Automating VMware View
How to use PowerShell to rapidly deploy and document floating, linkedclone Pools
Brad Christian
Leader of DFW VMUG
VCAP5-DCD, VCP5-Cloud, VCP5-DT, VCP 5/4/3
Twitter: @BChristian21
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/bradchristian21/
Blog: vhipster.com
1
Automating View with PowerCLI
 See vhipster.com for the spreadsheet and instructions on how to do all this.
 I hate the Flash interface, and how long the wizards are.
 I am lazy. I want to things once, I want to do it fast and I don’t want to have to
remember how to do it twice. I hate documentation.
 I have to able to quickly train admins who are new to VMware, VMware View,
PowerShell and scripting in general. I also have to enforce standards in
environments that are a mess.
 This is for making Pools. For deploying the infrastructure, use AutoLab or check
out vTexan.com for a great View install guide.
Nutanix graciously lent me an awesome lab…
…and I ran out of time. So I had to make due with…
AutoLab running on the Hulk…slowly
Review of Concatenate
+
=
Overview of Creating a Pool
 Name and size the pool: Pool ID, Friendly Name, identify the base VM,
the Desktop Prefix and the Minimum, Maximum and Spare number of
Desktops.
 Identify and use a naming convention for objects in vCenter:
Datastores, Resource Pools and Default Images.
 Identify Active Directory objects: OUs, Domain Local Groups, Global
Groups and GPOs
Invisible Objects
Browse the actual inventory of objects managed by vSphere
VMware View Optimization Guide for Windows 7
http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/VMware-ViewOptimizationGuideWindows7-EN.pdf
Open in a PDF viewer, not a browser and look at the attachments
Setting up the Environment
 add-pssnapin VMware.View.Broker is only going to work on the
connection server. Remote PowerCli management is supposed to be
coming. See Andre Leibovici’s post at http://myvirtualcloud.net/?p=3474
on scripting remote management (not for the faint of heart)
 Install PowerCli and PowerGui on the connection server for easy-mode.
 You may need to run one or all of these:
add-pssnapin VMware.VimAutomation.Core
add-pssnapin VMware.View.Broker
Import-Module ActiveDirectory