5.0

Table 4-1. Custom Configuration Parameters (Continued)
Parameter Description and Recommendations
Guest Operating System
The type of operating system that you will install in the
virtual machine.
CPUs
The number of virtual processors in the virtual machine.
For most guest operating systems, a single processor is
sufficient.
Memory
The amount of memory to allocate to the virtual machine.
In most cases, 512MB is sufficient.
Network
The number of virtual network adapters (NICs) in the virtual
machine.
One NIC is usually sufficient. The network name should be
consistent across virtual infrastructures. An incorrect
network name in a template can cause failures during the
instance customization phases.
When you install View Agent on a virtual machine that has
more than one NIC, you must configure the subnet that View
Agent uses. See “Configure a Virtual Machine with Multiple
NICs for View Agent,” on page 56 for more information.
IMPORTANT For Windows 7 and Windows Vista operating
systems, you must select the VMXNET 3 network adapter.
Using the default E1000 adapter can cause customization
timeout errors on virtual machines. To use the VMXNET 3
adapter, you must install a Microsoft hotfix patch:
n
For Windows 7 SP1:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2550978
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For Windows 7 versions previous to SP1:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2344941
SCSI Controller
The type of SCSI adapter to use with the virtual machine.
For Windows 7 and Windows XP guest operating systems,
you should specify the LSI Logic adapter. The LSI Logic
adapter has improved performance and works better with
generic SCSI devices.
LSI Logic SAS is available only for virtual machines with
hardware version 7.
NOTE Windows XP does not include a driver for the LSI
Logic adapter. You must download the driver from the LSI
Logic Web site.
Select a Disk
The disk to use with the virtual machine.
Create a new virtual disk based on the amount of local
storage that you decide to allocate to each user. Allow
enough storage space for the OS installation, patches, and
locally installed applications.
To reduce the need for disk space and management of local
data, you should store the user's information, profile, and
documents on network shares rather than on a local disk.
Install a Guest Operating System
After you create a virtual machine, you must install a guest operating system.
Prerequisites
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Verify that an ISO image file of the guest operating system is on a datastore on your ESX server.
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Verify that the CD/DVD drive in the virtual machine points to the ISO image file of the guest operating
system and that the CD/DVD drive is configured to connect at power on.
Chapter 4 Creating and Preparing Virtual Machines
VMware, Inc. 47