2023/11/18
Posted Tag: #Linux
Other Tags: #Windows, #Personal, #All
I am reasonable versed within VMWare's ESXI product and have paid nothing to get this way prior due to VMWare's licensing policy. But apparently they have stopped providing the new ESXI product at no cost and reworked their website. Previously for years though I have installed ESXI on at least one of my servers off and on. Most recent a couple of weeks ago I was doing it yet again. I discovered their new ESXI 7.0 version has gone to a flat interface and I have no idea why. I mean what is happening with software interfaces these days when they aren't using texture in their interfaces. Windows 10 went that way too and is partly why I do not use it any longer. In that regard, generally I do not understand why taking away texture in a interface when a major portion of the general public does not even know what ESXI is.
I have installed Ubuntu Server LTS in a virtual machine on ESXI before for ZFS pools many times. This time an issue involved installing Ubuntu Server LTS and it was about time. The lack of the UTC time standard due to ESXI and I had to use CNRT + F2 to get a shell so I could set the correct time, so Ubunut updates would work. I could have set the time in ESXI correctly but honestly why should I have to do that. Then on one SuperMirco motherboard on a backup server the new ESXI version has the network drivers supported now where they did not before resulting back then in me having to create a custom ISO. Still not included though are the Intel Denverton SATA Controllers on the motherboard so I had to still add them for passthru. I just have to do so much to get a simple thing done with ESXI. Too much to warrant its home use.
Now I am going to express what is much easier to use and also does not cost anything. I use Ubuntu Server LTS installed on hardware, not within a virtual machine, with Docker and QEMU. Docker is for Emby which works a lot better in Docker due to permissions or really the ease of not having to deal with them. QEMU is for virtual machines. I have two on one server for Arch Linux and Windows 11. I use Virtual Machine Manager to manage these virtual machines installed on my Arch Linux everyday computer over SSH using a public key. I can run the virtual machines graphically full screen a lot easier than when using ESXI. They are hugely easier to manage than ESXI. For home use on a server using Ubuntu Server LTS just makes sense rather than ESXI or Proxmox for that matter. Now I have to express an issue I have with Ubuntu Server and it is snap. Canonical why do we need this with a server? One of the first things I do is remove it and make things so it never installs in an update.
An issue I came across involved using my Strings script to install Arch Linux and adding a USB thumb drive to the server for a virtual machine. But I discovered a work around to use Strings on my server for virtual machines involving copying the scripts, but not the addons directory, into a directory I named strings on my computer. I then opened terminal in the directory containing the strings directory and used scp to send it over to the virtual machine within the Arch Linux installation. Using the -r switch sends over a directory and it's contents as in scp -r strings [email protected]:. I just had to give root a password on the server and type ip a for the DHCP assigned IP address in order to do it. I end up with a strings directory just as you get when you mount the USB drive to the created strings directory as I described here. Later when the Cinnamon desktop is installed and booted into it go back and copy the addons directory over. You have to hold the addons directory back with the copy because Arch Linux is booted into memory so space is limited. Mounting a USB thumb drive the files stay on the drive avoiding the memory load.
But overall QEMU for virtual machines and ZFS for pools is so much easier to work with. I have no idea why ever couple of years I try ESXI. I guess I just think it may be easier this time. Really years before I used installing ESXI to learn creating virtual machines and how to overall use the software. I have never played computer games and for me I consider them a waste of time, sorry. I spend my time learning how to do something. I have always been like that. I have taught myself 'C', Perl, MYSQL, JavaScript, DOS and now bash with Linux. Recently NodeJS and 11ty using Docker. This drives me and it is so much easier to learn something now using the Internet. I recently searched learning 'C'. A long time ago I bought a book titled "C By Example" by Greg Perry to learn 'C'. Now for free there is all sorts of information on the Internet to learn 'C'.
I probably tried using ESXI again just to challenge myself. I guess I thrive on a challenge. My work drives me in that way. If there isn't a challenge I get bored. ESXI is a challenge to use but I need to stop trying to use it. So hopefully I have stopped. We will see.
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