Thursday, June 25, 2009

Install VMWare ESXi 4.0 on Dell Precision WS 390

Today I just found another Desktop with faster CPU and more memory - Dell Precision WorkStation 390 at work. Since the old IBM NetCenter M50 (8189KJU) is too slow to have any OS running on VMWare ESXi 3.5 Server.

First I tried a few times to install version 3.5, the installation of VMWare ESXi 3.5 was fine. But during Windows XP installation on Virtual Machine, I got stuck when I try to load Windows XP driver for the 2801GR/GH(ICH7 Family) Serial ATA Storage Controller RAID Card. I managed to find the driver and load the driver during Windows XP installation, but the setup always tells me it couldn't find the available space to install. I also tried different combination of RAID configuration and different Widnows XP drivers. But all have same results, I don't know why.


By the end, I did some research on the Internet, then I found this Dell machine is a 64-bit machine. Silly me! But the lucky thing is that I download the latest VMWare ESXi 4.0 which is 64-bit also a few days ago, so I can use it right away. The installation is went through quite smoothly without any problem, and also the installation of Windows XP Professional 32bit. I even didn't load any extra drivers during the installation.

So here is my test configuration:

Dell Precision WorkStation 390

CPU: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 6700 @ 2.66GHz
Memory: 2GB RAM
Storage Adapters: 2801GR/GH(ICH7 Family) Serial ATA Storage Controller RAID
Storage: 1 PC 80GB WDC, 2 PCs 250GB WDC with RAID1
Network Adapter: Precision 390 (100MB)

Software:
VMWare ESXi 4.0.0, 164009

Virtual Machine:
Windows XP Professional 32-Bit
Ubuntu Desktop 9.04

7 comments :

  1. how many Virtual Machine can install on this hardware spec?

    is it the VMWare ESXi machine slow down with this hardware spec?

    please advice friend........

    ReplyDelete
  2. So far I added another 3 OSs on this machine, 1 Windows 2003 server, 1 Red Har Enterprise Server and 1 Linux Mint OS. So far so good. I didn't see the VMWare ESXi machine slow down the hardware spec. But I might add more RAM into this machine soon to make it better.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I also have Dell Precision WorkStation 390 with same hardware spec and planing to instal VMware Esxi but i afraid it will slow down but now you said so far so good then OK. thanks for your reply friend:)

    is there any body else have install VMware Esxi on dell precision and facing any problem on it?

    please reply friend........

    ReplyDelete
  4. I have a Dell Precision 390 with me with 8 GB memory and 4 x 320 GB HDD. I have configured RAID 5 using Intel Matrix Storage Software.

    Can I install VMWare ESXi 4.0 on the machine and will it detect my RAID 5 configuration? I have tried VMWare 3.5 but no luck. It sees all 4 HDDs seperately.

    Thanks,
    Amith
    amith.balakrishnan@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi, Amith

    No idea about the Intel Matrix Storage Software, since I didn't use it. All I can said is it's not harm to give a try. Since the VMWare ESXi 4.0 is free, it's not cost you anything except time.

    Edward

    ReplyDelete
  6. Just an FYI - The ICH RAID does NOT work with VMWare 4.0 U1. You can use in in JBOD only. A good solution if you need real RAID is to use a supported Dell PERC SAS/SATA card such as the PERC 5i/6i.. this is an LSI-based card and you will get full health monitoring within ESXi. Make sure you get a RAID card with a battery backup, and stay away from the iR cards that exclude this feature. On my Precision 390, I have two 640GB SATA drives and installed a script to copy all the VMs from primary to secondary storage. It is not a "production" system.

    ReplyDelete

  7. I am use Dell Precision Work Station 390 with same hardware spec and its really good and if you wish to download a drivers of Dell OptiPlex 390 Drivers to click on the provided link

    ReplyDelete

Comments System

Disqus Shortname