Showing posts with label Virtual SCSI Controller Driver Tutorial. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Virtual SCSI Controller Driver Tutorial. Show all posts

Installing the Virtual SCSI Controller Driver for Virtual Server 2005 on Windows Server 2008

Posted in Labels: | at 03:54


In Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1, when you create a virtual machine that uses hard disks that are connected to the virtual SCSI controller you can get better performance than when using virtual IDE controller-connected hard disks. In Virtual Server, virtual SCSI controllers have major performance benefits over virtual IDE controllers, and because of that it is recommended to attach the Virtual Disks to one or more SCSI controllers to improve disk input/output (I/O) performance.
The reason for this is because IDE is limited to one transaction at a time, regardless of whether the bus is physical or virtual. This means that a virtual machine with two virtual hard disks attached to the IDE adapter is limited to a single transaction for both disks. By contrast, a SCSI controllers allows for multiple simultaneous transactions, which provides better performance than disks attached to the IDE controllers.
BTW, you might be interested in reading my "Microsoft Hyper-V will not boot virtual SCSI devices" article.
However, without manually installing the virtual SCSI controller driver during the installation of the guest operating system, under Virtual Server 2005, the performance of emulated SCSI controllers is slower than that of emulated IDE controllers.  The reason for this is that the SCSI controller is a lot more complicated to emulate than the IDE controller.  However, this changes once you have Virtual Machine Additions installed, because the Virtual Machine Additions install an accelerated SCSI driver.  Once this driver is installed the performance of the emulated SCSI controllers is significantly faster than emulated IDE controllers.
You can install the virtual SCSI controller driver during the installation of the guest operating system by performing the following steps:
Note: Description and screenshots where made while installing Windows Server 2008 on Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1, however the same instructions apply to the installation of Windows Vista. For Windows 2000/2003/XP you will need to press the F6 key during the text phase of the installation process, then press "S" to specify additional drivers, and then provide the driver floppy image.
1. Begin the installation by inserting the appropriate Windows Server 2008 installation media into your DVD drive.
2. Continue with the installation process, until you reach the point where you're prompted for the location of the system partition. Click on the Load Driver link.

3. Now you need to load the driver files as a virtual floppy image. The image's name is "SCSI Shunt Driver.vfd", and it is located in the C:\Program Files\Microsoft Virtual Server\Virtual Machine Additions folder.  You can mount it by using VMRC Plus (read my "Manage Virtual Server Machines with VMRC Plus", or from the Virtual Server administrative website. For this example I've used VMRC Plus.
In the VMRC Plus Console Manager click on Media > Load Floppy Disk Image.
 Navigate to the C:\Program Files\Microsoft Virtual Server\Virtual Machine Additions folder and select the "SCSI Shunt Driver.vfd" driver.

 If you want, you can do the same by right-clicking on the VM's name in the main VMRC Plus window, then selecting Settings.
 Now navigate to the C:\Program Files\Microsoft Virtual Server\Virtual Machine Additions folder and select the "SCSI Shunt Driver.vfd" driver.


Click Ok.
4. Back in the installation window, click on Browse.

 5. Navigate to the virtual floppy drive's root folder, then expand the Vista subfolder.

Note: For other operating systems select the right subfolder.
Press Ok.
6. After a few seconds the driver's name will appear on the list. Click Next.

7. The driver will load.

8. In the "Where do you want to install Windows", if you're installing the server on a regular IDE hard disk, click to select the first disk, usually Disk 0, and click Next.


9. If you must, you can also click Drive Options and manually create a partition on the destination hard disk.
10. Continue the installation as usual, and when it's done the server will automatically reboot.
Don't forget to install the Virtual Machine Additions on the guest operating system right after you log on. VM Additions greatly improve the guest's performance. You can read more about it on my "Installing Virtual Server VM Additions on Windows Server 2008 & Windows Vista".

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Microsoft Hyper-V will not boot virtual SCSI devices

Posted in Labels: | at 03:50


There is recent unexpected bad news from Microsoft concerning Hyper-V: Anthony F. Voellm, Principal Software Development Lead of Hyper-V at Microsoft, reveals in his corporate blog that the upcoming hypervisor (named Microsoft Hyper-V, formerly known as "Viridian") will not boot from virtual SCSI hard drives:
"Each IDE controller can have two devices.  You can not boot from a SCSI controller.  This means an IDE disk will be required.  The boot disk will be IDE controller 0 Device 0.  If you want a CDROM it will consume an IDE device slot." Source: MSDN Blog

The hypervisor that runs the virtual BIOS does not support booting from a SCSI controller, today, but it does support the following boot devices:
  • CD
  • IDE
  • Legacy Network Adapter
  • Floppy
The root reason is SCSI in a synthetic device and there is no VMBUS until after boot.
One might think that this shouldn't be a problem, after all, the virtual machines can still boot from regular IDE-based virtual disks. So where's the catch?
The main problem is related to the fact that in Virtual Server, virtual SCSI controllers have major performance benefits over virtual IDE controllers. In Virtual Server, it is recommended to attach the Virtual Disks to one or more SCSI controllers to improve disk input/output (I/O) performance. IDE is limited to one transaction at a time, regardless of whether the bus is physical or virtual. This means that a virtual machine with two virtual hard disks attached to the IDE adapter is limited to a single transaction for both disks. By contrast, a SCSI controllers allows for multiple simultaneous transactions, which provides better performance than disks attached to the IDE controllers.

This performance bottleneck of virtual IDE and technical limitations of virtual SCSI will oblige customers to have two virtual disks for each VM. A configuration hard to setup in P2V migration scenarios, and hard to manage on large scale deployments.
Note that since Hyper-V is still in Beta phase, all numbers are subject to change as are the behaviors. So there might be hope, after all…
Note: Under Virtual Server 2005, contrary to common sense, the performance of emulated SCSI controllers is slower than that of emulated IDE controllers.  The reason for this is that the SCSI controller is a lot more complicated to emulate than the IDE controller.  However, this changes once you have Virtual Machine Additions installed, because the Virtual Machine Additions install an accelerated SCSI driver.  Once this driver is installed the performance of the emulated SCSI controllers is significantly faster than emulated IDE controllers.
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Manage Virtual Server Machines with VMRC Plus

Posted in Labels: | at 03:48


As some of you know, a few Microsoft employees have been spotted working with a cool tool called VMRC Plus, which is an improved version of the VMRC client that is deployed together with Virtual Server 2005.
This tool used to be an internally available app, but not anymore. I was recently informed of this blog by Arlindo Alves, a Microsoft employee (found at http://blogs.technet.com/aralves/default.aspx) that has finally made VMRC Plus available for the general public.
Furthermore, it now seems that there's an official blog written by Matthijs ten Seldam who is the original author of the tool. You can read more about it here: http://blogs.technet.com/matthts
Anyway, as soon as I got the link I downloaded this tool, installed it on my machine. In order to use it you need Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1 running, so get it too for free from the link below. The cool part about VMRC Plus is that you do not need to install IIS or the Web Administration tools for Virtual Server anymore.
Not having to install IIS on the host machine is naturally a good thing as it lowers the machine's attack profile and reduces some of the resources it uses.
What does VMRC Plus offer?
Direct control of local or remote instances of the Virtual Server service. No more need for IIS!













  • Reusable saved states: this feature allows users to preserve a particular saved state and return to that state at any time.
  • Multiple guest selection supported for startup/shutdown/save/display.
  • Browse button navigation for media, hard disk images, ISO images, .VMC files, etc. 













  • Drag and Drop support for .VMC files, ISO's images, VHD and VFD files.
  • Resizable desktop support for guests running Virtual Machine Additions (maximize VMRC window supported).
  • Limited cut and paste of text from host to guest (only).















A built-in utility to take JPG screenshots of running guests. Useful when filing bugs.

















  • Built-in error notification with Virtual Server event log viewer.
  • A Virtual Networks Manager and Virtual Disks Manager that cover all features.














  • Keyboard shortcuts (e.g. Ctrl-S to save state a guest).  
  • Create multiple guests at once.
  • Create guest from parent (or multiple guests)!
  • Automatic reconnect to a designated Virtual Server host.
  • Toolbars in both Guest and Console Manager for quick access.
  • Unlimited number of guests.
  • Maximum of 32 Virtual Server hosts.
  • Sorting on columns of guests so you can sort based on status and multi-select.
  • Automatic detection of Virtual Machine Additions and notification. 
 
  • Detection of Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1.
          Cool!!!

Download Links

Note: VMRC Plus is NOT supported by Microsoft. Use at your own risk.
Download VMRC Plus (New Link on 4/29/2008) at

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Installing Virtual Server VM Additions on Windows Server 2008 & Windows Vista

Posted in Labels: | at 03:46


Virtual Machine Additions are a very important component of Virtual Server 2005 (and Virtual PC 2007). Running VM Additions on a VM is not a must, but you'd better do it as soon as possible, even as the first thing to do right after finishing the installation phase of the OS itself.
Note: if for some reason, you're using VMware products to virtualize Windows Server 2008 Server Core, you might be interested in reading my Installing VMware Tools on Windows Server 2008 Server Core Installations article.
Virtual Machine Additions adds the following enhancements to a guest operating system:
  • Improved mouse cursor tracking and control
  • Greatly improved overall performance
  • Virtual machine heartbeat generator
  • Optional time synchronization with the clock of the physical computer
You can use several methods to install the VM Additions:
  • Through the Virtual Server administrative website
  • Through VMRC Plus
  • Unattended installation
  • Through scripting
Additionally, if you've got Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager (SCVMM) installed, you can also:
  • Install the VM Additions from the VMM console
  • Use PowerShell
Let's see how each method is carried on:

Using VMRC Plus to Install the VM Additions

If you've got VMRC Plus installed you can easily install VM Additions by performing these steps:

  1. In the VMRC Plus console, point to the virtual machine you want to install the VM Additions on, and then double-click it to turn it on.
  2. Once the virtual machine has started, point to the virtual machine name, and then double-click it to remote control it.
  3. Log on to the virtual machine as an administrator or member of the Administrators group.
  4. Once the guest operating system is loaded, in the Console Manager window click Media > Install Current VM Additions.
  5. Inside the VM, follow the prompts and perform the installation.
  6. You must reboot the guest virtual machine in order for the VM Additions to function properly.

Using the Virtual Server administrative website to Install the VM Additions

To install Virtual Machine Additions through the Virtual Server administrative website please follow these steps:
  1. Open the Virtual Server Administration website.
  2. In the navigation pane, under Virtual Machines, point to Configure and then click the appropriate virtual machine.
  3. In Status, point to the virtual machine name, and then click Turn On.
  4. Once the virtual machine has started, point to the virtual machine name, and then click Remote Control.
  5. Log on to the virtual machine as an administrator or member of the Administrators group.
  6. Once the guest operating system is loaded, press the HOST KEY to release the mouse pointer, and then in the lower-left corner under Navigation, click Configure virtual_machine_name, where virtual_machine_name is the name of the VM you wish to install the VM Additions on.
  7. In Configuration, click Virtual Machine Additions, click Install Virtual Machine Additions, and then click OK.
  8. Under Status, point to the virtual machine name, and then click Remote Control.
  9. Click in the Remote Control window to return to the guest operating system. The Virtual Machine Additions installation wizard will start. Proceed through the wizard.
  10. Once the wizard is complete, you will be prompted to restart the virtual machine to complete the installation.

Using Unattended Installation to Install the VM Additions

To perform an unattended installation, place the Virtual Machine Additions image file (.ISO) to a location where it can be accessed by the virtual machines. Logon to the VM and in a command prompt window from within the VM type the following command:



Using Scripted Installation to Install the VM Additions

The script to install Virtual Machine Additions in a running guest OS is fairly straightforward, but for a good scripting guide I suggest you look at Desmond Lee's excellent article:

Using the SCVMM Administrator Console to Install the VM Additions

First, it is recommended that you add the Virtual Machine Additions to your VMM Library. This will allow you to use the same ISO image for all of your virtual machines.
To add Virtual Machine Additions to your VMM Library:
  1. Copy the VMAdditions.iso file to a share in the Virtual Machine Manager library and then refresh the library server. The default location is C:'Program Files'Microsoft Virtual Server'Virtual Machine Additions.
  2. If you do not see the VMAdditions ISO file in Library view or when you browse for a known image file, disable any filters and manually refresh the library.
To install Virtual Machine Additions on an existing virtual machine:
  1. In Virtual Machines view, right-click the virtual machine on which you want to install Virtual Machine Additions, and then click Properties
  2. In the Virtual Machine Properties dialog box, display the Hardware Configuration tab.
  3. If there is no DVD drive, add a DVD drive to the IDE device by clicking DVD on the New menu bar to add one.
  4. Click Known image file, click Browse to open the Select ISO dialog box, click the VMAdditions.iso file, and then click OK.
  5. Start the virtual machine. Virtual Machine Additions will install from within the running virtual machine.

Using SCVMM and PowerShell to Install the VM Additions

Coming from this blog - VMM Beta 2: Installing VM Additions:
Here is a PowerShell script you can run on the VMM server that will do that. It assumes that you have an ISO called VMAdditions.iso in a library share managed by VMM. The VM Additions are installed with Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1 in the <yourinstalldrive>'Program Files'Microsoft Virtual Server'Virtual Machine Additions folder. So you first either copy this ISO to the library for use on all VMs, or modify the script to use the copy local to the host your VM is on.
Copy the following text and save it as Install-VMAdditions.ps1:

 To use this script:




The VM Additions installer will launch automatically inside the guest OS.
Notes:
  • The VM does not need to be running order to attach an ISO to a Virtual DVD drive, but the VM does need to be running in order to install VM Additions.
  • On the Set-VirtualDVDDrive lines, the –Link¬ parameter means: Point to the ISO inside the library instead of copying it to the host.

Reinstalling Virtual Machine Additions for use with Virtual PC

If you move a virtual machine that was created with Microsoft Virtual PC to Virtual Server, we recommend that you reinstall Virtual Machine Additions, even if it was installed in Virtual PC. This is because the version of Virtual Machine Additions included with Virtual Server has been updated.
Current VM Addition versions are:
  • VM Additions in VS 2005 R2 SP1 = 13.813
  • VM Additions in VPC 2007= 13.803
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How to Install Microsoft Virtual Machine (VM) Additions on Server Core

Posted in Labels: | at 03:45


As you already know by now, in Windows Server 2008,  Server Core installation does not include the traditional full graphical user interface (GUI). You can read more about Server Core on my "Understanding Windows Server 2008 Core" article.
Without going to much into detail, because of the lack of GUI, installing applications on server core might be more complex than installing them on a regular server installation, not to mention the fact that they might not function at all. One of these applications is the Microsoft Virtual Machine (VM) Additions that comes with Microsoft virtualization products such as Virtual PC 2007 and Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1. VM Additions greatly improve the guest's performance.
Virtual Machine Additions adds the following enhancements to a guest operating system:
  • Improved mouse cursor tracking and control
  • Greatly improved overall performance
  • Virtual machine heartbeat generator
  • Optional time synchronization with the clock of the physical computer
You can read more about it on my "Installing VM Additions on Windows Server 2008/Vista" article.
Now you might be asking yourself "Why would I want to install VM Additions on Server Core? It doesn't have a GUI to worry about, so why bother?". Well, you see, the answer to that question is that although you're not likely to sit around the core installation and play Solitaire on it, many performance issues will be solved simply by installing the VM Additions, and since installing them doesn't cost money nor is it complicated, why not do it?
So now you're probably wondering if installing VM Additions is so easy, why did Daniel bother writing an article about it. True, installing VM Additions on a server core is exactly the same as installing them on any regular operating system, except for the fact that Auto-Run will not invoke the installer, and thus you must do so manually.
In order to install VM Additions you first need to mount the VMAdditions.iso file found in the C:\Program Files\Microsoft Virtual Server\Virtual Machine Addition folder. This can be easily done by mounting the ISO file through VMRC Plus, or, if you prefer, by using the Virtual Server 2005 web management console.
Note: If you don't know VMRC Plus, it's time that you did. Read more about it on my "Manage Virtual Server Machines with VMRC Plus" article.
In VMRC Plus (which is my preferred method of managing VMs under Virtual Server 2005), right-click on the server core virtual machine and select Settings.

In the Settings window, right-click the CD/DVD and select Attach Media Image File. Browse to the VMAdditions.iso file found in the C:\Program Files\Microsoft Virtual Server\Virtual Machine Addition folder. 
You can also use the VM Console itself and on the Core VM, select Media -> Load ISO Image.
Browse to the VMAdditions.iso file found in the C:\Program Files\Microsoft Virtual Server\Virtual Machine Addition folder.
Back inside the VM, in the command prompt window, type D: (or any other drive letter that represents your CD/DVD drive). Once there, go to the Windows folder by typing
cd windows
Type Dir to see the folder's contents if you want. Note that the installation file is called Setup.exe.
The installation process will begin.
In the Virtual Machine Additions window click on Next.
The installation process will take a few seconds to run.
Once completed, click on Finish.
You need to reboot to complete the installation. Click Yes to reboot now, or, if you want to reboot later, type the following command in the command prompt window:
shutdown /r /t 0
Enjoy the better performance from your server core VM!

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Understanding Windows Server 2008 Server Core

Posted in Labels: | at 03:44

One of the most exciting new features of Windows Server 2008 is its ability to install as a Server Core machine.
A Server Core installation provides a minimal environment for running specific server roles, which reduces the maintenance and management requirements and the attack surface for those server roles. A server running a Server Core installation supports the following server roles:
  • Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS)
  • Active Directory Certificate Services (AD CS)
  • Active Directory Lightweight Directory Services (AD LDS)
  • DHCP Server
  • DNS Server
  • File Services
  • Print Services
  • Streaming Media Services
  • Internet Information Services (IIS)
  • Hyper-V
In Windows Server 2008, Server Core installation does not include the traditional full graphical user interface (GUI). You can read more about how to locally and remotely manage Server Core machines by reading the list of articles available below.


This is, in a way, revolutionizing the way Microsoft is looking at GUI-based administration, a step enforced by other means such as Windows PowerShell and Microsoft Exchange Server 2007, all allowing strong command line management capabilities.
There are, alas, some GUI tools you might want to use in Server Core. Some of these include:
Task Manager:

Notepad (stripped down):

Time, Date, and Time Zone Control Panel applet:


Regional Settings Control Panel applet:

That's about it. The rest is all CLI and remote management.

What’s new in the Server Core installation option?

The Server Core installation option of Windows Server 2008 requires initial configuration at a command prompt. A Server Core installation does not include the traditional full graphical user interface. Once you have configured the server, you can manage it locally at a command prompt or remotely using a Terminal Server connection. You can also manage the server remotely using the Microsoft Management Console (MMC) or command-line tools that support remote use. In R2, PowerShell can also be used either locally or remotely.

Benefits of a Server Core installation

The Server Core installation option of Windows Server 2008 and R2 provides the following benefits:
  • Reduced maintenance - Because the Server Core installation option installs only what is required to have a manageable server for the AD DS, AD LDS, AD CS, DHCP Server, DNS Server, File Services, Print Services, Web Server and Hyper-V server roles, less maintenance is required than on a full installation of Windows Server 2008.
  • Reduced attack surface - Because Server Core installations are minimal, there are fewer applications running on the server, which decreases the attack surface.
  • Reduced management - Because fewer applications and services are installed on a server running the Server Core installation, there is less to manage.
  • Less disk space required - A Server Core installation requires only about 1.5 gigabyte (GB) of disk space to install and approximately 2 GB for operations after the installation.
  • Lower risk of bugs - Reducing the amount of code can help reduce the amount of bugs.

Issues with Server Core installation and upgrading from previous versions

Since Server Core is a special installation of Windows Server 2008, the following limitations are present:
  • There is no way to upgrade from a previous version of the Windows Server operating system to a Server Core installation. Only a clean installation is supported.
  • There is no way to upgrade from a full installation of Windows Server 2008 to a Server Core installation. Only a clean installation is supported.
  • There is no way to upgrade from a Server Core installation to a full installation of Windows Server 2008. If you need the Windows user interface or a server role that is not supported in a Server Core installation, you will need to install a full installation of Windows Server 2008.

Server Core versions

In RTM, Server Core comes in Standard, Enterprise and Datacenter editions for i386 and x64 platforms. In R2, Server Core is only available in the X64 version. Most companies will probably go for the Standard edition because most of the differences found in the Enterprise and Datacenter editions of Windows Server 2008 won't be present in Server Core. The Enterprise Server Core will, however, allow you to utilize more processor and memory support, as well as clustering. Datacenter adds the whole Datacenter hardware program and 99.999% reliability.

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