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Booting VMware VirtualCenter while AD is unavailable

By Edward Haletky Add a new comment

August 24, 2008, 3:48 PM — There is a change to the way VMware VirtualCenter (VC) starts that could aid in situations where you need VC to fix an issue before you can boot Active Directory (AD) virtual machines. This really only comes into play if you do not have a phyisical AD server, but this is not all that uncommon an issue.

For example I recently needed VC booted while my AD server was not running. This was a requirement for enabling Enhanced vMotion Capability (EVC). How did I get around needing AD?

I simply added the following lines to near the end of the file C:\Documents and Settings\All users\Application Data\VMware\VMware VirtualCenter\vpxd.cfg.

Prior to the closing </config> within the file add the lines:

<security>

<ignoreUserResolveFailures>true</ignoreUserResolveFailures>

</security>

Once this is entered into the vpxd.cfg file you can start VC even if your AD server is not online thereby alleviating the chicken and the egg situation.

Edward L. Haletky owns AstroArch Consulting, Inc., providing virtualization, security, and network consulting and development and is an Analyst for The Virtualziation Practice. Edward graduated from Purdue University in 1988 with a degree in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering. Since then, he has worked with programming graphics and other lower-level libraries on various UNIX platforms. Edward is VMware vExpert, a Guru and moderator for the VMware Discussion Forums providing answers to security and configuration questions. He is the author of multiple books on Virtualization published by Prentice Hall.

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