VSphere

This is the corrected follow-up to my earlier ESXi command-line upgrade articles. The shared public VMware host-update depot used in those examples is no longer valid. Broadcom now uses customer-specific authenticated download URLs, and its current standalone command-line procedure documents an offline depot ZIP with esxcli software profile update. The procedure and release information below were reviewed on August 25, 2026. Reopen the linked Broadcom articles during every change: depot authentication, entitlements, available profiles, release builds and support status can change. ...

As organizations adopt VMware Cloud Foundation 9.0, a common question comes up: what do I do with my existing vCenter 8.x environments? The good news is that VCF 9.0 supports backwards compatibility with 8.x vCenter instances. You can import them as workload domains directly from the VCF Operations console, bringing your legacy infrastructure under VCF management without rebuilding from scratch. In this post I will walk through the full import process (from prerequisites and networking requirements to NSX deployment and validation) so you know exactly what to expect before you hit the “Import” button. ...

VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) 9 brings a suite of powerful automation tools, and for many administrators, deploying the Operations Orchestrator (formerly vRO) as a standalone, external appliance provides greater flexibility and isolation. In this guide, I will walk you through the process of deploying VCF Operations Orchestrator 9 using the OVA method, followed by the necessary command-line configurations to get your authentication up and running. Prerequisites Before you begin, ensure you have the following: ...

When a vSphere admin places an ESXi host in vCenter maintenance mode, VCF Operations should automatically suppress host alerts for that object, without pausing metric collection, and then restore alerting when maintenance ends. Why this approach? In VCF 9, you can avoid alert noise during maintenance in two ways: Maintenance Schedules , pause both collection and alerts during a defined window (best for planned maintenance). Policy-based alert suppression (this post) , keep metrics flowing but disable host alert definitions while the host is in maintenance. This is done with a policy attached to a dynamic custom group keyed to the host’s Maintenance Mode property. Note on naming: In VCF 9, VCF Operations is the successor to Aria/vRealize Operations and is part of the unified Cloud Foundation experience. If you’re upgrading from Aria Operations, see Broadcom’s “Upgrade to VCF Operations 9.0.” ...

This historical lab procedure upgraded an ESXi 8 host to the ESX 9.0 GA profile, build 24755229, with esxcli. Review the VCF 9 platform release information and confirm that this standalone method is supported for your environment before continuing. Broadcom’s build-number table now lists later 9.0 releases and a separate 9.1 train. On August 25, 2026, those entries included 9.0.2.0100 build 25595025 and 9.1.0.0200 build 25557999. Neither is an automatic replacement target: use the approved VCF bill of materials, upgrade path, compatibility results and exact depot profile for the environment. ...

The Problem When trying to connect to a vCenter Server Appliance (VCSA) using WinSCP, many admins encounter the following error: Received too large (1433299822 B) SFTP packet. Max supported packet size is 1024000 B This occurs because the default shell used by the vCenter appliance (/bin/appliancesh) is not compatible with SFTP, which WinSCP attempts to use by default. The Solution To successfully connect to VCSA and transfer files using WinSCP, you need to: ...

Repeated ApiGwServicePrincipal expired-token warnings in apigw.log are a known vCenter Server 8.0 issue. Broadcom identifies a possible Security Token Service (STS) condition that causes an endless loop in the vsphere-ui service. The permanent resolution is to upgrade to vCenter Server 8.0 Update 3e or a later supported release. An earlier version of this article recommended changing the rsyslog imfile severity assigned to apigw.log. That does not stop the messages, reduce how often vCenter writes them, or correct the STS/UI loop. The procedure has been removed. ...

This historical lab procedure updated an ESXi 8 host to ESXi 8.0 Update 3b, build 24280767, with esxcli. Review the ESXi 8.0 U3b release notes and confirm compatibility before continuing. Broadcom’s build-number table now records later releases in the 8.0 Update 3 train, including Update 3k, build 25595708. The profile in this article remains the pinned historical target, not a current release recommendation. Prepare the Host and Enter Maintenance Mode Do not apply an image profile while the host is carrying workloads. Broadcom’s current esxcli patching procedure requires maintenance mode before esxcli software profile update. ...

With the release of vCenter 7 Update 1, VMware introduced the vCLS (vSphere Clustering Service). More information can be found here. Diagnosing the cpuid.mwait Error Looking at the error details it looks like it is looking for a feature called cpuid.mwait Reviewing the VMX file it seems like EVC is enabled on the vCLS VMs. I didn’t want to enable EVC on the whole cluster so I wanted to do it only on the specific VMs. ...

Introduction Logs play a pivotal role in the management and troubleshooting of IT environments. Aria for Logs (formerly known as vRealize Log Insight) provides powerful log management capabilities, enabling deep analytical insights and real-time monitoring of data from various sources, including vSphere. To ensure Aria for Logs effectively collects and analyzes log data, it requires specific permissions within your vCenter Server. This blog post will guide you through creating a custom role in vCenter tailored for the Aria for Logs service account. ...