a NetWare virtual machine 1 2 3 Openaconsoletothevirtualmachine. Poweronthevirtualmachine. Aftertheguestoperatingsystemstarts,rightclickthevirtualmachineandchoose InstallVMwareTools. Theremainingstepstakeplaceinsidethevirtualmachine.
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LoadtheCDROMdriversothattheCDROMdevicemountstheISOimageasa volume. Dooneofthefollowing:
OnthesystemconsoleforaNetWare6.5virtualmachine,enter:
LOAD CDDVD
OnthesystemconsoleforaNetWare6.0orNetWare5.1virtualmachine, enter:
LOAD CD9660.NSS
Whenthedriverfinishesloading,youcanbegininstallingVMwareTools,as describedinStep 5. 5 Onthesystemconsole,enterthefollowingcommand:

vmwtools:\setup.ncf
Whentheinstallationfinishes,themessageVMware Tools for NetWare are now runningappearsintheloggerscreen(NetWare6.5andNetWare6.0guests)orthe consolescreen(NetWare5.1guests).
Updates for the Scheduling a Power State Change for a Virtual Machine Procedure on Page 149
Step 11incorrectlydescribeswhenVirtualCenterverifiesuserpermissionsfora scheduledtask.Thecorrecttextfollows: 11 ClickFinish. VirtualInfrastructureClientaddsthenewtasktothescheduledtasklistand completesthetaskatthedesignatedtime.Whenyoucreateascheduledtask, VirtualCenterverifiesthatyouhavethecorrectpermissionstoperformtheactions ontherelevantdatacenters,hosts,andvirtualmachines.Afterthetaskiscreated, thetaskisperformedevenifyounolongerhavepermissiontoperformthetask.
Updates for the Starting and Shutting Down Virtual Machines Procedure on Page 157
Step 9doesnotclearlyindicatehowtoenableautomaticstartuporshutdownof individualvirtualmachines.Thestepshouldincludethefollowingadditionaltext: VirtualmachineslistedunderManualStartupdonotautomaticallystartuporshut down.Toautomaticallystartuporshutdownavirtualmachine,youmustmove itsothatitislistedundereitherAutomaticStartuporAnyOrder.
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Inaddition,tohavethevirtualmachinesgracefullyshutdownwhentheserveris halted,dothefollowing: a b c d SelectthevirtualmachineandclickEdit. IntheShutdownSettingsgroupbox,selectUseSpecifiedSettings. FromthePerformshutdownactionlistbox,selectGuestShutdown. ClickOK.
Updates for the Changing the Audio Configuration on Page 180

TheinstructionsforChangingtheAudioConfigurationsectioncanbeignoredasthe sectionincorrectlystatesthatESXServersupportsaudiodevices.
Addition of the Customizing a Linux Guest Operating System Procedure on Page 189
TheinstructionsforcustomizingLinuxguestoperatingsystemswereomittedfromthe chapterCustomizingGuestOperatingSystems.Theseinstructionsfollow.
Customizing a Linux Guest Operating System

YoucannotstarttheGuestCustomizationwizardfromamenuortoolbaroption.The GuestCustomizationwizardstartsindirectlyfromtheDeployTemplatewizardor CloneVirtualMachinewizard.
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To customize a Linux guest operating system 1 2 StarttheGuestCustomizationwizard. OntheComputerNamepage,specifytheComputerNameandtheDomainName forthevirtualmachineandclickNext. Thecomputernameisthenamegiventotheparticularinstanceofaguest operatingsystem.Theoperatingsystemusesthisnametoidentifyitselfonthe network.OnLinuxsystems,itiscalledthehostname.Thisisnotthesameasthe virtualmachinenamethatwasdeclaredearlierintheDeployTemplatewizardor CloneVirtualMachinewizard.Youcanspecifythecomputernameintheseways:
AssignaspecificnameThenamecancontainalphanumericcharactersand theunderscore(_)andhyphen()characters.Itcannotcontainperiods(.)or blankspacesandcannotbemadeupofdigitsonly.Toensurethatthenameis uniquesothatyoudonotincurconflicts,selectAppendanumericvalueto ensureuniqueness. UsethevirtualmachinesnameThecomputernamethatVirtualCenter createsisidenticaltothenameofthevirtualmachineonwhichtheguest operatingsystemisrunning. RespondtopromptsforanameTheVIClientpopulatestheDeployVirtual Machinewizardwithapromptforthecomputernameafteryoucompleteall thestepsinthewizard. UseacustomapplicationtogenerateanameTheVIClientcallsacustom applicationstoredontheVirtualCenterServertogenerateaname.Ifyou selectthisoption,entertheabsolutepathtothecustomapplicationinthe associatedtextfield.
3 4
ToautomaticallyconfigureallnetworkinterfacesfromaDHCPserver,select TypicalsettingsontheNetworkpageandclickNext. IfVirtualCenterconfigurationisnotappropriateforyourenvironment,select CustomsettingsandclickNext.
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Update9
SelecttheNICtocustomizeandclickCustomizetomakeadditionalspecifications. TheNetworkPropertiesdialogboxopens. UsetheNetworkPropertiesdialogboxtoperformthesesteps: a OntheGeneraltab,selectwhethertouseDHCPtoobtainanIPaddress automaticallyorentertheIPaddressesmanually.Alsoselectwhethertouse DHCPtoobtainanDNSserveraddressautomaticallyorentertheDNSserver addressesmanually. ClickOKtoreturntothepreviousdialogbox.ClickNextontheNetwork GuestCustomizationspage.
b 6
OntheDNSandDomainsettingspage,entertheIPaddressesfortheDNSservers. SpecifytheDNSconnectionsbyenteringDNSsuffixes.ForeachDNSsuffixyou enter,clickAdd.IfyouareaddingmultipleDNSconnections,useMoveUpand MoveDowntospecifytheorderinwhichavirtualmachineistousethe connections.
(Optional)OntheSaveSpecificationpage,savethecustomizedoptionsasan .xmlfilebycompletingthesesteps: a b SelectSavethiscustomizationspecificationforlateruse. SpecifythepathandfilenameforthespecificationandclickNext.
VirtualCentersavesthecustomizedconfigurationparametersinan.xmlfile. Later,youcanimportthesepredefinedcustomizedparameterswhendeployinga templateorcloninganexistingvirtualmachine.Becauseofencryption,saved customizationfilesareuniquetoeachVirtualCenterServerandtoeachversionof VirtualCenter.YoumustrecreatethecustomizationfilesforeachVirtualCenter Server.Encryptionispreservedbetweenupgradeversionsonthesame VirtualCenterServer.Thismeansyoucanusethesamefilesbetweenupgradesof VirtualCenter. 8 ClickFinish. VirtualCenterclosestheGuestCustomizationwizardandreturnsyoutothe DeployTemplatewizardorCloneVirtualMachinewizard. 9 ClickFinishtodeploythevirtualmachinefromthetemplateorcreatetheclone.
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Updates for the Preparing for Guest Customization Discussion on Page 190
ThePreparingforGuestCustomization(SEEUPDATE)discussioncontains instructionstoverifythattheguestoperatingsystemmeetstheguestoperatingsystem customizationrequirements,butdoesnotdescribethoserequirements.Thissection shouldincludethefollowingadditionalinformation:
Virtual Hardware Requirements for Guest Customization

Guestcustomizationrequiresthatthesourcevirtualmachineusedtocreatetheclone ortemplateshasthefollowing:

VMwareToolsinstalled. Atleastonenetworkinterfacecard(NIC)configured. Whenavirtualmachineisclonedorusedforatemplate,thenewvirtualmachine hasthesamenumberandtypeofNICs,forexample,AMDVLance/PcNetversus highperformanceVMwarevmxnet.Thisconfigurationcannotbechangedduring thedeploymentorguestcustomizationprocess.
SCSIdisks. VirtualCentercustomizationoperatesonthediskattachedtothevirtualSCSInode withthelowestaddressontheSCSIcontrollerwiththelowestindex.Asaresult, youmustmakesurethattheguestoperatingsystembeingcustomizedresideson adiskattachedasSCSI0:0nodeinthevirtualmachineconfiguration. ForWindowsguestoperatingsystems:Boththeactivepartition(thepartition containingboot.ini)andthesystempartition(thepartitioncontainingthe systemdirectory,forexample,\WINNTor\WINDOWS),areonthesamevirtualdisk andattachedtheSCSI0:0virtualSCSInode. Activeandsystempartitionsarenotrequiredtobethesamepartition. ForLinuxguests:Thevirtualdiskcontainingthesystempartition(thepartition containingthe/etcdirectory)mustresideontheSCSI0:0node.
32bitor64bithardwarecorrespondingtothe32bitor64bitoperatingsystem beinginstalled.
Windows Requirements for Guest Customization

GuestcustomizationofaWindowsguestoperatingsystemcanoccurif:
Theguestoperatingsystemisnotaprimaryorbackupdomaincontroller.
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Update11
ThecloneortemplatehasoneofthefollowingWindowsversionsinstalled:

Windows2000Server,AdvancedServer,orProfessional WindowsXPProfessional WindowsServer2003,Web,Standard,orEnterpriseEditions
NOTEWindowsXPHomeorWindowsNT4operatingsystemguest customizationisnotsupported.Guestcustomizationof64bitWindowsoperating systemsisnotsupported.
TheMicrosoftSyspreptoolsareinstalledontheVirtualCenterserver.
ForinformationoninstallingtheMicrosoftSyspreptools,seeInstallingtheMicrosoft SysprepToolsonpage 345. MicrosoftSyspreptoolshavecertainrequirementsandimposecertainrestrictionson thesourcemachine.Foradditionalinformation,seetheMicrosoftSysprep documentation.
Linux Requirements for Guest Customization

GuestcustomizationofaLinuxguestoperatingsystemcanoccurif:
ThecloneortemplatehasoneofthefollowingLinuxversionsinstalled:

RedHatEnterpriseLinuxAS3.0 RedHatAdvancedServer2.1 SUSELINUXEnterpriseServer8,9,or10
Thecloneortemplatehasarootvolumeformattedwithanext2,ext3,orReiserFS filesystem.
NOTEGuestoperatingsystemcustomizationisnotsupportedforLinuxvirtual machineswithdisksmanagedbyLogicalVolumeManagers.
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Updates for the Creating an Alarm Procedure on Page 319

ThedescriptionofrunningascriptinStep 11liststhefollowingincorrectvariablename entries:

{entityName} {entityObject}
Thecorrectvariablenameentriesareasfollows:

{targetName} {target}
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Update13
Update14
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VMware Tutorial

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Basic System Administration

ESX Server 3.0.1 and Virtual Center 2.0.1

Basic System Administration

VMware, Inc. 3401 Hillview Ave. Palo Alto, CA 94304 www.vmware.com

Basic System Administration

UsingDHCPfortheServiceConsole 38 ConnectingtotheServiceConsole 38 UsingCommandsontheServiceConsole 38

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VMotionCompatibility 237 CPUCompatibilityMasks 238 MigrationWizard 239

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B InstallingtheMicrosoftSysprepTools 345 C PerformanceChartMeasurements 349

ThisprefacedescribesthecontentsofBasicSystemAdministrationandprovidespointers toVMwaretechnicalandeducationalresources. Thisprefacecontainsthefollowingtopics:

About This Book

Basic System Administration

Table P-1. Revision History

VMware Infrastructure Documentation

Table P-2. Conventions Used in This Manual (Continued)

Abbreviations Used in Graphics

Technical Support and Education Resources

Productinformationhttp://www.vmware.com/products/ Technologyinformationhttp://www.vmware.com/vcommunity/technology Documentationhttp://www.vmware.com/support/pubs VMTNKnowledgeBasehttp://www.vmware.com/support/kb Discussionforumshttp://www.vmware.com/community

Basic System Administration

Online and Telephone Support

VMware Education Services

Basic System Administration

VMware Infrastructure Components

ThischapterintroducesVMwareInfrastructurecomponentsandtheoperationsthat youusewhenmanagingyourvirtualmachinesthroughESXServerorVirtualCenter Server. Thischaptercontainsthefollowingtopics:

TwoApproachestoManagingVirtualMachinesonpage 17 ComponentsofVMwareInfrastructureonpage 19 VirtualInfrastructureClientInterfacesonpage 21 OptionalVirtualCenterComponentsonpage 21 ManagedComponentsonpage 22 FunctionalComponentsonpage 24 AccessPrivilegesComponentsonpage 25

Two Approaches to Managing Virtual Machines

DirectlythroughanESXServer(asingleorstandalonehost)thatcanmanageonly thosevirtualmachines,andtheirresources,installedonit. ThroughaVirtualCenterServerthatmanagesmultiplevirtualmachinesandtheir resourcesdistributedovermanyESXServerhosts.

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ESX Server host

VirtualCenter License Server

ESX Server host

ESX Server host

ESX Server host

Figure 1-2. VMware Infrastructure Components with a VirtualCenter Server

Chapter 1 VMware Infrastructure Components

Components of VMware Infrastructure

DatastoreThestoragelocationsforthevirtualmachinefilesspecifiedwhen creatingvirtualmachines.Datastoreshidetheidiosyncrasiesofvariousstorage options(suchasVMFSvolumesonlocalSCSIdisksoftheserver,theFibreChannel SANdiskarrays,theiSCSISANdiskarrays,orNetworkAttachedStorage(NAS)

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Chapter 1 VMware Infrastructure Components

Virtual Infrastructure Client Interfaces

Optional VirtualCenter Components

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VMwareDRSAfeaturethathelpsimproveresourceallocationacrossallhosts andresourcepools.VMwareDRScollectsresourceusageinformationforallhosts andvirtualmachinesintheclusterandgivesrecommendations(ormigrates virtualmachines)inoneoftwosituations:

Chapter 1 VMware Infrastructure Components

configurethem.Thendelegatecontroloverthemtootherindividualsor organizations.ThemanagedresourcesareCPUandmemoryfromahostorcluster. Virtualmachinesexecutein,anddrawtheirresourcesfrom,resourcepools.

Datacenters Virtualmachines(whichincludetemplates) Computeresources(whichincludehostsandclusters)

Thedatacenterfoldersformahierarchydirectlyundertherootnodeandallow userstogrouptheirdatacentersinanyconvenientway.Withineachdatacenteris onehierarchyoffolderswithvirtualmachinesand/ortemplatesandonehierarchy offolderswithhostsandclusters.

Virtualmachines(andtemplates) Hosts(andclusters) Networks Datastores

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Chapter 1 VMware Infrastructure Components

Access Privileges Components

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Using this Document

VMwareInfrastructurecomponents Administrationtools Systemconfiguration Virtualmachinemanagementandconfiguration Accessandpermissionsmanagement Systemadministrationandmanagement

Basic System Administration

Virtual Machine Management

Chapter 2 Using this Document

MigratingVirtualMachinesDescribestheprocessofmigratingormovinga virtualmachinefromonehosttoanother. CustomizingGuestOperatingSystemsExplainshowtocustomizetheidentity andnetworksettingsofyourvirtualmachinesguestoperatingsystemsothatitis readytobeginworkimmediatelyinyourtargetenvironment.

Basic System Administration

Starting and Stopping the VMware Infrastructure Components

Thischapterincludesinformationonhowtostartandstopeachoneofthemajor VMwareInfrastructurecomponents,ESXServerandVirtualCenterServer. Thischaptercontainsthefollowingtopics:

Cluster> ResourcePool> Datastore> Network*> Permission>