sysdigg

This question came from my friend who just switched from Windows side of the IT world  into VMware and Linux side . Have you ever noticed on VMware ESX servers that NTP (network time protocol) fails to synchronize even though you have configure ntp server in /etc/ntp.conf file. This error can be fixed easily on VMware ESX servers, this happens because ntp client ports are blocked by ESX server firewall. To troubleshoot this error first check if you have ntp port enabled on VMware ESX server firewall, ntp client uses port 123 (UDP) to communicate with Time server on network.

1. Login as root using ssh onto your VMware server and search for UDP port 123 to see if this port for ntp client is listed on VMware ESX server firewall:

If you see no results then you don’t have ntp port enabled on your VMware ESX port.

2. How to enable ntp client port on VMware ESX firewall

3. Verify if ntpClient port is enabled on VMware ESX firewall

NOTE: you will notice ntpClient in Enabled services listing on VMware ESX firewall.

4. Verify the ntp client port is listed in VMware ESX firewall listing

If you notice ACCEPT for port (UDP) 123 then this indicated that ntp Client port is enabled on VMware ESX server.

5. Restart ntpd daemon (process) on VMWare ESX server

Mac OS X VMware Fusion 2 for $39.99

VMware Fusion 2 allows Mac OS X users to double the number of virtual CPU’s that can be assigned to guest virtual machine. VMware Fusion 2 also offers experimental support for 4-way vSMP virtual machines.If you are a Mac user and want to run Microsoft Windows Operating system – Windows XP or Windows Vista withoyut reboot then VMware Fusion offers that functionality.

Using VMware Fusion 2 you can run :

• Windows operating side-by side with your Mac O X without rebooting your Mac OS X. There is disk partioning required.
• VMware Fusion 2 allows Mac OS X users to run multiple applications across multiple screens.you can instantly launch Windows applications from any Mac file, the Dock and more.
• VMware Fusion 2 users can use Expose to switch between Mac OS X and Windows OS applications, users can minimize Microsoft Windows applications to  the Doc.
• VMware Fusion allows Mac OS X users to run 3D games, design software and other graphics-intensive apps with support for DirectX 9.0 Shader Model 2 3D hardware-accelerated graphics
• using VMware Fusion 2 you can use Windows-only USB devices on your Mac, including GPS receivers, cell phones, PDAs, and iSight cameras.

VMware Fusion 2 costs $79.99 if you are buying directly from VMware website, you can use paypal account to purchase VMware Fusion 2 from VMware site, VMware accepts Paypal.However if you want to save some money, VMware Fusion 2 is available at cheaper price on sale at $59.99 with Free Super Saving Shipping. This is surprising that VMware Fusion 2, is really $10 cheaper if you buy it from Amazon. One of my friend just called me and told me that he brought VMware Fusion for his Mac from Amazon for $39.99, when i checked it on Amazon, i find out that Amazon is offering special discount sale price on VMware Fusion 2 using a rebate which is valid only this month. If you are looking to run Windows OS on your Mac then this is the right time . You can buy VMware Fusion 2 for $39.99 with Free shipping offer , click here to read the details on VMware Fusion coupon/rebate

I noticed on host running VMware ESX sometimes HA gets disabled because of network glitches, even trying it from Virtual Center client I wasn’t able to turn it on. I like playing with command line options when Virtual Center GUI fails to work. Here is a command that i used to enable HA back on my VMware ESX host.

Steps to enable HA by command line in VMware ESX host:

1. Login as root into ESX host using ssh :

2. Run service restart on ESX host for enabling HA:

One VMware management service restarts you can re-enable HA back

Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate
Price: USD 275.49

39 used & new available from USD 150.00

Last week while working doing new VMware View setup i was deploying some Windows XP desktops running as VMware ESX guest , i noticed some weirdness.

I received this error when i was deploying Windows XP workstation from VMware Virtual Center :

A general error occured : Failed to create journal File provider

Strangely enough i created several desktops before but when i was working on fresh Windows XP VMware virtual desktop deployment it failed when i tried to power-on the VMware virtual desktop.Looking closely into the error message it appeared to me that something is wrong on VMware ESX host server where /var/log filesystem uses journaling . The /var/log file system on VMWare ESX stores all log related to alerts, monitoring and all operations related to VMware guest OS.

So i logged onto the esx server using ssh from my Putty terminal. By running a quick df -h on all filesystems , i noticed /var/log was 100% , to me that definitely sounds wrong.I removed some older archived kernel alert files to free up some space and then Jumped back onto my Virtual Center Console . As soon as i powered-on the Windows XP VMware guest it worked very well without any error message. So if you are getting this errror “

A general error occurred :Failed to create journal File provider” ,

then look into /var/log filesystem on VMware ESX host for disk space.

VCP Exam cram Book

Preparing for VMware Certified Professional Exam ( VCP ) sounds daunting or impossible for VMware beginners. Even if you have hands on experience on VMware ESX or VMware VCP is not an easy exam to pass. I would recommend some sort of hands on experience is really a must and then there is VMware ESX online documentation you should read thoroughly. Last thing you need is some sort of Exam Cram. My friend is preparing for VMware Certified Professional Exam and he find a valuable resource – VCP Exam Cram book which he find very useful. This VCP Exam cram book covers VMware ESX fundamentals and topics in greater depth. This book comes with CD which contains practice questions. The author discusses the different storage technologies that VMware Infrastructure 3 supports and leaves the vendor selection to your planning phase when you decide to evaluate which solution fits your environment the best.

VCP Exam Cram Preparation books covers following topics in detail:

• Master the essential concepts of VMware Infrastructure 3
• Plan, install, deploy, and configure ESX Server 3.5
• Understand how VMware Infrastructure is licensed
• Implement reliable virtualized storage operations
• Administer ESX Server 3.5 with Virtual Center 2.5
• Manage virtual machine operations
• Systematically secure your virtual infrastructure
• Manage and monitor virtual resources
• Troubleshoot problems with ESX Server 3.5
• Implement effective backup, disaster recovery, and business continuity
• Maximize system availability in virtualized environments

VCP Exam Cram CD comes with:

• VCP-310 Exam questions covered with detailed explanations of correct and incorrect answers
• VCP Exam questions with Multiple test modes
• VCP Exam Random questions and order of answers
• Coverage of each VCP exam objectives.

VCP Exam Cram is available for $26.69 with Free Shipping offer from Amazon. If you are serious about VCP Exam then you should read some of the great reviews on VCP Exam Cram book, this book received many 5 star ratings. You can read reviews about this book here and if you are interested to buy this book then click the image below :

If you are getting warnings after warnings in regards to “Memory Checker warnings in hostd.log” do the following.

Edit the config.xml under /etc/vmware/hostd and add the folloing into the <config> section:

<hostdWarnMemInMB>200</hostdWarnMemInMB>
<hostdStopMemInMB>250</hostdStopMemInMB>

or similar values depending on how high is your Service Console memory set to. After that you have to restart the service with
service mgmt-vmware restart

Get Free HP-Compaq Mini Netbook on Verizon FiOS Sign-up -Verizon special offer

Update: Verizon FREE Compaq Mini Netbook Update offer is back in 2010 on online High Speed Internet Order. – Offer Expires on 4/17/2010 . CLICK HERE FOR OFFER DETAILS

Verizon this summer is really offering unbeatable FiOS deals for new residential customers.Are you frustrated with your DSL or Cable internet here is your chance to switch to verizon FiOS, for limited time Verizon is running Summer special and you will get FREE Compaq mini netbook worth $299.For new customers who sign up for FiOS Internet between now and 9/19/2009 with a connection speed of 25-Mbits/15-Mbits or higher, FiOS TV Extreme HD service, and FiOS Essentials voice service, Verizon will offer them choice of a FREE HP Compaq Mini Netbook or a free Flip Ultra camcorder.

Here are some of the fine prints which you should be aware of , it’s not like you order it on-line and you will get the HP Compaq Mini Netbook in your mail within 5-7 business days :

Compaq Mini netbook (or comparable value product) redeemable with $299 coupon online at hp.com while supplies last. Valid credit card req’d. Must have service for 60 days with no past due balance. Coupon sent within 90 days of install date. Requires redemption within 60 days of receipt. For new FiOS TV or Internet residential customers only. $179 early termination, $49.99 activation, & other fees, taxes, charges & terms apply. Actual speeds may vary. Subject to credit approval & may require a deposit. FiOS available in select areas. Battery backup for std. fiber-based voice service and E911 (but not VOIP) for up to 8 hours. ©2009 Verizon.

If you are interested in Verizon FiOS , Firsh check availability for Verizon FiOS in your neighbourhood.Once you process the order and stay with verizon FiOS bundle package for 60 days a HP Compaq mini Netbook coupon for $299 will be mailed to you, you can use this $299 coupon to purchase Compaq mini netbook. I would say it’s really a good deal. Verizon FiOS is currently the only FiOS network where you can get  faster internet download speed of 25 Mbps and 15 Mbps upload speed. You wouldn’t get faster download speed on faster dsl network , not even on AT&T UVerse .

How to get FREE Compaq Mini Netbook with Verizon FiOS bundle package:

1.First you need to  check Verizon FiOS availability by checking your phone number or by searching your home address. Click below to search if you are eligible to get Verizon FiOS:

2.Once you place your order online , after using Verizon FiOS service for period of 60 days you will get the HP Mini Netbook coupon for $299. You can use $299 to buy HP Compaq Mini Netbook.

VMware launched First Free, Open-source VMware View desktop Linux client. On Feb. 03 VMware announced Free Open-Source VMware View client download availability. In December 08, VMware released new version of VMware desktop Infrastructure now called VMware View which allows users to access desktop, laptop and VMware virtual desktops through web browser or by installing VMware View Client. VMware View client was only available for Microsoft Windows users and there wasn’t any client available for Mac OS X and Linux users, since then lot of VMware users complained about releasing VMware View client for Linux and Mac OS X.

Finally VMware listened to their customers valuable advice and released VMware View Open clients for Linux that can be run on all Linux distributions including – Red Hat, Novell Suse Enterprise, CentOS, Fedora and Ubuntu Linux. VMware is facing strong completion from Citrix who offers their own Desktop virtualization solution which is pretty attractive to customers who are looking to bring unified virtual desktop solution into their IT environment, Citrix virtual desktop can be  accessed from any operating system – Linux, UNIX, Windows and Mac OS X because Citrix virtual desktop client uses own proprietary protocol called ICA (Independent computing Architecture) .VMware announcement of free VMware View Linux client is smart move for VMware, also i heard from reliable sources that VMware Mac OS client is underway that is going to be released pretty soon. These new VMware client releases (Linux and Mac OS X)  will put VMware View ahead of Citrix desktop offering.

VMware View Open Client is available under GNU public License as free downloads . You can download VMware View Open Linux client from Google code.

Free Linux VMware View downloads

Download VMware View 2.1.1-144385 for Debian

http://vmware-view-open-client.googlecode.com/files/VMware-view-open-client_2.1.1-144835_i386.deb

Download VMware View 2.1.1-144385 for Suse Linux Enterprise Thin Client

http://vmware-view-open-client.googlecode.com/files/VMware-view-open-client-lite-2.1.1-144835.i386.rpm

Download VMware View 2.1.1-144385 binary RPM for CentOS, Fedora, RHEL 3/4/5 Linux

http://vmware-view-open-client.googlecode.com/files/VMware-view-open-client-2.1.1-144835.i386.rpm

Download VMware View 2.1.1-144385 binary in tar format

http://vmware-view-open-client.googlecode.com/files/VMware-view-open-client-2.1.1-144835.tar.gz

Download VMware View 2.1.1-144385 Source to compile on Linux platforms

http://vmware-view-open-client.googlecode.com/files/VMware-view-open-client-source-2.1.1-144835.tar.gz

For installing VMware View Linux client installation instructions are available on VMware View open client Wiki.VMware View Linux client comes with ability to create secure tunnel using SSL. The VMware View Linux client also supports two factor authentication with RSA SecurID and full command line interface.However VMware view Linux client is missing USB redirection, Multiple desktop sessions and Multimedia redirection features.This new release of VMware View Linux client is compatible with VMware Virtual Desktop Manager (VDM) 2.0, 2.1, and VMware View Manager 3.0.

Verizon FiOS Internet bundle coupons 2010

Verizon FiOS is best and fastest broadband internet service available in 16 states and planning to expand to other states in year 2010. Verizon FiOS is the fastest as they offers 35Mbps down/35 Mbps upload speed.Verizon FiOS internet is available in Massachusetts, Maryland, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New york , Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island,Texas, Virginia and Washington states.

Verizon FiOS internet offers 3 internet plans Fast, Faster and Fastest – the Fast FiOS internet offers speed of 15/5 Mbps, the Faster plan 25/25 Mbps and Fastest plan comes with speed of 35/35 Mbps.Verizon coupon codes/promotional offers on FiOS internet bundle online deals has great money saving advantages.Some of the FiOS internet,Phone , TV bundle offers in 2010 are listed here :

Verizon 2010 FiOS coupon code details:

Verizon FiOS Internet bundle deals are valid on online orders, to redeem the coupon code you have to sign-up FiOS bundle online.These bundle FiOS special prices are valid for 1 year with 2 year contract agreement :

• Verizon FiOS double play internet bundle coupon code - Verizon FiOS double play bundle includes Verizon Freedom essentials Phone plan and FiOS internet 15/5 Mbps. This coupon saves you $5 OFF/month for 1 year – a total saving of $60 /year.
• Verizon FiOS Triple play internet bundle coupon code - includes Verizon phone, FiOS internet 24/25 Mbps and Verizon FiOS TV (prime HD) , costs $84.99/month for this package. By ordering online you get $5 off /month for 12 months  – a saving of $60/year plus Limited time offer also includes $20 OFF/month – that’s an additional saving of $240/year.
• Verizon FiOS double play internet bundle (better)coupon code -costs 89.99/month with promotional coupon code , includes phone and FiOS internet 25/25 Mbps., this bundle package also includes Free Verizon WiFi . Online orders will get $ 5 off /month for 1 year . that’s a total saving off $60 for 1 year.

• Verizon FiOS Triple play internet bundle (better)coupon code-costs $109.99/month after promotional coupon code discount for 1 year , after 1 year regular rates of  $124.99 will be billed on your account. It includes Phone, FiOS internet 25/25 Mbps , FiOS TV with extreme HD.Limited time offers includes $10 Off/month for 1 year – saving of $120 . You save $120 plus $60 per year on online orders- your total saving $180 /year.

Verizon Promotion offer :