Esxi nested acloud only for test

Hello community,

Only for test i have installed aCloud inside esxi that expose nested virtualization.
Also i configured vmx configuration to emulate ssd for two vmdk, with sata controller

Hci see those fake ssd, but i cant create the virtual storage because health check fail

Is it possible try Hci nested or i need to go baremetal?

Best regards

Running VMware HCI in a nested environment within ESXi for testing purposes can be done, but it often comes with limitations and potential issues. While you've set up the VMX configurations to emulate SSDs with a SATA controller, the nested virtualization environment may not perfectly replicate the required hardware functionalities, leading to failed health checks within HCI. These nested setups tend to introduce performance overheads and might lack the precise compatibility required for complex systems like HCI. If it's solely for testing, you could explore tweaking configurations, yet for a robust and reliable production setup, opting for bare metal would be the more advisable choice to ensure the required performance, reliability, and compatibility of VMware HCI.

Running virtualization inside a VM can be challenging and is not always recommended and/or supported for production use. HCI relies on hardware level features for storage, networking, and virtualization to function so running HCI in a nested environment  may lead to compatibility issues and / or performance degradation.  If you are facing health check failures and other issues when simulating virtual storage in a nested virtualized environment, it might be due to limitations or lack of support for the required hardware features

it is possible to run HCI (Hyper-Converged Infrastructure) in a nested virtualization environment for testing purposes. However, there are certain limitations and considerations to keep in mind.

Performance: Nested virtualization can introduce performance overhead due to the additional layer of virtualization. This can impact the performance of HCI components such as storage, networking, and compute.

Hardware Emulation: Emulating SSDs using the vmx configuration might not provide the same performance characteristics as real SSDs. This can affect the functionality and performance of HCI, especially when it comes to storage operations.

Health Check Failures: The health check failures you mentioned could be related to the emulated SSDs or other configuration issues. It's important to check the specific error messages or logs to determine the exact cause of the failure. It's possible that certain HCI features or checks rely on specific hardware capabilities that might not be fully emulated in a nested virtualization environment.

Bare Metal Deployment: For production deployments or scenarios where full performance and compatibility are required, it is recommended to deploy HCI on bare metal servers. Bare metal deployments provide direct access to hardware resources and can ensure optimal performance and compatibility.

In summary, while it is possible to run HCI in a nested virtualization environment for testing purposes, it may not fully replicate the performance and functionality of a bare metal deployment. If you encounter health check failures or performance issues, it may be necessary to consider deploying HCI on dedicated bare metal servers to ensure optimal performance and compatibility.

Running Hyper-Converged Infrastructure (HCI) in a nested virtualization environment can be quite complex and might not always work as expected due to limitations and compatibility issues. Nested virtualization involves running a hypervisor inside another hypervisor, which can introduce various complications.

The configuration you described involves aCloud running inside ESXi, which is itself a virtualized environment. Then, within aCloud, you've configured virtual disks (vmdk) to emulate SSDs using SATA controllers.

HCI solutions typically require direct access to hardware resources for optimal performance and stability. Nested virtualization might not provide the necessary access or stability for HCI solutions to function correctly. The health check failures you're encountering might be due to the nested virtualization setup and the limitations it imposes.

For HCI deployments, especially for production or critical environments, it's generally recommended to use bare-metal installations to ensure proper access to hardware resources, performance, and stability. Running HCI on bare metal eliminates many of the potential issues that arise from nested virtualization.

If you're exploring HCI in a testing or non-production environment, nested virtualization might be used for experimentation or learning purposes. However, it's crucial to be aware that it might not fully replicate the behavior or performance of a bare-metal HCI deployment.

If possible, consider deploying HCI on dedicated physical hardware to ensure optimal performance and stability, especially if you encounter issues with nested virtualization that hinder proper functioning of the HCI solution.

Based on the provided information, it is important to note that VMware does not officially support running ESXi as a nested virtualization solution in production environments

for testing and evaluation purposes, nested virtualization can be used to create sandboxed and isolated environments, as demonstrated by Microsoft for Azure Stack HCI. Nested virtualization allows running Hyper-V inside a Hyper-V virtual machine, enabling flexibility in evaluation and testing scenarios

Considering the limitations and support policies, it is advisable to use nested virtualization for testing and evaluation purposes rather than in production environments. If the goal is to evaluate Azure Stack HCI or similar technologies, nested virtualization can be a suitable approach. However, for production use, deploying on validated physical hardware is recommended

In the context of the specific issue with creating virtual storage due to a failed health check, it is important to ensure that the nested virtualization environment is properly configured and meets the requirements for the desired functionality.

Additionally, it may be beneficial to review the specific requirements and limitations of nested virtualization for the intended use case, as well as any relevant documentation or support resources provided by the respective vendors.