5.0

n
Take a snapshot of the parent virtual machine in vCenter Server. You must shut down the parent virtual
machine before you take the snapshot. View Composer uses the snapshot as the base image from which
the clones are created.
NOTE You cannot create a linked-clone pool from a virtual machine template.
n
Gather the configuration information you must provide to create the pool. See “Worksheet for Creating
a Linked-Clone Desktop Pool,” on page 75.
n
Decide how to configure power settings, display protocol, Adobe Flash quality, and other settings. See
“Desktop and Pool Settings,” on page 106.
IMPORTANT While a linked-clone pool is created, do not modify the parent virtual machine in vCenter Server.
For example, do not convert the parent virtual machine to a template. The View Composer service requires
that the parent virtual machine remain in a static, unaltered state during pool creation.
Procedure
1 In View Administrator, click Inventory > Pools.
2 Click Add.
3 Select Automated Pool.
4 On the vCenter Server page, choose View Composer linked clones.
5 Follow the prompts in the wizard to create the pool.
Use the configuration information you gathered in the worksheet. You can go directly back to any wizard
page you completed by clicking the page name in the navigation panel.
On the vCenter Settings page, you must click Browse and select the vCenter Server settings in sequence.
You cannot skip a vCenter Server setting:
a Default image
b Virtual machine folder
c Host or cluster
d Resource pool
e Datastores
In View Administrator, you can view the desktops as they are added to the pool by clicking Inventory >
Desktops.
The linked clones might restart one or more times while they are provisioned.
View Composer also creates a replica virtual machine that serves as the master image for provisioning the
linked clones. To reduce space consumption, the replica is created as a thin disk. If all the desktops are
recomposed or deleted, and no clones are linked to the replica, the replica virtual machine is deleted from
vCenter Server.
If you do not store the replica on a separate datastore, View Composer creates a replica on each datastore on
which linked clones are created.
If you store the replica on a separate datastore, one replica is created for the entire pool, even when linked
clones are created on multiple datastores.
What to do next
Entitle users to access the pool. See “Add Entitlements to Desktop Pools,” on page 115.
Chapter 5 Creating Desktop Pools
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