Installing VMware ESXi 6.7 Update 3 Nested Inside VirtualBox in MacOS

In this blog I will be installing VMWare ESXi 6.7 Update 3 nested inside VirtualBox in MacOS.

This configuration is not supported by VMware but it is possible for educational and testing purposes.

First, download ESXi from VMware's website here:

https://my.vmware.com/en/web/vmware/evalcenter?p=free-esxi6

Note: You will need to make an account with VMware to download the .iso.

Once you've downloaded the .iso you are ready to install it in VirtualBox in MacOS.

In a previous blog post I showed you how to install VirtualBox, so if you haven't done so please follow this post first:

https://eyeteahero.blogspot.com/2019/04/installing-virtual-box-in-mac-os.html

Also if you are new to VMware I recommend the following book on Amazon to catch up:
https://amzn.to/2qxf93k

Let's begin:

Creating The VM

Click New, specify the name, for type choose Linux and Version choose Other Linux (64-bit) then click Continue

Click the radio button for Create a virtual hard disk now then click Create

Click the radio button for VDI (VirtualBox Disk Image) then click Continue

I seem to have better results using a fixed disk so click the radio button for Fixed size then click Continue

Wait a few minutes for the disk to be created then move the slider to at least 32GB and click Create

Back at the VirtualBox main menu click Settings for the VM you created

Under System click the Processor tab then drag the slider to at least 2 processors

Click Network then choose the adapter type, in this example I'm using Bridged

Click Acceleration then click the drop down for Paravirtualization Interface and choose KVM and click OK

Back at the VirtualBox main menu click Start

Click the browse icon

Select the ESXi .iso file you downloaded earlier and click Open

Click Start

OS Installation

Press Enter on ESXi

Press Enter

Press F11 to Accept and Continue

Make sure ATA VBOX HARDDISK that we created earlier is selected and press Enter

Choose your keyboard layout and press Enter

Type the password for the Root user, type again to confirm then press Enter

Press F11 to install

Press Enter to reboot

After rebooting simply open a web browser and type in the IP address shown to access the vSphere web client

That's it, you've installed ESXi in VirtualBox.

In a future blog post I will be showing you how to configure ESXi from the console.

Additional Resources:

https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads