[This is prerelease documentation and is subject to change in future releases. Blank topics are included as placeholders.]

In System Center Essentials 2010, managing a virtual machine requires that you first install an operating system and guest services. Then, you must run the Computer and Device Management wizard to install the agent. The All Virtual Machines view in the Computers workspace provides a list of all virtual machines. In the Tasks pane of the All Virtual Machines view, you can perform the following tasks:

Important
If you have Essentials 2010 installed with virtualization management and if you also have System Center Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) 2008 installed, we recommend that you manage virtual machines only in Essentials instead of in the VMM 2008 Administration console to prevent conflicts between applications.

For more information about virtualization management tasks and for detailed instructions on how to perform these tasks, see the System Center Essentials 2010 Operations Guide.

How to Prepare a Virtual Machine for Management by Essentials

Before you can use Essentials to manage a virtual machine, you must connect to the virtual machine, install an operating system, install guest services, and then discover the virtual machine to install the management agent.

When you select the Manage Virtual Machine task, you are presented with a list of actions that must be completed in sequence. First, connect to the machine and install an operating system. The operating system installation media is specified in the virtual machine properties. During the operating system installation, ensure the machine is configured as part of the appropriate domain so that it can be discovered by Essentials 2010. After you install the operating system, install guest services, and then discover the virtual machine, which will install the agent required to monitor the machine.

Important
If you attempt to connect to a virtual machine that does not yet have an operating system installed, the Virtual Machine Viewer window displays a message prompting you either to restart with the proper startup device selected, or to insert startup media into the selected startup device. You may need to edit the properties of the virtual machine and either to use the host CD/DVD drive or to add an ISO image file to the library folder.If you plan to install the operating system from a CD or DVD, edit the properties for this virtual machine to use the host CD/DVD drive. If you plan to install the operating system from an ISO image, ensure the ISO file is copied to the library folder. Change the BIOS startup order so that the appropriate disk is loaded first. For more information about how to add a file to the library folder, see Adding Files to the Library Folder.

To install an operating system on a virtual machine
  1. Before you can install an operating system, decide whether to install from the network, from a CD or DVD, or from an ISO image file. Then, ensure the installation files are present, and change the BIOS startup order to load the selected media.

  2. In the Essentials console, click the Computers button. In the Computers pane, click All Virtual Machines.

  3. From the All Virtual Machines view, right-click the new virtual machine in the list, and then click Manage Virtual Machine. This command is also in the Tasks pane.

  4. In the Manage this virtual machine dialog box, click Connect to Virtual Machine.

  5. When the Virtual Machine Viewer window appears, the virtual machine will be started, and the operating system installation will begin. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete the operating system installation.

    Important
    If the virtual machine is in a stopped state, Essentials will first start the virtual machine before connecting to it. There will be an exclamation mark beside the new virtual machines that require these steps, and the preview pane below the list of virtual machines will alert you that additional steps need to be followed.To manage the virtual machine after the operating system has been installed, ensure that guest services are installed, that the user account on the virtual machine has administrator permissions, and that the virtual machine has been joined to the domain, if applicable. You might also need to check your firewall settings.
To install guest services on a virtual machine
  1. In the Manage this virtual machine dialog box, select a virtual machine from the list, and then click Install Guest Services.

    Note
    Guest services provide features that securely integrate a virtual machine with a physical computer. For example, guest services provide mouse functionality and time synchronization. These services also enable a host server to more effectively manage the virtual machine. An operating system must be installed on a virtual machine before you can install guest services. When guest services are installed, Essentials determines the appropriate services to install for your hypervisor. Refer to the appropriate Hyper-V or Virtual Server 2005 product documentation for more details on specific services.
  2. A dialog box will appear reminding you that an operating system must be installed before you can install guest services. If an operating system has already been installed, click Yes; otherwise, click No, and follow the procedure to connect to the virtual machine and to install the operating system.

The virtual machine will be stopped, and a progress bar will be displayed in the All Virtual Machines view while guest services are installed on the virtual machine.

To discover a virtual machine
  1. In the Manage this virtual machine dialog box, click the Add new computers and devices button.

  2. In the Computer and Device Management wizard, leave the discovery type set to Windows Computers, and then click Next.

  3. On the Auto or Advanced page, accept the default selection for Computer and Device Classes, and then click Next.

  4. On the Discovery Method page, click Browse for, type the virtual machine computer name, and then click Next.

    Note
    The name of the virtual machine in Essentials should be the same as the computer name you chose when you installed the operating system on the virtual machine. If they are different, you can edit the properties of the virtual machine when the machine is in a stopped state so that the names match. To be discovered, the virtual machine must be in the same domain as the Essentials server.
  5. On the Administrator Account page, use either the credentials you used to set up Essentials, or click Other user account. Supply a user name, a password, and the domain for a user with Administrator rights on the virtual machine, and then click Discover. The progress will be displayed while Essentials discovers the virtual machine.

  6. On the Select Objects to Manage page, select the virtual machine in the list of devices, and then click Next.

  7. On the Summary page, review the information to ensure it is correct, and then click Finish.

The Agent Management Task Status dialog box will be displayed while Essentials installs the agent, and the results will be shown in the Task Output window upon completion.

See Also