VMware Horizon – Setup RDS Farm

Welcome to my VMware Horizon series. In this session I will describe how I setup an RDS Farm based on the MS 2016 RDS Server template, which I created earlier. This farm wil in my later sessions be used to create both a Desktop and an Application Pool.

In Horizon Administrator, select Farms from the menu on the left

Create2016RDSFarm-01

 

I will in this session create an Automated Farm, Next

Create2016RDSFarm-02

 

This farm will consist of Instant Clones, Next

Create2016RDSFarm-03

 

I give the farm an appropriate ID and description, adjust Farm Settings, Next

Create2016RDSFarm-04

 

I fill in vm naming pattern and number of machines, Next

Create2016RDSFarm-05

 

Next

Create2016RDSFarm-06

 

I add my vCenter settings….

Create2016RDSFarm-07

 

First I will choose my parent vm, 2016RD4VDI, OK

Create2016RDSFarm-08

 

I select the snapshot I made during template creation earlier, OK

Create2016RDSFarm-09

 

I choose the View-RD-Servers folder in vSphere, OK

Create2016RDSFarm-10

 

After the Farm and vm’s are created, Horizon will create a folder under View-RD-Servers with the same name as the Pool-ID

Create2016RDSFarm-11

 

Next i choose my FreLab Cluster to run my vm’s on, OK

Create2016RDSFarm-12

 

I only have one Resource Pool, OK

Create2016RDSFarm-13

 

This farm will be stored on my VMFS1-Datastore, OK

Create2016RDSFarm-14

 

When I have made all my decisions about vCenter and Resource settings, Next

Create2016RDSFarm-15

 

Next I will browse my MS Active Directory and select the correct OU for placing the computer accounts

Create2016RDSFarm-16

 

I select the correct OU for my RDS-Server’s computer-accounts, OK

Create2016RDSFarm-17

 

When the Farm has deployed the RDS-server’s, it automatically creates the computer-account in the correct OU

Create2016RDSFarm-18

 

I will Allow reuse of pre-existing computer accounts, Next

Create2016RDSFarm-19

 

I click finish to deploy the new RDS-Farm

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I can now see my new RDS Farm is being published in Horizon

Create2016RDSFarm-21

Create2016RDSFarm-22

 

Once the farm is created and published, I can move forward and deploy desktop or applications pools from this RDS Farm:

VMware Horizon – Setup RDS Desktop Pool

VMware Horizon – Setup RDS Application Pool

 

VMware Horizon planning, deployment etc.

 

Disclaimer: Every tips/tricks/posting I have published here, is tried and tested in different it-solutions. It is not guaranteed to work everywhere, but is meant as a tip for other users out there. Remember, Google is your friend and don’t be afraid to steal with pride! Feel free to comment below as needed.