I am going to throw some useful info into here and then sort it out as and when I have time. Feel free to ask questions, add info etc, there are enough of us here with these that we should be able to create a really good resource. This can be used for Gen7 and Gen8 (N36l, N40l, N54l, G1610t etc).
I will be taking some info from www.homeservershow.com so props to them, hoping the info will be more concise here as less discussion will be needed due to some testing having already been done over there.
Would be interesting for users to post their setups. My setup:
HP Gen8 Microserver
CPU: Xeon E3-1265L V2
RAM: 16GB PC3-12800 ECC 1.5v (2x CT102472BA160B)
RAID: HP P222 512MB FBWC Smart Array controller
Storage: 4x Western Digital 3TB Red WD30EFRX in RAID5
Boots ESXi 6.0 from Sandisk Ultra 8GB MicroSD, VMs stored on RAID5 array
VMs: Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials
Latest Service Pack - This contains the latest firmware for everything in the Microserver including supported cards such as the P222. Large download as it caters for all Gen8 servers. Burn to CD and boot:
Info: http://h20564.www2.hp.com/hpsc/swd/p...&swEnvOid=4168
Download: ftp://ftp.hp.com/pub/softlib2/softwa...59018/v108240/
Latest iLO4 firmware - The main reason for updating this is to reduce the fan noise in certain configurations (usually when set to AHCI), in my case it made a huge difference. I updated by downloading the Windows file, when running it select Extract, then connect the server iLO port to your network, browse to the iLO IP using a web browser on your computer, login using the details on the tag attached to the server, then select Administration, firmware, browse and upload the .bin file from the extraction.
Download: http://h20564.www2.hpe.com/hpsc/swd/...&swEnvOid=4064
Installing ESXi:
Download the desired version from here - http://www8.hp.com/us/en/products/se...99005#tab=TAB4
Burn to CD (or create bootable USB etc)
Boot to ESXi image
Select target for install, I used MicroSD but you can use a USB drive etc. (the target doesn't have to be large, it will just hold the hypervisor, 8GB was enough for me)
Boot to target
Configure static IP in the config menu
On a PC navigate to the static IP in your web browser, download vSphere client for windows and install
Licensing ESXi:
Took me a while to work this out. Click here then sign into your account, click register and you should be given a license key.
In vSphere client click Inventory
In the left pane click your host IP
Configuration tab, click Licensed features
Right pane, click edit, Assign new license, click enter key and paste the key in
Should be an unlimited licence, unless I misunderstood something...
Booting from MicroSD?
I was having problems booting from MicroSD. This internal port uses a USB header so boot from USB is the correct option in the boot menu, if you have other USB storage devices connected then you may need to change the USB boot order priority in the BIOS. Some MicroSD cards are moody so might be worth trying other models. If the Microserver fails to boot from the card then try disconnecting power cord, holding power button down then trying again - worked for me!
Configuring Scratch partition:
Why?Spoiler:
Connect to vCenter Server or the ESXi host using the vSphere Client > Select your host > Configuration > Storage
Right click datastore (local or shared) and select Browse
Create folder for this ESXi host named for example “scratch”> close the datastore browser.
Select the host > configuration > Advanced (software section) > ScratchConfig > Change the ScratchConfig.ConfiguredScratchLocation
scratch-config
e.g. /vmfs/volumes/DatastoreName/scratch
Click OK > go and put the host in maintenance mode and reboot for the configuration to take effect.
Now, if you have for example 3 hosts in your cluster, just create a separate folder for each of your host, so the hosts don’t overwrite each other’s data.
Limitations:
The internal SATA port (intended for the ODD) cannot be booted from, you can boot to internal USB/MicroSD and then chainload to the internal SATA port.
Accessories:
Floppy male to SATA female power adapter (used to install drive in the top bay)
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