6.5.1

Table Of Contents
driver rather than a normal local disk, the argument is
--firstdisk=ST3120814A,mptsas,local. You can use localesx for
local storage that contains ESXi image or remoteesx for remote storage
that contains ESXi image.
--ignoressd
Excludes solid-state disks from eligibility for partitioning. This option can be
used with the install command and the --firstdisk option. This option
takes precedence over the --firstdisk option. This option is invalid with
the --drive or --disk options and with the upgrade and
installorupgrade commands. See the vSphere Storage documentation
for more information about preventing SSD formatting during auto-
partitioning.
--overwritevsan
You must use the --overwritevsan option when you install ESXi on a
disk, either SSD or HDD (magnetic), that is in a vSAN disk group. If you
use this option and no vSAN partition is on the selected disk, the
installation will fail. When you install ESXi on a disk that is in vSAN disk
group, the result depends on the disk that you select:
n
If you select an SSD, the SSD and all underlying HDDs in the same
disk group will be wiped.
n
If you select an HDD, and the disk group size is greater than two, only
the selected HDD will be wiped.
n
If you select an HDD disk, and the disk group size is two or less, the
SSD and the selected HDD will be wiped.
For more information about managing vSAN disk groups, see the vSphere
Storage documentation.
--overwritevmfs
Required to overwrite an existing VMFS datastore on the disk before
installation.
--preservevmfs
Preserves an existing VMFS datastore on the disk during installation.
--novmfsondisk
Prevents a VMFS partition from being created on this disk. Must be used
with --overwritevmfs if a VMFS partition already exists on the disk.
installorupgrade
Either the install, upgrade, or installorupgrade command is required to determine which disk to
install or upgrade ESXi on.
--disk= or --drive=
Specifies the disk to partition. In the command --disk=diskname, the
diskname can be in any of the forms shown in the following examples:
n
Path: --disk=/vmfs/devices/disks/mpx.vmhba1:C0:T0:L0
n
MPX name: --disk=mpx.vmhba1:C0:T0:L0
vSphere Installation and Setup
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