A useful tutorial below on how to setup ESXi. The Q1/2012 release will have it in the tutorial section. But here is the raw text below.
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Configuring ESXi 4.x and 5.0 for Discovery and Inventory
Overview for Configuring ESXi 4.x and 5.0 for Discovery and Inventory
This tutorial will guide you through the steps required to setup ESXi 4.x and 5.0 for discovery and inventory.
You will need to complete the following steps for all ESXi hosts:
1. Download and install the latest Dell OpenManage Server Administrator (OMSA) VIB.
2. Ensure the CIM OEM Provider is enabled.
3. Configure SNMP traps.
Note: To ensure proper device classification and inventory, make sure to create a unique include range with the WS-Man protocol enabled and the SNMP protocol disabled for discovering ESXi servers.
You will need to download and install the latest version of the vSphere CLI to complete one or more of the steps in this guide. This can be downloaded from http://www.vmware.com
Download the Dell OMSA VIB for ESXi
The Dell OMSA VIB is the installation package for Dell OpenManage Server Administrator (OMSA) in ESXi. OMSA provides the interface to manage the inventory and generate related SNMP traps from the ESXi hosts.
1. Go to support.dell.com and click ‘Drivers and Downloads’.
2. Enter your Service Tag or product model.
3. Select the ESXi version as the operating system, and then click ‘Systems Management’.
4. Click ‘OpenManage Offline Bundle and VIB for ESXi’ to download and install OpenManage Server Administrator.
NOTE: For ESXi 5.0, OMSA VIB 6.5 A02 or greater is required.
For full documentation on using Dell OMSA with ESXi, go to:
http://support.dell.com/support/systemsinfo/documentation.aspx
Then navigate to: Software | Virtualization Solutions | VMware Software
Install the Dell OMSA VIB for ESXi
Using the vSphere CLI, install the Dell OMSA VIB using the appropriate command depending on the version of ESXi.
For ESXi 4.x:
vihostupdate.pl --server <IP Address of ESXi host> --username root --password <password> -i -b <path to zip>
For ESXi 5.0:
esxcli --server <IP Address of ESXi host> software vib install -d <path to zip>
Ensure the CIM OEM Provider is Enabled
The CIM OEM provider allows the Server Administrator Web Server to communicate with the ESXi system, which is necessary for management of the device.
Since CIM OEM providers are disabled by default on some ESXi versions, you should ensure this is enabled.
To enable CIM OEM providers on the ESXi system using vSphere Client:
1. Log on to the ESXi host system using vSphere Client.
2. Click the ‘Configuration’ tab.
3. Under the ‘Software’ section on the left side, click ‘Advanced Settings’.
4. In the ‘Advanced Settings’ dialog box, click UserVars on the left pane.
5. Change the value of the ‘CIMOEMProvidersEnabled’ or ‘CIMoemProviderEnabled’ field to 1.
6. Click 'OK'.
7. For the changes to take effect without restarting the system, use the ‘Restart Management Agents’ option in the Direct Console User Interface (DCUI) on the local console of the ESXi system.
If the changes are not effective and if you cannot connect to the VMware ESXi host using Server Administrator, restart the VMware ESXi host system.
Configuring SNMP Traps for ESX/ESXi 4.x and 5.0
To generate virtual machine and environmental traps from ESX/ESXi hosts, you must configure and enable the embedded SNMP agent.
Note: Make sure the SNMP protocol is open in the ESX firewall.
To enable the embedded SNMP Agent and configure SNMP traps using the vSphere CLI:
1. Run this command to see if SNMP is enabled:
vicfg-snmp --show
2. Specify the communities and trap targets with this command:
vicfg-snmp.pl --server <hostname> --username <username> --password <password> -t <target hostname>@<port>/<community>
For example:
vicfg-snmp.pl --server host.dell.com --username root --password password -t target.dell.com@162/public
Note: In ESX 4.x, you may need to use the -c <community> flag.
3. To enable the SNMP service, run this command:
vicfg-snmp.pl --server <hostname> --username <username> --password <password> --enable
4. To verify the SNMP settings, run this command:
vicfg-snmp.pl --server <hostname> --username <username> --password <password> --show
5. After you have discovered the ESX/ESXi host, you can send a test trap to verify that the agent is configured correctly with this command:
vicfg-snmp.pl --server <hostname> --username <username> --password <password> --test
Information referenced from VMware KB article 1008065.
NOTE: For ESXi 5.0, OMSA VIB 6.5 A02 or greater is required.
Okay, you had to know this was coming... when can we expect availability of A02? Is there any chance OME will work with the A01 that we've already managed to install on ESXi 5.0?
AAlso, can you detail the exact CIM discovery settings (port, options) that we need to use when creating a discovery range?
Oops, I meant WS-MAN, not CIM of course.
Oops, I meant WS-MAN, not CIM of course.
Yep, so the 1.0.1 release is targeted for Q1/2012. We are planning to support upgrades from 1.0 to 1.0.1.
Does that answer that part of the question? Not sure if I understood the ESXi 5 part totally.
For WS-Man, the Help button on the WS-Man page of the wizard will help give a bit of detail
on the fields. But for us in our lab, we will use the following:
-enable WSMan -- checked
-user id -- myuserid
- password -- mypw
-- timeout -- 2
-- retries -- 4
-- port -- 443
-- Secure mode -- checked
-- Trusted site -- checked
disclaimer -- some sites may use a certificate file for best security.
Hope this helps.
Rob
Currently the latest available version of the OMSA VIB is 6.5 A01 which was released in March. Your instructions reference 6.5 A02 which is not yet available. When will it be available and will the A01 release work before then?
Here is some additional detail about using the current A01 release on ESXi 5 but it doesn't elaborate if OME will work with it:
Even after adding the WS-man setting the ESXi 4.1 server still shows a purple on the hardware health.
ESXi 5.0, OMSA VIB 6.5 A02 now posted here...thx. Rob
OK, we have following the instruction from the OME tutorial for the installation of OMSA and such. I created a unique include range (one IP address)with only WS-MAN enabled with a username and password, unchecked secure mode, with port 443, and nothing is getting discovered.
I used the troubleshooting tool, and I was able to connect to SNMP successfully and tested successfully with the WS-MAN test. Any suggestions?