vCenter 6.5 Migration to 6.7

[bheusmann]

I'm trying to migrate my vCenter 6.5 appliance to a new vCenter 6.7 using the gui installation wizard. I've tried it multiple times, multiple ways, every time it's failing on Stage 2 Setting up the network. I've attached the error message. I don't understand why it's trying to obtain a DHCP address during this process. I've specified static for all the configuration options.

My environment consists of 2 ESXi 6.5 hosts, with vCenter 6.5 Datacenter. I have them configured in a HA cluster, but no DRS or anything else. Pretty straight forward. All vDS networking.

I can deploy the 6.7 vCenter appliance with no issues to one of the hosts. It just keeps failing during migration efforts. Thanks for any assistance in pointing me in the right direction.

-BH

[a_p_]

Just to rule that out. You wrote "I'm trying to migrate ...". The option to go from vCSA 6.5 to vCSA 6.7 is not a migration, but an Upgrade. Can you confirm that you've selected the correct option in the wizard?

In order to help, we need more details, i.e. the exact steps.

André

[bheusmann]

Sorry, yes. I've selected upgrade in the wizard. I have a vCenter 6.5 appliance I'm trying to upgrade to vCenter 6.7.

[bheusmann]

Anyone have any insight? I'd really like to get past why after creating and upgrading the appliance successfully it's trying to obtain a DHCP address to continue?

-BH

[daphnissov]

Can you show screenshots of your upgrade process that includes the values you're supplying?

[IRIX201110141]

You are aware that you need a temporary IP address for the upgrade? The process spins up a new VM which comes active with the temporary IP and than starting to copy all stuff from the existing VCSA. After copying it will re-use the original IP/FQHN and shutdown the old VCSA.

Regards,

Joerg

[bheusmann]

Here are the screenshots of the entire process. I've only named them with numbers indicating the steps. I have used IP addresses because that seems to work the best. I have also connected to the host vCenter as well as the host VM directly rather than the vCenter for the migration. I have tired it both ways, same result. I have not tried assigning it a DHCP address during upgrade. When the error occurs and I load the console to the new 6.7 vCenter, it still has the static 10.0.10.225 IP address assigned and receives a message that the appliance cannot be upgrade and must be redeployed.

I do not have DRS enabled. I do have a cluster with 2 vSphere hosts, although I am only using one host at the moment and the other one is shut down. I have considered removing the cluster. In addition I have added a standard vSwitch since you cannot upgrade the vCenter using VDS.

-BH

[bheusmann]

Attach.

[bheusmann]

Attach.

[bheusmann]

Attach.

[bheusmann]

Attach.

[bheusmann]

Yes, I'm aware and I have assigned it a temporary static IP. The process works, migrates data to the new vCenter, but when it shuts down the original appliance I'm assuming to take the IP assigned to the old vCenter, it fails and I received message regarding DHCP unavailable.

-BH

[daphnissov]

So did you install the source vCSA using an IP address instead of the name? When addressing vCenter, you always need to use FQDN and not IP addresses. If you installed your vCenter with an IP in place of a FQDN, this may be the reason for the failure. Otherwise, try the migration again using the FQDN and not IP.

[bheusmann]

I did install the vCenter with FQDN originally. Any way I try and do it connecting to FQDN, it fails. I have specified the source vCenter as the host, the source vSphere as the host, the destination vSphere host as the destination. It never gets past the initialization point. It created the new VM for the appliance and immediately fails every which way.

-BH

[daphnissov]

If you can't connect to it using FQDN, you've got a DNS problem somewhere. Check to ensure you have forward and reverse lookups available, that your DNS server is pointed to the correct internal location, and that the DNS server you specify for the temp appliance can do the same.

[bheusmann]

I can connect to all sources via FQDN. I replace all the IP's in the screenshot with the FQDN of the source vCenter, host vSphere, and destination vCenter. It got just as far as with the IP's, during the process to, I'm assuming switch the source vCenter to a DHCP address and configure the destination with the original IP and FQDN, it shuts down the source, and then errors out with the DHCP unavailable message. I have tried this a hundred different ways. Continues to fail with IP or FQDN at the point where I believe the 2 appliances are ready to swap roles and IP addresses.

-BH