Category Archives: HP

VMware Update Manager

Using VMware Update Manager to automatically download HP Drivers to ESXi

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I stumbled across this little gem of a post yesterday, I tried to use the WordPress reblog feature, but it’s not working, so thanks to Kalle who wrote it.

So I’m going to blog it using screenshots from an environment I’ve set it up on.

With HP, you need to use the customized ESXi image to ensure you have all the correct drivers installed so ESXi works properly, which includes that sometimes pesky HPSA driver.

VIB links updated for November 2015 changes to HP Enterprise

What you can do

So basically you can add in the HP Drivers repository into your VMware Update Manager configuration, meaning you can pull down the drivers specific to your HP ESXi hosts for installation.

Keeping your environment happy and up-to-date.

How to set it up

Continue reading Using VMware Update Manager to automatically download HP Drivers to ESXi →

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Using VMware and CDP information (HP and Cisco Switches)

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So on of the most valuable networking features of VMware is setting up CDP information or LLDP (if using non cisco devices). We can see exactly which VMNIC is plugged into which port.

ESXi can receive and display CDP information within the client or web client, but this doesn’t work with HP switches which use LLDP, which you will see in the below examples for both vendors.

Below the environment is plugged into a HP switch and no CDP information is being displayed into the standard switch, however we can send CDP information from VMware ESXi to the HP switch. (But from a Cisco Switch the information does show)

2014-10-06_18-27-09

Continue reading Using VMware and CDP information (HP and Cisco Switches) →

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HP Chassis and Virtual Connect Firmware Upgrades – Don’t bother

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So last night was a busy one thanks to the HP Chassis and “fantastic” Virtual Connect system.

Bare with this article, as its part what happens blah blah, and part, how to install firmware on Virtual Connect

The environment

So the environment consists of;

HP C7000 Chassis

6 x HP BL460c Blade Servers

2 x HP VC Flex-10 Enet Module

These VC Flex modules are connected by 2 x 10GB links in a LACP trunk to Cisco 3750X stack.

The plan of work

Continue reading HP Chassis and Virtual Connect Firmware Upgrades – Don’t bother →

VMware ESXi 5.5 u1 PSOD on HP ProLiant G7 PSOD

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For the past few weeks I’ve been working with a customer to resolve an issue with a re-purposed host where it PSOD every week.

Issue: We installed a new HP Gen8 server as a production host in their main site, installed with VMware ESX 5.5 u1, and then took the HP G7 ESXi 5 box to their second site and repurposed this as a DR host, with Veeam sending replica’s to this host, and it would also run a domain controller and one production VM related to the site it was located.

ESX3 PSOD 01-07-14 Continue reading VMware ESXi 5.5 u1 PSOD on HP ProLiant G7 PSOD →