Archive for the ‘SQL Server Denali’ Category
Easy VMware for testing
I was looking for an easy way of testing new versions of SQL Servers and Windows Servers without having to invest on another machine or taking the risk of breaking my desktop computer.
I then came across VMware player and was surprised to see how easy it was to install it and it did allow me to do all the testing without ever requiring another machine. In a nutshell, it installs another virtual computer within an existing computer.
These are the steps I followed:
1. Download VMware Player (free) from here:
http://www.vmware.com/products/player/
2. Download an Operating System:
I downloaded a trial version of Windows Server 2008 R2 which last 180 days, more than enough for my purpose.
3. Install VMware player
The installation is very much straight forward. While installing, it will ask for an Operating System installation file.
Job done. There is now another machine available in my desktop computer and I can test anything I like. I installed SQL Server Denali CTP3 and enjoyed playing with it without having to worry about breaking my existing setup.
One thing to bear in mind is that the machine on which VMware Player is installed needs to have enough resources to share. When installing VMware, it automatically allocated 40gb of disk space, 1Gb of RAM and 1 CPU. Those setting are entirely customisable.
