ClearCube A1010, R1300, R2200, R1200 Deployment Manual
ClearCube Virtualization
Deployment Guide
ClearCube Technology, Inc.
Copyright © 2006, 2007, ClearCube Technology, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Contents
Understanding Virtualization in a ClearCube Environment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Using This Document. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
Obtaining Documents Referenced in This Guide. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
Understanding the Virtualization Platforms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
R2200 Blade Running VMware ESX Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
A1010, R1200, or R1300 Blade Running VMware Server (Formerly GSX). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Deploying ESX Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
Installation Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
Satisfying Installation Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
Creating Virtual Machines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Deploying Virtual Machines in the ClearCube Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Setting up iSCSI Storage Volumes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Setting up iSCSI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
Understanding the iSCSI Storage System Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Obtaining EMC Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Installing VMware ESX Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
Installing Virtual Infrastructure Client. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
Completing Steps for USB Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
Deploying VMware Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Satisfying Installation Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Installing VMware Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Installing Windows Server 2003. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Installing IIS 6.0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Starting the Installation and Creating Virtual Machines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24
Installing the Operating System. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
Installing VMware Tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
Deploying Virtual Machines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Setting up NFS for Demonstrations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
Setting up NFS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
Satisfying NFS Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
Setting up NFS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
Adding NFS to VMware Infrastruture 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Mounting NFS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38
ClearCube Virtualization Deployment Guide • iii
iv • ClearCube Virtualization Deployment Guide
Understanding Virtualization in a
ClearCube Environment
Using This Document
This document provides information about deploying virtual machines (VMs) on
ClearCube™ Blades in a VMware® environment.
VMware provides extensive documentation that explains how to install, configure, and
administer VMs and all of the software and hardware components of the VMware
Infrastruture 3 suite.
The following list describes how this document is organized.
•"Understanding Virtualization in a ClearCube Environment
the virtualization platforms that ClearCube supports. A general description of each
platform architecture is provided, and links to referenced and additional
documentation are provided.
•"Deploying ESX Server
Server installation process. It also provides installation instructions for EMC®
AX150i iSCSI data storage system, ESX Server and virtual machines, and the
Virtual Infrastructure Client.
•"Deploying VMware Server
Server installation process. The chapter details how to in stall VMware Server and
Windows® Server 2003; how to create a VM, install an operating system, and
then power on the VM; and how to install the VMware Tools utilities.
•"Setting up NFS for Demonstrations
Network File Structure® in demonstration environments.
‚" on page 7 provides an overview of the VMware ESX
‚" on page 23, provides an overview of the VMware
‚" on page 33, describes how to set up
‚" on page 1, describes
ClearCube Virtualization Deployment Guide Understanding Virtualization in a ClearCube Environment • 1
Obtaining Documents Referenced in This Guide
This guide refers to several VMware Infrastructure documents located on the
documentation section of the VMware support site at the following URL:
http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/
The following list details some of the documentation to which the site provides links.
• Introduction: ESX Server 3.0.1 and VirtualCenter 2.0.1—Describes the Virtual
Infrastructure components.
• Quick Start Guide: ESX Server 3.0.1 and VirtualCenter 2.0.1—Provides an
introduction to VMware Infrastructure for new users.
• Installation and Upgrade Guide: ESX Server 3.0.1 and VirtualCenter 2.0.1—Describes
how to install and upgrade VMware VirtualCenter and ESX Server.
• Basic System Administration: ESX Server 3.0.1 and VirtualCenter 2.0.1—Describes
how to manage the Virtual Infrastructure components
• Server Configuration Guide: ESX Server 3.0.1 and VirtualCenter 2.0.1—Describes
how to configure networking for ESX Server, virtual machines, VMotion, IP
storage, and the service console. It also covers configuring file system and
various types of storage, including iSCSI and Fibre Channel.
• Virtual Machine Backup Guide: ESX Server 3.0.1 and VirtualCenter 2.0.1—Describes
different strategies for performing backup and restore tasks.
SAN Configuration Guide—Describes how to design and deploy Virtual Infrastructure
systems using VMware Infrastruture 3 with SANs.
2 • Understanding Virtualization in a ClearCube Environment ClearCube Virtualization Deployment Guide
Understanding the Virtualization Platforms
ClearCube supports two distinct platforms for virtualization:
• R2200 VM hosts running VMware Infrastruture 3 (includes ESX Server 3.0.1,
VirtualCenter 2.0.1, and VMware Consolidated Backup)
• A1010, R1200, or R1300 VM hosts running VMware Server (formerly GSX)
Both platforms follow a similar architecture that consists of:
• VM host system (such as a ClearCube R2200 Blade and ESX Server software)
• Network-attached data storage system (such as iSCSI or NAS)
• Sentral™ system
Users attach to VMs via Ethernet®. VM hosts provide a virtual router in each host,
and a virtual network interface controller (NIC) for each instantiated VM. Client
systems include:
• ClearCube Windows XPE or NeoLinux I/Ports™ connecting through Remote
Desktop Protocol (RDP) or the Sentral I/Port client
• ClearCube I8330 I/Ports connecting through Ethernet
• Desktop PCs connecting through RDP
Note: You can not use a C/Port™ to connect to a VM, because the C/Port digital link
uses USB redirection, not RDP. You can use C/Ports to manage the R-series
Blades on which the various components are installed, such as the ESX
Server, VMware Server, or a Linux-based NAS server.
ClearCube Virtualization Deployment Guide Understanding Virtualization in a ClearCube Environment • 3
I/Port Users
R2200 Blade Running VMware ESX Server
This section provides a high-level overview of the ESX Server virtualization platform,
using R2200 Blades. The following figure shows the major components in the platform.
iSCSI
Volume
Ethernet
R2200 Blade
Ethernet
Physical NICs
Virtual Router
t
e
n
r
e
h
t
E
Sentral
Blade
License
Server
Client
User
Appli-
cations
XP OS
Virtual NICs
Sentral
Blade
Client
User
Appli-
cations
XP OS
Sentral
Blade
Client
User
Appli-
cations
XP OS
Sentral
Blade
Client
User
Appli-
cations
XP OS
VM1 VM2 VM3 VM4
VI-3 VM Host OS
Figure 1. VMs Hosted on ESX Server
For best performance, ClearCube recommends allocating a minimum of 512 MB of
RAM for the ESX VM Host, and 512 MB per VM. The following table lists the
recommended maximum number of VMs per RAM on an R2200 Blade.
Table 1. R2200 Recommended Maximum VMs
RAM Maximum VMs
4 GB 7
6 GB 12
8 GB 15
Power limitations on R2200 Blades with 3.8 GHz processors allow using only one
hard disk. Administrators may want to standardize on R2200s equipped with only one
hard drive.
4 • Understanding Virtualization in a ClearCube Environment ClearCube Virtualization Deployment Guide
A1010, R1200, or R1300 Blade Running VMware Server
(Formerly GSX)
This section provides a high-level overview of the ESX Server virtualization platform,
using A1010, R1200, or R1300 Blades. The following figure shows the major
components in the platform.
Users
Ethernet
Ethernet
A1010, R1300, or R1200 Blade
Physical NIC
Virtual Router
Virtual NICs
Sentral
Blade
Client
User
Appli-
cations
XP OS
Sentral
Blade
Client
User
Appli-
cations
XP OS
Sentral
Blade
Client
User
Appli-
cations
XP OS
Sentral
Blade
Client
User
Appli-
cations
XP OS
VM1 VM2 VM3 VM4
GSX VM Host Application
Sentral
Blade Client
Windows Server 2003 OS
Figure 2. VMs Hosted on VMware Server
For best performance, ClearCube recommends allocating a minimum of 512 MB of
RAM for the VMware Server host, and 512 MB per VM. The following table lists the
recommended maximum number of VMs per RAM on an A1010 Blade.
Table 2. A1010 Recommended Maximum VMs
RAM Maximum VMs
2 GB 3
3 GB 5
4 GB 6
ClearCube Virtualization Deployment Guide Understanding Virtualization in a ClearCube Environment • 5
6 • Understanding Virtualization in a ClearCube Environment ClearCube Virtualization Deployment Guide
Deploying ESX Server
Installation Overview
When installing virtual machines in a ClearCube environment, virtual machine (VM)
and server installations differ from those in the typical VMware installation. The
following list provides a high-level overview of the installation tasks you must perform.
1. Prepare a disk for ESX Server installation
Before you can install ESX Server on a disk that uses the SATA interface, you
must configure the SATA disk BIOS. Use a BIOS configuration utility to set the
SATA disk mode to IDE Legacy. For more information, see the “Minimum Server
Hardware Requirements“ section of Installation and Upgrade Guide: ESX 3.0.1
and VirtualCenter 2.0.1, located in the documentation section of the VMware
support Web site:
http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/vi_pubs.html
2. Install VMware ESX Server
Install VMware ESX Server on a ClearCube Blade using a static IP address. In the
ClearCube environment, you must install ESX Server on an R2200-series Blade
with a minimum of 4 GB RAM.
a. Configure USB settings during VI Client installation to enable your USB
mouse and keyboard to connect to your administrator C/Port. For more
information, see Step 9.
b. To install ESX Server from a CD-ROM, you must attach a CD-ROM drive to
the C/Port™ USB port.
c. Before you can install ESX Server on a disk that use the SATA interface, you
must configure the SATA disk BIOS. Use a BIOS configuration utility to set the
SATA disk mode to IDE Legacy. For more information, see the “Minimum
Server Hardware Requirements“ section of Installation and Upgrade Guide:
ESX 3.0.1 and VirtualCenter 2.0.1, located in the documentation section of the
VMware support Web site:
http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/vi_pubs.html
You can now perform ESX Server installation, beginning at step 1, as
described in “ESX Server Installation Procedure” in the “Installing ESX Server“
section of Installation and Upgrade Guide: ESX 3.0.1 and VirtualCenter 2.0.1.
This document is located at the URL listed above.
3. Set up data storage volumes
Set up iSCSI data storage for virtual machines. For more information, see "Setting
up iSCSI Storage Volumes" on page 9.
on page 14.
ClearCube Virtualization Deployment Guide Deploying ESX Server • 7
4. Install licenses or license server
You can point machines to license files or use a license server to provide licenses
for VMware ESX Server. For more information, see "Installing VMware ESX
Server" on page 13.
5. Install VI Client and configure related components
Virtual Infrastructure Client (VI Client) provides direct access ESX Server for
configuration and virtual machine management tasks. You must create and
configure settings for licensing and connections between VMware ESX Server
and data storage volumes. Items to create and configure include:
– License mechanism (files or server)
– Virtual network
– VMkernel
– Data storage volumes
For more information, see "Installing Virtual Infrastructure Client
" on page 16.
6. Create virtual machines
Use VI Client to create virtual machines. You can also create VM templates in
ESX Server. You must perform the following steps.
a. Mount floppy drive image to install OS.
b. In a ClearCube environment, VMware ESX Server sees virtual machines as
virtual small computer system interface (SCSI) drives. You must install the
SCSI drivers contained in the
lsi.flp floppy image file on a Blade before you
can install Windows on your virtual machines. The lsi.flp file virtualizes the
floppy disk driver.
c. Install host OS.
d. Power on VM.
For more information, see "Creating Virtual Machines" on page 9.
7. After installing VI Client, edit the ESX Server modules.conf file to ensure that
Blades provide USB support after ESX Server reboots. For more information, see
"Completing Steps for USB Support
" on page 21.
Satisfying Installation Prerequisites
Before you begin installing VMware ESX Server and virtual machines on ClearCube
Blades, ensure that you have met the following prerequisites.
• Working IP Ethernet network with communication between connected
components.
• Servers on which to install VMware ESX Server® and any license server
software.
• Adequate Network-Attached Storage (NAS) or Internet SCSI (iSCSI) storage
volume or volumes.
8 • Deploying ESX Server ClearCube Virtualization Deployment Guide
• ClearCube R2200 Blades.
• Necessary software and licenses, including the operating systems and
applications for VMs that are appropriate for your environment.
Creating Virtual Machines
Before you can create a virtual machine (VM) in the ClearCube environment, you
must install VMware ESX Server and set up data storage attached to a network. For
more information about installing ESX Server and setting up data storage volumes,
see "Installation Overview
page 9.
Deploying Virtual Machines in the ClearCube Environment
After installing Windows XP Professional operating system on a single VM, you can
use the VM much like you would use a template or computer image to deploy to othe r
computers in a group on entire enterprise. To deploy VMs, you can:
" on page 7 and "Setting up iSCSI Storage Volumes" on
• Duplicate the VM on additional Blades by copying and pasting the appropriate VM
files (VMX and VMDK files).
Note: Do not copy VM configuration file (VMX file) or it will duplicate the MAC
address of the machine in the system, equal to the number of the same
configuration file.
• Use an imaging tool, such as Norton Ghost™, to deploy the VM and ESX Server
to Blades.
Setting up iSCSI Storage Volumes
When you virtualize ClearCube Blades in the Virtual Infrastruture 3 environment, you
must use a network-attached storage volume to store VM data. Cle arCube has tested
and supports the EMC Corporation iSCSI AX150i storage system.
Note: All ClearCube iSCSI testing was performed on a single network.
The following sections refer to documents included with AX150i storage system and
on the EMC Web site. Links are provided when possible. The following hardcopy
documents are referred to frequently:
ClearCube Virtualization Deployment Guide Deploying ESX Server • 9
• Getting Started, P/N 300-002-955, Revision A02
• Planning Your AX150-Series iSCSI Storage-System Configuration, P/N
300-002-951, Revision A03
Setting up iSCSI
The “Minimum Server Hardware Requirements“ section of “ESX Server
Requirements” in Chapter 2, “System Requirements” of Installation and Upgrade
Guide: ESX 3.0.1 and VirtualCenter 2.0.1, located in the documentation section of the
VMware support Web site, http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/vi_pubs.htm
provides the following datastore, or storage volume, minimum requirements.
• A SCSI adapter, internal RAID controller, or Fibre Channel adapter:
– Supported SCSI controllers include Adaptec Ultra160 and Ultra320, LSI Logic
FusionMPT, and most NCR/Symbios cards.
– Supported RAID adapters include HP Smart Array, Dell PercRAID (Adaptec
RAID and LSI MegaRAID), and IBM (Adaptec) ServeRAID controllers.
– Supported Fibre Channel adapters include Emulex and QLogic host bus
adapters (HBAs).
• A SCSI disk, Fibre Channel LUN, or RAID LUN with unpartitioned space. In a
minimum configuration, this disk or RAID is shared between the service console
and the virtual machines.
,
• For iSCSI, a disk attached to an iSCSI controller, such as the QLogic qla4010.
In the VI-3 environment, ESX Server requires one or multiple dedicated,
network-attached storage volumes for VMs. ClearCube supports EMC® AX150i
iSCSI storage system. To set up AX150i, you must:
1. Set up AX150i and Navisphere software
2. Configure ESX Server to recognize the volume
10 • Deploying ESX Server ClearCube Virtualization Deployment Guide
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