Create vApps and VMs in vCloud Director

Setup a vApp and VM in vCloud Director

If you would to view the guide as text, rather than the video included above, please follow the instructions and screenshots included below.

Further Support

Alternatively, you can contact the Secura service desk with your queries using the details below:

T. 0207 183 2540
E. servicedesk@secura.cloud

Creating a vApp and VM

In this walkthrough, we will setup a vApp container and a virtual machine within the vApp. To test our configuration, we will then logon to the VM and perform a ping to test it has connectivity.

Add a vApp

From the Home screen you can either click Add vApp from the Content menu on the right of the screen or Add a vApp from Catalog from the Quick Access Menu on the left-hand side

Above: Add a vApp from the Home screen.

Select a vApp Template

The setup wizard will now open
The first section allows us to select a template to be applied to our vApp

Above: Add a vApp from the Home screen.

Select Public Catalogs from the dropdown

Above: Select Public Catalogs from the dropdown.

You will now see a number of different server OS options to choose from
In this example, we will select Windows Server 2008
Click Next

img class=”img-responsive” src=”/wp-content/uploads/select-a-template.jpg” alt=”Select your Server OS” />

Above: Select Windows Server 2008 from the list.

Name Your vApp and Assign a Virtual Datacenter (VDC)

Enter a Name and Description for your vApp in the fields provided
In the Virtual Datacenter dropdown, select the VDC you wish to assign the vApp to
Click Next

Name and Assign a Virtual Datacenter to your vApp

Above: Name and assign a Virtual Datacenter.

Name Your Virtual Machine (VM) and Select a Storage Policy

Enter a Name for the VM in the field provided
From from Storage Policy dropdown to the right, select a Virtual Private Cloud storage tier to assign to the VM
Click Next

Above: Select a storage policy.

Configure Networking

Select the Internal network option from the dropdown on the right of the screen
Click Next

Above: Assign a network to the VM.

Customise Hardware

Select the number of vCPUs and Cores per Socket you would like to apply to the VM from the dropdowns in the CPU section
From the Memory section, select the total memory you would like to use in the VM
Finally, select the total storage available to the VM in the Hard Disks section
Click Next

Above: Configure the VMs resource levels.

Review and Finish

Review the selections you have made in this final review screen
When you are happy with your choices – click Finish
Note: If you wish to power on the vApp immediately after finishing, check the Power on vApp after this wizard is finished option

Above: Review your selections and finish.

Manage vApps

You will now see a representation of the vApp in the Home screen
To manage this vApp click on the Manage vApps link in the Content menu on the right or click on the My Cloud link in the top left of the screen

Above: Manage your vApp.

Start the vApp

In the My Cloud page, select the vApp from the list on the right-hand side of the screen
With the vApp selected, click the Green Start Icon above the list
Alternatively, with the vApp selected, right mouse click on the vApp and select Start from the menu

Above: Start your vApp.

Manage VMs

Now that the vApp is running, click on the VMs link in the My Cloud menu on the left of the screen

Above: Manage your VM.

Get the Server OS Admin Password

Before we can logon to the VM we need to get the Admin Password for the Server OS we have installed
With the VM selected, either right mouse click on the VM or click the Blue Actions Gear Icon above the list
Click Properties from the pop-up menu

Above: Open the VMs Properties.

The Virtual Machine Properties panel will now open
Select the Guest OS Customization tab from the top of the panel
Under the Password Reset section you will see the auto generated admin password for the server OS
Take a note of the password and click Cancel to close the panel

Above: Open Guest Customization Options in the Properties panel.

Open the VM Console and Logon

To logon to the VM we will need to open the console
With the VM selected, either right mouse click on the VM or click the Blue Actions Gear Icon above the list
Click Popout Console from the menu
Alternatively, click on the Graphical Representation of the VM in the list and the console will open from there

Above: Popout the VM Console.

You will now see the Windows Server login screen
It may take a few minutes for the OS on the VM to fully boot (please see the video for details) and you may see it reboot again before you will be able to log into the VM
When this process has completed, enter your Admin Password and Logon

Above: Login to Windows Server on the VM.

Test Network Connectivity

When Windows Server has fully loaded, we will test the VMs network connectivity by pinging an external website
Click the Start menu and select Command Prompt from the menu

Above: Select the Command Prompt from the Start Menu.

From the Command Prompt type ping google.co.uk
The VM will now ping Google to test your network connectivity

Above: Ping to Test Connectivity.

Feedback and Support

If you have any questions about this guide, please feel free to comment below and we will come back to you.

Alternatively, if you are a Secura customer, you can contact the service desk with your queries using the details below:

T. 0207 183 2540
E. servicedesk@secura.cloud

If you have any feedback on the video or the guide itself, we’d love to hear it along with any suggestions for future topics.

Neal Wilkinson

Head of Marketing

Neal works in the marketing team at Secura and makes sure everyone uses the correct font size on their emails. Sometimes he succeeds.

Tweet me at:
@securacloud