VM /ETC

Archive for October, 2009

Unlike it’s big brother VMware Workstation 7, nowhere is it published that ESX/ESXi 4 is a supported guest OS of VMware Player 3.0. In fact, ESX 4 is not even among the listed choices in the Version drop down box when building a new virtual machine (VM), nor is it mentioned in the VMware Player Release Notes or Getting Started Guide. I was surprised when I was able to perform an Easy Install of ESXi 4, and just like ESXi 4 VMs running on Workstation 7, VMware Player nested ESXi successfully hosted guests. Best of all, ESXi 4 in VMware Player 3.0 can be run without any additional manual (ESX in a box) configurations (just like VMware Workstation 7).

Interestingly enough, the full Console ESX 4 install DVD is not recognized by VMware Player 3.0 for an Easy Install. However, performing a full ESX 4 Easy Install is possible with a last minute switch of the install media. That is, first browse to the ESXi 4 .ISO, complete the new VM Easy Install wizard, but modify the hardware before booting and change to the ESX 4 DVD .ISO. Watch the video at the end of this post for a demonstration on getting full ESX4 to work.

The rest of this post highlights the important parts of the Easy Install of ESXi 4 on VMware Player 3.0 with screen shots. To get an idea of more of the Easy Install screens check out my post about installing Windows 7 as a VM in Workstation earlier this year. Read the rest of this entry »

Social networking continues to prove to be a valuable communication and marketing channel for vendors. Large technical conferences have been the shining example so far, but the recent HP Storage Tech Day event in Colorado Springs was a small event with a big reaction. HP sponsored a handful of bloggers who were able to engage IT professionals world-wide with real time commentary. It was a simple but effective format: 2 days of interactive presentations, demonstrations, and hand on labs without non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). The bloggers were free to tweet, podcast and post about the experience.

The event proved to be so successful in it’s reach that other vendors immediately expressed interest in doing the same. GestaltIT founder Stephen Foskett contacted me shortly afterwards with the news that because there was enough sponsor interest he would be organizing a new series of multi-vendor events called GestaltIT Field Days. The first one has already been scheduled and will be held in Silicon Valley on November 12 and 13, 2009.

Stephen describes the event on the GesatltIT Field Day web page:

“This is not a trade show, a junket, or an analyst day. Rather, the participating sponsors will be engaging the attendees, inviting feedback, and fostering open communication. We were inspired by HP’s series of Tech Days and wanted to broaden the concept, bringing in more products and a broader range of technologies. We also liked the idea of creating and managing a similar event as an independent third party.”

Read the rest of this entry »

After a few short weeks as a Release Candidate (RC), Version 7 of VMware Workstation is now officially available. The gallery above contains images provided by VMware of Workstation 7 in action. The following list points out highlighted product enhancements from the draft press release I was forwarded:

• VMware Workstation 7 is optimized for maximum performance when running on 32-bit and 64-bit Windows 7 PCs and works seamlessly with Flip 3D and Aero Peek to show live virtual machine activity.
• Run even more 3D applications with support for Windows Aero, DirectX 9.0c Shader Model 3 and OpenGL 2.1 in Windows virtual machines.
• VMware Workstation 7 streamlines software development and testing with new IDE integrations for the SpringSource Tools Suite and Eclipse IDE for Java & C/C++ along with Record Replay Debugging improvements that make it faster to find non-deterministic bugs.
• Run 32-bit and 64-bit operating systems with up to four virtual CPUs and 32GB of RAM dedicated to each virtual machine.

As previously mentioned in my post about the Workstation 7 RC, another significant new feature is that ESX/ESXi 4 is now a supported guest operating system. ESX/ESXi can now be selected in the drop down list of OSes when building a new VM. This greatly simplifies using VMware Workstation as a platform for administrator training and VCP certification preparation.

For more information about VMware Workstation 7 go to www.vmware.com/workstation. VM /ETC readers can also take advantage of an additional 10% discount when ordering Workstation here.

When vCloud Express was announced along with the vCloud API at VMworld 2009 in September I decided to sign up and try building VMware virtual machines (VMs) in the Cloud for myself. Being able to provision infrastructure as a service (Iaas) virtually with only a credit card has a certain useful appeal to me, and I wanted to see firsthand exactly what can be done and how much it costs.

This post summarizes my experience and touches on Terremark’s various options for building VMware Cloud VMs. I also quickly describe/illustrate the difference in charges for Linux versus Windows Cloud servers. This post contains a lot of screen shots, and at the end I’ll offer some opinions on the usefulness of vCloud Express and where this service might make sense for IT shops.

Getting started

Creating an account is simple. Just go to http://vcloudexpress.terremark.com/ and register for an account. Read the rest of this entry »

I have periodically attempted different methods for running the VMware vSphere and VI Client (VIC) on Ubuntu. While continuing to keep my fingers crossed for VMware to release a Linux version, I’ve tried several workarounds only to remain unsatisfied:

• installing the VIC with Wine
• Locally running Windows virtual machines in either Virtualbox or VMware Workstation/Player
• Used the ESX web client when possible (features are limited)
• Used a full Remote Desktop to vCenter

The method with the least pre-configuration necessary has always been a remote desktop with the VIC already installed, but there is always some untimely inconvenience involved when working between two different desktops.

Long story short, the rest of this post is about using the default Ubuntu Terminal Server Client to access a single application via RDP. This is perfect for using the vSphere Client or VIC on Linux. It does not require a “published application” or full Terminal Server, but instead it is a simple way to take advantage of the administrative RDP connection from the standard Remote Desktop access available on any Windows operating system.

Before I describe how to set this up I want to also reference my first try at RDP directly to the vSphere Client and VIC. Afterall, Read the rest of this entry »

Rarely do I mention my employer’s events on VM /ETC. To their credit they don’t ask me to, and they allow me to remain an independent voice in the virtualization blogisphere. For the record, I was not asked to post this entry either.

Softchoice’s Optimized Data Center Conference is a customer appreciation event worth considering both for the technology and for the venue. This week the conference will be at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, GA on Thursday, 10/15. Next week the event will be in Vancouver, BC on Thursday, 10/22. I’ll be at the event this week with my family, and I encourage you to join me with yours! The event is free and open to anyone, so even if you’ve never done business with us we welcome your attendance.

I’m not going to try to sell you on Softchoice or our partners in this post. I’m confident we do a great job of that already. I’m simply trying to tell you why the event is worth your time.

Some quick info on the event from the site link above:

You’ll get…

• 40+ of the leading IT manufacturers all in one location
• Valuable insight into the emerging trends in the Optimized Data Center
• Advice on stretching your IT budget with useful technology strategies
• Great food, open bar, and unique entertainment
• Fun prizes, giveaways, and product samples for all attendees

So, if you are not interested in hearing my co-workers talk then come for the vendors. Think of this as a one day Vendor Fair! Our Gold Sponsors are VMware, Microsoft, NetApp, EMC, Cisco, Citrix, HP, and IBM, and there are many, many more vendor participants worth visiting with! The Optimized Data Center is about hardware consolidation and virtualization. In my opinion, the message is extremely important and relevant to VM /ETC readers.

Bring Your Family!

At 5:30 pm the only people left in the Georgia Aquarium will be Optimized Data Center Conference attendees and partners. Bring your family! While you are attending the business piece of the conference your family can roam the Aquarium for free!!. At 5:30 pm they will join us in a reception area so we can all experience the venue together – exclusively!!

Parking at the Aquarium is free to conference attendees as well.

Coverage of the Conference

To get a taste of what to expect check out some online coverage from the first leg of the conference held in Toronto last week.

• No magic bullet for optimizing the data centre

• Twitter hashtag #ODC

We will be tweeting again this week, so if you are not able to attend follow us on Twitter:

• @rbrambley
• @kevin_houston
• @mcdonst1
• @softchoice
• @handly

If the hashtag changes I will update this post. I’ll be adding more twitternames as I figure out who will be tweeting along with me.

Let me know if you can make it to the Aquarium this week via email (on the About Page) or leave a comment on this post. I’d love to see you and your family there!

The 2009 Q3 winners (tallied by email address) with the number of comments made July through September :

1. Jason Boche – 16 – UGG
2. Dracolith – 16 – UGG
3. Tom12010 – 10 – UGH
4. Vladan – 10 – UGH
5. Cody Bunch – 5 – UGH

As always, the winners will receive an email from me shortly requesting a shipping address and a t-shirt size. I’ll get the shirts delivered from Cafepress.com as quick as possible.

The reader with the most comments each quarter earns Ugly Green Guru status and will receive a unique t-shirt with UGG on the pocket instead of UGH (as pictured).

I’ve created a UGH Hall Of Fame (HOF) Page here on VM /ETC. Check out all the previous winners there.

In the first ever tie, VM /ETC regulars Dracolith and Jason Boche slugged it out all quarter but apparently decided to cross the finish line arm in arm. Since this is Jason’s first UGG I’m giving him the top position. Dracolith won UGG status in Q209, and has not been officially de-throwned.

It’s good to see Tom12010 returned to UGH status again after a brief leave of absence in Q2.

I’d like to welcome Vladan and Cody Bunch to the UGH club. Both first time winners this quarter, but both have been VM /ETC regulars since the beginning.

If you just have to have a VM /ETC t-shirt and can’t wait until you win in Q4, check out my CafeExpress.com store and order one of several different styles for yourself.

Q4 2009 winners will be announced in January 2010, so start commenting on the posts now. You don’t have to leave anything profound to win. Just help answer questions, add your experience, or just express how a topic is relevant to you.

As always, thanks to all the readers who comment on VMETC.com posts!