With the core infrastructure of my lab setup it’s now time to install vCenter to make management of my servers much easier. Prerequisites Before we begin it is important to add your desired vCenter name into your DNS before you try to install your appliance. If you forget to do this it will result in the appliance failing to install and you will need to […]
Windows Server 2019 KMS Setup
If you’re currently looking for a KMS setup guide then I am guessing you’re probably licensed for Server 2019 with downgrade rights to 2016.
Even if your not ready to upgrade your infrastructure to Windows Server 2019 it does makes sense to at least have your KMS server installed as the highest available level for future growth.
Windows Server 2016 KMS Setup
There is an issue with using the Roles and Feature Wizard that will result in the wizard crashing before completion.
For this reason I am going to walk you through setting up your KMS server via PowerShell and activating via command prompt.
Primary Domain Controller Setup
Note: Before you begin adding your domain controller roles make sure your target server has a static IP address. Add PDC Roles and Features To create a primary Domain controller start Server Manager: Click Manage Click Add Roles and Features Click Role Based on Featured Installation and click Next followed by clicking Next again on the Server Selection page. On the Server Roles selection page […]
Configuring vSphere Web Management
After a fresh install of vSphere on a host it can only be accessed via a directly connected keyboard and monitor. To configure vSphere so you can access the network management press the F2 key at the following screen. At the authentication screen you will want to use root for the login name and whatever password was entered during the initial installation. Once you have […]
Installing vSphere
Installing vSphere is a pretty straight forward process. Once you boot off your media that contains the vSphere installation files you will be greeted by the VMware welcome screen. Press F11 to accept the EULA and continue Next VMware will want to know where to install vSphere. This is probably the only part in the installation process where thought consideration needs to take place. I’d […]
Creating a Bootable VMware ESXi USB Drive
vSphere installer comes in an ISO format however VMware doesn’t have any official tool to convert that image to a bootable USB drive. The 3rd party tool Rufus is the quickest and easiest way to convert that image so you can load vSphere on those hosts that don’t have a CD-ROM drive. The steps are pretty simple: From the drop down select your USB drive […]
A Look at the Lenovo ThinkServer RS160
When I started looking to purchase a server for my lab I originally looked at Dell and Lenovo. In the end I decided to go with Lenovo mainly because I used to be a partner with them, knew their products, and most importantly I knew I would not be locked to using only licensed Lenovo hardware. The pair of ThinkServer RS160s and RAM were the […]
Home Lab (Visio Planning)
With all my hardware purchased and currently on the way, the next step for this project will be to plan out the networking architecture. To get an idea of how everything will flow together I created a quick Visio chart to represent my intended network layout. Maintaining the expectation that this lab would be something you might see in a small business I intend to […]
Home Lab (Pre-planning)
Over the next few weeks I will be building out two home labs from scratch. A production lab with the expectation that it can sustain a small business user environment of up to 25 users. A demo lab that will be used for testing before doing a professional install. While I call the first environment a “lab”, it will actually function as the backbone to […]
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