Integrate Hyper-V: Install System Center Virtual Machine Manager

System Centre Virtual Machine Manager (VMM), part of the  System Center suite is used to configure, manage, and transform traditional datacenters. VMM helps to provide a unified management experience across on-premises, service provider, and the Azure cloud. In this guide, we shall discuss how to “Integrate Hyper-V: Install System Center Virtual Machine Manager”. Please see How to license Veeam Enterprise Manager and Add VBR Servers, and Veeam Enterprise Manager setup and User Role management.

Note: Endpoint Configuration Manager (previously SCCM) was previously part of “System Centre”. Because, System center is a broad suite with overlapping tools; separating SCCM allows more agile updates and cloud integration “co-management”. This is because Microsoft shifted its focus from the traditional on-premises System Centre suite to cloud-first management via Intune. But, SCCM (ConfMgr) operates solely on-premises.

VMM 2025 supports Windows Server 2025 hosts and Virtual Machines. It works with TLS 1.3, and the dependency on legacy authentication protocols, such as NTLM and CredSSP, has reduced significantly.

Also, if you are running System Center 2025. The Service Provider Foundation (SPF) will be discontinued as its capabilities are now built into Azure Arc-enabled System Center Virtual Machine Manager.

Also, see “Windows Server 2022 Capabilities: Register Windows Admin Center with Azure“, how to set up System Insights on Windows Admin Center, and how to Run Mendeley Reference Manager and Cite for Word on Windows.

System Center Virtual Machine Manager Capabilities

VMM centralizes and simplifies datacenter management as mentioned above. It provides a single platform to configure, monitor, and control hosts, networking, storage, and deployment resources. Below are some of the capabilities of VMM.

• Datacenter: VMM enables administrators to configure and manage the entire datacenter as a unified fabric. It manages virtualization hosts, networking, and storage resources, and it provisions the infrastructure required to deploy virtual machines and services to private clouds.

• Virtualization hosts: VMM adds, provisions, and manages Hyper-V and VMware hosts and clusters.

• Networking: VMM integrates and manages networking resources, including IP subnets, VLANs, logical switches, static IP pools, and MAC address pools. It provides network virtualization, allowing organizations to create isolated virtual networks with separate IP address spaces. Using network gateways, VMs can securely connect virtual networks to physical networks across sites.

• Storage: VMM discovers, classifies, provisions, and allocates storage resources. It supports block storage technologies such as Fiber Channel, iSCSI, and SAS SANs, enabling centralized storage management across the fabric.

• Library resources: VMM maintains a centralized library of deployment resources. It stores file-based resources like VHDs, ISO images, and scripts. As well as non-file-based resources such as VM templates and profiles. Administrators access these resources through library shares to standardize VM deployments.

• Azure management: VMM integrates with Azure through Azure Arc-enabled SCVMM. This integration allows administrators to manage VMs using Azure Role-Based Access Control. It allows building automation pipelines with SDKs, templates, REST APIs, CLI, and PowerShell. Azure integration also enables centralized governance and security.

Hardware Requirements

VMM servers need at least 8-core processors (2 GHz), 4 GB RAM minimum (16 GB recommended), and 4 GB storage. Hyper-V hosts must run on supported Windows Server editions with adequate resources for virtualization workload.

Please see the table below for more information on the hardware requirements. For instance, if the minimum RAM requirement is not met, the installation will fail.

• Supported OS Versions: Hyper-V hosts support Windows Server 2025, 2022, 2019 (Standard/Datacenter/Server Core/Windows10 and 11 Enterprise), and select earlier versions like 2016. VMM servers require Windows Server 2025, 2022 or 2019.

• Software Prerequisites: Install Windows ADK (for Windows 11/Server 2025 with WinPE add-on), PowerShell 5.1, and .NET 4.6 on the VMM server before setup. SQL Server 2019 or 2022 (Standard/Enterprise) is required for the VMM database. Because, SQL Server 2025 isn’t support at the time of writing this article, I will be installing SQL Server 2022.

The following table provides the scale limits that were tested for System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2025. There are various factors that affect the scale limits, such as hardware configuration, network, topology, and other.

Please, see SQL Server 2025 Upgrade Requirements and Compatibility, how to Install SQL Server Management Studio 21 on Windows Server, and how to Install all Editions of Microsoft SQL Server 2025.

Create a VM on Proxmox to Host SCVMM

The goal of this blog post is to show you how to set up a VM on any hypervisor, such as Proxmox, Hyper-V, vSphere, and XCP-ng, to host VMM.

This section involves creating a VM on Proxmox for VRO. To do this, head over to Proxmox and select the node where the VM will reside. Enter the VM name, and click on Create.

Select the OS ISO Image and populate the fields with the right details, and click on Next.

I have referenced several links above that provide detailed guidance for creating a VM on Proxmox, Hyper-V, or XCP-ng. Therefore, I will not be covering all the steps for creating a VM on Proxmox here.

Upon following the prompts. On the confirmation window, click on Finish

Please see How to upgrade Microsoft SQL Server 2019 to 2022, how to uninstall Internet Explorer from your Windows Device, and how to enable FIPS mode on Windows Server.

Install OS

Note: The actual installation of the OS depends on the OS you choose in case you are using this guide just to install a VM on Proxmox.

However, you can easily begin the installation in Proxmox VE’s user interface by clicking on Start to power on the VM at the top of the screen.

As you can see below, Windows is currently in the early setup phase. Here it the loads installation files from the media into system memory.

Enter your desired OS language to proceed. Also, set up your desired input method. Next, select “Install Windows Server” and agree to have everything deleted, including apps and settings and click next.

Please, follow through all the installation prompts. On the ready to install window, click on “Install”.

Windows Server is currently being installed.

On the customisation settings, when prompted. Enter the Administrator Password as shown below.

Note: To send Ctrl+Alt+Del to a Proxmox VM console from a Windows machine, use the dedicated button in the noVNC toolbar, which is usually located at the top-right of the console window.

Please see how to configure Windows Admin Centre on Windows Server 2019, how to set up Windows Server 2019 on a VMware Workstation, and what Active Directory Forest, Trees, Domain, and Sites. 

Windows Server Post OS customization

VirtIO Drivers are paravirtualized drivers for KVM/Linux. They enable direct (paravirtualized) access to devices and peripherals for virtual machines, instead of slower emulated ones.

There are two methods for installing the VirtIO Drivers inside the existing Windows VM. You can download the virtio-win-gt-x64.msi and the guest tools as well.

You can download the virtio drivers from here. As you can see during the VM setup, I have already downloaded and attached the ISO image to the VM as a CD/DVD, which has both the virtio-win-gt-x64.msi and the guest tools as well.

Please see Inbound connection Error: Failed to Perform Scheduled Replication [Part 2], how to reset Microsoft 365 User Password, and how to upgrade Windows Admin Center from v2411 to v2511.

VirtIO Drivers Installation

Note: In Proxmox environments, both the VirtIO-Win drivers (virtio-win-gt-x64) and VirtIO Guest Tools (virtio-win-guest-tools.exe) are needed for optimal Windows VM performance and management.

The (virtio-win-gt-x64) handles core paravirtualized drivers during/after OS install, while the (virtio-win-guest-tools.exe) adds the QEMU Guest Agent and SPICE enhancements.

So, we will proceed and install virtio-win-gt-x64 first as recommended. Afterwards, I will proceed and install the virtio-win-guest-tools. The steps discussed in this section are similar to “Migrate Windows Servers from Hyper-V to Proxmox Correctly”.

Install the virtio-win-gt-x64 first as recommended.

Installing the VirtIO guest tools

Change Server Name and Description

Some of these steps have been discussed here: “Post OS installation: Configure the properties of Windows Server“. I will proceed and enter the Computer Description and Name.

Note: I will suspend the current restart and apply Windows Updates and restart afterwards

Also, ensure to enable NetBIOS over TCP/IP in order to be able to join the server to the domain. You need NetBIOS over TCP/IP in some environments.

This is because domain join does not rely only on modern DNS-based name resolution, especially in legacy or misconfigured networks. But if DNS is correctly configured, NetBIOS is NOT required.

Must also be a member of the domain. VMM server computer names cannot exceed 15 characters.

Domin join complete

Note: You can configure WinRM via Group Policy for trusted domains: enable automatic listeners (* for IP filters) and compatibility HTTP/HTTPS listeners.

Apply Windows Updates

Configure TCP/IP

Enable RDP, this way I can connect with Devolution. Please see ‘How to set up Devolusion Remote Desktop Manager on Windows, and Enable SSH and Remote Desktop Connection in Windows Server.

You can now log in as a domain user.

Please, see How to download and install the Windows ADK Patches, Windows PE working for Windows 11 and Windows Server 2022, and how to install Endpoint Configuration Manager on HyperV VM.

Windows ADK and WinPE

Windows ADK and the Windows PE add-on are required for preparing and customising Windows images for deployment. The ADK provides tools such as DISM, Windows System Image Manager, and deployment utilities that allow administrators to create, modify, service, and automate Windows installations.

Note: With these tools, organisations can build standardised, preconfigured images that include updates, drivers, roles, and applications, ensuring consistent and repeatable large-scale deployments across servers and virtual machines.

The Windows PE add-on is specifically needed for booting systems into a lightweight preinstallation environment during deployment. With System Centre Virtual Machine Manager, WinPE is used for bare-metal provisioning of physical Hyper-V hosts.

It enables disk partitioning, driver injection, OS image application, and automated configuration before the full operating system starts. Without ADK and WinPE, automated physical host deployment and advanced image servicing would not be possible.

Please see How to uninstall and upgrade ADK, WinPE, and MDT, and An error has occurred in the script on this page: HTA applications report a Script error after upgrading to ADK for Windows 11, version 22H2.

Download and Install Windows ADK and WinPE

You can download the Windows ADK and WinPE from this link.

Upon download, proceed and install Windows ADK as shown below.

When the Windows ADK is complete, please install WinPE as shown below.

Please, see Migrate Veeam One Database from SQL Server 2017 to 2025, how to Install SQL Server 2022 Express and SQL Server Management Studio, and how to Install SQL Server Management Studio 20 on Windows Server

SQL Server 2022

Microsoft recommends using the service packs that are currently supported for the SQL versions you deploy. For the SQL editions listed below, Standard, Enterprise, and Datacenter (64-bit) are supported based on their availability.

SQL Server 2022 entered mainstream support on November 16, 2022, during which Microsoft provides full feature updates, security/hotfixes, and free extended support transitions. Mainstream support ends January 11, 2028, shifting to extended support until January 11, 2033, focused mainly on security updates

Therefore, I will install SQL Server 2022 until VMM supports SQL Server 2025, then I will upgrade VMM to version 2025 and SQL Server 2025.

Also, see How to Install all Editions of Microsoft SQL Server 2025, Microsoft SQL Evaluation period has expired: How to upgrade SQL Server instance, and Upgrade Expired Evaluation Configuration Manager to Full Version

Basic SQL Server 2022 express Edition Installation [Part 1]

You can decide to perform a basic or custom installation as discussed under this section [Part 1] and [Part 2].

Please proceed and download SQL Server 2025 from this link. You can also download the latest cumulative updates from here.

Select an installation type as shown below.

I am fine with the default SQL Server installation location, and will click on Install.

SQL Server 2022 Evaluation Edition installation wizard in progress. The setup downloaded required feature files online, and it’s now actively installing SQL Server components like the wizard, engine, and database engine services.

When prompted as shown below to install SSMS, click on “Install SSMS”. The image below shows these key details stored are:

• Feature installed: SQL Engine
• Microsoft SQL Server 2022 Evaluation Edition installed
• Instance: MSSQLSERVER (default instance)
• Version: 16.0.1000.6 (RTM)
• Local connection string: Server=localhost

Install SSMS

This will redirect you to the download link as you can see below. Click on Download SQL Server Management Studio 22 Installer.

Now you can close the evaluation edition window for SQL server 2022 as shown below.

Upon download of SSMS 22, I will click to begin the installation. This will download and install Visual Studio as shown below.

Under the workload, click on install to install the SSMS Core Componnets

As you can see, SQL Server Management Studio 22 (SSMS) is being installed.

Click on OK to complete the installation.

You can launch the SQL Server Management Studio 22 (SSMS) tool if you wish when the installation completes.

Please see Veeam backup for aws Processing postgres rds failed: No valid combination of the network settings was found for the worker configuration, and Fix long path names to files on SQL Server installation media error.

Custom Installation of Microsoft SQL Server 2022 [part 2]

If you decide to make a custom installation as shown below. The Microsoft SQL Server 2022 Express edition can also be downloaded from this link.

In Microsoft SQL Server 2022 setup there are two main installation paths: Basic and Custom. We are performing the custom installation right now. A Custom installation provides full control over the SQL Server configuration.

As you can see below, the Global Rules stage is skipped because SQL Server Basic installation runs prerequisite checks silently. Since checks like OS compatibility, pending reboot status, and .NET requirements do not fail, setup continues directly to the next stage.

For the Microsoft update, ensure this is checked as recommended and click Next.

I will click on OK and proceed by clicking on the next button

Note: If you later run Custom installation, SQL Setup will detect the existing instance and allow you to either: Install a new installation of SQL Server or Add features to the current instance.

As you can see i wish to setup a new installation of SQL Server 2022. The reason for this is to show you the various methods to install SQL Server 2022 via the basic and custom method.

Enter Product key

You can enter a product key or continue using the 180-day trial license for SQL Server 2022. The product key determines which edition of SQL Server the installer will deploy. Each edition unlocks specific features and capacity limits, such as:

• Standard
• Enterprise
• Datacenter

The table below shows the key differences between the various editions.

Therefore, proceed and add the key and click next to proceed.

I will accept the license terms

At this point, I am not interested in integrating with Azure services. I will uncheck this button and proceed with the next steps.

Feature Selection

I am fine with the following features to install and will click on next. If you wish to change the instance root directory, you can do same from here.

Here, I will specify a named instance as shown below and click next

I am fine with the default service accounts

Will select the Windows Authentication Mode, and will add as many account I wish to have access to administer this SQL Server. Please see how to Change from SQL Server and Windows Authentication Mode to Windows authentication Mode.

As you can see below, the installation has succeeded correctly.

Connect to SQL Server via SSMS

SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) is an integrated environment for managing any SQL infrastructure. That is, from SQL Server to Azure SQL Database. SSMS provides tools to configure, monitor, and administer instances of SQL Server and databases.

From the Start Menu, under Microsoft SQL Server Tools, you can see the Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio. Under “Encrypt”, select Optional in order to be able to connect without issues. In a different guide, I will show you how to connect to SQL Server with a certificate.

As you can see, we have connected to the SQL Server

Do not forget to search and apply updates afterwards, as shown below.

Also, see Create local Backup Repository and Add Hyper-V to VBR Inventory, how to uninstall Hyper-V on a Windows PC, and how to Fix for a boot image was not found for HyperV Virtual Machine.

Download SCVMM

Now that we have met all the prerequisites, we will have to proceed with the download and installation of SCVMM (System Center Virtual Machine Manager).

Note: If you install SCVMM using a local or non-domain account, you must manually create a Service Principal Name (SPN) for the VMM service to enable proper Kerberos authentication and communication with Hyper-V hosts and other managed resources.

Note: According to Microsoft, If the account installing SCVMM does not have permission to register the Service Principal Name (SPN) in Active Directory, setup will complete with a warning. If the SPN isn’t registered, VMM consoles on other computers cannot connect to the management server and you won’t be able to deploy a Hyper‑V host to bare metal via VMM

You can download System Centre Virtual Machine Manager from here.

Note: Microsoft recommends verifying that the file isn’t corrupted after the download of the Zip file with the following checksum of the file

223CE90811799223DA635EC66F81302ECBB3AB4842C37002AC29B23D556F5AAF

To verify its authenticity, perform checksum validation on your computer by running the following PowerShell snippet below. When validation passes, you see True printed. If you see False printed, the downloaded file isn’t valid and you need to download it again.

$expectedChecksum = “ENTER_EXPECTED_HASH_HERE”
$zipFilePath = “ENTER_ZIP_Path\_.zip”
$expectedChecksum -eq (Get-FileHash -Path $zipFilePath -Algorithm SHA256).Hash

Please, see How to Disable UAC with Group Policy and enable PIN in Windows Hello, and how to fix Unable to run downloaded Programs due to Defender SmartScreen.

Install VMM

To install SCVMM, we will have to extract the downloaded archive as shown below.

Upon extraction, click on the setup file as shown below.

Accept the UAC. Please see and How to Change User Account Type in Windows 10, and Windows Local Account Authorization and Access Control.

on the System center 2022 splash screen, click on Install.

Please be patient as the setup prepare to install SCVMM

I will be installing the VMM Management Server and the VMM Console and click Next

On the getting started page, please populate according to your Lab or organization need and click on Next.

Accept the license terms

On the Diagnostic and Usage Dat, click on Next

Please see Manage User Permission on Synology with Active Directory [Part 1], How to encrypt Microsoft SQL Server Traffic, and Change your root password: Manage the root user on your macOS.

Change Install location

You can choose to change the installation location by using the browse button. But I am fine with the defaults as I have enough disk space.

For the database configuration, please specify the information such as the domain username and password and SQL instance, and click on Next.

On the Configure Service Account and Distributed Key Management, I will select a domain account as well.

Note: Specify the account that the VMM service uses. You can’t change the identity of the VMM service account after installation

VMM service account selected.

Regarding the Port configuration wizard. Use the default port number for each feature or provide a unique port number that’s appropriate in your environment.

Note: You can’t change the ports that you assign during the installation of a VMM management server unless you uninstall and then reinstall the VMM management server. Also, don’t configure any feature to use port 5986 because that port number is preassigned.

Library configuration

elect whether to create a new library share or to use an existing library share on the computer. The default library share that VMM creates is named MSSCVMMLibrary, and the folder is located at the location below

%SYSTEMDRIVE%\ProgramData\Virtual Machine Manager Library Files

ProgramData is a hidden folder, and you can’t remove it. After the VMM management server is installed, you can add library shares and library servers by using the VMM console or by using the VMM command shell. To proceed, click on Next

On the SCVMM installation summary, click on “Install”

As you can see, the installation is in progress.

SCVMM has been installed correctly.

Please see how to fix “An error occurred while attempting to connect to the server: Check if the Virtual Machine Management service is running or you are not authorized to connect to this server, and how to Uninstall Microsoft SQL Server 2025 from Windows.

Connect to the VMM Server

On the VMM server, select the VMM console icon as shown below

Add Hyper-V Host or Cluster to VMM

SCVMM hosts can be added via either Fabric (Servers > All Hosts) or VMs and Services (All Hosts). Both fully functional since they install the same VMM agent and add to the same management database.

Via the Fabric

Note: Fabric is preferred for complete infrastructure management (storage discovery, logical networks, patching orchestration); VMs/Services offers quick VM-focused access. Either works because the underlying host object is identical across views

This section discusses the steps to add an existing Windows Server as a Hyper-V host server or cluster to the System Center Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) fabric. In the VMM console, open Fabric > Servers.

• Select Add group > Add Resources > Hyper-V hosts and Clusters.
• In the Add Resource Wizard > Resource location, select where the server you want to add is located

Please, follow the steps or the method discussed under the VM and Services section as they are the same.

Please see How to set up and configure the Key Management System (KMS), how to fix Server Certificate could not be updated: Private key does not match, and Fix MSIEXEC returned 1602: Trellix Setup cannot use this account.

Via the VM and Services

To do this via the VM and Services, right click on All Hosts and select “Add Hyper-V and Clusters”.

In the resource location, select “Windows Server Computers in a Trusted Directory domain” and click Next.

Specify credentials for a domain account that has administrative permissions on all hosts that you want to add

Specify Windows Server computers by names, in Computer names enter names or IP addresses, one per line. If you’re adding a Hyper-V host cluster, specify the name or IP address of the cluster or of any cluster node.

On the Target resources, specify the computers you want to add. Repeat for all hosts. If discovery succeeds, the host will be listed under Computer name as shown below. 

For Trusted domain or disjointed namespace, elect the checkbox next to each computer that you want to add, and select Next. If you specified a cluster name or cluster node in the previous step, select the checkbox next to the cluster name. But for untrusted domain, enter the FQDN or IP address of the server or cluster that you want to add. For workgroup devices, enter the NETBIOS name or IP address of the host in the perimeter network.

In the Host Settings, I am fine with the default and will not check the “Reassociate this host with this VMM environment” because it has not been associated with any other VMM Server previously.

On the Summary page, confirm the settings, and select Finish. The Jobs dialog appears to show the job status. Wait for a Completed status. Verify that the host or cluster was added in the host group > host or cluster name. The status must be OK.

Please, see how to uninstall Applications with PowerShell Script, How to Monitor Windows Hosts via Nagios, and Map a Network Drive: How to mount a Network Drive.

Fix Error 10421: The specific user account cannot be the same as the VMM Service account

If you run into the below issue, the fix is simple ‘Fix Error 10421: The specific user account cannot be the same as the VMM Service account”.

Specify a new Domain Account, and click Next. Here is a blogpost where this error was resolved.

Note: Once the host has been successfully added, the VMM service account will be added as local administrator on the host and used to provide any future access to it.

It is not supported to change the identity of the Virtual Machine Manager service account after installation. This includes changing from the local system account to a domain account, from a domain account to the local system account, or changing the domain account to another domain account. To change the Virtual Machine Manager service account after installation, you must uninstall VMM (selecting the Retain data option if you want to keep the SQL Server database), and then reinstall VMM by using the new service account.

As you can see below, the new Hyper-V integration is 50% complete.

Clicking on the recent job, we can see the new status percentage and task sequences as shown below.

As you can see below, the add virtual machine host has completed with some warnings and can be disregarded as it does not relate to my environment.

Kindly ensure the recommended actions are performed as directed.

As you can see, the Hosts and VMs are well discovered in VMM.

You can drill further into each VM details as shown below.

Also, see the VM properties for this VM machines. You can view more information here.

Please see The trust relationship between this workstation and the primary domain failed, how to Remove Microsoft Exchange Server: Using ADSIEdit Tool, and how to perform Password Change with OWA.

FAQs

I hope you found this article on how to “Integrate Hyper-V: Install System Center Virtual Machine Manager” very useful. Please feel free to leave a comment below.