Is VirtualCenter available for 64-bit Windows Server?

[r0ss]

I'd like to know if VMware VirtualCenter is available for 64-bit Windows Server? Thanks.

[esiebert7625]

According to the install guide it is not supported on 64-bit Windows, http://vmware.com/pdf/vi3_301_201_installation_guide.pdf

The VirtualCenter Server is supported as a service on the 32‐bit versions of these

operating systems:

! Windows 2000 Server SP4 with Update Rollup 1 (Update Rollup 1 can be

downloaded from

http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/server/evaluation/news/bulletins/roll

up.mspx)

! Windows XP Pro (at any SP level)

! Windows 2003 (all releases except 64‐bit)

VirtualCenter 2.0 installation is not supported on 64‐bit operating systems.

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Thanks, Eric

Visit my website:

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[r0ss]

Thanks for your response. The install guide is for 2.0.1 Is it possible this changed in 2.0.2?

[esiebert7625 · Accepted solution]

The Release Notes for VC 2.0.2 also do not indicate any support for VC on 64-bit OS's...

same with the just released VC 2.0.2 U1...

http://www.vmware.com/support/vi3/doc/releasenotes_vc202u1.html

It's possible this could change in the next major release of VC which is 2.5 but we'll have to wait and see once it is released.

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Thanks, Eric

Visit my website:

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[r0ss]

Thanks Eric!

[dms666]

Slight variant on the question: Is anyone running VirtualCenter 2.0.x on 64-bit windows with no known problems?

Thank you,

David

[Rynardts]

Tried to install VirtualCenter 2.0.2 on Windows Server 2003 64bit (Standard) and got a message that VC only installs on 32-bit Operating Systems

[curtisp3]

Pretty well definitive then. As you say :-(.

Thanks

[Justin_King]

Update: As of 2.5 VC still is 32bit only.

Vmware is goign to need to look at this sooner rather than later. Thier own documentation recomends that you need 2GB of memory for VC now, and they want 4GB if you place the Update Manager on the same machine. Microsoft has also stated that Server 2008 will be the last line of servers with a 32bit edition ... and thier latest line of Exhcange servers and other products that are 64bit only reflect this.

Howabaout it VMware? When we going to see some 64bit love on the VirtualCenter side?

[Swissnic]

I run a number of guests on VMServer, and want to move to full blown VC/ESX. I run a 64 bit shop, and have not had any 32-bit machines in my inventory sine 2006.

Not being able to install VC on a 64 bit machine is really poor. Even if you dont have a 64 bit product - 64 bit OSs do support 32 bit applications you know!!!!!

Get with the times VMWare, and release a 64-bit OS (compatible) version of VC!!!

[RParker]

> Microsoft has also stated that Server 2008 will be the last line of servers with a 32bit edition ... and thier latest line of Exhcange servers and other products that are 64bit only reflect this.

Even if that were true, windows 2008 will only be released this year, that being the case it still will have a minimum of a 5 year life. So there is still no urgency on the part of VM ware to support 64-bit for 5 more years, and that doesn't mean you drop Windows 2003.

I work for a development shop, and while I do share your view for 64-bit support somewhat, our company doesn't develop 64-bit apps either. Why? Because we have hundreds of clients, and NONE have expressed ANY interest in 64-bit either.

So while you may WANT 64-bit the rest of the world has no plans to move to 64-bit. Therefore from a business perspective it makes no sense to support a very small group of people that WANT 64-bit. VC works fine with 32-bit, and you can install ina VM.

[RParker]

64-bit may support 32-bit apps, but if you know that, how hard is it to setup a 2g VM that is 32-bit? It's not. So they aren't stopping you from install a 32-bit VM to run VC. That's why they support VC in a VM.

[Swissnic]

"So while you may WANT 64-bit the rest of the world has no plans to move to 64-bit. Therefore from a business perspective it makes no sense to support a very small group of people that WANT 64-bit. VC works fine with 32-bit, and you can install ina VM."

I work with Exchange 2007 offering (like many others) a managed service and consultancy. Given your statement above, your obviously not aware that Exchange 2007 is x64 only for production environments, which means MANY companies are moving though NECESSITY (not WANT) to x64 now. x64 architecture has been around for years, and all major software and hardware vendors are now supporting x64t (this obviously excludes you). VMWare supported x64 guests long before even Microsoft could, so they obviously see there is a demand for x64 computing. So stop proving your lack of knowledge of the industry and quit with the stupid comments.

Re. your comment of running VC in a VM on a x64 host is obvious, and again missing the point somewhat. I want to manage all my VM Hosts from a management server, which will not running VMServer or ESX. It has a x64 OS because it runs x64 SQL server and has vastly more than 4Gb ram. Given VMware's abilty to support x64, and the ability of x64 architecture to support 32-bit x86, there is no reason why VC should not support x64 OS's!

[Justin_King]

WinHEC 2007: Bill Laing

"Windows Server 2008 is the last 32-bit operating system that we'll produce. Post-2008, we will transition to 64-bit. Many Microsoft products are becoming 64-bit only today, because they're realizing the benefits of 64-bit computing. Exchange Server 2007, Windows Compute Cluster Server, and Windows Server Virtualization are all 64-bit only today, because they give significant benefits."

Note they have a number of offerings that are already 64bit only. This is largey due to memory constraints of 32bit IMO, but regardless its happening. I just wanted to point this out because your inital response makes it seem more like I'm spreading rumor and I wanted to ensure people that I'm not (at least I'm not intending to if MS has gone back on this annoucement and I've just not heard about it).

So while you may WANT 64-bit the rest of the world has no plans to move to 64-bit. Therefore from a business perspective it makes no sense to support a very small group of people that WANT 64-bit. VC works fine with 32-bit, and you can install ina VM.

My want is obvious, but I think it's rapidly approaching a need that I'll attempt to restate now: VIrtual Center recommends 2GB of memory for proper operation. The Update Manager also recomends 2GB of memory, and VMware's own documentation recomends 4GB if they reside on the same unit (which, imo, is a rather natural choice for location). This means that those two pieces alone cap the capability of a 32bit OS. If you get any other plug-ins you pretty much need to erect another VM or physical machine. Now the severe amount of horsepower a bunch of managerment tools require are thier own thread of discussion, but assuming you want a simple, central management portal this is going to become impossible sooner rather than later. Either VMware needs to seriously slim down thier VC server and plug-ins, or they need to allow the tools to reside on a 64bit OS that can handle them.

As for the minimum 5year life ... hard to say. 2003 is the longest run of any server OS that MS has released. 2000 was only three years, NT3 was a mere 1 (3.5 was the next year in 94, which was also replaced 2 years later by NT4). NT4 enjoyed 4 years ... but as you can see MS is rather all over the map on OS release timelines.If you mean it will be supported a minimum of 5 years I agree ... but before the next 64bit OS comes along to replace it .... too early to tell IMO.

[RParker]

> I work with Exchange 2007 offering (like many others) a managed service and consultancy. Given your statement above, your obviously not aware that Exchange 2007 is x64 only for production environments, which means MANY companies are moving though NECESSITY (not WANT) to x64 now. x64 architecture has been around for years, and all major software and hardware vendors are now supporting x64t

Really? Prove it, give me a list of these companies, because it's just not true. We have 200 clients +, and I have friends that work in MANY IT shops, I have some VP's of companies that manage IT shops, and EACH one of them tells me the same thing, 64-bit is NOT on the horizon, so show me this major software / hardware vendor list, because it's not accurate. Our company does work with MANY companies, clients, and IT shops and not ONE has said they will support 64-bit in the next 2-5 years. NOT ONE.

So explain to me how you get one list and IT managers, developers, companies AND clients say they DON'T support 64-bit......

Exchange is 1 product, it doesn't even begin to be a cross section of other products, and the only other 64-bit product by Microsoft is SQL. So tell me where even in the Microsoft family of products where you see a HUGE growth in 64-bit.... So Exhange may NEED to run 64-bit but that's ONLY 1 SYSTEM out of many we and you use, so you have 1 product that NEEDs 64-bit, big deal. That's not ALL of them is it?

> your comment of running VC in a VM on a x64 host is obvious, and again missing the point somewhat. I want to manage all my VM Hosts from a management server, which will not running VMServer or ESX. It has a x64 OS because it runs x64 SQL server and has vastly more than 4Gb ram. Given VMware's abilty to support x64, and the ability of x64 architecture to support 32-bit x86, there is no reason why VC should not support x64 OS's!

No it's you that's missing the point. You said you don't have a single 32-bit environment, what does that have to do with managing VC from a 32-bit VM? Is 1 lonely 32-bit VM going to really hinder your management of the environment? NO. And we have a physical box that ONLY has 2G of RAM, so apparently you are missing the point, you don't NEED a 64-bit > 4Gb RAM machine to run VC, it runs just fine in a 32-bit machine, with less than that. They don't NEED to support 64-bit from a 32-bit Management product, hence the lack of support to RUN it on a 64-bit platform.

[RParker]

> The Update Manager also recomends 2GB of memory, and VMware's own documentation recomends 4GB if they reside on the same unit (which, imo, is a rather natural choice for location).

Yes, and as you say IF you run them on the same box. And no it's not natural, you can eliminate a single point of failure, or causing a problem if one of the products fails.

> but assuming you want a simple, central management portal this is going to become impossible sooner rather than later. Either VMware needs to seriously slim down thier VC server and plug-ins, or they need to allow the tools to reside on a 64bit OS that can handle them.

Obviously not, since it works just fine. ESX supports 64-bit, the management tools that manage the ESX servers don't NEED to be 64-bit.... Hundreds of thousands of VM Ware VC customers are running 32-bit VC today.. without much problem. The problem isn't the product, it's HOW it's designed. 64-bit isn't going to fix the product, if it's not designed properly.

64-bit MAY improve performance and make things work better, but it's not the remedy for everything. They designed VC to be 32-bit, I don't know the reason, but it's obvious that testing and many customers are working with it, and it works fine. There must not be a reason (from VM Wares perspective) to make it 64-bit compatible... YET. In the mean time, it works.

[dpomeroy]

Well I work for a Fortune 200 company and we are starting to see an increase in demand for 64 bit both internally and from customers (and we have thousands), but I don't think 64 bit is going to be the standard for quite a few years.

VMware has limited resources for development, so while I'm sure 64 bit VC is on their list, I cant imagine its a high priority at this time.

We run VC in a VM (connecting to a physical DB cluster) and this has worked out great. I don't see a disadvantage of doing this as you can run 32 and 64 bit VMs on the same hardware, assuming all your physical boxes had to be 64 bit OS for some reason.

Don Pomeroy

VMware Communities User Moderator

[Justin_King]

Yes, and as you say IF you run them on the same box. And no it's not natural, you can eliminate a single point of failure, or causing a problem if one of the products fails.

So it's not natural for someone to simply hit the dropdown and download/enable a plug-in assuming it will run fine on the same box? Don't you think that's a bit of a stretch? It's marketed as a plug-in and a new feature of Virtual Center. I dont think it will be nearly as rare as you make it out to be, but then only time will tell.

Obviously not, since it works just fine. ESX supports 64-bit, the management tools that manage the ESX servers don't NEED to be 64-bit.... Hundreds of thousands of VM Ware VC customers are running 32-bit VC today.. without much problem. The problem isn't the product, it's HOW it's designed. 64-bit isn't going to fix the product, if it's not designed properly.

Maybe you didn't get what I was saying? I dind't say it was impossible, I said it was going to be. As in future tense. As in they will have little to no choice but to convert VC to 64bit sooner rather than later given the resources thier apps are consuming. I even ackowledged it was possible there could be some serious slimming down in resources, but given the growing rate of resource consumption right now in this latest line of releases they are about to hit a roadblock in terms of VC scalability.

To be clear: I'm not saying 64bit is somekind of magical fix beyond anything other than it supplies more memory to the app, which in this case caps its resources today. Yes it works today and now. That was never in question.