Auto starting VM's

[kevin79]

I have a potentially stupid and easy question... I just setup VC for my two ESX hosts. I'm in the process of configuring HA and DRS as well. On the off chance that both ESX boxes shut down at the same time (power failure), how do I set it up so that VC will automatically start my VM's? Can I set them up to start in a specific order?

[merse]

Have a look at the host configuration tab in the VIC, there is a Virtual Machine Startup / Shutdown link to do just what you need.

[kevin79]

I don't see that option... Is it done via each ESX host, so I need to specify what VM starts on each host?

[merse · Accepted solution]

Hmmm, not sure why - it is visible whether my VIC is connected to VirtualCenter or direct to an ESX host...

You have one of the hosts selected in the left hand pane? The configuration is split into two sections; Hardware and Software - Virtual Machine Startup / Shutdown is third in the list under software...

Yes you need to specify the order on the host that the VM is currently running on.

[mittim12]

If you are using ESX 3.0.1 and are planning on setting the auto start options please make sure you install the patch below. If this patch is not installed and you restart the VMware management service it could reboot your VM's.

http://www.vmware.com/support/vi3/doc/esx-7557441-patch.html

[kevin79]

Thanks. So it is just like if you didn't have VC.