VMware ESXi on Dell OptiPlex 7050 SFF

The goal of this guide is to configure the VMware ESXi networking stack (virtual switches and port groups) to establish the connectivity for virtual machines. This setup creates the foundation for routing traffic between the management network, LAN, and the internet.

In the article "Dell Optiplex 7050 SFF Upgrade for Virtualization", we upgraded a Dell OptiPlex 7050 SFF for Proxmox / VMware ESXi installation. As a result, we now have a machine with 32 GB of RAM and three NICs, ready for the installation of a Type-1 hypervisor.

I chose the VMware ESXi version 6.7 hypervisor because it is the latest ESXi version providing the igb driver for legacy dual-port PCIe Gigabit Ethernet cards (Intel 82575 / 82576). However, I strongly recommend using Proxmox for most users, as it is more secure than the legacy ESXi 6.7 version.

Customized VMware ESXi 6.7 for Dell 7050 can be downloaded here:

• Dell customized ISO
• Key Info on GitHub

1. Network Connection

After installation, all three NICs appear under Networking → Physical NICs (Figure 1):

• vmnic0: Default Dell 7050 Intel I219-LM NIC
• vmnic1 & vmnic2: Dual-port PCIe Gigabit Ethernet card (Intel 82575/82576)

Figure 1 – VMware ESXi 6.7 with 3 NICs

1.1 Problem with Integrated Intel I219-LM NIC

The integrated Intel I219-LM NIC in the Dell 7050 relies on the legacy ne1000 driver in ESXi 6.7. Based on my experience, this NIC loses connectivity after several hours of inactivity, leading to network instability.

To ensure a reliable environment, we will bypass the integrated port and utilize only the dual-port PCIe NICs (vmnic1 and vmnic2), which run on the stable igb driver.

1.2 Virtual NIC, Port Group and Virtual Switch Relationship

ESXi 6.7 creates a default virtual switch, vSwitch0, and assigns the first available physical NIC (vmnic0) as its uplink. Management traffic passes through this NIC by default via a pre-configured Management Network port group.

When creating a VM, we assign its virtual NIC(s) to a port group. The port group is a logical network used by one or more virtual NICs (VM NICs).

Similarly, when creating a port group, we assign it a virtual switch. The connection looks like this:

[VM NIC] → [Port group] → [vSwitch] → [vmnic / uplink] → LAN

• Port group: logical network on a vSwitch
• VM NIC: virtual NIC assigned to a VM
• vSwitch: virtual switch connecting port groups and physical NICs
• vmnic: physical uplink to the network

1.3 After Install Network |Configuration

In my home lab, I connect ESXi to the Internet via a VyOS router, using vmnic1 for the VyOS WAN connection.

The vmnic2 will handle both ESXi management and VyOS LAN traffic. This setup saves a physical NIC, but it poses security and performance risks. However, this is a necessary compromise because we cannot use vmnic0 anyway as it is unstable when idle.

Steps:

1. Create a new virtual switch, vswitch-internet, and configure vmnic1 as its uplink.
2. Create a port group named Internet and assign it to vswitch-internet.
3. Create a port group named LAN and assign it to the existing default switch, vSwitch0.
   1. Since vSwitch0 already includes the Management Network port group, both management and LAN traffic pass through the same virtual switch, though they remain logically separate.
4. Change uplink for vSwitch0 from vmnic0 to vmnic2.
5. When creating the VyOS VM, assign one virtual NIC to LAN and the other to Internet port groups.

On Figure 2, both virtual switches are shown:

Figure 2 - Default vSwitch0 with Port Groups LAN and Management Network, and vswitch-internet with Port Group Internet.

On Figure 3, the three port groups are illustrated:

Figure 3 - Port Groups Assigned to Virtual Switches

On Figure 4, the topology of virtual switch vSwitch0 is shown. The VyOS virtual NIC connected to the LAN network is assigned to the LAN port group.

Figure 4 -  vSwitch0 with Port Groups LAN and Management Network, and vmnic2 as uplink.

On Figure 5, the connection of virtual switch vswitch-internet is shown. The VyOS VM virtual NIC connected to the WAN (Internet) network is assigned to the Internet port group.

Figure 5 - Virtual Switch vswitch-internet vith Port Grop Internet and vminc1 as Uplink

2. ESXi SSH Service

By default, the SSH service is disabled on ESXi for security reasons. However, SSH is needed for advanced administration, because the ESXi Web GUI is limited. For example, static routes can only be configured via the command line (esxcli), not the GUI.

1. Log in to the ESXi Host Client: Go to: https://management_ip
2. Navigation Path: Host → Manage → Services
3. Locate the following services:
    TSM-SSH (SSH)
    TSM (ESXi Shell – optional)
4. Steps to enable:
   Select TSM-SSH.
   Click Start.
5. Optional: To ensure SSH stays on after a reboot, go to Actions → Policy and select Start and stop with host.