Books: Virtualization with VMware ESX Server

Summary
A virtual evolution in IT organizations throughout the world has begun. It is estimated that currently 3% of all servers run virtually and that number is expected to grow rapidly over the next 5 years. VMware?s ESX server is the enterprise tool that provides the platform on which a complete virtual infrastructure can be designed, implemented, and managed. ESX is the most powerful, resilient and customizable of VMware?s three virtual platforms and this book will explore many of the possibilities that a virtual infrastructure running on ESX Server provides.

Server Sprawl and escalating IT costs have managers and system administrators scrambling to find ways to cut costs and reduce Total Cost of Ownership of their physical infrastructure. Combining software applications onto a single server, even if those applications are from the same software vendor, can be dangerous and problems hard to troubleshoot. VMware? ESX Server allows you to consolidate 15 to 20 or even more servers onto a single physical server reducing hardware, electrical, cooling, and administrative costs. These virtual servers run completely independent of each other so if one crashes the other are not affected.

Planning and implementing a server consolidation is a complex process. This book details the requirements for such a project, includes sample forms and templates, and delivers several physical to virtual migration strategies which will save both time and costs. Readers of this book will easily be able to plan and deploy VMware?s ESX Server and begin down the path of an evolved, virtual infrastructure in which costs, administration overhead, and complexity are reduced.

VMware has provided the technology for a virtual infrastructure and this book shows you how to build it.

Table of Contents

• Chapter 1 – The Joy of ESX
• Chapter 2 – Installation
• Chapter 3 – Configuring a Virtual Machine, Gold Builds, and Clones
• Chapter 4 – Advanced Configurations
• Chapter 5 – Virtual Networking
• Chapter 6 – Physical-to-Virtual Migrations
• Chapter 7 – Server Consolidation
• Chapter 8 – Cool Tools for a Virtual Infrastructure
• Chapter 9 – Administering a Virtual Infrastructure
• Chapter 10 – Best Practices, Gotchas, and Common Problems
• Chapter 11 – VMware Under the Covers
• Chapter 12 – Backup Strategies for ESX Server and Virtual Machines
• Chapter 13 – Common and Necessary Command-Line Interface (CLI) Commands
• Chapter 11 – A Peek at the Future: It?s Totally Cool