Testing the PXE boot configuration
Once you have configured the TFTP and the DHCP servers, it is a best practice to verify whether the servers can PXE boot successfully. If you haven't already configured the TFTP and DHCP severs then follow the instructions in the Configuring a TFTP server with Auto Deploy files and Configuring DHCP Server for PXE boot recipes in this chapter before proceeding with testing the PXE Configuration.
Although we don't specify the ESXi Image the server should boot from, while configuring the TFTP or DHCP servers, the PXE boot process should be able to reach a point to confirm that the PXE boot is working and all it would need is an ESXi Image to proceed further.
The How to do it… section of this recipe will guide you through the procedure required to test the PXE Boot Configuration.
How to do it…
The following procedure will help you test the PXE boot configuration:
Configure the BIOS of the server so that it will attempt a network boot (PXE boot) during every boot...