[ale] Getting rid of VMware

[Tod Fassl]

We had four machines in the cluster. We've already pulled 3 of them out. 
Two, I've already installed Linux on and have been repurposed. One is 
sitting there waiting for me to wipe out ESXI and install Linux on it. 
Our virtual Linux file server is still running on that one remaining 
ESXI host. So my task is to install Linux on that machine we just pulled 
out of the cluster and reconnect the ISCSI array to it.


What I need to get a grip on is basically how it is working now. I don't 
want to have to become an VMWare expert for a week of work. I suspect 
that what I will be able to do is to follow the usual steps for 
attaching an ISCSI array to a Linux file server. But I don't understand 
why there are all these cables and how its working now.


The virtual machine that is acting as a file serveris running on a ESXI 
host that has 6 ethernet cables connected to it. But it looks like most 
of the ports aren't even active. I would *assume* I can safely remove 
those cables. But why the heck are they there in the first place?


There's this famous anecdote in comp sci. There was a bare copper wire 
running from an old room-sized computer to a filing cabinet. There was a 
note on the filing cabinet that said, "Do not remove this cable." So a 
new guy comes in, first thing he does is remove the cable, and of 
course, the machine crashes.


I don't want to be that guy.


I guess I'll have to bite the bullet and learn more about VMWare. Kinda 
sucks though. I'm a math major, not a brick layer.


On 3/11/21 5:13 PM, Jim Kinney wrote:
> That sounds like the hardware nodes supports the iscsi protocol or the 
> base hypervisor layer from vmware is doing the iscsi connection. 
> Probably the later.
>
> Either way, you're going have a challenge unless you can get details 
> on the iscsi contents. You'll need to tie each virtual drive to it's 
> correct device. Otherwise virtual machine A gets the drive space of 
> virtual machine B.
>
> From ESX you can get the UUID string of the virtual drive used by that 
> linux vm.
>
> I would use that vm now as just a source for a backup. Then restore to 
> the new hardware machine running a base install with restore bits. The 
> iscsi array will still need a partition to use for the hardware linux. 
> I doubt vmware will make this easy.
>
> Un-virtualizing the drive on an iscsi array sounds like lots of pain. 
> Retire first.
>
> On March 11, 2021 5:37:36 PM EST, Tod Fassl via Ale <ale at ale.org> wrote:
>
>     Soonish, I am going  to have to take an ISCSI array that is currently
>     talking to a VMWare virtual machine running Linux and connect it to a
>     real Linux machine. The problem is that I don't know how the Linux
>     virtual machine talks to the array. It appears as /dev/sdb on the Linux
>     virtual machine and is mounted via /etc/fstab like its just a regular HD
>     on the machine.
>
>
>     So I figure some explanation of how we got here is in order. My previous
>     boss bought VMWare thinking we could take 4 24-core machines and make
>     one big 96-core virtual machine out of them. He has since retired. Since
>     I was rather skeptical of VMWare from the start, the job of dealing with
>     the cluster was given to a co-worker. He has since moved on. I know just
>     enough about VMWare ESXI to keep the thing working. My new boss wants to
>     get rid of VMWare and re-install everything on the bare metal machines.
>
>
>     The VMWare host has 4 ethernet cables running to the switch. But there
>     is only 1 virtual network port on the Linux virtual machine.   However,
>     lspci shows 32 "lines with VMware PCI Express Root" (whatever that is):
>
>
>     # lspci
>     00:07.7 System peripheral: VMware Virtual Machine Communication
>     Interface (rev 10)
>     00:10.0 SCSI storage controller: LSI Logic / Symbios Logic 53c1030 PCI-X
>     Fusion-MPT Dual Ultra320 SCSI (rev 01)
>     00:11.0 PCI bridge: VMware PCI bridge (rev 02)
>     00:15.0 PCI bridge: VMware PCI Express Root Port (rev 01)
>     [...]
>     00:18.7 PCI bridge: VMware PCI Express Root Port (rev 01)
>     02:00.0 Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation 82545EM Gigabit Ethernet
>     Controller (Copper) (rev 01)
>
>
>     The open-iscsi package is not installed on the Linux virtual machine.
>     However, the ISCSI array shows up as /dev/sdb:
>
>     # lsscsi
>     [2:0:0:0]    disk    VMware   Virtual disk     1.0   /dev/sda
>     [2:0:1:0]    disk    EQLOGIC  100E-00          8.1   /dev/sdb
>
>
>     I'd kinda like to get the ISCSI array connected to a new bare metal
>     Linux server w/o losing everybody's files. Do you think I can just
>     follow the various hotos out there on connecting an ISCSI array w/o too
>     much trouble?
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