EdgeVX - VMware Installation Guide

Before you begin:

At this time, Kognitive Networks does not have an official installation file for VMWare. The EdgeVX can be installed within a VMWare environment, but there are a few steps the user will need to perform before you can start the installation process, such as obtaining the VM disk image and converting the image to the proper VMDK format for VMWare.

Image Conversion Steps

Purchase the VX through your account manager. Once this process is completed, a license will be allocated to your organization within the Kognitive cloud platform.
Deploy the VX. Log into the cloud and locate the VX DID on the Inventory > Warehouse page.
Next, you will need to register the DID or Device Identifier. During this process, you may create a new site or deploy the VX to an existing site. This step is crucial for the licensing process.
Next, on the S/W Configuration page, click the CURRENT EOS tab and download the latest virtual image under the Virtual EOS tab.
Extract the Image. You will need to extract the QCOW2 disk image using your preferred tool. On Windows, you can use the built-in utilities or 7zip. Mac and Linux users can use the gzip utility.
Next, you will need to convert the disk image from QCOW2 to VMDK. On Windows, Linux, and MAC you can use the qemu-img package to convert the disk image. Windows users can obtain the installation package at https://cloudbase.it/qemu-img-windows/ .
After downloading the qemu-img package, open a command prompt and change to the installation directory.
CODE
```
cd c:\path\to\qemu-img\directory 
```
Next, you will need to run the conversion command, but you will also need to know the path of the QCOW2 image. Once you have the path to the QCOW2 image, run the following command:
CODE
```
qemu-img convert -f qcow2 -O vmdk source.qcow2 dest.vmdk
```
Now you will need to transfer the VMDK to the ESXI host. This can be done via SCP or using the VMWare Web Client.
Once the file is uploaded to the ESXI host, log into the host via SSH and run the following command to perform a second file conversion to VMDK:
CODE
```
vmkfstools -i source.vmdk destination.vmdk -d thin
```

This step assumes you have SSH access enabled on your ESXI host. Please consult the VMWare documentation for the proper steps to enable SSH.

Now you can build the virtual machine using standard steps to build a VM.

VM Creation

Before you begin building the VM, you should create the necessary port groups to support network communication. You will need one WAN, LAN, and Management network. Configuring port groups is outside the scope of this document.

Log into your VMWare environment.
Click Create / Register VM
Click “Create a new virtual machine” and then Next.
You will need to create a name for your virtual machine and set the Compatibility, Guest OS Family and OS Version. The Compatibility setting should reflect the latest for your version of VMWare. The Guest OS Family and Guest OS Version should be Linux and Debian GNU/Linux 10 (64-bit) respectively. Click Next to continue.
Select the storage location for your VM. Typically, this will be a Datastore.
Click Add hard disk to add the existing VMDK file
Find the vmdk file you converted earlier and click Select to continue.
Set the custom VM settings based on the table below. Make sure to remove the default hard disk that is attached to the VM. Click Next to continue.

Table 1: VM Requirements
CPU:	4
Memory:	16GB
Hard Disk:	Existing VMDK
Network Adapter 1:	WAN 1
Network Adapter 2:	WAN 1
Network Adapter 3:	WAN 1
Network Adapter 4:	WAN 1

Each Network Adapter should be set to the WAN port group. This step ensures the VM can obtain an IP address and reach the Internet for license registration. You will need to update the Network Adapter settings after the VM is registered.

Confirm your settings are correct for you environment, then click Finish to complete the VM Creation process.
Use the EdgeVX Quick Start Guide to complete the configuration.