VI Toolkit contains information for developers and administrators about extending and managing your VMware virtual environments. This includes everything from automation on virtual machines in VMware player up to managing your Virtual Infrastructure using the available Software Development Kits from VMware.

VMX-file parameters

VMware - Latest VMware Remote Console Download

ConVirt for VMware Convirt has an Open Source edition, but that is only for managing KVM and Xen.

vEMan - VMware ESX/ESXi Manager (2015-05-05: last release 2013-11-29, fundraiser from februari 2015).

iMKS VMware Communities - The iMKS Weblog a “helper” VM for managing VMware guests from non-Windows/Mac hosts (2015-06-18: last release 2009-02-03)

VMware Knowledge Base - Using a VNC Client to connect to virtual machines (1246)
Petri - How to Use VNC to ‘Backdoor’ Access VMware Servers
GeekLab - Use VNC to Access VMware ESX guests

Performing common virtual machine-related tasks with command-line utilities (2012964)
Powering on a virtual machine from the command line when the host cannot be managed using vSphere Client (1038043)
Unable to remove the floppy device in the Windows virtual machine (1034616)
Minimum requirements for installing the vSphere Client and vSphere Web Client 5.x (2005083)

VirtuallyHyper - Cloning a VM from the Command Line
virtuallyGhetto - How to mount a cdrom using vsish on ESXi
vm-help.com - Managing ESXi without the VI client or the vCLI - Part 1
DoubleCloud - Dummy Virtual Machine For Dummies: How To Create Hundreds of Them with Several Lines of Scripts demonstrates the use of vim-cmd vmsvc/createdummyvm
VMware vSphere Blog - Joining vSphere Hosts to Active Directory
Clearpath’s Blog on Clouds and the Tools to Make Them – Private, Public and Hybrid - Lost Your ESXi Root Password? Reset It with Host Profiles!

Joining an ESXi host to Active Directory allows using AD accounts to log into the ESXi host. Both with the vSphere Client, and with SSH (account format: DOMAIN\SamAccountName).

Open the following ports from the ESXi server to the Active Directory Domain Controllers:

1. tcp/88
2. tcp,udp/389
3. tcp,udp/445
4. tcp/464
5. tcp,udp/49152-65535

Source: Required ports for ESXi 5.1.x (2039095)

Then add the host to the domain:

1. Log in with the vSphere Client.
2. Go to Configuration tab → Software → Authentication Services
3. Click on the Properties… link in the upper right corner.
4. Set Directory Service Type to Active Directory.
5. Set Domain to domain.tld or domain.tld/Location/Servers/ to place it in the Servers OU under the Location OU.
6. Click on Join Domain and enter an account that is allowed to join computers to the domain.

ESXi and vCenter Server 6.0 Documentation > vSphere Security > Securing ESXi Hosts > Using Active Directory to Manage ESXi Users > Add a Host to a Directory Service Domain