How to Connect to a VMware ESXi Server, Download the VMware vsphere Client, and Install the vsphere Client I am not responsible for your actions or their outcomes, in any way, while reading and/or implementing this tutorial. I will not provide support for the information herein. If you do not understand something, figure it out on your own. If you need help figuring it out, use Google to solve your problems. Introduction After installing the VMware ESXi hypervisor on a physical server, it is necessary to access the server through the supplied web interface and download the vsphere management client. All management processes are done through the vsphere client, including managing the hypervisor and managing virtual machines. You have to install the vsphere client on any machine from which you wish to manage ESXi. Furthermore, the version of the ESXi hypervisor must match or be greater than the version of the vsphere client you are using. The vsphere client can access and manage down level hypervisors. For example, if your physical server has ESXi 3.5 Update 5 (ESXi 3.5 U5) installed, and you have vsphere client 4.1 installed from managing another server, you can still manage the ESXi 3.5 U5 machine with the installed vsphere 4.1 client. If however, you have the vsphere 3.5 client installed, you cannot manage an ESXi 4.1 hypervisor without upgrading the vsphere client first. In order to download the vsphere client, your ESXi machine must have internet connectivity. An appropriate IP address, subnet mask, and default gateway must be configured. This configuration is done through the physical console of the server running the ESXi hypervisor. See, How to Configure an Initial Installation of the VMware ESXi Hypervisor. The vsphere client can also be downloaded from the VMware website. It will be located with the ESXi hypervisor downloads.
Steps 1. Open a web browser and navigate to the IP address of your ESXi server. In this example, the ESXi server is located at IP address 10.1.1.253 on the 10.1.1.0/24 network. Enter the IP address 10.1.1.253 in the address bar. Notes: The easiest way to initially access a VMware ESXi server, and download the VSphere client, is through the IP address assigned to the management network. This is initially set through the console of the physical server. Accessing the ESXi server through IP address is necessary if DNS resolution is not setup on your network due to the virtual DNS server being hosted by your physical ESXi server.
2. If a warning stating, "The site's security certificate is not trusted!" (Something similar may appear if you are using a different web browser, Google Chrome is being used for this tutorial) appears, click Proceed Anyway. A security warning will most likely appear unless a PKI infrastructure is configured and your ESXi hypervisor is integrated with it. If you want to prevent this security warning from appearing in the future, add the site s security certificate as a trusted certificate using your web browser of choice.
3. Click Download vsphere Client and save the vsphere client to an appropriate place, with an appropriate name. The default name is acceptable in most circumstances.
4. After downloading the appropriate vsphere client, browse to the directory where you saved the executable and double click it to run the installation program.
5. Click the Run button. 6. Select the language for your installation and click OK.
7. Click the Next button.
8. Click the Next button.
9. Select the radio button next to, "I agree to the terms in the license agreement", and click the Next button.
10. Enter a User Name and Organization and click the Next button.
11. Accept the default installation location and click the Next button. You can change the installation path if you wish to.
12. Click the Install button.
13. Click the Finish button.
Troubleshooting Ensure you have the correct version of the vsphere client. Ensure that the Management Network is setup correctly through the console of the physical server the ESXi hypervisor is installed on. Ensure you can ping the IP address associated with the management network. If you can ping the IP address of the management network, you can access the web interface of the ESXi hypervisor to download the vsphere client. I f you cannot provide Internet connectivity to the physical server hosting the ESXi hypervisor; you can download the vsphere client from the VMware website, www.vmware.com. The correct version of the vsphere client will be located in the download section pertaining to the version of the ESXi hypervisor you are using. If you do not have a VMware account, you must create a VMware account to download both the ESXi hypervisor and the vsphere client. I am not responsible for your actions or their outcomes, in any way, while reading and/or implementing this tutorial. I will not provide support for the information herein. If you do not understand something, figure it out on your own. If you need help figuring it out, use Google to solve your problems.