Problems upgrading ESX 2.5.3 to ESX 3.5

[CMCC]

I tried an upgrade from ESX 2.5.3 build 39683 to ESX 3.5. I made fresh ESX 3.5 and VC 2.5 installations. I attached the new host and an ESX 2.5.3 host to the VC, and tried to attached another 2.5.3 host with the same configuration, but this time there was an error: "Connection failed for 'hostname': Could not connect to host" and I read in vpxa.log "Could not find any hardware version info for VM ..."

I checked the vmware-vpxa service and it was started, i restarted the server several times, but I couldn't attached it. I think that the vpxuser needed to be managed by the VC can't be created or accessed.

The other problem I had is that when I tried a cold VM migration, from the attached ESX 2.5.3 host to the new ESX 3.5 host as the Upgrade Manual says, there's an error: "Unabled to access the virtual machine configuration: unable to access file []/home/vmware", so it's unabled to relocate the VMs configuration files.

The weird thing is that the /home/vmware is empty, and the vmx files are in another path, not where it seems to be looking for.

So, if I can't migrate the VM's configuration files to the new host, I can't go on with the upgrade process.

I'm open to advices.

Thanks

Best Regards

[markus_herbert]

Have you tried this Link

http://kb.vmware.com/kb/4478241

to check, if the correct version of the vpxa client was installed by vcenter to your esx host?

Maybe you can install the agent manually as described in the KB-Article.

On your esx 3.x hosts, check if /tmp/vmware-root exists.

[VMKR9 · Accepted solution]

In terms of the virtual machine problem you could manually copy the vmdk files to a vmfs 3 datastore and then create a new VM and point it to the existing vmdk files and then right click on it and upgrade virtual hardware, you will then be able to power on and update the vm tools

[CMCC]

Hi, thanks for your answers.

I tried this last answer and it works.

About the server conection, I had to call support because it was a critical situation.

Thanks again.

Regards.