vmware
vSphere 4 – Increase a VMs Hard disk under Windows 2008
Here’s how I recently changed the C: boot drive on a Windows 2008 VM
One of our older Windows 2008 templates has a 40GB C:\ hard disk, however I’d like it to be 50GB.
With the combination of vCenter Server 4, Windows 2008 and vSphere 4 this couldn’t be easier!
Prerequisites:
- Have admin access to vCenter Server and the Windows server
- A quick snapshot is always a good idea
Steps:
- While the server is still ON, yes I said “While the server is still on”, in vCenter Server right click on the VM
-
Choose Edit Settings, Choose the Hard disk you want to expand and type in the new size, Choose OK
- In Windows 2008 server open Server Manager, Click on Storage, Click on Disk Manager
- Note the extra space on your hard disk
- Right Click on the C: drive and choose Extend Volume
- Choose Next on the Welcome Screen
- Type in the amount you want to extend by or just click next the max
-
Click Finish to start the expansion, in about 2 seconds you’re done…
vSphere: NUMA 706: Can’t boot system as genuine NUMA
If you install vSphere on NON-NUMA hardware the following warning message will be displayed on the Service Console splash screen
cpu0:0)NUMA: 706: Can’t boot system as genuine NUMA. Booting with 1 fake node(s)
To resolve the warning message uncheck the option setting vmkernel.boot.usenumainfo
ESX 4.1 Host Profile Copy
Wouldn’t it be nice be able to make a copy of an existing host profile allowing you to create new profile?
vCenter Server 4.1.0 doesn’t have a copy function but you can export the profile then import it with a different name.
Note – Keep in mind this might not work on your destination hardware, you should use a base profile that is simlar and go fromt there. You also might have to tweek the copied profile for it work properly.
In vCenter Server 4.1.0 go to the Host Profiles area on you vCenter server
Simply right click and choose export profile
Choose ok to this warning…
Choose a good name and click on save
When the creation is complete from the main window Choose “Create a new host profile” > Import Profile >, Browse to the Import location and choose your file > Enter a new Name for the profile > Choose Finish
Once your done you can now edit this profile, updated it, add hosts, etc..
vmworld 2010 – The Schedule
Here is my schedule for vmworld 2010… This year I plan to hit the self-paced labs in the morning, followed up by super-sessions, performance, and cloud computing throughout the week. Hopefully I’ll have time for lunch and the vendor area!
| EA7850 — Design, Deploy, and Optimize Microsoft SQL 2008 |
| SS1055 — Partner Track Super Session |
| TA8102 — Tuning Linux for Virtual Machines |
| EA8210 — Zimbra and The Future for Mission Critical Apps in the Virtualized Enterprise |
| ALT3005 — VMware vCenter™ Orchestrator – Orchestrating the Cloud |
| ALT2004 — Building the VMworld Lab Cloud Infrastructure |
| EA7829 — Panel Discussion: Virtualization’s Impact on the Delivery of Healthcare IT Services |
| TA9420 — vSphere 4.1 Overview |
| SP9820 — Getting the Most Out of Your Storage Infrastructure with Client and Server Virtualization |
| TA6720 — Troubleshooting using ESXTOP for Advanced Users |
| TA8133 — Best Practices to Increase Availability and Throughput for VMware |
| SS1011 — How Cisco, EMC and VMware Are Changing the IT Landscape with Vblock Converged Infrastructure |
| TA8623 — Storage Super-Heavyweight Challenge |
| SP9721 — How to Use Virtual I/O to Provision and Manage Networks and Storage Resources in a Private Cloud |
| TA6944 — PowerCLI Is For Administrators! |
| TA8051 — Infrastructure Technologies to Long Distance VMotion – What Is “VM Teleportation”? |
| TA8101 — Virtual Storage and VMware vSphere: Best Practices and Design Considerations |
| TA7994 — vStorage Update for vSphere 4.1 |
Best Practices and URL’s
Here’s a great check list that I came across today… Enjoy!
Component Check (per Best Practice)
Host Verify equipment was burned in with memory test for at least 72 hours
Host Verify all host hardware is on the VMware Hardware Compatibility List (HCL)
Host Verify all host hardware meets minimum supported configuration
Host Check CPU compatibility for vMotion and FT
Host Check ESX/ESXi host physical CPU utilization to make sure that it is not saturated or running in a sustained high utilization
Host Verify all hosts in the cluster are compatible versions of ESX/ESXi
Host Check ESX/ESXi host active Swap In/Out rate to make sure that it is not consistently greater than 0
Host Check to make sure that there is sufficient service console memory (max is 800MB)
Host Verify that ESX service console root file system is not getting full
Host Check if any 3rd party agents are running in the ESX service console
Host Verify that NTP is used for time synchronization
Network Verify that networking in configured consistently across all hosts in a cluster
Network Check to make sure there is redundancy in networking paths and components to avoid single points of failure (e.g. at least 2 paths to each network)
Network If HA is being used, check that physical switches that support PortFast (or equivalent) have PortFast enabled
Network Check that NICs for the same uplink have same speeds and duplex settings
Network Check that Management/Service Console, Vmkernel, and VM traffic is separated (physical or logical using VLANs)
Network Verify that portgroup security settings for ForgedTransmits and MACAddressChanges are set to Reject
Network Check the virtual switch portgroup failover policy for appropriate active and standby NICs for failover
Network Verify that VMotion and FT traffic is on at least a 1 Gb network
Network Check that IP storage traffic is physically separate to prevent sharing network bandwidth
Storage Verify that VMs are on a shared datastore
Storage Check that datastores are masked/zoned to the appropriate hosts in a cluster
Storage Check that datastores are consistently accessible from all hosts in a cluster
Storage Check that the appropriate storage policy is used for the storage array (MRU, Fixed, RR)
Storage Check to make sure there is redundancy in storage paths and components to avoid single point of failure (e.g. at least 2 paths to each datastore)
Storage Check that datastores are not getting full
Virtual Datacenter Check that all datacenter objects use a consistent naming convention
Virtual Datacenter Verify that hosts within a cluster maintain a compatible and homogeneous (CPU/mem) to support the required functionality for DRS, DPM, HA, and VMotion
Virtual Datacenter Check that FT primaries are distributed on multiple hosts since FT logging is asymmetric
Virtual Datacenter Verify that hosts for FT are FT compatible
Virtual Datacenter Check that reservations/limits are used selectively on VMs that need it and are not set to extreme values
Virtual Datacenter Check that vCenter Server is not running other applications and vCenter add-ons (for large environments and heavily loaded vCenter systems) and is sized appropriately
Virtual Datacenter Check that the DB log setting is Normal unless there is a specific reason to set it to High
Virtual Datacenter Check that the vCenter statistics level is set to an appropriate level (1 or 2 recommended)
Virtual Datacenter Check that appropriate vCenter roles, groups, and permissions are being used
VM Check any VMs with CPU READY over 2000 ms
VM Check any VMs with sustained high CPU utilization
VM Check any VMs with incorrect OS type in the VM configuration compared to the guest OS
VM Check any VMs with multiple vCPUs to make sure the applications are not single threaded
VM Check the active Swap In/Out rate of VMs to make sure it is not consistently greater than 0
VM Check that NTP, windows time service, or another timekeeping utility suitable for the OS is used (and not VMware Tools)
VM Check that VMware Tools are installed, running, and not out of date for running VMs
VM Check VMs that are configured and enabled with unnecessary virtual hardware devices (floppy, serial, parallel, CDROM) and any devices that prevent VMotion
VM Check VMs that are not yet on virtual hardware v7
VM Check VM configuration (memory reservation) for VMs running JVM to consider setting reservation to the size of OS+ java heap
Item URL
Documentation http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs
VMTN Technology information http://www.vmware.com/vcommunity/technology
VMTN Knowledge Base http://kb.vmware.com
Discussion forums http://www.vmware.com/community
User groups http://www.vmware.com/vcommunity/usergroups.html
Online support http://www.vmware.com/support
Telephone support http://www.vmware.com/support/phone_support.html
Education Services http://mylearn.vmware.com/mgrreg/index.cfm
Certification http://mylearn.vmware.com/portals/certification/
Technical Papers http://www.vmware.com/vmtn/resources
Network throughput between virtual machines http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1428
Detailed explanation of VMotion considerations http://www.vmware.com/resources/techresources/1022
Time keeping in virtual machines http://www.vmware.com/vmtn/resources/238
http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1006427
VMFS partitions http://www.vmware.com/vmtn/resources/608
VI3 802.1Q VLAN Solutions http://www.vmware.com/pdf/esx3_vlan_wp.pdf
VMware Virtual Networking Concepts http://www.vmware.com/resources/techresources/997
Using EMC Celerra IP Storage (VI3 http://www.vmware.com/resources/techresources/1036
VMware vCenter Update Manager documentation http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/vum_pubs.html
VMware vCenter Update Manager Best Practices http://www.vmware.com/resources/techresources/10022
Performance Best Practices for VMware vSphere 4.0 http://www.vmware.com/resources/techresources/10041
Recommendations for aligning VMFS partitions http://www.vmware.com/vmtn/resources/608
Performance Troubleshooting for VMware vSphere http://communities.vmware.com/docs/DOC-10352
Large Page Performance http://www.vmware.com/resources/techresources/1039
VMware vSphere PowerCLI http://www.vmware.com/support/developer/windowstoolkit/
VI3 security hardening http://www.vmware.com/vmtn/resources/726
VMware HA: Concepts and Best Practices http://www.vmware.com/resources/techresources/402
Java in Virtual Machine on ESX http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/Java_in_Virtual_Machines_on_ESX-FINAL-Jan-15-2009.pdf
CPU scheduler in ESX 4.0 http://www.vmware.com/resources/techresources/10059
Dynamic Storage Provisioning (Thin Provisioning) http://www.vmware.com/resources/techresources/10073
Understanding memory resource management on ESX http://www.vmware.com/resources/techresources/10062
Book – VMware vSphere 4.0 Quickstart Guide
I bought this book today… based on some blog posts I found (see below).
I must say it is one of the best.. It is a pocket reference so be aware the print is a bit small…
Download the Power-CLI Scripts from the book here…
http://www.yellow-bricks.com/wp-content/uploads/quickstartguide.zip
Here are some notes about the book.. From this URL…
http://www.boche.net/blog/index.php/2009/11/23/vsphere-4-0-quick-start-guide-released-on-amazon/
What a great way to kick off the new week – The highly anticipated book, vSphere 4.0 Quick Start Guide: Shortcuts down the path of Virtualization, has arrived at Amazon.com! I look at this new release as the 2nd edition or vSphere edition of RapidApp’s Quick Start Guide to ESX 3.0 which is still available and was a huge success.
The vSphere 4.0 Quick Start Guide was written by a lineup of new authors who are well known rock stars in the virtualization community: Bernie Baker, Thomas Bryant, Duncan Epping, Dave Mischenko, Stewart Radnidge, and Alan Renouf. I obtained a preview copy of this book at VMworld 2009 in San Francisco and I can tell you that this it is absolutely amazing. Nowhere else will you find as much information in such a small and convenient footprint. Its small size allows you to put it in your pocket and take it virtually anywhere: On the plane, on the bus, into a meeting, or into the datacenter. As with the first edition, there are several blank pages in this book which allow you space to write down notes, command line information, configuration maximum changes, information about your environment, helpful URLs, etc. The authors did a great job on this book and considering the cumulative years of experience and combined expertise packed into this book, you can’t beat the price. I don’t think a better value exists. My copy has been traveling with me daily in my laptop bag. I give it two thumbs up.
VMware KB: Enhanced VMotion Compatibility (EVC) processor support
Check out this great article on EVC… lots of great information and links!
VMware KB: Enhanced VMotion Compatibility (EVC) processor support: “Enhanced VMotion Compatibility (EVC) processor support
Details
Enhanced VMotion Compatibility (EVC) simplifies VMotion compatibility issues across CPU generations. EVC automatically configures server CPUs with Intel FlexMigration or AMD-V Extended Migration technologies to be compatible with older servers. After EVC is enabled for a cluster in the VirtualCenter inventory, all hosts in that cluster are configured to present identical CPU features and ensure CPU compatibility for VMotion. The features presented by each host are determined by selecting a predefined EVC baseline. VirtualCenter does not permit the addition of hosts that cannot be automatically configured to be compatible with the EVC baseline.”
TalkShoe – Call – VMware Communities Roundtable
I found this really cool little community today thanks to a fellow VMUG User (Vlad N)
They have some really cool stuff..
TalkShoe – Call – VMware Communities Roundtable: “VMware Communities Roundtable”
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