Install HAProxy Enterprise as a virtual machine in VMware vSphere

In this guide, you’ll learn how to install HAProxy Enterprise in VMware vSphere.

Download and verify the OVA image Jump to heading #

Download the .ova image and verify it using the checksum.

1. Download the .ova file and the SHA256SUMS file from the repository:

   text
   https://www.haproxy.com/download/hapee/key/<HAPROXY ENTERPRISE KEY>-vmware

   text
   https://www.haproxy.com/download/hapee/key/<HAPROXY ENTERPRISE KEY>-vmware

2. The SHA256SUMS file contains checksums for the .ova files:

   SHA256SUMS
   text
   ae43142589b3ee...  hapee-rhel-8-amd64-2.6r1-20250121.ova
   06ca84c7da61bf...  hapee-rhel-9-amd64-2.8r1-20250121.ova
   f01a2a6263ebfe...  hapee-rhel-9-amd64-2.9r1-20250121.ova
   ...

   SHA256SUMS
   text
   ae43142589b3ee...  hapee-rhel-8-amd64-2.6r1-20250121.ova
   06ca84c7da61bf...  hapee-rhel-9-amd64-2.8r1-20250121.ova
   f01a2a6263ebfe...  hapee-rhel-9-amd64-2.9r1-20250121.ova
   ...

3. Get the checksum for the .ova file you downloaded. For example:

   Linux Windows

   Use the command shasum to get the checksum of the .ova file:

   nix
   shasum -a 256 hapee-rhel-9-amd64-3.0r1-20250121.ova

   nix
   shasum -a 256 hapee-rhel-9-amd64-3.0r1-20250121.ova

   output
   text
   eac5f1f35a386dec73c0bef8769848014f76d0cf7688a651538c1d89cc3e4e4b  hapee-rhel-9-amd64-3.0r1-20250121.ova

   output
   text
   eac5f1f35a386dec73c0bef8769848014f76d0cf7688a651538c1d89cc3e4e4b  hapee-rhel-9-amd64-3.0r1-20250121.ova

   Use the PowerShell command Get-FileHash to get the checksum of the .ova file:

   powershell
   Get-FileHash hapee-rhel-9-amd64-3.0r1-20250121.ova

   powershell
   Get-FileHash hapee-rhel-9-amd64-3.0r1-20250121.ova

   output
   text
   Algorithm       Hash                                                            
   ---------       ----                                                                   
   SHA256          EAC5F1F35A386DEC73C0BEF8769848014F76D0CF7688A651538C1D89CC3E4E4B

   output
   text
   Algorithm       Hash                                                            
   ---------       ----                                                                   
   SHA256          EAC5F1F35A386DEC73C0BEF8769848014F76D0CF7688A651538C1D89CC3E4E4B

4. Verify that the checksum matches the line for that .ova in the SHA256SUMS file.

Install the OVA image Jump to heading #

To install the OVA image:

1. Import one of the .ova files from the VM Templates repository into your VMware hypervisor. Each file installs a different version of HAProxy Enterprise on Ubuntu or Red Hat Enterprise Linux. Replace <HAPROXY ENTERPRISE KEY> in the following URL with your HAProxy Enterprise license key to access the repository.

   text
   https://www.haproxy.com/download/hapee/key/<HAPROXY ENTERPRISE KEY>-vmware

   text
   https://www.haproxy.com/download/hapee/key/<HAPROXY ENTERPRISE KEY>-vmware

2. When you import the OVA file into your VMware hypervisor to create a new virtual machine, you will be asked to provide:

   • a name for the virtual machine (example: hapee-vm)
   • a storage path for the virtual machine (prefilled automatically, but you can change it)
   • a unique instance ID for the VM instance (example: hapee1)
   • a hostname for the VM instance (example: hapeevm)
   • an SSH public key for connecting to the instance (example: ssh-ed25519 ABCD... My PC)
   • the default user’s password (example: mypassword)

   If you don’t provide a password, a random one will be generated. It will display above the sign-in prompt in the terminal.

3. Start the VM.

4. Log in with the username ubuntu or cloud-user and the password you set during the installation.

5. Verify the network interface driver is the VMXNET3 driver. We recommend you use this driver because it provides superior performance.

   Info

   The OVA image is already configured to use the VMXNET3 network interface driver, but if you add more interfaces, the hypervisor may provide a different driver as the default. Make sure you specify the VMXNET3 interface driver instead. In particular, avoid the E1000 driver, which is not optimized for use in a hypervisor.