Deploy template w/o vCenter...

[calamittyjane]

Greetings...  I have a Windows Server2008 virtual machine that has been cloned into a Template via functionality in vCenter.   I need to deploy this template in our development environment which consists of an ESXi 5.1 host, and a vSphere client running  against it.  We don't have vCenter running in our dev. environment.   Question:  How can I deploy this template w/o vCenter being present?   Is it as simple as running a converter of some sort against the VMDK file, then creating a new VM from scratch & pointing to the 'existing virtual disk'?   The only trick there, is that in the DataStore, I have two VMDK files:     filename.vmdk  and  filename_1.vmdk  Thanks!

[JPM300]

Keep a "Golden Image" VM that you want to use as your template, everytime you want to re-deploy a new system from it, clone it and run Windows Sys prep on it and away you go.  It's a little more manual work but its the only way I can think of achieving the same result without vCenter.

[krish290785]

You have to convert the template to the VM in the vCenter first. Then copy the VM to the ESXi host. For each new vm that you want to deploy, You can use the "vmkfstools -i" to clone the virtual disk and add the new disk to the new VM. You may wish to run the sysprep manually for if required.

[calamittyjane]

So I can't clone the virtual disk with the vm sitting in 'template' form as it sits now?   It must be converted to a VM, then the virtual disk cloned, then converted back to a template?  Thanks!

[JPM300]

Without vCenter I don't think you'll be able to clone the template, you might be able to copy the VMDK file from the datastore then create a new VM with an existing disk.  However if you do it this way you will need to still sys prep it once it comes online.

Otherwise you will need to convert the template back to a VM and clone that everytime you want to deploy a VM.

[krish290785]

My bad. I thought you wanted to move the complete vm folder to the standalone esxi which would not recognize the template format. Yes, You can clone the vmdk using vmkfstools and then move it to your destination standalone esxi and map it to a vm.

[calamittyjane]

Just to be clear -- I've got a vm sitting in a 'template' format on my DataStore currently.   I want to be able to run this same vm on our segregated development ESXi server, which does not have vCenter as part of the deployment.  The Template will still reside where it is, I just want to run that same OS in our dev environment...   Also note that I seem to have two VMDK files:   'filename.vmdk' and  'filename_1.vmdk'  They have different sizes and different last-touched dates...

1.) Take [one of] the vmdk files and clone it:   vmkfstools -i  <sourceFileName>   <destFileName>

2.) Copy the  resulting VMDK to our dev env DataStore.

3.) Initiate creation of a new virtual machine on Dev env.  Navigate to the VMDK file I copied in, when asked what Virtual Disk to use ("Use Existing Virtual Disk").

I think that sounds about right....

[JPM300 · Accepted solution]

Yes that looks right.

that othe rfilename_1.vmdk shoudl be a second disk on that VM.  So when that template was created it looks like someone added a second drive to the VM.  so a C:\drive which would be the filename.vmdk and a E:\Data drive or something which would be the filename_1.vmdk

Also since you can't run the configuration wizard which is part of a template deployment you will have to sys prep the windows VM after it boots up to get a unquie identity otherwise you will run into duplicate SIDs in Active Directory

Hope this has helped.

[calamittyjane]

Yes!  This Windows vm does see two physical disks actually.  So, I need to run the cloning utility on both disks...   Then create the new vm using the 'filename.vmdk'.  Then before I start Windows, add another Hard Disk, and point to the 'filename_1.vmdk'.  This way, Windows will see its two physical disks.....

[JPM300]

Yup that is correct, after Windows boots up for the first time you will want to run sysprep by going Start > Run > c:\Windows\System32\sysprep\sysprep.exe and select System Cleanup Action: Enter System Out-of-Box Experience, and select the Generalize option so it generates a new SID.