Dell VMware ESX 4.x Owner's Manual
VMware ESX 4 on
Dell PowerEdge Systems
Deployment Guide
Notes and Cautions
NOTE: A NOTE indicates important information that helps you make better use of
your computer.
CAUTION: A CAUTION indicates either potential damage to hardware or loss of
data and tells you how to avoid the problem.
____________________
© 2009–2012 Dell Inc.
Trademarks used in this text: Dell™, the DELL logo, PowerEdge™, and PowerVault™ are trademarks
of Dell Inc. Intel
in the U.S. and other countries. AMD
of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. Microsoft
registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. Novell
and NetWare
Oracle
and vSphere™ are registered trademarks or trademarks of VMware, Inc. in the United States
or other countries.
2012 - 06 Rev. A15
®
and Xeon® are registered trademarks and Core™ is a trademark of Intel Corporation
®
are registered trademarks of Novell Inc. in the United States and other countries.
®
is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. VMware®, VMotion™,
®
is a registered trademark and AMD Opteron™ is a trademark
®
, SQL Server®, and Windows® are either trademarks or
®
Contents
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
VMware License Offerings
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
ESX Architecture Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
vSphere 4 Architecture Overview
. . . . . . . . . . 7
Supported Configurations
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Important Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Supported vSphere 4
Configuration Solutions
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Configuring ESX 4 Using
Dell Fibre Channel SAN
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Fibre Channel Environment
Setup With ESX
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Configuring vSphere 4 Using iSCSI SAN . . . . . . 32
Setting up iSCSI Environment With ESX
Deploying ESX and vCenter
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Guidelines for Deploying ESX
Installing ESX
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
. . . . . . . . . . . 33
. . . . . . 33
Disk Partitioning for ESX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Post Installation
Tips for Configuring VMotion
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
. . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Installing vCenter Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Related Information
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Contents 3
4 Contents
Introduction
This document is a companion guide to the VMware ESX 4 guides.
This document helps you to deploy ESX 4 on Dell PowerEdge systems and
provides specific information on recommended configurations, best practices,
and additional resources.
NOTE: For information on deploying ESXi 4, see VMware ESXi 4 on Dell PowerEdge
Systems Deployment Guide at support.dell.com/manuals.
VMware License Offerings
Dell offers the following VMware editions:
• vSphere Essentials Plus
• vSphere Standard
• vSphere Enterprise
• vSphere Enterprise Plus
• vCenter Server
• vSphere Standard Acceleration Kit (8 sockets)
• vSphere Enterprise Acceleration Kit (6 sockets)
• vSphere Enterprise Plus Acceleration Kit (6 sockets)
NOTE: The latest releases to include both ESX and ESXi hypervisor architectures
are vSphere 4.1 and its subsequent update and patch releases. Future major
releases of vSphere will include only the ESXi architecture. It is recommended that
you consider a plan for migrating to ESXi starting with this release.
NOTE: vSphere Essentials Plus is an all-inclusive package that includes licenses
for three physical systems, each system with up to two processors. It also includes
VMware vCenter Server to centrally manage the systems. vSphere Essentials Plus
edition is supported only on two-socket systems. The additional licenses must still
be deployed on approved systems for Dell support.
NOTE: vSphere Acceleration Kits are packages of vSphere licenses plus a vCenter
Server Standard license for initial deployments. All the licenses provided are on the
same VMware contract and Dell support contract. The additional licenses must be
deployed on approved systems for Dell support.
ESX 4 Deployment Guide 5
ESX Architecture Overview
ESX allows multiple operating systems to run simultaneously in virtual
environments on a single physical system. These virtual environments,
referred to as virtual machines (VMs), can be created and managed faster
than conventional systems. The VMs do not interact directly with the
physical hardware. Each of these VMs runs in a resource-isolated,
secure environment and can include Microsoft
Novell NetWare, and Solaris operating systems with their
associated applications.
Figure 1. ESX 4 Architecture
Windows, Linux,
6 ESX 4 Deployment Guide
vSphere 4 Architecture Overview
PowerEdge System as
ESX Host
Storage Interconnect
Fabric
Ethernet Fabric
vCenter Server
Database
External Storage
for VMs
vSphere
Client/vSphere
CLI
License Server
Figure 2. vSphere Components
•
•
vSphere infrastructure consists of the following components:
ESX
— Allows multiple operating systems to run simultaneously on
asingle system.
vCenter Server — Runs on Windows-based operating systems and
monitors and manages VMs and copies of ESX. With vCenter Server,
you can create, start, stop, and migrate VMs across the entire physical
data center. vCenter Server is optional and is required for advanced
management capabilities such as VMware VMotion, Distributed
Resource Scheduling (DRS), and High Availability (HA).
ESX 4 Deployment Guide 7
•
vCenter Server Database
— Stores all the configuration data about
vSphere. It is recommended that you use a production database such as
Microsoft SQL Server or Oracle for the vCenter Server database.
•
License Server
— Authorizes ESX hosts and vCenter Server as per the
purchased license keys and licensing agreement. It is recommended to
install the license server on the vCenter Server host. This can also reside
on a separate host.
NOTE: A license sever is not required for ESX 4 hosts. However,
if vCenter Server manages the ESX 3.0.x or ESX/ESXi 3.5 hosts,
you require a license server.
•
vSphere Client
— Manages an ESX host by directly connecting to it or
through the vCenter Server. It is installed on a system running a supported
Windows operating system.
•
VM DataStore
— Stores VMs configuration and virtual disk files. The VM
storage can either be an internal storage local to ESX or an external storage
that can be shared by multiple copies of ESX. Advanced features such as
VMotion, HA, and DRS require that the disk and configuration files are
stored on VMs external shared storage.
•
vSphere CLI
— Performs many operations that you can also perform using
the ESX 4 service console. vSphere CLI commands are especially useful for
an ESXi 4 host because it does not include a service console. vSphere CLI
commands can be used in scripts that run on ESXi 4 and ESX 4 hosts
located remotely.
8 ESX 4 Deployment Guide
Supported Configurations
This section provides information about currently shipping systems only.
NOTE: For a complete list of Dell-supported systems, see VMware ESX/ESXi 4 on
Dell PowerEdge Systems and Storage Compatibility Matrix at
support.dell.com/manuals.
NOTE: SAS/SATA drives mentioned under Table 1, Table 2, and Table 3 also
include SSDs.
Table 1 lists the currently shipping modular-based Dell PowerEdge systems
that support ESX.
Table 1. Modular-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge M820 Configuration
Processor Intel Xeon processor E5-4600 product family
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to four 2.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PowerEdge RAID Controller (PERC) H310,
PERC H710, and PERC H710P
External Disk Storage Adapter Not applicable
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking BCM 57810S bNDC, Intel X520 bNDC,
Qlogic QMD8262-k bNDC, and supported
peripheral NICs
Remote Access Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller
(iDRAC)7
ESX 4 Deployment Guide 9
Table 1. Modular-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge M620 Configuration
Processor Intel Xeon E5-2600 product family
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to two 2.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H310, PERC H710, and PERC H710P
External Disk Storage Adapter Not applicable
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking BCM 57810S bNDC, Intel X520 bNDC,
Remote Access iDRAC 7
PowerEdge M520 Configuration
Processor Intel Xeon E5-2400 product family
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to two 2.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PowerEdge RAID Controller (PERC) H310
External Disk Storage Adapter Not applicable
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Four integrated network ports and all
Remote Access iDRAC 7
(continued)
Qlogic QMD8262-k bNDC, and supported
peripheral NICs
Mini Blade, PERC H710 Mini Blade, and
PERC H710P Mini Blade
supported peripheral NICs
10 ESX 4 Deployment Guide
Table 1. Modular-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge M420 Configuration
Processor Intel Xeon E5-2400 product family
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to two 1.8 inch uSATA SSD drive
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H310 adapter
External Disk Storage Adapter Not applicable
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Two integrated network ports and all
Remote Access iDRAC 7
PowerEdge M915 Configuration
Processor AMD Opteron 6100/6200 series
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Two 2.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H200 Modular and PERC H700
External Disk Storage Adapter Not applicable
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Four 1 GbE or 10 GbE integrated network
Remote Access iDRAC6
(continued)
supported peripheral NICs
Modular
ports and all supported peripheral NICs
ESX 4 Deployment Guide 11
Table 1. Modular-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge M910 Configuration
Processor Intel Xeon 6500 series, Intel Xeon 7500 series,
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Two 2.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H200 Integrated and PERC H700
External Disk Storage Adapter Not applicable
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Four integrated network ports and all
Remote Access iDRAC6
PowerEdge M710HD Configuration
Processor Intel Xeon 5500/5600 series
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Four 2.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H200 Embedded
External Disk Storage Adapter Not applicable
Fibre Channel HBA All supported daughter cards
Networking Four 1 GbE or two 10 GbE integrated
Remote Access iDRAC6
(continued)
or Intel Xeon E7-2800/4800/8800 product
family
Integrated
supported peripheral NICs
network ports and all supported peripheral
NICs
12 ESX 4 Deployment Guide
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