ESXi OVA Deployment Using vCenter

If you are using your system’s docker0 interface as the Ethernet bridge, be sure that you enter the bridge’s IP address and netmask in the Docker daemon configuration section when you deploy on-prem hosts using the OVA template. The 172.17.0.0/24 network is assigned to docker0 by default.

To deploy on-prem hosts in VMware vCenter, do the following:

1. In the Cloud Services Portal, go to Administration >  Downloads.
2. On the Downloads page, click Download Package for VM, and then save the OVA file on your system.
3. Launch vCenter on your Linux or Windows server.
4. Go to File > Deploy OVF Template to start the Deploy OVF Template wizard.
5. In the Select template section, in Deploy from a file or URL, enter the path of the OVA file for the on-prem host, and then click Next:
   
6. In the Select name and location section, specify the following:
   • Name: For the on-prem host, enter a name unique for the location you selected. Create a name that does not exceed 64 characters in length. Use numbers, any special characters, uppercase and lowercase letters, and even spaces. Start and end a name with any character but not a space. Leading and trailing spaces will be trimmed off automatically.
   • Inventory Location: Select the location in the inventory folder in which the on-prem host will reside.
     
7. In the Select a resource section, select the host or cluster on which you want to deploy the OVF template. In the Specify a Specific Host section, select a host within the cluster, and then click Next:
   
8. In the Review details section, verify the details of the OVF template, and then click Next:
9. In the Select storage section, specify the following:

• Select virtual disk format:
  • Thick Provision: Allocate all storage immediately. 
  • Thin Provisioned: Allocate storage on demand, as data is written to the virtual disks.
• VM storage policy: Select the VM datastore where you want to store the on-prem host. Be sure that you select a datastore large enough to accommodate the VM and all of its virtual disk files.

10. In the Select Networks section, specify the following:

• Source Network: Select the source network from the table.
• Destination Network: From the drop-down menu, select the destination network.

11. In the Customize template section, do the following:

• Expand Cloud Credentials and specify the following:

  • HTTPS Proxy: Enter the URL for the HTTPS proxy, as http://[user:passwd@]<Proxy>:<Proxy_Port>.

    Note

    https:// (TLS) proxies are not supported. http:// (non-TLS) proxies are supported using the environment variable HTTPS_PROXY or HTTP_PROXY. Do not confuse the proxy’s protocol (http:// or https://) with the proxied protocol (HTTPS_PROXY or HTTP_PROXY).

  • Join Token (required): This is the join token that you created and copied from the Cloud Services Portal; to create a join token, you must log in to the Cloud Services Portal. In the Cloud Services Portal, go to Manage > On-Prem Host > Join Tokens. After you create a new join token, you will see the token string in the Copy Token dialog. Copy the token string and enter it here (the token appears only once). If you already have an existing join token you want to use for this deployment, enter the token string here.

• Expand IPv4 Network Settings and specify IPv4 Network address (required) by entering the IPv4 address, netmask, and gateway for the network to which the on-prem host connects.
• Optional: Expand IPv6 Network Settings and specify IPv6 Network address by entering the IPv6 address, CIDR, gateway, and the nameserver for the network to which the on-prem host connects.
• Expand DNS resolver and NTP configuration and specify the following:
  • NTP server(s): Enter the FQDN, IPv4, or IPv6 address of the NTP servers with which you plan to synchronize time.
  • NameServer(s) (required): Enter the IP addresses of the DNS resolvers here.
• Expand Docker daemon configuration, and in Bridge IP address and netmask, specify the IP address and netmask for the docker0 interface. If you prefer, you can use the standard CIDR notation.
  

12. In the Ready to complete screen, review and verify the configuration, and then click Finish. The following is an example:

13. To configure multiple network interfaces for your on-prem host, select the VM from Inventory, right-click the VM, and select Edit Settings. For information about multiple interfaces, see Multiple Network Interfaces for On-Prem Hosts.

14. In the Edit Settings screen, click Add New Device > Network Adapter:

15. Use the Browse function to locate the new network:

16. Click OK to save the new network interface.

17. You have now successfully deployed the on-prem host. It might take a few minutes for the on-prem host to connect. Once connected, the host starts collecting information from your on-premise devices and transmitting the data to BloxOne DDI.

18. For DNS to function properly in OVA deployments on ESXi servers, be sure that you enable the Synchronize guest time with host option during the deployment and that your ESXi host is synchronized with the NTP server. If you do not select the Synchronize guest time with host option, or if this option is disabled, the on-prem host synchronizes with the Ubuntu NTP servers: ntp.ubuntu.com and ubuntu.pool.ntp.org. When you disable this option, be sure that you open the UDP 123 port for time synchronization with the Ubuntu NTP servers. For more information, see Synchronizing Time on the ESXi Servers.

19. To check the current status of the proxy, go to Manage > On-Prem Hosts in the Cloud Services Portal. For more information about the host status, see Viewing On-Prem Host Status.