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oliver_g
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Need to upgrade esxi host(s) from ver. 6.0 to 6.7 (or latest)

Greetings Forum Members,

I need to upgrade serveral vmware hypervisor hosts from ver. 6.0 + to ver. 6.7 - to keep things current.

All of the hosts are the same physical servers - HP Proliant DL380 Gen8.

Each host has from a few (3 or 4 running) vm's to about 8 or 9 vms. We do not have vMotion.

We boot the hosts from iLo, using an iso file - in this case ver. 6.0xxx

Will upgrading alter the host's configuration in any way? I do plan to do a test on a host

with minimal vm's, and will backup the config of the host using PowerCli or the esxi ssh command line.

Are there any pitfalls in this process? What do I need to do before upgrade, etc.

Thanks for a great product.

ewholz/ewh

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a_p_
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All of the hosts are the same physical servers - HP Proliant DL380 Gen8.

ESXi 6.7 is not supported on these servers. Depending on the model, the maximum version is ESXi 6.5 U2 (for the DL380e Gen8 it's ESXi 6.0U3)

see VMware Compatibility Guide - System Search

We boot the hosts from iLo, using an iso file - in this case ver. 6.0xxx

Can you please clarify this? Is ESXi installed on disks, or on an USB/SD device?

Will upgrading alter the host's configuration in any way?

If you are going to use the correct update image (HPE PreGen9 in this case), you shouldn't have any issues, assuming that you are not using any non-HPE hardware components in the host.

As a side note. Unless already done, consider to upgrade the firmware on the hosts too. It's basically the latest HPE Gen8 SPP + the latest BIOS, and iLO firmware.

André

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daphnissov
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We boot the hosts from iLo, using an iso file - in this case ver. 6.0xxx

Hang on. You boot...from the ESXi installation media rather than persisting an install to some form of media??

a_p_
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All of the hosts are the same physical servers - HP Proliant DL380 Gen8.

ESXi 6.7 is not supported on these servers. Depending on the model, the maximum version is ESXi 6.5 U2 (for the DL380e Gen8 it's ESXi 6.0U3)

see VMware Compatibility Guide - System Search

We boot the hosts from iLo, using an iso file - in this case ver. 6.0xxx

Can you please clarify this? Is ESXi installed on disks, or on an USB/SD device?

Will upgrading alter the host's configuration in any way?

If you are going to use the correct update image (HPE PreGen9 in this case), you shouldn't have any issues, assuming that you are not using any non-HPE hardware components in the host.

As a side note. Unless already done, consider to upgrade the firmware on the hosts too. It's basically the latest HPE Gen8 SPP + the latest BIOS, and iLO firmware.

André

oliver_g
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Hello daphnissov,

I appreciate the reply.

I will double check - the iso is most likely the equivalent of using a USB

stick to boot up.

Thanks So Much,

oliver G

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oliver_g
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Hello AP,

This is good info for sure. I was told that the hardware was approaching "legacy" or is "legacy".

So I would not consider attempting to go to 6.7! Ha:) I will take a look at the version you suggest.

We plan to replace the hardware at some point - but there may be budget concerns.

I have more homework to do.  the exact model is HP ProLiant DL380p, I will check the updates vs. server model to verify

Thanks So Much

Oliver G -

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daphnissov
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I will double check - the iso is most likely the equivalent of using a USB

stick to boot up.

An ISO file is *not* the equivalent of a USB flash media. Changes cannot be persisted to an ISO file. If this is truly what you're doing, you will need to re-install ESXi properly on some media where its settings can be persisted.

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oliver_g
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Hello daphnissov,

You are correct. I have checked the server, and it seems it boots from a hard disk not a USB stick or ISO with the

esxi system on it.

Thanks for the information.

Oliver G

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