VMware ESXi 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 potential damage to hardware or loss of data if
instructions are not followed.
____________________
© 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.
®
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
®
2012 - 06 Rev. A15
Contents
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
VMware License Offerings
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
vSphere 4 Architecture Overview . . . . . . . . . . 6
ESXi Architecture Overview
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Supported Configurations
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Important Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Supported vSphere 4 Configuration Solutions
. . . . . 23
Configuring vSphere 4 Using
Dell Fibre
Channel SAN
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Configuring vSphere 4 Using
iSCSI SAN
ESXi and vCenter Deployment
Guidelines for Deploying ESXi
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
. . . . . . . . . . . 25
Best Practices Checklist for
Deployment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Booting ESXi
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Configuring the Password . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Configuring Lockdown Mode
. . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Configuring, Restarting, Testing,
or Disabling the Management
Network Services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Additional Setup Steps
Deploying vCenter Server
Installing vSphere Client
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Image Recovery
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Contents 3
Creating the ESXi Recovery
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Media
Image Recovery for ESXi
Embedded Edition
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Configuration Backup and Restore Procedures
. . . . . 33
Backing Up the Configuration
of Your ESXi Host
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Restoring the Configuration
of Your ESXi Host . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Troubleshooting
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Related Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
4 Contents
Introduction
This document is a companion guide to the VMware ESXi 4 guides.
This document helps you to deploy ESXi 4 and provides specific information
on recommended configurations, best practices, and additional resources.
NOTE: For information on deploying ESX 4, see the
PowerEdge Systems Deployment Guide
at support.dell.com/manuals.
VMware ESX 4 on Dell
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: In addition to the above, Dell also offers ESXi Single Server edition.
For information on latest ESXi editions, see
vmware.com/products/vsphere/buy/editions_comparison.html.
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.
If you have ordered ESXi with your PowerEdge system, ESXi is pre-installed
and pre-activated with the Single Server edition license key. Ensure that you
note down the license key.
ESXi Deployment Guide 5
If you have ordered ESXi hypervisor-based vSphere
PowerEdge System as ESXi Host
vSphere Client/vSphere CLI
vCenter Server
Ethernet Fabric
vCenter Server Database
License
Server
Storage
Interconnect Fabric
Essentials Plus,
Standard,
Enterprise, or Enterprise Plus, replace the Single Server edition license key
with the purchased one.
vSphere 4 Architecture Overview
Figure 1. vSphere Components
vSphere infrastructure consists of the following components:
•
•
6 ESXi Deployment Guide
ESXi
— Allows multiple operating systems to run simultaneously on
a single system.
vCenter Server — Runs on Windows-based operating systems and
monitors and manages Virtual Machines (VMs) and copies of ESXi.
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).
For more information, see "Deploying vCenter Server
•
vCenter Server Database
VMware infrastructure environment. It is recommended that you use a
production database such as Microsoft SQL Server or Oracle for the
vCenter Server database.
•
License Server
hosts. It is recommended that you install the license server on the vCenter
Server host. This can also reside on a separate host. The license server is
required when using a centralized licensing model, but is not required for
host-based licensing.
•
vSphere Client
to it or through the vCenter Server. Installs on a system running a supported
Windows operating system.
•
VM DataStore
storage can either be an internal storage local to the ESXi or an external
storage that can be shared by multiple ESXi systems. Advanced features
such as VMotion, HA, and DRS require that the disk and configuration
files are stored on external shared storage.
•
vSphere CLI
4 Service Console. vSphere CLI commands can be used in scripts that run
on ESX/ESXi 4 hosts. vSphere CLI commands are useful for an ESXi 4
host, because the ESXi 4 host does not include a service console.
— Required if vCenter Server manages ESX 3.0.x/ESXi 3.5
— Required to manage an ESXi host by directly connecting
— Stores VM configuration and virtual disk files. The VM
— Performs operations that are performed using ESX Server
— Stores all the configuration data about a
" on page 33
.
ESXi Architecture Overview
ESXi is a bare-metal enterprise class hypervisor, which is pre-installed on
PowerEdge systems. With the reduced footprint of the hypervisor, ESXi is
integrated on PowerEdge systems through embedded Secure Digital (SD).
Integrated virtualization by VMware offers:
•Ease of deployment
• Integrated hardware monitoring
• Enhanced security
• Reduced patch management
• Improved reliability
ESXi Deployment Guide 7
Figure 2. ESXi 4 Architecture
Supported Configurations
For complete information about all the supported Dell PowerEdge systems
with ESXi, see VMware ESX/ESXi 4.x 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.
8 ESXi Deployment Guide
Table 1 lists the currently shipping modular-based Dell PowerEdge systems
that support ESXi Embedded.
Table 1. Modular-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge M820 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon 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
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking BCM 57810S bNDC, Intel X520 bNDC, Qlogic
Remote Access Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller(iDRAC)7
PowerEdge M620 Configuration
Processors 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
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking BCM 57810S bNDC, Intel X520 bNDC, Qlogic
Remote Access iDRAC7
Not applicable
QMD8262-k bNDC, and supported peripheral NICs
Not applicable
QMD8262-k bNDC, and supported peripheral NICs
ESXi Deployment Guide 9
Table 1. Modular-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge M520 Configuration
Processors 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 PERC H310 Mini Blade, PERC H710 Mini Blade, and
PERC H710P Mini Blade
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Four integrated network ports and all supported
Remote Access iDRAC7
PowerEdge M420 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon E5-2400 product family
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to two 1.8 inch uSATA drive
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H310 adapter
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA
(SAN connectivity)
Networking Two integrated network ports and all supported
Remote Access iDRAC7
Not applicable
peripheral NICs
Not applicable
All supported HBAs
peripheral NICs
(continued)
10 ESXi Deployment Guide
Table 1. Modular-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge M915 Configuration
Processors 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 Modular
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA
(SAN connectivity)
Networking Four 1 GbE or 10 GbE integrated network ports and all
Remote Access iDRAC6
PowerEdge M910 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon 6500 series or Intel Xeon 7500 series or Intel Xeon
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 Modular and PERC H700 Modular
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA
(SAN connectivity)
Networking Four integrated network ports and all supported
Remote Access iDRAC6
Not applicable
All supported HBAs
supported peripheral NICs
E7-2800/4800/8800 product family
Not applicable
All supported daughter cards
peripheral NICs
(continued)
ESXi Deployment Guide 11
Table 1. Modular-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge M710HD Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon 5500/5600 series
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 PERC H200 Embedded
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA
(SAN connectivity)
Networking Four 1 GbE or two 10 GbE integrated network ports and
Remote Access iDRAC6
PowerEdge M710 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon 5500/5600 series
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 SAS 6/iR Integrated, Cost-Effective RAID Controller
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA
(SAN connectivity)
Networking Four integrated network ports and all supported NIC
Remote Access iDRAC6
Not applicable
All supported daughter cards
all supported peripheral NICs
(CERC) 6/i, PERC 6/i Integrated, PERC H200 Modular,
and PERC H700 Modular
Not applicable
All supported daughter cards
daughter cards
(continued)
12 ESXi Deployment Guide
Table 1. Modular-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge M610x Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon 5500/5600 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 Modular and PERC H700 Modular
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA
(SAN connectivity)
Networking Four integrated network ports and all supported NIC
Remote Access iDRAC6
PowerEdge M610 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon 5500/5600 series
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Two 2.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter SAS 6/iR Integrated, CERC 6/i, PERC 6/i Integrated,
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA
(SAN connectivity)
Networking Two integrated network ports and all supported NIC
Remote Access iDRAC6
PERC H800
All supported daughter cards
daughter cards
PERC H200 Modular, and PERC H700 Modular
Not applicable
All supported daughter cards
daughter cards
(continued)
ESXi Deployment Guide 13
Table 2 lists the currently shipping rack-based Dell PowerEdge systems that
support ESXi Embedded.
Table 2. Rack-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge R820 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon E5-4600 product family
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to sixteen 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
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Broadcom 57800S QP rNDC, Broadcom 5720 QP rNDC,
Remote Access iDRAC7
PowerEdge R720 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon E5-2600 product family
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to sixteen 2.5 inch or eight 3.5 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
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Broadcom 57800S QP rNDC, Broadcom 5720 QP rNDC,
Remote Access iDRAC7
PERC H810, 6Gbps SAS HBA
Intel X540 QP rNDC, Intel i350 rNDC, and supported
peripheral NICs
PERC H810, 6Gbps SAS HBA
Intel X540 QP rNDC, Intel i350 rNDC, and supported
peripheral NICs
14 ESXi Deployment Guide
Table 2. Rack-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge R720xd Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon E5-2600 product family
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to twenty-six 2.5 inch or twelve 3.5 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
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Broadcom 57800S QP rNDC, Broadcom 5720 QP rNDC,
Remote Access iDRAC7
PowerEdge R620 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon E5-2600 product family
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to ten 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
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Broadcom 57800S QP rNDC, Broadcom 5720 QP rNDC,
Remote Access iDRAC7
PERC H810, 6Gbps SAS HBA
Intel X540 QP rNDC, Intel i350 rNDC, and supported
peripheral NICs
PERC H810, 6Gbps SAS HBA
Intel X540 QP rNDC, Intel i350 rNDC, and supported
peripheral NICs
(continued)
ESXi Deployment Guide 15
Table 2. Rack-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge R520 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon E5-2400 product family
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to eight 3.5 inch or 2.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H710, PERC H710P, and PERC H310 adapters
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Two integrated network ports and all supported peripheral
Remote Access iDRAC7
PowerEdge R420 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon E5-2400 product family
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to eight 2.5 inch or four 3.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H710, PERC H710P, and PERC H310 adapters
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Two integrated network ports and all supported peripheral
Remote Access iDRAC7
PERC H810 adapter
NICs
PERC H810 adapter
NICs
(continued)
16 ESXi Deployment Guide
Table 2. Rack-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge R320 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon E5-2400 product family
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to eight 2.5 inch or four 3.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H710, PERC H710P, and PERC H310 adapters
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Two integrated network ports and all supported peripheral
Remote Access iDRAC7
PowerEdge R910 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon 7500 series or Intel Xeon
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to sixteen 2.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter SAS 6/iR Integrated, PERC 6/i Integrated,
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA
(SAN connectivity)
Networking Four integrated network ports and all supported peripheral
Remote Access iDRAC6 Enterprise
PERC H810 adapter
NICs
E7-4800/8800 product family
PERC H200 Integrated, and PERC H700 Integrated
SAS 5/E, 6 Gbps SAS HBA, and PERC H800
All supported HBAs
NICs
(continued)
ESXi Deployment Guide 17
Table 2. Rack-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge R815 Configuration
Processors AMD Opteron 6100/6200 series
Minimum Memory 8 GB
Internal Storage Up to six 2.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H200 Integrated and PERC H700 Integrated
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA
(SAN connectivity)
Networking Four integrated network ports and all supported peripheral
Remote Access iDRAC6 Enterprise
PowerEdge R810 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon 6500 series or Intel Xeon 7500 series or Intel
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to six 2.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H200 Integrated and PERC H700 Integrated
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Networking Four integrated network ports and all supported peripheral
Fibre Channel HBA
(SAN connectivity)
Remote Access iDRAC6 Enterprise
SAS 5/E, 6 Gbps SAS HBA, and PERC H800
All supported HBAs
NICs
Xeon E7-2800/4800/8800 product family
SAS 5/E, 6 Gbps SAS HBA, and PERC H800
NICs
All supported HBAs
(continued)
18 ESXi Deployment Guide
Table 2. Rack-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge R715 Configuration
Processors AMD Opteron 6100/6200 series
Minimum Memory 8 GB
Internal Storage Up to six 2.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H200 Integrated and PERC H700 Integrated
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Four integrated network ports and all supported peripheral
Remote Access iDRAC6 Enterprise
PowerEdge R710 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon 5500/5600 series
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to eight 2.5 inch or six 3.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC 6/i Integrated, SAS 6/iR Integrated,
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Four integrated network ports and all supported peripheral
Remote Access iDRAC6 Enterprise
SAS 5/E, 6 Gbps SAS HBA, and PERC H800
NICs
PERC H200 Integrated, and PERC H700 Integrated
SAS 5/E, PERC 6/E, 6 Gbps SAS HBA, and PERC H800
NICs
(continued)
ESXi Deployment Guide 19
Table 2. Rack-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge R610 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon 5500 /5600 series
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to six 2.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter SAS 6/iR Integrated, PERC 6/i Integrated,
PERC H200 Integrated, and PERC H700 Integrated
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Four integrated network ports and all supported peripheral
Remote Access iDRAC6 Enterprise
PowerEdge R510 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon 5500/5600 series
Minimum Memory 2 GB
Internal Storage Up to twelve 3.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported internal USB memory key
Internal Storage Adapter SAS 6i/R Integrated, PERC 6/i Integrated,
SAS 5/E, PERC 6/E, 6 Gbps SAS HBA, and PERC H800
NICs
PERC H200 Integrated, and PERC H700 Integrated
(continued)
NOTE: The x12 backplanes support only PERC H200 and
PERC H700 adapters.
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA
(SAN connectivity)
Networking Two integrated network ports and all supported peripheral
Remote Access iDRAC6 Enterprise
SAS 5/E, PERC 6/E, 6 Gbps SAS HBA, and PERC H800
All supported HBAs
NICs
20 ESXi Deployment Guide
Table 3 lists the currently shipping tower-based PowerEdge systems that
support ESXi Embedded.
Table 3. Tower-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge T620 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon E5-2600 product family
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to twenty-four 2.5 inch or twelve 3.5 inch
SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H710, PERC H710P, and PERC H310
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Two integrated network ports and all supported
Remote Access iDRAC7
PowerEdge T420 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon E5-2400 product family
Minimum Memory 2 GB
Internal Storage Up to sixteen 2.5 inch or eight 3.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H710, PERC H710P, and PERC H310
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Two integrated network ports and all supported
Remote Access iDRAC7
PERC H810, 6Gbps SAS HBA
peripheral NICs
PERC H810
peripheral NICs
ESXi Deployment Guide 21
Table 3. Tower-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge T320 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon E5-2400 product family
Minimum Memory 2 GB
Internal Storage Up to sixteen 2.5 inch or eight 3.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC H710, PERC H710P, and PERC H310
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA All supported HBAs
Networking Two integrated network ports and all supported
Remote Access iDRAC7
PowerEdge T710 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon 5500/5600 series
Minimum Memory 2 GB
Internal Storage Up to sixteen 2.5 inch or up to eight 3.5 inch
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter PERC 6/i Integrated, SAS 6/iR Integrated,
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA
(SAN connectivity)
Networking Two integrated network ports and all supported
Remote Access iDRAC6 Enterprise
PERC H810
peripheral NICs
SAS/SATA disks
PERC H200 Integrated, and PERC H700 Integrated
SAS 5/E, PERC 6/E, 6 Gbps SAS HBA, and
PERC H800
All supported HBAs
peripheral NICs
(continued)
22 ESXi Deployment Guide
Table 3. Tower-Based PowerEdge Systems
PowerEdge T610 Configuration
Processors Intel Xeon 5500/5600 series
Minimum Memory 4 GB
Internal Storage Up to eight 2.5 inch or 3.5 inch SAS/SATA disks
Internal Flash Memory Supported SD memory card
Internal Storage Adapter SAS 6/iR Integrated, PERC 6/i Integrated,
PERC H200 Integrated, and PERC H700 Integrated
External Disk Storage
Adapter
Fibre Channel HBA
(SAN connectivity)
Networking Two integrated network ports and all supported
Remote Access iDRAC6 Enterprise
SAS 5/E, PERC 6/E, 6 Gbps SAS HBA, and
PERC H800
All supported HBAs
peripheral NICs
(continued)
ESXi Deployment Guide 23
Important Information
• PowerEdge systems shipped with BCM 5709 LOMs (with iSCSI offload
enabled through the hardware key) support iSCSI Boot Firmware Table
(iBFT).
• PowerEdge systems shipped with Intel Xeon 5600 series processor and later
support Intel Trusted Execution Technology (TXT) with the latest
shipping BIOS.
• While installing ESXi on a PowerEdge system, ensure that iDRAC vFlash
is disabled. When vFlash is enabled, iDRAC may expose different USB
partitions to ESXi which may result in an installation failure.
• When ESXi is installed on a PowerEdge R815 system, the keyboard and
mouse do not function if you connect them to the top USB port on the
back panel of the system. To resolve the issue, do not use the top USB port
on the back panel of the system. Alternatively, you may use iDRAC vKVM
to install ESXi.
• On a PowerEdge R815 system, iDRAC vKVM I/O devices such as the
mouse and keyboard may not respond after booting into ESXi. To resolve
the issue, use the VMware patch
downloads.vmware.com
kb.vmware.com/kb/1019834
• You cannot automatically pre-activate the Microsoft Windows Server 2008
operating system installed on VMs by using the product activation code in
the Dell OEM installation media. You must use a virtual product key to
activate the guest operating system. For more information, see the
whitepaper,
Machines Using Dell OEM Media
• The ESXi image pre-installed on your PowerEdge system may not contain
all the drivers required for peripherals. Additional drivers need to be
installed to enable certain add-on peripherals. You can download the
drivers from
• Storage Logical Unit Numbers (LUNs) (Internal Storage) are supported
only with PERC-hardware-based RAID configurations.
Dell OEM Windows Server 2008 Installation on Virtual
support.vmware.com
. For more information, see
ESXi400-201003001.zip
.
at
dell.com
.
.
from
24 ESXi Deployment Guide
• On some systems under heavy networking and processor load, the network
adapter stops functioning. This leads to communication failure between
the external network and the corresponding port group(s).
• The VM, VMkernel, or Management Network traffic configured for the
port group(s) fails. To resolve this issue, download the file
201002001
information, see
from
support.vmware.com/selfsupport/download/
kb.vmware.com/kb/1017465
.
ESXi400-
. For more
• If you did not order ESXi with your system, you can order the Internal
Dual SD Module kit
media from
support.dell.com
ESXi, see the
Started Guide
• For information on Qlogic CNA driver, go to
Under
Datacenter & Cloud Infrastructure
at
dell.com
and download the ESXi installation
. For information on how to install and setup
VMware vSphere 4 on Dell PowerEdge Systems Getting
at
support.dell.com/manuals
.
downloads.vmware.com
, select
VMware vSphere
.
. The
downloads page for latest version of VMware vSphere is displayed. For
older versions, you can select the specific link in the same page.
• ESXi installation using the DRAC/iDRAC virtual media is supported.
You must use Dell-customized ESXi images available at
support.dell.com
• On Non-Uniform Memory Access (NUMA) enabled systems installed with
ESXi, it is recommended that you populate all processor nodes with
similar memory to enable balanced distribution of memory across nodes.
With unbalanced memory distribution across nodes, you may face
performance degradation issues or ESXi may fail to boot.
The following error message may be displayed:
.
The BIOS reports that NUMA node X has no memory.
This problem is either caused by a bad BIOS or a
very unbalanced distribution of memory modules.
NOTE: For more information about NUMA, see VMware knowledge base
articles: kb.vmware.com/kb/1003690 and kb.vmware.com/kb/1570.
Also, see VMware's
vmware.com/support/pubs/.
Resource Management Guide for vSphere 4
at
• ESXi requires a minimum system memory of 2 GB on all supported systems.
ESXi Deployment Guide 25
Supported vSphere 4 Configuration Solutions
Fibre Channel
Switch
ESXi Hosts
Ethernet Fabric
vCenter Server
Database
vCenter Server
ESXi Hosts
Redundant Fibre
Channel Switch
Dell Storage Dell Storage
VMware vSphere Client
This section discusses the vSphere 4 configurations with PowerEdge systems
using Fibre Channel SAN and iSCSI SAN.
Configuring vSphere 4 Using Dell Fibre Channel SAN
Figure 3 shows vSphere 4 configuration using Fibre Channel SAN. If you use
Fibre Channel storage, you can connect a single Fibre Channel HBA to a
Fibre Channel switch that provides paths to both storage processors (SPs) on
the Fibre Channel storage unit.
To provide maximum protection against a single failure at the HBA, Fibre
Channel switch, or SP level, it is recommended that you use two Fibre Channel
HBAs on the ESXi host connected to separate Fibre Channel switches. The Fibre
Channel switches provide redundant paths to the SPs on the storage unit.
Figure 3. Configuring vSphere 4 Using Dell Fibre Channel SAN
26 ESXi Deployment Guide
Configuring vSphere 4 Using iSCSI SAN
VMware vSphere Client
Ethernet
Switch
ESXi Hosts
vCenter Server
Redundant
Ethernet Switch
Dell Storage
Dell Storage
ESXi Hosts
Ethernet Fabric
Figure 4 shows a vSphere 4 configuration using iSCSI SAN. The iSCSI SAN
provides a cost-effective solution. It is recommended to use two iSCSI
initiators on the ESXi host connected to two separate ethernet switches to
provide redundant paths to the storage processors on the storage system.
Figure 4. Configuring vSphere 4 With iSCSI SAN
NOTE: For more information on Dell-supported storage arrays on VMware, see
VMware ESX/ESXi 4 on Dell PowerEdge Systems and Storage Compatibility Matrix
at support.dell.com/manuals.
ESXi Deployment Guide 27
ESXi and vCenter Deployment
Guidelines for Deploying ESXi
Before deploying ESXi:
• Determine the licensing mode that best suits the deployment
environment and design the licensing infrastructure accordingly.
• Determine the kind of storage (local SCSI/SAS/SATA, iSCSI, or Fibre
Channel SAN) for hosting VMs that suits the deployment environment
and design your storage infrastructure accordingly.
• Determine the number of LUNs, size of the LUNs, RAID level of
the LUNs, and the number of storage groups.
• Determine the number of VMs that run on ESXi and their
corresponding workloads.
• Determine the resource requirements for the VMs, such as the processor
requirements, memory size, and networking. For articles on performance
and sizing, see
• Determine the required network information such as IP addresses,
network masks, and gateway addresses.
• Determine the hosts that are a part of the DRS or the HA cluster and
allocate shared storage accordingly.
• Determine the appropriate networking configuration for management,
VMs, and iSCSI (optional). You can use Virtual Local Area Networks
(VLANs) to isolate the traffic efficiently.
vmware.com/support/pubs
.
Best Practices Checklist for Deployment
1
Rack and connect your PowerEdge system according to your system
documentation.
2
Turn off your system and follow the steps below:
a
Connect your ESXi management network to the first onboard
network adapter.
b
Connect your VM network to the second onboard network adapter.
28 ESXi Deployment Guide
c
Optionally, connect your iSCSI-based network connection to the third
onboard network adapter (if applicable).
For systems with only two onboard network adapters and not
purchased with a network adapter, it is recommended that you add
a supported network adapter.
3
Turn on your system and follow the steps below:
a
To enter the system setup, press <F2> when you turn on the system.
For more information, see the documentation that shipped with
your system.
b
Enable the Virtualization Technology (VT) feature, if available, in the
PowerEdge system.
NOTE: The VT feature is required for Intel processor based servers to
run 64-bit VMs.
Set the universal serial bus (USB) controller to
c
Support
, if available, in the PowerEdge system.
This setting enables support for USB devices both during and after the
ESXi boot process.
d
Set the ESXi keyboard language.
e
Set the ESXi password.
For more information, see "Configuring the Password" on page 32.
USB on with BIOS
f
Set a static IP address, subnet mask, gateway, and VLAN for the
management connection(s) in the Direct Console User Interface
(DCUI).
g
Set host name and Domain Name System (DNS) settings.
h
Set DNS suffix(s).
i
Install vSphere Client to manage your system.
j
Replace the Single Server Edition license key with the license key that
you have purchased.
ESXi Deployment Guide 29
Booting ESXi
This section describes how to perform the basic setup of your system based on
the following assumptions:
• You have already connected a keyboard, monitor, and mouse.
• You have connected the first onboard NIC to your management network.
• Ensure that the infrastructure between the two systems is working
correctly prior to working with your system and the VMware
management software.
To set up your system:
1
Turn on your system.
2
Press <F11> at boot and select the internal storage device as the onetime boot device located under
NOTE: If you ordered ESXi as the primary operating system, the boot order of the
system is already set to boot from ESXi.
NOTE: If you ordered ESXi as an included hypervisor, without technical support
service and did not request a hard-disk based operating system, your system
may boot to a
to make the storage device containing ESXi (USB or SD card) as the first boot
device.
No Operating System Found
In the first phase of booting, the software loads the compressed ESXi modules
into memory and a progress bar is displayed.
In the second phase, the modules are expanded and executed from memory.
As the modules load, the DCUI briefly displays the module names on the
screen.
After all ESXi modules have expanded and executed, the system is ready to
begin servicing workloads as illustrated in Figure 5. If there is a Dynamic Host
Configuration Protocol (DHCP) system or DHCP proxy configured on your
network subnet, ESXi displays the address acquired by the DHCP system.
Hard Drives
message. Set the system boot order
in the menu.
NOTE: When the address is being acquired, 0.0.0.0 is displayed by default.
To install vSphere Client, see "Installing vSphere Client" on page 34.
30 ESXi Deployment Guide
If a warning is displayed, the ESXi host was unable to obtain an IP address
from your DHCP system. For information on configuring the setting,
see "Configuring the Password" on page 32.
NOTE: By default, ESXi does not have a password. It is recommended that you set
a keyboard language and a system password. For more information on configuring
these settings, see "Configuring the Password" on page 32.
Figure 5. ESXi (Running With DHCP)
Figure 6. ESXi (Running With DHCP, no Address)
ESXi Deployment Guide 31
Configuring the Password
You can use DCUI to set the password for the administrator account. The
administrative user name for the ESXi 4 host is root. By default, the
administrative password is not set.
To set the password:
1
Press <F2> in the main ESXi Server host screen that is displayed after
your system boots.
The main DCUI configuration screen is displayed.
2
Select
Configure Password
password field is grayed out and the new password field is enabled. Enter
the new password twice.
If the password is accepted, the main DCUI screen is displayed.
The new password is now set.
3
Press <Esc> to logout.
and then press <Enter>. By default, the old
Configuring Lockdown Mode
Lockdown mode prevents remote personnel from logging in to the ESXi host
by using the root login name. By default, lockdown mode is disabled. If you
enable lockdown mode and do not configure other local host user accounts to
have standalone host access through the vSphere Client, the root user does
not have access through the vSphere API and CLI.
You can still access the host through the direct console or through an
authorized, centralized management application, such as vCenter Server.
To configure lockdown mode:
1
Select
Configure Lockdown Mode
2
Press the spacebar to select
3
Press <Enter>.
Enable Lockdown Mode
and press <Enter>.
and press <Enter>.
32 ESXi Deployment Guide
Configuring, Restarting, Testing, or Disabling the Management Network Services
The ESXi 4 kernel supports IPv4, IPv6, and IEEE 802.1Q (VLAN tagging) for
all management network connections; configuration of these parameters
including IP address, gateway, subnet mask, host name, and DNS systems
occurs through the DCUI. All VM network configuration is performed from
the VMware management software. VM networks configurations from the
DCUI is not supported.
1
Press <F2> in the main ESXi Server host screen that is displayed after
your system boots.
The main DCUI configuration screen is displayed.
2
Select
Configure Management Network
screen, and press
The
Management network configuration
NOTE: For the PowerEdge M-series modular systems enabled with FlexAddress,
ensure that the variable Net.FollowHardwareMac is set to 1. Use the vSphere Client
to connect to the ESXi host. Navigate to Configuration Software Advanced
Net. Set Net.FollowHardwareMac to 1 and reboot the ESXi host.
Settings
<
Enter>.
in the main DCUI customization
screen is displayed.
Additional Setup Steps
1
Backup your configuration settings using the procedures outlined in
"Configuration Backup and Restore Procedures" on page 36.
2
Record your license key.
NOTE: For more information, see
Systems Getting Started Guide
VMware vSphere 4 on Dell PowerEdge
at support.dell.com/manuals.
Deploying vCenter Server
Beyond the basic configuration of management connectivity, ESXi requires a
second Windows management station for configuration and day-to-day
management. You can manage ESXi by directly connecting the system through
vSphere Client or by adding the system to vCenter Server. vCenter Server
provides many-to-many management of more than one copy of ESXi software.
ESXi Deployment Guide 33
vSphere Client is available free of charge with ESXi (and ESX) products.
You may download and use the trial version of vCenter Server. To continue
using vCenter Server beyond the trial period, you must purchase a
vCenter Server license.
For more information on vCenter Server and configuring the one-to-many
management, see the vCenter Server documentation at
vmware.com/support/pubs/.
Installing vSphere Client
1
Download vSphere Client directly from your ESXi server host. Point the
web browser of your Windows management system to the IP address of
your ESXi server host.
The IP address of your system is displayed on the main screen of your
system. The browser displays a webpage.
2
Click on the
the client software.
3
After the download is complete, launch the VMware vSphere Client by
specifying the IP address of your ESXi Server host, a user name of root
(default), and the password you specified in "Configuring the Password" on
page 32.
NOTE: The password field is blank by default. If you did not specify a
password in the DCUI, leave the password field blank.
You receive a certificate warning indicating that the SSL certificate is not
trusted and communication cannot be secured. You receive this
notification because your host does not have a public key from VMware.
Download VMware vSphere Client
link and install
4
Click
Ignore
to proceed. To ignore this warning always, select the
Ignore
check box.
34 ESXi Deployment Guide
Always
Image Recovery
The procedure described in this section restores your system to a bootable
state, but does not restore the per-system licensing activation information. If
you have a valid support subscription, Dell Support can help you with the
reimaging process and any licensing issues. Contact Dell Support through
your typical support channels or through support.dell.com.
If you require a new license from Dell Support, but need to have the system
up and running as soon as possible, you may use the one-time 60-day trial of
all enterprise-level features including HA, DRS, and vCenter Server. To
ensure you have your new license before the 60-day trial period expires, it is
recommended to request the new license as soon as possible following an
image recovery. This process takes less than 60 days.
Creating the ESXi Recovery Media
You can download the Dell customized ESXi Recovery image from
support.dell.com. To download the ESXi Recovery media:
1
Go to
support.dell.com
2
Enter the
to install ESXi on, and click
3
Alternatively, you can select
click
4
Select product type
5
Select the model of your system.
The
Service Tag
Continue.
Drivers & Download
and select your line of business.
or the
Express Service Code
Submit
Choose from a list of all Dell products
Servers, Storage, & NetworkingPowerEdge
page is displayed.
.
of the system you want
and
.
6
Choose the Operating system as
7
Select
Enterprise Solutions
image.
8
Burn the ISO image to a blank media.
ESXi 4.0.
and download the Dell customized
ESXi ISO
Image Recovery for ESXi Embedded Edition
Image recovery reinstalls or recovers the ESXi embedded image. To perform
image recovery for flash-based systems:
1
Insert the ESXi Recovery media into the optical drive.
ESXi Deployment Guide 35
2
Remove all the USB-based storage devices on the system except the device
(USB key/SD card) where ESXi is installed.
NOTE: ESXi recovery process fails if more than one USB storage devices are
present in the system.
3
Turn on the system and press <F11> (one-time boot menu) during
the POST.
The system displays
the screen. Continue with the POST process. After the initial boot is
complete, a text menu of all bootable storage devices is displayed.
4
Select the optical drive where your
optical drives, select the device and press <Enter>.The recovery
environment starts. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the
recovery process.
NOTE: If you see a fatal error, double check that no other USB-based storage
devices are connected to the system.
The system reboots and launches ESXi. If this does not happen, reassign
the order of your boot devices placing the internal storage highest in the
boot order list. For more information, see the manual that shipped with
your system.
5
Set the correct licensing mode.
For more information on licensing, see
PowerEdge Systems Getting Started Guide
Entering Boot Menu…
recovery media
VMware vSphere 4 on Dell
at
in the upper right corner of
is located. For internal
support.dell.com/manuals
.
6
After reimaging, reconfigure ESXi and import any VMs you want to run on
this system.
Configuration Backup and Restore Procedures
It is recommended that you back up your ESXi configuration after you
complete the initial setup on a routine schedule that fits your datacenter
environment. Backing up your configuration captures the license code
(host serial number). You need the license code if you use the Recovery media
to restore the ESXi image.
To backup or restore the configuration information, you must use the vSphere
Command Line Interface (vSphere CLI). The vSphere CLI is available as:
36 ESXi Deployment Guide
• vSphere CLI package — vSphere CLI package can be installed on either
Linux or on Microsoft Windows operating systems.
• vSphere Management Assistant (vMA) — vMA can be deployed on an
ESX/ESXi host.
Both the packages are available for download at vmware.com. For information
about setting up and running the vSphere CLI, see the VMware vSphere
Command-Line Interface Installation and Reference Guide and VMware ESXi
Embedded and vCenter Server Setup Guide at vmware.com/support/pubs.
The backup and restore steps given below are on the assumption that you
have already imported the vSphere CLI to a system other than the one you
want to backup or restore, or that you have installed the Windows or Linux
management Application Programming Interfaces (APIs).
Backing Up the Configuration of Your ESXi Host
To back up configuration data of a host:
1
Start the vSphere CLI.
2
Run the
configuration to the specified backup filename.
vicfg-cfgbackup --server <ESXi-host-ip> -portnumber <port_number> --protocol
<protocol_type> --username root --password
<root_password> [-s <backup-filename>
vicfg-cfgbackup
command with the
-s
flag to save the host
The
-portnumber
exclude them, the defaults are port
NOTE: If you do not specify a password in the command line, you are
prompted for one when the command executes. For example: vicfg-
and
-protocol
options are optional. If you
443
and protocol
cfgbackup --server 172.17.13.211 --username
root –s backupdate.dat
NOTE: If your administrative password includes special characters, such as $
or &, you must include a backslash escape character (\) before each
special character.
Restoring the Configuration of Your ESXi Host
To restore the configuration data of a host:
Turn off any VMs that are running on the host you want to restore.
1
ESXi Deployment Guide 37
HTTPS
.
2
Optionally, restore the host to the ESXi build number used when the
backup file was created.
The backup process does not support restoring to later builds; though, this
requirement can be overridden by using the
3
Start the vSphere CLI on a host other than the host you want to restore
and log in.
4
Run the
restore the backup file to the host.
vicfg-cfgbackup --server <ESXi-host-IP> -portnumber <port_number> --protocol
<protocol_type>-- username <username> --password
<password> -l <backup_filename>
The
exclude them, the defaults are port
After a successful restore, the system reboots using the new configuration.
vicfg-cfgbackup
-portnumber
NOTE: If you do not specify a password in the command line, you are
prompted for one when the command executes. For example:
cfgbackup --server 172.17.13.211 --username
root –l backupdate.dat
and
command with the –l flag to load and
-protocol
443
–f
option.
options are optional. If you
and protocol
HTTPS
.
vicfg-
For complete instructions on backup and restore commands, see the
ESXi Embedded and vCenter Server Setup Guide
at
vmware.com/support/pubs
VMware
Troubleshooting
This section provides troubleshooting steps for common issues encountered
during deployment of ESXi.
ESXi Not Booting or Displays a “No OS found” Message at Start Up
Check the boot order. The correct storage device may no longer be selected
as the first boot device. This can happen if the device has recently been
removed due to failure. To correct this issue, ensure that the internal
storage drive on which ESXi is installed is assigned as the first boot device
in the hard drive sequence and the hard drive is assigned as the first boot
device in the boot sequence.
38 ESXi Deployment Guide
.
Purple or Pink Screen While Booting or Running Your ESXi
This is a sign of a serious misconfiguration or system error, similar to
a blue screen for a Windows operating system or a core dump for a Linux-based
system.
Contact Dell Support for technical assistance.
Related Information
NOTE: For Dell VMware documentation and Dell systems management
documentation for VMware, see support.dell.com/manuals. Navigate to Software,
select Virtualization Solutions, and then VMware Software.
• For information on downloading ESXi and licensing options, see
VMware vSphere 4 on Dell PowerEdge Systems Getting Started Guide
support.dell.com/manuals
• For a complete list of Dell supported servers and storage, see
ESX/ESXi 4 on Dell PowerEdge Systems
at
support.dell.com/manuals
• For known issues, see
Release Notes
• For information on Configuration Maximums, see
Maximums for VMware vSphere 4
• For Dell|EMC-qualified storage configurations of ESXi and vCenter
Server, see the
• To ensure processor compatibility across systems for VMotion, see the
VMware VMotion and 64-Bit Virtual Machine support for Dell PowerEdge
systems Compatibility Matrix
Systems at
• For the VMware vSphere 4 documents, technical resources, and knowledge
base articles, see
•For
• For licensing information, see the
Hardware Compatibility Guides
vmware.com/resources/compatibility/search.php
Systems Getting Started Guide
at
support.dell.com/manuals
EMC Support Matrix (ESM)
support.dell.com/manuals
vmware.com/support
.
and Storage Compatibility Matrix
.
VMware vSphere 4 on Dell PowerEdge Systems
.
Configuration
at
vmware.com/support/pubs
at
emc.com/interoperability
for VMware vSphere 4 and Dell PowerEdge
.
.
, see
.
VMware vSphere on Dell PowerEdge
at
support.dell.com/manuals
.
at
VMware
.
.
ESXi Deployment Guide 39
• For information on ESXi, other Dell VMware products, technical
publications including white papers, articles, and case studies, see
dell.com/vmware
Technical Support Resources
.
• vmware.com/support
• dell.com/support
•
dell.com/services
Discussion Forums
for Dell deployment and professional services
• vmware.com/communities/content
• dellcommunity.com
Knowledge Base
vmware.com/support/kb
Dell Wiki
delltechcenter.com
40 ESXi Deployment Guide
ESXi Deployment Guide 41
42 ESXi Deployment Guide
ESXi Deployment Guide 43
44 ESXi Deployment Guide
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