5.1

Guest Operating Systems
A guest operating system is an operating system that runs inside a virtual machine. You can install a guest
operating system in a virtual machine and control guest operating system customization for virtual machines
created from vApp templates.
In “Guest Operating System Support,” on page 119, you can see a list of the supported guest operating systems
and whether customization is automatic or manual.
Install a Guest Operating System
With a guest OS you can manage virtual machines that are based on the available operating systems.
Prerequisites
The appropriate media file must be in your catalog.
Procedure
1 Click My Cloud.
2 In the left pane, click VMs.
3 Select a virtual machine, right-click, and select Insert CD/DVD.
4 Select an available media file in the top panel or select one and add it to your vDC in the bottom panel.
5 Click OK.
6 Point to the virtual machine name and press Ctrl+Alt+Del to boot from the ISO image and start the
operating system installer.
7 In the virtual machine console, type the required information to complete the installation.
8 Click Finish.
Customizing Your Guest Operating System
When you customize your guest OS you can set up a virtual machine with the operating system that you want.
vCloud Director can customize the network settings of the guest operating system of a virtual machine created
from a vApp template. When you customize your guest operating system, you can create and deploy multiple
unique virtual machines based on the same vApp template without machine name or network conflicts.
When you configure a vApp template with the prerequisites for guest customization and add a virtual machine
to a vApp based on that template, vCloud Director creates a package with guest customization tools. When
you deploy and power on the virtual machine for the first time, vCloud Director copies the package, runs the
tools, and deletes the package from the virtual machine.
Understanding Guest Customization
When you customize your guest operating system, there are some settings and options you should know about.
Enable Guest Customization Check Box
This check box is found on the Guest OS customization tab on the virtual machine Properties page. The goal
of guest customization is to configure based on the options selected in the Properties page. If this check box is
selected, guest customization and re-customization is performed when required.
This process is required for all guest customization features, such as the computer name, network settings,
setting and expiring the administrator/root password, SID change for Windows Operating systems, and so on,
to work. This option should be selected for Power on and Force re-customization to work.
vCloud Director User's Guide
112 VMware, Inc.