VMware Update Manager Download Service on Windows 2008 R2 Core
Have to(?) access the Internet to download patches
Using the default configuration of vSphere Update Manager, it must be able to connect to the Internet to download vSphere patches. This configuration is not always possible, depending on network architecture, policies, security configuration, or other reasons. Often times, simply using a proxy will accommodate the requirement of getting to the Internet to download patches.
But what if there is a situation, for what ever reason, that you do not want to allow the server where VMware Update Manager is running to access the Internet? I talked to a customer not too long ago about the process of patching vSphere hosts in a situation such as this. In vSphere 4, it was somewhat bothersome using the VMware vSphere CLI, as opposed to using Update Manager. Also, when only using the VMware vSphere CLI, it is hard to get a good graphical representation of how a host is patched. VMware Update Manager does this well. But what if the server running VMware Update Manager is not going to be allowed online to download patches?
VMware Update Manager Download Service provides the ability to create a local repository of vSphere patches and Virtual Appliance patches. Jason Horn posted an article on the process for vSphere 4.x back in 2010. You can find his article here: VMware Update Manager Download Service







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