Hyper-V Lab

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Hi, I am studying for MD-100 and have been trying to set up a lab with a DC and other VM's on a domain. I have failed several times with getting it to work. I see on the MD-100 course Nate has one set up. Is there a guide somewhere I can follow to replicate his?

@David-Green-0 ,

I can help you get a lab environment set up. Let's start with your current setup.

1. What OS are you running?
2. How much RAM do you have?
3. What virtualization platform are you using?

@Mike-Rodrick I have 16 gig Ram and trying to use hyper-V. First I used win10 with several VM's but it messed up my wifi adapter which is now unusable. Now I have installed server 2019 directly onto the host and try built that way. The network setup always catches me. If you have a template of sorts to follow that would be most helpful, The lab you were using during the MD-100 course looked ideal

Regards

David

If there is a course that contains this setup then I am happy to be pointed in that direction.

@David-Green-0 ,

Sounds like you have the resources to run a few VMs. Networking can be tricky, especially with wireless. I am not a fan of the default switch in Hyper-V, it seems to cause issues when switching between wired and wireless connections.

Do you have a wired connection, or do you primarily use wireless?

I use Windows 10 on my physical host, it should work fine, Windows Server 2019 will work also.

I will write something up on my MD-100 setup and post it here.

@David-Green-0 ,

I don't remember exactly what I set up for MD-100, but most of the time I use something similar to this.

1 domain controller
1 member server
1 client

I create a private network to connect all of the lab machines. This network does not have internet access. When I create the VMs before I start a new show, I install all available updates. After that, I don't want them updating and changing during a show.

If my lab needs internet access, I have used two methods. It depends on what I need.

Sometimes I simply switch the VM network connection to an external network. This allows the VM to connect to the internet, but I lose connectivity to my domain, which is on the private network.

Other times I have installed a second NIC on my member server, and connected the second NIC to an external network. Then I run routing and remote access on the member server. That server becomes the gateway for the other VMs on the network. This allows internet access and still allows my domain to function. Using this method is more difficult to set up, but easier after setup. I also disable automatic updates when using this method.

My external network is tied to a specific network adapter in my laptop. I don't like the default switch that switches back and forth depending on what you laptop is connected to. It always causes me problems. You also have to remember, once you create an external virtual switch, your network connections applet in the Control Panel gets very confusing. You won't see your IP settings anymore, just the Hyper-V protocol. The settings will now be configured on the Hyper-V Virtual Ethernet adapter.

I would recommend starting by creating two virtual switches in Hyper-V. One external switch, connected to your physical network adapter, and one private switch. Connect the VMs to the external switch while you install the OS and do updates. Then switch the VMs to the private network to set up your lab (install AD, join the domain, etc) Keep in mind, you will need to statically map IP addresses on the VMs, or run DHCP on one of the servers.

Let me know if you have more questions,