VMware ESXi, vSphere and vCenter
Top Stories
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News
16 Dec 2024
Broadcom, AT&T settle lawsuit over VMware support
The companies have 'reached a settlement-in-principle,' but the telecom giant has indicated it's planning an exit from the virtualization platform. Continue Reading
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News
31 Oct 2024
Broadcom adds services to basic VMware subscriptions
These changes might be moot if Broadcom remains focused on its largest customers, according to one expert. Continue Reading
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Tip
24 Oct 2013
One way to rev up critical VM performance? Make a priority list
All virtual machines are equal, but some are more equal than others. Here's how to make sure critical virtual machines get the attention they crave. Continue Reading
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Definition
09 Oct 2013
VMware vSphere App HA
VMware vSphere App HA is virtual appliance introduced with vSphere 5.5. It works with vSphere HA (high availability) host monitoring and virtual machine monitoring to improve application uptime. Continue Reading
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Tip
27 Sep 2013
What's the best number of virtual machines for a data store?
The best number of virtual machines on each data store depends on, among other things, the performance needs of each virtual machine. Continue Reading
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Tip
19 Aug 2013
Correcting misconfigured ESXi shared storage settings
IT shops that started small may find they need to update their ESXi shared storage settings to prevent significant issues when a host fails. Continue Reading
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Definition
07 Aug 2013
VMware vCenter Mobile Access (VMware vCMA)
VMware vCenter Mobile Access (VMware vCMA) is a virtual appliance used by admins to manage a data center from mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. Continue Reading
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Quiz
02 Jul 2013
VMware DRS quiz: Rules, settings, requirements and best practices
Knowing how to use VMware DRS is key to getting the most out of vSphere, so quiz yourself on its features. A high score could mean high utilization. Continue Reading
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Definition
10 Jun 2013
VMware vCenter Server Heartbeat (vCSHB)
VMware vCenter Server Heartbeat (vCSHB) is VMware's OEM version of NeverFail, which is designed to ensure the high availability and disaster recovery of vCenter Server whether on a LAN or a Wireless Wide Area Network. Continue Reading
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Tip
08 May 2013
VMware snapshot size and other causes for slow snapshots
Snapshots offer multiple restore points for VMs, but add complication. Poor performance can stem from the VMware snapshot size and other root causes. Continue Reading
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Answer
01 Apr 2013
Is VMware Capacity Planner free?
Many consultants offer VMware Capacity Planner free to interested virtualization admins, but if you dread their sales pitch, consider vBenchmark. Continue Reading
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Definition
14 Mar 2013
Changed Block Tracking (CBT)
VMware Changed Block Tracking is an incremental backup technology for virtual machines (VMs), comparable to snapshot differential or backup delta block. Continue Reading
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Tip
05 Mar 2013
Moving VM testing from VMware vSphere ESX/ESXi to Workstation
VMware admins can't skip VM testing just because it eats up vSphere resources. Testing ESX/ESXi VMs in VMware Workstation frees up vSphere for production. Continue Reading
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Definition
12 Feb 2013
VMware template
A VMware template is a perfect, model copy of a virtual machine from which you can clone, convert or deploy more virtual machines. Continue Reading
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Definition
06 Feb 2013
VMware vApp
A VMware vApp is a collection of virtual machines (VMs) and sometimes other vApps that host a multi-tier application, its policies and service levels. Continue Reading
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Definition
25 Jan 2013
VMware VMCI (VMware Virtual Machine Communication Interface)
VMware VMCI (Virtual Machine Communication Interface) is a high-speed interface that virtual machines (VMs) on the same host use to communicate with each other and the host kernel modules. Continue Reading
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Tip
14 Jan 2013
VMware Workstation encryption prevents unauthorized VM access
VMware Workstation encryption helps you protect information on VMs from unauthorized users. Learn how -- and when -- to encrypt virtual machines. Continue Reading
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Feature
14 Jan 2013
VMware VADP and vSphere Data Protection FAQs
VStorage API for Data Protection replaced VMware Consolidated Backup and VMware Data Recovery. It works with VMware Data Protection and other tools. Continue Reading
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Quiz
28 Nov 2012
VMware terminology quiz: Do you speak virtualization?
Thought you left vocab quizzes back in the classroom? See if you've grasped the VMware and virtualization lingo by taking our definitions quiz. Continue Reading
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Definition
28 Nov 2012
VMware resource pool
A VMware resource pool is the aggregated physical compute hardware -- CPU and memory, as well as other components -- allocated to virtual machines (VMs) in a VMware virtual infrastructure. Continue Reading
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Quiz
02 Jul 2012
Pop quiz: VMware snapshots 101
VMware snapshots play an important part in backing up many virtual infrastructures, but how well do you understand how they work? Take this quiz to find out. Continue Reading
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Tip
23 May 2012
Installing a CIM provider to improve vSphere Client host monitoring
While ESXi includes support for many popular hardware platforms, comprehensive server health monitoring with the vSphere Client sometimes requires installing the correct CIM provider. Continue Reading
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Definition
30 Apr 2012
VMware Lab Manager
VMware Lab Manager is a software development and testing tool that enables designers and engineers to pool network and storage resources ... (Continued) Continue Reading
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Tip
05 Apr 2012
Designing a virtual environment with VMware Capacity Planner
Using VMware Capacity Planner to inventory data center resources and project hardware needs, IT pros can save time and money when planning a virtual environment. Continue Reading
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Definition
28 Nov 2011
Storage Distributed Resource Scheduler (DRS)
VMware DRS (Distributed Resource Scheduler) is a load balancing utility that assigns and moves computing workloads to available hardware resources in a virtualized environment. Continue Reading
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Tip
27 Sep 2011
ESXi console tech support mode: When the vSphere Client isn’t enough
The ESXi console and its tech support mode can solve many issues that the vSphere Client can’t. Once enabled, you have the power of the Linux command line at your disposal. Continue Reading
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Tip
12 Jul 2011
Configuring the ESXi firewall in VMware vSphere 5
The ESXi 5 hypervisor has a new firewall, similar to the ESX firewall of yore. You can configure it through the vSphere Client or command line, depending on your preference. Continue Reading
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Tutorial
12 May 2011
VMware storage options and Storage vMotion: A guide
VMware storage options include VMFS, thin provisioning, NFS and block-level storage. Virtualization storage features such as VMware Storage vMotion also help protect VM data. Continue Reading
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Tip
11 May 2011
Deleting virtual machine snapshots without wasting disk space
You can avoid wasting disk space and performance problems when deleting, or committing, virtual machine snapshots. Continue Reading
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Tip
28 Jun 2010
VMware vSphere's built-in performance monitoring tools
VMware vSphere features several free performance monitoring tools that can help assess the health of your virtual machines and fix resource bottlenecks. Continue Reading
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Tip
24 May 2010
Troubleshooting VMware snapshots
Virtual machine (VM) snapshots are a great tool to identify problems with VMs. An expert explains troubleshooting common problems that arise with snapshots in VMware ESX Server. Continue Reading
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Tip
16 Dec 2009
What is the free VMware OVFTOOL and how can it help you?
VMware's OVFTOOL is a conversion program that eases distribution of virtual machines, converting them from the OVF format to .VMX, .OVA, .VMX files and others. Continue Reading
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Tip
28 Aug 2009
PowersHell: Factory Reset of ESXi
During the course of my travels in powersHell with VMware – I’ve begun to put together my own JACS (Just-Another-Configuration-Script). The idea is to take a clean-factory set ESXi build, and use purely powersHell to configure it. Continue Reading
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Tip
23 Jul 2009
Installing VMware ESXi on a physical server
In this two-part series, we show you how to convert an existing physical server into a virtual machine, then how to install VMware ESXi on the server hardware and load the virtual machine back onto it. Continue Reading
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Tip
23 Feb 2009
Why you should delete outdated vCenter Server data
With SQL commands, you can delete superfluous vCenter Server database information and save disk space and boost system performance. But you need to monitor database table size. Continue Reading
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Tip
23 Feb 2009
Recovering RDM data with VMware ESX troubleshooting
Accidentally deleting important VMware ESX partitions cost our expert raw device mapping data. But a last attempt with an unlikely solution finally saved the day – and the data. Continue Reading
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Tip
03 Dec 2008
Understanding VMware ESX virtual machine physical and virtual hardware
You can better manage virtual machines by understanding the virtual hardware that makes up a VM. This tip explores VM physical and virtual hardware issues, including configuring virtual hardware and assigning virtual memory. Continue Reading
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Tip
14 Jul 2008
VMware VI Client plug-ins and how to manage them
VMware VI Client plug-ins can provide a VirtualCenter implementation with a functionality boost. Discover more on plug-in management tactics and plug-in options, including the Juxtaposition RDP plug-in, in this tip. Continue Reading
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Tip
26 Jun 2008
Obtaining server health status in VMware ESX and VMware ESXi
VMware ESXi can easily provide you with information about a server's CPU, memory, storage and more, but getting this info from ESX Server requires some additional steps. Continue Reading
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Tip
25 Jun 2008
Storage options for virtual machines: Raw device mappings, VMFS
Virtual Machine File System is VMware's preferred storage option for virtual machines, but raw device mapping provides similar performance and can be a better choice depending on the specific storage configuration. Continue Reading
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Definition
16 Jun 2008
embedded hypervisor
An embedded hypervisor is a hypervisor that is programmed (embedded) directly into a processor, personal computer (PC) or server. This architecture offers convenience at the cost of some flexibility compared with conventional hypervisors ... (Continued) Continue Reading
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Tip
11 Jun 2008
VMware Site Recovery Manager: How it can help you
VMware's Site Recovery Manager (SRM) application enhances the disaster recovery capabilities of your virtual environment. An expert discusses SRM implementation and use in this tip. Continue Reading
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Tip
03 Jun 2008
Troubleshooting common VMware ESX host server problems
Get a grip on potential VMware ESX host server problems including the purple screen of death, a frozen service console, and rebuilding your network configurations after they've been lost. Continue Reading
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Tip
12 Mar 2008
Troubleshooting failed VMware Converter P2V migrations
A failed VMware Converter physical-to-virtual migration has numerous sources of potential failure, and even your best-laid plans may not prevent a problem. But this tip offers detailed troubleshooting to identify the problem. Continue Reading
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Tip
06 Feb 2008
VMware DRS and VMotion: Improve workload balance, prevent problems
Learn how both VMware DRS and VMotion work individually, how they work together, and get configuration tips for optimal virtual machine performance in an environment that takes advantage of both technologies. Continue Reading