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girishv
Contributor
Contributor

help installing Windows Home Server on ESXi U3

Hello All, Thank you to all those who reply...

I'm trying to install Windows Home Server as a VM. Install goes fine and i read that it needs atleast 80GB to install so i dedicated enough space.

after detection it stops and says it cannot find a hard drive to install to.

I've attached a screenshot. Any suggestions would be really appreciated

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Jasemccarty
Immortal
Immortal

I think I did this once, in Workstation.

What SCSI driver are you using?

Jase McCarty

http://www.jasemccarty.com

Co-Author of VMware ESX Essentials in the Virtual Data Center

(ISBN:1420070274) from Auerbach

Jase McCarty - @jasemccarty
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Dave_Mishchenko
Immortal
Immortal

Your post has been moved to the VI: Virtual Machine and Guest OS forum. If you search for home server in this forums you'll find some references to adding SCSI drivers to the install process.

Dave Mishchenko

VMware Communities User Moderator

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girishv
Contributor
Contributor

I'm not using any SCSI driver. I've read posts where people have tried doing this under Workstation and downloaded vmscsi-1.2.0.4.flp which i tried but i had no luck. Unless if i am doing something wrong???

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Jasemccarty
Immortal
Immortal

Well, ESXi (like ESX) doesn't support IDE hard disks.

So you'll have to configure the guest to have SCSI hard drives.

Windows 2003 (what Home Server is based on) normally works best in a VM using the LSILogic SCSI controller (SCSI type in a guest configuration)

You'll have to go to LSI's side, and make a floppy to get these drivers.

If you tell the VM to use a BusLogic SCSI controller (and it should work), you can use the .flp that you downloaded already.

Then on boot up of your VM, do like you would with Windows XP or Windows 2000, and choose F6 to select an additional storage driver. Then point to your mounted .flp.

That should get you started.

Jase McCarty

http://www.jasemccarty.com

Co-Author of VMware ESX Essentials in the Virtual Data Center

(ISBN:1420070274) from Auerbach

Jase McCarty - @jasemccarty
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girishv
Contributor
Contributor

i'm giving this a shot as i Write. The problem is that Win Home Server install doesn't bring me to an option where i can press F6 and install driver or choose it.

Also if i was to choose LSI Logic which driver would i be downloading from LSI site. I am not quite sure which product to choose and the line is never ending. Please point in to the right direction.

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girishv
Contributor
Contributor

awesome awesome guys... i see what i was doing wrong.. i wasn't connecting the floppy drive to the image correctly first of all... and it does give me the option to browse to the vmscsi driver...the space is now being detected just fine...thanks a lot for your help.

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kosburn
Contributor
Contributor

So, what driver did you download from the LSI site to make this work?

Thanks,

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trnkaj
Contributor
Contributor

You must change driver for the SCSI Controller from LSI to BusLogic

Go WHS a good luck Smiley Happy

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tlindi
Enthusiast
Enthusiast

Hi

I had same issue.

Solved as following. Create LSI disk for WHS.

Use floppyimage from attached zip. I got it from thread : http://communities.vmware.com/thread/205509

after 1st boot on installation press F6 and S to provide floppy. Setup complains that driver is older than in installation media. Select "Use anyway", and WHS will install.

Voilá! Smiley Happy

Referring to thread driver version in lsi.flp is :

Windows 2000

WHQL 1.10.02

04-JAN-05

SYMMPI.INF - version 2K.9 (Windows 2000)

Driver Version: 1.09.11

Driver Date: 10/08/2003

t.omi

btw. I had ESXi 3.5 U4

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