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Linux

Enable SSH on ESXi

ESXi 3.5 does have SSH capablities but it is disabled and not supported by default. If you want to enable it, follow these steps:

  1. At the ESXi console press ALT-F1
  2. Type in "unsupported" and press Enter. You will not see the text as you type.
  3. You will see a Tech Support Mode warning and be prompted for the root password. Enter the root password and press enter
  4. Edit the inetd.conf file located at /etc/inetd.conf using VI
  5. Scroll down the file till you find the file that stares with #ssh, move the cursor over the # and press x
  6. Exit and Save by pressing ESC and typing :wq
  7. Type in "ps | grep inetd" and take note of the process ID
  8. Type in "kill -HUP <process ID from step 7>"
  9. You can now SSH in to the ESXi host

UPDATE: Confirmed to be working on ESXi 4.0 also

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