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== VMware Server 2.0 and Unsupported Linux Distributions ==
Although many Linux distributions are not included in the the list of those supported by VMware, Inc, this only means that VMware Server is not officially supported in such environments. It does not, however, necessarily mean that VMware Server will not run on these systems. In fact, when the VMware Server 2.0 installer encounters a Linux kernel for which it does not already have a pre-built kernel module ready to load, it will prompt for the location of the kernel sources and a GNU C compiler so that it can attempt to build a compatible module. For this reason, it is important that the GNU C compiler (gcc) package and the kernel sources necessary for building kernel modules are installed on unsupported Linux distributions prior to beginning the VMware Server 2.0 installation process. The steps to achieve this depend on the package management system in use and should be performed with reference to the official documentation for the Linux distribution in question.
Even if the installer is able to build and load a module for an unsupported Linux distribution it is important to note that this is no guarantee that the software will subsequently run. If problems are encountered it is worth searching on the internet or visiting VMware Server or Linux distribution specific online forums to find out if others have encountered similar problems and to identify whether workarounds are available.
VMware Server 2.0 for Linux may be downloaded free of charge from the VMware web site located at [http://www.vmware.com www.vmware.com]. The download process involves locating VMware Server 2.0 from the products page and submitting a moderately detailed form. Once the form has been submitted and the subsequent license agreement agreed to, the VMware Server 2.0 download page is presented.
VMware, Inc. provide provides the VMware Server software distribution in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions so it will be important to identify the CPU architecture of the host computer before downloading the software. The VMware software is also distributed as either a compressed (gzipped) tar or Red Hat Package Management (rpm) archive. The archive type to select is as much about personal preference as anything else, although users with non-Red Hat derived Linux distributions may be more inclined to opt for the compressed tar archive. The archives are approximately 500Mb in size so may take some time to download depending on internet connection speed.
Also displayed on the download page will be serial numbers for both Linux and Windows installations. These will be required to unlock the VMware Server software during the installation process so be sure to make a careful note of them before dismissing the browser window.
Having identified (or compiled) and loaded the appropriate kernel modules the ''vmware-config.pl'' script proceeds to the network configuration phase.
If the virtual guest systems running within the VMware Server environment are not required to have any form of network connectivity, enter ''n'' when prompterdprompted, otherwise enter ''y'' to configure networking options. VMware Server 2.0 provides support for three types of virtual networking, so before selecting the network options to be made available to guest systems, it is worth taking a little time to understand each of these options:
* '''Bridged networking''' — Although the guest systems use the physical network connections on the host system, each guest is treated as an independent client on the network. As such it will obtain an IP address from the network's DHCP server, or will require a static IP address to be manually configured if DHCP is not used. Guest systems using bridged networking will be able to communicate directly with both the host and other clients on the network to which the host is connected.
* '''Network Address Translation (NAT)''' — Virtual guests share the IP and MAC address of the host system. Guests will be able to communicate with other clients on the network to which the host is connected, but will appear to those clients as the host system, rather than as individual network clients. this This approach allows multiple systems virtual machines to operating using a single IP address.
* '''Host‐only networking''' - Creates a private sub-net within the host for the guest systems. Guests configured with host-only networking can communicate directly only with the host system and other guests which are also members of the host-only network. The guest systems cannot, however, communicate with the network to which the host is connected.
It is important to note that at this point we are simply deciding what networking options will be available to the guest systems. Just because an option is selected now, it does not mean that any of the virtual guests have to be configured to use it. Similarly, if at a later date a networking option is required which was not selected at this point it may be enabled simply by re-running the ''vmware-config.pl'' script and selecting the missing option.
In the case of Bridged network support, the configuration script will prompt for a name for the network and, in the case of hosts with multiple ethernet Ethernet adapters, the adapter to be used for the bridge. Note that even though an ethernet Ethernet adapter is used for the bridge it will still be available for continued use by the host.
As with Bridged network support, the NAT option requires that a name be assigned. The script will subsequently provide the option to probe the network to locate an unused private subnet address range. Either choose the probe option, or enter a known available subnet for the NAT addressing scheme. Once selected, virtual guests will communicate with each other using the these private subnet addresses, but will communicate with the external network using the IP address of the host.
Host-only networking will similarly require a name and an unused private subnet which may be entered manually or automatically identified by the configuration script. Once the network configuration process is complete, ''vmware-config.pl'' will load the VMware Server network kernel module (vmnet) into the running kernel of the host operating system.
The next step of the configuration involves defining how the VMware Server management console (also referred to as VMware Infrastructure Web Access) will be accessed, both for local and remote administration purposes. The first option to configure is the port through which the VMware Server environment will be accessed from remote systems using VMware management applications (in other words, non-browser based applications). The default port for this purpose is port 902. The HTTP and secure HTTPS access ports also need to be specified for use when accessing the management console via web browsers. By default these are 8222 and 8333 respectively. Therefore, if the host system has an IP address of 192.168.2.21, then the management interface would be accessed securely by entering https://192.168.2.21:8333 in a browser URL field. Different ports may, of course, be specified if required, although regardless of the ports used, it will be necessary to make sure these ports are open on any firewalls protecting the host if remote administration is to be performed.
Next is the designation of a user to act as the administrator of the VMware Server environment. When prompted, enter 'y' to configure a different administrator and provide the name of the user to be given administrative access to the VMware Server system. This users user's name and system password will subsequently be used to gain access to the management console.
Once the administrator has been assigned, specify the location for the virtual machine files and, finally, enter the serial number, of the form XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX recorded at the beginning of this chapter to unlock the VMware Server software.
https://''host'':8333
Once loaded, the VI Web Access interface will prompt for the administrator user name specified during the configuration process described in the previous section, together with the password that particular user uses to again access to the host system:
