ESXi 5.1 lab

Howdy all!

Loooong time no post.

Been doing some google searches and searches on forums about building out an ESXi 5.1 lab to do some labs in my own environment (instead of the schools virtual labs).

Found Wahl's info, but wondering if anyone has updated recommendations?

I found the official and unofficial VMware HCL, but the listing seems to be kinda old an incomplete. Don't want to spend a good amount of cash on something that ends up having issues/incompatibilities with the ESXi 5.1.

Any thoughts/feedback?

Thanks!!!!!

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Comments

tbgree00

How intense of a lab are you wanting? I have an older Dell T110 that runs 5.0 fine that I mess around with. For studying on my VCP I used workstation 8 VMs that were running ESXi 5.0 so I could do shared storage, etc. It was slow but worked well enough.

I think the Dell Poweredge 2950 is still compatible with 5.1 and are fairly affordable on ebay. I have one of those I salvaged from work but haven't messed around with too much so I can't confirm the compatibility yet.

meadIT

I can confirm the 2950 is compatible with 5.1. We have one running in our remote office.

dave330i

I had issues running 5.1 in a nested environment. Thought I read about a workaround, but haven't really bothered. Sticking with 5.0 for a while.

sratakhin

+1 for 2950. Even older 1950 supports 5.1 and it can be bought for a couple hundred.
VMware Compatibility Guide

QHalo

Build your own, quieter and more power efficient server. That 2950, unless its in your basement, is gonna be loud.

I have two of these, and while they are older parts still run things just fine:

SUPERMICRO MBD-X8SIL-F-O Xeon X3400 / L3400 / Core i3 series Dual LAN Micro ATX Server Board w/ Remote Management - Newegg.com
Kingston Server Memory Model KVR1333D3E9SK2/8G - Newegg.com
Patriot Xporter 16GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive Model PSF16GUSB - Newegg.com
Rosewill Green Series RG430-S12 430W Continuous @40°C, 80 PLUS Certified, Single 12V Rail, Active PFC "Compatible with Core i7,i5" Power Supply - Newegg.com
ARK | Intel® Xeon® Processor X3430 (8M Cache, 2.40 GHz)
LIAN LI PC-V351B Black Aluminum MicroATX Desktop Computer Case - Newegg.com

All works with 5.1 and on the HCL. Add in a couple of dual Intel 1000GT's from eBay and you have a nice couple of boxes. Just update the CPU/motherboard to something better. No biggie

Here's a great thread with tons of examples that are way better than my setup.

Your home ESX server lab hardware specs? - [H]ard|Forum

jibbajabba

dave330i wrote: »

I had issues running 5.1 in a nested environment. Thought I read about a workaround, but haven't really bothered. Sticking with 5.0 for a while.

Presuming you created the nested VMs with the webclient so you can create vm9 ones ?