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This document is provided as is with no explicit or implied warranty concerning the accuracy of the information provided on the various pages referenced within this page. Many pages are outside the VMware and/or C.E.I. site and the information is not necessarily checked by VMware and/or C.E.I. personnel.
This is a living page and is subject to change. Most recent update December, 2011 version 2.2.2
Use at your own risk!
vSphere 5.0 documentation
VMware.com landing page for release (link)
Press release (link)
Release Notes (link)
What's New (link)
Pricing (link)
Configurations Maximums (link)
White papers
What's New in VMware vSphere 5.0 Platform (link)
What's New in VMware vSphere 5.0 Storage (link)
What's New in VMware vSphere 5.0 Networking (link)
What's New in VMware vSphere 5.0 Performance (link)
Performance Guide (link)
Performance Best Practices (link)
Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 Performance on VMware vSphere 5 (link)
Host Power Management in VMware vSphere 5 (link)
Understanding Memory Resource Management in VMware vSphere 5 (link)
Performance Implications of Storage I/O Control=Enabled NFS Datastores in VMware vSphere 5 (link)
VMware vSphere vMotion Architecture, Performance and Best Practices in VMware vSphere 5 (link)
Zimbra Collaboration Server Performance on VMware vSphere 5.0 (link)
Helpful tools
vSphere 5 licensing model details video (link)
vSphere Licensing Advisor. A free public tool which provides assistance calculating vRAM usage when migrating from VI 3.5 and vSphere 4.x environments to vSphere 5.0. (link)
'Top 10 reasons why VMware vSphere 5 is years ahead of the competition' white paper. This is not yet posted but will be out soon and located in the same place as the vSphere 4 white paper. Current location (link) * Link subject to change
Auto Deploy/Image Builder
Duncan Epping's Auto Deploy Home Lab Configuration (VMware)
VMDK
How to shrink a vmdk (ProfessionalVMware.com)
Storage
A blog post about ALUA with a link to a EMC Powerlink white paper. (EMC)
ALUA defined (virtualizationthoughts)
How does MSI/MSI-X work - MSI part? (Sun)
Target Port Group Support (TPGS) in the Solaris OS (Sun)
A "Multivendor Post" on using iSCSI with VMware vSphere (VirtualGeek)
A post about partition alignment. (aarondelp)
Using NFS as a data store. This may be a bit dated, but it's a start. (VMware)
A VMworld session about using NFS with vSphere. You will need a VMworld login to view it tho. (Vmworld)
Dell chat - Benefits of iscsi with virtualization. (Dell)
Performance of thin provisioned disks. (vpivot.com)
More info on the performance of thin provisioned disks (VMware)
Still more about thin disk performance (vladan)
Using multiple VMKernel ports for Round Robin MPIO for iSCSI. (vmetc.com)
All things storage (SNIA)
Benchmarks and comparisons for storage arrays and devices. If you dig far enough, you will find cost per IOPS for several specific arrays for an apples to apples comparison. (storageperformance.org)
PARDA: Proportional Allocation of Resources for Distributed Storage Access (SIOC) (virtualscoop.org)
A tool to check if Windows VM's are partition aligned (@Guillermo Musumeci)
VM Management and Performance
A look into how esxtop works and what all those things mean (YellowBricks)
Killing a frozen VM on a vSphere ESX host (itknowledgeexchange.com)
vmx file perameters (sanbarrow)
VMware vSphere 4 QuickStart Series Part 2: VM Management with VMware vCenter Server (VMware)
Install VMware Tools in Ubuntu. (gorillapond)
Timekeeping best practices for Linux (VMware)
Snapshots explained. (VMware)
Mark Russinovich's blog in which he talks about SID's and how we don't really have to change them. (Technet)
Sysprep files and info for the vCenter Guest OS Customization process. In the notes of this article it is noted where the sysprep files should be placed on a Windows 2008 vCenter server. (VMware)
To use memory rservations or not? (@FrankDenneman)
T-shoot high CPU usage after a P2V conversion of Windows 2003 Server. (VMware)
To show hidden devices in Device Manager in XP (likely would apply to other OS's). (Microsoft)
Performance focused web site put together by Scott Drummond. (vpivot)
esxplot to graphically view (r)esxtop batch mode replays. (vpivot)
How to set up the paravirtual adapter. (virtualpro)
Using (r)esxtop. Shows how to use esxtop and resxtop in interactive, batch and replay modes. (VMware)
CIM, SMASH and DASH standards (dmtf.org)
Monitoring tools. (monitortools.com)
HP Proliant Support Pack Cleaner - A utility to remove the Support Pack from Proliant servers which have been p2v'd. (@Guillermo Musumeci)
Virtual Infrastructure Management (for managers)
Webcast about Enabling IT Cost Accountability with VMware vCenter Chargeback (VMware)
VMware icons and diagrams (technodrone)
ESX(i)/vCenter features
DRS Deep dive Part I (yellowbricks)
DRS Deepdive part II (yellowbricks)
HA "Deepdive" (yellowbricks)
yellow-bricks dot com - many deep dives into ESX/vCenter features (yellowbricks)
Enhanced VMotion Compatibility (EVC) processor support (VMware)
EVC and CPU Compatibility FAQ (VMware)
A video about vSphere DPM (Distributed Power Management)
A vieo about vSphere FT (Fault Tolerance)
A video about vSphere Hot Add, Thin Provisioning and a extending disk.
Xtravirt - vAlarm - Free Desktop Tool for Monitoring vCenter Alarms (requires registration) (xtravirt)
vCenter 4 Linked Mode Best Practices (VMware)
So, how **EXACTLY** does VM HA's admittance algorithm work? (virtualgeek)
An interesting little note about 2 alarms, but more interesting is the xls (definitions) and a pdf about alarms. (yellowbricks)
Fault Tolerance architectural diagram and config/use video (hypervisor.com)
ESX/ESXi information center. (VMware)
Networking
Documentation for Cisco Nexus 1000V Switches
Best Practices in Deploying Cisco Nexus 1000V Series Switches on Cisco UCS Systems (Cisco)
A video about vNetwork Distributed switch, and vNetwork vMotion overview.
A video about Cisco Nexus 1000v Demo
Securing Networks with Private VLANs and VLAN Access Control Lists from Cisco. (Cisco)
Vmware kb article showing required ports. (VMware)
David O'Connor's vcdx study guide for networking. (VMware)
Eric Sloof's online PVLAN configuration training. (ntpro.nl)
Top 5 Free networking tools from SolarWinds. (ntpro.nl)
VMware kb article describing the characteristics and benefits of the various vnics available. (VMware)
VMware Certifications
VMware Certification main page (VMware)
vSphere 5.x reference card. (vreference.com)
All access vSphere e-Learning (most are 4.1 or earlier but could be helpful) (VMware)
VCP on vSphere
VCP Study Guide for 5 (includes links to documents as per the Blueprint) (VMware)
VMware Certified Professional on vSphere 5 Blueprint. You will need a mylearn account to get this. (VMware)
How to become a VMware Certified Professional on vSphere 5 (VCP5) (VMware)
VCP Forum (VMware)
Scott Vessey's Review of VCP5 exam (vmwaretraining.com)
Studying for the VCP on vSphere 5 (vmwaretraining.com)
Simon Long's VCP practice questions. (@SimonLong)
Exam Studying Prep from BeyondVM.com (Beyondvm.com)
VCA-DT (Desktop Certification)
VCA-DT main page (VMware)
VCA-DT Blueprint (VMware)
VCA-DT Mock Exam (VMware)
VCAP
VCAP main page. (VMware)
Scott Vessey's notes about VCAP (Vessey's blog)
Scott Vessey's page for DCA study resources (Vessey's blog)
VCAP-DCA page (VMware)
VCAP-DCA Exam Blueprint. Requires mylearn credentials. (VMware)
VCAP-DCA Index (vFail.net)
VCAP-DCD page (VMware)
VCAP Datacenter Administration Exam Landing Page VDCA410 (Kendrick Coleman)
VCDX
VMware Enterprise Administration Exam Blueprint v3.5 (VMware)
How to become a VMware Certified Design Expert (VMware)
VMware Design Exam Blueprint (VMware)
VMware Certified Design Expert (VCDX) Forum (VMware)
David O'Connor's vcdx study guide for networking. (VMware)
VMware Data Recovery and Backups
File Level Restore with VMware Data Recovery 1.0 (ntpro.nl)
File Level Restore with VMware Data Recovery 1.0 revisited (ntpro.nl)
VMware vSphere 4 QuickStart Series Part 4: Monitoring, Availability, Back Up and Next Steps (VMware)
Xtravirt's Tape Backup Integration with VMware Data Recovery (VDR) (requires registration) (xtravirt)
Virtual Machine Backup. An rtfm-ed pdf file. (rtfm-ed.co.uk)
Sites with many kinds of info. Each of these sites has an amazing amount of info on them.
VMware tech docs... wow! (VMware)
The folks at xtravirt always have interesting stuff to see.
vmguru dot com - has security, networking, powershell stuff and more.
VMworld 2009 sessions. (You will need to create an account (free) if you don't already have one.
Online, self paced VMware training (requires a mylearn account).
VIOPS (Virtual Infrastructure Operations program)
vSphere: The Missing Links - Every vSphere Link You Need to Get Started - A ton of links to docs here. (vsphere-land.com)
VMware vSphere Technical Videos on Youtube
vmfaq dot com - Not a pretty site, but useful.
vReference.com, a lot of useful stuff including flash cards.
The VMware Toolbar...I wasn't sure where to put this, so I figured this is as good of a place as any. (VMware)
ESX/ESXi installation and upgrade
How to Upgrade to ESXi from ESX (FREE Class) (VMware Education)
vMA Compatible Agent/Scripts(Third Party) Community List (VMware)
A few articles about scripted installs (vmprofessional.com)
Installation How-To's. (VMware)
VMware vSphere 4 QuickStart Series Part 1: Install and Configure ESXi (VMware)
Partitioning your ESX host = part II - It's listed as part 2 cause it was updated from vi3. (yellowbricks)
Installing ESX 4.0 and vCenter 4.0 best practices (VMware)
Upgrading an ESX 3.x virtual machine to ESX 4.0 (VMware)
Upgrading to ESX 4.0 and vCenter 4.0 best practices (VMware)
vCenter Server Installation Worksheet (VMware)
ESXi scripted installation. (@KendrickColeman)
ESX depoloyment appliance. (VMware)
Some words and links about virtualizing ESX on physical ESX (virtualtroll.com)
Customizing ESXi configurations for logging, vmkcore, swap files and snmp (gabesvirtualworld.com)
Desktop Virtualization
How to use the View 4.6 Security Server with PCoIP (with video demo) (VMware KB)
Desktop virtualization with VMware videos
Microsoft Volume Licensing Briefs about Virtualization (Microsoft)
Microsoft licensing in a virtualized environment. Be aware that MS changes their licensing models frequently so be sure to get the latest info from them before making any decisions. (Microsoft)
Clustering, load balancing and Performance
VMware vSphere 4 QuickStart Series Part 3: Cluster Setup, Availability and Load Balancing (VMware)
Virtualization Performance Benchmarks (VMware)
Performance Troubleshooting for VMware vSphere 4 and ESX 4.0 (VMware)
VMware HA Vs Microsoft Cluster Server: we are at the inflection point (it20.info)
Impact of Memory Reservations (@FrankDennaman)
Carl Waldspurger's paper on ESX memory. This is an older paper, but it's the foundation of how ESX manages memory. (@CarlWaldspurger)
This page will tell you what all that Consumed and Active counters stuff is about. (VMware)
Specific Applications
Virtualizing a Windows Active Directory Domain Infrastructure (VMware)
Cisco Unity (Cisco)
VROOM! - 16000 Exchange mailboxes, 1 server. (VMware)
Exchange - Key Resources for Deploying Exchange on VMware (VMware)
Virtualizing Enterprise Applications - includes Exchange, Sharepoint, MS SQL, Oracle and SAP info (VMware)
Exchange on the internal cloud. (VMware)
RIM - Key Resources for Virtualizing BlackBerry Enterprise (VMware)
Domino - Key Resources for Deploying Domino on VMware (VMware)
BlackBerry Enterprise Server for Microsoft Exchange Compatibility Matrix (Blackberry.com)
Lab Manager tutorials (VMware)
SAP virtualization solutions (VMware communities)
Command Line and scripting info
Power CLI Quick Start Guide (vmwire)
VMware vSphere™ PowerCLI (VMware)
ESX 4 man pages (june.nl)>/font>
11 Awesome PowerCLI Resources (ProfessionalVmware.com)
VMware Developer - Sample Code (VMware)
Powershell scripts (lucd.info)
vSphere Command-Line Interface Reference (VMware)
Capacity Planning
Xtravirt's Capacity Planning - Why Bother?
Patch Management
VMware Update Manager Sizing Estimator (Note: it's an Excel spreadsheet and this is to download it) (VMware)
ESX4 patch management guide (VMware)
Permissions/ Security
Defined Privileges aka What can I do if I have permission x? (VMware)
Proven Practice: VMware Infrastructure Permissioning from Sungard (VMware)
Deploying Secure Multi-Tenancy into Virtualized Data Centers using Nexus 1000v by Cisco
Virtual Serial Port Concentrators in vSphere 4.1. (VMware)
Build a virtual Serial Port Concentrator in vSphere. (VMware)
VMware vCloud Director (vCD)
Documentation landing page for vCD (VMware)
vCD Product landing page (VMware)
VMware vCloud Director (vCD) First blog article on Yellow-Bricks describing what vCD is and leads into more articles. (yellowbricks)
vCD = Networking part 1 (yellowbricks)
vCD = Networking part 2 = Network Pools (yellowbricks)
vCD = Networking part 3 = Use case 2 (yellowbricks)
VMware VieVMware View:
What's New in View 4.6? (VMware)
(Biggie - PCoIP is now supported with Security Server)
Setting up PCoIP with Security Server (VMware)
View Administration Guide (VMware)
(includes vdmadmin command line support)
Setting up the View Event Database:
Windows XP Activation (Aumha)
Windows Key Management Service (Microsoft)
Microsoft Key Management Services (Microsoft)
$hf_mig$ folder (Ryantadams)
RDP Virtual Channels (Microsoft)
PCoIP Protocol Calculator (MyVirtualCloud)
Network Level Authentication (Microsoft)
View Open Client for Linux (Google)
PCoIP Discussion:
Location-based Printing
RSA SecureID two-factor authentication (RSA)
Add administrative templates to a GPO (Petri)
ThinPrint GPO Configuration (VMware)
Deletion scripting (VMware)
VMware View Installation Guide (VMware)
VMware View Architecture Planning Guide (VMware)
Extending Virtual Machine Deletion with Scripts (VMware)
VMware View Integration Guide (VMware)
VMware View Upgrade Guide (VMware)
ThinApp User's Guide (VMware)