So my laptop is up and running with Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1 (beta 2) and I decided to start 'playing' with Longhorn...
I created a Virtual Machine with 1GB of memory and a new virtual hard drive. I put the Longhorn ISO into the virtual DVD drive and performed an install. 98 minutes later (yes - one hour and 38 minutes) I was presented with a Windows desktop.
Then I remembered that one of the SP1 features is support for Hardware Assisted Virtualisation (both Intel & AMD). My laptop has that feature, so I rebooted and switched it on in the BIOS.
The exact same process now took a mere 33 minutes - that's a third (that's some performance improvement).
Unfortunately (for me) Hardware Assisted Virtualisation only helps operating systems that we have not written Virtual Machine Additions for (we obviously have them for all current Windows versions and a good few of the mainstream Linux distributions). An installation of Windows has not got the Additions in it yet, so it benefits from the hardware assisted stuff.
One of the things Virtual Machine Additions does is 'con' an operating system into believing it's running in Ring 0 on the processor (Ring 0 = Kernel, Ring 3 = User). We run our virtualisation layer in Ring 0 and let the guest operating system run in Ring 1 - which lets all the applications (running in a virtual machine or not) run in Ring 3. That's how we get Virtual Server to perform so well (as good as ESX).
Just in case you quite fancy being able to mount (and unmount) a single file into your file sytstem and use it as a disk drive, but do NOT want to install Virtual Server 2005 R2.
Download the setup file for Virtual Sevrer R2 SP1 Beta 2 and follow these instructions (from the release notes):
Installing VHD Mount
VHD Mount components are installed as part of Virtual Server default installation at \Program Files\Microsoft Virtual Server\VHDMount. To install only the VHD Mount components, use the Custom option in the Virtual Server installer and clear all components except VHD Mount.
To perform an unattended installation of the VHD Mount components
Extract Virtual Server 2005 Install.msi from Setup.exe by typing the following command:setup.exe /c /t <drive letter>:\<path to the .msi file>For example, to extract "Virtual Server 2005 Install.msi" to c:\SetupFiles, type:setup.exe /c /t c:\SetupFiles
Start an unattended installation of VHD Mount by typing the following command:msiexec /i "Virtual Server 2005 Install.msi" /qn ADDLOCAL=VHDMount
Note
VHDMount is case sensitive.
Big word of warning (thanks to Vern). If you already have Virtual Server installed, performing the above will mess up your installation. You have to upgrade the entire Virtual Server install.
Dave
Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1 has a little tool that lets you mount a VHD file into your file system.
Start a command prompt with admin rights.
Change directory to c:\program files\microsoft virtual server\vhdmount
And type vhdmount /p c:\temp.vhd (replace with name of VHD file) - this is a new blank one I have just created.
Windows Vista fails to install the device driver (this is a known beta "feature"). The current work around is to go into Device Manager and find the yellow entry for <Microsoft Virtual Server Storage Device01>
Right click & select <Update Driver Software>. Select <Browse my computer for driver software>. Select <Let me pick from a list of device drivers on my computer>. Select <Microsoft Virtual Server Storage Devices> & click Next.
You now have a new disk in Disk Management. If your VHD already has content, you just need to give it a drive letter. If it's new (like mine), you'll need to format it.
VHDMOUNT does have a switch (/m) to install the device and mount it with a drive letter - this doesn't work on Vista (yet), so the above is the workaround (plug it in and manually get the driver installed & manually assign a drive letter). Unfortunately you have to go through this process every time you mount a VHD (even if you've done it before) - this will get fixed before we come out of beta.
Apparently we (Microsoft) are looking at using this tool to let you offline patch a virtual machine - but it's in the future somewhere (not yet). So the real value of this tool is just to get content in & out of a VHD (I'm sure I can think of a good use for it)...
Nothing much to say about the install - it's still a bit 'fiddly'. First you need IIS installed with these settings. Then you run Setup.exe (with admin rights).
You still need to run IE with admin rights to administer it. To make this easy, create a shortcut to:
"C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe" http://localhost/VirtualServer/vswebapp.exe?view=1
On the Properties page for this shortcut, click Advanced and select Run as Administrator.
You need to do the same with VMRC or you'll be prompted for credentials every time you use it.
We STILL have the "feature" where if you are running VMRC and go to type something anywhere except within the virtual machine, you get a spurious ` character. I know I can change the default Host Key to something other than (Right Alt) to make it go away - but come on, this "feature" has existed for years (and it's VERY annoying)! Anyone know a fix (rather than a work around)?
All looking good so far - more later...
Well I'm running Vista, so my only options are Virtual PC 2007 or Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1 (both of which are in beta - but also both very stable). They both support 64-bit hosts, so they're even so far.
Virtual PC runs all its virtual/guest machines in the same single thread. Virtual Server runs each guest in its own thread. So on my dual-core laptop, Virtual Server wins. Even though Virtual PC has some nice "easy of use" features, I have to go for the option that performs the best.
Virtual Server 2005 R2 offers me SCSI support and the ability to create clusters, both of which I will use. I can't say I really understand why a virtual SCSI disk is any quicker than a virtual IDE disk - but it is (if anyone knows, please share).
Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1 (beta 2) offers me some new features (some of which I will also use):
Let me get installing, and I'll let you know how I get on...
Dave.
Those of you who know me, know that my main/work laptop is a three year old Tablet PC, with a 1.6GHz Centrino, 2GBs memory and a slow (5400rpm) disk. It has served me well over the years, and is still a great little machine for running Vista and Office (I even manage to get Aero Glass out of it's 32Mb graphics card).
If you do know me, you also know that I do a lot of demos and run a lot of virtual machines (and you can't do that on a three year old Tablet PC). Anyway, I finally have my new laptop. It's a Dual-Core x64 machine with 4GBs memory, a fast (7200rpm) disk and it can take a second disk in the DVD bay. It 'should' be the perfect little (and it is little - only 2.5kg) demo machine.
I've loaded it up with the 64-bit version of Windows Vista, and am about to start playing..
My first comment is that 64-bit Vista has drivers for everything (there is not a red or yellow item to be seen in Device Manager) - I'm impressed.
My next decision is Virtual PC or Virtual Server - I'll post later with my selection...
Still tidying my desk. Found these great links to Server Cluster (MSCS) Whitepapers (which you 'might' like):
Guide to Creating and Configuring a Server Cluster Under Windows Server 2003
Microsoft Windows Clustering: Storage Area Networks
Geographically Dispersed Clusters in Windows Server 2003
Using Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 to Create and Configure a Two-Node Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Cluster
Windows Cluster Service Troubleshooting and Maintenence
SQL Server 2005 Failover Clustering White Paper
Virtual Server Host Clustering Step-by-Step
Enjoy
Dave..
Having a go at tidying my desk and had to share this Best Practice info before I filed it:
Server Clusters are also commonly referred to as Microsoft Cluster Service (MSCS), Failover Clustering or Wolfpack Clustering. When searching for Server Cluster KB articles, include the keyword 'MSCS'.
Some great Best Practices can be found here:
Server Clusters: Cluster Configuration Best Practices for Windows Server 2003
Best Practices for Securing Server Clusters
Network Configuration Best Practices for Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003
Server Clusters: Storage Best Practices for Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003
iSCSI Cluster Support FAQ
On your Windows Vista machine, launch a command prompt as administrator. Navigate to the windows\system32 folder and type:
ribbons.scr /p65552