First format your usb / flash drive with FAT. Then copy all the contents of the installer .iso onto the drive.
Next delete isolinux.bin and rename isolinux.cfg to syslinux.cfg
Edit syslinux.cfg and append “usb” to the line starting with “append” … i.e. similar to this
append vmkboot.gz — vmkernel.gz — sys.vgz — cim.vgz — ienviron.tgz — image.tgz — install.tgz usb
Next grab the latest syslinux.exe (zip for windows) from here and run syslinux -s –ma <driveletter>:
Done.
I’ve had a couple of installation issues with ESX4
One was particularly strange, the install process would freeze every now and again until i pressed a key on the keyboard. This was related to AMD’s power saving C1 mode – disable this in the bios to fix this problem.
Secondly it was a problem with my nic. Essentially i didn’t have card that was supported (realtek). After inserting a intel card all was well. This fires up a ambiguous error and cans the whole install. (lvmdriver error)
It was nice to see that my pata drive was supported – i’ve been using it for quick tests but was unsure if it was supported in vSphere. Note: i’ve got a flash card enclosure that i’m planning on using in the future, just awaiting the card. (hopefully this saves me some power)