Date: Mon, 22 Feb 2016 23:49:04 -0500 From: "John L. Templer" <green_tiger@comcast.net> To: "O. Hartmann" <ohartman@zedat.fu-berlin.de> Cc: freebsd-questions <freebsd-questions@freebsd.org> Subject: Re: NanoBSD/FreeBSD: GPT bootable image: howto create sparse VMDK for ESXi? Message-ID: <1456202944.4644.10.camel@comcast.net> In-Reply-To: <20160222144824.7bbcc212@freyja.zeit4.iv.bundesimmobilien.de> References: <20160222144824.7bbcc212@freyja.zeit4.iv.bundesimmobilien.de>
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On Mon, 2016-02-22 at 14:48 +0100, O. Hartmann wrote: > Hello out there. > > First please CC me as I do not subscribe this list. > > I successfully use the NanoBSD framework with some modifications for creation > of GPT/UEFI bootable images with recent CURRENT. The appliance boots off microSD > cards, ISO 9660 images (with some modifications made to the nanoBSD framework) > and USB flash drives. > > I need this image of a FreeBSD appliance on an ESXi 5.5 and 6.0 system. I > already tried to apply the vmdktool taken from ports (sysutils/vmdktool), but > neither the ESXi 5.5 nor 6.0 recognizes the resulting vmdk file as a valid > disk. The manpage of vmdktool states it suits disk format VMDisk Format 1.1, > ESXi 5.5 or 6.0 has version 5.0, if not higher (as far as I know). Converting > any tested and booting image is not recognized by the ESXi. Several manually > applied manipulations did not go well - the vmdk file is seen then, but the > ESXi complains about unknown disk type 7 in some cases. > > I tried then FreeBSD's mkimg(1) tool. Without success. The resulting vmdk file > is well recognized by the ESXi, it also boots, but then the loader stops at > the point where we have to issue "?" to get the recognized GEOM drives. > Consider nano.img to be a raw image conatining a GPT partitioning layout and > the EFIFAT UEFI partition and two (or three, depending on whether nanoBSD is > configured using a second, ALTROOT partition, or not) > partitions, named/labeled "/dev/ufs/nanos1a" and "/dev/ufs/nanos3" (the labels > actually are s1a and s3). Put onot a SD or USB flash, booting off on a UEFI > capable/configured box (using a Fujitsu Server as well as a ZOTAC nano box and > Intel NUC) works well! Now I apply > > mkimg -s gpt -p freebsd:=nano.img -f vmdk -o nano.vmdk > > The resulting vmdk disk image boots - but then fails at the loader prompt > calling for a boot partition. The labeling is wrong, when hitting "?" and > showing the list of recognizes partitions. > > It seems, mkimg "envelopes" the whole image again instead of simply emitting a > vmdk file suitable as ESXi disk with the partitioning layout represented by > the RAW image. > > At the end, I'm floating dead in the water! Either I can convert a raw image > to an ESXi vmdk file, but it isn't recognized, or I have a bootable vmdk, but > it stops working because of a wrong partition layout and non-recognized > labeling. > > Is there a way to convert RAW images of a working/booting disk into a vmdk > file that is working with both ESXi 5.5 and 6.0? > > Thank yo very much in advance, > > oliver > _______________________________________________ > freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list > https://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions > To unsubscribe, send any mail to "freebsd-questions-unsubscribe@freebsd.org" (I'm assuming you're running some VMware product like vSphere or vCenter.) I always found it easier to put an ISO image of an install CD or DVD on a datastore, spin up a new VM with that image attached, and install it on the new VM. Then you can take the resulting VMDK file and copy it wherever you want.
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