How configure guest-VM to start automatically after host restart

[Mats_Webjörn]

I have a ESXi 5.1.0 installation hosting a Windows SBS-2011 guest. The guest runs fine except that I have to manually start it every time I've had to reboot the host. And I haven't been able to locate any configuration item to enable auto-start. Is there one, or is it always so that guest has to be manually started ?

[rickardnobel]

Hello Mats,

do you have a stand alone ESXi with no vCenter and HA configured?

If not, you could go to the host through vSphere Client, Configuration, Software - Virtual Machine Startup and Shutdown and set this.

[Mats_Webjörn]

Hi Richard,

It's a standalone with a vSphere Client. Now I found the configuration item. Thanks a lot!

[milton123]

To configure VMware Server automatic power up motions for Virtual  Guest OS systems, go to your VMware Server Console. Select the tab of  the virtual machine that you want to configure the automatic power up  options for. Click on Edit Virtual Machine Settings, either on the Summary View for that Virtual Machine (VM) or by going to the VM Menu, then Settings.

Once inside the VM Settings, click on the Options tab, then select Startup/Shutdown. From there, you will need to change the account that the VM will start under. I recommend selecting Local System Account.  Finally, select the Startup & Shutdown options for this VM when the  Virtual Host boots. Most likely, you want to choose to Power on virtual machine on host startup and Power Off Virtual machine on host shutdown. When you are done, click OK to save your changes. You can choose to do this to however many production virtual systems you want to boot when this host system starts.

Cheers, Udin

[rickardnobel]

Milton, your answer is about the old Windows based "VMware Server" (end of support several years ago) and not ESXi 5.1 which the question concerned.