In VMware ESX 4.x the default disk type for Windows XP 32bit virtual machine is IDE. If you did not size your drive correctly, you will be unable to expand this virtual disk later using the VMware management client. But if you had selected SCSI adapter instead of IDE, then expanding the disk after...
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Expanding VMware virtual IDE disk for Windows XP
Script to power down many Windows servers
If you ever have the need to power down hundreds of Windows servers, then here is a script to do just that. This script will work for Windows 2000, 2003 and 2008. The servers will shut down gracefully. for /F %%a in (names.txt) do...
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Configure the DVD or Linux ISO as software repository for Red Hat Enterprise Linux
You downloaded and installed Red Hat Enterprise Linux on your server becasue you just want to test it out. During installation you selected base server, after installation you realize that you need to install additional packages. But since you did not purchase the Red...
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SSH Login without password using public key authentiation
On Computer A Create the public and private keys using the command ssh-keygen # ssh-keygen -t rsa Generating public/private rsa key pair. Enter file in which to save the key (/root/.ssh/id_rsa): Enter passphrase (empty for no passphrase): Enter same passphrase again: Your identification...
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How to extend the filesystem on a Vmware ESX guest Red Hat Linux server
Being the administrator of a large Linux shop, I have had to extend the filesystems on the Red Hat Linux server a few times. Each time I had the opportunity to extend the filesystem, I found that I struggled to remember the commands and...
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Unable to login to remote server via ssh
A funny thing happened to one of my Red Hat 5 Enterprise servers after applying the errata. I rebooted the servers as usual after applying the updates, and they came up just fine. But unfortunately I was not able to logon remotely via ssh...
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How to create a new superuser in Linux
The administrative account ‘root’ is the most powerful user in Linux and Unix. This account is created by default during installation of the operating system. Most security consultants will recommend that the root account be deleted or renamed. This is to make it harder...
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Troubleshoot problem with yum update and rebuild the rpm database
I have created a step by step approach to troubleshoot a problem with performing yum update and how to rebuild the rpm database. I received and error while trying to update the Redhat Enterprise 5 server kernel using yum update. Looking at the output...
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Booting Red Hat Linux into rescue mode.
Red Hat Linux can be booted into rescue mode from the installation CD, or any other boot method instead of the system’s hard drive. This also applies to other versions of Linux such as Fedora and Centos. The rescue mode is provided for troubleshooting...
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Identifying the kernel version and changing the default boot kernel in RedHat and Centos Linux.
Use the command uname to print system information in Linux. # uname -r 2.6.18-194.32.1.el5 The –r option will print the kernel release. # uname -s Linux -s prints the kernel name. # uname -n mycomputer.wiivil.com Print the node name or hostname. # uname -p...
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Nslookup resolves address but ping is unable to resolve hostname on Unix server
I came across this issue on my newly built Solaris 10 server. I was able to ping a remote machine by Ip address, but not by its hostname. This indicated that I had the correct route and gateway. Using nslookup and dig I verified...
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How to map to a remote NFS directory from a VMware ESX 4 server.
I ran into this error while trying to mount a NFS directory on a remote server from my Vmware ESX4 server. My Vmware esx server is called esx4-server and the remote NFS server is called remote-server. I executed the mount commant and got the...
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Sun Sparc commands to power on and boot up the server.
Booting up the Sun Sparc M3000 server. After logging into the XSCF console, power on the server. XSCF> poweron -d 0 DomainIDs to power on:00 Continue? :y Switch to the server console. XSCF> console -d 0 Connect to DomainID 0? :y Devalias will...
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Creating RDM to LUN (SAN) mapping on VMware ESX 4, Vcenter.
In the past I have written articles about how to create a RDM to LUN disk mapping for VMware ESX 3. http://www.gamescheat.ca/2009/10/scripts-to-automate-the-process-of-identifying-and-compiling-an-rdm-to-lun-mapping-list-for-vmware-esx-30/ and http://www.gamescheat.ca/2009/10/how-to-identify-and-compile-an-rdm-to-lun-mapping-list-for-vmware-esx-30/ The procedure to identify the path for the RDM (raw disk mapping) to LUN (disk on SAN) on Vmware ESX...
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Booting up Solaris 10 from a SAN replicated LUN on a different Sun SPARC server
The quickest way to recover from a total disaster is to have some sort of replication implemented. There are two different methods of real-time replication, hardware and software. My experiences with software replication such as Symantec Veritas Volume replicator for AIX was not pleasing....
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