User`s guide

Supported Operating System Supported Hardware Platform
HP-UX 11i v3.0 (11.31) PA-RISC
Mac OS X 10.4 Intel and PowerPC
Mac OS X 10.5 Intel and PowerPC
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 (ES/AS) including Desktop with
Workstation edition
x86 (includes Intel and AMD architectures,
excludes Itanium)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 (ES/AS) including Desktop with
Workstation edition
x86 and x64 (includes Intel and AMD
architectures, excludes Itanium)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.0, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5 Server, Desktop with
Workstation, and Advanced Platform
x86 and x64 (includes Intel and AMD
architectures, excludes Itanium)
Solaris 8 Sparc and Sparc-V9
Solaris 9 Sparc and Sparc-V9
Solaris 10 Sparc, Sparc-V9, x86, and x64
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) 9 x86 and x64 (includes Intel and AMD
architectures, excludes Itanium)
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) 10 x86 and x64 (includes Intel and AMD
architectures, excludes Itanium)
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) 11 x86 and x64 (includes Intel and AMD
architectures, excludes Itanium)
Agent Proxy Requirements for VMware ESX and ESXi
The VCM Agent is not installed directly on the ESX and ESXi Servers; instead, collections are accomplished
using what is referred to as "agentless collections". The agentless collection uses an Agent Proxy.
When collecting from ESX/ESXi Servers, you must configure at least one VCM Agent Proxy machine. You
can configure the Collector as the Agent Proxy or configure standalone Agent Proxy machines. The
Collector communicates with the Agent Proxy and the Agent Proxy then directly communicates with the
ESX/ESXi Servers using SSH and/or Web Services for necessary data collection actions. The data is
processed by the Agent Proxy and relayed to the Collector.
The minimum operating system and hardware requirements for each Agent Proxy machine are based on:
n
Number of machines from which you are collecting data
n
Type of data collected and filters used
n
Frequency of collections
n
Data retention
Minimum Operating System Requirements
The VCM for Virtualization Agent Proxy machine must be running Windows Server 2008 R2 or Windows
Server 2003 SP2. For more information to install and configure the Agent Proxy, see "Install and Configure
a Windows Server 2008 R2 Operating System" on page 26.
Minimum Hardware Requirements
The VCM for Virtualization Agent Proxy is installed on the Collector by default. Although the
Virtualization Agent Proxy is available on the Collector, it requires special configuration to operate. You
must configure an Agent Proxy server to collect data from ESX servers. If more than 50 ESX servers are
managed, additional Agent Proxy servers must be configured to maintain the ratio of one agent proxy for
each 50 ESX servers.
The designated VCM for Agent Proxy servers should meet the following minimum requirements for
physical hardware or virtual machines. An Agent Proxy server meeting these requirements can manage
approximately 50 ESX Servers.
Hardware and Operating System Requirements for Agent Machines
VMware, Inc. 19