In today’s post, I will show you how to import VMWare VCSA(VCenter Server Applicance) 6.5 into VMWare Workstation 14 Pro. With VMWare releasing Workstation 14 Pro, it is now possible to import the VCSA with ease. In previous versions of VMWare Workstation, it was possible to import but required some editing of the VMX files to ensure that it started up properly. But in VMWare Workstation 14 Pro, this is all taken care of when importing it.
Read Me First!
a) This Guide assumes you have a working DNS Server which in the examples, I use the IP 10.9.8.2 as my DNS Server.
b) This Guide assumes you already created the necessary Forward Lookup and Reverse Lookup DNS Records for your VCSA which in the examples, I use the IP 10.9.8.70 and VCENTER1.PZ.LOCAL as the FQDN.
1) In the VMware Workstation interface, go to “File” and then “Open…”.
2) Choose the VCSA 6.5 Appliance OVF file and then click on Open. You should be able to find this in the “vcsa” folder when mounting the VCSA ISO file.
3) Accept the License Agreement and click on “Next”.
4) Choose your VM Name and Location of your VM. Then click on “Next”.
5) In the Deployment Option, choose the option that will best fit your Test Environment. In this case I will be going with the “Tiny vCenter Server with Embedded PSC” option. Once you are finished with your selection, click on “Next”.
6) In Networking Configuration, input the values that it asks for. Once you have input the values, click on “SSO Configuration”.
Host Network IP Address Family: You can choose between “ipv4” or “ipv6”.
Host Network Mode: You can choose between “static” or “dhcp”. (There is “autoconf” but that is for IPv6.)
Host Network IP Address: This is the IP Address of your VCSA. Input this if you are using static in Host Network Mode.
Host Network Prefix: Input the appropriate Network Prefix depending on your Network. Input this if you are using static in Host Network Mode.
Host Network Default Gateway: Input the IP of the Default Gateway in your Network.
Host Network DNS Servers: Input the IP of your DNS Server.
Host Network Identity: Input the FQDN of your VCSA
7) In SSO Configuration, input the Directory Password you want. Then click on “System Configuration”.
8) In System Configuration, input the Root Password you want. Then click on “Miscellaneous”.
9) In Miscellaneous, you can choose if you want to join VMWare’s CEIP. Then click on “Networking Properties”.
10) In Networking Properties, input your Network Domain Name and Domain Search Path. When you are ready and reviewed your settings, click on “Import”.
11) Wait for the Import to Finish.
12) The VCSA will startup immediately after the import is finished. Please note that it will take some time for the VCSA to boot up, initialize, and configure itself. Do not shutdown or reboot the VCSA at this time!
13) While waiting, you can observe the progress of the VCSA setup by doing the following.
a) On a Client Machine, run the Ping Command on the IP Address you set for the VCSA and wait until there is a response from it. This assumes the Client Machine is on the same Network as the VCSA.
b) Then you can try to access the VCSA Web Interface by using your Web Browser and go to the following DNS/IP you set for your VCSA. In this example I would go to: HTTPS://VCENTER1.PZ.LOCAL:5480 .
c) Login with the Root Password you set earlier.
d) You will then see the VCSA Appliance Setup Progress.
e) When you see this on your Web Browser, this means that the VCSA Appliance Setup is complete. You can also check the VCSA VM Screen to confirm as well.
14) You can now access your VCenter Server. In this example, to access the Appliance Management page, I would go to HTTPS://VCENTER1.PZ.LOCAL:5480 and for the vSphere Web Client, I would go to HTTPS://VCENTER1.PZ.LOCAL/VSPHERE-CLIENT/ .
I hope this post has been Helpful! 😀