Create Virtual Machines

Module 3

2011 VMware Inc. All rights reserved

Importance

A virtual machine is a set of virtual hardware on which a

supported guest operating system and its applications run.
You can create a virtual machine in a number of ways.
Choosing the correct method can help you save time and make
the deployment process manageable and scalable.

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Module Lessons

Lesson 1:

Virtual Machine Concepts

Lesson 2:

Creating a Virtual Machine

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Lesson 1:
Virtual Machine Concepts

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Learner Objectives
After this lesson, you should be able to do the following:
Describe a virtual machine.
Display a virtual machines files.
List the virtual machine hardware.

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What Is a Virtual Machine?

A virtual machine is:
A set of virtual hardware on
which a supported guest
operating system and its
applications run
A set of discrete files

virtual machine

A virtual machines
configuration file describes the
virtual machines configuration,
including its virtual hardware.
Avoid using special characters
and spaces in the virtual
machines name.

MyVM.vmx

guestOS = winnetstandard

displayName = MyVM
(etc.)

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The Files That Make Up a Virtual Machine

VM
Folder

Configuration file
Swap files
BIOS file
Log files
Disk descriptor file
Disk data file
Suspend state file
Snapshot data file
Snapshot state file
Template file
Snapshot disk file
Raw device map file

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(<VM_name>.vmx)
(<VM_name>. vswp)
(<VM_name>. nvram)
(vmware.log)
(<VM_name>. vmdk)
(<VM_name>. flat-vmdk)
(<VM_name>. vmss)
(<VM_name>. vmsd)
(<VM_name>. vmsn)
(<VM_name>.vmtx)
(<VM_name> -delta.vmdk)
(<VM_name>.-rdm.vmdk)

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Displaying a Virtual Machines Files

Click on a VM. On the Summary
tab, right-click the datastore on
the Resources pane.
Click Browse Datastore to
browse its files.

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Using the Storage Views Tab to Display Files

Click the Storage Views tab.

Select Show All Virtual Machine Files from the menu.

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Virtual Machine Hardware

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Virtual Disk

Sample virtual disk definition:

Virtual disk size:
4GB
Datastore:
MyVMFS
Virtual disk node:
0:0
Virtual storage adapter:
LSI Logic SAS
Virtual disk files:
Server1.vmdk and Server1-flat.vmdk
Default disk mode:
Snapshots allowed
Optional disk mode:
Independent persistent or nonpersistent
Disk provisioning policy:
Thick or thin provision
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Virtual Network Interface Card

Network adapters that might be available
for your virtual machine:
Flexible Can function as either a
vlance or vmxnet adapter:
vlance Also called PCNet32,
supported by most 32-bit guest
operating systems
vmxnet Provides significantly
better performance than vlance
e1000 e1000e
High-performance adapter available
for only some guest operating
systems
vmxnet, vmxnet2, and vmxnet3 are
VMware drivers and are only available
with VMware Tools
vmxnet2 (Enhanced vmxnet)
vmxnet adapter with enhanced
performance
vmxnet3 Builds on the vmxnet2
adapter
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Whenever possible,
choose vmxnet3.

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Virtual Machine Console

Send power changes
to the virtual
machine.
Access the virtual
machines guest
operating system.
Send Ctrl+Alt+Del to
the guest operating
system.
Press Ctrl+Alt+Ins
in the virtual
machine console.
Press Ctrl+Alt to
release the pointer
from the virtual
machine console.

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VM
console
icon

VM
console

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Review of Learner Objectives

You should be able to do the following:
Describe a virtual machine.
Display a virtual machines files.
List the virtual machine hardware.

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Lesson 2:
Creating a Virtual Machine

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Learner Objectives

After this lesson, you should be able to do the following:

Create a virtual machine:

Configure the virtual machine options

Install the guest operating system into the virtual machine
Install VMware Tools into the guest operating system

Describe how to import a virtual appliance.

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Provisioning a Virtual Machine

Methods for creating virtual machines:

Use the Create New Virtual Machine wizard
Import a virtual appliance

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Create New Virtual Machine Wizard

Create a new virtual machine in the
VMware vCenter Server inventory.
In the Inventory view, select a
datacenter, cluster, or host.
Start the Create New Virtual Machine
wizard.
Perform a typical or custom
configuration.

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Choosing the Typical Configuration

Information needed for a typical configuration:

Virtual machine name and inventory location
Location in which to place the virtual machine (cluster, host, resource
pool)
Datastore on which to store the virtual machines files
Guest operating system and version
Disk parameters for creating a new virtual disk:

Disk size
Disk-provisioning settings:

Allocate and commit space on demand (Thin Provisioning)

Support clustering features such as Fault Tolerance

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vStorage Virtual Disk Thin Provisioning

Virtual machine disks consume only
the amount of capacity needed to
hold the current files.
A virtual machine sees the full
allocated disk size at all times.
You can mix thick and thin formats.
Full reporting and alerts help
manage allocations and capacity.

More efficient storage utilization:

Virtual disk allocation140GB

Available datastore capacity 100GB
Used storage capacity 80GB

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Choosing the Custom Configuration

Other information needed for a custom configuration:
Virtual machine version (version 8 is the latest)
Number of CPUs, number of cores per CPU and size of memory
Number of NICs, network to connect to, and network adapter type
SCSI controller type
Whether to create a new disk, use an existing disk, use an RDM, or
use no disk
Other disk-provisioning settings:

Whether to store the virtual disk with the virtual machine or in a different
datastore
Virtual device node (for example, SCSI(0:0))
Mode-independent (persistent and nonpersistent)

For both the typical and the custom configurations:

You can edit virtual machine settings before completing the task.

For example, attach an ISO image to the virtual CD/DVD drive.

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Raw Device Mapping

scsi0:0

Raw Device Mapping (RDM)

allows you to store virtual
machine data directly on a LUN.

scsi0:0

The mapping file is stored on a

VMware vSphere VMFS
datastore that points to the raw
LUN.

ext3 or NTFS
file system

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Installing the Guest Operating System

Install the guest operating system into the virtual machine.

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VMware Tools
Features of VMware
Tools include:

Device drivers:

Install VMware Tools into the guest

operating system.

SVGA display
vmxnet/vmxnet3
Balloon driver for
memory
management
Sync driver for
quiescing I/O
Improved mouse

Virtual machine
heartbeat

VMware
Tools
icon

Time synchronization
Ability to shut down
virtual machine
Adds additional
choices to Perfmon
DLL.

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Virtual Appliances

Preconfigured virtual machines:

Usually designed for a single
purpose (for example, a safe
browser or firewall)
Deployed as an OVF template
Available from the VMware Virtual
Appliance Marketplace:
http://www.vmware.com/appliances
Use the VMware vSphere Client to
upload appliances into VMware
vCenter Server or an VMware
ESXi host.

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Deploying an OVF Template

Another way to deploy a virtual

appliance or any virtual machine
stored in OVF format:
Deploy from an OVF template.

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Lab 3

In this lab, you will create, import, and prepare virtual machines
for use.
1. Create a virtual machine.
2. Install a guest operating system in a virtual machine.
3. Identify a virtual machines disk format and usage statistics.
4. Install VMware Tools on a virtual machine installed with a Windows
operating system.
5. Enable time synchronization between a virtual machine and an
ESXi host
6. Copy programs from CDROM to your virtual machine.

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Review of Learner Objectives

You should be able to do the following:

Create a virtual machine:

Configure the virtual machine options

Install the guest operating system into the virtual machine
Install VMware Tools into the guest operating system

Describe how to import a virtual appliance.

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Key Points

Virtual machines can be provisioned using different methods.

You can use the vSphere Client to create virtual machines using the
Add Virtual Machine wizard or by deploying an OVF template.

Questions?

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