Category: VMware

How to Update ESXi 6.5 with Update Manager

Constantin Ghioc Leave a comment

In this article I will demonstrate how to easily update ESXi 6.5 using Update Manager.

In this demonstration I will use vCenter Update Manager, so I must have the proper vCenter version already installed. As a rule of thumb, you always need to update vCenter Server before ESXi (vSphere). Update process for VMware solutions can be tricky, so for specific order update for VMware products I suggest you to check KB2147289.

Note: If you look for VCSA update instructions, check this article: How to Update vCenter Server Appliance to 6.5 Update 1b.

Check vCenter and ESXi versions

I will connect to my vCenter Server using vSphere Web Client and I will check the vCenter version. As you can see below, I am running vCenter version 6.5.0, build 6816762, which is the latest version at the moment I am writing this article.

Update ESXi - Check vCenter Version

Next, I will check ESXi version. I navigate in the left panel to the ESXi server I plan to update (esx1.lab.local). In the right panel, I can see the installed product: VMware ESXi 6.5.0 build 5310536.

Update ESXi - Check ESXi Version

I will use now my.vmware.com site.to find the latest version for ESXi 6.5. As you can see below, latest build is 6765664. Take note of the Bulletin Number, we will use it later: ESXi650-201710401-BG.

Update ESXi - MyVMware

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Update vCenter Server Appliance

How to Update vCenter Server Appliance to 6.5 Update 1b

Constantin Ghioc Leave a comment

On 26 October 2017, VMware released VMware vCenter Server 6.5 Update 1b. In this article I will show you how to easily update vCenter Server Appliance (VCSA) from version 6.5.x to the latest 6.5 Update 1b using vCenter Server Appliance Management Interface (VAMI). This version is also identified by version number 6.5.01100  and build number 6816762 (you can check KB2143838 for all vCenter build and version numbers – unfortunately VMware is a little behind to update this KB article).

Note: If you look for VCSA installation instructions, check this article: How to Install VCSA 6.5 (VMware vCenter Server Appliance).

In my case, I will update vCenter Server Appliance from 6.5.0.5500 build 5318154 to the latest 6.5.0.11000 build 6816762. I will start by accessing VAMI, on port 5480 of the vCenter Server (https://vcenter.lab.local:5480/ for my lab). I will authenticate with root user and corresponding password.

Update vCenter Server Appliance - VAMI Login

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VMUG Romania Survey

VMUG Romania Survey

Constantin Ghioc Leave a comment

Together with Razvan Ionescu and Mihai Huica, I try to find ways to make VMUG Romania meetings more attractive.

For now, we try to gather more details about our audience and about the needs of all the participants. We came out with a survey: we want to know what they use in their day-to-day activities and about which topics they want to learn about. We are also interested to find few logistics details (like on which part of Bucharest is preferred or when is the best time to run the meetings).

To keep things short, this is an invite for all VMware users from Romania to tell us what they think we can improve at VMUG Romania. Nothing to worry, it’s an anonymous survey, hosted by Google, we don’t collect any personal data.

Click here for VMUG Romania Survey

If you want to find more details about our meetings, you can read a report on the latest VMUG Romania meeting.

How to Trust vCenter SSL Certificate

Constantin Ghioc Leave a comment

These days it’s easy to find small environments where VMware vCenter SSL certificate is not signed by a proper certification authority. For example, you just installed vCenter Server in your lab as described in How to Install VCSA 6.5 (VMware vCenter Server Appliance).

Below picture is something you see often in these environments. In this article I will show how to trust all vCenter issued certificates on a single Windows computer. This will take care of vCenter SSL certificate and also the ESXi servers certificates (only for the ESXi servers under vCenter management, of course) in Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge and Google Chrome.

vCenter SSL Certificate - Internet Explorer Error

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How to Install VCSA 6.5 (VMware vCenter Server Appliance)

Constantin Ghioc Leave a comment

In this article I will show you how to install VCSA 6.5 (VMware vCenter Server Appliance).

To start, you need an installation kit of vCenter Server Appliance 6.5. For this article, I will use the VCSA version I downloaded from my VMUG Advantage account (VMware-VCSA-all-6.5.0-5318154.iso).

Note: If you look for VCSA update instructions, check this article: How to Update vCenter Server Appliance to 6.5 Update 1b.

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How to Install VMware vSphere 6.5

Constantin Ghioc Leave a comment

In this article I will show you how to install VMware vSphere 6.5.

To start, you need an installation kit of vSphere 6.5. For this article, I will use the vSphere version I downloaded from my VMUG Advantage account (VMware-VMvisor-Installer-201704001-5310538.x86_64.iso).

You need to boot from the image you downloaded. This operation highly depends on the medium and the maker of the system where you are going to install vSphere, so I will not go into specifics. For example, I will install vSphere into a virtual machine (a configuration unsupported by VMware, but often seen in home labs), so I will just mount the iso file into the cd drive and power on the VM.

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Latest vCenter and Latest Chrome = No Love

Constantin Ghioc 6 Comments

Yesterday I first noticed this Flash plugin crash in my Chrome soon after I entered my vCenter credentials: “Shockwave Flash has crashed – Reload”.
Flash crash in Chrome

I’m running vCenter Server Appliance 6.5 Update 1 (6.5.0.10100 Build Number 6671409) and Chrome Version 61.0.3163.100 (Official Build) (32-bit). Initially I thought this is something related to my setup, I reverted to the old Internet Explorer to do my job, and I forgot about the error.

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Into the Lab – This version of vCenter Server does not support Deploy OVF Template…

Constantin Ghioc Leave a comment

When trying to start the “Deploy OVF Template” wizard from vSphere Web Client 6.5, you may meet this error:

Deploy OVF template error

This version of vCenter Server does not support Deploy OVF Template using this version of vSphere Web Client. To Deploy OVF Template, login with version 6.5.0.0 of vSphere Web Client.

This error was reported for earlier versions of vSphere 6.5 and VMware released this KB article. VMware added a fix in VMware vCenter Server Appliance 6.5 b.

The issue reappeared in some cases after a new upgrade to the latest vSphere 6.5 Update 1 and it’s treated in the second KB article.

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VMUG Romania

VMUG Romania Meeting Report

Constantin Ghioc Leave a comment

VMUG Romania held today the third meeting of the year (a record in itself) in the north part of Bucharest, practically in the area with the highest concentration of IT workers. The main meeting sponsor, Orange, hosted us in one of its modern headquarters.

As usual, Razvan Ionescu and Mihai Huica (the two VMUG Romania co-leaders) welcomed the participants and took care of all the logistics.

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