Category Archives: VMware

vCenter Appliance without DHCP server

If you don’t have an active DHCP server, and/or your newly installed vCenter Server Appliance isn’t acquiring an IP address upon startup, you may need to use VI to statically assign an IP configuration.

1) Login into the console as root. The default password is vmware.

2) Type the following command to navigate to the interface configuration file:

vi /etc/sysconfig/networking/devices/ifcfg-eth0

3) You’ll now be viewing the interface configuration file. You can use the arrow keys to navigate to the different lines of the config. Firstly, you’ll want to make sure BOOTPROTO=static, and STARTMODE=auto. Lastly, you’ll want to add the following 5 lines:

TYPE=Ethernet
USERCONTROL=no
IPADDR=IP_ADDRESS
NETMASK=SUBNET
BROADCAST=IP_BROADCAST_ADDRESS

The final config should look like the following:

DEVICE=eth0
BOOTPROTO=static
STARTMODE=auto
TYPE=Ethernet
USERCONTROL=no
IPADDR=IP_ADDRESS
NETMASK=SUBNET
BROADCAST=IP_BROADCAST_ADDRESS

4) Now that you’re finished editing the NIC config, press ESC, press shift+; and then type wq and press Enter. It should say that ifcfg-eth0 has been written.

5) Type service network restart

6) You should now be able to see the vCenter login page via https://vCenter_IP_ADDRESS:5480. Keep in mind that there is no default gateway on the appliance, so you will only be able to access the webpage from a box on the local subnet. Login to the web interface and assign a default gateway from there.

Adding/Editing VMware Virtual Disk

You can edit an existing or create new virtual disk by using the VMware vSphere client. This is very helpful when needing to add space to an existing VMs disk or creating a new one altogether.

1. Log into vCenter or your stand alone ESXi host with the vSphere client:

2. Locate the VM you want to modify, and select Edit Settings:

3. You can see the existing virtual disks in the hardware list. Once highlighted, you can adjust the size of the VD. You can also see the disk type, the disks datastore location, and name of the actual VMDK file. From this screen you can also select Add… to add a new virtual disk: