Hello,
We have recently upgraded a hodge-podge of MCS 7835 servers. Some I1's, some I2's, and a single I3.
I was hoping to cannibalize all the RAM and HDD's to one server and make a lab/tools box. For this, ESXi seems to be the best fit - however, I can't seem to get ESXi running on these boxes!
The BIOS configuration is quite scant... so I'm not sure if this machine is even capable of ESXi. Based on the actual hardware specs, it should be capable... but perhaps there's some limitation of the motherboard or other hardware?
I was able to get ESXi 5.0 installed, but honestly I have no clue what made the difference. I tried virtual DVD thru the out of band management interface (IBM's IMM), I tried a physical DVD and a USB key. All would result in simply a black screen. I could see the disc being accessed (all 3 types!) but it would not boot.
Eventually, I did get the physical disc to boot and I installed ESXi. Now, whenever I reboot the box I'm met with that same dreaded black screen. Worst part is, I don't even see the RAID configuration stuff - which makes me think this failure is beyond ESXi... but I could be wrong.
So has anyone done this before? Is there some special caveats/steps I'm missing? Would love to turn this old MCS box into something useful. Thanks!!
