VMM Beta 1 System Requirements

We posted the System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2007 Beta 1 bits to the https://connect.microsoft.com site today. Here are the Beta 1 system requirements:

Network Requirements

Virtual Machine Manager is designed to be installed on a single-purpose dedicated server. The server runs the Virtual Machine Manager Server, the Virtual Machine Manager Administrator Console, and the Virtual Machine Manager Agent components. The optional Virtual Machine Manager Self-Service component should be installed on a separate computer.

Due to the size of virtual machines, it is a best practice to have all servers connected with at least a 100 MB Ethernet connection; however a gigabit connection could improve performance. If you use a gigabit connection, the Virtual Machine Manager server may require a more powerful CPU than the recommended 2.8 GHz Pentium 4.

Virtual Machine Manager Beta 1 should not be used to manage production environments.

Virtual Machine Manager Software Prerequisites

Server

Virtual Machine Manager is designed to run on a server that is dedicated to the role of virtualization. The following prerequisite software must be installed on the Virtual Machine Manager server:

· Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2

Install this trial software from the following site: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?Link

· Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0

The Server Setup Wizard installs this software if it is not already installed.

· Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0 (formerly called WinFX).

Install this software from the following site: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=69910

Note

If Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 is already installed, installing Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0 (formerly WinFX) keeps the existing Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 installation in place and adds the components needed to run Virtual Machine Manager.

· Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Express Edition Service Pack 1

The Setup Wizard installs this software with SQL instance MICROSOFT$VMM$ if it is not already installed.

· Windows Server 2003 R2 Hardware Management Tool

To enable the Hardware Management Tool, in Control Panel, open Add or Remove Programs, click Add/Remove Windows Components, highlight Management and Monitoring Tools, and click Details. Then check Hardware Management, and click OK.

Administrator Console

The Virtual Machine Manager Administrator Console provides the graphical user interface (GUI) to create and manage virtual machines. The following prerequisite software must be installed on the server that hosts the administrator console:

· Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2

Install this trial software from the following site: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?L

· Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0.

The Setup Wizard installs this software if it is not already installed.

· Windows PowerShell RC1

Install this software from the following site: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink?LinkId=69911

· Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0 (formerly WinFX).

Install this software from the following site: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkI

Note

If Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 is previously installed, installing the Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0 (formerly WinFX) keeps the existing Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 installation in place and adds the components needed to run Virtual Machine Manager.

Self-Service Portal

The Virtual Machine Manager Self-Service Portal enables users to create and manage their own virtual machines over the Web. The server on which the Virtual Machine Manager Self-Service Portal is installed must have the following prerequisite software installed:

· Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2

Install this trial software from the following site:

· Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0

The Self-Service Portal Setup Wizard installs this software if it is not already installed.

· Windows PowerShell RC1

Install this software from the following site: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink

· Windows Server 2003 R2 ASP.NET and Internet Information Services (IIS)

To enable these components, in Control Panel, open Add or Remove Programs. Then click Add/Remove Windows Components, highlight Application Server, and click Details. Check ASP.NET and Internet Application Services (IIS), and then click OK.

Agent

To manage virtual machines in Virtual Machine Manager, you must add at least one virtual machine host using the Agent. The Agent manages virtual machines and allows you to add virtual machine hosts. The Agent should be installed on all virtual server hosts to be managed by Virtual Machine Manager. Installing the agent on a DC is not supported in Beta 1.

Each virtual machine host must have the following prerequisite software installed:

· Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2 or Microsoft Windows 2003 Server SP1

· Microsoft Virtual Server 2005, either 32- or 64-bit version

· Windows Server 2003 R2 Hardware Management Tool

· If the host is running Windows Server 2003 R2, you can enable the Hardware Management Tool by using Add/Remove Windows Components: In Control Panel, open Add or Remove Programs. Then click Add/Remove Windows Components, highlight Management and Monitoring Tools, and click Details. Check Hardware Management, and then click OK.

· If the host is running Windows Server 2003 SP1, you need to download and install the Hardware Management Tool. Install this software from the following site: https://go.microsoft.com

Virtual Machine Manager Server Requirements

The Virtual Machine Manager Server and hosts must all be joined to Active Directory domains, although the hosts may be in a separate domain from the Virtual Machine Manager server if desired. If separate domains are used, there must be a trust relationship established between the Virtual Machine Manager server domain and the host domain. The server must be a member server. Installation on a DC is not supported in Beta 1.

When hosts are managed across machine-specific firewalls, agents must be locally installed on the hosts which will automatically open port 80. Once the ports are manually opened the hosts may be added to Virtual Machine Manager. The firewalls must then be configured to allow communication between the Virtual Machine Manager Server and the hosts.

If hosts are to be managed across a network firewall, you will need to manually open the ports for communication in that firewall.

Hardware Requirements

The following minimum hardware requirements are required to install Virtual Machine Manager.

· Pentium 4 2.8 GHz Processor

· 2 GB of RAM

· 8 GB disk space for the Virtual Machine Manager application

· Additional disk space for Library objects - recommend 80 GB