Difference between revisions of "Managing Hosts with the VMM Administrator Console"
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== Setting Host Reserves == | == Setting Host Reserves == | ||
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| + | ''Host Reserves'' define how much of a host's resources are to reserved for the host operating system. Once these reserves a configured, a virtual machine cannot be deployed on that host if doing so would require the use of the reserved resources. The host resources that may be reserved are as follows: | ||
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| + | * CPU Percentage | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Memory | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Disk Space | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Maximum Disk I/O Per Second (IOPS) | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Network Capacity Percentage | ||
| + | |||
| + | Host reserves are specified on a host group basis. In addition, the group reserve settings may also be overridden on a per host basis. To specify the host group reserve settings right click on the host group name in the Hosts pane, select ''Properties'' from the menu and click the ''Host Reserve Tabs'' in the ''Host Group Properties'' dialog as illustrated in the following figure: | ||
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| + | [[Image:vmm_admin_console_host_group_properties.jpg|The VMM Administrator Console Host Group Properties dialog]] | ||
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| + | In order to override the group host reserve settings, right click on the host in the list, select ''Properties'' and click on ''Reserves'' in the resulting dialog. | ||
Revision as of 15:11, 16 February 2009
In the previous chapter entitled A Guided Tour of the VMM Administrator Console we took a high level tour of the VMM 2008 Administrator Console component. This chapter is intended to over the steps necessary to manage and monitor hosts, virtual machines and libraries using the console.
Launching the VMM Administrator Console
The VMM Administrator Console may also be launched by selecting the Start->All Programs->Microsoft System Center->Virtual Machine Manager 2008->Virtual Machine Manager Administrator Console menu option. Given the depths to which this tool is buried in the menu structure, a shortcut on the Start menu or desktop (if one does not already exist) is recommended.
Alternatively, the VMM Administrator Console may be started from a command prompt window by launching the VmmAdmin.exe executable. This executable is installed by default in %ProgramFiles%\Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008\bin.
The first time that the console is launched, a dialog will appear requesting details of the computer hosting the VMM Server to which the console is to connect, and the port to be used in establishing this connection. This server name entry takes the following form:
- computername:port
For example, to connect to VMM Server running a remote system named WINSERVER using port 8100, the following server information would be entered:
- WINSERVER:8100
To connect to the VMM Server instance running on the local system, the name localhost may be entered in place of the computer name. The option is also provided to make this selection the default for future sessions, avoiding the necessity to fill in the form on future invocations. Once an appropriate server name has been specified, the Connect button will establish the connection to the VMM Server and display the VMM Administrator Console.
Adding Hosts to the VMM Administrator Console
When the VMM Administrator Console is run for the first time after installation, it does not, by default, have any hosts assigned to it. In this context, the term host is used to refer to servers running virtual machines using Hyper-V, Virtual Server VMware ESX Server virtualization technology. Since very little can be achieved using the console until some hosts are added, this is one of the first tasks to be performed.
Hosts are added to the console using the Hosts view, which is selected by clicking on Hosts option in the list of views located in the pane in the bottom left hand corner of the console window. Once the Hosts view is displayed, hosts may be added by clicking on the Add Host link in the Actions pane, or selecting the Actions->Virtual Machine Manager->Add Host menu option. Once selected, the Add Hosts wizard will appear displaying the Select Host Location screen as illustrated in the following figure:
The purpose of this screen is to specify where the host is located in terms of the logical network infrastructure. A variety of different host types may be added to the console, these being a Windows Server host running Hyper-V which is a member of an Active Directory domain, a Windows Server host running Hyper-V which is not a member of an Active Directory domain (also referred to as a perimeter network host), or a host running VMware ESX Server (regardless of whether or not it is an Active Directory domain member).
If a host on a perimeter network is specified, the host must have had the VMM Agent component installed on it before it can be added to the VMM Server. This installation process also involves the creation of an encryption key which will also need to be provided during the host addition process. For details on installing the VMM Agent on a perimeter host refer to the chapter entitled Installing VMM 2008 Components.
After selecting the host location and type, enter the user name and password credentials of an account on the host which may be used to gain access and click Next to proceed to the Select Host Servers screen.
Having defined the location of the hosts to be added, the purpose of the Select Host Servers screen is to allow selection of the specific hosts to be added to the VMM Administrator Console. To add hosts, enter the name of Active Directory domain of which the host is a member followed by the computer name. If in doubt as to the name of the computer to be added, the Search button may be used to search the specified domain for systems running either Virtual Server or Hyper-V technology. Once a list of servers has been generated, one or more hosts may be selected and added to the console. Alternatively, if you know the name of the host to be added, simply enter the name and click the Add button:
Once the required hosts have been added, click on the Next button to proceed to the Configuration Settings screen. This screen is used to define which group of hosts the machine is to be assigned to. By default, only the All Hosts group is pre-configured within the VMM Administrator Console. In addition, if the host is currently managed by a different VMM Server than the one to which the VMM Administrator Console is currently connected, select the option to Reassociate host with this Virtual Machine Manager Server.
Clicking Next display the Host Settings screen where a number of paths suitable for storing virtual machine files on the host may be defined. If no paths are specified, the default location will be used for all virtual machines created on the host using the console. Note that the console will not create any paths if they do not already exist on the host. These paths must be manually created before they can be used to store virtual machines. In addition, a remote connection port may be specified to allow remote connections to the host.
Once the host settings are defined, click Next, review the information on the Summary screen. In previous chapters we have mentioned that VMM 2008 sits on top of Windows PowerShell and that any operations performed are converted into a Windows PowerShell script and executed. To prove this, click on the View script button to display the PowerShell script which will be executed to add the host.
Assuming all is correct in the summary, click on Add hosts to add the hosts to the VMM Server. Once the addition is complete, the new host will appear in the list of hosts in the main console window.
Configuring Host Groups
In the previous section a host was added to the All Hosts group of the VMM Administrator Console. In addition to the All Hosts group, other groups may be created and existing groups removed to aid in the administration of large and complex virtualization deployments.
TO add a new host group, ensure that the VMM Administrator Console is displaying the Hosts view, right click on the All Hosts item in the Hosts pane in the top left hand corner of the window and select New host group from the menu. A new host group entry will appear with with the default name New host group highlighted. Enter a new name and press enter to complete the creation process.
To remove an existing group, right click on the group name in the Hosts pane and select Remove from the popup menu. To move a host from one group to another, select the host from the list of hosts and click on the Move to host group link in the Actions pane. Navigate through the tree of host groups to find the target group and click OK to make the move. Similarly, to add an existing host to a group, select the host group from the list, click on Add host from the Actions pane and use the wizard as described above to complete the process.
Setting Host Reserves
Host Reserves define how much of a host's resources are to reserved for the host operating system. Once these reserves a configured, a virtual machine cannot be deployed on that host if doing so would require the use of the reserved resources. The host resources that may be reserved are as follows:
- CPU Percentage
- Memory
- Disk Space
- Maximum Disk I/O Per Second (IOPS)
- Network Capacity Percentage
Host reserves are specified on a host group basis. In addition, the group reserve settings may also be overridden on a per host basis. To specify the host group reserve settings right click on the host group name in the Hosts pane, select Properties from the menu and click the Host Reserve Tabs in the Host Group Properties dialog as illustrated in the following figure:
In order to override the group host reserve settings, right click on the host in the list, select Properties and click on Reserves in the resulting dialog.
