Virtualization

If you’re an IT Professional unfamiliar with virtualization, then now is the time to start learning and building your skills. In this free webinar I’ll explain what virtualization is and why you need it and show you how you can get started with virtualization right away by building your own testing lab.

ImageX is a command-line tool that can be used to capture, modify, and apply file-based disk images for deployment of systems in an enterprise by leveraging the Windows Imaging format (.wim files). Learn how you can leverage it for your imaging and deployment needs in this article by Jason Zandri.

Disk2vhd is tool from Microsoft’s Sysinternals group that allows system administrators to create virtual hard disk images (VHD) of running operating systems loaded on physical hardware. VHDs are the Microsoft’s Virtual Machine disk format used in Microsoft Virtual PC or Microsoft Hyper-V virtual machines (VMs). Disk2vhd Overview There are other physical-to-virtual tools that are available…

This article details the Windows Imaging file format (WIM), the benefits of leveraging it for deploying Windows installs, and reviews the tool (WIMGAPI) that developers use to mange existing WIM files.

Whether you’re planning on virtualizing the majority of your existing servers or just using it as part of your infrastructure, vSphere4 represents a major investment for most SME IT managers. This article is aimed at helping you plan for implementing your own vSphere4 Infrastructure, from meeting system requirements to choosing appropriate licensing options, and all options in between.

ESXi 4.0 is the latest version of VMware’s industry leading hypervisor; allowing multiple virtual machines to be run on a single physical host. Amazingly its available completely free of charge, so in this step by step guide Tom Finnis will show you how to set up your own ESXi4 server.

VMware has recently replaced their entire Virtual Infrastructure virtualization product suite with vSphere 4. Read on to find out why all IT Admins should be considering a vSphere 4 deployment in their future.

Following on from his previous article on deploying ESxi4, Tom Finnis now shows you how to use the vSphere Client to complete the configuration of your new ESXi4 host server and then deploy your first Virtual Machine.

Although VMware Converter 4 now has Linux support there are still a number of limitations to what servers you will be able to convert. Written for Windows people, this guide by VMware Pro Tom Finnis explains how to use the Converter BootCD to convert any physical server to a virtual image, and how to resolve the problems you’re likely to encounter without needing advanced Linux skills.

VMware ESXi 4.0 provides enhanced support for installing in “embedded” mode, so the host server does not need any physical disks installed. For vSphere Infrastructures utilizing SAN storage this allows diskless operation, reducing hardware costs and improving boot times. In this article Tom Finnis demonstrates how to do this with Hewlett Packard’s new G6 series servers using their built-in SD card slot.