VMWARE VSPHERE 7.

0:
INSTALL, CONFIGURE, MANAGE

Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

Document Version: 2020-11-04

Copyright © 2020 Network Development Group, Inc.

www.netdevgroup.com

NETLAB+ is a registered trademark of Network Development Group, Inc.

VMware is a registered trademark of VMware, Inc.

Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

Contents
Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 3
Objectives............................................................................................................................ 3
Lab Topology....................................................................................................................... 4
Lab Settings ......................................................................................................................... 5
1 Prepare the Lab Environment..................................................................................... 6
2 Import Update Files to the Image Depot.................................................................. 23
3 Create a Cluster with vSphere Lifecycle Manager Enabled ...................................... 31
4 Add ESXi Hosts Using the Cluster Image................................................................... 34
5 Update ESXi Hosts Using the Cluster Image ............................................................. 41

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

Introduction

In this lab, you will become familiar with the VMware vSphere LifeCycle Manager and the
way it manages the hosts and clusters in a vSphere environment. The Lifecycle Manager
completes tasks such as installing ESXi and firmware a new host may need, while also
updating or upgrading ESXi firmware and or versions.

Objectives

 Prepare the Lab Environment

 Import Update Files to the Image Depot
 Create a Cluster with vSphere Lifecycle Manager Enabled
 Add ESXi Hosts to the Cluster
 Update ESXi Hosts using the Cluster Image

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

Lab Topology

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

Lab Settings

The information in the table below will be needed in order to complete the lab. The
task sections below provide details on the use of this information.

Virtual Machine IP Address Account Password

sa-esxi-01 eth0: 172.20.10.51 root Train1ng$

sa-esxi-02 eth0: 172.20.10.52 root Train1ng$

sa-aio eth0: 172.20.10.10 sysadmin vmware123

sa-student eth0: 172.20.10.80 sysadmin vmware123

sa-vcsa eth0: 172.20.10.94 [email protected] vmware123

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

1 Prepare the Lab Environment

In this task, you will create the vMotion network on sa-esxi-01 and sa-esxi-02. Once the
networks are created, you will migrate virtual machines storage to a shared datastore.

1. Launch the sa-student virtual machine to access the graphical login screen.

To launch the console window for a virtual machine, you may access by
either clicking on the machine’s graphic image from the topology page
or by clicking on the machine’s respective tab from the navigation bar.

2. Log in as sysadmin using the password vmware123.

3. Launch the Mozilla Firefox web browser by either clicking on the icon shortcut
found on the bottom toolbar or by navigating to Start Menu > Internet > Firefox
Web Browser.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

4. Notice the homepage is automatically configured to load the URL address of the
VMware vCenter Server Appliance (sa-vcsa virtual machine). Click on the LAUNCH
VSPHERE CLIENT (HTML5) button to launch the vSphere Client.

If you cannot successfully load the VMware Getting Started webpage,

then please wait an additional 3-5 minutes and refresh the page to
continue. During this time, the vCenter Server Appliance is still
booting up and requires extra time to initialize.

5. In the Username text field, type [email protected] and in the Password text
field, type vmware123. Click on LOGIN.

You may ignore the “browser-OS combination” warning message

presented on the VMware vCenter Single Sign-On page and continue
moving forward with the lab.

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6. Ensure you are on the Hosts and Clusters tab. Expand the Datacenter object in the
navigator pane, select sa-esxi-01.vclass.local. In the right pane, click Configure.

7. Select Virtual switches under Networking in the middle pane.

8. Click the Add Networking button on vSwitch0.

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9. In the Add Networking window, on the Select connection type step, select VMkernel
Network Adapter. Click Next.

10. On the Select target device step, click New standard switch. Click Next.

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11. On the Create a Standard Switch step, click the green + sign to add a physical
adapter to the switch.

12. Select vmnic2 for the vSphere vMotion network and click OK.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

13. Back on the Add Networking window, review the information shown. Ensure that
vmnic2 appears underneath Active adapters and click Next.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

14. On the Port properties step, enter vMotion in the Network label text box. Select the
vMotion and Management checkbox and click Next.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

15. On the IPv4 settings step, select to Use static IPv4 settings and use the information
below to make configurations:
a. IPv4 address: 172.20.12.51
b. Subnet mask: 255.255.255.0
c. Click Next.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

16. On the Ready to complete step, review the information and click Finish.

17. In the Virtual switches pane, verify that the new virtual switch for vSphere vMotion
migration is listed.

18. Repeat Task 1 for your second ESXi host (sa-esxi-02.vclass.local). Assign
172.20.12.52 for the IP Address and 255.255.255.0 for the Subnet mask on the IPv4
Settings step.

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19. On the VMs and Templates tab, expand the Datacenter object and right-click Linux-
01. Click Migrate.

20. In the Migrate window, on the Select the migration type step, choose Change
storage only. Click Next.

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21. On the Select storage step, select iSCSI-LUN0 and select Thin Provision as the virtual
disk format. Click Next.

22. On the Ready to complete step, review the information and click Finish.

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23. In the navigator pane, right-click Linux-02 and select Migrate.

24. In the Migrate window, on the Select the migration type step, choose Change
storage only. Click Next.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

25. On the Select storage step, select iSCSI-LUN0 and select Thin Provision as the virtual
disk format. Click Next.

26. On the Ready to complete step, review the information and click Finish.

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27. In the navigation pane, click the Storage tab. Expand the Datacenter object and
select the iSCSI-LUN0 datastore.

28. In the iSCSI-LUN0 pane, select the Files tab.

29. On the Files pane, select Class Files. In the right pane, hold down Ctrl on your
keyboard and select VMware-ESXi-7.0b-16324942-depot.zip,
SampleAddonsComponents.zip, VMware-ESXi-7.0.0.-15847920-vib-test-certs.zip.
Click Download.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

30. On the Opening Class Files_files.zip window, verify Save File is selected. Click OK.

31. On the Enter name of File to save to window, select Documents. Verify Class
Files_files are showing as the name and click Save.

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32. In the taskbar, select the Places folder and click Documents.

33. In the Documents folder, right-click Class Files_files.zip and click Extract Here.

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34. Verify the Class Files_files folder appears in the Documents folder. Right-click the
Class Files_files folder and click Open.

35. In the Class Files_files folder, verify VMware-ESXi-7.0b-16324942-depot.zip,

SampleAddonsComponents.zip, and VMware-ESXi-7.0.0.-15847920-vib-test-
certs.zip appear. Close the Class Files-files folder.

36. Leave the vSphere Web Client open and continue to the next task.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

2 Import Update Files to the Image Depot

In this task, you import an ESXi image, sample vendor add-ons, and sample test
components to the vSphere Lifecycle Manager image depot. You will use these images
to update the hosts in the VLCM-Cluster.

1. From the dropdown Menu, select Lifecycle Manager.

2. In the Lifecycle Manager window, expand the ACTIONS dropdown menu and click
Import Updates.

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3. On the Import Updates window, click BROWSE.

4. In the File Upload window, navigate to Documents > Class Files_files.

5. Double-click VMware-ESXi-7.0b-16324942-depot.zip. The Import Updates window

opens, displaying a progress bar for Step 1 of 2.

The Import Updates window opens, displaying a progress bar for Step
1 of 2. After Step 1 completes, the window closes, and the Import
updates task appears in the Recent Tasks pane. This task represents
Step 2 in the process.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

6. Once the Import Updates window appears, monitor Step 1 of 2. Once Step 1
completes, notice the progress will turn green and the window will automatically
close after Step 1 completes.

7. Monitor the Recent Tasks pane and wait for the Import updates (Step 2) task to
complete.

8. In the Lifecycle Manager window, on the Image Depot tab, verify that your uploaded
image file appears in the Image Depot pane.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

9. On the Image Depot pane, select the ESXi 7.0bs – 16321839 version and review the
details and components that appear to the right. The ESXi version, release date,
category, and a full list of components are provided.

10. In the Lifecycle Manager window, expand the ACTIONS dropdown menu and click
Import Updates.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

11. On the Import Updates window, click BROWSE.

12. In the File Upload window, navigate to Documents > Class Files_files.

13. Double-click SampleAddonsComponents.zip.

14. Monitor the Recent Tasks pane and wait for the Import updates task to complete.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

15. On the Image Depot tab, click VENDOR ADD-ONS and verify that four items appear
on the list.

16. On the VENDOR ADD-ONS tab, click on VMWTestAddon2 version 2.0-1. Review the
add-on version, release date, category, and the list of added components for the
VMWTestADDon2 version 2.0-1 vendor add-on.

17. In the Lifecycle Manager window, expand the ACTIONS dropdown menu and click
Import Updates.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

18. On the Import Updates window, click BROWSE.

19. In the File Upload window, navigate to Documents > Class Files_files.

20. Double-click VMware-ESXi-7.0.0-15847920-vib-test-certs.zip.

21. Monitor the Recent Tasks pane and wait for the Import updates task to complete.

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22. On the Image Depot tab, click COMPONENTS and verify that three items appear on
the list.

23. On the Components tab, click on Test VIB signing certs. Review the component
version, release date, category, and the severity for the Test VIB signing certs
component.

24. Leave the vSphere Web Client open and continue to the next task.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

3 Create a Cluster with vSphere Lifecycle Manager Enabled

In this task, you create a vSphere cluster, and you configure the cluster to manage
multiple ESXi hosts using a single image to maintain consistency in the cluster.

1. From the dropdown Menu, select Hosts and Clusters.

2. In the navigation pane, right-click the Datacenter object and select New Cluster.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

3. On the New Cluster window, click on the information icon for Manage all hosts in
the cluster with a single image. Read the information provided and close the box.

4. In the New Cluster window, type VLCM-Cluster for the Name. Toggle the vSphere
DRS button on and select Manage all hosts in the cluster with a single image. In the
ESXi Version dropdown menu, select 7.0bs – 16321839. Click OK.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

5. In the Recent Tasks pane, monitor the progress as the cluster is created. Once
complete, proceed to the next step.

6. Verify that VLCM-Cluster appears in the navigation pane under Datacenter. On the
Cluster quickstart pane, verify that vSphere DRS and Lifecycle Management
(Manage all hosts with one image) are listed as under Selected Services. If the
Quickstart option is not available under Configuration, log out of
[email protected] and log back in as [email protected].

7. Leave the vSphere Web Client open and continue to the next task.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

4 Add ESXi Hosts Using the Cluster Image

In this task, you will place sa-esxi-01.vclass.local and sa-esxi-02.vclass.local in the VLCM-
Cluster.

1. Ensure you are on the Hosts and Clusters tab. In the navigation pane, expand sa-
esxi-01.vclass.local and sa-esxi-02.vclass.local. Verify there are no running virtual
machines because you will be placing these hosts into maintenance mode.

2. Click on sa-esxi-01.vclass.local. Ensure the Summary tab is selected. View the

Hypervisor information and notice the build number.

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3. Click on sa-esxi-02.vclass.local. View the Hypervisor information and notice the build
number.

The build number should be the same for each host. .

4. In the navigation pane, right-click sa-esxi-01.vclass.local. Select Maintenance Mode

> Enter Maintenance Mode.

5. On the Enter Maintenance Mode window, click OK.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

6. In the navigation pane, right-click sa-esxi-02.vclass.local. Select Maintenance Mode

> Enter Maintenance Mode.

7. On the Enter Maintenance Mode window, click OK.

8. Verify that both hosts are in Maintenance Mode.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

9. In the navigation pane, drag sa-esxi-01.vclass.local to the VLCM-Cluster.

10. In the Move Host into Cluster window, leave the defaults and click OK.

11. In the navigation pane, drag sa-esxi-02.vclass.local to the VLCM-Cluster.

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12. In the Move Host into Cluster window, leave the defaults and click OK.

13. Expand the VLCM-Cluster. Verify that both hosts now appear under the VLCM
Cluster.

14. Right-click on sa-esxi-01.vclass.local and select Maintenance Mode > Exit

Maintenance Mode.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

15. Right-click on sa-esxi-02.vclass.local and select Maintenance Mode > Exit

Maintenance Mode.

16. In the navigation pane, right-click Linux-01 and select Power > Power on.

17. In the navigation pane, right-click Linux-02 and select Power > Power on.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

You power on Linux-01 and Linux-02 VMs to demonstrate that

vSphere Lifecycle Manager can update the ESXi hosts while VMs are
powered on.

18. Leave the vSphere Web Client open and continue to the next task.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

5 Update ESXi Hosts Using the Cluster Image

In this task, you scan hosts for compliance and update the hosts using the defined
cluster image.

1. In the navigation pane, select VLCM-Cluster and click the Updates tab in the right
pane.

2. In the Image Compliance pane, click RUN PRE-CHECK to ensure that the VLCM-
Cluster is ready to remediate.

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3. Monitor the Recent Task pane and wait for the precheck tasks to complete and
verify that No pre-check issues found appears in the Image Compliance pane.

4. In the Image Compliance pane, click REMEDIATE ALL to remediate the hosts in the
cluster.

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5. In the Review Remediation Impact window, read the information in the remediation
impact summary, accept the terms of the End User License Agreement, and click
START REMEDIATION.

6. Monitor the Remediation from the Image Compliance pane. Click See More.

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7. Monitor the Recent Tasks pane to view the status of the individual tasks that are
started during the remediation. The remediation process will take 5 to 10 minutes to
complete.

vSphere DRS migrates VMs of a host before remediating a host. The

hosts are rebooted as part of the remediation. When the hosts come
back online, a second compliance check automatically runs.

8. When the remediation is complete, verify that the Image Compliance pane shows
that all hosts in the VLCM-Cluster are compliant.

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Lab 24: Using vSphere Lifecycle Manager

9. In the VLCM Cluster, click on sa-esxi-01.vclass.local. Select the Updates tab and click
on View image.

10. In the Image pane, verify that 7.0bs – 16321839 is the update image selected for the
VLCM Cluster.

11. Repeat steps 9 and 10 for sa-esxi-02.vclass.local.

12. The lab is now complete; you may end your reservation.

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