Quickly install pfsense in VMware ESXi

This tutorial is written according to ESXi 6.0, and the settings for ESXi 6.5 are similar.

Set up a network

Log in to vsphere via vsphere client and go to the Configuration tab of the host, then click on the list network on the left.

To deploy Pfsense VSG, you need two network interfaces, in which case two vswitch interfaces will be used for Pfsense LAN and WAN respectively.

Click Add Networking (added network) in the upper-right corner to display the Add New Network Wizard

Select the default virtual machine connection type, and then click Next.

Here you can configure multiple scenarios for the Pfsense VSG network. For this tutorial, configure the LAN Vswitch connection Vmnic0 adapter, WAN vswitch connection Vmnic1 adapter.

For other network environments, you can connect the Pfsense LAN to any physical adapter, not to a vswitch that does not have an adapter.

After you select vmnic0 for the vsphere standard switch, click Next and add a label to the network switch.

Confirm that the vsphere switch was created correctly, and then click Finish.

The new pfsense LAN vswitch will be displayed on the Network Configuration screen. Now perform the same steps for WAN vswitch. After that, these two vswitch will appear.

Uploading an OVA file

Now let's upload the pfsense ova file and deploy it to vsphere. Pfsense OVA file only pfsense subscription members can download, QQ group 90565640 and 286850453 of the group share available for download.

Click file> Deploy New OVF Template. Browse to the local hard disk pfsense OVA file storage location, and then click Next.

Click Next to display the product information and name the pfsense virtual machine. Then click Next.

On the Disk Format screen, select Thin Configuration, and then click Next. Of course, you can choose the other two options, but they will pre-allocate disk space.

In the Network Mappings dialog box, select the Vswitch network that you created earlier. Bridge the host Pfsense Wan and pfsense LAN separately, and click Next.

In the final ready to complete dialog box, verify the settings and select the check box after deployment. Click Done.

After the OVA upload is complete, click Close on the conversation window to confirm that the deployment completed successfully.

Open the console and start the pfsense virtual machine. When it displays the default Pfsense Welcome screen, it indicates that the Pfsense VM is properly booted.

By connecting the WAN and LAN network adapters to their respective switches, you can begin the pfsense configuration.

Quickly install pfsense in VMware ESXi