Hi guys,
Quick query, VMware support caught a bug with a customer
https://support.hpe.com/hpesc/public/docDisplay?docId=emr_na-a00073323en_us
Their hosts werent upgraded
Upgrade path is from ESXi 6.5 EP 11 up to ESXi 6.5 EP 20
https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/2143832?lang=en_us)
just looking to confirm best way to do this?
Put each host (all 3 have same firmware at present) into maintenance and use VMware Update Manager?
I have seen it work automatically, I'm not sure where to get the files from VMware or HPE?
Any caveats I need to be aware of, did this a few years for 5.5 and 6.0 just wanted to check in for 6.5
Thanks in advance
In order to upgrade your HPE servers' firmware, you can download Service Pack for Proliant (SPP) from HPE Website:
https://support.hpe.com/hpsc/swd/public/detail?swItemId=MTX_8ccab9e4b99047138c2e608f97
For downloading Patches you can use this link:
https://my.vmware.com/group/vmware/patch
Lastly, with your reported bug it seems updating via VUM might be unsuccessful. Hence, you may need to patch the hosts manually.
You can download the latest custom image for HPE from https://my.vmware.com. Once you select the desired version from the downloads page ex: 6.5 go to custom ISO.
Also refer the below links to ensure your HPE ESXi image and Firmware are in alignment.
https://vibsdepot.hpe.com/hpq/recipes/HPE-VMware-Recipe.pdf
http://vibsdepot.hpe.com/mapping/SPP-HPE_Custom-Image-vibsdepot-mapping-Gen9-later.pdf
The upgrade can be performed using VUM, however you might need to delete the AMS file from the hosts first.
BTW, Gen9 does support ESXi 6.7, you can also consider moving your environment to 6.7. This will need more work though if your VCSA is still on 6.5 and if there are additional VMware components interoperating (NSX, etc).