Commission hosts
Commissioning hosts essentially means adding them to the SDDC Manager inventory so they are available for use in the new workload domain. Hosts must be prepared for commissioning in the same way they were for the VCF base installation. Following the BOM, install the correct version of ESXi and configure hostname and networking. Once complete, in SDDC Manager complete the following steps:
- Go to Inventory > Hosts and select COMMISSION HOSTS in the right-hand-corner as in Figure 36.
Figure 36. Commission hosts – Step 1
- The first screen that appears is a checklist that the user is required to validate before proceeding. Although VMware calls this a checklist, it is simply a list of prerequisites. This list is not as extensive as that for VCF but is nevertheless important to validate. Be sure all items are complete before selecting the PROCEEDbutton as in Figure 37.
Figure 37. Commission hosts – Step 2
- In the next step, add each host that is to be part of the workload domain on NFS.
- In Figure 38, several steps are consolidated for brevity. They are:
- Each host gets added as shown in the top half of the image.
- Select the NFS radio button, enter the hostname, select the previously created network pool, and add the username and password.
- As each host is added, the fingerprint must be confirmed and then the host validated. In the example below both hosts are added with the fingerprint confirmed and the prerequisites validated.
- Select NEXTto move to review.
Figure 38. Commission hosts – Step 3
- Before selecting the COMMISSIONbutton in Figure 39, review the validated hosts. Despite the hosts passing validation in the previous step, there is still a chance that a host fails to commission. To that end, VMware offers a toggle at the top which lets the wizard skip failed hosts. Though this is unlikely, for example a network failure before commission, it is best to leave it set on. A failed host can be repaired and then commissioned again afterwards. The commissioning process does take some time to complete. The SDDC Manager displays the status as the hosts are added.
Figure 39. Commission hosts – Step 4
Upon completion, the new hosts displays as unassigned in the Hosts panel in Figure 40, and can now be used for the workload domain.
Figure 40. Unassigned hosts