ESXi 4.1 to 6.0?

[merlin2069er]

Hi, just a couple of quick questions.  I've got two physical servers running ESXi 4.1 (and two virtual machines on each). 
I've in the process of purchasing two new physical servers (but they require minimum ESXi 5.5).  So, can I upgrade my license for 4.1 to 6 or do I need to purchase new licenses for these 2 new machines. (the old servers will be shutdown after migration).

I'm looking at Veeam to backup virtual machines now (I've got the free version).  Is there any problem moving virtual machines from 4.1 to 6.0 or would they require a virtual machine upgrade? 

Lastly, if I don't change the virtual machine configuration (ie increase the ram, cpu, etc. ) will I see an improvement of these virtual machines running on the newer hardware?

Thanks,

Joe

[a_p_]

So, can I upgrade my license for 4.1 to 6 or do I need to purchase new licenses for these 2 new machines. (the old servers will be shutdown after migration).

If you have an active subscription, then you can upgrade the licenses in your My VMware portal at no cost. The recommended way - from a licensing point of view - is to install and run the new hosts in evaluation mode (which will work up to 60 days), and upgrade the licenses one the old hosts are shut down.

Is there any problem moving virtual machines from 4.1 to 6.0 or would they require a virtual machine upgrade?

Although ESXi 6.0 supports virtual hardware 4 and newer (see https://kb.vmware.com/kb/2007240‌) you may consider to upgrade the virtual hardware to be able to benefit from new features (if required). However, with ESXi 6.0 or newer you will need to upgrade VMware Tools to have a supported configuration. (see http://partnerweb.vmware.com/comp_guide2/sim/interop_matrix.php#interop&1=&39=‌)

... will I see an improvement of these virtual machines running on the newer hardware?

There may not be much improvement due to the new ESXi version. However, I guess that the new hardware will perform better.

André

[merlin2069er]

So, I can take this license from each of the physical ESXi 4.1 machines and get a free pass to 6.0?

Product: vSphere 4 Essentials Plus Licensed for 2 physical CPUs (1-6 cores per CPU)

Expires: Never

The only other thing I need to fix before I perform the migration is to shrink or thin one of the vdmk on vol3 (on my san).

I downloaded the standalone converter, but still not aware how to thin it out.

Thanks,

Joe

[merlin2069er]

I found this method from within the guest operating system...

Shrinking Virtual Disks

[a_p_]

So, I can take this license from each of the physical ESXi 4.1 machines and get a free pass to 6.0?

If your subscription is active (or was active at the time when ESXi 6.0 went GA) you will be able to upgrade the license. Simply log in to your MY VMware portal, go to the licensing section and select Upgrade License Keys from the drop down list. If the Essentials Plus 4 keys show up, you are entitled upgrade them.

I downloaded the standalone converter, but still not aware how to thin it out.

I'd suggest you setup the new environment and then run VMware Converter to do a V2V (virtual to virtual), i.e. converting from the old to the new environment. VMware Converter allows you to select an advanced mode for the disk migration where you can select the target virtual disk size.

André

[a_p_]

I found this method from within the guest operating system...

That's for VMware Workstation, which uses a different file format for the .vmdk files. This isn't the same for ESXi.

André

[merlin2069er]

Oh, the vmware tool was on our SBS.  Maybe I should stop it?