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Virtualization

Analyze and Replay IO Workloads with VMware

One of the most commonly problem in VMware migration projects is that the storage is undersized. When you want to size a new platform it is important to know the IO requirements. Unfortunately storage is often only sized for capacity, which is a great mistake. VMware offers tools you need to analyze and record workloads and replay them in the new platform. This post explains how to capture workloads with vscsiStats trace mode and replay them with I/O Analyzer.

vmware-io-analyzer

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Cannot remove datastore * because file system is busy.

The following error message appears when you try to delete or unmount a VMFS datastore:

The resource Datastore Name: * VMFS uuid: * is in use.

Cannot remove datastore 'Datastore Name: * VMFS uuid: *' because file system is busy. Correct the problem and retry the operation.

Cannot-remove-datastore- because-file-system-is-busy

ESXi 5.5 has a new feature to store coredumps in a file residing on a datastore. It may sometimes create this file automatically and thus blocking datastores from being deleted. It also creates a vsantraces directory which blocks a datastore.

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AMD CPU EVC Matrix (VMware Enhanced vMotion Compatibility)

Enhanced vMotion Compatibility (EVC) simplifies vMotion compatibility across CPU generations. EVC automatically configures server CPUs with AMD-V Extended Migration technologies to be compatible with older servers. I've created a table with a quick overview about EVC Modes with their appropriate CPU Series and Codenames used by AMD to denote their CPUs.

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Whats New in the vSphere 5.5 based VCP550 Exam

VMware has launched a new certification exam VCP550 which allows to take the exam based on vSphere 5.5. There is no new certification, you will still earn the VCP5-DCV certification as if you have passed the VCP510 exam based on vSphere 5.0/5.1. If you already own the VCP5-DCV there is no reason to take the exam.

The main topics of the new exam are 5.1 and 5.5 features like vSphere Data Protection (VDP), vCenter Operations Manager (vCOPS), vSphere Flash Read Cache (vFlash), Single Sign-on and the vSphere Webclient.

VCP-DCV

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VMware Homeserver – ESXi on Mac mini

Running ESXi on a Mac mini made by Apple is nothing new. There are many opportunities to consider when you want to build a VMware vSphere Lab or a Homeserver. In this post, I am going to cover capabilities, accessories, and issues you might encounter in the newest release: Mac mini MD387, Mac mini MD388, and the slightly enhanced Mac mini Server MD389 from 2012/2013. Mac mini offers great performance and is small in size and power consumption thus making it a great candidate for running ESXi at home.

esx-on-mac-mini

The latest version offers 3 models which are different in CPU performance and HDD capacity. The Server version has two 2,5" hard drives:

  • Apple Mac Mini MD387LL/A - Intel Core i5 (Up to 2x 3.1 GHz)
  • Apple Mac Mini MD388LL/A - Intel Core i7 (Up to 4x 3.3 GHz)
  • Apple Mac Mini MD389LL/A Server - Intel Core i7 (Up to 4x 3.3 GHz)

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Manage VSAN 5.5 with RVC Part 3 – Object Management

Part 3 of the "Manage VSAN with RVC" series explains commands related to VSAN objects. This commands provide an insight on how VSAN works. You can identify the status of objects and where they are located:

  • vsan.disks_info
  • vsan.disks_stats
  • vsan.cmmds_find
  • vsan.vm_object_info
  • vsan.disk_object_info
  • vsan.object_info
  • vsan.object_reconfigure

vsan-cmmds-finds

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