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VMware NSX Lab Part 6 ESXi Hosts

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RHarmonson edited this page Oct 26, 2017 · 6 revisions

Table of Contents

January 13, 2016

Repost

Reverted! I deleted the series in December 2015 but at the request of tmitchell5280, I have reposted. YMMV!

(DRAFT)VMware NSX Lab Part 6: ESXi Hosts

A total of four ESXi hosts are needed with three hosts for the Compute Cluster and one for the Management Cluster. We will configure two virtual machines. An additional two virtual machines will be clones.

Create Compute ESXi Virtual Machines

To start, create a new virtual machine using 'Typical' and select the installation media, VMware-VMvisor-Installer-*.iso. You should see "VMware ESXi 5 detected" and as a result a number of defaults including "Virtualize Intel VT-x" is enabled for the processors. Specify the host name esx-comp1 and configure the disk capacity to 8 GB. Select "Customize Hardware" to reflect the following:

  • Memory 4 GB
  • Processors 4
  • Hard Disk (SCSI) 8 GB
  • Hard Disk 2 (SCSI) 5 GB
  • Hard Disk 3 (SCSI) 25 GB
  • Network Adapter Custom (VMnet1)
  • Network Adapter 2 Custom (VMnet1)
  • Network Adapter 3 Custom (VMnet2)
  • Network Adapter 4 Custom (VMnet3)
    • USB Controller can be deleted

Also, remove the checkmark for CD/DVD "Connect at power on"

Next, power-on to firmware or BIOS and disable all unneeded devices. With VMware Workstation, I disable Legacy Floppy A, then under 'Advanced' and 'I/O Device Configuration' disable all items:

  • Serial ports
  • Parallel port
  • Floppy controller

Save the settings. An automatic reboot will occur, "Power Off" the virtual machine then enable the CD/DVD "Connect at power on" for the virtual machine settings.

Verify the settings then create two full clones; esx-comp2 and esx-comp3.

Create Management ESXi Virtual Machine

For the last ESXi virtual machine, repeat the instructions above, however, you will use the following settings:

The last ESXi machine

  • Memory 8 GB
  • Processors 8
  • Hard Disk (SCSI) 8 GB
  • Hard Disk 2 (SCSI) 100 GB
  • Network Adapter Custom (VMnet1)
  • Network Adapter 2 Custom (VMnet1)
  • Network Adapter 3 Custom (VMnet2)
  • Network Adapter 4 Custom (VMnet3)
    • USB Controller can be deleted

Interesting Fact

If installing on a SSD, "scratch" will be created in memory if the SSD is less than 8 GB. ESXi will install on 1 GB disk but a "scratch" will be created in RAM. If installing on a HD (not USB flash or SSD), a 4 GB "scratch" will be automatically created on the installation disk with a minimum disk size of 5.2. I will be using 8 GB to conserve RAM for virtual machines. Alternatively, scratch can be configured after installation using the vSphere client and other methods. See "Additional Reading" for details.

Install ESXi

At this point, we are ready to install ESXi 5.5. VMware has provided an excellent tutorial found the URL below.

http://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/search.do?cmd=displayKC&docType=kc&docTypeID=DT_KB_1_1&externalId=2052439

After installation, you will need to update the management interfaces. Since we previously configured DHCP, you can open your browser, download the vSphere client, then use the vSphere client to update interfaces.

My personal preference at this point in the build and an alternative is to use the Direct User Interface (DCUI). Mike Laverick has an excellent guide on how to use the DCUI found at the URL:

http://www.mikelaverick.com/2013/10/back-to-basics-managing-vmware-esx-direct-user-interface-dcui/

Configure each ESXi host as follows:

Host vmnic IP Address Subnet Mask Default Gateway
esxmgmt vmnic0 172.19.201.101 255.255.255.0 172.19.201.254
esxcomp1 vmnic0 172.19.201.111 255.255.255.0 172.19.201.254
esxcomp2 vmnic0 172.19.201.121 255.255.255.0 172.19.201.254
esxcomp3 vmnic0 172.19.201.131 255.255.255.0 172.19.201.254

In addition, use "DNS Configuration" to set the primary DNS to 172.19.201.10 and host name. Use "Custom DNS Suffixes" to add vcpnvlab.net.

Did you create DNS records? If not, create DNS CNAME or host records for your management interfaces, e.g. esxmgmt.vcpnvlab.net = 172.19.201.101.

WARNING

Do not use the VMware Workstation Guest power management scripts with ESXi nested hosts! For example, "Shut Down Guest" or "Reboot Guest." They appear to work, but I found that configuration changes to the ESXi hosts are lost unless you shut down or reboot from the DCUI or vSphere client.

Configure SSD as Non-SSD

If using a SSD, we need to tell ESXi that the non-SSD disk (slow or bulk storage) for use with vSAN is not SSD, thus a HD. Confusing? Yeah! This is accomplished using the DCUI disabling SSD for the device. In our case, this is the 25 GB disks on the Compute ESXi hosts.

Enable console access (and SSH): I enable SSH out of habit for my labs but not for production. It is not a requirement.

  1. Access the DCUI console of the ESXi host
  2. Press [F2] and authenticate
  3. Scroll and select "Troubleshoot Options"
  4. Select and [ENTER] for "Enable ESXi Shell" and "Enable SSH" to enable
  5. Exit to return to DCUI/original screen.
  6. Use [ALT+F1] to switch to ESXi Shell session and [ALT+F2] to return to the DCUI

Using the vSphere client, browse to "Configuration", "Storage", and select "Devices" view. Note the identifier field for our target or device, eg. "mpx.vmhba1:C0:T2:L0".

To set the device to non-SSD VM storage, execute the following on the ESXi host to be configured:

# esxcli storage nmp satp rule add –-satp VMW_SATP_LOCAL –-device mpx.vmhba1:C0:T2:L0 –-option "enable_local disable_ssd"
# esxcli storage core claiming reclaim -d mpx.vmhba1:C0:T2:L0

No restart is necessary and vSphere shows the device as non-SSD.

If you are using a hard disk versus a SSD, you need to tell ESXi that the hard disk is a SSD for use with vSAN. See the URL below for a guide.

http://www.virtuallyghetto.com/2013/07/emulating-ssd-virtual-disk-in-vmware.html

Next: Part 7 vCenter Server Appliance

Additional Reading

Installation requirements including disk size are found here:

https://pubs.vmware.com/vsphere-55/index.jsp?topic=%2Fcom.vmware.vsphere.install.doc%2FGUID-DEB8086A-306B-4239-BF76-E354679202FC.html

Set Scratch with vSphere 5.5 client. <-- Woefully incomplete! The second URL is untested but to all appearances is more useful.

http://pubs.vmware.com/vsphere-55/index.jsp#com.vmware.vsphere.install.doc/GUID-6A4FCA6C-498C-4080-BFE8-AB9911A4B033.html?resultof=%2522%2573%2565%2574%2522%2520%2522%2573%2563%2572%2561%2574%2563%2568%2522%2520
http://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?language=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=1033696

If using an non-SSD but you need a SSD for the purpose of utilizing vSAN

http://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?language=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=2013188
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