Hi guys
I am hoping someone might be able to help out with what seems like a really basic network problem when setting up my vSphere lab. I'm really not a totally novice with this stuff, but I have been tearing my hair out over the weekend on this one!!
My setup consists of two physical ESXi host servers, both running ESXi 5.1. Both have static IPs using the on-board NICs (I haven't yet installed additional NICs) and are conencted to a very basic HP switch. I am using an Iomega Storcenter NAS, also with a static IP, for storage. My intention is to setup a couple of VMs on one host, and make one a DC, and then install vCenter Server on the other; and then build up my lab from there.
So, the problem - I am experiencing problems with network conenctivity when both ESXi hosts are running. If I run a couple of command prompt screens and continuously ping both hosts I get loads of time-outs. I've tried pinging the NAS at the same time, and that pings away perfectly.
I've managed to narrow down the situation to the point where I've now discovered that running just one ESXi host works absolutely fine. If I continuously ping the host that is running, it responds perfectly. Then, if I boot the second host the pings start timing out sporadically on the first host as soon as the second comes up.
Now, I should probably add that my means of connecting to the hosts is that I have conencted the switch to my wireless router. But I've tried hard-wiring my laptop to the switch instead, and the result is the same. (I've also connected all devices to my wireless router to rule out the switch).
So I guess my question is, what could be causing this apparent network conflict between my two ESXi hosts?
Any help would be very much appreciated!
Thanks
Tim