To install async drivers using esxcli and offline bundle async driver zip file: Extract the contents of the async driver zip file. Identify the offline-bundle.zip file(s).
One of the new features with Windows Server 2016 is the Nested Virtualization. It means that you can run a VM inside a Virtual Machine. So you also can run an ESXi inside a Hyper-V Virtual Machine. It can be useful only in a testing environment because it is really not supported in production! Basically, to install ESXi in a Hyper-V Virtual Machine, below are the steps:.
Download and install PowerCLI. Download ESXi-Customizer-PS. It is a PowerShell script that will simplify and automate the process of creating fully patched and customized ESXi installation ISOs using the VMware PowerCLI ImageBuilder module.
You can download it from. Create Hyper-V VM with a Legacy Network Adapter. Configure the adapter with Mac Spoofing enabled.
![Drivers Drivers](/uploads/1/2/5/3/125353842/785439872.jpg)
Use the customizer to download and rebuild the ESXi ISO. Mount the newly created ISO inside the Virtual Machine. Download and run the “Enable-NestedVM.ps1” script. Download it from:.
And then, you can install ESXI 6.0 The only prerequisites to run these steps is that you must have a Hyper-V Host running Windows Server 2016 or Windows 10 with an Intel processor with VT-x and EPT technology. Preparing ESXi 6.0 ISO Let’s start by downloading and installing PowerCLI.
Few weeks ago, VMware published VMware PowerCLI on the PowerShell Gallery. So in this article, I will install VMware.PowerCLI 10.0.0.7895300 via the following PowerShell command. Don’t forget to open an elevated prompt. PS Install-Module -Name VMware.PowerCLI Wait a moment until the installation finishes. Once the installation is done, you can run the customizer script: The script will download the ESXi 6.0 ISO from the VMware online depot and customize it by injecting drivers: Use the –v60 parameter for ESXi 6.0 but you can use the -v65 parameter for ESXi 6.5. Use the –vft parameter to connect to the V-Front Online Depot. Use net-tulip in order to load DECchip 21140 Ethernet driver inside the ISO.
This driver allows running ESXi as a VM under Microsoft Hyper-V Once the ISO is downloaded, you can check if the file exists in the current directory. Creating the Virtual Machine Now we can create the Virtual Machine for our ESXi. That’s pretty simple, you just need to create a 1st Gen Virtual Machine: Click Next and:.
Enter a Virtual Machine name. Browse to the location in which the Virtual Machine will be stored Select the first choice “Generation 1” and click Next Specify the amount of memory to allocate to this Virtual Machine Don’t connect the network because we must remove the default adapter and then create a new one.
The newly adapter will be a legacy adapter. Select “Create a virtual hard disk” Now you can mount the ESXi ISO file Review the information and validate the wizard by clicking Finish Ok now, I successfully created the ESXi VM but before starting this Virtual Machine, I must modify the settings. Right-click the Virtual Machine and select “Settings” Modify the number of virtual processors. I will configure 2 processors for this VM. Then remove the default network adapter Add a Legacy Network Adapter and connect to your Hyper-V Virtual Switch in order to communicate with internet or with your LAN. Enabling Nested Virtualization This step is very simple, because we just need to run the “Enable-NestedVm.ps1” script: Note: Don’t forget to enable Mac Address Spoofing. Starting and configuring the ESXi Virtual Machine Here is the final step.
Start the Virtual Machine and add the following command to the boot options: ignoreHeadless=TRUE Wait a few seconds until the installation is finished. Once it’s done, your ESXi is installed in a Hyper-V Virtual Machine and ready to be used. Conclusion As I said at the beginning of this article, I followed the great how to guide provided by Dan on his website. So, Thanks to Windows Server 2016 and the Nested Virtualization, you can easily install ESXi in a Hyper-V Virtual Machine which is great to test a new ESXi version. Follow our and feeds for new releases, updates, insightful posts and more.
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Background / Problem. I have two new servers (Dell R720 & Dell R520) that I plan to install ESXi onto. During the VMWare Hypervisor installation, I'm told that no network adapters exist. Upon checking, I realized that the Broadcom NetXtreme I drivers are required additionally. I have obtained the Broadcom driver software bundle from VMWare's web site. I have installed PowerCLI on my desktop in case I will need it. Question Most ESXi guides describe doing this on a server that's already been set up once, but I am installing ESXi on these boxes for the first time.
How do I properly get these network card drivers into the installation process?. I am under the impression that I may need to configure a custom installation package that includes these drivers (and use PowerCLI to do this) - if so, how do I best go about doing this? Another way that can work:. Download the offline software bundle for the NetXtreme I cards from VMWare. Download the software. Extract ESXi customizer.
Run ESXi customizer as an administrator. Select the ISO file. Select the.VIB file for the drivers.
Select an output directory. During the installation, allow ESXi customizer to replace the VIB file.
ESXi Customizer creates a bootable ISO. Use the custom ESXi ISO to install. A huge thanks for these tools as they are the only thing that allowed me to get this done quickly. I'm going to wait to see how the Dell ISO works out and then try this one.
I'll mark the answer as correct in that order of which one works. References.