Specifications

VMware, Inc. 25
1
The!VMware!ESX!Server!Administration!Guide!provides!information!on!how!to!use!
VMware!ESX!Server
!after!it!has!been!installed.!For!information!on!installing!ESX!Server,!
refer!to!the!VMware!ESX!Server!Installation!Guide.
This!chapter!contains!the!following!sections:
! “VMware!ESX!Server!System!Architecture,”!next
! “Using!VMware!ESX!Server”!on!page 31
VMware ESX Server System Architecture
VMware!ESX!Server!incorporates!a!resource!manager!and!a!service!console!that!
provides!bootstrapping,!management,!and!other!services.
The!design!of!the!ESX!Server!core!architecture!implements!the!abstractions!that!allow!
hardware!resources!to!be!allocated!to!multiple!workloads!in!fully!isolated!
environments.!
The!key!elements!of!the!system’s!design!are:
! VMware!virtualization!layer!–!Provides!the!idealized!hardware!environment!and!
virtualization!of!underlying!physical!resources.!
! Resource!manager!–!Enables!the!partitioning!and!guaranteed!delivery!of!CPU,!
memory,!network!bandwidth,!and!disk!bandwidth!to!each!virtual!machine.
! Hardware!interface!components!–!Includes!device!drivers,!which!enable!
hardware‐specific!service!delivery!while!hiding!hardware!differences!from!other!
parts!of!the!system.
Introduction to VMware ESX
Server
1