Installing and Configuring vCenter Server

Question 1

vCenter Server and vCenter Database Requirements

Answer 1

Number of CPUs: 2
Processor: 2.0 GHz or higher Intel or AMD processor
Memory: 8 GB minimum
Disk Storage: 4 GB minimum
Operating System: 64-bit (See the vSphere Compatibility Matrixes in the vSphere Installation and Setup Guide as noted.)

Question 2

Sizing the vCenter Server Database

Answer 2

http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs

Question 3

vCenter Server Software Requirements

Answer 3

The software requirements for your vCenter Server will depend completely on whether you choose a Windows-based installation or the vCenter Appliance.

http: //www.vmware.com/resources/compatibility/search.php
http: //kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?language=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=2091273

Question 4

Windows-Based vCenter and VCSA Comparison

Answer 4

Chart on Pg. 95 Specs similar except Database:
Windows-Based: Must be external Oracle or SQL for full scalability.
vCenter Appliance: Embedded vPostgres database or external Oracle.

Question 5

vCenter Embedded vPostgres Database vs. vCenter Server Appliance Database.

Answer 5

vCenter Embedded vPostgres Database: 20 Hosts, 200 VMs

vCenter Server Appliance Database: 1,000 Hosts, 10,000 VMs.

Question 6

Creating a Database Connection to the vCenter Server Database.

Answer 6

You need the data source name (DSN) and the object database connector address (ODBC).

Activity 2-3, Pg. 98.

Question 7

Determining Availability Requirements for vCenter Server.

Answer 7

You can still log on to individual ESXi hosts with the Windows-based vSphere Client and configure them. In addition, all the networking remains intact, and the VMs function almost normally. However, Distributed Resource Scheduler (DRS), which provides the capability to automatically migrate VMs to balance the load, will be disabled because the vCenter does those calculations and controls those moves. (Chapter 14, “Creating and Configuring VMware Clusters,” covers DRS in more detail.) The capability to restart the VMs on a host that fails (HA) will, however, be intact and will restart your VM-based vCenter just as well as any other VM. Chapter 14 also covers HA in greater detail.

So, the main question is, “How long can you continue operations without your vCenter?” If your answer is “at least a few minutes,” you might only need to make sure that HA is installed and functional in your host clusters. However, if you do not think that you ever want to lose vCenter, you might even consider using the new fault tolerance (FT) that supports up to four vCPUs with the Enterprise Plus version of vSphere. I discuss FT in detail in Chapter 15, “Planning and Implementing VMware Fault Tolerance.” If you decide to consider this option, you should consult VMware Knowledge Base article KB1024051.