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Verify that the serial port is not already in use for serial logging and debugging, or for ESX Shell
(tty1Port).
Procedure
1 In the vSphere Client, select the host in the inventory.
2 Click the Configuration tab.
3 Under Software, click Advanced Settings.
4 In the left pane, expand the VMkernel listing and select Boot.
5 Make sure that the VMkernel.Boot.logPort and VMkernel.Boot.gdbPort fields are not set to use the
com port that you want to redirect the direct console to.
6 Set VMkernel.Boot.tty2Port to the serial port to redirect the direct console to: com1 or com2.
7 Click OK.
8 Reboot the host.
You can now manage the ESXi host remotely from a console that is connected to the serial port.
Set the Scratch Partition in the vSphere Client
If a scratch partition is not set up, you might want to configure one, especially if low memory is a concern.
When a scratch partition is not present, vm-support output is stored in a ramdisk.
Prerequisites
The directory to use for the scratch partition must exist on the host.
Procedure
1 In the vSphere Client, select the host in the inventory.
2 Click the Configuration tab.
3 Under Software, click Advanced Settings.
4 Select ScratchConfig.
The field ScratchConfig.CurrentScratchLocation shows the current location of the scratch partition.
5 In the field ScratchConfig.ConfiguredScratchLocation, enter a directory path that is unique for this
host.
6 Reboot the host for the changes to take effect.
Configure Syslog on ESXi Hosts
All ESXi hosts run a syslog service (vmsyslogd), which logs messages from the VMkernel and other system
components to log files.
You can use the vSphere Client or the esxcli system syslog vCLI command to configure the syslog service.
For more information about using vCLI commands, see Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces.
Procedure
1 In the vSphere Client inventory, select the host.
2 Click the Configuration tab.
3 In the Software panel, click Advanced Settings.
vSphere Administration with the vSphere Client
24 VMware, Inc.