Replacing machine ssl certificate on vcsa 6.7 failed with error

Replacing machine ssl certificate with custom certificate on VCSA 6.7 failed with error
"Error certificate-manager 'lstool get' failed:1"

Description:
Replacing machine ssl certificate with custom certificate on VCSA 6.7 failed due to 3rd party plugins deployed/installed with no valid certificate

Cause:
The certificate replacement process will check whether the 3rd party plugins installed have valid certificate or not. If not, the certificate replace will get failed.

Resolution:
The only resolution is to skip the validation that is being carried out by certificate manager process

1. Navigate to directory
#cd /usr/lib/vmware/site-packages/cis/

2. Take a backup of certificatemanagerhelper. Py file

3. Open the file using vi editor and edit the following section
#to remove LsTools stdout
If(rc! =0) :
    logging.error("'lstool get' failed{}".format(rc))
Comment the line #raise exception("'lstool get' failed: %d" %rc) and instead TYPE rc=0

4. Keep the certificate and certificate chain ready

5. Replace the certificate

Replacing machine ssl certificates with custom certificates on VCSA 6.7 failed

Replacing machine ssl certificates with custom certificates on VCSA 6.7 failed

Description:
We have vcsa 6.7 deployed and vcsa HA configured. Active node runs in site A, whereas passive and witness node runs on site B. When we try to replace machine ssl certificate with custom cert, it got failed while trying to update cert on passive node

Resolution:
Replacing certificate on HA enabled vcsa cluster is not supported

The solution is to destroy vcsa HA first and then replace machine ssl certificate. Once done, enable VCSA HA and then complete the HA configuration.

How to recreate vmdk descriptor file

Below are the steps to recreate a missing text descriptor file for a virtual disk

Important points:

1. Make sure u backup the virtual machine configuration file
2. Make sure u have last successful backup for your virtual machine.

Steps to follow:

1. Login to ESX/ESXi server using putty session

2. Switch to virtual machine directory as show below

#cd /vmfs/volumes/<datastore name>/<virtualmachine folder>

3. list the vmdk files and check whether the text descriptor file is present or not

#ls -l *.vmdk


Pre-requisites:

4.  In order to re-create the missing text descriptor file, we should first know the scsi controller type which was being used by the virutal disk. Below command helps you to get that information

#less *.vmx | grep -i virtualdev
scsi0.virtualdev = "lsilogic"

5. Next u need to have the exact size of the virtual disk. Below command will do that for you. Copy the value as shown in the output

#ls -ll *-flat.vmdk

6. vmkfstools command will help you to recreate a missing text descriptor file.  options used are (CAD)

#vmkfstools -c <size value> -a lsilogic -d thin temp.vmdk

c - create; a - scsi controller type; d - disk type (thin or thick)

7. list the vmdk files and check whether the new descriptor file named temp.vmdk was created or not. Note that 2 files will be created text descriptor file and its associated flat file

#ls -ll *.vmdk

temp.vmdk
temp-flat.vmdk


8. rename the newly created descriptor file to your servername as shown below:

#mv temp.vmdk servername.vmdk

9. Note that your servername.vmdk file is still pointing to temp-flat.vmdk file. So edit the servername.vmdk file and point it to servername-flat.vmdk file as shown below.

#vi servername.vmdk

in extent description section change the file name

Also note that if your disk is thick provisioned then remove the line "ddb.thinprovisioned" = 1 at the last and then save the file

10. Check all the steps are correctly performed and then power on the virtual machine. 

How to convert a RDM disk from Physical Compatibility mode to Virtual Compatibility mode

Purpose

This article provides steps to switch a Raw Data Mapping (RDM) between physical and virtual compatibility modes without data loss.

VMware KB - 1006599

Resolution

To change an RDM from physical to virtual compatibility mode:

Note: VMware recommends that you backup your configuration before performing these steps.

Step 1: Power off the virtual machine.
Step 2: Right-click the virtual machine and click Edit Settings.
Step 3: Note the SCSI device that the RDM is using (for example, SCSI0:5).
Step 4: Remove the RDM hard disk from the virtual machine, ensuring that the Delete from Disk option is selected, and then click OK.

Note: Unlike VMDK files, the Delete from Disk option removes only the RDM pointer files. Data on the RDM remains intact.

Step 5: Right-click the virtual machine and click Edit Settings.
Step 6: Add the RDM back to the virtual machine as a new disk and select virtual compatibility mode. Ensure that you use the SCSI device that you noted in step 3.
Step 7: Power on the virtual machine.

Note: An RDM can also be changed from virtual compatibility mode to physical compatibility mode. To change from virtual to physical compatibility mode, ensure there are no snapshots and select physical compatibility mode when completing step 6.

How to collect IBM Dynamic System Analysis(DSA) logs for an ESXi server

It is possible to gather DSA data from an IBM server running ESXi without having to boot with a bootable CD or reboot the server at all.

From any machine, Windows or linux, you can run the latest release of the DSA tool, then reference the ESXi server using commandline parameters when running the DSA tool.

Step 1: Download the appropriate IBM DSA utility on any windows server that has connectivity to ESXi server.

Step 2: Open the command prompt and go to the directory where the DSA utility presents.

Step 3: Enter the below command to collect system information

#ibm_utl_dsa_dsyt85t-3.40_portable_windows_x86-64.exe --vmware-esxi  user:password@ip-address

Note: this will take some time to gather diagnostics logs and store it in C: drive.

How to consolidate snapshots in VMware ESXi 5.0

What is snapshot consolidation?

Snapshot consolidation is nothing but committing snapshots.

When snapshot consolidation is required ?

• The snapshot commit fails due to locked files. For details on how to release the lock on locked files
•  There is a temporary loss of communication between the vCenter Server and the ESXi/ESX host during snapshot commit. To refresh the connectivity, restart the ESXi/ESX host management agents.

 What happens when delete or delete all is iniatiated on snapshots?

When "delete" or "delete all" is iniated on snapshots, snapshot details are deleted from snapshot manager, then snapshot files well be consolidated and merged to another snapshot files or the virtual machine's parent disk.

What happens when snapshot consolidation fails?

If consolidation fails, there were no snapshot details in snapshot manager, but still the snapshot files exist in the datastore and cause the datastore to run out of disk space.

Note: The ESXi host that the virtual machine is registered on must be an ESXi 5.x host.

 

Checking if virtual machine consolidation is required

To check if virtual machine consolidation is required:

1. Select a vCenter Server host or a cluster and click the Virtual Machines tab.
2. Right-click the menu bar for any virtual machine column and click Needs Consolidation. The Needs Consolidation column appears.
    

A Yes status indicates that the snapshot files for the virtual machine should be consolidated and that the virtual machine's Tasks and Events tab shows a configuration problem.
A No status indicates that the files are OK.

Note: A Configuration Issue warning is also displayed in the Summary tab of the virtual machine indicating that virtual machine disk consolidation is needed.

Consolidating snapshots for a virtual machine

To consolidate snapshots:

1. To consolidate the snapshot files, right-click the virtual machine and click Snapshot > Consolidate.
2. Check the Need Consolidation column to verify that the task succeeded.
    
   If the task succeeded, the Configuration Issues message clears and the Needs Consolidation value is No.

Note: The consolidate option allows you to consolidate the snapshots when there are no snapshots shown in the Snapshot Manager, but does not fix the underlying issue that may have caused this to occur initially.

 

 

How to kill a Virtual Machine Process using CLI and ESXTOP

Sending signals on ESXi to power off the virtual machine

Warning: This procedure is potentially hazardous to the ESXi host. If you do not identify the appropriate process ID (PID) and kill the wrong process, it may have unexpected results. If you are not comfortable with the following procedure, file a support request with VMware Technical Support and note this Knowledge Base article ID (1014165) in the problem description.

In ESXi 3.5-5.x, you can use the kill command to send a signal to, and terminate, a running virtual machine process.

Step 1: On the ESXi console, enter Tech Support mode and log in as root.

Step 2: To determine if the virtual machine process is running on the ESXi host, run this command:

#ps | grep vmx

The output appears similar to:

7662 7662 vmx /bin/vmx
7667 7662 vmx /bin/vmx
7668 7662 mks:VirtualMachineName /bin/vmx
7669 7662 vcpu-0:VirtualMachineName /bin/vmx

Several rows are returned, one for each vmx process. Identify the parent vmx process for the target virtual machine. The first column contains the PID, and the second contains the parent's PID. Ensure you terminate only the parent process. The parent Process ID (PID) for each process is listed in the second column, identified in this example in bold. Take note of this number for use in the following steps.

Caution: Ensure that you identify the line specific only to the virtual machine you are attempting to repair. If you continue this process for a virtual machine other than the one in question, you can cause downtime for the other virtual machine.
Step  3: If the vmx process is listed, terminate the process using this command:

#kill ProcessID

Note: Wait 30 seconds and repeat step 2 to check for the process again.

Step 4: If it is not terminated, run this command:

#kill -9 ProcessID
Note: Wait 30 seconds and check for the process again.

Using esxtop to send a signal to, and kill, a running virtual machine process

Step 1: On the ESXi console, enter Tech Support mode and log in as root.
Sep 2: Run the esxtop utility using this command:

#esxtop

Step 3: Press c to switch to the CPU resource utilization screen.
Step 4: Press Shift+v to limit the view to virtual machines. This may make it easier to find the Leader World ID in step 7.
Step 5: Press f to display the list of fields.
Step 6: Press c to add the column for the Leader World ID.
Step 7: Identify the target virtual machine by its Name and Leader World ID (LWID).
Step 8: Press k.
Step 9: At the World to kill prompt, type in the Leader World ID from step 6 and press Enter.
Step 10: Wait 30 seconds and validate that the process is not longer listed.

How to Power Off Virtual Machine from CLI in different versions of ESX/ESXi server

Using the ESXi 5.x esxcli command to power off a virtual machine

Step 1: Find the ESXi server on which the virtual machine is running
Step 2: Ensure remote tech support mode is enabled.
Step 3: Enable ssh service to access command line interface

Click on ESXi server --> Got to configuration tab--> click on security profile under software section --> click on properties of services section --> select ssh --> click on options and start the service

Step 4: Login to the ESXi server using putty. Provide username and password when prompted.
Step 5: Execute the below command to see the list of vms running under this ESXi server

#esxcli vm process list

Note: World ID, UUID, Display Name, and path to the .vmx configuration file will be displayed.

Step 6: Power Off the virtual machine that u want using the below command

#excli vm process kill --type=[soft,hard,force] --world-id=WorldNumber
notes: Three power-off methods are available. Soft is the most graceful, hard performs an immediate shutdown, and force should be used as a last resort.
Alternate power off command syntax is: esxcli vm process kill -t [soft,hard,force] -w WorldNumber
Step 7: Repeat Step 5 and validate that the virtual machine is no longer running.

Using the ESXi 4.x esxcli command to power off a virtual machine

Perform step 1 - step 4 from above procedure

Step 5: Get a list of running virtual machines, identified by World ID, UUID, Display Name, and path to the .vmx configuration file, using this command:

#esxcli vms vm list

Step 6: Power off one of the virtual machines from the list using this command:

#esxcli vms vm kill --type=[soft,hard,force] --world-id=WorldNumber

Using the ESXi command-line utility vim-cmd to power off the virtual machine

Step 1: On the ESXi console, enter Tech Support mode and log in as root. For more information, see Tech Support Mode for Emergency Support (1003677).

Step 2: Get a list of all registered virtual machines, identified by their VMID, Display Name, and path to the .vmx configuration file, using this command:

#vim-cmd vmsvc/getallvms
To get the current state of a virtual machine:

#vim-cmd vmsvc/power.getstate VMID

Step 3: Shutdown the virtual machine using the VMID found in Step 2 and run:

#vim-cmd vmsvc/power.shutdown VMID

Note: If the virtual machine fails to shut down, use this command:

#vim-cmd vmsvc/power.off VMID

 

Setting the number of cores per CPU in a virtual machine

This situation occurs when u add 8 vCPU's to your Windows 2008 Standard 64 Bit Virtual machine, but inside the guest operation system u will see only as 4 CPU's.

Reason:

Some operating system SKUs are hard-limited to run on a fixed number of CPUs. For example, Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition is limited to run on up to 4 CPUs. If you install this operating system on an 8-socket physical box, it runs on only 4 of the CPUs. The operating system takes advantage of multi-core CPUs so if your CPUs are dual core, Windows Server 2003 SE runs on up to 8 cores, and if you have quad-core CPUs, it runs on up to 16 cores, and so on.

 

Virtual CPUs (vCPU) in VMware virtual machines appear to the operating system as single core CPUs. So, just like in the example above, if you create a virtual machine with 8 vCPUs (which you can do with vSphere) the operating system sees 8 single core CPUs. If the operating system is Windows 2003 SE (limited to 4 CPUs) it only runs on 4 vCPUs.

Note: Remember that 1 vCPU maps onto a physical core not a physical CPU, so the virtual machine is actually getting to run on 4 cores.

 

 

This new setting, which you can add to the virtual machine configuration ( .vmx) file, lets you set the number of cores per virtual socket in the virtual machine.

To implement this feature:

1. Power off the virtual machine.
2. Right-click on the virtual machine and click Edit Settings.
3. Click Hardware and select CPUs.
4. Choose the number of virtual processors.
5. Click the Options tab.
6. Click General, in the Advanced options section.
7. Click Configuration Parameters.
8. Include cpuid.coresPerSocket in the Name column.
9. Enter a value (try 2, 4, or 8) in the Value column.
   Notes: Ensure that the number of vCPUs is divisible by the number of cpuid.coresPerSocket in the virtual machine. That is, when you divide the number of vCPUs by the number of cpuid.coresPerSocket , it must return an integer value. For example, if your virtual machine is created with 8 vCPUs, coresPerSocket can only be 1, 2, 4, or 8.
   
   The virtual machine now appears to the operating system as having multi-core CPUs with the number of cores per CPU given by the value that you provided in step 9.
   
10. Click OK
11. For example:
    

    Using 4 vCPU
    Configuration you want			Settings needed for this configuration
    Number of sockets	Number of cores per socket	Total cores	Set vCPU to:	Set cpuid.coresPerSocket/sockets to:
    1	4	4	4	4
    2	2	4	4	2
    Using 8 vCPU
    Configuration you want			Settings needed for this configuration
    Number of sockets	Number of cores per socket	Total cores	Set vCPU to:	Set cpuid.coresPerSocket/sockets to:
    1	8	8	8	8
    2	4	8	8	4
    4	2	8	8	2

     

 

How to uninstall vCenter Server Agent from ESX/ESXi host

ESX

• SSH into the host
  • Stop the vCenter agent process.  –>service vmware-vpxa stop
    • This also sometimes completed right away, and other times, just took more time than it should have.
  • Stop the hostd process.  –> service mgmt-vmware stop
    • At this point, typically the host would finally disconnect from vCenter, if it hadn’t already completed the disconnect process issued earlier.
  • Delete the user account vCenter uses to communicate with the host.  –> userdel vpxuser
  • Find all of the vCenter and HA processes.  –> rpm -qa |grep -iE ‘vpx|aam’
  • Delete the RPM’s found earlier –> rpm -e
  • Start the hostd process. –> service mgmt-vware start
• Now that’s all done.  Go back into vCenter and reconnect the host.

ESXi

ESXi is a slightly different beast.  Since it doesn’t use a Red Hat based service console, there are no RPM’s to remove as was done above.  To remove the agents from ESXi:

• SSH into the host
  • Delete the user account vCenter uses to communicate with the host.  –> userdel vpxuser
  • Move into the uninstaller directory –> cd to /opt/vmware/uninstallers
  • Remove the HA/aam agent –> ./VMware-aam-ha-uninstall.sh to
  • Remove the vCenter agent –> ./VMware-vpxa-uninstall.sh to
• Now that’s all done.  Go back into vCenter and reconnect the host

In ESXi 4 how to create local user account and allow them to login as Root User

Please follow the below steps to Create Local Users in  ESXi 4.1

Step 1:  Login to the ESXi Server using Remote Tech Support with root user credentials
Step 2: Create a local user with the below command

# useradd rajas

Step 3: By default local user account created will not be presented shell access. Hence change the shell using below commands

#usermod -s /bin/ash <username>
#usermod -s /bin/ash rajas

Step 4: By default home directory for local users will not be created. Please create a home directory for user using below commands.

#mkdir -p /home/<username>
#mkdir -p /home/rajas

Step 5: change the ownership of the home directory as below

#chown rajas /home/rajas

Step 6: U can login with rajas account credentials but need to switch over to root user to perform special functions

Step 7: How to directly acquire root access while login with local user credentials

#vi /etc/passwd

dcui:x:100:100:DCUI User:/:/sbin/nologin
vpxuser:x:500:100:VMware VirtualCenter administration account:/:/sbin/nologin
rajas:x:5001:100:ESXi User:/home/rajas:/bin/ash

change the last line as below
rajas:x:5001:100:ESXi User:/:/bin/ash

Step 8: Try login with rajas credentials and execute pwd command to see the path
 

how to configure virtual switch using command line interface

Recently i added a DvSwitch and added 3 of my hosts to the dvswitch. But unfortunately i lost network connectivity to the ESX hosts.

Did following steps to revert back the changes

Both the physical nics vmnic0 and vmnic1 are mapped to dvswitch.

Step 1: Removed vmnic0 and vmnic1 from the dvswitch
 Syntax: esxcfg-vswitch -Q vmnic0 -V <port id> <portgroup name>

#esxcfg-vswitch -Q vmnic0 -V 216 "AMB 01"
#esxcfg-vswitch -Q vmnic1 -V 217 "AMB 01"

Vmkernel interface also mapped to dvswitch

Step 2:  Remove vmkernel interface from dvswitch

Syntax: # esxcfg-vmknic -d -s <DVswitchname> -v <virtual_port_ID>

#esxcfg-vmknic -d -s "AMB 01" -v 100

Step 3: Mapped vmnic0 to vswitch0

#esxcfg-vswitch -A vmnic0 vSwitch0
#esxcfg-vswitch -A vmnic1 vSwitch1

Step 4: Added vmkernel port to standard switch 


Syntax:#esxcfg-vmknic -a -i <IP Address> -n <netmask> <Portgrp name>


#esxcfg-vmknic -a -i 10.2.1.211 -n 255.255.255.0 "Management Network"


Step 5: How to remove vmkernel port from portgroup 


#esxcfg-vmknic -d "VM Network"



http://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?language=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=1000266

http://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?language=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=1008127

How to convert a thick provisioned disk to thin provisioned disk

If you created a virtual machine with Thick disks and want to convert it to thin provisioned disk please follow the below steps

Step 1 : Power off the virtual machine
Step 2 : Using putty login to the ESX/ESXi server console
Step 3 : Go the virtual machine directory where the virtual machine files are stored
Step 4 : Backup the virtual machine configuration file
Step 5 : Using vmkfstools command convert the thick disk to thin disk

# vmkfstools -i <thickdisk.vmdk> -d thin <newname.vmdk>

Once executed thick disk will be cloned to thin disk. After this process completed u must see two disk created with the newname ie (newname.vmdk and newname-flat.vmdk)

Step 6 : Open the virtual machine configuration file using vi editor
Step 7 : Locate for the old vmdk file name in virtual machine configuration file and replace it with new vmdk file
Step 8 : Make sure u are able to power on the virtual machine without any issues.
Step 9 : Then delete the old vmdk files

How to rename a Virtual Machine and its Files

Renaming virtual machine files in-place using the console

Warning: Before proceeding, ensure that:

• The virtual machine has a current backup and that it has been powered down.
• The virtual machine does not have snapshots or virtual disks shared with other virtual machines. 

 

To manually rename the virtual machine's files:

1. Log in to VMware vSphere Client.
2. Locate the virtual machine in your host inventory.
3. Power down the virtual machine.
4. Right-click on the virtual machine and click Remove from inventory.
5. Open a console to the ESX or ESXi host
6. Navigate to the directory containing the virtual machine. For example: cd /vmfs/volumes/DatastoreName/originalname/.
7. Rename the virtual disk (VMDK) files using the vmkfstools -E command.                                                        # vmkfstools -E "originalname.vmdk" "newname.vmdk"
8. Copy the virtual machine configuration file (.vmx) using the command:
   # cp "originalname.vmx" "newname.vmx"
   
9. Open the file new virtual machine configuration (for example, newname.vmx) in a text editor. For more information, see Editing configuration files in VMware ESX (1017022).
   
   For example:
   
   # vi "newname.vmx"
   
10.  Within the configuration file, modify all old instances of the virtual machine's file names to the new file names. There should be at least these to adjust:
    nvram = "newname.nvram"
    displayName = "newname"
    extendedConfigFile = "newname.vmxf"
    scsi0:0.fileName = "newname.vmdk"[...]
    migrate.hostlog = "./newname-UUID.hlog"
    Repeat this process for each virtual machine disk. For example:
    scsi0:1.fileName = "newname_1.vmdk"
    scsi0:2.fileName = "newname_2.vmdk"
    Correct the VMkernel swap file reference. For example:
    sched.swap.derivedName = "/vmfs/volumes/DatastoreUUID/newname/newname-UUID.vswp
    Note: Be sure to rename both the .vswp file and the directory name for the swap file, bolded above.
    
11. Correct any other remaining lines referencing the original path or file names.
12. Save the file and exit the editor.
13. Rename all the remaining files, except for the.vmxconfiguration file, to the new names desired.
    
    For example:
    # mv "originalname.nvram" "newname.nvram"
    
14. Change directory to the parent directory:
    # cd ..
    
    
15. Rename the directory for the virtual machine:
    # mv "originalname" "newname"
    
16. Using VMware vSphere Client, browse the datastore and navigate to the renamed virtual machine directory
17. Right-click on the virtual machine's new configuration file (for example, newname.vmx) and choose Add to inventory.
    
    Alternatively, you can use this command to inventory the virtual machine:
    # vmware-cmd -s register "/vmfs/volumes/DatastoreName/newname/newname.vmx"
18. 
    
19. Power on the virtual machine.
    
20. A question for the virtual machine displays in the Summary tab during power-on. Review the question by:
    • Clicking the Summary tab
    • Right-clicking the virtual machine in your inventory and selecting Answer question.
      
      When prompted, select I moved it, then click OK.
      
      Warning: Selecting I Copied It results in a change of the virtual machine's UUID and MAC address, which may have detrimental effects on guest applications that are sensitive toward MAC address changes, and virtual machine backups that rely on UUIDs.
    
    
21. Optionally, delete the original virtual machine configuration file.
    
    For example:
    # rm /vmfs/volumes/DatastoreName/newname/originalname.vmx

How to Enable syslog on ESX

All ESX/ESXi hosts run a syslog service (syslogd) which logs messages from the VMkernel and other system components to a file. 

 

Note: In ESX, you must modify the remote host option in the /etc/syslog.conf file. The rempte host options are:

• Log file path – Specifies a datastore path to the file where syslogd logs all messages.
• Remote host – Specifies a remote host to which syslog messages are forwarded. To receive the forwarded syslog messages, your remote host must have a syslog service installed.
• Remote port – Specifies the port used by the remote host to receive syslog messages.
   
  Resolution:
   
  To log events from an ESX host to a remote syslog server:

  1. Log in to the ESX host as root using an SSH client.
  2. Open the /etc/syslog.conf file using a text editor.
  3. Add this entry at the end of the file:
     *.*     @<IP_address_of_syslog-server>
     For example:
     *.*     @192.1.68.1
     
  4. Restart the syslog daemon using the command:
     service syslog restart
     
  5. Run this command to check if the ESX firewall has been opened for the syslog traffic:
     esxcfg-firewall -q|grep syslog
     If the firewall is open, you see an output similar to:
     syslog              : port 514 udp.out
     If the firewall is closed, you do not see any output.
     
  6. To open the firewall on the ESX host for syslog traffic and to refresh the firewall, run this command:
     esxcfg-firewall -o 514,udp,out,syslog && esxcfg-firewall -l

   

How to upgrade from ESX 3.5 to ESX 4.1

U cannot upgrade an ESX server From ESX to ESXi

In order to upgrade an ESX server from Version 3.5 to Version 4.1, u need to perform 2 steps to achieve this.

Step 1: Upgrade the ESX Server from Version 3.5 to ESX 4.0 then
Step 2: Upgrade the ESX Server from Version 4.0 to ESX4.1

For First Step we can use VMware Host Update Utility which comes with VMware Vsphere Client 4.0

Pre-requisites:

VMware Vsphere Client 4.0 with Host Update Utility
VMware Vsphere ESX 4.0 ISO image

Action Steps:

1. Install VMware Vsphere Client 4.0 on Vcenter server or any windows server that have access to your ESX server. While installing please check the vmware host update utility check box to install the same.

2. Store the ESX 4.0 ISO image on Vcenter server or any windows server.

3. Shutdown or move the virtual machines running on that ESX host to another ESX host.

4. Bring the ESX server to maintenance mode

5. Launch the VMware Host Update Utility --> click on Add new Host --> enter the IP address or domain name --> Click on Upgrade Host  --> Browse the ISO image then click on Next -->Accept the License Agreement --> Provide the credentials of the server to upload the iso image to ESX Server -->

6. Click on Finish to upgrade the Server

How to Configure ILO Network Settings for Blade Servers in HP OA

In order to take the blade server in remote u need to configure ILO network configuration settings. Then by using that ip address u can reboot, shutdown, install operating systems

How to Configure ILO Network Settings for Blade Servers

Step1: In HP Onboard Administrator console, Front view of the server will be displayed in right hand side.  Using which note down the Device Bay number in which Blade servers were present

Step2: On the Left Panel find the "Enclosure Settings" tree menu

Step3: Expand the tree Enclosure Settings and click on "Enclosure Bay IP Addressing"

Step4: In the corresponding Bay Number enter the IP Address, Netmask, Gateway, Domain and DNS details.

Step5:  Once finish with entering the details select the checkbox on each Device Bay and click on Apply

Step6: Click on Device Bays and see whether the IP details are displaying.

How to Configure Management Settings in HP BladeSystem Onboard Administrator

Once new blade chasis has been set up. U need to configure management network to connect from remote place for installating Operating Systems and Managing Servers. Lets see

How to configure Management Network Setting for the Blade Enclosure

Step1: In the Left panel locate for "Enclosure Settings" menu
Step2: Expand the Tree "Enclosure Settings"
Step3: If u are going to assign the network details statically, then click on IPV4 link and enter the IP Address, Netmask, gateway, Primary and Secondary DNS.
Step4: Click on NIC Options link and select autonegotiate
Step5: Then click on Apply or Save button to save the network configuration Settings.

How to kill cold vm migration process

I have cold migrated a virtual machine from one ESX host to another ESX host. Due to network connectivity the migration process was interrupted and cancelled. So to delete the copied files in destination ESX host i logged in to the Destination ESX host and tried deleting the copied files but i got

"Device or Resource is Busy"

Solution:

Restart the "vpxa" and "hostd" process
Then deleted the copied files.

Unable to connect to the MKS: Failed to connect to server

# Configure your firewall to allow communications between the ESX/ESXi host and the workstation running vSphere Client using port 903. For more information, see Testing port connectivity with Telnet (1003487).

If port 903 is not open or cannot be opened in your environment, enable the vmauthd proxy. This forces remote console communication to be sent on port 902 on the Service Console, instead of 903.

Note: By enabling this setting there may be degradation in the performance under heavy usage while communicating to the ESX host service console.

To enable the proxy:

1. Log in to the ESX host's service console as root.
2. Open /etc/vmware/config using a text editor.
3. Add this line to the file:
   
   vmauthd.server.alwaysProxy = "TRUE"
   
   
4. In ESX, run this command to restart xinetd:
   
   service xinetd restart