Getting up and running with the vSphere 5.1 Web Client and vCenter 5.1 is now easier than before. The steps to follow are listed below, along with the steps you should use if you also have vCenter 5.0 instances to manage with the 5.1 Web Client.
- If you have a vCenter 5.1 Server instance, you’ll just need to install the Web Client using standard installer from the vCenter autorun.
- Don’t forget to install the latest Adobe Flash too.
- With vSphere 5.1 you now have integration with the vCenter Single Sign on (SSO) service. If your vCenter server uses the same vCenter Single Sign On server as that which the Web Client uses, then you do not need to manually register vCenter 5.1 instances with the Web Client Server. Instead, just install the Web Client server as normal, and then sign in to it from the local machine at https://localhostl:9443/vsphere-client or remotely from another management machine at https://remotemachine:9443/vsphere-client. The vSphere Web Client can now locate these vCenter Server 5.1 systems by using the VMware Lookup Service.
- If you run into any errors when you try to access the web client via the URL (local or remote), give it a few more minutes if you have just finished the installation. I found that it took my system up to 3 minutes before I could login. This must be due to automatic registration with the Lookup Service taking place in the background.
This definitely makes life a bit easier when setting up a vCenter 5.1 and the Web client, and makes complete sense as VMware have announced that the standard vSphere Client 5.1 (Windows application) is their final release of the vSphere Client software. From then on, everything will be managed via the Web Client!
Also remember that when you are setting up the vSphere web client, you are asked for the IP or FQDN of your vCenter server. If it uses IPv6 and you want to enter the IP address instead of using the FQDN, you must enter it in IPv6 format (ie. enclosing this address in square brackets).
If you are still using vCenter 5.0 or have vCenter 5.0 instances, you are still required to use the machine that the Web Client was installed on, and browse to https://localhost:9443/admin-app and then register these vCenter 5.0 instances as per the screenshots below. You do of course also have a couple of options depending on which vCenter Server 5.0 type you are using (Windows or the Appliance).
For vSphere vCenter 5.0 Windows instances you’ll still need to register these with the Web Client, login to the Web client on the machine it was installed on using the localhost address:
Register your vCenter Server 5.0 instance by using the IP or FQDN and correct credentials.
Accept and install the security certificate if applicable.
If you are using the vCenter 5.0 appliance, then you’ll need to register these instances using the command-line on the appliance. Use the following script to register your vCenter instance:
/usr/lib/vmware-vsphere-client/scripts/admin-cmd.sh register https://[IP or FQDN of the Web Client]:[HTTPS Port Number]/vsphere-client [VC IP Address] [VC Admin username] [VC Admin password]
If you have any special characters in your password, don’t forget to enclose this in single quote marks ( ‘ ).