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I installed the vmware ESXi (6.0.0) to a dedicated PC, client computers use vmware workstation 11 to access the virtual machines and to upload them.

Right now, If a user uploads and starts a virtual machine and another user would like to use the same machine, he either needs to wait for the first user to finish or fight for the control with the other user or make a copy of the machine. How can I solve this issue? Can't I have a session like thing, where I can set how many sessions should be stored on the machine and If one is occupied another one would start for the requesting user.

(Basically, I want parallel connections to the same machine without conflicting with other users).

Also, how can I set a machine to forget every change after being powered down?

3 Answers 3

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Then setup a terminal server for your users to work with. What you want to do is like multiple PCs using only one hard disk, which just can't work, at least in write mode.

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  • I would be okay, If the hard disk gets copied with another session.
    – szab.kel
    Jul 31, 2015 at 12:11
  • Also, I need virtual machines, the whole point is that one time a user need a specific software environment and another time a completely different.
    – szab.kel
    Jul 31, 2015 at 12:23
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You should look into building a VDI infrastructure. This would allow you to create some sort of template and allow users to spin up new instances of this template.

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  • Is that vmware Horizon we are talking about? Can you still put existing virtual machines (made with workstation) in use with horizon?
    – szab.kel
    Jul 31, 2015 at 12:24
  • VDI is a concept, multiple vendors offer it. For VMWare it's Horizon now and Microsoft calls it 'VDI'. Jul 31, 2015 at 12:42
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In XenDesktop you can setup unique machine and that machine can be cloned on the ESX. The provisioning service from xendesktop take care of the cloned AD account, SID, etc.. from these machine.

  • Change done while the machine run is resetted at the reboot.

In big the concept they use is the machine boot from the network and the unique .VHD is streamed to the ESX via the network for those machines. (the machine on the ESX are empty shell) Each machines got a cache on the server that stream it to the ESX and when it reboot it restart with the unique .VHD.

You will need to setup like an XP, Windows 7, Win 8.1 base image in big.

You can try a POC to see if it fit your need.

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