Chapter 2. VMware vCenter Server
In the last chapter, we discussed about various hypervisors and VMware vSphere. We understood how vSphere differs from other products, and how a virtual environment is a better choice in managing a data center. We now also know what our virtual infrastructure comprises of. So after having an introductory understanding of VMware vSphere, we will now have a look at vCenter Server and its role in VMware virtualized infrastructure.
We will cover the following topics in this chapter:
- Introduction to vCenter Server
- vCenter Server architecture
- Communication between vCenter Server and ESXi hosts
- Additional vCenter Server components
- Comparison of vCenter Server and vCenter Server Appliance
- Preparing and installing vCenter Server on Microsoft Windows
- Importing, starting and configuring the vCenter Server Appliance
- Configuring and managing vCenter Server
- Managing inventory, hosts, VMs, and templates via vCenter Server
- vCenter Server licensing
- Backing up vCenter Server...
