VMware vSphere migration allows you to move a running virtual machine from one physical server to another, without downtime. The virtual machine retains its network identity and connections, ensuring a seamless migration process. The virtual machine’s active memory and precise execution state are transferred over a high-speed network, allowing the virtual machine to switch from running on the source vSphere host to the destination vSphere host. This entire process takes less than two seconds on a gigabit Ethernet network.
This lab is about migrating VM files, creating a virtual switch and a VMKernel Port Group, verifying the ESXi Host and your VM meets the VSphere vMotion Requirements and performing vSphere vMotion Migration of aVM on a shared datastore.
Migrate Virtual Machine Files with vSphere Storage vMotion.
VM and its disk files can be moved from one datastore to another while the VM is running using VMware vSphere Storage vMotion. For this, you need to login into VMware vCenter Server Appliance and choose Change Datastore option available in Summary tab of your VM.
Create Virtual switch and a VMKernel Port Group for vSphere vMotion Migration.
In this step, a virtual switch is created that will be used in VMware vSphere vMotion migration. This can be done by clicking on Add Host Networking icon which is available when you select VMware ESXi host in the inventory and click Manage and then click Networking.
Verify that your ESXi Host meets vSphere vMotion Requirements
For this, the Processor Type information is viewed to verify that CPUs are compatible, from Summary tab for each ESXi host. And vSphere vMotion port group should be there and should be configured correctly. And ESXi host should have access to the same shared datastores.
Verify that your virtual machines meet vSphere vMotion Requirements
For this, verify that virtual machine’s CD/DVD Drive 1 is not connected to a local Device and does not have an image defined in local datastore. And verify that VM is either disconnected from the network or connected to a network accessible by the destination ESXi host. And check the hardware list for a hard disk that is labeled Hard Disk 2 and delete it, as it must be deleted because it is a private LUN and other ESXi cannot access it.
Perform a vSphere vMotion Migration of a VM on a shared datastore
From Hosts and Clusters, select power on for the second virtual machine. Then, select Open Console and login to the virtual machine and open command prompt. Leave the virtual machine opened and return to the Web client. Right click on the second virtual machine and select Migrate.
That’s all… See you in next post “Managing Virtual Machines” 🙂
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