Creating Lab Environments
To create either standard lab environments or SCVMM lab environments, you use Lab Center in Microsoft Test Manager. For an introduction to lab environments, see Using a Lab Environment for Your Application Lifecycle.
Requirements
- Visual Studio Ultimate, Visual Studio Premium, Visual Studio Test Professional
Before you start
Before you create lab environments, you might need to configure your lab management components. See Getting Started with Lab Management.
Important
To create a lab environment that can contain physical or virtual machines that are running Windows XP, perform the additional steps listed in Configuring Lab Environments that Contain Windows XP Machines.
Creating a lab environment
To create a lab environment, open Microsoft Test Manager, choose Lab Center, and then choose the Lab tab. A list appears, showing the environments already deployed in your team project collection. Use this tab to create lab environments and manage those that are running. For information about managing lab environments and importing or creating stored virtual machines and templates, see Managing Lab Environments and Virtual Machines.
.png "Environment list under Lab Center, Lab tab.")
Follow these steps to create each type of lab environment:
Task |
Description |
|---|---|
Create a standard environment |
You create a standard environment from virtual and physical machines that are already running, and then you can add virtual machines that are running on any virtualization platform.
For more information, see Creating a Standard Environment |
Create an SCVMM Environment using running virtual machines |
You can quickly create an SCVMM environment from virtual machines that are already running in an SCVMM host group. You can add a running virtual machine to only one lab environment at a time. However, when you delete the environment, you can add its virtual machines to another lab environment. Here’s how to create an SCVMM environment using running virtual machines:
For more information, see Compose an SCVMM Environment from Running Virtual Machines. |
Create an SCVMM environment using stored virtual machines and virtual machine templates |
You can create a new SCVMM environment by choosing virtual machines and virtual machine templates that are stored in your Lab Management library. When you choose a stored virtual machine, a copy of that virtual machine is added to your environment. When you add a template to your environment, a new virtual machine is created based on that template; however, you must create an identity for that virtual machine before you can add it to your environment. Here’s how to create a new SCVMM environment from stored virtual machines and templates.
For more information, see Creating an SCVMM Environment Using Stored Virtual Machines and Templates. |
Deploy a copy of a stored environment |
To deploy a copy of an SCVMM environment that is stored in your Lab Management library, follow these steps:
For more information, see Deploying a Stored SCVMM Environment. |
Create a network isolated environment |
A network isolated environment is protected from network conflicts, so you can simultaneously run copies of one virtual machine in multiple environments. For more information, see Creating and Using a Network Isolated Environment. |
What’s Next
Here are the tasks that you can perform after you create a lab environment:
Learn how to operate your lab environments, and how to manage lab environments and virtual machines, such as by using snapshots and creating templates. See Managing Lab Environments and Virtual Machines.
Run manual and automated tests in your lab environment by using Microsoft Test Manager, the Tcm.exe command line utility, or a build-deploy-test workflow. See Running Tests in Lab Environments.
Create build-deploy-test workflows to automate the process of creating a build of your application, deploying the build to your lab environment, and running tests on the deployed application. See Setting Up Automated Build-Deploy-Test Workflows.