vSphere ISO won't boot

[lefty29er]

Hello,

I'm attempting to install vsphere on a new system with a Gigabyte GA-X58A mobo and I'm not getting too far at this point.....  The situation is that that when I try to boot from the DVD that contains the esxi iso, nothing happens.  I have a blinking prompt, no screen change, nada.  I'm able to boot a Win7 disk from the same machine and I'm also able to load the esxi iso (mounted from the disk) into a windows VM and boot.  So I've confirmed the esxi iso is functional and that the system with the Gigabyte board will boot a dvd but i'm at a loss for anything further.  I'm a virtualization noob (if that isn't obvious enough already :smileylaugh:) and would appreciate any input from the more experienced.

Thanks,

Lefty29er

[DSTAVERT · Accepted solution]

You will need to find a piece of software to burn the image to the CD/DVD. Copying the ISO file won't work. Check with the software you made the DVD with to see whether there is an option to "Burn an Image". If not there are lots of freeware tools that you can download. A google search for Burn ISO image should turn up lots.

[lefty29er]

Thanks very much for the info, that did the trick.  So I guess I'm a total noob to burning disks too :smileyblush:.  I'm off to work on the errors that are popping up on the screen now.  It's all about the experience!

[DSTAVERT]

Glad you have start.

The most common install problems are often unsupported embedded components. Things like Network cards and Disk controllers may require an add on card for the install to complete. Onboard disk controllers are usually OK although on board RAID will usually only function as individual disks. The network card is often the problem. Without a supported NIC ESXi can not install. The Intel Pro/1000 MT Desktop cards do work and are reasonably inexpensive. You can check the http://www.vm-help.com//esx40i/esx40_whitebox_HCL.php whitebox list to see if your particular motherboard is listed and whether there are workarounds. There are also lists of other components that have been found to work.

[lefty29er]

Thanks DSTAVERT.  I did some homework before purchasing the hardware and the motherboard was on the HCL but it looks like the on board NIC needs some virtualization drivers which may be a bit unstable so I'll most likely spend a few dollars on an expansion card.  It looks like I also need to get into the BIOS and tweak some settings for the VT-D, which I'll need to read more on.

[DSTAVERT]

Excellent. Even though it is sometimes possible to add a user supplied driver for network cards they don't usually stand up to the potential demands of virtualization.

Good luck and have fun.

[DSTAVERT]

http://vmware.com/files/pdf/techpaper/VMW-vSphere4-directpath-host.pdf

[Sreejesh_D]

if the server is interl xeon based, we have to enable VT in BIOS to support 64-Bit guest operating systems.

If your CPUs support VT but you do not see this option in the BIOS, contact your vendor to request a BIOS version that lets you enable VT support.

Please refer section "Support for 64-Bit Guest Operating Systems" in Installation guide.

https://www.vmware.com/pdf/vsphere4/r41/vsp_41_esx_vc_installation_guide.pdf

[lefty29er]

Hey all,

Just wanted to stop back to thank you again for the great information and let you know that I'm well on my way with the setup thanks to your help.  I'm in the process of installing my first Windows VM right now!  The missing piece was in fact the network card and has been no trouble since installing the Intel Pro 1000 GT.

Best regards,

Lefty29er