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    How NOT to install a virtual Windows Server?


     

    windows_server_installationFew days ago I learned one "important" lesson from the field, which is actually my lab, which is actually my laptop. I’m in a process of writing my final thesis, and I write about Exchange Server 2010. I need to do some demo, so I decided to start a few virtual machines. Actually, 6! On my laptop, which has 4GB of RAM. Doable. Slow, very slow, but doable. I need to have five virtual Windows Servers 2008 R2 (domain controller, 2 x Mailbox server, Hub Transport server and Client Access server) and one Windows 7 VM which will act as a client. I wanted to start five Windows Server installations parallel from the ISO files, so I copied one ISO file four times, created five virtual machines, and started the installation on all five virtual machine. Of course, as I have a laptop, all .VHD files are created on the same hard disk. And bang! I took me more than a 5 (five!) hours to install all VMs, simply because my hard disk was screaming in the pain when needed to read from 5 .iso files and write to a 5 .VHD files. I swear I saw bloody tears leaking from my laptop.

    Don’t do this. Your hard drive will be thankful.

     


     

    By Ilija Brajkovic | July 14, 2010
    Tags: , , ,
    Category: windows server 2008 | Comments
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    • As discussed on FB, there are many solutions to this problem. You can install one Windows Server in VHD. Sysprep it and then copy it five or six time, or you can install one base VHD with Windows Server and then create five or six differential VHD-s. BTW, comment box is way to near the bottom of the page, I had to look for it.
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