summary: In this topic, you will learn how to deploy Plesk from a QCOW2 image on VMware Workstation Player.

We will use Plesk running on Ubuntu 22 as an example, but you can also deploy Plesk running on CentOS 7 the same way.

Before You Begin

Before deploying Plesk, do the following:

  1. Download and install VMware Workstation Player on your computer.
  2. Download the plesk-ubuntu-latest.qcow2 image from https://autoinstall.plesk.com/images/.
  3. Convert the QCOW2 image to the VMDK format.

Deploying Plesk Using a Converted QCOW2 Image

To deploy Plesk on VMware Workstation Player using a QCOW2 image converted to the VMDK format, create a virtual server. Here’s how to do it:

  1. In VMware Workstation Player, click Create a New Virtual Machine:

    image QCOW2_VWP_Create_VM_Create_Button

  2. In the “New Virtual Machine Wizard” window that opens, select I will install the operating system later:

    image QCOW2_VWP_Create_VM_Install_operating_system_later

  3. Select the guest operating system. For that purpose, select Linux and Ubuntu 64-bit:

    image QCOW2_VWP_Create_VM_Select_Operating_System

  4. Specify a name for the virtual server and choose the location for storing files:

    image QCOW2_VWP_Create_VM_Name_and_Location

  5. Specify the size of the disk for the virtual server:

    image QCOW2_VWP_Create_VM_Specify_Space_Size

    For more information about the disk size requirements, see the Hardware Requirements.

  6. Click Finish.

    image QCOW2_VWP_Create_VM_Finish

    Now the new virtual server is created.

    Note: By default, the NAT network type is used. It means that the virtual network adapter shares the host’s IP address. These settings may not fit the requirements of your network infrastructure. For more information, refer to the VMware Workstation Player documentation or contact the VMware support team.

  7. Сonfigure the virtual server’s parameters by clicking Edit virtual machine settings:

    image QCOW2_VWP_Configure_VM_Button_Open_Settings

  8. Add a hard drive with the Plesk image in the VMDK format. For that purpose, in the virtual machine settings, click Add:

    image QCOW2_VWP_Configure_VM_Add_Button

  9. In the “Add Hardware Wizard” window, configure the parameters as follows:

    • “Hardware types”: Hard Disk

    • “Virtual disk type”: SCSI

    • “Disk”: Use an existing virtual disk

    • “Existing disk file”: select the Plesk image in the VMDK format:

      image QCOW2_VWP_Configure_VM_Select_Virtual_Disk_File

    Note: We recommend that you place the QCOW2 image to the directory of the virtual server or create a separate directory with virtual disks.

  10. Click Finish.

  11. Select the hard disk created by default and click Remove.

  12. Click OK to save your changes.

  13. Power on the virtual machine you have created by clicking Play virtual machine:

    image QCOW2_VWP_Configure_VM_Button_Launch

  14. Select Ubuntu and press ENTER:

    image QCOW2_VWP_Run_VM_Select_OS

Wait till the operating system and Plesk are deployed.

Logging in to the Created Virtual Machine

A virtual machine with Plesk created from a converted QCOW2 image does not have a preconfigured SSH password. There are two ways to log in to the virtual machine:

  • Boot into recovery mode and set the root password. You need to do this for every virtual machine with Plesk you create.
  • Use the “cloud-init” utility shipped with the Plesk QCOW2 image to preconfigure the server and set the root password. For example, you can use the “NoCloud” datasource to create an ISO image or a virtual hard drive containing the user-data file. Connect this ISO image or a virtual hard drive to the virtual machine before booting it up, and the cloud-init utility should configure the SSH user so that you can log in. You can then use that ISO image or a virtual hard drive with every virtual machine you create.