Troubleshooting Windows File Write Access Issues using Cloudbase-Init

Products

• VMware Aria Suite

Issue/Introduction

Customers may encounter difficulties writing text files to the C drive on newly deployed Windows machines.

Environment

VMware Aria Automation 8.x

Cause

The inability to write files to the C drive on a newly provisioned Windows machine can be caused by various factors, including:

• Insufficient permissions: The user account may lack write permissions to the C drive.
• File system restrictions: The file system may be read-only or have strict access controls.
• Cloudbase-Init configuration: The Cloudbase-Init configuration may not be correctly set up to perform the desired file write operations.

Resolution

This solution uses Cloudbase-Init commands within Automation Assembler to ensure the desired file is written to the C drive during the deployment process.

Procedure:

• Create a Cloudbase-Init Template:
  Go to the "Design" tab in Automation Assembler and create a new cloud template.
• Add a "cloudConfig" section with the following Cloudbase-Init commands:

resources:
  Cloud_Machine_1:
    type: Cloud.Machine
    properties:
      image: cloudbase-init-win-2016
      flavor: small
      remoteAccess:
        authentication: usernamePassword
        username: Administrator
        password: Password1234@$
      cloudConfig: |
        #cloud-config
        write_files:
          - path: C:\hello.txt
            content: |
              Hello
          - permissions: '0644'

 

• Deploy the cloud template from Automation Assembler.
• Connect to the newly deployed Windows machine using Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) and the credentials specified in the template.
• Verify that the "C:\test.txt" file exists and contains the expected text.

Additional Information

Reference :

https://blogs.vmware.com/management/2019/11/cloudbase-init-windows-initialization.html

https://techdocs.broadcom.com/us/en/vmware-cis/aria/aria-automation/8-18/assembler-on-prem-using-and-managing-master-map-8-18/maphead-designing-your-deployments/initialize-general/initialize-windows-general/initialize-cloudbase-init.html