Virtual Machines Module 7

Introduction to VMware Virtualization Installing VMware ESX and ESXi You Are Here vSphere Environment Operations Introduction to VMware Virtualization Access Control VMware ESX and ESXi Resource Monitoring VMware vCenter Server Data Protection Networking Scalability Storage High Availability Virtual Machines Patch Management Installing VMware ESX and ESXi VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Importance You can create a virtual machine in a number of ways. Choosing the correct method can help you save time and make the deployment process manageable and scalable. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Module Lessons Lesson 1: Virtual Machine Concepts Lesson 2: Creating a Virtual Machine Lesson 3: Creating Templates and Clones Lesson 4: vCenter Converter Lesson 5: Modifying Virtual Machines Lesson 6: Managing Virtual Machines VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lesson 1: Virtual Machine Concepts VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lesson Objectives Describe a virtual machine Display a virtual machine’s files List the virtual machine hardware VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

What Is a Virtual Machine? A virtual machine is: A set of virtual hardware on which a supported guest operating system and its applications run A set of discrete files A virtual machine’s configuration file describes the virtual machine’s configuration, including its virtual hardware. Avoid using special characters and spaces in the virtual machine’s name. virtual machine MyVM.vmx … guestOS = “winnetstandard” displayName = “MyVM” (etc.) VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

What Files Make Up a Virtual Machine? Filename Description <VM_name>.vmx Virtual machine configuration file <VM_name>.vmdk File describing virtual disk characteristics <VM_name>-flat.vmdk Preallocated virtual disk file that contains the data <VM_name>.nvram Virtual machine BIOS vmware.log, vmware-#.log Virtual machine log file and files containing old virtual machine log entries <VM_name>.vswp Virtual machine swap file <VM_name>.vmsd File that describes the virtual machine’s snapshots <Template_name>.vmtx Virtual machine template configuration file Other files exist for snapshots, raw disk mappings, NFS locks, and change tracking with VMware Data Recovery. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Displaying a Virtual Machine’s Files On the Configuration tab, click the Storage link. Right-click a datastore to browse its files. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Using the Storage Views Tab to Display Files Click the Storage Views tab. Select Show All Virtual Machine Files from the menu. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Virtual Machine Hardware VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

CPU and Memory Up to eight virtual CPUs (vCPUs): VMware® Virtual SMP license required Also depends on the number of licensed CPUs on a host and the number of processors supported by a guest operating system Maximum memory size (up to 255GB): Amount the guest operating system will be told that it has VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Virtual Disk Sample virtual disk definition: Virtual disk size: 4GB Datastore: MyVMFS Virtual disk node: 0:0 Virtual storage adapter: LSI Logic SAS Virtual disk files: Server1.vmdk and Server1-flat.vmdk Default disk mode: Snapshots allowed Optional disk mode: Independent – persistent or nonpersistent Disk provisioning: Thick or thin VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Virtual Network Interface Card Network adapters that might be available for your virtual machine: Flexible – Can function as either a vlance or vmxnet adapter: vlance – Also called PCNet32, supported by most 32-bit guest operating systems vmxnet – Provides significantly better performance than vlance e1000 – High-performance adapter available for only some guest operating systems vmxnet2 (Enhanced vmxnet) – vmxnet adapter with enhanced performance vmxnet3 – Builds on the vmxnet2 adapter Whenever possible, choose vmxnet3. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Other Devices CD/DVD drive: Connect to CD-ROM, DVD, or ISO image. Floppy drive: Connect to floppy or floppy image. Generic SCSI devices (such as tape libraries): Can be connected to additional SCSI adapters VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Virtual Machine Console Send power changes to the virtual machine. Access the virtual machine’s guest operating system. Send Ctrl+Alt+Del to the guest operating system. Press Ctrl+Alt+Ins in the virtual machine console. Press Ctrl+Alt to release the pointer from the virtual machine console. VM console icon VM console VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lesson Summary Describe a virtual machine Display a virtual machine’s files List the virtual machine hardware VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lesson 2: Creating a Virtual Machine VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lesson Objectives Provision a virtual machine: Create the virtual machine Install the guest operating system into the virtual machine Install VMware Tools into the guest operating system Describe how to import a virtual appliance VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Provisioning a Virtual Machine Methods for creating virtual machines: Use the Create New Virtual Machine wizard. Import a virtual appliance. Deploy a virtual machine from template. Clone a virtual machine. Use VMware vCenter Converter. Use Guided Consolidation. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Create New Virtual Machine Wizard Create a new virtual machine in the VMware vCenter Server inventory. In the Hosts and Clusters view, select a datacenter, cluster, or host. In the VMs and Templates view, select a datacenter or folder. Start the Create New Virtual Machine wizard. Perform a “typical” or “custom” configuration. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Choosing the Typical Configuration Information needed for a typical configuration: Virtual machine name and inventory location Location in which to place the virtual machine (cluster, host, resource pool) Datastore on which to store the virtual machine’s files Guest operating system and version Disk parameters for creating a new virtual disk: Disk size Disk-provisioning settings: Allocate and commit space on demand (Thin Provisioning) Support clustering features such as Fault Tolerance VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Choosing the Custom Configuration Other information needed for a custom configuration: Virtual machine version (version 7 is the latest) Number of CPUs and size of memory Number of NICs, network to connect to, and network adapter type SCSI controller type Whether to create a new disk, use an existing disk, use an RDM, or use no disk Other disk-provisioning settings: Whether to store the virtual disk with the virtual machine or in a different datastore Virtual device node (for example, SCSI(0:0)) Mode-independent (persistent and nonpersistent) For both the typical and the custom configurations: You can edit virtual machine settings before completing the task. For example, attach an ISO image to the virtual CD/DVD drive. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Installing the Guest Operating System Install the guest operating system into the virtual machine. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Install VMware Tools into the guest operating system. Features of VMware Tools include: Device drivers: SVGA display vmxnet/vmxnet3 Balloon driver for memory management Sync driver for quiescing I/O Improved mouse Virtual machine heartbeat Time synchronization Ability to shut down virtual machine Install VMware Tools into the guest operating system. VMware Tools icon VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Virtual Appliances Preconfigured virtual machines: Usually designed for a single purpose (for example, a safe browser or firewall) Deployed as an OVF template Available from the VMware Virtual Appliance Marketplace: http://www.vmware.com/appliances Use the VMware vSphere™ Client to upload appliances into vCenter Server. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Deploying an OVF Template Another way to deploy a virtual appliance or any virtual machine stored in OVF format: Deploy from an OVF template. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lab 8 In this lab, you will create, import, and prepare virtual machines for use. Create a virtual machine. Install a guest operating system in a virtual machine. Create a virtual machine on an iSCSI VMFS datastore. Import a virtual machine into the vCenter Server inventory. Identify a virtual machine’s disk format and usage statistics. Install VMware Tools into a virtual machine installed with a Windows operating system. Enable time synchronization between a virtual machine and an ESXi host. Copy class lab files to your virtual machine. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A 28

Lesson Summary Provision a virtual machine: Create the virtual machine Install the guest operating system into the virtual machine Install VMware Tools into the guest operating system Describe how to import a virtual appliance VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lesson 3: Creating Templates and Clones VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lesson Objectives Create a template Deploy a virtual machine from a template Clone a virtual machine Allow guest operating system customization by vCenter Server VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

What Is a Template? A master copy of a virtual machine used to create and provision new virtual machines An image that typically includes a guest operating system, a set of applications, and a specific virtual machine configuration VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Creating a Template Clone the virtual machine to a template. The virtual machine can either be powered on or powered off. Convert the virtual machine to a template. The virtual machine must be powered off. Clone a template. Select the template in inventory first. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Viewing Templates Two ways to view templates: Use the VMs and Templates inventory view. Use the Virtual Machines tab in the Hosts and Clusters inventory view. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Deploying a Virtual Machine from Template To deploy a virtual machine, provide such information as virtual machine name, inventory location, host, datastore, and guest operating system customization data. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Updating a Template To update a template: Convert the template to a virtual machine. Place the virtual machine on an isolated network to prevent user access. Make appropriate changes to the virtual machine. Convert the virtual machine to a template. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Cloning a Virtual Machine Cloning is an alternative to deploying a virtual machine. A clone is an exact copy of the virtual machine. The virtual machine being cloned can either be powered on or powered off. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Customizing the Guest Operating System VMware recommends customization of a clone’s guest operating system to prevent software and network conflicts. During cloning or deploying from template, you have the option of running the Guest Customization wizard. The wizard lets you create a specification that you can use to prepare the guest operating systems of virtual machines. Specifications can be stored in the database. You can edit specifications in the Customization Specifications Manager. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Deploying Virtual Machines Across Datacenters Virtual machine deployment is allowed across datacenters. Clone a virtual machine from one datacenter to another. Deploy from a template in one datacenter to a virtual machine in a different datacenter. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lab 9 In this lab, you will deploy a virtual machine from a template and clone a virtual machine. Configure guest operating system customization on a vCenter Server system. Create a template. Deploy a virtual machine from a template. Clone a virtual machine that is powered on. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A 40

Lesson Summary Create a template Deploy a virtual machine from a template Clone a virtual machine Allow guest operating system customization by vCenter Server VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lesson 4: vCenter Converter VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lesson Objectives Describe the capabilities of vCenter Converter Import a system into vCenter Server Perform a hot clone VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

vCenter Converter vCenter Converter can import physical machines, virtual machines, and system images: Windows and Linux sources Hyper-V virtual machine sources A variety of third-party image formats vCenter Converter can also export virtual machines for use in VMware hosted and managed products. vCenter Converter allows you to: Reduce time needed to set up new virtual machines Migrate legacy servers to new hardware without reinstallation Perform migrations across heterogeneous hardware Readjust volume sizes and place volumes on separate virtual disks Migrate disks across independent datastores VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

vCenter Converter Components VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

vCenter Converter Requirements Install vCenter Converter and the vCenter Converter client only on Windows operating systems. Allocate 525MB of disk space for vCenter Converter components: Server files, client files, agent files, and the installation file For hot clones, vCenter Converter requires 350MB of memory on the source machine. vCenter Converter supports only pure IPv6 or IPv4 environments. Certain limitations exist when you convert powered-on machines, virtual machines, third-party virtual machines, or system images. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Cloning Cloning and system reconfiguration steps are used to create and reconfigure the virtual machine: Cloning – Copy the source physical disks for the destination virtual machine. The destination virtual disk might not be an exact copy of the source disk. System reconfiguration – Adjust the migrated operating system to enable it to function on virtual hardware. vCenter Converter supports hot cloning: Hot cloning – Clone a source machine while the operating system is running. The source machine can be accessed remotely. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Remote Hot Cloning of a Windows System Stage 1: Preparing source machine for conversion Stage 2: Preparing the virtual machine on the destination machine Stage 3: Completing the conversion process Stage 4: Cleaning up vSphere Client with vCenter Converter client plug-in vCenter Server with vCenter Converter powered-on Windows machine LAN reconfiguration agent customization opt. VM VSS snapshot VSS snapshot source volume host volume source destination vCenter Converter creates a new virtual machine on the destination machine. vCenter Converter installs the agent on source machine. vCenter Converter agent copies data from the source to the destination. vCenter Converter agent takes a VSS snapshot of the source volume. vCenter Converter agent installs required drivers and performs the necessary steps to allow OS to boot. vCenter Converter agent (optionally) removes all traces from the source system and/or destination VM. vCenter Converter agent customizes the virtual machine (for example, changing IP information). VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Importing a Machine vCenter Converter allows a number of sources: Powered-on machine VMware infrastructure virtual machine VMware Workstation or other VMware virtual machine Backup image or third-party virtual machine Hyper-V Server vCenter Converter provides flexibility in defining the destination virtual machine: Select virtual machine name. Select destination datastore. Select virtual machine version. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Import Machine Wizard Options (1) Optional settings allow you to further define your destination virtual machine. Select destination virtual machine folder. Select from several options to copy data to destination. Modify number of processors, amount of memory, or disk controller. Add network adapters or connect to different networks. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Import Machine Wizard Options (2) Stop service on source or change startup mode on destination. Synchronize source and destination, power off source or power on destination, do postconversion processing Control CPU and network resources during conversion. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Changes to Virtual Hardware Most applications function correctly. Watch for applications that depend on: Specific hardware characteristics Different serial numbers Software licensed to MAC addresses Special graphics cards VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lab 10 In this lab, you will use vCenter Converter to create a virtual machine from an existing system. Install vCenter Converter. Configure vCenter Converter guest operating system customization. Install and enable the vCenter Converter plug-in. Prepare a system for hot cloning. Hot-clone a system. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A 53

Lesson Summary Describe the capabilities of vCenter Converter Import a system into vCenter Server Perform a hot clone VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lesson 5: Modifying Virtual Machines VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lesson Objectives Describe virtual machine settings and options Add a hot-pluggable device Dynamically increase the size of a virtual disk Add a raw device mapping (RDM) VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Modifying Virtual Machine Settings You can modify a virtual machine’s configuration in its Properties dialog box: Add virtual hardware. Some hardware can be added while the virtual machine is powered on. Remove virtual hardware. Set virtual machine options. Control a virtual machine’s CPU and memory resources. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Hot-Pluggable Devices Examples of hot- pluggable devices: USB controllers, Ethernet adapters, and hard disk devices. You can also add CPU and memory while the virtual machine is powered on. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Dynamically Increasing a Virtual Disk’s Size Format the new space within the guest operating system. Dynamically increase a virtual disk from, for example, 2GB to 20GB. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Creating an RDM An RDM allows you to store virtual machine data directly on a LUN. The RDM is a file on a VMware vStorage VMFS datastore that points to the raw LUN. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Virtual Machine Options VM display name .vmx file location VM directory guest operating system type VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Options: VMware Tools Customize power button actions. When to run VMware Tools scripts Update checks and time sync. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Advanced: Boot Options Advanced options rarely need to be set. Delay power on. Boot into BIOS. Retry after failed boot. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lab 11 In this lab, you will modify a virtual machine’s hardware and add a raw LUN to a virtual machine. Increase the size of a VMDK file. Adjust memory allocation on a virtual machine. Rename a virtual machine in the vCenter Server inventory. Add a raw LUN to a virtual machine and verify that the guest operating system can see it. Expand a thin-provisioned virtual disk. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A 64

Lesson Summary Describe virtual machine settings and options Add a hot-pluggable device Dynamically increase the size of a virtual disk Add an RDM VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lesson 6: Managing Virtual Machines VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lesson Objectives Take a snapshot of a virtual machine and manage multiple snapshots Remove a virtual machine from the vCenter Server inventory and completely from disk Describe the types of migration Use VMware Storage vMotion to migrate a virtual machine VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Virtual Machine Snapshots Snapshots allow you to preserve the state of the virtual machine so that you can return to the same state repeatedly. For example, if you are testing software, snapshots allow you to back out of these changes. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Taking a Snapshot You can take a snapshot while a virtual machine is powered on, powered off, or suspended. A snapshot captures the entire state of the virtual machine: Memory state, settings state, and disk state VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Managing Snapshots The Snapshot Manager lets you review all snapshots for the active virtual machine and act on them directly: Revert to a snapshot. Delete one or all snapshots. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Virtual Machine Snapshot Files A snapshot consists of a set of files: the memory state (.vmsn), the description file (-00000#.vmdk), and the delta file (-00000#- delta.vmdk). The snapshot list file (.vmsd) keeps track of the virtual machine’s snapshots. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Managing Virtual Machines with vApp A VMware vApp: Is a container for one or more virtual machines Can be used to package and manage related applications Is an object in the vCenter Server inventory VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

vApp Characteristics You can configure a vApp: CPU and memory allocation IP allocation policy Advanced settings You can also configure the virtual machine startup and shutdown order. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Removing a Virtual Machine Two ways to remove a virtual machine: Remove a virtual machine from the inventory. The virtual machine’s files remain on disk. The virtual machine can later be re-added to the inventory. Delete a virtual machine from disk. The virtual machine is removed from the inventory, and its files are permanently deleted from disk. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Migrating Virtual Machines Migration – Moving a virtual machine from one host or datastore to another. Types of migrations: Cold – Migrate a virtual machine that is powered off. Suspended – Migrate a virtual machine that is suspended. VMware vMotion™ – Migrate a virtual machine that is powered on. Storage vMotion – Migrate a virtual machine’s files, while the virtual machine is powered on, to a different datastore. Concurrent migrations are possible: A host can be involved in up to two migrations with vMotion or Storage vMotion at one time. A maximum of eight simultaneous vMotion, cloning, deployment, or Storage vMotion accesses to a single VMFS-3 datastore is supported. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Comparison of Migration Types VM power state Change host/ datastore? Across datacenters? Shared storage required? CPU compatibility? Cold Off Host or datastore or both Yes No Different CPU families allowed Suspended Must meet CPU compatibility requirements vMotion On Host Storage vMotion Datastore N/A VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Storage vMotion Storage vMotion allows you to: Perform storage maintenance and reconfiguration Redistribute storage load Evacuate physical storage soon to be retired Perform storage tiering Upgrade VMware ESX™/ESXi hosts without virtual machine downtime Storage vMotion is storage-type independent. Source and destination can be different storage types. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Storage vMotion in Action 4 5 3 1 2 VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Migrating Virtual Machines You can use the Migrate Virtual Machine wizard to perform both hot and cold migrations. vMotion Storage vMotion Function available when virtual machine is powered off VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Storage vMotion Guidelines and Limitations Plan and coordinate with administrators. Perform during off-peak hours. Ensure that source host has access both to source datastores and target datastores. Limitations: Virtual machines with snapshots cannot be migrated. Virtual machine disks must be in persistent mode or be RDMs. The virtual machine must be powered off to concurrently migrate to another host and datastore. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Lab 12 In this lab, you will perform several virtual machine management tasks. Unregister a virtual machine in the vCenter Server inventory. Register a virtual machine in the vCenter Server inventory. Unregister and delete virtual machines from disk. Take snapshots of a virtual machine. Revert to a snapshot. Migrate virtual machine files with Storage vMotion. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A 81

Lesson Summary Take a snapshot of a virtual machine and manage multiple snapshots Remove a virtual machine from the vCenter Server inventory and completely from disk Describe the types of migration Use Storage vMotion to migrate a virtual machine VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A

Key Points You can use several methods to create a virtual machine. Choose the method that best fits your needs. Deploying virtual machines from a template allows you to easily create many virtual machines. vCenter Server provides useful features for provisioning virtual machines, such as templates, cloning, and vCenter Converter. VMware vSphere 4.1: Install, Configure, Manage – Revision A