Citrix XenServer ® 6.2.0 Virtual Machine User's Guide Published Tuesday, 25 June 2013 1.
Citrix XenServer ® 6.2.0 Virtual Machine User's Guide Copyright © 2013 Citrix Systems. Inc. All Rights Reserved. Version: 6.2.0 Citrix, Inc. 851 West Cypress Creek Road Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309 United States of America Disclaimers This document is furnished "AS IS." Citrix, Inc. disclaims all warranties regarding the contents of this document, including, but not limited to, implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for any particular purpose.
Contents 1. About this Document .................................................................................... 1 1.1. Overview ..................................................................................................................... 1 1.2. XenServer Documentation ............................................................................................ 1 2. Virtual Machines ........................................................................................... 2 2.1. Creating VMs ..
5.4. Advanced Operating System Boot Parameters .............................................................. 18 5.5. Installing the Linux Guest Agent .................................................................................. 19 5.6. Additional Installation Notes for Linux Distributions ..................................................... 20 5.6.1. Additional Debian Notes .................................................................................. 21 5.6.1.1. Apt Repositories ................
9.1. VM Boot Behavior ...................................................................................................... 31 9.1.1. Persist (XenDesktop - Private Desktop Mode) .................................................... 31 9.1.2. Reset (XenDesktop - Shared Desktop Mode) ..................................................... 31 9.2. Making the ISO Library Available to XenServer Hosts .................................................... 31 9.3. XenServer Tools ......................................
A. Windows VM Release Notes ....................................................................... 55 A.1. Release Notes ............................................................................................................ 55 A.1.1. General Windows Issues .................................................................................. 55 A.1.2. Windows Server 2008 ..................................................................................... 55 A.1.3. Windows Server 2003 ...................
D.2.3. Firewall Settings .............................................................................................. 63 D.2.4. VNC Screen Resolution .................................................................................... 63 D.2.5. Enabling VNC for RHEL, CentOS, or OEL 6.x VMs ............................................... 64 D.3. Setting up SLES-based VMs for VNC ............................................................................ 65 D.3.1. Checking for a VNC Server ................
Chapter 1. About this Document 1.1. Overview This is a guide to using Virtual Machines (VMs) with XenServer™, the platform virtualization solution from Citrix®. It describes how to create, configure, and manage VMs running on XenServer hosts. This section summarizes the rest of the guide so that you can find the information you need.
Chapter 2. Virtual Machines This chapter provides an overview of how to create Virtual Machines (VMs) using templates. It also explains other preparation methods, including physical to virtual conversion (P2V), cloning templates, and importing previouslyexported VMs. What is a Virtual Machine? A Virtual Machine (VM) is a software computer that, like a physical computer, runs an operating system and applications.
be sure to follow the appropriate preparation procedure for the VM (see Section 9.9, “Preparing for Cloning a Windows VM Using VSS” for Windows and Section 5.7, “Preparing to Clone a Linux VM” for Linux). Note: Templates cannot be used as normal VMs. XenServer has two mechanisms for cloning VMs: 1. A full copy 2. Copy-on-Write (CoW) The faster Copy-on-Write (CoW) mode only writes modified blocks to disk and is only supported for filebacked VMs.
Warning: Running a VM without installing the XenServer Tools is not a supported configuration.
Chapter 3. Supported Guests and Allocating Resources This chapter describes how to allocate resources to your VMs, and the supported guest operating systems. It lists virtual memory and virtual disk size minimums, and describes the differences in virtual device support for the members of the XenServer product family. 3.1.
Operating System Minimum RAM Maximum RAM Minimum Disk Space Windows XP SP3 (32-bit) 256MB 4GB 8GB (16GB recommended) CentOS 4.5, 4.6, 4.7, 4.8 (32-bit) 256MB 16GB 8GB CentOS 5.0, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6, 5.7 (32-/64-bit) 512MB 16GB 8GB CentOS 5.8, 5.9 (32-bit) 512MB 16GB 8GB CentOS 5.8, 5.9 (64-bit) 512MB 128GB 8GB CentOS 6.0, 6.1 (32-bit) 512MB 8GB 8GB CentOS 6.0, 6.1 (64-bit) 512MB 32GB 8GB CentOS 6.2, 6.3, 6.4 (32-bit) 512MB 16GB 8GB CentOS 6.2, 6.3, 6.
Operating System Minimum RAM Maximum RAM Minimum Disk Space Oracle Enterprise Linux 5.0, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6, 5.7 (64-bit) 512MB 128GB 8GB Oracle Enterprise Linux 5.8, 5.9 (32-bit) 512MB 16GB 8GB Oracle Enterprise Linux 5.8, 5.9 (64-bit) 512MB 128GB 8GB Oracle Enterprise Linux 6.0, 6.1 (32-bit) 512MB 8GB 8GB Oracle Enterprise Linux 6.0, 6.1 (64-bit) 512MB 32GB 8GB Oracle Enterprise Linux 6.2, 6.3, 6.4 (32bit) 512MB 16GB 8GB Oracle Enterprise Linux 6.2, 6.3, 6.
Operating System Ubuntu Maverick Meerkat 10.10 (64-bit) Warning: Experimental guest operating systems have received limited testing, may not be present in future product releases and must not be enabled on production systems. Citrix may not respond to support requests regarding experimental features. 3.3. Deprecated Guests The following table lists the deprecated guest operating systems in XenServer 6.2.0. Operating System Debian Lenny 5.
3.4.1. VM Block Devices In the para-virtualized (PV) Linux case, block devices are passed through as PV devices. XenServer does not attempt to emulate SCSI or IDE, but instead provides a more suitable interface in the virtual environment in the form of xvd* devices. It is also sometimes possible (depending on the OS) to get an sd* device using the same mechanism, where the PV driver inside the VM takes over the SCSI device namespace.
Chapter 4. Creating Windows VMs Warning: Running a VM without installing the XenServer Tools is not a supported configuration. For more information, see Section 2.3, “XenServer Tools”. Installing Windows VMs on a XenServer host requires hardware virtualization support (Intel VT or AMD-V). 4.1.
Template Name Description Windows Server 2003 (32-bit) Used to install Windows Server 2003 SP2 (32-bit). The Server, Enterprise, Data Centre, and SBS editions are supported. Windows Server 2003 (64-bit) Used to install Windows Server 2003 SP2 (64-bit). The Server, Enterprise, Data Centre, and SBS editions are supported. Windows Server 2008 (32-bit) Used to install Windows Server 2008 SP2 (32-bit). All editions are supported.
To copy BIOS strings using the CLI, see Section 9.8, “Installing a VM from Reseller Option Kit (BIOS-locked) Media” 3. Enter a name and an optional description for the new VM. 4. Choose the source of the OS media to install on the new VM. Installing from a CD/DVD is the simplest option for getting started. To do so, choose the default installation source option (DVD drive), insert the disk into the DVD drive of the XenServer host, and choose Next to proceed.
Windows Imaging Component (see your vendor documentation for details) before installing XenServer Tools. To install XenServer Tools: a. On the Resources pane, select the XenServer host and then the Search tab. The XenServer Tools not installed blue status text appears next to the new VM. b. Click the text to open the XenServer Tools setup wizard on the VM console. c. Click the Install XenServer Tools button, and then Run Xensetup.exe. d.
Chapter 5. Creating Linux VMs This chapter discusses how to create Linux VMs, either by installing them or cloning them. This chapter also contains vendor-specific installation instructions. When you want to create a new VM, you must create the VM using a template for the operating system you want to run on the VM. You can use a template Citrix provides for your operating system, or one that you created previously. You can create the VM from either XenCenter or the CLI.
The supported Linux distributions are: Distribution Vendor Install from CD Vendor Install from network repository Debian Squeeze 6.0 (32-/64-bit) X X Debian Wheezy 7.0 (32-/64-bit) X X Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.5, 4.6, 4.7, 4.8 (32-bit) X X Requires installing XenServer Tools after installing RHEL to apply the Citrix RHEL 4.8 kernel. Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.0, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6, 5.7, 5.8, 5.9 (32-/64-bit) X X Supported provided you use the 5.4 or later kernel.
5.1. Creating a Linux VM by Installing from an Internet Repository This section shows the xe CLI procedure for creating a Linux VM, using a Debian Squeeze example, by installing the OS from an internet repository. Example: Installing a Debian Squeeze VM from a network repository 1. Create a VM from the Debian Squeeze template. The UUID of the VM is returned: xe vm-install template= new-name-label= 2.
xe vm-cd-add vm= cd-name="" device=3 6. Get the UUID of the VBD corresponding to the new virtual CD drive: xe vbd-list vm-uuid= type=CD params=uuid --minimal 7. Make the VBD of the virtual CD bootable: xe vbd-param-set uuid= bootable=true 8. Set the install repository of the VM to be the CD drive: xe vm-param-set uuid= other-config:install-repository=cdrom 9.
The network repository must be accessible from the control domain of the XenServer host, normally using the management interface. The URL must point to the base of the CD/DVD image on the network server, and be of the form: • HTTP http:/// • FTP ftp:/// • NFS nfs:/// • NFS nfs::/ See your vendor installation instructions for information about how to prepare for a network-based installation, such as where to unpack the ISO.
3. On the command line, use vm-param-set to set the PV-args parameter to make use of a Kickstart file xe vm-param-set uuid= PV-args="ks=http://server/path ksdevice=eth0" 4.
5.6. Additional Installation Notes for Linux Distributions This section describes additional, vendor-specific configuration information that you should be aware of before creating Linux VMs. It covers each Linux distribution supported in this release of XenServer. Important: For detailed release notes on all distributions, see Appendix B, Linux VM Release Notes. Linux Distribution Installation Notes CentOS 4.5, 4.6, 4.7, 4.8 (32-bit) For a CentOS 4.
Linux Distribution Installation Notes Oracle Enterprise Linux 6.0, 6.1, 6.2 (32-/64-bit) None. Debian Squeeze 6.0 (32-/64-bit) When a private mirror is specified in XenCenter this is only used to retrieve the installer kernel. Once the installer is running you will again need to enter the address of the mirror to be used for package retrieval. Ubuntu 10.04 (32-/64-bit) For Ubuntu 10.04 VMs with multiple vCPUs, Citrix strongly recommends that you update the guest kernel to "2.6.32-32 #64".
different MAC address. As a result, when the new VM is started for the first time, the network does recognize the new VM and does not come up automatically. 2. Some Linux distributions use udev rules to remember the MAC address of each network interface, and persist a name for that interface. This is intended so that the same physical NIC always maps to the same eth interface, which is particularly useful with removable NICs (like laptops). However, this behavior is problematic in the context of VMs.
Chapter 6. VM Migration with XenMotion and Storage XenMotion This chapter discusses migrating running VMs using XenMotion and Storage XenMotion and how to move a VMs Virtual Disk Image (VDI) without any VM downtime. 6.1. XenMotion and Storage XenMotion The following sections describe the compatibility requirements and limitations of XenMotion and Storage XenMotion. 6.1.1.
• The target host must have sufficient spare memory capacity or be able to free sufficient capacity using Dynamic Memory Control. If there is not enough memory, the migration will fail to complete. • For Storage XenMotion, the target storage must have enough free disk space (for the VM and its snapshot) available for the incoming VMs. If there is not enough space, the migration will fail to complete. 6.1.4.
• Moving a VM from cheap local storage to fast, resilient, array-backed storage. • Moving a VM from a development to production environment. • Moving between tiers of storage when a VM is limited by storage capacity. • Performing storage array upgrades. 6.3.1. Limitations and Caveats Live VDI Migration is subject to the following limitations and caveats • There must be sufficient disk space available on the target repository. • VDIs located on Integrated StorageLink (iSL) SRs cannot be migrated.
Chapter 7. Updating VMs This chapter discusses updating Windows VMs with updated operating systems, updating XenServer Tools, and updating VMs with new Linux kernel revisions. Upgrades to VMs are typically required when moving to a new version of XenServer. The following are current issues involving upgrading VMs running on XenServer to this version: • XenMotion of Windows VMs is not supported until the XenServer Tools are upgraded.
XenServer/6.1.0/rhel4x/. Because Citrix no longer provides RHEL 5.x kernels, you should obtain updates to RHEL 5.4 and higher kernels directly from Red Hat. Rerunning the Linux/install.sh script from the built-in xs-tools.iso is particularly important for CentOS versions prior to 5.3, where you will get the upstream kernel by default, which has certain limitations (see Section B.1, “Release Notes”). For yum-enabled distributions (CentOS 4 and 5, RHEL 5.
Chapter 8. vApps A vApp is a logical group of one or more related Virtual Machines (VMs) which can be started up as a single entity. When a vApp is started, the VMs contained within the vApp will start in a user predefined order, to allow VMs which depend upon one another to be automatically sequenced. This means that an administrator no longer has to manually sequence the startup of dependant VMs should a whole service require restarting (for instance in the case of a software update).
3. Choose which VMs to include in the new vApp, and then click Next. You can use the search box to list only VMs with names that include the specified string. 4. 5. Specify the startup sequence for the VMs in the vApp, and then click Next. Value Description Start Order Specifies the order in which individual VMs will be started up within the vApp, allowing certain VMs to be restarted before others.
A soft shut down will be attempted on all VMs; if this is not possible, then a forced shut down will be performed. Note: A soft shut down performs a graceful shut down of the VM, and all running processes are halted individually. A forced shut down performs a hard shut down and is the equivalent of unplugging a physical server. It may not always shut down all running processes and you risk losing data if you shut down a VM in this way.
Chapter 9. Advanced Notes for Virtual Machines This chapter provides some advanced notes for Virtual Machines. 9.1. VM Boot Behavior There are two options for the behavior of a Virtual Machine's VDI when the VM is booted: Note: The VM must be shut down before you can make any changes to its boot behavior setting. 9.1.1. Persist (XenDesktop - Private Desktop Mode) This is the default behaviour on VM boot; the VDI is left in the state it was at the last shutdown.
xe-mount-iso-sr //server1/myisos -t cifs -o username=johndoe/mydomain xe-mount-iso-sr //server2/iso_share -t smbfs -o username=alice After mounting the share, any available ISOs will be available from the Install from ISO Library or DVD drive dropdown list in XenCenter, or as CD images from the CLI commands. The ISO should be attached to an appropriate Windows template. 9.3.
9.4. Windows Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) provider The Windows tools also include a XenServer VSS provider that is used to quiesce the guest filesystem in preparation for a VM snapshot. The VSS provider is installed as part of the PV driver installation, but is not enabled by default. To enable the Windows XenServer VSS provider 1. Install the Windows PV drivers. 2.
9.6. Time Handling in Windows VMs For Windows guests, time is initially driven from the control domain clock, and is updated during VM lifecycle operations such as suspend, reboot and so on. Citrix highly recommends running a reliable NTP service in the control domain and all Windows VMs. So if you manually set a VM to be 2 hours ahead of the control domain (for example, using a time-zone offset within the VM), then it will persist.
The following table lists wallclock settings for Linux VMs: Guest OS Dependent wallclock Independent wallclock CentOS 4.x Default Optional CentOS 5.x (32-/64-bit) Default Optional CentOS 6.x (32-/64-bit) Not supported Default Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.x (32-bit) Default Optional Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.x (32-/64-bit) Default Optional Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.x (32-/64-bit) Not supported Default OEL 5.x (32-/64-bit) Default Optional OEL 6.
• without BIOS strings: immediately after its creation. If a VM does not have BIOS strings set when it is started, the standard XenServer BIOS strings will be inserted into it, and the VM will become BIOS-generic. To allow installation of Reseller Option Kit (BIOS-locked) OEM versions of Windows, onto a VM running on a XenServer host, the BIOS strings of the VM will need to be copied from the host with which the ROK media was supplied.
sysprep modifies the local computer SID to make it unique to each computer. The sysprep binaries are on the Windows product CDs in the \support\tools\deploy.cab file. The steps that you need to take to clone Windows VMs are: Cloning Windows VMs 1. Create, install, and configure the Windows VM as desired. 2. Apply all relevant Service Packs and updates. 3. Install the XenServer Tools. 4. Install any applications and perform any other configuration. 5. Copy the contents of \support\tools\deploy.
Before Assigning a GPU to a VM Before you assign a GPU to a VM, you need to put the appropriate physical GPU(s) in your XenServer host and then restart the machine. Upon restart, XenServer automatically detects any physical GPU(s). To view all physical GPU(s) across hosts in the pool, use the xe pgpu-list command. Ensure that the IOMMU chipset feature is enabled on the host.
xe vgpu-list vm-uuid= 3. Detach the GPU from the VM by entering the following: xe vgpu-destroy uuid= 4. Start the VM by using the xe vm-start command.
Chapter 10. Importing the Demo Linux Virtual Appliance Citrix provides a fully functional installation of a Demo Linux Virtual Appliance, based on a CentOS 5.5 distribution. This is available for download, in a single xva file from My Citrix. The xva file can be quickly imported into XenCenter to create a fully working Linux Virtual Machine. No additional configuration steps are required.
In a web browser, enter the VM IP address. The "Demonstration Linux Virtual Machine" page should display. This page shows simple information about the VM mounted disks, their size, location and usage. You can also use the web page to mount a disk. Mounting a disk using the Demonstration Linux Virtual Machine Web Page 1. In XenCenter, add a virtual disk to your VM. Select the VM in the Resources pane, click on the Storage tab, and then click Add. 2.
Chapter 11. Importing and Exporting VMs XenServer allows you to import VMs from and export them to a number of different formats. Using the XenCenter Import wizard, you can import VMs from disk images (VHD and VMDK), Open Virtualization Format (OVF and OVA) and XenServer XVA format. You can even import VMs that have been created on other virtualization platforms, such as those offered by VMware and Microsoft.
Consider using XVA format to: • Share VMs with versions of XenServer earlier than 6.0 • Import and export VMs from a script with a CLI 11.1.1. Open Virtualization Format (OVF and OVA) OVF is an open standard, specified by the Distributed Management Task Force, for packaging and distributing a virtual appliance consisting of one or more VM(s).
An Open Virtual Appliance (OVA) package is a single archive file, in the Tape Archive (.tar) format, containing the files that comprise an OVF Package. 11.1.1.1. Selecting OVF or OVA Format OVF packages contain a series of uncompressed files, which makes it easier if you want to access individual disk images in the file. An OVA package contains one large file, and while you can compress this file, it does not give you the flexibility of a series of files.
11.1.4. XVA Version 1 Format XVA Version 1 is the original format specific to Xen-based hypervisors for packaging an individual VM as a single file archive, including a descriptor and disk images. Its file extension is ova.xml. The descriptor (file extension ova.xml) specifies the virtual hardware of a single VM. The disk image format is a directory of files. The directory name corresponds to a reference name in the descriptor and contains 1 file for each 1 GB chunk of the disk image.
Windows operating systems when the boot device is changed between a SCSI and IDE interface. If certain virtualization tool sets are discovered in the VM, they are disabled to prevent performance problems and unnecessary event messages. 11.3. The Transfer VM The Transfer VM is a built-in VM that only runs during the import or export of a virtual disk image to transfer its contents between the disk image file location and a XenServer storage repository.
11.4.1. Importing VMs from OVF/OVA Note: In order to import OVF or OVA packages, you must be logged in as root or have the Pool Administrator Role Based Access Control (RBAC) role associated with your user account. The XenCenter Import wizard allows you to import VMs that have been saved as OVF/OVA files. The Import wizard takes you through the usual steps needed to create a new VM in XenCenter: nominating a host, and then configuring storage and networking for the new VM.
incoming VMs are stored as part of the definition of the original (exported) VM in the export file. To map an incoming virtual network interface to a target network, select a network from the list in the Target Network column. Click Next to continue. 7. Specify security settings: if the selected OVF/OVA package is configured with security features, such as certificates or a manifest, specify the information necessary, and then click Next to continue.
• For Windows Vista, Server 2008, and later, set the platform parameter to device_id=0002. For example: xe vm-param-set uuid= platform:device_id=0002 • For all other versions of Windows, set the platform parameter to viridian=true. For example: xe vm-param-set uuid= platform:viridian=true 11.4.2. Importing Disk Images The XenCenter Import wizard allows you to import a disk image into a pool or specific host as a VM.
7. Enable Operating System Fixup: if the disk image(s) you are importing were built on a virtualization platform other than XenServer, select the Use Operating System Fixup check box and then select an ISO SR where the Fixup ISO can be copied so that XenServer can access it. For more information about this feature, see Section 11.2, “Operating System Fixup”. Click Next to continue. 8. Configure Transfer VM networking.
• In the Resources pane, right-click, and then select Import on the shortcut menu. • On the File menu, select Import. 2. On the first page of the wizard, locate the file you want to import (.xva or ova.xml), and then click Next to continue. If you enter a URL location (http, https, file, or ftp) in the Filename box, and then click Next, a Download Package dialog box opens and you must specify a folder on your XenCenter host where the file will be copied. 3.
Note: In order to export OVF or OVA packages, you must be logged in as root or have the Pool Administrator Role Based Access Control (RBAC) role associated with your user account. To Export VM(s) as OVF/OVA using XenCenter: 1. Shut down or suspend the VM(s) that you wish to export. 2. Open the Export wizard: in the Resources pane, right-click the pool or host containing the VM(s) you want to export, and then select Export. 3.
When you create an OVF package, the virtual hard disk images are, by default, allocated the same amount of space as the exported VM. For example, a VM that is allocated 26 GB of space will have a hard disk image that consumes 26 GB of space, regardless of whether or not the VM actually requires it.
5. Review the export settings. To have the wizard verify the exported package, select the Verify export on completion check box. Click Finish to begin the export process and close the wizard. Note: Exporting a VM may take some time, depending on the size of the VM and the speed and bandwidth of the network connection. The export progress is displayed in the status bar at the bottom of the XenCenter window and on the Logs tab.
Appendix A. Windows VM Release Notes A.1. Release Notes There are many versions and variations of Windows with different levels of support for the features provided by XenServer. This section lists notes and errata for the known differences. A.1.1. General Windows Issues • When installing Windows VMs, start off with no more than three virtual disks. Once the VM and XenServer Tools have been installed you can add additional virtual disks.
Appendix B. Linux VM Release Notes B.1. Release Notes Most modern Linux distributions support Xen paravirtualization directly, but have different installation mechanisms and some kernel limitations. B.1.1. Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.5 to 4.8 The following issues have been reported to Red Hat and are already fixed in the Xen kernel (which can be installed by using the /mnt/Linux/install.sh script in the built-in xs-tools.iso CD image): • The Xen kernel in RHEL 4.
• RHEL 4.7, 4.8, sometimes when there are many devices attached to a VM, there is not enough time for all of these devices to connect and startup fails. [EXT-17] • If you try to install RHEL 4.x on a VM that has more than two virtual CPUs (which RHEL 4.x does not support), an error message incorrectly reports the number of CPUs detected. B.1.1.1. Preparing a RHEL 4.5 to 4.8 guest for cloning To prepare a RHEL 4.5 to 4.8 guest for cloning (see Section 5.7.
B.1.3. CentOS 4 Please refer to Section B.1.1, “Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.5 to 4.8” for the list of CentOS 4 release notes. B.1.4. CentOS 5 Please refer to Section B.1.2, “Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5” for the list of CentOS 5 release notes. B.1.5. Oracle Enterprise Linux 5 Please refer to Section B.1.2, “Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5” for the list of Oracle Enterprise Linux 5 release notes. B.1.6.
to FORCE_PERSISTENT_NAMES=no 3. Save the changes and reboot the VM. B.1.11. Ubuntu 10.04 On an Ubuntu 10.04 (64-bit) VM, attempts to set the value of maximum number of vCPUs available to a VM (VCPUs-max), higher than the vCPUs available during boot (VCPUs-at-startup), can cause the VM to crash during boot. For more information, see Ubuntu Launchpad 1007002.
Appendix C. Creating ISO Images XenServer can use ISO images of CD-ROM or DVD-ROM disks as installation media and data sources for Windows or Linux VMs. This section describes how to make ISO images from CD/DVD media. Creating an ISO on a Linux computer 1. Put the CD- or DVD-ROM disk into the drive. The disk should not be mounted. To check, run the command: mount If the disk is mounted, unmount the disk. Refer to your operating system documentation for assistance if required. 2.
Appendix D. Enabling VNC for Linux VMs VMs might not be set up to support Virtual Network Computing (VNC), which XenServer uses to control VMs remotely, by default. Before you can connect with the XenCenter graphical console, you need to ensure that the VNC server and an X display manager are installed on the VM and properly configured.
Note: You can check that the VNC server is running using a command like ps ax | grep vnc. D.2. Enabling a Graphical Console on Red Hat, CentOS, or Oracle Linux VMs Note: Before setting up your Red Hat VMs for VNC, be sure that you have installed the Linux guest agent. See Section 5.5, “Installing the Linux Guest Agent” for details. To configure VNC on Red Hat VMs, you need to modify the GDM configuration.
Modify it to read: 0=VNC • If you are using Red Hat Linux 5 or greater, add the above line just below the [servers] section and before the [server-VNC] section. 4. Save and close the file. Restart GDM for your change in configuration to take effect, by running the command /usr/sbin/gdm-restart. Note: Red Hat Linux uses runlevel 5 for graphical startup.
D.2.5. Enabling VNC for RHEL, CentOS, or OEL 6.x VMs If you are using Red Hat Linux version 6, the GDM configuration file is /etc/gdm/custom.conf. This is a split configuration file that contains only user-specified values that override the default configuration. This type of file is used by default in newer versions of GDM, as included in these versions of Red Hat Linux. Before making configuration changes, verify that you have a VNC server installed.
Note: Red Hat Linux uses runlevel 5 for graphical startup. If your installation is configured to start up in runlevel 3, change this for the display manager to be started (and therefore to get access to a graphical console). See Section D.4, “Checking Runlevels” for further details. D.3. Setting up SLES-based VMs for VNC Note: Before setting up your SUSE Linux Enterprise Server VMs for VNC, be sure that you have installed the Linux guest agent. See Section 5.
service vnc1 { socket_type = protocol = wait = user = server = server_args = type = port = } 2. stream tcp no nobody /usr/X11R6/bin/Xvnc :42 -inetd -once -query localhost -geometry 1024x768 -depth 16 UNLISTED 5901 Edit the port line to read port = 5900 3. Save and close the file. 4. Restart the display manager and xinetd service with the following commands: /etc/init.d/xinetd restart rcxdm restart SUSE Linux uses runlevel 5 for graphical startup.
To Open the VNC Port on SLES 11.x VMs' Firewall 1. Open a text console on the VM and run the YaST utility: yast 2. Use the arrow keys to select Security and Users in the left menu, then Tab to the right menu and use the arrow keys to select Firewall. Press Enter. 3. In the Firewall screen, use the arrow keys to select Custom Rules in the left menu and then press Enter. 4. Tab to the Add button in the Custom Allowed Rules section and then press Enter. 5. In the Source Network field, enter 0/0.
Appendix E. Setting Up a Red Hat Installation Server This chapter explains how to set up a server as an installation server for Red Hat Linux. For a server to act as a Red Hat Linux network installation server, you need space on your server to copy the entire contents of each CD onto your server. This is typically the number of CDs or ISO images multiplied by 650MB. Ensure that the space you intend to use is formatted with your chosen filesystem and is mounted.
To check, type the command: showmount -e hostname Running the showmount command without the hostname parameter will check the local system. If NFS is not active, you will see a message similar to showmount: ServerA: RPC: Program not registered • portmap must be running. Run the following command to check this: service portmap status E.2.2. FTP To enable installation over FTP, you must allow FTP access to the installation directory on the server.
Appendix F. Troubleshooting VM Problems Citrix provides two forms of support: free, self-help support on the Citrix Support website and paid-for Support Services, which you can purchase from the Support Site. With Citrix Technical Support, you can open a Support Case online or contact the support center by phone if you experience technical difficulties. The Citrix Knowledge Center hosts a number of resources that may be helpful to you if you experience odd behavior, crashes, or other problems.
You can configure the VMs dump level by following the menu path My Computer > Properties > Advanced > Startup and Recovery. F.2. Troubleshooting Boot Problems on Linux VMs There is a utility script named xe-edit-bootloader in the XenServer host control domain which can be used to edit the bootloader configuration of a shutdown Linux VM. This can be used to fix problems which are preventing it from booting. To use this script: 1.
