Red Hat is one of the most powerful commercial server Linux distributions available for physical, cloud, and virtual platforms. We have created this post to introduce you to Red Hat Enterprise Linux and how to install Red Hat Enterprise Linux on VMWare Workstation.
What Is Red Hat Enterprise Linux?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux in short RHEL is basically a server operating system developed by Red Hat for commercial use. Now Red Hat released RHEL for multiple platforms. RHEL is available for physical, cloud, and virtual environments. Red Hat has a released operating system for desktops too. It’s one of the most powerful Linux distributions that come with large package repositories to run commercial-grade server applications.
Red Hat has other subsidiary Linux distributions.
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL): This is a commercial distribution. It is a paid product comes wiht official support.
- CentOS: It is a open source community supported distribution. It shares the same source code of Red Hat Enterprise Linux. This can be used as a substitution for RHEL.
- Fedora: It is a open source community supported distribution supported by Red Hat and its communities. It is developed for developers to provide innovative projects in Linux platform.
Prerequisites To Install Red Hat Enterprise Linux On VMWare Workstation:
To install Red Hat Enterprise Linux on VMWare Workstation you just need a physical machine, VMWare Workstation Pro or Player, and a Red Hat Enterprise ISO image.
- A host system with minimum:
- 8 GB of memory
- A quad core CPU
- 500 GB of Hard Drive
- VMWare Workstation Pro or Player application:0
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux ISO image is to install on VMWare Workstation. Note: RHEL image is only available for development use.
How To Install RedHat Enterprise Linux On VMWare Workstation?
Time needed: 30 minutes.
How to Install RedHat 8.4 Enterprise Linux on VMWare Workstation?
- Fier up VMWare WorkstationDownload the VMWare Workstation application for your host operating system and install it on your machine. The installation procedure is pretty simple and straight. Read the documentation for more details. Open the app after installation. Create a new Virtual Machine.
- Select Custom Configuration WizardYou can choose either Typical or Custom Wizard. We recommend selecting Custom if you want to install with all the configurations. If you are okay with default configurations then go ahead with Typical configurations.
- Select Virtual Machine Hardware CompatibilityrkstationGo with the default option if you don’t have the choice.
- Select the Operating System MediaSelect ‘I will install the operating system later’ for an interactive installation.
- Select Guest Operating SystemSelect the guest operating system and its distribution with version information.
- Name the Virtual Machine Name and locationType a name and give the location details.
- Allocate the ProcessorsAssign the processors, Calculate the processor required to run the host machine. Assign the leftover resources to the virtual machine.
- Allocate the Memory for Virtual MachineMemory allocation calculation is the same as the processor allocation. Leave sufficient memory for the host system and allocate the remaining memory for the virtual machine.
- Choose the Network ConfigurationSelect any one of the network configurations as per your requirement.
- Select the I/O Controller Type
- Select Disk Type
- Select Virtual DiskSelect the Virtual Disk if you have or create one.
- Select Disk CapacitySelect the disk size. Selecting a single disk will increase the performance. However, selecting a split disk will help in the disk transfer scenario.
- Specify Virtual Disk File
- Create Virtual Machine
- Supply RHEL ISO Image to Virtual MachineDownload RHEL image. Edit the CD/DVD settings and import the downloaded Ubuntu image.
- Install RHEL on VMWare Workstation
- Power On the Virtual MachinePress the Play button to power on the Virtual Machine.
- Welcome RHEL Virtual MachineAfter initiating the installation. You will be treated with a welcome screen on which you will see the option to select the language. Select your language and click Continue.
- Configure the required installation settingsSet the Keyboard, Language supports, Time and Date settings, Software package selections for installation, root password, Installation media, and disk partition information to proceed with the installation of RHEL.
- Partition the DiskSelect the Disk to erase for auto partition. Or Select the Advance option to create the custom partition.
- Set root account password
- Begin Installation after setting up all the required settings
- Installation of CentOS is in ProgressThis process would take 15 to 60 minutes depends on your network bandwidth and package selection. Wait until it finishes.
- Reboot Virtual MachineReboot the machine after installation.
- Select License Information upon reboot and accept the license
- Tick – I Accept The License Agreement – Done
- Create a user accountType Full Name, User Name (Tick Make This User Administrator & Require a Password to Use This Account), Password and Cofirm Password – Done
- This will finish the configuration wizardClick Finish Configuration to continue.
- Sign In with user account
- Select LanguageYou will be treated with a screen to select the language. Select your language then click Next.
- Select your keyboard then click Next
- Toggle Location Services either to ON or OFF as per your requirement
- You can connect this VM to your online accounts. However, this is an optional step. We have skipped this in the demonstration
- That’s all. Now, we are ready to go!!!
- This completes the installation of RHEL on the VMWare Workstation
See Also How to Patch Four New Vulnerabilities in VMWare Workstation and Fusion?