Editing of .VMX files on ESX3.0.1

[Kltaylor]

Sorry if this has been discussed prior, but I'm new to the ESX and have not been able to find this in the documentation or in any of the groups.

Is there a way to set the ESX server up where users can edit the .vmx files without having to have root privileges. When I set up the system, The dir and files under it is are set to rwxr-xr-x root:root, and users need to be able to edit the .vmx files. We utilize ESX in a lab where they have to redo things often and on some software loads they have to go into the .vmx file and change the NIC or other details to get it to function properly.

But I need to find a way for them to be able to do this without having to have root access.

Thanks

[JacquesCronje]

You can store the vmx files in a different location - create a guest with a vmx in a different location and use WinSCP to set permissions on vmx files if you're not comfortable with CLI. create a Linux user account called "vmxeditor" or something and give it rights to vmx. This should keep your vmfs safe. Otherwise you could write a script to sudo nano "enter vmx filename here".

[JacquesCronje]

PS - I'm not really sure why your users need to do this, so I left out the best practise bits, i.e. why can't they use snapshots, use VI client to edit settings, etc....

[Kltaylor]

I would love it if i could get all the loads to come up with the right stuff. Problem is loading some of the Vista, Longhorn and a couple of others do not always come up with the right stuff in the VMX files. In the KB articles and other sites we have found that about the only way to do this is to edit the VMX file after you load it. I'm looking at upgrading to 3.0.2 as I think it may do a bit of better job for newer OS's and beta OS's. Thanks for the info on using the SUDO. And had not thought about putting the files somewhere else. Thanks

Ken Taylor

[JacquesCronje]

It would be nice if you could award points if you found my response helpful

[Texiwill]

Hello,

Create templates instead of allowing users to edit the files directly.

-or-

Use the Advanced option under Edit settings to add new entries.

-or-

Use the SDK to create a script to properly deploy the machines so that there is no by hand editing required.

Giving users direct access to the VMX is rather dangerous... However, if you must, you need to either use permissions and SUDO, or create an appropriate script that can be used using SUDO. This way you can track who does what when.

Best regards,

Edward