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The first step in deploying VMware Server based virtualization involves the obtaining and installing the software. The installation process differs considerably depending on the particular operating system running on the host computer. The goal of this chapter is to cover the steps necessary to download and install VMware Server 2.0 on a Linux host. Installation on the Microsoft Windows family of operating systems is covered in the chapter entitled [[Installing VMware Server 2.0 on Windows Systems]].
== Supported Linux Distributions ==
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. 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 (rpmRPM) 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.
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Prior to performing the installation, the above command will prompt for the locations where the software is to be installed. In each case, a default location will be suggested enclosed in square brackets. The default locations are recommended unless there is a compelling need to install elsewhere. Once the files have been copied, the script will then prompt to start the ''vmware-config.pl'' script to configure VMware Server ready for use. At this point proceed to the section below entitled ''Configuring VMware Server 2.0 Configuration''.
The RPM package may be unpacked using the following command, noting once again that the actual file name may differ from that used below. This task must be performed as super-user by using either the ''su -'' or ''sudo'' commands:
== Configuring VMware Server 2.0 ==
Once the software has been installed from either the tar archive or the RPM package, VMware Server needs to be configured. This is achieved using the ''vmware-config.pl'' script. In the case of installation from tar archive, this may have been invoked already by the ''vmware-install.pl'' script. In the case of an RPM based installation it will need to be launched manually. By default, ''vmware-config.pl'' is installed in ''/usr/bin'' so either ensure that this is included in the ''PATH'' environment variable, or enter the full path at the command prompt:
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At this point in the installation and configuration of VMware Server 2.0 on Linux is complete. For a detailed overview of the VI Web Access interface refer to [[A Guided Tour of the VMware Server 2.0 Infrastructure Web Access Interface]]. Alternatively, to progress to creating and starting virtual machines read the chapter entitled [[Creating VMware Server 2.0 Virtual Machines]].
