Why would a ESX 3.5 - w2k3 domain controller VM be using over 1ghz of CPU for minutes at a time and then spike to 3.5GHZ?

[Sp0cky]

This doesnt happen on my physical dc's..they are usually idling around 400mhz MAX. Any ideas? Thanks guys.

[Lightbulb]

You had indicated that you P2V this AD controller in another post.

If so are Vmware tools installed?

Is there an AV agent on system? If so disable.

Were there any hardware specific software agents on the source system. If yes get rid of them.

If I am incorrect with regards to the P2V I apologize.

[Sp0cky]

No this one was made from scratch no - ptv.

No VMware tools. That would cause the crazy CPU behavior?

No AV..yet.

[Lightbulb]

ALWAYS install Vmware tools.

Just a good idea before looking for another cause.

[Sp0cky]

ok. I will try this. oops...spoke too soon..they already have them installed.

[smudger]

Hi,

Do your ESX hosts have their ntp time source configured and working? Secondly, while your DC has VMtools installed, is the option for "Time synchronization between the virtual machine and the ESX Server operating system" option ticked?

Lastly, if all of the above is good, is your DC patched with the latest MS patches? What process using task manager or perfmon is sucking up cpu cycles?

Thanks,

Neil

[Texiwill]

Hello,

Moved to Virtual Machine and Guest OS forum.

Always remove any hardware/drivers from Windows after a P2V that do not exist within the VM, also remove all hardware or other agents from within the VM.

Best regards,
Edward L. Haletky
VMware Communities User Moderator
====
Author of the book 'VMWare ESX Server in the Enterprise: Planning and Securing Virtualization Servers', Copyright 2008 Pearson Education.
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