What is the best way to bulk deploy and configure vSphere 5.5 servers?

[MattG]

What is the best way to bulk deploy and configure vSphere 5.5 servers?

I want to bulk deploy vSphere 5.5 servers with minimum user interaction.   Here is what I am thinking would be ideal:

• Create CSV with Mgmt MAC address and associated IP address
• Boot hosts and have Auto-Deploy auto install vSphere in stateful mode without any user prompts, adding them to a specific Cluster
• Have another CSV that Host Profiles can use to answer host specific question likes vMotion IP etc.
• When hosts are added to cluster automatically have Host Profile applied to new host

Is Auto Deploy Stateful the best option for this?

Can Host Profiles use CSV files to gather answers for input for multiple servers?

Anything else I should be aware of with this type of deployment?

Thanks,

-MattG

[grasshopper]

Hi MattG,

In case you missed it, check out the vBrownbag from last night which was really excellent.

vSphere Auto Deploy DeepDive

I'm not an auto deploy user yet, but after seeing that presentation I will say I am enticed.  The presenter (rnelson0) did discuss the benefits of stateful vs. stateless.  His example was using linux for dhcp so the file that contains the ESXi host MAC addresses was just a text file.  Perhaps there is some windows based version that would allow the reading of a csv, or you could craft the text file using Powershell (reading the csv) and then upload that to the server and then restart the required services before deploying.

Not quite a full answer to your question, but hopefully keeping the conversation going and providing some useful resources while waiting for others to chime in.

[MattG]

I'd also like to know the difference between Auto Deploy stateful vs Kickstart.

-MattG

[grasshopper]

Those would both accomplish the same thing, though kickstart would probably let you get way more granular without the need for host profiles.  As I understand it, auto-deploy will set the desired state of the new deployments using the host profile, and the final cleanup would be based on the host profile attached to the cluster (and/or via post scripts).  Kickstart takes all it's instructions from the KS.CFG that you craft.

Both options would result in a stateful install to disk, and honestly both options would likely benefit from a final PowerCLI cleanup.  We use kickstart in my shop and still throw lots of PowerCLI at things to get everything we want.  Auto-deploy seems much easier IMO though so I'll definitely be trying to learn more / test more.

[MattG]

Kickstart requires a manual step to associate it with a host correct?  If so,  this would require more hands on when talking about large deployments?

depping @lamw,

Any thoughts?

-MattG