IBM eX5 Implementation Guide

362 IBM eX5 Implementation Guide

򐂰 Create a drive RAID array before installation. The ServeRAID management interface is

accessible via UEFI settings, by selecting System Settings  Adapters and UEFI

Drivers.

򐂰 When running the ESXi hypervisor from a USB flash drive, plug it in to the internal USB

slot to prevent physical disruption. The internal USB slot is located on the x8 low profile

PCI riser card.

򐂰 ESXi formats all local disks in the server when it is initially booted. Remove any local and

SAN-attached disks from the system if they contain important data.

򐂰 If ESXi is installed to a USB flash drive, you must add USB Storage to the system boot

option. Placing it on the top of the boot order list decreases system boot time.

򐂰 VMware vSphere 4.1 offers no support for UEFI and therefore is categorized as Legacy

OS. Moving Legacy Only up in the boot order list decreases system boot time.

򐂰 If a USB keyboard stops functioning at any time during the ESXi installation, try plugging it

in to a separate USB port.

򐂰 You can access more information about the VMware vSphere installation and

configuration at the following website:

http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/

7.9.6 VMware vSphere ESX 4.1

The installation of VMware vSphere ESX 4.1 on an x3690 X5 with an attached MAX5 requires

the installation media of the OS and an available logical drive. Unlike the ESXi with its small

footprint, you typically install the ESX on a RAID disk array.

An x3690 X5 that is attached to MAX5 allows the use of interleaved NUMA nodes. To boot

and run ESX on this system, you must enable the allowInterleavedNUMAnodes boot option.

Use the following steps to install ESX 4.1 on the x3690 X5 server scaled with MAX5:

1. Boot the host from the ESX installation media.

2. Press F2 when the installation options panel displays, as shown in Figure 7-58 on

page 363.

Chapter 7. IBM System x3690 X5 363

Figure 7-58 ESX installation options window

3. The Boot Options line appears on the panel. Add the allowInterleavedNUMAnodes=TRUE

parameter at the boot options line, so that the line reads in the following manner:

Boot Options initrd=initrd.img debugLogToSerial=1 vmkConsole=false mem=512M

quiet allowInterleavedNUMAnodes=TRUE

The edited result looks like Figure 7-59 on page 364. Press Enter to proceed.

364 IBM eX5 Implementation Guide

Figure 7-59 Edited ESX installation Boot Options

4. Proceed with ESX installation until you get to the Setup Type page, as shown in

Figure 7-60. Click Advanced setup, clear Configure bootloader settings automatically

(leave checked if unsure), and click Next.

Figure 7-60 ESX installation Setup Type

5. Continue with the installation until you get to the Set Bootloader Options page, as shown

in Figure 7-61 on page 365, and type the following parameter in the Kernel Arguments

field:

allowInterleavedNUMAnodes=TRUE