Windows Hyper-V Server 2008 as Host OS for Home Lab/Daily Use

pumbaa_g

I have a question regarding setting up a Hyper-V based lab at home. Currently I run a Desktop with Quad Core AMD Phenon 2 Processor with 6 GB of RAM (was 8 GB till one of the RAM modules failed) and 1.5 TB of memory. Till now I have been able to use VMware to Virtualize Windows 2008 R2 for my lab requirements for the 70-640 & 642 however for the 643 exam I am facing a difficulty. I am unable to install Hyper-V Role on Windows 2008 R2 on VMware using my Virtualized Windows 2008 R2 installation (already checked the setting in BIOS and the NX Bit) I am guessing it has something to do with Virtualizing on a Virtualized environment. Going through the Hyper V Resource Kit I think I have found a workaround, and wanted to confirm it with people more knowledgeable then myself. What I am proposing is to install Hyper-V Server 2008 Standalone on my Desktop. This does not require a user license for installation however for each VM that you run you will require a license. This will allow me to use the Win 7 Ultimate License that I purchased to run a Virtualized Desktop for my day to day use and have the ability to run other VM's for labs and testing purposes. This will be a huge relief as I don't have $$ to spend on a new Desktop and can use the same cash for Certs/Studies. Moreover isn't this what Virtualization hopes to achieve, reduce cost and ensure better utilization of available hardware??
Is this feasible and has someone done it?

EV42TMAN

The standalone free Hyper-v server doesn't have a GUI, its basically Microsoft's version of ESXi. Now if you had a full copy of Server 2008 standard or better you could install that on your system with a full install (not core) and run your VMs from there. Since there is some hyper-v on that test the better option in your case would to dual boot win7 and server 2008 so you can get the feel of hyper-v manager without needing multiple computers and still do your day to day stuff.

pumbaa_g

aha, dont have Windows 2008 Server License thats the problem. Let me work out if my Video Card will be supported and if I can install Win 7 within Windows Hyper-V 2008 with a persistent start up option. Thanks for your advice!

gkca

pumbaa_g wrote: »

I am unable to install Hyper-V Role on Windows 2008 R2 on VMware using my Virtualized Windows 2008 R2 installation (already checked the setting in BIOS and the NX Bit) I am guessing it has something to do with Virtualizing on a Virtualized environment.

You should be able to run Hyper-V on either VMware Workstation or ESXi, just follow this guide: Nesting Hyper-V with VMware Workstation 8 and ESXi 5 | 222 | 333 | Veeam Software Official Blog