TABLE OF CONTENTS If you are setting up your virtual infrastructure or plan on scaling it out and will be building ESX host servers, this chapter is a must for you. The scripted installation method is a fast, efficient, and sure way to provision ESX hosts, and you ll be amazed at how simple it is to set up. We ll also review the Kickstart file so you fully understand how this install method works, and touch on the remote network install procedure as well.
Setting up the scripted installation correctly will make the process run smoothly and provide you with a very satisfactory experience. As a result, you ll likely choose this method over any other for setting up ESX hosts that have similar configurations. You ll set up the script a Kickstart configuration file based on parameters you would normally select during an ESX server install. If you want the exact configuration of the ESX server where you are setting up the Kickstart file, then make the same choices you made when you built it originally. (You did document that, right?)
After you have set up the Kickstart file, you have two options for building new ESX servers: 1) From the new ESX server, insert the ESX Server installation CD in the local CD-ROM; or 2) install ESX Server across the network from installation files hosted on another ESX server. This second option is convenient if your data center or server room is geographically remote or just a pain to get...
