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DZ1
Hot Shot
Hot Shot

Running scripts off of the OS that runs vCenter?

I have a series of scripts that run on the OS that has vCenter, they all run with Windows task scheduler.  Well, even though the scripts have been running for months - and I don't know why I didn't initially think about this - but it seems like I should have those scripts running off of a different machine. The scripts range from actions to remove old snapshots, scripts to create weekly scheduled snapshots, to scripts that run various reports.

I guess I'm looking for any reason why it wouldn't be a huge issue if the OS that runs vCenter runs the scripts, but it I know it's probably best to just get them all off of vCenter and run them somewhere else...well, I feel that it's best.

Your opinions?

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markdjones82
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Expert

I would split them only for the fact that it could add extra load to your Virtual Center that it doesn't need.  I have also seen on occasion where runaway powershell scripts can fill up temp space and crash a server.

http://www.twitter.com/markdjones82 | http://nutzandbolts.wordpress.com
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CRad14
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Hot Shot

Yeah, I sort of always have a box on the side that I have as a test box that I have set scripts running from... as the previous poster stated...if for no other reason then to keep load of the vcenter server...

Hope this helps

Conrad www.vnoob.com | @vNoob | If I or anyone else is helpful to you make sure you mark their posts as such! 🙂
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LucD
Leadership
Leadership

Fully agree with the previous comments.

Some arguments, on top, I like to use for myself:

  • PowerCLI is administration of the vSphere environment, while vCenter is production, don't mix those 2 as a best practice
  • PowerCLI and PowerShell have some prerequisites that do not necessarily run by default on a vCenter.
  • There is always the possibility that you at one point decide to run vCenter as an appliance, then you will need to find another box to run those administration scripts in any case
  • Less applications on a box = less risk. Think appliance !
  • There are more backoffice applications that can be managed with PowerShell (Exchange, SQL Server, Lync...). Keep the administration functions which are PowerShell based together. Makes it for example a lot easier to manage your scheduled administration tasks.
  • Some PowerCLI functionality runs (better) in a 32-bit environment, which is not true for your vCenter.
  • There are on average 2 PowerCLI builds per year, you don't want to install stuff too frequently on your vCenter server
  • Makes it easier to test new functionality, for example while your vCenter might still run on an OS that has PowerShell v2, you can test your administration scripts on a box that has PowerShell v3.


Blog: lucd.info  Twitter: @LucD22  Co-author PowerCLI Reference

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DZ1
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Hot Shot

This is one of those cases where I started out with one small script that I had run on vCenter, and now it has ballooned to 8 or so scripts, and that number will keep going up.  I knew better from the start, but I just kept doing it.  The moving process won't be too much trouble, so I'll start working on it.  Thanks for the input. 

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