Build a VDI image source VM

A newly created VDI image source VM is actually an empty VM, which has no operating system or required drivers installed. Making a VDI desktop image is to install the operating system, drivers, VdiAgent, and the needed software on the newly created image source VM and generate a VM template. Then, the VM template can be published as a desktop image, which can be used to create desktop pools and deploy desktops. This help describes how to build a VDI image source VM in the Windows operating system. For how to build image source VMs in Linux operating systems or indigenous operating systems (Kylin or UOS), see the corresponding image source VM building guides.

Restrictions and guidelines

• The operating system, drivers, and other needed software can only be installed in the image source VM. For a desktop image cloned or converted from an image source VM, you can only edit the CPU and memory.

• To re-install the VdiAgent when making an image source VM, first uninstall the original VdiAgent and then restart the image source VM.‌

Procedure

1. From the navigation pane, select Desktop Images > Desktop Images.

2. Click the Console button in the Actions column for the newly created image source VM. The image source VM console opens.

3. Install the operating system on the image source VM:

 

The Windows operating system installation procedure might vary by version. This section uses Windows 10 as an example. Install your Windows operating system as needed.

 

1. If the VM is shut down, click Start to start the VM on the page for making an image.

2. After the VM is started, the Windows installation screen opens. Select a language and other preference options, and click Next. Click Install Now to start installing the operating system.

3. Select to accept the installation license agreements, and select the installation type Custom (Advanced).

4. When the system prompts Where do you want to install Windows?, click Load Driver (L). The disk type is Virtio for the VM installation. When you are installing the VM operating system, the disks are not displayed. You must select Load Driver and display disks. Then, you can install the operating system on the specified disk.

5. In the Load Driver dialog box that opens, click OK.

The dialog box for selecting the driver to be installed opens according to the type of the operating system to be installed, 32-bit or 64-bit.

6. In the dialog box, keep the Hide drivers that are not compatible with hardware on this computer option selected, select all drivers in the dialog box through pressing CTRL or Shift, and click Next.

 

You must load the drivers and make sure all compatible drivers are selected in the driver dialog box. Lack of drivers will affect the proper operation of the desktop image.

 

7. When the system prompts Where do you want to install Windows? again, partition the disks as needed and click Next. Wait until the operating system is installed.

When installing the operating system, partition the disks when multiple disks exist.

8. After the installation is completed, configure basic settings, for example, region, keyboard layout, network, and accounts.

9. On the Settings > Accounts > Sign in with Microsoft screen, click Domain join instead in the lower left corner.

10. After the system installation setup is completed, log in as the user of the desktop, and enter the Windows desktop after system settings.

 

If you want to optimize the system later, you must log in as Administrator. The user set here can be only used to enter the desktop after installation. After entering the desktop, you must switch to the Administrator user.

 

4. To switch to the Administrator user:

1. Press Windows key + X. From the menu that opens, click Computer Management (G).

2. On the computer management window that opens, select Local Users and Groups > Users. In the right pane of the window, right-click Administrator, and select Properties (R) from the shortcut menu.

3. On the administrator properties window that opens, clear the Account is Disabled option to enable the administrator account, and click OK.

 

If the desktop image is used for creating a dynamic desktop pool, set the password for the administrator account. Otherwise, when a client connects to a desktop in the dynamic desktop pool, the client uses an administrator account without a password to automatically log in to the desktop.

 

4. Restart the system, log in as the administrator, and enter the system desktop.

5. Open the control panel. Click User Accounts, and then click Remove user accounts. On the Manage Accounts page that opens, select the account created when you install the system. On the Change an Account page that opens, click Delete the account.

5. Install CAStools and VdiAgent:

1. On the page for making an image, click Install Template Tool, and select Mount CD-ROM. In the CD drive (D:) agenttools dialog box that opens, enter the driver, and select to enter the corresponding folder according to the image source VM operating system type. In this section, enter the windows folder, and run the agent_tools_setup program.

2. In the user account control dialog box that opens, click Yes. In the VdiAgent installation dialog box that opens, click Next.

3. In the communication environment setting dialog box, enter the IP address or domain name (a FQDN) of the management node host for Space Console, use the default port setting, and click Next.

4. Select the target directory for VdiAgent installation, and click Install.

5. During the VdiAgent installation process, CAStools will be automatically installed, and some drivers will be installed. In the Windows security dialog box that opens, select Always trust software from [publisher], and click Install to install drivers.

6. Click OK in the dialog box prompting you that the system must be restarted after CAStools is installed.

7. After CAStools is installed, click Close. Wait for the VdiAgent installation to complete.

8. After the VdiAgent installation is completed, click Finish. Restart the VM.

6. Install the needed software according to the purpose of the desktop image. For example, you can install the office software, input method, and player.

1. On a PC for file sharing, create a folder, and add the installation packages of needed software products to the folder. Right-click the folder, and select Give Access to > Specific People from the shortcut menu. In the file sharing dialog box that opens, click the dropdown box icon  next to the Add button. Select Everyone, and click Add. Then, click Share.

2. In the image source VM, press Windows key + R. In the dialog box that opens, enter \\NIC IP address of the local PC that is on the same network segment as the VM, and click OK to open the shared folder. From the folder, copy the installation packages of needed software products to the image source VM. As a best practice to ensure security, disable sharing after the sharing is completed.

3. Install the software products needed in turn.

7. Install the application assistant, and configure and optimize the system services. The application assistant is used to display the driver programs corresponding to the application center, which is to be installed and used on the cloud desktop. After the basic VM settings are completed, you must optimize the VM to improve the VM operating speed and the cloud desktop connection experience.

1. Click Install Template Tool, and select Mount H3CoptTools.

2. Enter the CD drive, and run the AppCenter_Setup_v1.2.0 installation package. The application assistant installation dialog box opens.

3. Click the  button. Specify the application assistant installation path, select the software license and services agreement, and click One-Click Installation to start installation.

4. After the installation is completed, click Start to Use. In the dialog box that opens, enter the Space Console IP address, set the directory for downloading and backing up drivers, and click Save. Close the application assistant.

5. Enter the CD drive, and run the optimization tool application program.

6. Select an optimization template according the optimization scenario.

• In a scenario where the cloud desktop is bound to an endpoint and does not need user authentication, select the Cloud Desktop Device User Template Optimization template.

• In a scenario where a local PC is used to install the client and connect to the cloud desktop, select Cloud Desktop Physical Machine Template Optimization template.

• In any other scenario, select the Cloud Desktop Template Optimization template.

7. On the homepage, click Check to check the operating system.

8. After the check is completed, items that fail the check are marked red. Do not select the Configure vGPU License Server option for VMs without vGPUs. Click Optimize to optimize the items that failed the check.

9. Select a disk for customizing a user profile.

10. Install the CloudDiskClient cloud disk.

11. After the optimization is completed, click OK, and restart the VM.

8. The VDI image source VM is completely built. You can publish the image source VM as a VDI desktop image.