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RichBurns
Contributor
Contributor

Not able to get USB pass through setup on ESXi 5.5 host.

I am trying to get USB pass through setup on an ESXi5.5 host. I have the USB drive connected to a server, and can see it when I go to the Removable Devices drop down menu on the Remote Console window. However when I Choose the option "Connect (Disconnect from Host) to enable it to be seen on the VM, it fails.

The VM is a Windows 2008 R2 server. It is a USB 3.0 device. I have tried it with both USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 controllers installed on the VM. When I added the USB 3.0 controller to the VM there is the warning "This controller is not supported for this guest operating system". I have also tried on a Windows 2012 Server with both USB 2.0 and 3.0 controllers installed on it. When I added the USB3.0 controller to the Windows 2012 server I did not get the waring about it not being supported.

All of these permutations have  failed to get the USB to connect properly. "Error connecting remote USB device: The device "Apricorn USB Mass Storage Device" disconnected: a connection error offered." is the message I get. Can someone please confirm for me that the issue is due to an compatibility issue between the USB drive and either the version of ESXi and/or the version of Windows on the server?

I have attached screen shots of the Error that I got when I attempt the attach, as well as screen shots of the properties of the USB and the warning when the USB3.0 controller is attached to the Windows 2008 server.

I hope someone can please confirm my suspicion that this is a compatibility issue.

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ThompsG
Virtuoso
Virtuoso

Hi RichBurns and welcome!

Sorry but can you confirm the ESXi build number? Full support not available until 5.5U3 so want to make sure this is the version you are running at least.

Kind regards.

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Raj1988
Enthusiast
Enthusiast

Is the USB in the supported list below. I do not see it listed.

VMware Knowledge Base

VMware Knowledge Base

If the ESXi is connected to a VC 6.0 or later.

Add USB Devices from a Client Computer to a Virtual Machine in the vSphere Web Client

  1. In the vSphere Web Client, navigate to a virtual machine.
  2. Launch the VMware Remote Console application.
  3. In the VMware Remote Console toolbar, click VMRC > Removable Devices and find the USB device.
  4. Click Connect (Disconnect from menu).

Regards,

AJ

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