Create vCenter Cluster with VMWare Workstation (1): Lab Design

Learn this information to discover ways to create a vCenter cluster with VMWare Workstation Professional 17 VMs as VMWare ESXi hosts. To make this a simple learn, I’ve divided the guides into 5 components.

This primary half explains the lab setup.

Overview

VMWare Workstation Professional 17 helps nested virtualization which lets you flip a VM into VMWare ESXi hosts. I’m utilizing this characteristic on this article to construct a vCenter Cluster utilizing two digital machines.

The setup described on this article is for lab or check functions. It isn’t really helpful to put in VMWare ESXi hosts on VMWare Workstation in a manufacturing surroundings.

I’m constructing this lab as a part of my lab for my article collection on migrating VMWare VMs to Hyper-V utilizing System Heart Digital Machine Supervisor (SCVMM).

In case you intend to observe the steps on this 8-part collection, use the steps beneath to plan your lab setup.

Step 1: Plan the Lab {Hardware} Configuration

That will help you arrange this lab, my VMWare Workstation Professional 17 is put in in a Home windows 11 HP Envy x360 Convertible laptop computer with these specs:

The desk beneath outlines the VMWare Workstation VM specs and their capabilities.

*IPMvCSA is NOT a VMWare Workstation VM however a vCenter equipment. We’ll create this after we set up vCenter Equipment 8 partially 5 of this information.

The VMWare Workstation Professional PC (Home windows 11 on HP ENVY x360 Convertible) is called IPMpVMW2. The 2 NICs on the ESXi Host VMs might be Teamed.

Later, I’ll configure the Home windows iSCSI Server to make use of the 1 TB drive within the VMWare Workstation host as an iSCSI storage. This might be used because the Datastore for the VMWare ESXi hosts.

If the pc you’re putting in VMWare Workstation Professional (IPMpVMW2) doesn’t have a second 1 TB onerous drive, use an exterior USB drive. Nevertheless, it is very important point out that the disk must be not less than 1 TB if you happen to intend to make use of the setup on this information.

Step 2: Plan the Lab Community Configuration

Lastly, the desk beneath particulars the community configurations for the hosts.

The default gateway is the IP tackle of my router whereas the DNS server is a Home windows Server 2019 VM hosted on one other laptop computer.

Step 3: Create Partitions on the iSCSI Disk

1. Log in to the pc you’ll be putting in the VMWare Workstation Professional.
2. Then, right-click the Home windows Begin menu and choose Disk Administration.

3. If the disk is offline, right-click it and choose On-line.

Deleting the partition (or quantity) on a disk wipes all information. Earlier than you carry out step 4, copy all information on the disk to a different location.

4. After that, delete all current partitions by right-clicking the partition and deciding on Delete Quantity.

After deleting the volumes/partition, you’ll create two volumes. The primary quantity (300 GB) might be used to save lots of VMs partially 2 of this information. In the meantime, the second quantity (makes use of the remaining house on the disk) might be used to create iSCSI LUMs for use by the ESXi hots.

5. Proper-click the “Unallocated house” on the disk and choose New Easy Quantity.

6. On the primary web page of the wizard, click on Subsequent. Then, on the Specify Quantity Measurement web page, enter 620000 (620 GB) on the Easy quantity measurement discipline.

I’m utilizing 620 GB to make sure I’ve sufficient house on the quantity. It’s because whenever you create a quantity, a few of the house is retained by the Working System.

7. Then, on the Assign Drive Letter or Path web page, choose Don’t assign a drive letter or path.

We’re not assigning a drive letter to this partition as a result of partially 4, we might connect this quantity (partition) to the iSCSI VM and use the disk to create a Home windows Server 2022 iSCSI goal.

8. On the Format Partition web page, choose “Don’t format this quantity.” As soon as once more, we don’t have to partition the quantity for causes I defined earlier.

9. Lastly, evaluate your alternatives and click on End to create the quantity.
10. Proper-click the free house once more, and create one other quantity.

11. This time, expend the remaining drive house (333852 MB, in my instance) to create the quantity.

Assign the quantity a drive letter and format it. You may additionally give the quantity a label for ease of identification – I gave mine “VMStorage.”

Whenever you end, you need to have two partitions (volumes). The primary one (barely above 600 GB must be uncooked whereas the second must be assigned a drive letter and formatted.

Earlier than you progress on to the following part, create a folder referred to as “VMWare” – you’ll save all downloaded app set up information to this folder as we progress on this collection.

Step 4: Set up VMWare Workstation Professional 17

On this final half, you’ll obtain VMWare Workstation 17.0 Professional and set up it on the pc you’re utilizing for this lab setup. I’ll set up mine on an HP Envy x360 Convertible laptop computer operating Home windows 11.

Listed below are the steps. I didn’t embody screenshots as a result of the set up is fairly simple.

1. Create a free Broadcom account and sign up. In case you’re not conscious, Broadcom now owns VMWare!
2. Then, click on the VMware Workstation Professional Obtain hyperlink – it’ll load in your Broadcom account web page.
3. Broaden VMWare Workstation 17.0 Professional for Private use (Home windows) and click on the hyperlink to the most recent model.
4. On the following web page, settle for the license settlement and click on the obtain hyperlink
5. Save the exe file within the “VMWare Workstation” folder
6. Double-click the downloaded exe file to begin the set up
7. Click on Subsequent (settle for defaults) for the remainder of the set up.

Now that we now have sorted out the lap setup and configurations, let’s proceed to half two of this information – creating the VMWare Workstation VMs.

Learn half 2: Obtain ESXi ISO (hyperlink opens in a brand new browser tab).