Edge Virtual: Installation and On-Boarding on the VMware ESXi 7.X Hypervisor

Edge Virtual: Installation and On-Boarding on the VMware ESXi 7.X Hypervisor

Introduction

This guide provides instructions to install and on-board Edge Virtual on the VMware ESXi 7.X Hypervisor. 
Note: Edge Virtual is available in a Limited Release at this time. Throughput may vary based upon Host OS, Hypervisor, and Networking configurations. Please consult with your team at Big Network for scaled deployments.

Assumptions

  1. A working installation of VMware ESXi 7.X
  2. Available Edge Virtual Licenses.
  3. Edge Virtual ISO Installer available from download (please contact Big Network for assistance in obtaining the image)
  4. Capacity to host a VM with 4x CPUs, 8GB RAM, and 20G available disk space.
  5. Assume 1x WAN Port and 1x LAN Port for Networking using the VMXNET3 driver.

Step 1: Prepare ESXi Networking

The Edge Virtual image expects 1x WAN port and 1x LAN port to be configured for ESXi networking.
The first NIC specified will be used for WAN connectivity.
The second NIC specified will be used for LAN connectivity.

Step 2: Upload Virtual ISO to Local Data Store

Use ESXi's built in datastore browser to upload Edge Virtual's ISO to the Local Data Store.

Step 3: Prepare the Virtual Machine

Create a new virtual machine with a name of your choice, using the following parameters:
  1. Guest OS Family: Linux
  2. Guest OS Version: Ubuntu Linux 64-Bit
  3. CPUs: 2x
  4. Memory: 4096MB
  5. Storage: 20GB HDD
  6. Storage Controller: SATA
  7. NIC #1: WAN Port Group
  8. NIC #2: LAN Port Group
  9. CD / DVD Drive: Connected to Datastore ISO File uploaded in Step #3

Note: You must ensure proper PCI device addresses are in use. For ESXi 7.X, slot number 160 should be used for NIC#1 and slot #2 192 for NIC #2.

Step 4: Boot and Install Edge OS

This will boot your virtual machine via the installation media. Connect to the device via VGA Console:
  1. Confirm that you wish to proceed is OS installation. The underlying media will be overwritten.
  2. Select the "prod" environment.
  3. Select the "VMWare ESXi" as the device model.
Allow the installation to complete and Edge Virtual to reboot.

Step 5: Obtain Device ID, PIN, and On-Board Edge Virtual

  1. Once Edge Virtual reboots, the device will expect a WAN IP to be provided via DHCP.
  2. The console will display Device ID and PIN. Note those details down.
  3. Navigate to https://portal.bignetwork.com -> Edge Devices -> Add Device to begin device on-boarding using the Device ID and PIN.
  4. Once on-boarded, you will have a 2x Port Edge Virtual device available for use.

Step 6: Verify Connectivity from Host OS

Edge Virtual is now online.
Configure Edge Virtual for your use case as required. Adjust ESXi network configuration as required.

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