Syntax for an upgrade CMD to ignore CPU requirements

[Homdax]

Trying to upgrade a 7.02A with the available 7.03C patch.

First is the usual cmd line fiddle to get the correct profile and what not, but then the upgrade fails on a CPU-SUPPORT-ERROR message.

Yeas, the CPU is not supported as-is.  it is a Intel Xeon X5690 - AT80614005913AB / BX80614X5690 Six-Core 64-bit processor
https://www.cpu-world.com/CPUs/Xeon/Intel-Xeon%20X5690%20-%20AT80614005913AB%20(BX80614X5690).html and it works fine for me and everything else, and I installed ESXi originally using the allowLegacyCPU=true option. Upgrade CPU is not an option.

I need to update with VMware-ESXi-7.0U3c-19193900-depot using cmd 

esxcli software profile update -d “/vmfs/volumes/sv1/VMware-ESXi-7.0U3-19193900-depot.zip” -p ESXi-7.0U3-19193900-standard

But it won't happen due to the cpu warning.

How can I circumvent this?

[Homdax]

No one with the knowledge to answer this?

[Homdax]

Bleh... after trying cold boot with ISO and using SHIFT + O to enter "AllowLegacyCPU" it kinda updated itself a bit out of control... 

[mwbreur]

Hello, i ran into the same problem and apparently you can do it like this : 

(still trying this myself it's currently running.... hopefully it works)

esxcli software profile update -d https://hostupdate.vmware.com/software/VUM/PRODUCTION/main/vmw-depot-index.xml -p ESXi-7.0U3d-19482537-standard --no-hardware-warning

esxcli software profile update -p ESXi-7.0U3d-19482537-standard \
-d https://hostupdate.vmware.com/software/VUM/PRODUCTION/main/vmw-depot-index.xml --no-hardware-warning

It should complete the process and then you have to reboot, however for me it still gives the warning and can't complete the process while i did read it works for others. The switch is mentioned in the Cmd options.

Cmd options:
--allow-downgrades If this option is specified, then the VIBs from the image profile which update, downgrade, or are new to the host will be installed. If the option is not specified, then the VIBs which update or are new to the host
will be installed.
-d|--depot=[ <str> ... ]
Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. (required)
--dry-run Performs a dry-run only. Report the VIB-level operations that would be performed, but do not change anything in the system.
-f|--force Bypasses checks for package dependencies, conflicts, obsolescence, and acceptance levels. Really not recommended unless you know what you are doing. Use of this option will result in a warning being displayed in
vSphere Web Client. Use this option only when instructed to do so by VMware Technical Support.
--maintenance-mode Pretends that maintenance mode is in effect. Otherwise, installation will stop for live installs that require maintenance mode. This flag has no effect for reboot required remediations.
--no-hardware-warning Allows the transaction to proceed when hardware precheck returns a warning. A hardware error will continue to be shown with this option. Use of this option may result in device not functioning normally.
--no-live-install Forces an install to /altbootbank even if the VIBs are eligible for live installation or removal. Will cause installation to be skipped on PXE-booted hosts.
--no-sig-check Bypasses acceptance level verification, including signing. Use of this option poses a large security risk and will result in a SECURITY ALERT warning being displayed in vSphere Web Client.
-p|--profile=<str> Specifies the name of the image profile to update the host with. (required)
--proxy=<str> Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port.

[Homdax]

@mwbreur "(still trying this myself it's currently running.... hopefully it works)"

So did it work?

[GodfatherX64]

the update will apply if allowLegacyCPU=true is present in the following files

Edit /bootbank/boot.cfg & /altbootbank/boot.cfg

and add allowLegacyCPU=true , on kernelopt line

reboot and apply the update again and it will pass

[fabienfim]

hi ! 🙂

I don't find these two folders ?

"Edit /bootbank/boot.cfg & /altbootbank/boot.cfg

and add allowLegacyCPU=true , on kernelopt line"

Into the Bundle ? I find them in the .iso but not into the bundle ?

Thank you very much

[Cabuzzi]

I realize this is an older post, but he means to edit these directly on each ESXi host. Log on via SSH and run the following commands to edit each instance of boot.cfg. I would recommend being at least somewhat comfortable editing with vi, or else you'll be banging on the keyboard (press i to edit, Esc when done editing, then press : to get the exit prompt, and type: wq followed by Enter to exit).

vi /bootbank/boot.cfg

vi /altbootbank/boot.cfg

In editing each boot.cfg with the above commands, append a space and allowLegacyCPU=true at the end of the kernelopt line. That line should look like this when finished: kernelopt=autopartition=false allowLegacyCPU=true

If you get into trouble with vi (easy to do), just hit escape at least once, enter the semicolon, and type q! + enter to discard changes and get out of the file without editing it.

[Homdax]

Update so no one think my issues did came without consequences.

I ended up scrapping ESXi. if updating a key software requires this amount of fiddling I rather not use it, since doing it in a simple way is obviously not a priority for the manufacturer.

I do no longer use it and have sold the servers. Also cancelled my WMUG sub.

Have not tried v8.