Sometimes have DVD drive in Azure VMs-sometimes not

Question

Hello, I recently created 6 2012-R2 VMs in Azure using PowerShell. I used the same script only changing the name parameters to create all of the VMs.

Upon completion, four of these VMs have DVD drives, & two of them do not.

What caused this behavior & how can I control it?

Answer 1

I understand you used the same script for deployment of all the VMs, just to clarify/confirm do the other 2 VMs run the same edition of Windows 2012-R2? Are they running the same VM SKU/size?

 

On the problematic (2) VMs, you may try the following:

1. Reboot and see if you experience the same behavior (If not done already).
2. Check and update the DVD/CD-ROM drive drivers as appropriately.
3. You may also consider redeploying the VM to a new Azure Node (Redeploy Windows virtual machine to new Azure node).
   When you redeploy a VM, it moves the VM to a new node within the Azure infrastructure and then powers it back on, retaining all your configuration options and associated resources.

Note:  After you redeploy a VM, the temporary disk is lost, and dynamic IP addresses associated with virtual network interface are updated.

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Answer 2

Yes, same size, same Windows edition.
I have rebooted all of the VMs, but I have not re-deployed them. I can re-deploy when I get a few extra minutes to see what happens.

Answer 3

Thanks for update. Sure, do let us know how the re-deployment goes. Also ensure that the device drivers are up-to-date.

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Answer 4

The CD-ROM drive may be present if you use a marketplace images of Windows. It is used at bootstrap time for preparing & licensing the VM by Microsoft.

What I do now is move the cd-rom drive to letter Z and prepare the data disks I have from E to Y. This way I do not end up with surprises when the cd-rom drive get removed by MS after a re-image or host change on Azure.

More details & the script here:

https://www.codeisahighway.com/prepare-data-disks-for-stability-and-consistency-in-azure-throughout-virtual-machines-and-scale-sets-lifecycle/