Comments on: Storage vendors unanimously applaud SCVMM innovation http://www.vcritical.com/2008/10/storage-vendors-unanimously-applaud-scvmm-innovation/ Informed Virtualization Criticism Mon, 15 Mar 2010 13:49:08 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: Rick Rohne http://www.vcritical.com/2008/10/storage-vendors-unanimously-applaud-scvmm-innovation/#comment-7360 Rick Rohne Thu, 27 Aug 2009 01:33:08 +0000 http://www.vcritical.com/?p=114#comment-7360 I think this is great! buy more disks for iso storage! excellent! I posted the workaround if it matters http://www.thegenerationv.com/2009/08/sharing-iso-image-using-hyper-v-and.html I think this is great! buy more disks for iso storage! excellent!
I posted the workaround if it matters http://www.thegenerationv.com/2009/08/sharing-iso-image-using-hyper-v-and.html

]]> By: SCVMM uses SFTP to copy ISO images to VMware ESX but fails for ESXi | VCritical http://www.vcritical.com/2008/10/storage-vendors-unanimously-applaud-scvmm-innovation/#comment-253 SCVMM uses SFTP to copy ISO images to VMware ESX but fails for ESXi | VCritical Fri, 09 Jan 2009 20:59:08 +0000 http://www.vcritical.com/?p=114#comment-253 [...] When a virtual machine requires access to a CD or DVD, it is very typical to connect an ISO image file to the VM instead of using a physical disc.  When using VMware ESX or ESXi, multiple VMs are allowed to access a single ISO image on shared storage.  System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 (SCVMM) uses a different design — instead of sharing a single image from the library server, a copy of the image is made to the SAN for each VM before use.  I have written about this before. [...] [...] When a virtual machine requires access to a CD or DVD, it is very typical to connect an ISO image file to the VM instead of using a physical disc.  When using VMware ESX or ESXi, multiple VMs are allowed to access a single ISO image on shared storage.  System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 (SCVMM) uses a different design — instead of sharing a single image from the library server, a copy of the image is made to the SAN for each VM before use.  I have written about this before. [...]

]]> By: Eric Gray http://www.vcritical.com/2008/10/storage-vendors-unanimously-applaud-scvmm-innovation/#comment-227 Eric Gray Thu, 08 Jan 2009 00:28:03 +0000 http://www.vcritical.com/?p=114#comment-227 Tamas: thanks for your comment, but this is not really a bug. A bug in the design, perhaps. Consider that the online help states that this is not supported for Hyper-V and the SCVMM console throws up warnings when attempting to provision a new VM with sharing enabled. If it was just a bug, the docs would be silent on this and the user interface would let you proceed. You are right about all software having bugs. Believe me -- I have personally filed many, many bugs on ESX and VC. Tamas: thanks for your comment, but this is not really a bug. A bug in the design, perhaps. Consider that the online help states that this is not supported for Hyper-V and the SCVMM console throws up warnings when attempting to provision a new VM with sharing enabled. If it was just a bug, the docs would be silent on this and the user interface would let you proceed.

You are right about all software having bugs. Believe me — I have personally filed many, many bugs on ESX and VC.

]]> By: Tamás Lepenye http://www.vcritical.com/2008/10/storage-vendors-unanimously-applaud-scvmm-innovation/#comment-226 Tamás Lepenye Thu, 08 Jan 2009 00:12:44 +0000 http://www.vcritical.com/?p=114#comment-226 You have found a bug. More info: http://joeelway.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!2095EAC3772C41DB!1757.entry Softwares always have bugs. See some resolved issues here http://www.vmware.com/support/vi3/doc/vi3_esx35u3_rel_notes.html#resolvedissues The bigger part of the problem is not to communicate this in any formal way (e.g. in support.microsoft.com site) You have found a bug.
More info:
http://joeelway.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!2095EAC3772C41DB!1757.entry

Softwares always have bugs. See some resolved issues here

http://www.vmware.com/support/vi3/doc/vi3_esx35u3_rel_notes.html#resolvedissues

The bigger part of the problem is not to communicate this in any formal way (e.g. in support.microsoft.com site)

]]> By: IGT Part 2: SAN Misers | VCritical http://www.vcritical.com/2008/10/storage-vendors-unanimously-applaud-scvmm-innovation/#comment-214 IGT Part 2: SAN Misers | VCritical Mon, 05 Jan 2009 22:46:04 +0000 http://www.vcritical.com/?p=114#comment-214 [...] covered this topic in a more lighthearted way back in October and Gabes Virtual World has a current article that discusses Hyper-V storage [...] [...] covered this topic in a more lighthearted way back in October and Gabes Virtual World has a current article that discusses Hyper-V storage [...]

]]> By: Hyper-V snapshots are not merged until virtual machine is powered off | VCritical http://www.vcritical.com/2008/10/storage-vendors-unanimously-applaud-scvmm-innovation/#comment-204 Hyper-V snapshots are not merged until virtual machine is powered off | VCritical Mon, 29 Dec 2008 18:29:07 +0000 http://www.vcritical.com/?p=114#comment-204 [...] on the LUN? Gabes Virtual World published a great tip that could help next time.  Maybe all that ISO file copying isn’t so bad after [...] [...] on the LUN? Gabes Virtual World published a great tip that could help next time.  Maybe all that ISO file copying isn’t so bad after [...]

]]> By: RTFM Education » Blog Archive » Storage vendors unanimously applaud SCVMM innovation http://www.vcritical.com/2008/10/storage-vendors-unanimously-applaud-scvmm-innovation/#comment-132 RTFM Education » Blog Archive » Storage vendors unanimously applaud SCVMM innovation Thu, 04 Dec 2008 21:44:52 +0000 http://www.vcritical.com/?p=114#comment-132 [...] http://www.vcritical.com/2008/10/storage-vendors-unanimously-applaud-scvmm-innovation/ [...] [...] http://www.vcritical.com/2008/10/storage-vendors-unanimously-applaud-scvmm-innovation/ [...]

]]> By: SQL Server & Cloud Links for the Week | Brent Ozar - SQL Server DBA http://www.vcritical.com/2008/10/storage-vendors-unanimously-applaud-scvmm-innovation/#comment-30 SQL Server & Cloud Links for the Week | Brent Ozar - SQL Server DBA Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:55:35 +0000 http://www.vcritical.com/?p=114#comment-30 [...] Satirical post on MS SCVMM’s ISO handling - too many acronyms, I know. Here’s the deal: when you have a virtual server farm with a bunch of hosts and hundreds of guests, you sometimes need to attach ISO files to them to act as virtual CD drives to boot or to attach software.  VMware can use a shared file repository and attach any ISO file to any guest instantly.  Evidently (and I don’t know this firsthand) Microsoft’s System Center Virtual Machine Manager has to copy the ISO file to the same location where the guest stores its hard drives, which means more storage space used and a longer time to go live.  Now that you have the background story, you might laugh at Eric Gray’s interpretation of it.  I did, but I’m dry. [...] [...] Satirical post on MS SCVMM’s ISO handling – too many acronyms, I know. Here’s the deal: when you have a virtual server farm with a bunch of hosts and hundreds of guests, you sometimes need to attach ISO files to them to act as virtual CD drives to boot or to attach software.  VMware can use a shared file repository and attach any ISO file to any guest instantly.  Evidently (and I don’t know this firsthand) Microsoft’s System Center Virtual Machine Manager has to copy the ISO file to the same location where the guest stores its hard drives, which means more storage space used and a longer time to go live.  Now that you have the background story, you might laugh at Eric Gray’s interpretation of it.  I did, but I’m dry. [...]

]]> By: MichaelH http://www.vcritical.com/2008/10/storage-vendors-unanimously-applaud-scvmm-innovation/#comment-29 MichaelH Thu, 30 Oct 2008 17:25:11 +0000 http://www.vcritical.com/?p=114#comment-29 Hi Bruce, Not sure what flavor of Xen (Open-source, Citrix, SunXvm, RedHat, OracleVM, Virtual Iron, etc) you're referring to but I have some experience with Citrix's XenServer and their management tool, XenCenter, so can provide some insight here. XenServer can only use a standard Windows CIFS share or an NFS share to store ISO images. Local storage of isos are not supported. No agents need to be deployed like in SCVMM Library Servers. Just create a storage repository for the CIFS or NFS ISO share and your VMs can access them. It also doesn't copy the entire ISO over to the VM like with SCVMM. By the way, I've been using XenServer since version 3.5 and Citrix has just finally implemented full iso support for VMs. In previous releases they didnt support using ISOs to install some linux VMs, only Windows. As a result your forced to create a Linux install server to stream the install. It was a major pain! Seems that they finally got the ISO support down in version 5 (about time!). So if your looking at any other Xen hypervisor products, it may not have full support for even installing VMs with ISOs. Let me know if you have any additional questions on XenServer and I'd be happy to share. Hi Bruce,

Not sure what flavor of Xen (Open-source, Citrix, SunXvm, RedHat, OracleVM, Virtual Iron, etc) you’re referring to but I have some experience with Citrix’s XenServer and their management tool, XenCenter, so can provide some insight here. XenServer can only use a standard Windows CIFS share or an NFS share to store ISO images. Local storage of isos are not supported. No agents need to be deployed like in SCVMM Library Servers. Just create a storage repository for the CIFS or NFS ISO share and your VMs can access them. It also doesn’t copy the entire ISO over to the VM like with SCVMM.

By the way, I’ve been using XenServer since version 3.5 and Citrix has just finally implemented full iso support for VMs. In previous releases they didnt support using ISOs to install some linux VMs, only Windows. As a result your forced to create a Linux install server to stream the install. It was a major pain! Seems that they finally got the ISO support down in version 5 (about time!). So if your looking at any other Xen hypervisor products, it may not have full support for even installing VMs with ISOs.

Let me know if you have any additional questions on XenServer and I’d be happy to share.

]]> By: Bruce http://www.vcritical.com/2008/10/storage-vendors-unanimously-applaud-scvmm-innovation/#comment-28 Bruce Thu, 30 Oct 2008 14:33:14 +0000 http://www.vcritical.com/?p=114#comment-28 I have only briefly looked at your site here after someone sent me this hilarious posting, but so far I have noticed no one mentioning Xen. This site seems to be a no-holds bared site, (even though Eric works for VMware). Does anyone have comments on how Xen handles their ISO library? I have only briefly looked at your site here after someone sent me this hilarious posting, but so far I have noticed no one mentioning Xen. This site seems to be a no-holds bared site, (even though Eric works for VMware). Does anyone have comments on how Xen handles their ISO library?

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