VMware VCSA 6.5 deployment - pt.1

The new VCSA 6.5 integrates all the capabilities offered by the vCenter Windows-based version, including the VMware Update Manager that no longer need an external Windows server.

The appliance is delivered via an ISO image and the installation process has been simplified. The VCSA installer is now available for Windows, Mac and Linux machines.

The installation process is divided in two steps:

• Deployment - deployment type, size, networking
• Configuration - NTP, SSO settings

Blog series

VMware VCSA 6.5 deployment - pt.1
VMware VCSA 6.5 configuration - pt.2

Create DNS entry

Since vSphere heavy rely on DNS, prior starting the VCSA deployment you should add the new host in the DNS server.

Deployment

From VMware website download the VCSA 6.5 ISO file and mount the ISO to run the installer located in the \vcsa-ui-installer\win32 folder. The GUI installation is made using an EXE file.

Click Install to start a new installation.

The installation of the appliance is the first stage of the deployment process. Click Next .

Accept the EULA and click Next.

The Platform Services Controller can be embedded or external depending on the size of your environment. For a production environment the external solution is the preferred choice. Select the deployment type and click Next.

Specify the ESXi target settings and the host credentials. Click Next to continue.

Click Yes to accept the self-signed certificate.

Assign the VCSA a VM name and the Root password then click Next.

Select the size that best fit in your environment. Here you can specify compute resources as well Storage size. Click Next.

Select the datastore to store the appliance and thick Enable Thin Disk Mode option to save some space in the storage. To avoid storage space issues, in production is preferable to avoid the use of thin disks. Click Next to continue.

Configure networking settings of the VCSA. To avoid errors, DNS name for the IP used should be able to resolve both forward and reverse. Click Next.

Click Finish to begin the VCSA deployment.

The appliance is being deployed.

When the installation completes successfully, the configuration of the appliance is the stage 2 of the deployment process. To proceed with next stage you have two options available:

• Setup via GUI interface
• Setup via Web interface

GUI interface

When the deployment has been completed, click Continue to proceed with stage 2.

The installer displays the VCSA configuration screen.

Web interface

Open your preferred browser and type the address https://IPAddress_DNS_VCSA:5480 to access the Web interface configuration page.

Enter the root credentials previously set and click Log in.

The VCSA configuration screen shows up. This is the same configuration screen used by the GUI interface.

Part 2 will show the configuration of the NTP and SSO settings to complete the VCSA deployment.