VCP Home Lab

peanutnoggin

TE,

I'm interested in using ESXi and learning more about VMWare. Right now I have a pretty good understanding of ESX and how it works, but I'd like to learn more. A little background... I've been using VMWare at home for probably 6 or so years now. I was a really big fan of VMWare Server when it was an application. I wasn't as big of a fan when it moved to the Web Based Management. But I've digressed. At my current employer, we have VMWare 3.5 running currently, but I don't get to touch it too much. For the most part, I can only modify the vSwitch and occasionally I'll build a server if I need to.

My point in all of this was to ask... I have a WinXP 64-bit running on an Intel Core 2 Duo 6600 2.40 cpu. I also have 4 500Gb hard drives in this computer running VMWare Workstation 7. Would this be sufficient to have a VMWare lab? I also have 4 NICs (2 onboard). I currently use the machine to run VMs for separate domains so I can practice routing traffic such as email, web pages, etc... from different domains and networks. Are there any additional recommendations that you all have for me? Thanks in advanced!

-Peanut

MentholMoose

The hardware sounds adequate, however you didn't mention the RAM, which is important. Keep in mind that ESX and ESXi are bare metal hypervisors, so installing them on those PCs would wipe out everything there now. There is a solution to avoid this, though.

You can install ESX/ESXi as VMs in VMware Workstation, assuming you can enable Intel VT (the E6600 supports it). If you have enough RAM, this will work well and you can do most of what is covered on the VCP. One thing you can't use is VMware Data Recovery, which comes in the form of a 64-bit virtual appliance (virtual ESX/ESXi hosts can't run 64-bit guests).

I recently completed the VCP 4, and I used a physical lab for my studies. I posted the specs in this thread: http://www.techexams.net/forums/virtualization/57252-vmware.html

peanutnoggin

Thanks for the info... I actually read that post! I have 8GB of Ram... I think I'm going to setup this machine as a straight ESXi. Currently it serves as my lab PC anyways... so I don't mind wiping it clean. I'll post if I have any additional questions/problems. Thanks again.

-Peanut

dynamik

You don't need to go nuts for this. I bought two garbage HP DL360 G3s and got OpenFiler running in Virtual Box on my HTPC for my SAN.

+1 to the Workstation approach if you only have the single machine. You could then setup multiple hypervisors and practice things like vMotion.

MentholMoose

dynamik wrote: »

You don't need to go nuts for this. I bought two garbage HP DL360 G3s and got OpenFiler running in Virtual Box on my HTPC for my SAN.

+1 to the Workstation approach if you only have the single machine. You could then setup multiple hypervisors and practice things like vMotion.

The Workstation option is good if he still wants to use the machine as a desktop. But if he installs ESXi directly on the PC he can still install ESX/ESXi as VMs.

dynamik

Ah, I looked around quickly but didn't see anything regarding installing vSphere within vSphere. Good to know.

Bl8ckr0uter

MentholMoose wrote: »

The Workstation option is good if he still wants to use the machine as a desktop. But if he installs ESXi directly on the PC he can still install ESX/ESXi as VMs.

That's pretty sweet. I didn't know you could do that? Did you do this in route to your VCP?

MentholMoose

dynamik wrote: »

Ah, I looked around quickly but didn't see anything regarding installing vSphere within vSphere. Good to know.

I read an article somewhere that VMware itself used it at a recent conference where they had a massive lab setup for some hands-on sessions. Also it's demonstrated in the "Virtualize ESX!" video here:
RTFM Education vSphere Videos/Demos

knwminus wrote: »

That's pretty sweet. I didn't know you could do that? Did you do this in route to your VCP?

I didn't, I had two physical hosts which seemed to be enough. The only thing I recall not being able to do was use Fault Tolerance (you would need three hosts to fully simulate it), however my hardware doesn't support FT at all (it requires the latest CPUs) so I couldn't use FT anyway.

Bl8ckr0uter

MentholMoose wrote: »

I read an article somewhere that VMware itself used it at a recent conference where they had a massive lab setup for some hands-on sessions. Also it's demonstrated in the "Virtualize ESX!" video here:
RTFM Education vSphere Videos/Demos


I didn't, I had two physical hosts which seemed to be enough. The only thing I recall not being able to do was use Fault Tolerance (you would need three hosts to fully simulate it), however my hardware doesn't support FT at all (it requires the latest CPUs) so I couldn't use FT anyway.

Cool. Thanks for the link as well.

peanutnoggin

MentholMoose wrote: »

The Workstation option is good if he still wants to use the machine as a desktop. But if he installs ESXi directly on the PC he can still install ESX/ESXi as VMs.

I'll probably wipe the PC clean... My main desktop is an iMac so I use the current machine to run VMWare workstation. I have a lot to learn about VMware. Does anyone have any good books to recommend? Thanks.

-Peanut

Bl8ckr0uter

peanutnoggin wrote: »

I'll probably wipe the PC clean... My main desktop is an iMac so I use the current machine to run VMWare workstation. I have a lot to learn about VMware. Does anyone have any good books to recommend? Thanks.

-Peanut

I'm buying these on Friday:

Amazon.com: Mastering VMware vSphere 4 (Computer/Tech) (9780470481387): Scott…


Amazon.com: VMware vSphere and Virtual Infrastructure Security: Securing the Virtual Environment (9780137158003): Edward…


I'm also looking at this as well:

Amazon.com: VMware Cookbook: A Real-World Guide to Effective VMware Use…

peanutnoggin

Thanks for the book suggestions... what about the CBT Nuggets for the VCP4? Has anyone used it? My employer would probably pay for it if I asked nicely?

MentholMoose

Mastering VMware vSphere is excellent. The CBT Nuggets are OK but don't go into enough depth. I haven't seen the Train Signal but it's over three times longer and should be at least as good, and since they're the same price I'd go with TS.

peanutnoggin

Thanks! I hadn't thought about TS. Maybe I'll check those videos out and see if I can get my employer to purchase them. Quick question(s)... Where should I begin with ESXi? I've wiped my PC, I plan on putting the VMWare Infrastructure Client (vSphere Client) on a laptop to connect to the ESXi server, what other components do I need? Does someone have a "getting started" type of document laying around? I know I can read the forums and Vmware's communities... but the information seems overwhelming. Thanks for your assistance.

-Peanut

Bl8ckr0uter

This seems to be a good blog post on the subject.
VMware ESX(i) Home Lab – Why, What and How? Considerations when building your own home lab. | TechHead.co.uk

peanutnoggin

Thanks knwminus... that's an excellent resource for home lab! I've bookmarked that one and I believe I'll frequent that site. thanks again.

-Peanut

QHalo

VMware: VMTN Blog: White boxes and home labs - Community Podcast #79

peanutnoggin

QHalo wrote: »

VMware: VMTN Blog: White boxes and home labs - Community Podcast #79

Thanks for the link... I just downloaded the podcast and put it on my phone... I'll listen to it while I'm driving... I'll post back with my findings and/or questions. Thanks

-Peanut

peanutnoggin

Running into a few problems installing ESXi directly on my box. I continue to receive this error: vmkctl.HostCtlException Unable to load module /usr/lib/vmware/vkmod/vmfs3: Failure

All blog posts and vmware communities relates this to an incompatible NIC. I've since installed a PCI NIC linksys NIC that was sitting around, but I'm continuously running into the same error. I'll try a few additional things (including disabling the onboard NIC) to see if I can get around this error. BTW... my mobo is an ASUS P5W-DH deluxe. Any suggestions are welcomed. Thanks!

-Peanut

Hyper-Me

Its hard to find hardware on desktops that support ESXi. I have a new Inspiron 580 with the built in Intel NIC and it isnt supported. Go figure.

QHalo

This is why I'd say go with ESX(i) on Workstation instead. Easy to work with and you don't really have to worry about many incompatibility issues. I know that's not really helping you out but it's one of the main reasons why I would do it. Google Ultimate VMware Whitebox and it has a pretty good listing of supported hardware. If you're having alot of trouble with your NIC I'd just suggest pulling a supported Intel 1000/GT off Ebay or similar.

astorrs

ESXi supports nearly all current server hardware and if any of the manufacturers of those happen to be using compatible hardware as your desktop you're in luck - otherwise most desktops use Nvidia NICs or Realtek or some other "desktop only" parts and the drivers don't exist.

My suggestion is like QHalo pick-up a few Intel Pro1000 NICs and move them from whitebox to whitebox as you upgrade (I've done the same for years and did the same with a Promise SATA controller until they started supporting many of the Intel ICH storage chipsets).

tiersten

astorrs wrote: »

most desktops use Nvidia NICs

nVidia don't know how to make anything apart from graphics cards IMO. I've had horrendous issues with their SATA controllers and Ethernet controllers. Mysterious corruption, buggy drivers and just plain flakiness.

astorrs wrote: »

My suggestion is like QHalo pick-up a few Intel Pro1000 NICs and move them from whitebox to whitebox as you upgrade (I've done the same for years and did the same with a Promise SATA controller until they started supporting many of the Intel ICH storage chipsets).

+1 for the Intel e1000 NICs. Good solid design and the dual port PCIe ones aren't expensive.

I use HP Smart Array controllers for my ESX cluster as I managed to get a bunch of P400s for a decent price a few years back.

Look at what is on the hardware compatibility list for ESX anyway. They've significantly improved the range of hardware that is supported in the last few years. It used to be that they only had vmkernel drivers for an extremely limited set of server hardware and you'd be SOL if you had anything else.

peanutnoggin

To all,

Thanks for the assistance thus far. I scoped out this NIC on eBay. Would this NIC suffice? I have another NIC in an older PC that I'm going to pull out tomorrow when I have more time. Thanks...

-Peanut

dynamik

Is it listed here? VMware Compatibility Guide - Search the VMware Compatibility Guide

You guys are making this more difficult than it needs to be

vCole

dynamik wrote: »

Is it listed here? VMware Compatibility Guide - Search the VMware Compatibility Guide

You guys are making this more difficult than it needs to be

Seriously:

Or www.ultimatewhitebox.com

QHalo

FadeToBright wrote: »

Seriously:

Or www.ultimatewhitebox.com

QHalo wrote: »

This is why I'd say go with ESX(i) on Workstation instead. Easy to work with and you don't really have to worry about many incompatibility issues. I know that's not really helping you out but it's one of the main reasons why I would do it. Google Ultimate VMware Whitebox and it has a pretty good listing of supported hardware. If you're having alot of trouble with your NIC I'd just suggest pulling a supported Intel 1000/GT off Ebay or similar.

I posted that

peanutnoggin

I must've overlooked that part of QHalo's post about googling the ultimate whitebox. That's the site I need right there... now I should be able to piece together a whitebox for this. Thanks guys...

-Peanut

QHalo

I was looking at possibly using 2x Dell Optiplex 780's for a test bed. They're not terribly priced and they're on the supported list and let's just say that tested it with one at work and it works just fine. The full models should be good for putting in a few extra NIC's so you can play with VMotion, DRS, HA, etc. Just a suggestion

astorrs

peanutnoggin wrote: »

I must've overlooked that part of QHalo's post about googling the ultimate whitebox. That's the site I need right there... now I should be able to piece together a whitebox for this. Thanks guys...

Dave Mischenko's site is the other one to check: ESX / ESXi 4.0 Whitebox HCL

tiersten

peanutnoggin wrote: »

I scoped out this NIC on eBay. Would this NIC suffice?

Probably not. Does your PC have PCI-X slots? It tended to only be on servers or high end workstations. PCI Express is abbreviated as PCIe or PCI-E and won't take a PCI-X card.