VMware Infrastructure 3, deployment

Deploying a VMware Infrastructure with HP ProLiant servers, storage, and

management products

Executive summary............................................................................................................................... 3
Audience ........................................................................................................................................ 4
This white paper .............................................................................................................................. 4
ESX server pre-deployment.................................................................................................................... 4
Compatibility and support................................................................................................................. 4
HP ProLiant servers ....................................................................................................................... 4
HP StorageWorks SAN................................................................................................................. 4
HP I/O devices ............................................................................................................................ 5
Server configuration options .............................................................................................................. 5
IOAPIC table setting ..................................................................................................................... 5
Hyper-Threading Technology ......................................................................................................... 5
Node interleaving ........................................................................................................................ 5
Platform specific considerations ......................................................................................................... 6
HP ProLiant servers with AMD Opteron processors ........................................................................... 6
SAN configuration ........................................................................................................................... 7
Configuring HBAs ........................................................................................................................ 7
Configuring clustering support ....................................................................................................... 7
Supported SAN topologies ............................................................................................................ 7
MSA configuration notes ............................................................................................................... 8
EVA configuration notes ................................................................................................................ 9
XP configuration notes................................................................................................................. 10
Supported guest operating systems ............................................................................................... 10
Boot From SAN .......................................................................................................................... 11
Deploying VMware ESX Server 3.0 ..................................................................................................... 12
Installation methods ........................................................................................................................ 12
HP Integrated Lights-Out .............................................................................................................. 12
Scripted installation .................................................................................................................... 12
HP ProLiant Essentials Rapid Deployment Pack (RDP)....................................................................... 12
Installation considerations ............................................................................................................... 13
ATA/IDE and SATA drives........................................................................................................... 13
SAN ......................................................................................................................................... 13
Boot From SAN .......................................................................................................................... 13
Disk partitioning ......................................................................................................................... 13
Post-installation tasks .......................................................................................................................... 15
HP Insight Management agents........................................................................................................ 15
Obtaining IM agents for ESX Server ............................................................................................. 15
Installing and configuring IM agents ............................................................................................. 16
Silent installation ........................................................................................................................ 17
Re-configuring the IM agents........................................................................................................ 17
ESX Server configuration................................................................................................................. 17
Virtual Machine deployment ............................................................................................................... 18
Creating new VMs ......................................................................................................................... 18
Using standard media................................................................................................................. 18
Network deployment .................................................................................................................. 18
Using RDP ................................................................................................................................. 19
Using templates.......................................................................................................................... 20
Migrating VMs from ESX Server 2.x ................................................................................................. 20
VMware Tools ............................................................................................................................... 20
Using RDP to install VMware Tools ............................................................................................... 21
Using HP Systems Insight Manager ...................................................................................................... 23
Host management .......................................................................................................................... 23
SNMP settings............................................................................................................................ 23
Trust relationship ........................................................................................................................ 24
Troubleshooting ............................................................................................................................. 24
For more information.......................................................................................................................... 25
Executive summary
This white paper provides guidance on deploying a VMware Infrastructure environment based on HP
servers, storage, and management products. The following key technology components are deployed:

• HP ProLiant servers
• HP Management software (HP Systems Insight Manager (HP SIM) and OpenView)
• HP ProLiant Essentials software
• HP StorageWorks Storage Area Network (SAN) products
• VMware Infrastructure 3
• VMware ESX Server 3.0
• VMware VirtualCenter 2.0

This white paper is not designed to replace documentation supplied with individual solution
components but, rather, is intended to serve as an additional resource to aid the IT professionals
responsible for planning a VMware environment.
This is the second in a series of documents on the planning, deployment, and operation of an
Adaptive Infrastructure based on VMware Infrastructure and HP servers, storage, and management
technologies.

Figure 1. Phases in implementing a VMware Infrastructure

The documents in this series are:

• An architecture guide (VMware Infrastructure 3, architecture)

• A planning guide (VMware Infrastructure 3, planning)

3
• A deployment guide (VMware Infrastructure 3, deployment), and
• An operations guide (VMware Infrastructure 3, operations).
This white paper contains deployment information to help customers effectively deploy a VMware
Infrastructure running on HP ProLiant servers, HP StorageWorks storage solutions, and HP ProLiant
Essentials management software components.
Prior to reading this guide, the reader should understand the VMware Infrastructure architecture and
how it virtualizes the hardware.
All of the HP guides, white papers and technical documents for VMware ESX Server can be found
at: www.hp.com/go/vmware.

Audience
The deployment information contained in this white paper is intended for solutions architects,
engineers, and project managers involved in the deployment of virtualization solutions. The reader
should be familiar with networking in a heterogeneous environment and with virtualized
infrastructures, and have a basic knowledge of VMware ESX Server 3.0 and VirtualCenter 2.0,
and HP ProLiant servers, HP StorageWorks and HP software products.

This white paper

This white paper provides information on the following topics:
• Compatibility and support – Identifying and configuring HP ProLiant server platforms that are
certified for VMware ESX Server 3.0.
• SAN configuration – Configuring supported HP StorageWorks SAN arrays for connectivity with
ESX Server systems
• Deploying VMware ESX Server 3.0 – Advanced methods for deploying ESX Server on HP ProLiant
servers
• HP Insight Management agents – Installing HP management tools on an ESX Server system
• Virtual Machine deployment – Using conventional and advanced methods to deploy a virtual
machine (VM)
• VMware Tools – Deploying management tools into a guest operating system

ESX server pre-deployment

This section contains configuration steps that should be performed before you deploy VMware ESX
Server.

Compatibility and support

This section details HP servers, storage, and I/O devices that have been tested and are supported by
HP for ESX Server 3.0.
HP ProLiant servers
For the most up-to-date list of supported platforms and important configuration notes refer to the
support matrix at
http://h18004.www1.hp.com/products/servers/software/vmware/hpvmwarecert.html.

HP StorageWorks SAN
The following is a list of HP StorageWorks SAN array systems that have been certified with VMware
ESX Server 3.0. For the most up-to-date list of supported arrays and important configuration notes,

4
refer to the Storage / SAN Compatibility Guide for ESX Server 3.0 at
http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vi3_san_guide.pdf.
• HP StorageWorks 1500cs Modular Smart Array (MSA1500)
• HP StorageWorks 1000 Modular Smart Array (MSA1000)
• HP StorageWorks 4000 Enterprise Virtual Arrays (EVA4000)
• HP StorageWorks 6000 Enterprise Virtual Arrays (EVA6000)
• HP StorageWorks 8000 Enterprise Virtual Arrays (EVA8000)
• HP StorageWorks XP128 Disk Array (XP128)
• HP StorageWorks XP1024 Disk Array (XP1024)

HP I/O devices
For the most up-to-date list of supported devices and important configuration notes, refer the HP
ProLiant option support matrix at
http://h18004.www1.hp.com/products/servers/software/vmware/hpvmware-options-matrix.html.

Server configuration options

This section provides information on configuring the IOAPIC table, Intel® Hyper-Threading, and node
interleaving for AMD Opteron™-based systems. All of these options can be configured in the ROM-
Based Setup Utility (RBSU). To access the RBSU, press F9 when prompted during the Power-On Self
Test (POST).

IOAPIC table setting

The IOAPIC (Input/Output Advanced Programmable Interrupt Controller) controls the flow of interrupt
requests in a multi-processor system. It also affects the mapping of IRQs to interrupt-driven subsystems
such as PCI or ISA devices.
Full IOAPIC table support should be enabled for all HP ProLiant servers running VMware ESX
Server. This option can be found in the Advanced Options menu of the RBSU. Full IOAPIC table
support is enabled by default in current generation ProLiant servers.

Note:
Previous generation ProLiant servers may refer to this option
as MPS Table Mode.

Hyper-Threading Technology
Hyper-Threading Technology is an embedded Intel processor technology that allows the operating
system to view a single CPU as two logical units. The processor is capable of managing multiple tasks
generated by different applications.
Hyper-Threading is supported by ESX Server. To enable or disable Hyper-Threading at the system
level, select Processor Hyper-Threading from the Advanced Options menu in the RBSU.

Node interleaving
To optimize performance over a wide variety of applications, the AMD Opteron processor supports
two different types of memory access: Non-Uniform Memory Access (NUMA) and Uniform Memory
Access (UMA), or node interleaving.

5
NUMA is enabled by default on Opteron-based ProLiant servers. To place the server in UMA mode,
enable Node Interleaving from the Advanced Options menu in the RBSU.
Additional details about memory access and configuration for Opteron-based ProLiant servers are
provided in the next section.

Platform specific considerations

The following section contains configuration details and consideration specific to various ProLiant
server lines.

HP ProLiant servers with AMD Opteron processors

As mentioned above, the Opteron processor supports two different types of memory access: non-
uniform memory access (NUMA) and sufficiently uniform memory access (SUMA), or node
interleaving.
A node consists of the processor cores, including the embedded memory controller and the attached
DIMMs. The total memory attached to all the processors is divided into 4096 byte segments. In the
case of linear addressing (NUMA), consecutive 4096 byte segments are on the same node. In the
case of node interleaving (SUMA), consecutive 4096 byte segments are on different or adjacent
nodes.

Linear memory accessing (NUMA) defines the

memory starting at 0 on node 0 and assigns the
total amount of memory on node 0 the next
sequential address, up to the memory total on
node 0. The memory on node 1 will then start
with the next sequential address until the process
is complete.
Node interleaving (SUMA) breaks memory into
4KB addressable entities. Addressing starts with
address 0 on node 0 and sequentially assigns
through address 4095 to node 0, addresses
4096 through 8191 to node 1, addresses 8192
through 12287 to node 3, and addresses 12888
through 16383 to node 4. Address 16384 is
assigned to node 0 and the process continues
until all memory has been assigned in this
fashion.
ESX Server currently offers NUMA support for Opteron-based systems and implements several
optimizations designed to enhance virtual machine performance on NUMA systems. However, some
virtual machine workloads may not benefit from these optimizations. For example, virtual machines
that have more virtual processors than the number of processor cores available on a single hardware
node cannot be managed automatically. Virtual machines that are not managed automatically by the
NUMA scheduler still run correctly; they simply don't benefit from ESX Server's NUMA optimizations.
In this case, performance may be improved by activating node interleaving.
For best performance, HP recommends configuring each node with an equal amount of RAM.
Additionally, each ProLiant server may have its own rules and guidelines for configuring memory.
Please see the QuickSpecs for each platform available at
http://h18000.www1.hp.com/products/quickspecs/ProductBulletin.html
For more information on ESX Server and NUMA technology, refer to VMware Knowledge Base
article 1570.

6
SAN configuration
This section contains important information for both server and SAN administrators to use when
configuring ESX Server hosts for SAN connectivity.

Configuring HBAs
This section contains information on obtaining the World-Wide Port Names (WWPNs) from your
Fibre Channel HBAs and configuring them for clustering support.

Obtaining World-Wide Port Name (WWPN)

In order to configure an HP StorageWorks SAN, you will need to know the WWPN for each HBA
you intend to connect to the SAN. Follow the instructions for your HBA model below to obtain the
WWPN. Write down the WWPN for later use.

Table 1. Obtaining WWPNs for HBAs

HBA How to obtain WWPN

The WWPN can be found by entering the QLogic Fast!UTIL utility during server post. Select
QLogic the appropriate host adapter (if more than one is present), then go to Configuration Settings ->
Host Adapter Settings and look for Adapter Port Name.

The WWPN can be found by entering the Emulex BIOS Utility during server post. Select the
Emulex appropriate host adapter (if more than one is present). The WWPN will be displayed at the
top of the screen.

Configuring clustering support

Clustering your virtual machines between ESX Server machines requires shared disks. To configure an
HBA for clustering support, follow the instructions for your HBA listed in the table below.

Table 2. Configuring clustering support

HBA Configuring clustering support

Enter the QLogic Fast!UTIL utility during server POST, then select the desired HBA. Select
Configuration SettingsÆAdvanced Adapter Settings; ensure that the following settings are
configured:
QLogic
• Enable LIP Reset is set to No
• Enable LIP Full Login is set to Yes
• Enable Target Reset is set to Yes

Emulex N/A

Supported SAN topologies

All HP StorageWorks SANs are supported in both single-fabric and multi-fabric environments. Direct
connect is not supported except when using the HP StorageWorks MSA SAN Switch 2/8 1 .

1
The MSA SAN Switch 2/8 is a true fibre channel switch thus does not represent a true direct connect architecture.

7
For more information on specific SAN topologies, refer to the HP SAN Design Reference Guide
available at
http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bc/docs/support/SupportManual/c00403562/c00403562.pdf.

IMPORTANT:
For high availability, multi-path capability is provided
natively by ESX Server. Do not attempt to install other multi-
path software such as HP Secure Path or Auto Path.

MSA configuration notes

Before configuring an MSA1000 or MSA1500 SAN and an ESX Server machine, HP recommends
upgrading the array controller to an appropriate firmware version, as specified in Table 3.

Table 3. Array controller firmware levels

Array Minimum Recommended

MSA1000 4.48 4.48

MSA1500 4.98 5.02

For more information on upgrading the firmware and configuring the MSA, see
http://h18006.www1.hp.com/storage/arraysystems.html

For proper communications between the MSA and an ESX Server host, set the connection profile for
each HBA port to Linux.

Follow these steps:

1. Determine the World Wide Port Name (WWPN) for each HBA port to be connected to the array.
2. Set the profile for each HBA port using either the Command Line Interface (CLI) or Array
Configuration Utility (ACU).
CLI
– Provide a unique name for the connection and set the profile by typing the following command:
CLI> add connection <unique_name> wwpn=<wwpn> profile=Linux
– To verify that each connection has been correctly set, type the following command:
CLI> show connections
– For each connection, verify that the profile is set to Linux and that its status is Online. If there are
any problems, refer to the MSA1000/MSA1500 documentation for troubleshooting guidelines.

ACU
– Enable Selective Storage Presentation (SSP).
– Review the list of HBAs connected to the array.
– Assign a unique name to each connection and select Linux from the drop-down list as the
desired profile.
– Enable access to the LUNs you wish to present to the ESX Server systems.

8
EVA configuration notes
Before configuring an EVA SAN to an ESX Server machine, HP recommends upgrading the array
controller to the appropriate firmware version, as specified in Table 4.

Table 4. Array controller firmware levels

Array Minimum Recommended

EVA3000 VCS 3.028 VCS 3.028
(HSV100) VCS 4.004 VCS 4.004

EVA5000 VCS 3.028 VCS 3.028

(HSV110) VCS 4.004 VCS 4.004

EVA4000 XCS 5.031 XCS 5.100

EVA6000
(HSV200)

EVA8000 XCS 5.031 XCS 5.100

(HSV210)

For more information on upgrading the firmware of an EVA array and on configuring the EVA, see
http://h18006.www1.hp.com/storage/arraysystems.html

When adding an ESX Server system as a new host, Command View EVA may not populate all the
HBAs in the WWPN drop-down list. The WWPN can be entered manually if this occurs. The
connection type must be set to according to Table 5.

9
Table 5. Array controller connection type

Array Firmware Connection Type

EVA3000 VCS 3.028 Custom:
EVA5000 000000002200282E

EVA3000 VCS 4.004 VMware

EVA5000

EVA4000 XCS 5.031 Custom:

EVA6000 00000000220008BC
EVA8000

EVA4000 XCS 5.100 VMware

EVA6000
EVA8000

Red Hat Advanced Server 2.1, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3, and SuSE Linux Enterprise Server 8 guest
VM support requires using the "vmxlsilogic" SCSI emulation.

XP configuration notes
Before configuring an XP SAN and ESX Server, HP recommends upgrading the array controller to an
appropriate firmware version, as specified in Table 6.

Table 6. Array controller firmware levels

Array Minimum Recommended

XP128 21.14.18.00/00 21.14.18.00/00
XP1024

For more information on upgrading the firmware of an XP array and on configuring this array, see:
http://h18006.www1.hp.com/storage/arraysystems.html
The host mode for all XP arrays should be set to “0x0C”.

Supported guest operating systems

The following guest operating systems are supported with HP StorageWorks SAN arrays and
VMware ESX Server:

10
Table 7. Supported Guest Operation Systems

Microsoft® Windows® SuSE Linux Red Hat

Windows 2000 SP3 and SLES 8 SP3 RHEL 2.1 U6 and U7

SP4

Windows 2003 base and SLES 9 SP1 and SP2 RHEL 3 U4 and U5
SP1

RHEL 4 U2

RHEL 2.1, RHEL 3, and SLES8 support requires using the "vmxlsilogic" SCSI emulation.

Boot From SAN

Enabling Boot From SAN on an HP ProLiant server is a two-stage process: enabling and configuring
the QLogic BIOS, and configuring the server’s host boot order in the RBSU. Perform the following
steps:
Configuring the BIOS
1. While the server is booting, press Ctrl Q to enter Fast!UTIL.

2. From the Select Host Adapter menu, choose the adapter you want to boot from, then press Enter.

3. In the Fast!UTIL Options menu, choose Configuration Settings, then press Enter.

4. In the Configuration Settings menu, choose Host Adapter Settings, then press Enter.

5. In the Host Adapter Settings menu, change the Host Adapter BIOS setting to Enabled by pressing
Enter.
6. Press ESC to go back to the Configuration Settings menu. Choose Selectable Boot Settings, then
press Enter.
7. In the Selectable Boot Settings menu, enable the Selectable Boot option, then move the cursor to the
Primary Boot Port Name, LUN:, then press Enter.
8. In the Select Fibre Channel Device menu, choose the device to boot from, then press Enter.

9. In the Select LUN menu, choose the supported LUN.

10. Save the changes by pressing ESC twice.

Configuring the host boot order

1. While the system is booting, Press F9 to start the BIOS Setup Utility.

2. Choose Boot Controller Order.

3. Select the primary HBA (that is, the HBA dedicated to your SAN or presented to your LUN) and
move it to Controller Order 1.
4. Disable the Smart Array Controller.

5. Press F10 to save your configuration and exit the utility.

11
Deploying VMware ESX Server 3.0
Installation methods
VMware ESX Server 3 includes both a graphical and a text-mode installer. The graphic-mode installer
is the default and recommended method for installation.
When using the VMware installation media, you will be presented with a boot prompt at system
startup. Press Enter to start the graphical installer or type “esx text” at the boot prompt to use the
text-mode installer.

HP Integrated Lights-Out
Integrated Lights-Out (iLO) is a web-based, remote management technology available on HP ProLiant
servers. iLO offers complete control – as if you were physically standing in front of the target server –
from any network accessible location.
The iLO Virtual Media feature offers a number of options for booting a remote machine in order to
install ESX Server.

Table 8. Options for booting a remote machine

How? Where?
Using a standard 1.44-MB floppy diskette On a client machine

Using a CD-ROM On a client machine

Using an image of the floppy diskette or CD-ROM From anywhere on the network

ESX Server supports installation via iLO Virtual Media using either the physical installation CD or an
ISO 2 image from a client machine or the network.
Virtual Media requires an iLO/iLO2 Advanced license. For more information about iLO, refer to
www.hp.com/servers/ilo.

Scripted installation
Once ESX Server has been deployed on an HP ProLiant server, IT staff can use this system to automate
further deployments. This is particularly useful when deploying ESX Server instances on a number of
similarly configured servers.
See the Installation and Upgrade Guide available from VMware at
http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vi3_installation_guide.pdf for more information on creating a
scripted installation.

HP ProLiant Essentials Rapid Deployment Pack (RDP)

Beginning with Rapid Deployment Pack 3.1 (releasing in 4th Quarter of 2006), VMware ESX Server 3
is a supported operating system for deployment. The primary advantages of deploying ESX Server
3.0 with RDP are as follows. The HP Insight Management Agents are deployed along with the
operating system which saves a step in the deployment process. Also, numerous systems can be
deployed and personalized simultaneously eliminating the need for customized scripted installs. RDP
also eliminates the need to configure individual hardware settings on HP ProLiant servers.

2
As prescribed by ISO standard ISO 9660

12
Installation considerations
This section highlights some additional items that you may wish to consider before beginning your
deployment.

ATA/IDE and SATA drives

VMware supports booting from ATA/IDE and SATA devices; however you cannot create a VMFS
volume on these devices. An ESX Server host must have SCSI/SAS storage, NAS, or a SAN on
which to store and run virtual machines.

SAN
Before installation, you should zone and mask all SAN LUNs away from your server except those
needed during installation. This includes shared LUNs with existing VMFS partitions. This will help
prevent accidental deletion of critical VMs and data. After installation, you may then unmask the
shared LUNs.
The maximum number of LUNs supported by the ESX Server installer is 128, and the maximum for
ESX Server is 255. Keep these maxima in mind when configuring and presenting LUNs.

Boot From SAN

ESX Server does not support booting from a shared LUN. Each ESX Server host should have its
own boot volume, and this volume should be masked away from all other systems.

IMPORTANT:
Unlike ESX 2.5, ESX 3.0’s Boot From SAN installation is
integrated with the boot from local disk installation. If you
do not mask your LUNs properly during a manual
installation, the SAN LUNs will be available for selection at
the Advanced Options screen. If you select one of these
LUNs and it is housing Virtual Machines they will be erased
during installation when the LUN is formatted.

Disk partitioning
The following table shows how the ESX Server host’s storage should be partitioned. The sizes
provided are recommended minima, and optional partitions are noted.

13
Table 9. Default storage configuration and partitioning for a VMFS volume on internal drives

Partition File system Size Description

name format
/boot ext3 100MB The boot partitions stores files required to boot ESX
Server.

/ ext3 2560MB Called the “root” partition, this contains the ESX Server
operating system and Web Center files. Allocate an
additional 512MB if you plan to use this server for
scripted installations.

NA Swap 544MB The swap partition is used by the service console and
tools like the HP Insight Management agents.

vmkcore vmkcore 100MB This partition serves as a repository for the VMkernel
core dump files in the event of a VMkernel core dump.

VMFS VMFS-3 1200MB+ The VMFS file system for the storage of virtual machine
disk files. Must be large enough to hold your VM disks.

/home ext3 512MB Storage for individual users.

(optional)

/tmp ext3 1024MB Partition used for temporary storage.

(optional)

/var ext3 1024MB Partition is used for log file storage. HP recommends
(optional) creating a /var partition to prevent unchecked log file
growth from creating service interruptions.

14
Post-installation tasks
HP Insight Management agents
HP Insight Management (IM) agents provide server management capabilities for ESX Server
installed on supported server platforms. This section describes how to obtain, install, and configure
the agents for a particular server environment.

Obtaining IM agents for ESX Server

The latest IM agents are available from the HP website. Follow these steps to download the
agents:

1. Go to http://www.hp.com/servers/swdrivers.
2. Under Option 2: Locate by category, select the appropriate version of VMware ESX Server from
the Operating system drop-down list.
3. From the Category drop-down list, select Software – System Management.
4. Click Locate software to obtain a download link.
5. Download the compressed tar file directly to the ESX Server system.
6. Unpack the archive with the command:
%> tar zxvf hpmgmt-<version>-vmware.tgz

Note:
Opening the tar file on a Windows server may corrupt files
in the archive.

The contents of the archive are unpacked in the hpmgmt/<version>/ directory.

Table 10 lists the packages included in the archive and their functions.

Table 10. Descriptions of packages included with the download

Package Description
hpasm This package provides server and storage management capabilities.

hprsm This package provides rack and iLO management capabilities.

cmanic This agent gathers critical HP ProLiant NIC hardware and software information to
help IT administrators manage and troubleshoot their systems.

hpsmh The System Management Homepage provides a consolidated view for single-server
management that highlights tightly-integrated management functionalities (such as
performance, fault, security, diagnostic, configuration, and software change
management).

expat Package dependency for hpsmh. This package is not installed on ESX Server 3.0

ucd-snmp-cmaX This package contains the UCD-SNMP protocol and cmaX extensions. This package
is not installed on ESX Server 3.0.

ucd-snmp-cmaX-utils This package contains tools for requesting or setting information from SNMP
agents, tools for generating and handling SNMP traps, a version of the netstat
command, which uses SNMP, and a Tk/Perl MIB browser. This package is not
installed on ESX Server 3.0.

15
Installing and configuring IM agents
After the tar file has been downloaded and unpacked, view the included README file for important
installation and configuration information.
Before starting the installation, you should consider or have available the following information:

• SNMP settings
During the installation, you will be asked to supply community strings—both read-only and read-
write—for SNMP communication with the localhost and with a management station such as HP
Systems Insight Manager. The settings you provide will be written to the SNMP configuration file,
/etc/snmp/snmpd.conf. You must specify a read-write community string for the localhost. This
community string is used by the agents to write data to the SNMP Management Information Base
(MIB) tree. If you are using HP SIM or other management software, see Central Management Server
(CMS) below.
• Central Management Server
If using a central management system such as HP Systems Insight Manager, you will need to
provide the IP address or DNS name for the management server during the installation. Enter the
management server’s IP address along with the community string that matches the settings in your
management server. When using HP SIM, you only need to allow read-only access to the CMS.
• Firewall Configuration
VMware ESX Server 3.0 uses a firewall to restrict network communications to and from the ESX
Server host to essential services only. For full functionality of health and management agents, the
following ports must be opened:

Table 11. Ports

Port Protocol ESX Firewall Service Description

161 tcp/udp snmp snmpd SNMP traffic

162 tcp/udp snmp snmpd SNMP traps

2381 tcp https N/A HP System Management Homepage

During the installation, you will be given the option to have the installer configure the ESX Server
firewall for you.

For more information about the HP health and management agents, please see the Managing ProLiant
Servers with Linux HOWTO at ftp://ftp.compaq.com/pub/products/servers/Linux/linux.pdf.
Although this HOWTO was written for enterprise Linux systems, much of the information contained is
also applicable to VMware ESX Server environments.

To begin the installation, login as root and run the following command:
%> ./installvm<version>.sh --install
The installation script performs some basic checks and guides you through the installation process.
After the installation has completed, you may wish to configure the System Management Homepage
(SMH). To start the SMH configuration wizard, run the following command:
%> /usr/local/hp/hpSMHSetup.pl

16
For detailed information on configuring SMH, refer to the System Management Homepage Installation
Guide available at http://docs.hp.com/en/381372-002/381372-002.pdf.

Silent installation
The installation script may also be run in silent mode, installing and configuring the IM agents based
on settings contained in an input file – without user interaction.
To automate the installation of the agents, create an input file using the hpmgmt.conf.example file
from the download package as a template. Information on the available options is given in the
example file; at a minimum, you should configure local read-write community access for SNMP.
To automate the configuration of the System Management Homepage, place a copy of the SMH
configuration file (smhpd.xml) with the desired setting into the same directory as the agent installation
script. It is recommended to use a file from a pre-existing installation rather than edit the file by hand.
The smhpd.xml file can be found in /opt/hp/hpsmh/conf/. During a silent installation, the installer
will check for the presence of this file. If found, it will be used to configure SMH; otherwise, SMH will
be configured with the default options.
When you are ready to begin the installation, login as root and run the following command:
%> ./installvm<version>.sh --silent --inputfile input.file

The installation process starts immediately; you are not prompted for confirmation. However, if
necessary information from the configuration file is missing, you may be prompted for it during the
installation.

Re-configuring the IM agents

To change the configuration of the agents after the installation is complete, login as root and run the
following command:
%> service hpasm reconfigure

This command stops the agents and reruns the interactive configuration wizard. After reconfiguring
the agents, you must restart the SNMP service.

ESX Server configuration

After installing ESX Server, you will need to configure the host’s networking, storage, and security
settings. Please see the Virtual Infrastructure: Server Configuration Guide for complete details on
configuring your ESX Server host.

17
Virtual Machine deployment
The provisioning and deployment of a virtual machine (VM) is, in many ways, similar to the
provisioning and deployment of a physical server. Servers are first configured with the desired
hardware (such as CPUs, memory, disks, and NICs) then provisioned with an operating system – most
likely via physical media such as a CD-ROM or DVD, or over the network. Likewise, a VM is created
with a specific virtual hardware configuration; however, in addition to the more conventional methods
of server provisioning, VMs offer some unique options.
This section discusses conventional and advanced methods for deploying VMs.

Creating new VMs

Many of the deployment options used for physical servers are also available to virtual machines.
Some of the more widely-used options (the use of standard media, a network deployment, and the
use of HP ProLiant Essentials Rapid Deployment Pack (RDP)) are discussed below.

Using standard media

The most basic method of installing an operating system is by using the physical install media – most
likely a CD-ROM or DVD or, perhaps, a floppy diskette. A VM’s CD-ROM drive can be mapped
directly to the CD-ROM drive of the host machine, permitting a very simple guest operating system
installation.
The VM’s CD-ROM drive can also be mapped to an image file on the host or the host’s network. With
ESX Server 3.0 and the Virtual Infrastructure Client, you can now also use images on the client or
client’s network. By creating a repository for CD-ROM images on the network or SAN, you can
maintain a central location for images to be shared by all ESX Server machines, eliminating the need
to locate and swap CD-ROMs between hosts.
VMs can also access CD-ROMs and image files via the HP ProLiant server host’s iLO Virtual Media
feature. When connecting a VM’s CD-ROM to the iLO Virtual CD, take note of the following:

• Use the special device /dev/scd0 rather than the standard /dev/cdrom.
• It is NOT necessary to first mount the device in the ESX service console.

When using iLO Virtual Floppy, the device is typically /dev/sda; however, if a SAN or some other
SCSI device is attached, this may not be the case. To verify which device is attached to the Virtual
Floppy, run the dmesg command in the service console after connecting the floppy in the iLO
interface. Look for lines similar to the following example:

scsi3 : SCSI emulation for USB Mass Storage devices

Vendor: HP Model: Virtual Floppy Rev: 0.01
Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 02
VMWARE: Unique Device attached as scsi disk sde at scsi3, channel
0, id 0, lun 0
Attached scsi removable disk sde at scsi3, channel 0, id 0, lun 0

Note that the fourth and fifth lines of this example show the Virtual Floppy attached to /dev/sde.

Network deployment
Many operating systems now support some method of installation over the network (for example,
Microsoft Remote Installation Service). This scenario is usually accomplished by remote booting
with a Pre-Boot eXecution Environment (PXE) ROM or by using special boot media containing
network support. PXE boot is supported by ESX Server VMs.

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A VM with no guest operating system installed attempts to boot from devices (hard disk, CD-ROM
drive, floppy drive, network adapter) in the order in which these devices appear in the boot
sequence specified in the VM’s BIOS. As a result, if you plan to use PXE boot capability, HP
recommends placing the network adapter at the top of the boot order. To achieve this, press F2
when the VM first boots to enter the VM’s BIOS; update the boot order in the BIOS.

Note:
The PXE boot image must contain drivers for the Universal
Network Device Interface (UNDI) or the VM’s virtual network
adapter to support network connectivity.

Using RDP
RDP includes predefined jobs for deploying an operating system to a VM. However, before using one
of these jobs, you must perform some additional steps, as described below.
First, you must set the PXE NIC to appear first in the VM’s boot order. To achieve this, perform the
following steps:

1. Power on the VM.

2. Press F2 during POST to enter the VM’s BIOS configuration utility.

3. From the Boot menu, select Network Boot and then press the + (plus) key until the PXE NIC is first
in the boot order.

Next, allow the VM to PXE boot and connect to the Deployment Server. Once connected, the VM is
displayed under New Computers in the Deployment Server console as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2. The VM is displayed in the Deployment Server console

The default deployment scripts will use the console name as the system name. You should consider
renaming the VM using a name that complies with the requirements of the operating system that
will be deployed, or modify to deployment job to use/create a valid system name. The deployment
job may now be run on the VM.
To customize the deployment of the operating system on the VM, use the same procedures as you
would for a physical server. For example, if installing a Windows operating system, you must
create an unattend.txt file that is customized for the specific VM, then configure the deployment
job to use your custom unattend.txt file.

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NOTE:
Once you have completed installation of your guest OS you
will likely want to change the boot order to prevent further
PXE booting. Doing so will prevent excessive DHCP leases
from a single system.

Using templates
VMware Virtual Center supports the creation and deployment of templates after the first virtual
machine has been created. For a complete discussion of using templates to deploy virtual machines,
consult the VMware Infrastructure 3, Operations guide at http://www.hp.com/go/vmware.

Migrating VMs from ESX Server 2.x

Virtual Machines created with ESX Server 2.x can be migrated to ESX Server 3.0 hosts. Follow the
procedures in the VMware Installation and Upgrade Guide at
http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vi3_installation_guide.pdf for migrating your ESX 2.x virtual
machines.

VMware Tools
This section provides guidelines for deploying VMware Tools into a Windows guest operating
system.

IMPORTANT:
It is very important to install VMware Tools in the guest
operating system. While the guest operating system can run
without VMware tools, significant functionality and
convenience would be lost.

VMware Tools is a suite of utilities that can enhance the performance of the VM’s guest operating
system and improve VM management. Features include:

• VMware Tools service for Windows (or vmware-guestd on Linux guests)

• A set of VMware device drivers, including an SVGA display driver, the advanced networking driver
for some guest operating systems, the BusLogic SCSI driver for some guest operating systems, the
memory control driver for efficient memory allocation between virtual machines, the sync driver to
quiesce I/O for Consolidated Backup, and the VMware mouse driver.
• The VMware Tools control panel, which allows IT staff to modify settings, shrink virtual disks, and
connect and disconnect virtual devices
• A set of scripts that helps automate guest operating system operations; the scripts run when the
VM’s power state changes.
• A component that supports copying-and-pasting text between the guest and managed host
operating systems
For more information on installing VMware Tools, refer to the Basic System Administration Guide
available at http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vi3_admin_guide.pdf. See below for guidelines on
using RDP to install VMware Tools.

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Using RDP to install VMware Tools
RDP can be used to automate the installation of VMware Tools into a Windows guest OS. Perform the
following steps:

Note:
With ESX 3, it is no longer necessary to ignore the
DriverSigningPolicy specified within Microsoft KB article
298503 for the installation of VMware Tools to be
automated. All drivers within ESX 3 virtual machines are
signed by Microsoft.

1. To copy VMware Tools files to the Deployment Server, first use the Virtual Infrastructure Client to
attach to an existing VM’s console.
2. Connect the VM’s virtual CD-ROM to the VMware Tools ISO image at
/usr/lib/vmware/isoimages/windows.iso.
3. Copy the contents of the CD-ROM to VMwareTools, a newly-created directory under
<deployment_server>\lib\software on the Deployment Server.
4. Create a new Distribute Software task in a new or existing job.
5. Configure the task to support the silent installation of all VMware Tools components, as shown in
Figure 3.

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Figure 3. Configuring a task for the silent install of all VMware Tools components

Note:
When scheduling this task, be aware that the VM reboots
when the installation is complete.

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Using HP Systems Insight Manager
Host management
This section provides details on configuring HP Systems Insight Manager (HP SIM) to manage your
HP ProLiant servers running ESX Server 3.0.

SNMP settings
Before discovering your host, you should install and configure the HP Insight Management agents
according to the instructions above. Verify that you have provided read-only SNMP access to the
CMS and that the community string matches one provided to HP SIM. To check the community strings,
go to Options Æ Protocol Settings Æ Global Protocol Settings….

Figure 4. To check community strings:

You can provide up to 8 global community strings. If you need more, you can provide additional
strings for each host after discovery.

Note:
If you use “public” for a community string, HP recommends
making it the lowest priority.

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During discovery, HP SIM will attempt to use the first community string in the list. If it is unable to
establish communication with the host, then it will try with the second string in the list and so on. Once
HP SIM can establish a connection with a particular community string, no additional strings will be
tried and that string will be used for all future SNMP communication (unless explicitly configured via
the host’s protocol settings page).
Once you have verified that your SNMP configuration is correct, you can then perform device
discovery of your host.

Note:
Make sure that you have configured your ESX firewall to
permit SNMP traffic. SNMP traffic operates on ports 161
and 162 and requires that both TCP and UDP be allowed.

Trust relationship
You may wish to establish a “trust relationship” between the HP SIM CMS and your ESX Server
host. This will enable single sign-on (SSO) management between the CMS and the host and permit
remote task execution. Trust can be established by Name or by Certificates and is configured
through the System Management Homepage. To export the CMS certificate, go to Options Æ
Security Æ Certificates Æ Server Certificate and use the Export feature. This certificate can be
saved, then uploaded to your ESX Server host. Refer to the System Management Homepage
Installation Guide available at http://docs.hp.com/en/381372-002/381372-002.pdf for further
details.

Troubleshooting
This section describes some common problems you may encounter while discovering your ESX Server
hosts and VMs and provides some tips on how to resolve them.

My ESX Server hosts do not display the ProLiant server model or report as “unknown” or “Linux
Server”.
• Verify the HP Insight Management agents have been installed and are running.
• Verify your ESX firewall is configured to permit SNMP traffic (ports 161 and 162).
• Open a browser to the System Management Homepage (https://hostname:2381). If you are
unable to bring up SMH or if any information is missing, restart the management agents.
• Navigate to the System Page for the host in HP SIM. Expand the Product Description area and
verify that SNMP is listed as one of the Management Protocols.
• Navigate to the host’s System Protocol Settings page and verify that SNMP community string
matches the one you configured on your host. If not, override the global setting and supply the
community string you wish to use.
• Re-run Identify Systems from the Options menu.

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 For more information
Resource description Web address
HP website www.hp.com
HP ProLiant servers www.hp.com/go/proliant
HP ProLiant Server Management www.hp.com/go/hpsim
Software
HP StorageWorks www.hp.com/go/storageworks
VMware server virtualization www.hp.com/go/vmware

VMware website www.vmware.com

VMware Infrastructure www.vmware.com/products/vi/
VMware Infrastructure Documentation www.vmware.com/support/pubs/vi_pubs.html
VMware Knowledge Base www.vmware.com/kb
VMware and HP Alliance www.vmware.com/hp

Other resources
Microsoft KB Article http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=298503

© 2006 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. The information contained

herein is subject to change without notice. The only warranties for HP products
and services are set forth in the express warranty statements accompanying such
products and services. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting an
additional warranty. HP shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or
omissions contained herein.
Intel is a trademark or registered trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries
in the United States and other countries. AMD Opteron is a trademark of
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. Microsoft and Windows are U.S. registered
trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.
August 2006