Can´t manage ESX Host via Virtual Center 2.5

[chevitom]

Hi,

im using Virtual Infrastructure 2.5. I have a cluster with two hosts. Both with ESX Server 3.0.2 (52542). One of this host has the state "disconnected".

When I choose "Connect" I hand over the right credentials. In the next step I can see all the VM ´s that are hold by the affected Host. When I finish the process I get the following error message:

"Unable to acces the specified host. It either does not exist, the server software is not respondign, or there is a network problem"

When I open virtual Center with the IP-Adress of the affected host, instead of localhost to see everything, I can manage this Host. I checked these Ports from the Virtual Infrastructure Server to the Host via telnet succesfully: 902, 443, 80, 22.

I always connect to the Host via IP not via DNS Name. So it shouldn´t be a DNS problem.

Any help is welcome!

[SimonLong]

When adding the new hosts credentials, are you using its FQDN? or its IP address? if you are using the FQDN there could be a DNS issue in which case it might be with seeing if your VC server can see your Host by its FQDN.

Simon

[chevitom]

Hi SimonLong,

you were too fast . I just edited my post, that I´m only using the IP-Adress to connect. But I also checked the DNS. It´s working fine.

[SimonLong]

LOL sorry, i'll give it some more thought

[SimonLong]

Have you had a close look at the Logs?? might be worth looking there as they are oftern quite useful.

[espi3030]

Have you tried restarting your Virtual Center server? I have had similar issues with hosts and orphaned VM's and usually a VC server reboot clears them up. Might be an issue with the database.

Hope this helps!

[chevitom]

Hi ,

yes I have restarted the machine several times.

[daniel337]

I have this same annoying problem with several servers.

No chance to get them in my VC via FQDN, only with IP address.

DNS, network, firewall etc are working fine. As a precaution, I added the FQDN and IP address of all servers on the local hosts of den VC machine and all host syntax of the VC on all ESX hosts locally in their own hosts. No way ...

Our VC is on the acual version (2.5U3), the ESX hosts have different versions (somewhere between 3.5U1 and 3.5U2 with some patches.

????????????

Would be fine if anyone could help with this problem ...

Daniel

[chevitom]

@SimonLong:

Can you please tell me which logs I should check? Before I start to check all

Thanks!

[NTurnbull]

Not sure if this will help but it did for me a while ago, on your esx box check that the /tmp/vmware-root directory exists - if not create it.

Thanks,

Neil

[SimonLong]

Morning,

First of all the best thing to do is to try and connect the host again once you have the error, take not of the time and follow these steps to see the logs;

In VI Client click the "Administration" button at the top, then select the "System Logs" tab.

On the drop-down menu below the tabs select "VirtualCenter Server Log (vpdx-index)" and note the number shown. This number tells you which Log file is currently being used.

On the drop-down menu below the tabs select the Log file of the number shown in the index e.g. "VirtualCenter Server Log (vpxd-7log)" (Number 7 being the number displaying in the index) You should now be able to see the logs

Becuase you made the error happen just before you viewed the logs the error information you need should be near to bottom of the log file, use "Show next 2048 lines" to view further down the logs all of the log entries are time-stamped so they will be easier to find.

Simon

[Karunakar]

Hi,

issue an be also with the vpxa agent running in the ESX.

Below are the three options you can try.

1>

Try to restart the mgmt-vmware service in ESX, and then try to add.

2>

remove the machine from the VC inventory, and then try to perform as below.

search for the vpx rpm installed in the esx.

rpm -qa | grep vpx.

Then stop the mgmt-vmware service .

then remve the vpx rpm using the below command.

rpm -e <vpx rpm >

then start the mgmt-vmware service.

And now try to add the machine to vc.

3>

Go to /tmp, and check if a folder named "vmware-root" is available, if not, then create the folder, its an empty folder.

Then try to connect the machine to VC.

If the above does not work, try to follow the below steps.

- > Copy the vpx-upgrade-esx-7 or 6****** from the upgrade folder in the VC folder to /tmp on the ESX server

• > run the command " sh vpx-upgrade-esx-7 or 6****** " in ESX

(By default the script is located in C:\program files\vmware\vmware virtualcenter\upgrade )

Then restart mgmt-vmware process as "/etc/init.d/mgmt-vmware start"

And then after the hostd process start, wait for one minute, and try to add the machine to vc.

This should help

-Karunakar

[a2alpha]

Same thing happened to me after upgrading the VirtualCenter to 2.5.0, half of my 16 hosts wouldn't go in the others went straight in. I could see no consistency whatsoever but after SSHing into each host that failed and running:

mkdir /tmp/vmware-root

allowed it to add in. What was annoying was that after it was added there was nothing in this directory!

I would definately try it if you haven't already.

Dan

[daniel337]

Thank you for your answers.

I did a painful misktake, very unpleasant: I really "succeeded" in filling in the wrong ip addresses in the local hosts of the Windows-VM with VirtualCenter.

No further comments ...

Daniel

[chevitom]

Hi,

I did all the steps Karunakar proposed (thanks Karunakar). Unfortunately the problem is not solved until now. When I tried to connect the host I can find the following in the Virtual Center Agent log:

But I´m absolutely 100% shure that the password is correct. I also tested it on the console of the ESX Server. I also can connect the Virtual Center Client directly to the ESX Server via this password.

[Karunakar]

Hi,

Can you check if there is any user in the esx called vpxa user.

This might also be the cause of this issue.

For an alternate solution, try to connect to the ESX using the VI client, and create a user with the admin privilages.

Then try to use that user and connect the ESX in VC, this might help.

-Karunakar

[chevitom]

Hi,

no I just only can find the vpxuser. This exist on both machines in the cluster. But I can find a difference between both machine. The machine that can be manage by VI Client. Has the following settings in the tab "Permissions":

User: vpxuser Role: Administrator Defined in: Machinename

The machine that can not be managet hast the following settings:

User: vpxuser Role: Administrator Defined in: localhost

I also created another user with Admin rights. When I try to connect the host to the cluster I still get the annoying error message.

[Karunakar]

Hi,

Looks like this is some thing to do with the hostname of the machine not displaying properly.

can you try checking if the DNS and the hostname of the machine are set properly in the ESX.

And also right click on the vpx user and check the access role given to that user.

-Karunakar

[NTurnbull]

Hi, did you check if the /tmp/vmware-root directory exists on the ESX box before you try to re-connect the host?

Thanks,

Neil

[chevitom]

@NTurnBull: Yeah I already checked it. The folder exists.

@Karunakar:The good machine has only a DNS Name, the bad machine got the DNS Name and a Domain Suffix. Both machine are using the same DNS Server. But I still try to connect the machines only with IP-Adress. Do you think I should remove the dns suffix from the bad machine?

In Users&Groups the vpxuser has the same rights on both machines.