Tag : Microsoft

Written by Christopher Lewis on July 15, 2017 .
One of the many prerequisites of the VMware vRealize Automation Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) components (including Microsoft SQL Server) is the installation and configuration of Microsoft Distributed Transaction Coordinator (MS DTC).
Not installing and configuring MS DTC correctly can be the the bane of someone trying to install VMware vRealize Automation.
ProTip 1 - Uninstall MS DTC via PowerShell
MS DTC seems to be installed by default in Windows, but if you have cloned (without Sysprep) the Windows image, then MS DTC will need to be removed (and re-installed). A simple PowerShell command can be used to remove MS DTC:

Written by Christopher Lewis on April 25, 2016 .
As part of my VMware home lab setup I wanted to be able to run a PowerCLI/PowerShell script to Power On/Off my hosts as required. The first objective was being able to power the hosts on using their IPMI interfaces.
Thankfully the Microsoft PowerShell has something that does the job quite nicely called Physical Computer System View (PCSV) Device Cmdlets.
Using Get-PcsvDevice
Using the Get-PcsvDevice
command interactively will require you to provide an IP Address/Hostname, a protocol (such as IPMI) and a set of credentials.

Written by Christopher Lewis on March 25, 2016 .
This is Part 4 of a series of posts on how to configure VMware vSphere 6.x to use Certificates from Microsoft Windows Server Certificate Services.
The following assumes you have completed the steps within the series:
- Part 1 - Installing Microsoft Windows 2012 R2 Certificate Services
- Part 2 - Configuring an Enterprise Root Certificate Authority
- Part 3A - Creating the Microsoft CA Template for SSL certificates in vSphere 6.0
- Part 3B - Creating the Microsoft CA Template for Subordinate CA certificates in vSphere 6.0
The high level steps below are taken from the VMware KB Article Creating a Microsoft Certificate Authority Template for SSL certificate creation in vSphere 6.0
Active Directory Certificate Authority Certificates Microsoft

Written by Christopher Lewis on March 24, 2016 .
This is Part 3B of a series of posts on how to configure VMware vSphere 6.x to use Certificates from Microsoft Windows Server Certificate Services, covering the creation of a Subordinate CA certificate for use with the VMware Certificate Authority (VMCA).
For some insightful information on VMCA Design Decisions post by AtherBeg
The following assumes you have completed the steps within the series:
- Part 1 - Installing Microsoft Windows 2012 R2 Certificate Services
- Part 2 - Configuring an Enterprise Root Certificate Authority
- Part 3A - Creating the Microsoft CA Template for SSL certificates in vSphere 6.0
The high level steps below are taken from the VMware KB Article Creating a Microsoft Certificate Authority Template for SSL certificate creation in vSphere 6.0 .
Active Directory Certificate Authority Certificates Microsoft

Written by Christopher Lewis on March 24, 2016 .
This is Part 3A of a series of posts on how to configure VMware vSphere 6.x to use Certificates from Microsoft Windows Server Certificate Services.
The following assumes you have completed the steps within the series:
- Part 1 - Installing Microsoft Windows 2012 R2 Certificate Services
- Part 2 - Configuring an Enterprise Root Certificate Authority
The high level steps below are taken from the VMware KB Article Creating a Microsoft Certificate Authority Template for SSL certificate creation in vSphere 6.0
Active Directory Certificate Authority Certificates Microsoft

Written by Christopher Lewis on March 22, 2016 .
This is Part 2 of a series of posts on how to configure VMware vSphere 6.x to use Certificates from Microsoft Windows Server Certificate Services.
The following assumes you have completed the steps within the series:
Instructions
Click Configure Active Directory Certificate Services to run the AD CS Configuration Post-deployment configuration wizard.

If required, click Change to choose a different account with the appropriate administration rights (i.e. Enterprise Admins) and click Next.
Active Directory Certificate Authority Certificates Microsoft

Written by Christopher Lewis on March 22, 2016 .
This is Part 1 of a series of posts on how to configure VMware vSphere 6.0 to use Certificates from Microsoft Windows Server Certificate Services.
I have heavily invested into my Home Lab over the last few months and as part of building my new VMware vSphere 6.0 Home Lab. I have decided that creating an Enterprise Root CA is a good idea so that I can work with certificates in my home lab.
Active Directory Certificate Authority Certificates Microsoft
- Operating a Private Cloud - Part 3: Creating a Pricing Card in VMware Aria Automation
- Operating a Private Cloud - Part 2: Creating a Pricing Card in VMware Aria Operations
- Operating a Private Cloud - Part 1: Understanding Pricing Cards in VMware Aria
- Zero2Hero - Using Aria Automation to Deploy Multiple Machines with Multiple Disks - Part 5
- Zero2Hero - Using Aria Automation to Deploy Multiple Machines with Multiple Disks - Part 4