Dell OpenManage Integration for VMware vCenter

Creating A New Connection Profile using the Initial Configuration Wizard

A connection profile stores the iDRAC and host credentials that the virtual appliance uses to communicate with Dell servers. Each Dell server must be associated with a connection profile to be managed by the OMIVV. You may assign multiple servers to a single connection profile. You can create the Connection Profile using the Configuration Wizard or from OpenManage Integration for VMware vCenter > Settings.

You can log in to iDRAC and the host using Active directory credentials.

NOTE: Before using the Active Directory credentials with a connection profile, the Active Directory user’s account must exist in Active Directory and the iDRAC and host must be configured for Active Directory based authentication.
NOTE: The Active Directory credential can be same for both iDRAC and the host or it can be set as separate active directory credentials. The user credential must have administrative privileges.
NOTE: You cannot create a connection profile if the number of hosts added exceeds the license limit for creating a Connection Profile.

To create a new connection profile using the Configuration Wizard:

  1. In the Connection Profile Description page, click Next.

  2. In the Name and Credentials page, enter the Connection Profile Name and an optional Connection Profile Description.

  3. In the Name and Credentials page, under iDRAC Credentials, do one of the following:

    NOTE: The iDRAC account requires administrative privileges for updating firmware, applying hardware profiles, and deploying hypervisor.
    • For iDRACs already configured and enabled for Active Directory on which you want to use Active Directory, select Use Active Directory; otherwise skip down to configure the iDRAC credentials.

      • In Active Directory User Name, type the user name. Type the username in one of these formats: domain/username or username@domain. The user name is limited to 256 characters. See Microsoft Active Directory documentation for user name restrictions.

      • In Active Directory Password, type the password. The password is limited to 127 characters.

      • In Verify Password, type the password again.

      • Perform one of the following actions:

        • To download and store the iDRAC certificate and validate it during all future connections, select Enable Certificate Check.
        • To not store and perform the iDRAC certificate checking during all future connections, clear Enable Certificate Check.
    • To configure iDRAC credentials without Active Directory, do the following:

      • In User Name, type the user name. The user name is limited to 16 characters. See the iDRAC documentation for information about user name restrictions for your version of iDRAC.

      • In Password, type the password. The password is limited to 20 characters.

      • In Verify Password, type the password again.

      • Perform one of the following actions:

        • To download and store the iDRAC certificate and validate it during all future connections, select Enable Certificate Check.

        • To not store and perform the iDRAC certificate check during all future connections, clear Enable Certificate Check.

  4. In the Host Root area, do one of the following:

    • For hosts already configured and enabled for Active Directory on which you want to use Active Directory, select Use Active Directory ; otherwise configure your Host Credentials.

      • In Active Directory User Name, type the user name. Type the username in one of these formats: domain/username or username@domain. The user name is limited to 256 characters.

        For host user name and domain restrictions, refer to the following:

        Host Username Requirements:

        1. Between 1 and 64 characters long

        2. No non-printable characters

        3. Invalid characters: " / \ [ ] : ; | = , + * ? < > @

        Host Domain Requirements:
        1. Between 1 and 64 characters long

        2. First character must be alphabetical

        3. Cannot contain a space

        4. Invalid characters: " / \ : | , * ? < > ~ ! @ # $ % ^ & ' ( ) { } _

      • In Active Directory Password, type the password. The password is limited to 127 characters.

      • In Verify Password, type the password again.

      • Perform one of the following actions:

        • To download and store the Host certificate and validate it during all future connections, select Enable Certificate Check.

        • To not store and perform the Host certificate check during all future connections, clear Enable Certificate Check.

    • To configure Host Credentials without Active Directory, do the following:

      • In User Name, the user name is root. This is the default username and you cannot change the username. However, if the Active directory is set, you can choose any Active directory user and not just root.

      • In Password, type the password. The password is limited to 127 characters.

        NOTE: The OMSA credentials are the same credentials used for ESXi hosts.
      • In Verify Password, type the password again.

      • Perform one of the following actions:

        • To download and store the Host certificate and validate it during all future connections, select Enable Certificate Check.
        • To not store and perform the Host certificate check during all future connections, clear Enable Certificate Check.

  5. Click Next.

  6. In the Associated Hosts page, select the hosts for the connection profile and click OK.

  7. To test the connection profile, select one or more hosts and click Test Connection.

    NOTE: This step is optional. This is used to check whether the Host and iDRAC credentials are correct or not.
  8. To complete the profile, click Next.

    NOTE: For servers that do not have either an iDRAC Express or Enterprise card, the iDRAC test connection result states Not Applicable for this system.