HP Microserver Gen8 - ESXi 5.5 NIC Not Found?

[max2013]

Hi All,

 

Have anyone experienced any issues installing ESXi on the HP Microserver Gen8?

 

I recently got my HP Microserver Gen8 and tried to install ESXi 5.5, however, it shows me that I don't have an compatible NIC card even though I downloaded from HP's customized images section A.

 

Shown here: http://h18004.www1.hp.com/products/servers/software/vmware/esxi-image.html

 

Does anyone have this problem?

[venturis]

Hi Max2013.

 

I don't actually own a G8 but have the N40L and N54L running ESXi 5.5.

 

I read with interest recently that native drivers for the Network card and the Disk Controller are not included in ESXi.

 

Even the HP customised ISO does not have these drivers as this disk is primarily aimed at the Proliant Enterprise class servers.

 

The only way to put ESXi on your G8 is to create a custom ISO with the missing drivers.  I think you can use the HP customised ISO as a base.

 

I can't point you to the driver files (they are a *.vib file) but a quick search on the net will get you what you want.

 

Using a program like "esxi_customiser" will help you add the drivers to the installation ISO but it will only let you add one driver at a time.  Not sure if it can be used recursively to add multiple drivers.

[max2013]

I thought that the Gen8 was different from Gen7 (in terms of microserver), that natively support ESXi with customized images?

Edited October 11, 2013 by max2013

[venturis]

I thought that the Gen8 was different from Gen7 (in terms of microserver), that is natively support ESXi with customized images?

 

I think you have it the wrong way around....the G7 is natively supported....it appears the G8 is not.

[max2013]

Oh Wow...

 

I decided to try 5.1 and it turns out I don't even have enough memory (2GiB from HP) to open the installer.

 

I guess I'll wait for that 8x2GiB Memory I ordered last week until I start looking for solutions.

 

Thanks Venturis!!!

Edited October 11, 2013 by max2013

[303-Acid]

I haven't tried 5.5 myself but have installed HP's custom 5.1 U1 image from Sept 2013 on my G8 and it works fine.

 

If you want to see the status of RAID and disk from within the vSphere client you will need to install the Agentless Management Service bundle too.

 

http://vibsdepot.hp.com/hpq/sep2013/esxi-5x-bundles/hp-ams-esxi5.0-bundle-9.4.0-16.zip

Edited October 11, 2013 by 303-Acid

[schoondoggy]

Technically, none of the Microservers are listed as compatable;

http://www.vmware.com/resources/compatibility/search.php

[max2013]

I haven't tried 5.5 myself but have installed HP's custom 5.1 U1 image from Sept 2013 on my G8 and it works fine.

 

If you want to see the status of RAID and disk from within the vSphere client you will need to install the Agentless Management Service bundle too.

 

http://vibsdepot.hp.com/hpq/sep2013/esxi-5x-bundles/hp-ams-esxi5.0-bundle-9.4.0-16.zip

 

Thanks for your suggestion!

 

 

 

I have a machine with ESXi 5.5, and the vSphere client (without the server) does not work anymore :S

 

I think HP iLO is a good alternative (I heard it could also see raid status). However, I have no idea how to use it.

[303-Acid]

iLO 4 on the G8 can see the RAID status of the embedded B120i but for some reason it does not show my P410 RAID card at all. Possibly due to being an older card?

 

iLO's easy, it's just accessed via a web browser.

[max2013]

iLO 4 on the G8 can see the RAID status of the embedded B120i but for some reason it does not show my P410 RAID card at all. Possibly due to being an older card?

 

iLO's easy, it's just accessed via a web browser.

 

You need to plug-in an extra cable just for the iLO port right?