Installing and

Configuring ESXi

© 2022 VMware, Inc.

Importance
ESXi is the virtualization platform on which you can create and run virtual machines. Proper
configuration of the ESXi host ensures that virtual machines run in an environment that is
reliable, secure, and performant.

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1-2

Module Lessons
1. Installing and Configuring ESXi

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1-3

Installing and Configuring ESXi

© 2019 VMware Inc. All rights reserved.

Learner Objectives
• Describe the ESXi host architecture
• Navigate the Direct Console User Interface (DCUI) to configure an ESXi host
• Recognize the user account best practices
• Install an ESXi host
• Configure the ESXi host settings

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1-5

About ESXi
ESXi is a bare-metal hypervisor that is licensed as a part of vSphere. A free version is also
available as a standalone server.

ESXi has the following features:

• High security:
– Host-based firewall
– Memory hardening
– Kernel module integrity
– Trusted Platform Module (TPM 2.0)
– UEFI secure boot
– Encrypted core dumps
• Small disk footprint
• Quick boot for faster patching and upgrades
• Installable on hard disks, SAN LUNs, SSD,
SATADOM, and diskless hosts
© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1-6
ESXi Installation Requirements
Ensure that the host meets the minimum hardware configurations supported by ESXi 8.0:
• Supported server platform
• At least two CPU cores
• At least 8 GB of physical RAM, 12 GB for a production environment
• One or more Gigabit or faster Ethernet controllers
• Boot disk of at least 32 GB of persistent storage

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1-7

Interactive ESXi Installation
An interactive installation is
recommended for small
deployments of fewer than five
hosts.
You boot from the installer and
follow the prompts in the
installation wizard:
• Start at the Welcome page.
• Accept the EULA.
• Select the disk.
• Select the keyboard layout.
• Enter the root password.
• Start the installation.

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1-8

Configuring an ESXi Host
During the ESXi installation, the ESXi host is given a DHCP-assigned IP address.
You use the ESXi host's DCUI to configure certain settings, such as the host's network settings.
The DCUI is a text-based user interface with keyboard-only interaction.

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1-9

Configuring an ESXi Host: Management Network
You must configure management network settings before your ESXi host is operational. By
default, a DHCP-assigned IP address is configured for the ESXi host.

Use the DCUI to configure management

network settings:
• Network adapter selection
• VLAN ID
• IPv4 and IPv6 configuration (IP address,
subnet mask, default gateway)
• Host name
• DNS servers and suffixes

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1 - 10

Configuring an ESXi Host: Root Access
Administrators use the DCUI to configure the root access settings:
• Change the root password (complex passwords only)
• Activate or deactivate the lockdown mode:
– Limits the management of the host to vCenter
– Can be configured only for hosts managed by a vCenter instance

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1 - 11

Configuring an ESXi Host: Other Settings
Using the DCUI, you can configure the keyboard layout, activate troubleshooting services, view
support information, and view system logs.

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1 - 12

Time Synchronization for the ESXi Host
To ensure precise timekeeping and synchronization between the ESXi host and the other
components of the vSphere network, you can synchronize an ESXi host's clock to a time
reference.
Time synchronization is important:
• For accurate performance graphs
• For accurate time stamps in log messages
• So that virtual machines have a source to synchronize

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1 - 13

Methods for Synchronizing Time
You can use the time synchronization options:
• Manual configuration
• NTP, Network Time Protocol, providing
millisecond timing accuracy
• PTP, Precision Time Protocol, providing
microsecond timing accuracy
You can configure NTP or PTP using VMware Configuring time and date in VMware Host
Host Client or the vSphere Client. Client
The NTP and PTP services cannot run
simultaneously.

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1 - 14

Configuring NTP
An ESXi host can be configured
as an NTP client. It can
synchronize time with an NTP
server on the Internet or your
corporate NTP server.
NTP client uses UDP over port
123.

Configuring NTP using VMware Host Client

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1 - 15

Configuring PTP
PTP provisions hardware-based
timestamping for the virtual
machines and the hosts within
a network.
PTP client uses UDP over ports
319 and 320.
You can use NTP as a fallback
if the PTP service does not
work.

Configuring PTP using the vSphere Client

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1 - 16

Controlling Remote Access to an ESXi Host
You can use the vSphere Client to customize
the essential security settings that control
remote access to an ESXi host:
• The ESXi firewall is activated by default.
The firewall blocks incoming and outgoing
traffic, except for the traffic activated in the
host’s firewall settings.
• Services, such as the NTP client and the
SSH client, are managed by users with
administrator privileges.
• Lockdown mode prevents remote users
from logging in to the host directly. The host
is accessible only through the DCUI or
vCenter.

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1 - 17

Managing User Accounts: Best Practices
When assigning user accounts to access ESXi hosts or vCenter systems, you must follow these
security guidelines:
• Strictly control root access to the ESXi hosts.
• Create strong root account passwords that have at least eight characters. Use special
characters, case changes, and numbers. Change passwords periodically.
• Manage the ESXi hosts centrally through vCenter Server by using the vSphere Client.
• Minimize the use of local users on the ESXi hosts:
– Add the ESXi hosts to a domain and add the relevant administrator users to the ESX
Admins domain group. Users in the domain group have root privileges on the ESXi hosts.

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1 - 18

Demonstration: Installing and Configuring ESXi Hosts
Your instructor will run a demonstration.

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1 - 19

Lab 1: Configuring an ESXi Host
Use VMware Host Client to configure an ESXi host:
1. Add an ESXi Host to an LDAP Server
2. Log In to the ESXi Host as an LDAP User
3. Activate the SSH and vSphere ESXi Shell Services
4. Configure the ESXi Host as an NTP Client

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1 - 20

Review of Learner Objectives
• Describe the ESXi host architecture
• Navigate the Direct Console User Interface (DCUI) to configure an ESXi host
• Recognize the user account best practices
• Install an ESXi host
• Configure the ESXi host settings

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1 - 21

Key Points
• The Direct Console User Interface (DCUI) allows you to configure certain settings for ESXi
hosts.
• Securing the root user account is very important to secure an ESXi host, as the user is the
host's most powerful user.
• NTP provides millisecond timing accuracy and PTP provides microsecond timing accuracy for
ESXi hosts.
Questions?

© 2022 VMware, Inc. M03_Installing and Configuring ESXi | 1 - 22