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ssvarcFlag for United States of America

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Installing System Center 2012 R2 components

On a physical server, 2012 R2 was installed and the Hyper-V role added. The server was called HV1. Two virtualized instances of Server 2012 R2 were created on HV1, and were called DC1 and RDSI1.

The DC1 has the AD, DNS, and DHCP, while RDSI1 has Remote Desktop Services and Remote Web server roles. So three Server 2012 R2 instances, two of which are virtualized, running on one physical box.

I would like to install System Center to create VM templates, etc.

1. Is there a step by step guide that shows exactly how to install System Center? the guides that I've seen seem to leave out major step and/or are 40 minute Youtube videos without any explanatory voiceover or documentation.

2. Based on this Technet article and in particular this sentence there, "Don’t install System Center components, other than agents, on servers running Hyper-V. You can install System Center components in virtual machines.", it seems that I only have two computers available when four is whats needed.

Is this correct? Or can I install the bits needed for VM on my current setup?

3. If yes, is there a step by step guide to the correct process?

Thanks!
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Cliff Galiher
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System Center is an incredibly complex product. TechNet *does* have everything you need, but I'd strongly recommend picking up a book that focuses on just the pieces you want to use. So grab a book on SCVMM. Or on SCCM. Etc. Otherwise you'll find yourself spending a ton of time in the weeds.

As far as your environment, you'll need more VMs. You don't want to install in the host /parent partition. And your existing VMs already have tasks and roles that make them ill-suited for any of the SC components.
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Cliff Galiher:

I did purchase a book (http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Hyper-V-System-Center-Windows/dp/1118828186), but it didn't touch on installation. Which one would you recommend?

Based on your answer, it sounds like I either need Server 2012 R2 Datacenter, or more physical boxes, no?

What are the major benefits of SCVMM over plain Hyper-V?

Thanks!
You can have more guest systems each with one to all systemcenter components.
If you only have 1 host and are licensed for 2 guest VMs, I don't know why you would need System Center Virtual Machine Manager, unless you are planning to host a whole bevy of non-Windows VMs.

Basically anything you can do in System Center VMM you can do outside of SCVMM. SCVVM is incredibly complex and takes a lot of time to setup and configure. It won't save you any time in a small environment. If you had 4 hosts and 100 VMs I might recommend it, if you already knew how to use it. If you had 10 hosts and 500 VMs and were growing like crazy I would say sure.

If this is all for lab/learning purposes, use the evaluation licenses of Windows for your VMs to host the SCVMM components and go nuts. Otherwise, do you really need System Center VMM?
SCVMM will not agree to install on DC or TS, nor on hyper V host...
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gheist:

How can I have more guest instances on a regular install of Server 2012 R2 and my current setup? Based on your second comment, it seems that I can't install SCVMM on a ny of my current servers.

kevinhsieh:

It's for info like this that I asked this question.

One feature that I've read about SCVMM is that you can make collections that self-heal. E.g. You create a 10 VM collection based on a template. If at any time a VM is destroyed, automatically another is created to keep the collection at 10.

In my current setup, I'm not quite sure how to replicate this feature (meaning - I've manged, with EE assistance, to create a test managed personal desktop test collection, but don't how how to add to it).
How that eventually exceeds services that terminal server provides over last 10 years?
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gheist:

I'm not quite sure what your question is, but if you're asking why I'm choosing full desktops as opposed to Terminal Services, the primary reason is because a) the workers want to be able to install their own programs, and b) some programs might not play well with terminal services.

But to get back to the original question. In response to my asking how to install, on my setup, System Center you commented, "You can have more guest systems each with one to all systemcenter components."  

I then asked you, "How can I have more guest instances on a regular install of Server 2012 R2 and my current setup? Based on your second comment, it seems that I can't install SCVMM on any of my current servers."

Can you help me with my question?
Just buy another license of Windows Server. You "assign " that license to your host (basically you just tell Microsoft that you have the license if you get audited), and then you can legally install up to two more copies of Windows Server on that host.

The licensing for Microsoft client operating systems on that host is separate, and complicated to do properly as Microsoft has many different programs for licensing VDI.
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ssvarc
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The "may not play well" is not a reason.
Users have home PCs to install their viruses.
I wish I could be more helpful. U know nothing about Action Pack or other specialized licenses. I know about evaluation, retail, OEM, and volume licensing.

Which remote desktop services roles do have installed on the second VM? We assumed you installed the Session Host role. If you didn't install that role then you can probably install the System Center components on that VM.

I use Hyper-V and SCVMM for server virtualization. Server management has different, easier management needs.
2 vms is very short for SCVMM, it is meant for hundreds, and will take more time to install than then guest VMs.
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None of the other experts gave answers to the questions asked, even after repeated attempts.