Specifications

Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2 Reviewer’s Guide 11
and Windows Server with familiar and powerful Microsoft Office system applications to deliver real-time
information, support daily operations, and drive decisions.
Self-Service Web Portal for Delegated Provisioning
VMM also provides a Web portal from which authorized users can provision new virtual machines
without directly involving IT staff. This capability especially targets software test and development
teams, which often set up temporary virtual machines to try out new software. With VMM, IT
administrators retain control over access to resources.
Management Agents
In order to manage the virtual infrastructure, VMM installs software agents on each host server. The
management agents gather data from the host server’s Windows Server operating system and feed
that information back to VMM.
Getting Started with Virtual Machine Manager
The following sections provide the most up-to-date system requirements and step-by-step instructions
for installing and running VMM.
System Requirements
VMM includes the VMM server, the VMM Administrator Console, the VMM agent, and the VMM Self-
Service Portal (an optional component.)
By default, the VMM server is also a library server. If you do not set up a dedicated library server, you
will need additional hard disk space on the VMM server for storing library objects. You can also install
the Administrator Console on a different computer than the VMM server.
When you add a host or a library server in the Administrator Console, the VMM server automatically
installs an agent locally on the host. You can also manually install an agent locally on a host, which is
required if the host is on a perimeter network or in a non-trusted domain.
Before you begin installation, make sure prerequisite software is installed and all computers meet the
minimum hardware requirements.