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Adding USB Hard Disk to ESXi 4.1
We have ESXi 4.1 running on a Sun Fire X4170 server. A Windows XP guest machine is running inside the host. We connected a “Western Digital My Passport Essential 250GB 2.5 HDD” hard disk on the ESXi host and we are trying to make the guest Windows XP virtual machine to detect it.
This hard disk is listed in the HCL here http://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?language=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=1021345
On the guest Windows XP machine we have added a USB controller and when we try to add another device, under the “Choose the type of device you wish to add” window, we have “USB Device (unavailable)”
What could we be doing wrong?
This hard disk is listed in the HCL here http://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?language=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=1021345
On the guest Windows XP machine we have added a USB controller and when we try to add another device, under the “Choose the type of device you wish to add” window, we have “USB Device (unavailable)”
What could we be doing wrong?
If you can't get it to work through the above, the only other option you have is using VMDirectPath:
http://www.petri.co.il/vmware-esxi4-vmdirectpath.htm
or, AnywhereUSB by Digi:
http://www.digi.com/products/usb/anywhereusb.jsp#overview
~coolsport00
http://www.petri.co.il/vmware-esxi4-vmdirectpath.htm
or, AnywhereUSB by Digi:
http://www.digi.com/products/usb/anywhereusb.jsp#overview
~coolsport00
ASKER
The disk is listed in the first link you provided
Ok great; go through the 2nd KB to verify you've done the procedures correctly, although I know there's not much to it. If it doesn't work, try using VMDirectPath in the "Petri" link I gave.
~coolsport00
~coolsport00
ASKER
I would really prefer leaving the VMDirectPath as a final solution, because it will require a restart of the ESXi host, it doesn't support vMotion, and we specifically bought this hard disk because it is supported.
I went throught the steps in the second kb, but I still get “USB Device (unavailable)”
I went throught the steps in the second kb, but I still get “USB Device (unavailable)”
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ASKER
We'll propably use anywhereusb
http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1021345
http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1022290
Regards,
~coolsport00