As most folks know, the RTM version of Windows Server 2008 includes a beta version of Hyper-V. In March, Microsoft released Hyper-V Release Candidate Zero (RC0). The update from the beta to RC0 is described in KB 949219. Now the thing I discovered about 949219 is that it doesn’t only apply to the Hyper-V hypervisor itself, it must also be applied to any 2008 Server systems where the Hyper-V tools were installed in order to connect to an RC0 Hyper-V server – this unfortunately takes a reboot. Additionally, 949219 must also be applied to virtual guests running Windows Server 2008. By default, 2008 Server has the integration components installed; the problem is that it has the beta integration components and these must be updated to the RC0 integration components. Without the RC0 update, the mouse will not work via a terminal session and the NIC drivers will not be present (among other things).
So how do you get 949219 to the guest if it doesn’t have a network connection? The easiest way (for me) is to create an ISO using a tool like ImgBurn and then mount it in the guest. You can even get fancy and add an autorun.inf to the ISO so it launches the update automatically. I actually had to do this because I’m RDPed into a 2008 server where the Hyper-V tools are installed to connect to a server 2008 core Hyper-V system and without the mouse integration working, I can only use the keyboard to control the guest.
I also discovered a great way to enter product keys: Entering Product Keys into Virtual Machines.
