Vmware VSphere Command Line Interface Concepts And Examples V Center Server 6.0 Esxi Vcenter 60 En

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vSphere Command-Line Interface Concepts and Examples

vSphere Command-Line Interface

Concepts and Examples

ESXi 6.0

vCenter Server 6.0

This document supports the version of each product listed and

supports all subsequent versions until the document is replaced

by a new edition. To check for more recent editions of this

document, see http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs.

EN-001470-00

VMware, Inc.

3401 Hillview Ave.

Palo Alto, CA 94304

www.vmware.com

2VMware, Inc.

vSphere Command-Line Interface Concepts and Examples

You can find the most up-to-date technical documentation on the VMware Web site at:

http://www.vmware.com/support/

The VMware Web site also provides the latest product updates.

If you have comments about this documentation, submit your feedback to:

docfeedback@vmware.com

VMware, Inc. 3

Contents

AboutThisBook 9

1vSphereCLICommandOverviews 11

Introduction 11

Documentation 12

Command‐LineHelp 12

ListofAvailableHostManagementCommands 12

TargetsandProtocolsforvCLIHostManagementCommands 14

SupportedPlatformsforvCLICommands 15

CommandswithanesxcfgPrefix 16

ESXCLIOverview 16

ESXCLICommandsAvailableonDifferentESXiHosts 16

TrustRelationshipRequirementforESXCLICommands 17

DownloadingandInstallingthevCenterServerCertificate 17

Usingthe‐‐cacertsfileOption 17

Usingthe‐‐thumbprintOption 17

UsingtheCredentialStore 17

UsingESXCLIOutput 18

ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands 18

ConnectionOptionsforDCLICommands 18

vCLIHostManagementCommandsandLockdownMode 19

2ManagingHosts 21

Stopping,Rebooting,andExaminingHosts 21

StoppingandRebootingHostswithESXCLI 21

Stopping,Rebooting,andExaminingHostswithvicfg‐hostops 21

EnteringandExitingMaintenanceMode 22

EnteringandExitingMaintenanceModewithESXCLI 22

EnteringandExitingMaintenanceModewithvicfg‐hostops 23

BackingUpConfigurationInformationwithvicfg‐cfgbackup 23

BackupTasks 23

BackingUpConfigurationData 24

RestoringConfigurationData 24

Usingvicfg‐cfgbackupfromvMA 24

ManagingVMkernelModules 24

ManagingModuleswithesxclisystemmodule 25

ManagingModuleswithvicfg‐module 25

Usingvicfg‐authconfigforActiveDirectoryConfiguration 25

UpdatingHosts 26

3ManagingFiles 27

IntroductiontoVirtualMachineFileManagement 27

ManagingtheVirtualMachineFileSystemwithvmkfstools 28

UpgradingVMFS3VolumestoVMFS5 29

ManagingVMFSVolumes 29

ManagingDuplicateVMFSDatastores 29

MountingDatastoreswithExistingSignatures 29

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

4VMware, Inc.

MountingandUnmountingwithESXCLI 30

MountingandUnmountingwithvicfg‐volume 30

ResignaturingVMFSCopies 30

ResignaturingaVMFSCopywithESXCLI 31

ResignaturingaVMFSCopywithvicfg‐volume 31

ReclaimingUnusedStorageSpace 31

UsingvifstoViewandManipulateFilesonRemoteESXiHosts 32

Examples 34

ExampleScenario 35

4ManagingStorage 37

IntroductiontoStorage 37

HowVirtualMachinesAccessStorage 38

Datastores 39

StorageDeviceNaming 39

DeviceIdentifiers 40

LegacyIdentifiers 40

ExaminingLUNs 40

TargetandDeviceRepresentation 40

ExaminingLUNswithesxclistoragecore 41

ExaminingLUNswithvicfg‐scsidevs 42

DetachingDevicesandRemovingaLUN 43

WorkingwithPermanentDeviceLoss 43

ManagingPaths 44

MultipathingwithLocalStorageandFCSANs 44

ListingPathInformation 45

ListingPathInformationwithESXCLI 45

ListingPathInformationwithvicfg‐mpath 46

ChangingtheStateofaPath 46

ChangingPathStatewithESXCLI 47

ChangingPathStatewithvicfg‐mpath 47

ManagingPathPolicies 47

MultipathingConsiderations 48

ChangingPathPolicies 49

ChangingPathPolicieswithESXCLI 49

ChangingPathPolicieswithvicfg‐mpath 49

SettingPolicyDetailsforDevicesthatUseRoundRobin 50

ManagingNFS/NASDatastores 50

CapabilitiesSupportedbyNFS/NAS 51

AddingandDeletingNASFileSystems 51

ManagingNASFileSystemswithESXCLI 51

ManagingNASFileSystemswithvicfg‐nas 52

MonitoringandManagingSANStorage 52

MonitoringandManagingVirtualSANStorage 53

ToretrieveVirtualSANinformation 53

TomanageaVirtualSANcluster 53

ToaddandremoveVirtualSANstorage 54

MonitoringvSphereFlashReadCache 54

MonitoringandManagingVirtualVolumes 55

MigratingVirtualMachineswithsvmotion 55

StoragevMotionUses 56

StoragevMotionRequirementsandLimitations 56

RunningsvmotioninInteractiveMode 56

RunningsvmotioninNoninteractiveMode 56

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Contents

ConfiguringFCoEAdapters 57

ScanningStorageAdapters 58

RetrievingSMARTInformation 58

5ManagingiSCSIStorage 59

iSCSIStorageOverview 59

DiscoverySessions 60

DiscoveryTargetNames 61

ProtectinganiSCSISAN 61

ProtectingTransmittedData 61

SecuringiSCSIPorts 62

SettingiSCSICHAP 62

CommandSyntaxforesxcliiscsiandvicfg‐iscsi 63

esxcliiscsiCommandSyntax 63

KeytoesxcliiscsiShortOptions 64

vicfg‐iscsiCommandSyntax 65

iSCSIStorageSetupwithESXCLI 68

SettingUpSoftwareiSCSIwithESXCLI 68

SettingUpDependentHardwareiSCSIwithESXCLI 70

SettingUpIndependentHardwareiSCSIwithESXCLI 72

iSCSIStorageSetupwithvicfg‐iscsi 73

SettingUpSoftwareiSCSIwithvicfg‐iscsi 73

SettingUpDependentHardwareiSCSIwithvicfg‐iscsi 75

SettingUpIndependentHardwareiSCSIwithvicfg‐iscsi 76

ListingandSettingiSCSIOptions 77

ListingiSCSIOptionswithESXCLI 77

SettingMTUwithESXCLI 78

ListingandSettingiSCSIOptionswithvicfg‐iscsi 78

ListingandSettingiSCSIParameters 78

ListingandSettingiSCSIParameterswithESXCLI 79

ReturningParameterstoDefaultInheritance 80

ListingandSettingiSCSIParameterswithvicfg‐iscsi 80

ReturningParameterstoDefaultInheritance 81

EnablingiSCSIAuthentication 82

EnablingiSCSIAuthenticationwithESXCLI 82

EnablingiSCSIAuthenticationwithvicfg‐iscsi 83

SettingUpPortsforiSCSIMultipathing 83

ManagingiSCSISessions 84

IntroductiontoiSCSISessionManagement 84

ListingiSCSISessions 85

LoggingintoiSCSISessions 85

RemovingiSCSISessions 85

6ManagingThird‐PartyStorageArrays 87

ManagingNMPwithesxclistoragenmp 87

DeviceManagementwithesxclistoragenmpdevice 87

esxclistoragenmpdevicelist 88

esxclistoragenmpdeviceset 88

ListingPathswithesxclistoragenmppath 88

ManagingPathSelectionPolicyPluginswithesxclistoragenmppsp 88

RetrievingPSPInformation 89

SettingConfigurationParametersforThird‐PartyExtensions 89

FixedPathSelectionPolicyOperations 89

RetrievingthePreferredPath 89

SettingthePreferredPath 90

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

6VMware, Inc.

CustomizingRoundRobinSetup 90

RetrievingPathSelectionSettings 90

SpecifyingConditionsforPathChanges 91

ManagingSATPs 91

RetrievingInformationAboutSATPs 91

AddingSATPRules 91

RemovingSATPRules 92

RetrievingandSettingSATPConfigurationParameters 93

PathClaimingwithesxclistoragecoreclaiming 93

UsingtheReclaimTroubleshootingCommand 94

UnclaimingPathsorSetsofPaths 94

ManagingClaimRules 95

AddingClaimRules 95

ConvertingESX3.5LUNMaskstoClaimRuleFormat 97

RemovingClaimRules 98

ListingClaimRules 98

LoadingClaimRules 98

MovingClaimRules 98

RunningPathClaimingRules 99

7ManagingUsers 101

UsersinthevSphereEnvironment 101

vicfg‐userCommandSyntax 101

ManagingUserswithvicfg‐user 102

AssigningPermissionswithESXCLI 104

8ManagingVirtualMachines 105

vmware‐cmdOverview 105

ConnectionOptionsforvmware‐cmd 106

GeneralOptionsforvmware‐cmd 106

FormatforSpecifyingVirtualMachines 106

ListingandRegisteringVirtualMachines 106

RetrievingVirtualMachineAttributes 107

ManagingVirtualMachineSnapshotswithvmware‐cmd 108

TakingVirtualMachineSnapshots 109

RevertingandRemovingSnapshots 109

PoweringVirtualMachinesOnandOff 109

ConnectingandDisconnectingVirtualDevices 110

WorkingwiththeAnswerVMAPI 111

ForciblyStoppingVirtualMachineswithEXCLI 111

9ManagingvSphereNetworking 113

IntroductiontovSphereNetworking 113

NetworkingUsingvSphereStandardSwitches 114

NetworkingUsingvSphereDistributedSwitches 115

RetrievingBasicNetworkingInformation 115

NetworkTroubleshooting 116

SettingUpvSphereNetworkingwithvSphereStandardSwitches 117

SettingUpVirtualSwitchesandAssociatingaSwitchwithaNetworkInterface 117

RetrievingInformationAboutVirtualSwitches 118

RetrievingInformationaboutVirtualSwitcheswithESXCLI 118

RetrievingInformationaboutVirtualSwitcheswithvicfg‐vswitch 118

AddingandDeletingVirtualSwitches 119

AddingandDeletingVirtualSwitcheswithESXCLI 119

VMware, Inc. 7

Contents

AddingandDeletingVirtualSwitcheswithvicfg‐vswitch 119

SettingSwitchAttributeswithesxclinetworkvswitchstandard 119

SettingSwitchAttributeswithvicfg‐vswitch 120

Checking,Adding,andRemovingPortGroups 120

ManagingPortGroupswithESXCLI 120

ManagingPortGroupswithvicfg‐vswitch 120

ManagingUplinksandPortGroups 121

ConnectingandDisconnectingUplinkAdaptersandPortGroupswithESXCLI 121

ConnectingandDisconnectingUplinksandPortGroupswithvicfg‐vswitch 121

SettingthePortGroupVLANID 121

SettingthePortGroupVLANIDwithESXCLI 121

SettingthePortGroupVLANIDwithvicfg‐vswitch 122

ManagingUplinkAdapters 122

ManagingUplinkAdapterswithesxclinetworknic 122

SpecifyingMultipleUplinkswithESXCLI 123

ManagingUplinkAdapterswithvicfg‐nics 124

LinkingandUnlinkingUplinkAdapterswithESXCLI 124

LinkingandUnlinkingUplinkAdapterswithvicfg‐vswitch 124

AddingandModifyingVMkernelNetworkInterfaces 125

ManagingVMkernelNetworkInterfaceswithESXCLI 125

ManagingVMkernelNetworkInterfaceswithvicfg‐vmknic 126

SettingUpvSphereNetworkingwithvSphereDistributedSwitch 128

ManagingStandardNetworkingServicesinthevSphereEnvironment 128

SettingtheDNSConfiguration 128

SettingtheDNSConfigurationwithESXCLI 128

SettingtheDNSConfigurationwithvicfg‐dns 130

AddingandStartinganNTPServer 131

ManagingtheIPGateway 131

SettingUpIPsec 132

UsingIPsecwithESXi 132

ManagingSecurityAssociations 133

ManagingSecurityPolicies 134

ManagingtheESXiFirewall 135

MonitoringVXLAN 136

137

10 MonitoringESXiHosts 139

UsingresxtopforPerformanceMonitoring 139

ManagingDiagnosticPartitions 139

DiagnosticPartitionCreation 140

DiagnosticPartitionManagement 140

ManagingCoreDumps 140

ManagingLocalCoreDumpswithESXCLI 140

ManagingCoreDumpswithESXiDumpCollector 141

ManagingCoreDumpswithvicfg‐dumppart 141

ConfiguringESXiSyslogServices 142

ManagingESXiSNMPAgents 143

ConfiguringSNMPCommunities 144

ConfiguringtheSNMPAgenttoSendTraps 144

ConfiguringaTrapDestinationwithESXCLI 144

ConfiguringaTrapDestinationwithvicfg‐snmp 145

ConfiguringtheSNMPAgentforPolling 145

RetrievingHardwareInformation 146

VMware, Inc. 8

Contents

Index 147

VMware, Inc. 9

TheGettingStartedwithvSphereCommand‐LineInterfacesdocumentationexplainshowtousethecommandsin

theVMwarevSphere®Command‐LineInterface(vCLI)andincludescommandoverviewsandexamples.

Intended Audience

ThisbookisforexperiencedWindowsorLinuxsystemadministratorswhoarefamiliarwithvSphere

administrationtasksanddatacenteroperationsandknowhowtousecommandsinscripts.

Document Feedback

VMwarewelcomesyoursuggestionsforimprovingourdocumentation.Ifyouhavecomments,sendyour

feedbacktodocfeedback@vmware.comorclickontheSendUsFeedbackbuttoninthedocumentationcenter.

Related Documentation

ThevSphereCommand‐LineInterfaceReference,availableinthevSphereDocumentationCenter,includes

referenceinformationforvicfg-commandsandESXCLIcommands.

GettingStartedwithvSphereCommand‐LineInterfacesincludesinformationaboutavailableCLIs,enablingthe

ESXiShell,andinstallingandrunningvCLIandDCLIcommands.

Command‐LineManagementinvSphere5andvSphere6forServiceConsoleUsersisforcustomerswhocurrently

usetheESX ServiceConsole.

ThevSphereSDKforPerldocumentationexplainshowyoucanusethevSphereSDKforPerlandrelated

utilityapplicationstomanageyourvSphereenvironment.ThedocumentationincludesanInstallationGuide,a

ProgrammingGuide,andareferencetothevSphereSDKforPerlUtilityApplications.

BackgroundinformationforthetasksdiscussedinthismanualisavailableinthevSpheredocumentationset.

ThevSpheredocumentationconsistsofthecombinedvCenterServerandESXidocumentationandincludes

informationaboutmanagingstorage,networkingvirtualmachines,andmore.

Technical Support and Education Resources

Thefollowingsectionsdescribethetechnicalsupportresourcesavailabletoyou.Toaccessthecurrentversion

ofthisbookandotherbooks,gotohttp://www.pubs.vmware.com..

Online and Telephone Support

Touseonlinesupporttosubmittechnicalsupportrequests,viewyourproductandcontractinformation,and

Customerswithappropriatesupportcontractsshouldusetelephonesupportforthefastestresponseon

priority1issues.Gotohttp://www.vmware.com/support/phone_support.

About This Book

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

10 VMware, Inc.

Support Offerings

TofindouthowVMwaresupportofferingscanhelpmeetyourbusinessneeds,goto

http://www.vmware.com/support/services.

VMware Professional Services

VMwareEducationServicescoursesofferextensivehands‐onlabs,casestudyexamples,andcoursematerials

designedtobeusedason‐the‐jobreferencetools.Coursesareavailableonsite,intheclassroom,andlive

online.Foronsitepilotprograms andimplementationbestpractices,VMwareConsultingServicesprovides

offeringsto helpyouassess,plan,build,andmanageyourvirtualenvironment.Toaccessinformationabout

educationclasses,certificationprograms,andconsultingservices,gotohttp://www.vmware.com/services.

VMware, Inc. 11

Thischapterintroducesthecommandset,presentssupportedcommandsfordifferentversionsofvSphere,

listsconnectionoptions,anddiscussesvCLIandlockdownmode.

Thischapterincludesthefollowingtopics:

“Introduction”onpage 11

“ListofAvailableHostManagementCommands”onpage 12

“TargetsandProtocolsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 14

“CommandswithanesxcfgPrefix”onpage 16

“ESXCLIOverview”onpage 16

“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18

“ConnectionOptionsforDCLICommands”onpage 18

“vCLIHostManagementCommandsandLockdownMode”onpage 19

Introduction

ThecommandsinthevSphereCLIpackageallowyoutoperformvSphereconfigurationtasksusing

commandsfromvCLIpackageinstalledonsupportedplatforms,orusingcommandsfromvMA.Thepackage

consistsofseveralcommandsets.

vSphere CLI Command Overviews

Table 1-1. Components of the vSphere CLI Command Set

vCLI Commands Description

ESXCLIcommands ManagemanyaspectsofanESXihost.YoucanrunESXCLIcommandsremotelyorinthe

ESXiShell.

YoucanalsorunESXCLIcommandsfromthevSpherePowerCLIpromptbyusingthe

Get-EsxClicmdlet.

vicfg- commands SetofcommandsformanyaspectsofhostmanagementEventually,thesecommandswillbe

replacedbyESXCLIcommands.

Asetofesxcfg-commandsthatpreciselymirrorsthevicfg-commandsisalsoincludedin

thevCLIpackage.f

Othercommands

(vmware-cmd,vifs,

vmkfstools)

CommandsimplementedinPerlthatdonothaveavicfg-prefix.Thesecommandsare

scheduledtobedeprecatedorreplacedbyESXCLIcommands.

DCLIcommands ManageVMwareSDDCservices.

DCLIisaCLIclienttothevCloudSuiteSDKinterfaceformanagingVMwareSDDCservices.

ADCLIcommandtalkstoavCloudSuiteAPIendpointtolocaterelevantinformation,and

thenexecutesthecommandanddisplaysresulttotheuser.

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

12 VMware, Inc.

YoucaninstallthevSphereCLIcommandsetonasupportedLinuxorWindowssystem.SeeGettingStarted

withvSphereCommand‐LineInterfaces.YoucanalsodeploythevSphereManagementAssistant(vMA)toan

ESXisystemofyourchoice.

Afterinstallation,runvCLIcommandsfromtheLinuxorWindowssystemorfromvMA.

ManageESXihostswithothervCLIcommandsbyspecifyingconnectionoptionssuchasthetargethost,

user,andpasswordoraconfigurationfile.See“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagement

Commands”onpage 18.

ManagevCenterserviceswithDCLIcommandsbyspecifyingatargetvCenterServersystemand

authenticationoptions.SeeGettingStartedwithvSphereCommand‐LineInterfacesforalistofconnection

options.

Documentation

GettingStartedwithvSphereCommand‐LineInterfacesincludesinformationaboutavailableCLIs,enablingthe

ESXiShell,andinstallingandrunningvCLIcommands.Anappendixsuppliesthenamespaceandcommand

hierarchiesforESXCLI.

ReferenceinformationforvCLIandDCLIcommandsisavailableonthevCLIdocumentationpage

http://www.vmware.com/support/developer/vcli/andinthevSphereDocumentationCenterfortheproduct

versionthatyouareusing.

vSphereCommand‐LineInterfaceReferenceisareferencetovicfg-andrelatedvCLIcommandsand

includesreferenceinformationforESXCLIcommands.Allreferenceinformationisgeneratedfromthe

help.

AreferencetoesxtopandresxtopisincludedintheResourceManagementdocumentation.

TheDCLIReferenceisincludedseparatelyfromthevSphereCommand‐LineInterfaceReference.Allreference

informationisgeneratedfromthehelp.

Command-Line Help

Availablecommand‐linehelpdiffersforthedifferentcommandsets.

List of Available Host Management Commands

Table 1‐2listsvCLIhostmanagementcommandsinalphabeticalorderandthecorrespondingESXCLI

commandifavailable.ForESXCLI,newcommandsandnamespacesareaddedwitheachrelease.Seethe

ReleaseNotesforthecorrespondingreleaseforinformation.

FunctionalityofDCLIcommandsetthatisbeingaddedinvSphere6.0isdifferentfromthesecommands.They

arenotincludedinthetable.

Command set Available Command-Line Help

vicfg‐commands Run<vicfg-cmd> --helpforanoverviewofeachoptions.

RunPod2Htmlwithavicfg‐commandasinputandpipetheoutputtoafileformoredetailed

helpinformation.

pod2html vicfg-authconfig.pl > vicfg-authconfig.html

ThisoutputcorrespondstotheinformationavailableinthevSphereCommand‐LineInterface

Reference.

ESXCLIcommands Run--helpatanylevelofthehierarchyforinformationaboutbothcommandsand

namespacesavailablefromthatlevel.

DCLIcommands Run--helpforanycommandornamespacetodisplaytheinputoptions,whethertheoption

isrequired,andtheinputoptiontype.Fornamespaces,--helpdisplaysallavailablechild

namespacesandcommands.

Rundcli --helptodisplayusageinformationforDCLI.

VMware, Inc. 13

Chapter 1 vSphere CLI Command Overviews

Table 1-2. vCLI and ESXCLI Commands

vCLI 4.1 Command

vCLI 5.1 and later

Command Comment

esxcli esxcli(newsyntax) AllvCLI4.1commandshavebeenrenamed.Significantadditionshavebeen

madetoESXCLI.Manytaskspreviouslyperformedwithavicfg-command

isnowperformedwithESXCLI.

resxtop resxtop(NoESXCLI

equivalent)

Supportedonlyon

Linux.

MonitorsinrealtimehowESXihostsuseresources.Runsininteractiveor

batchmode.

See“UsingresxtopforPerformanceMonitoring”onpage 139.SeethevSphere

ResourceManagementdocumentationforadetailedreference.

svmotion svmotion(NoESXCLI

equivalent)

Mustrunagainsta

vCenterServersystem.

Movesavirtualmachine’sconfigurationfile,and,optionally,itsdisks,while

thevirtualmachineisrunning.

See“MigratingVirtualMachineswithsvmotion”onpage 55.

vicfg-advcfg esxcli system

settings advanced

Performsadvancedconfiguration.

TheadvancedsettingsareasetofVMkerneloptions.Theseoptionsare

typicallyinplaceforspecificworkaroundsordebugging.

UsethiscommandasinstructedbyVMware.

vicfg-authconfig vicfg-authconfig(No

ESXCLIequivalent).

RemotelyconfiguresActiveDirectorysettingsforanESXihost.

See“Usingvicfg‐authconfigforActiveDirectoryConfiguration”onpage 25.

vicfg-cfgbackup vicfg-cfgbackup(No

ESXCLIequivalent),

Cannotrunagainsta

vCenterServersystem.

BacksuptheconfigurationdataofanESXisystemandrestorespreviously

savedconfigurationdata.

See“BackingUpConfigurationInformationwithvicfg‐cfgbackup”on

page 23.

vicfg-dns esxcli network ip

dns

SpecifiesanESXihost’sDNS(DomainNameServer)configuration.See

“SettingtheDNSConfiguration”onpage 128.

vicfg-dumppart esxcli system

coredump

Setsboththepartition(esxcli system coredump partition)andthe

network(esxcli system coredump network)touseforcoredumps.Use

thiscommandtosetupESXiDumpCollector.

“ManagingDiagnosticPartitions”onpage 139.

vicfg-hostops esxcli system

maintenancemode

esxcli system

shutdown

Manageshosts.

“Stopping,Rebooting,andExaminingHosts”onpage 21.

“EnteringandExitingMaintenanceMode”onpage 22.

vicfg-ipsec esxcli network ip

ipsec

SetsupIPsec(InternetProtocolSecurity),whichsecuresIPcommunications

comingfromandarrivingatESXihosts.ESXihostssupportIPsecusingIPv6.

See“SettingUpIPsec”onpage 132.

vicfg-iscsi esxcli iscsi ManageshardwareandsoftwareiSCSIstorage.

See“ManagingiSCSIStorage”onpage 59.

vicfg-module esxcli system

module

EnablesVMkerneloptions.Usethiscommandwiththeoptionslistedinthis

document,orasinstructedbyVMware.

See“ManagingVMkernelModules”onpage 24.

vicfg-mpath

vicfg-mpath35

esxcli storage core

path

Configuresstoragearrays.

“ManagingPaths”onpage 44.

vicfg-nas esxcli storage nfs ManagesNAS/NFSfilesystems.See“ManagingNFS/NASDatastores”on

page 50.

vicfg-nics esxcli network nicManagestheESXihost’suplinkadapters.See“ManagingUplinkAdapters”

onpage 122.

vicfg-ntp vicfg-ntp(NoESXCLI

equivalent)

DefinestheNTP(NetworkTimeProtocol)server.See“AddingandStartingan

NTPServer”onpage 131.

vicfg-rescan esxcli storage core

adapter rescan

Rescansthestorageconfiguration.See“ScanningStorageAdapters”on

page 58.

vicfg-route esxcli network ip

route)

ManagestheESXihost’srouteentry.See“ManagingtheIPGateway”on

page 131.

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

14 VMware, Inc.

Targets and Protocols for vCLI Host Management Commands

MostvCLIcommandsareusedtomanageorretrieveinformationaboutoneormoreESXihosts.Theycan

targetanESXihostoravCenterServersystem.WhenyoutargetavCenterServersystem,youcanuse

--vihosttospecifytheESXihosttorunthecommandagainst.Theonlyexceptionissvmotion,whichyou

canrunagainstvCenterServersystems,butnotagainstESXisystems.

ThefollowingcommandsmusthaveanESXisystem,notavCenterServersystemasatarget.

vifs

vicfg-user

vicfg-cfgbackup

vihostupdate

vmkfstools

TheresxtopcommandrequiresanHTTPSconnection.AllothercommandssupportHTTPandHTTPS.

vicfg-scsidevs esxcli storage core

device

FindsandexaminesavailableLUNs.See“ExaminingLUNs”onpage 40.

vicfg-snmp esxcli system snmp ManagestheSNMPagent.“ManagingESXiSNMPAgents”onpage 143.

UsingSNMPinavSphereenvironmentisdiscussedindetailinthevSphere

MonitoringandPerformancedocumentation.

NewoptionsaddedinvCLI5.0.

ExpandedSNMPsupportaddedinvCLI5.1.

vicfg-syslog esxcli system

syslog

SpecifieslogsettingsforESXihostsincludinglocalstoragepoliciesandserver

andportinformationfornetworklogging.See“ConfiguringESXiSyslog

Services”onpage 142.

ThevCenterServerandHostManagementdocumentationexplainshowtosetup

systemlogsusingthevSphereWebClient.

vicfg-user vicfg-user(No

ESXCLIequivalent)

Creates,modifies,deletes,andlistslocaldirectaccessusersandgroupsof

users.See“ManagingUsers”onpage 101.

ThevSphereSecuritydocumentationdiscussessecurityimplicationsofuser

managementandcustomroles.

vicfg-vmknic esxcli network ip

interface.

Adds,deletes,andmodifiesVMkernelnetworkinterfaces.See“Addingand

ModifyingVMkernelNetworkInterfaces”onpage 125.

vicfg-volume esxcli storage

filesystem

SupportsresignaturingthecopyofaVMFSvolume,andmountingand

unmountingthecopy.See“ManagingDuplicateVMFSDatastores”on

page 29.

vicfg-vswitch esxcli network

vswitch

Addsorremovesvirtualswitchesormodifiesvirtualswitchsettings.See

“SettingUpVirtualSwitchesandAssociatingaSwitchwithaNetwork

Interface”onpage 117.

vifs vifs(NoESXCLI

equivalent)

Performsfilesystemoperationssuchasretrievinganduploadingfilesonthe

ESXisystem.See“ManagingtheVirtualMachineFileSystemwith

vmkfstools”onpage 28.

vihostupdate esxclisoftware vibUpdateslegacyESXihoststoadifferentversionofthesamemajorrelease.

YoucannotrunvihostupdateagainstESXi5.0andlaterhosts.

See“ManagingVMkernelModules”onpage 24.

vmkfstools vmkfstools(No

ESXCLIequivalent)

Createsandmanipulatesvirtualdisks,filesystems,logicalvolumes,and

physicalstoragedevicesonanESXihost.See“ManagingtheVirtualMachine

FileSystemwithvmkfstools”onpage 28.

vmware-cmd vmware-cmd(No

ESXCLIequivalent)

Performsvirtualmachineoperationsremotely.Thisincludes,forexample,

creatingasnapshot,poweringthevirtualmachineonoroff,andgetting

informationaboutthevirtualmachine.See“ManagingVirtualMachines”on

page 105.

Table 1-2. vCLI and ESXCLI Commands (Continued)

vCLI 4.1 Command

vCLI 5.1 and later

Command Comment

VMware, Inc. 15

Chapter 1 vSphere CLI Command Overviews

Supported Platforms for vCLI Commands

YoucannotrunthevihostupdatecommandagainstanESXi5.0orlatersystem.

Youcannotrunvicfg-syslog --setserverorvicfg-syslog --setportwithanESXi5.0orlatertarget.

Table 1‐3listsplatformsupportforthedifferentvCLIcommands.

Table 1-3. Platform Support for vCLI 5.x Commands

Command ESXi 5.x and 6.0 VC 5.xand 6.0 ESXi 4.x ESX 4.x VC 4.x

DCLI No No No No No

esxcli Yes Yes Yes Yes No

resxtop Yes(fromLinux) Yes(fromLinux) Yes(from

Linux)

Yes(from

Linux)

Yes(from

Linux)

svmotion No Yes No No Yes

vicfg-advcfg Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-authconfig Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-cfgbackup Yes No Yes No No

vicfg-dns Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-dumppart Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-hostops Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-ipsec Yes No Yes Yes No

vicfg-iscsi Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-module Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-mpath Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-nas Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-nics Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-ntp Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-rescan Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-route Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-scsidevs Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-snmp Yes No Yes Yes No

vicfg-syslog No Nofor5.0target Yes No Yes

vicfg-user Yes No Yes Yes No

vicfg-vmknic Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-volume Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-vswitch Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vifs Yes No Yes Yes No

vihostupdate Useesxcli software vibinstead.Yes Yes No

vmkfstools Yes No Yes Yes No

vmware-cmd Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

vicfg-mpath35 No No No No No

vihostupdate35 No No No No No

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Commands with an esxcfg Prefix

Tofacilitateeasymigrationifshellscriptsthatuseesxcfg‐commands,thevCLIpackageincludesacopyof

eachvicfg-commandthatusesanesxcfg-prefix.

Table 1‐4listsallvCLIvicfg-commandsforwhichavCLIcommandwithanesxcfgprefixisavailable.

ESXCLI Overview

ThissectiongivesanoverviewofESXCLIcommandsandhowtousethem.SeeGettingStartedwithvSphere

Command‐LineInterfacesfordetails.

ESXCLI Commands Available on Different ESXi Hosts

WhenyourunanESXCLIvCLIcommand,youmustknowthecommandssupportedonthetargethost.For

example,ifyouruncommandsagainstESXi5.xhosts,ESXCLI5.xcommandsaresupported.Ifyourun

commandsagainstESXi6.0hosts,ESXCLI6.0commandsaresupported.

Somecommandsorcommandoutputsaredeterminedbythehosttype.Inaddition,VMwarepartnersmight

developcustomESXCLIcommandsthatyoucanrunonhostswherethepartnerVIBhasbeeninstalled.

Runesxcli --server <target> --helpforalistofnamespacessupportedonthetarget.Youcandrill

downintothenamespacesforadditionalhelp.

IMPORTANTVMwarerecommendsthatyouuseESXCLIorthevCLIcommandswiththevicfgprefix.

Commandswiththeesxcfgprefixareavailablemainlyforcompatibilityreasonsandarenowobsolete.

vCLIesxcfg-commandsareequivalenttovicfg-commands,butnotcompletelyequivalenttothe

deprecatedesxcfg- serviceconsolecommands.

Table 1-4. Commands with an esxcfg Prefix

Command with vicfg prefix Command with esxcfg prefix

vicfg-advcfg esxcfg-advcfg

vicfg-cfgbackup esxcfg-cfgbackup

vicfg-dns esxcfg-dns

vicfg-dumppart esxcfg-dumppart

vicfg-module esxcfg-module

vicfg-mpath esxcfg-mpath

vicfg-nas esxcfg-nas

vicfg-nics esxcfg-nics

vicfg-ntp esxcfg-ntp

vicfg-rescan esxcfg-rescan

vicfg-route esxcfg-route

vicfg-scsidevs esxcfg-scsidevs

vicfg-snmp esxcfg-snmp

vicfg-syslog esxcfg-syslog

vicfg-vmknic esxcfg-vmknic

vicfg-volume esxcfg-volume

vicfg-vswitch esxcfg-vswitch

IMPORTANTESXCLIonESX4.xhostsdoesnotsupporttargetingavCenterServersystem.Youcantherefore

notrunESXCLIcommandswith--serverpointingtoavCenterServersystemevenifyouinstallvCLI5.0.

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Chapter 1 vSphere CLI Command Overviews

Trust Relationship Requirement for ESXCLI Commands

StartingwithvSphere6.0,ESXCLIcheckswhetheratrustrelationshipexistsbetweenthemachinewhereyou

runtheESXCLIcommandandtheESXihost.Anerrorresultsifthetrustrelationshipdoesnotexist.

Toestablishthetrustrelationship,youhavetheseoptions.

Downloading and Installing the vCenter Server Certificate

YoucandownloadthevCenterServerrootcertificateusingaWebbrowserandaddittothetrustedcertificates

onthemachinewhereyouplanonrunningESXCLIcommands.

To download the certificate

1TypetheURLofthevCenterServersystemorvCenterServerVirtualApplianceintoaWebBrowser.

2ClicktheDownloadtrustedrootcertificateslink.

3 Changetheextensionofthedownloadedfileto.zip.(ThefileisaZIPfileofallcertificatesinthe

TRUSTED_ROOTSstore).

4ExtracttheZIPfile.

Theresultisacertsfolder.Thefolderincludesfileswiththeextension.0..1,andsoon,whichare

certificates,andfileswiththeextension.r0,r1,andsoonwhichareCRLfilesassociatedwiththe

certificates.

5Addthetrustedrootcertificatestothelistoftrustedroots.Theprocessdiffersdependingontheplatform

youareon.

YoucannowrunESXCLIcommandsagainstanyhostthatismanagedbythetrustedvCenterServerwithout

supplyingadditionalinformationifyouspecifythevCenterServerinthe--serveroptionandtheESXihost

inthe--vihostoption.

Using the --cacertsfile Option

Usingacertificatetoestablishthetrustrelationshipisthemostsecureoption.Youcanspecifythecertificate

withthe--cacertsfileparameterortheVI_CACERTFILEvariable.

Using the --thumbprint Option

Youcansupplythethumbprintforthetargetserver(ESXihostorvCenterServersystem)inthe--thumbprint

parameter(VI_THUMBPRINTvariable).

Whenyourunacommand,ESXCLIchecksfirstwhetheracertificatefileisavailable.Ifnot,ESXCLIchecks

whetherathumbprintofthetargetserverisavailable.Ifnot,anerrorlikethefollowingresults:

Connect to sof-40583-srv failed. Server SHA-1 thumbprint:

5D:01:06:63:55:9D:DF:FE:38:81:6E:2C:FA:71:BC:Usin63:82:C5:16:51 (not trusted).

Youcanrunthecommandwiththethumbprinttoestablishthetrustrelationship,oraddthethumbprintto

theVI_THUMBPRINTvariable.Forexample,usingthethumbprintoftheESXihostabove,youcanrunthe

followingcommand:

esxcli --server myESXi --username user1 --password 'my_password' --thumbprint

5D:01:06:63:55:9D:DF:FE:38:81:6E:2C:FA:71:BC:63:82:C5:16:51 storage nfs list

Using the Credential Store

YourvCLIinstallationincludesacredentialstore.Youcanmanagethecredentialstorewiththe

credstore-adminutilityapplication,whichislocatedinthe/Perl/apps/generaldirectoryinsidethe

VMwarevSphereCLIdirectory.

IMPORTANTUpdatingthecredentialstoreisatwo‐stepprocess.Firstyouaddtheuserandpasswordforthe

server,andthenyouaddthethumbprintfortheserver.

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18 VMware, Inc.

To establish trust for a user with the credential store

1AddtheuserandpasswordforthetargetESXihosttothelocalcredentialstore.

credstore_admin.pl add --server <esxi_HOSTNAME_OR_IP> --username <user> --password <pwd>

2AddthethumbprintforthetargetESXihost.Thisthumbprintwasreturnedintheerrorwhenyou

attemptedtoconnecttothehost.

credstore_admin.pl add --server <esxi_HOSTNAME_OR_IP> --thumbprint <thumbprint>

3Ifyouareusinganon‐defaultcredentialstorefile,youhavetopassitinwiththe--credstoreoption.

Otherwise,thisuserwillbeabletoaccessthehostwithoutauthenticationgoingforward.

Using ESXCLI Output

ManyESXCLIcommandsgenerateoutputyoumightwanttouseinyourapplication.Youcanrunesxcli

withthe--formatterdispatcheroptionandsendtheresultingoutputasinputtoaparser.

The--formatteroptionssupportsthreevalues,csv,xml,andkeyvalueandisusedbeforeanynamespace.

esxcli --formatter=csv storage filesystem list

ListsallfilesysteminformationinCSVformat.

Youcanpipetheoutputtoafile.

esxcli --formatter=keyvalue storage filesystem list > myfilesystemlist.txt

Connection Options for vCLI Host Management Commands

YoucanrunhostmanagementcommandssuchasESXCLIcommands,vicfg‐commands,andother

commandswithseveraldifferentconnectionoptions.YoucantargethostsdirectlyortargetavCenterServer

systemandspecifythehostyouwanttomanage.IfyouaretargetingavCenterServersystem,specifythe

PlatformServicesController,whichincludesthevCenterSingleSign‐Onservice,forbestsecurity.

SeetheGettingStartedwithvSphereCommand‐LineInterfacesdocumentationforacompletelistandexamples.

Connection Options for DCLI Commands

DCLIisaCLIclienttothevCloudSuiteSDKinterfaceformanagingVMwareSDDCservices.ADCLI

commandtalkstoavCloudSuiteSDKendpointtogetthevCloudSuiteSDKcommandinformation,executes

thecommand,anddisplaysresulttotheuser.

YoucanrunDCLIcommandslocallyorfromanadministrationserver.

RunDCLIontheLinuxshellofavCenterServerVirtualAppliance.

InstallvCLIonasupportedWindowsorLinuxsystemandtargetavCenterServerwindowsinstallation

oravCenterServerVirtualAppliance.Youhavetoprovideendpointinformationtosuccessfullyrun

commands.

DCLIcommandssupportotherconnectionoptionsthanothercommandsinthecommandset.

SeetheGettingStartedwithvSphereCommand‐LineInterfacesdocumentationforacompletelistandexamples.

IMPORTANTAlwaysuseaformatterforconsistentoutput.

IMPORTANTForconnectionstoESXi6.0hosts,vCLIsupportsboththeIPv4protocolandtheIPv6protocol.

Forearlierversions,vCLIsupportsonlyIPv4.Inallcases,youcanconfigureIPv6onthetargethostwith

severalofthenetworkingcommands.

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Chapter 1 vSphere CLI Command Overviews

vCLI Host Management Commands and Lockdown Mode

Foradditionalsecurity,anadministratorcanplaceoneormorehostsmanagedbyavCenterServersystemin

lockdownmode.LockdownmodeaffectsloginprivilegesfortheESXihost.SeethevSphereSecuritydocument

inthevSphere6.0DocumentationCenterforadetaileddiscussionofnormallockdownmodeandstrict

lockdownmode,andofhowtoenableanddisablethem.

TomakechangestoESXisystemsinlockdownmode,youmustgothroughavCenterServersystemthat

managestheESXisystemastheuservpxuserandincludeboththe--serverandthe--vihostparameter..

esxcli --server MyVC --vihost MyESXi storage filesystem list

ThecommandpromptsforthevCenterServersystemusernameandpassword.

ThefollowingcommandscannotrunagainstvCenterServersystemsandarethereforenotavailablein

lockdownmode:

vifs

vicfg-user

vicfg-cfgbackup

vihostupdate

vmkfstools

IfyouhaveproblemsrunningacommandonanESXihostdirectly(withoutspecifyingavCenterServer

target),checkwhetherlockdownmodeisenabledonthathost.

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20 VMware, Inc.

VMware, Inc. 21

HostmanagementcommandscanstopandrebootESXihosts,backupconfigurationinformation,andmanage

hostupdates.YoucanalsouseahostmanagementcommandtomakeyourhostjoinanActiveDirectory

domainorexitfromadomain.

Thechapterincludesthefollowingtopics:

“Stopping,Rebooting,andExaminingHosts”onpage 21

“EnteringandExitingMaintenanceMode”onpage 22

“BackingUpConfigurationInformationwithvicfg‐cfgbackup”onpage 23

“ManagingVMkernelModules”onpage 24

“Usingvicfg‐authconfigforActiveDirectoryConfiguration”onpage 25

“UpdatingHosts”onpage 26

ForinformationonupdatingESXi5.0hostswiththeesxcli softwarecommandandonchangingthehost

acceptanceleveltomatchthelevelofaVIBthatyoumightwanttouseforanupdate,seethevSphereUpgrade

documentationinthevSphere5.0DocumentationCenter.

Stopping, Rebooting, and Examining Hosts

Youcanstop,reboot,andexaminehostswithESXCLIorwithvicfg-hostops.

Stopping and Rebooting Hosts with ESXCLI

YoucanshutdownorrebootanESXihostusingthevSphereWebClientorvCLIcommands(ESXCLIor

vicfg-hostops).

ShuttingdownamanagedhostdisconnectsitfromthevCenterServersystem,butdoesnotremovethehost

fromtheinventory.Youcanshutdownasinglehostorallhostsinadatacenterorcluster.Specifyoneofthe

optionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof

<conn_options>.

Toshutdownahost,runesxcli system shutdown poweroff.Youmustspecifythe--reasonoptionand

supplyareasonfortheshutdown.A--delayoptionallowsyoutospecifyadelayinterval,inseconds.

Torebootahost,runsystem shutdown reboot. Youmustspecifythe--reasonoptionandsupplyareason

fortheshutdown.A--delayoptionallowsyoutospecifyadelayinterval,inseconds.

Stopping, Rebooting, and Examining Hosts with vicfg-hostops

YoucanshutdownorrebootanESXihostusingthevSphereWebClient,orESXCLIorthevicfg-hostops

vCLIcommand.

Managing Hosts 2

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22 VMware, Inc.

ShuttingdownamanagedhostdisconnectsitfromthevCenterServersystem,butdoesnotremovethehost

fromtheinventory.Youcanshutdownasinglehostorallhostsinadatacenterorcluster.Specifyoneofthe

optionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof

<conn_options>.

Singlehost.Runvicfg-hostopswith--operationshutdown.

Ifthehostisinmaintenancemode,runthecommandwithoutthe--forceoption.

vicfg-hostops <conn_options> --operation shutdown

Ifthehostisnotinmaintenancemode,use--forcetoshutdownthehostandallrunningvirtual

machines.

vicfg-hostops <conn_options> --operation shutdown --force

Allhostsindatacenterorcluster.Toshutdownallhostsinaclusterordatacenter,specify--cluster

or--datacenter.

vicfg-hostops <conn_options> --operation shutdown --cluster <my_cluster>

vicfg-hostops <conn_options> --operation shutdown --datacenter <my_datacenter>

Youcanrebootasinglehostorallhostsinadatacenterorcluster.

Singlehost.Runvicfg-hostopswith--operationreboot.

Ifthehostisinmaintenancemode,runthecommandwithoutthe--forceoption.

vicfg-hostops <conn_options> --operation reboot

Ifthehostisnotinmaintenancemode,use--forcetoshutdownthehostandallrunningvirtual

machines.

vicfg-hostops <conn_options> --operation reboot --force

Allhostsindatacenterorcluster.Youcanspecify--clusteror--datacentertorebootallhostsina

clusterordatacenter.

vicfg-hostops <conn_options> --operation reboot --cluster <my_cluster>

vicfg-hostops <conn_options> --operation reboot --datacenter <my_datacenter>

Youcandisplayinformationaboutahostbyrunningvicfg-hostopswith--operationinfo.

vicfg-hostops <conn_options> --operation info

Thecommandreturnsthehostname,manufacturer,model,processortype,CPUcores,memorycapacity,and

boottime.ThecommandalsoreturnswhethervMotionisenabledandwhetherthehostisinmaintenance

mode.

Entering and Exiting Maintenance Mode

YoucaninstructyourhosttoenterorexitmaintenancemodewithESXCLIorwithvicfg-hostops.

Entering and Exiting Maintenance Mode with ESXCLI

Youplaceahostinmaintenancemodetoserviceit,forexample,toinstallmorememory.Ahostentersor

leavesmaintenancemodeonlyastheresultofauserrequest.

esxcli system maintenanceMode setallowsyoutoenableordisablemaintenancemode.

Whenyourunthevicfg-hostopsvCLIcommand,youcanspecifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“Connection

OptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To enter and exit maintenance mode

1Runesxcli <conn_options> system maintenanceMode set --enable true toentermaintenance

mode.

Afterallvirtualmachinesonthehosthavebeensuspendedormigrated,thehostentersmaintenance

mode.Youcannotdeployorpoweronavirtualmachineonhostsinmaintenancemode.

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Chapter 2 Managing Hosts

2Runesxcli <conn_options> system maintenanceMode set --enable false tohaveahost

existingmaintenancemode.

Ifyouattempttoexitmaintenancemodewhenthehostisnolongerinmaintenancemode,anerrorinforms

youthatmaintenancemodeisalreadydisabled.

Entering and Exiting Maintenance Mode with vicfg-hostops

Youplaceahostinmaintenancemodetoserviceit,forexample,toinstallmorememory.Ahostentersor

leavesmaintenancemodeonlyastheresultofauserrequest.

vicfg-hostopssuspendsvirtualmachinesbydefault,orpowersoffthevirtualmachineifyourun

vicfg-hostops --action poweroff.

ThehostisinastateofEnteringMaintenanceModeuntilallrunningvirtualmachinesaresuspendedor

migrated.Whenahostisenteringmaintenancemode,youcannotpoweronvirtualmachinesonitormigrate

virtualmachinestoit.

Whenyourunthevicfg-hostopsvCLIcommand,youcanspecifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“Connection

OptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To enter maintenance mode

1Runvicfg-hostops <conn_options> --operation entertoentermaintenancemode.

2Runvicfg-hostops <conn_options> --operation infotocheckwhetherthehostisinmaintenance

modeorintheEnteringMaintenanceModestate.

Afterallvirtualmachinesonthehosthavebeensuspendedormigrated,thehostentersmaintenancemode.

Youcannotdeployorpoweronavirtualmachineonhostsinmaintenancemode.

Youcanputallhostsinaclusterordatacenterinmaintenancemodebyusingthe--clusteror

--datacenteroption.Donotusethoseoptionsunlesssuspendingallvirtualmachinesinthatclusterordata

centerisnoproblem.

Youcanlaterrunvicfg-hostops <conn_options> --operation exittoexitmaintenancemode.

Backing Up Configuration Information with vicfg-cfgbackup

AfteryouconfigureanESXihost,youcanbackupthehostconfigurationdata.Alwaysbackupyourhost

configurationafteryouchangetheconfigurationorupgradetheESXiimage.

Backup Tasks

Duringaconfigurationbackup,theserialnumberisbackedupwiththeconfiguration.Thenumberisrestored

whenyourestoretheconfiguration.ThenumberisnotpreservedwhenyouruntheRecoveryCD(ESXi

Embedded)orperformarepairoperation(ESXiInstallable).

Youcanbackupandrestoreconfigurationinformationasfollows.

1 Backuptheconfigurationbyusingthevicfg-cfgbackupcommand.

2RuntheRecoveryCDorrepairoperation

3Restoretheconfigurationbyusingthevicfg-cfgbackupcommand.

Whenyourestoreaconfiguration,youmustmakesurethatallvirtualmachinesonthehostarestopped.

NOTEvicfg-hostopsdoesnotworkwithVMwareDRS.Virtualmachinesarealwayssuspended.

IMPORTANTThevicfg-cfgbackupcommandisavailableonlyforESXihosts.Thecommandisnotavailable

throughavCenterServersystemconnection.NoequivalentESXCLIcommandissupported.

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24 VMware, Inc.

Backing Up Configuration Data

Youcanbackupconfigurationdatabyrunningvicfg-cfgbackupwiththe-soption.

vicfg-cfgbackup <conn_options> -s /tmp/ESXi_181842_backup.txt

Forthebackupfilename,includethenumberofthebuildthatisrunningonthehostthatyouarebackingup.

IfyouarerunningvCLIonvMA,thebackupfileissavedlocallyonvMA.Backupfilescansafelybestored

locallybecausevirtualappliancesarestoredinthe/vmfs/volumes/<datastore>directoryonthehost,

whichisseparatefromtheESXiimageandconfigurationfiles.

Restoring Configuration Data

Ifyouhavecreatedabackup,youcanlaterrestoreESXiconfigurationdata.Whenyourestoreconfiguration

data,thenumberofthebuildrunningonthehostmustbethesameasthenumberofthebuildthatwas

runningwhenyoucreatedthebackupfile.Tooverridethisrequirement,includethe-f (force)option.

To restore ESXi configuration data

1Poweroffallvirtualmachinesthatarerunningonthehostthatyouwanttorestore.

2LogintoahostonwhichvCLIisinstalled,orlogintovMA.

3Runvicfg-cfgbackupwiththe-lflagtoloadthehostconfigurationfromthespecifiedbackupfile.

Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”on

page 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

Ifyourunthefollowingcommand,youarepromptedforconfirmation.

vicfg-cfgbackup <conn_options> -l /tmp/ESXi_181842_backup.tgz

Ifyourunthefollowingcommand,youarenotpromptedforconfirmation.

vicfg-cfgbackup <conn_options> -l /tmp/ESXi_181842_backup.tgz -q

Torestorethehosttofactorysettings,runvicfg-cfgbackupwiththe-roption:

vicfg-cfgbackup <conn_options> -r

Using vicfg-cfgbackup from vMA

Tobackupahostconfiguration,youcanrunvicfg-cfgbackupfromavMAinstance.ThevMAinstancecan

runonthetargethost(thehostthatyouarebackinguporrestoring),oronaremotehost.

Torestoreahostconfiguration,youmustrunvicfg-cfgbackup fromavMAinstancerunningonaremote

host.Thehostmustbeinmaintenancemode,whichmeansallvirtualmachines(includingvMA)mustbe

suspendedonthetargethost.

Forexample,abackupoperationfortwoESXihosts(host1andhost2)withvMAdeployedonbothhostsworks

asfollows:

Tobackuponeofthehost’sconfiguration(host1orhost2),runvicfg-cfgbackupfromthevMA

appliancerunningoneitherhost1orhost2.Usethe--serveroptiontospecifythehostforwhichyou

wantbackupinformation.TheinformationisstoredonvMA.

Torestorethehost1configuration,runvicfg-cfgbackupfromthevMAappliancerunningonhost2.Use

the--serveroptiontopointtohost1torestoretheconfigurationtothathost.

Torestorethehost2configuration,runvicfg-cfgbackupfromthevMAappliancerunningonhost1.Use

the--serveroptiontopointtohost2torestoretheconfigurationtothathost.

Managing VMkernel Modules

Theesxcli system moduleandvicfg-modulecommandssupportsettingandretrievingVMkernelmodule

options.

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Chapter 2 Managing Hosts

vicfg-moduleandesxcli system modulecommandsareimplementationsofthedeprecated

esxcfg-moduleserviceconsolecommand.Thetwocommandssupportmostoftheoptionsesxcfg-module

supports.vicfg-moduleandesxcli system modulearecommonlyusedwhenVMwareTechnicalSupport,

aKnowledgeBasearticle,orVMwaredocumentationinstructyoutodoso.

Managing Modules with esxcli system module

NotallVMkernelmoduleshavesettablemoduleoptions.Thefollowingexampleillustrateshowtoexamine

andenableaVMkernelmodule.Specifyoneoftheconnectionoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLI

HostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To examine, enable, and set a VMkernel modules

1Listinformationaboutthemodule.

esxcli <conn_options> system module list -module=module_name

Thesystemreturnsthename,type,value,anddescriptionofthemodule.

2 (Optional)Listallenabledorloadedmodules.

esxcli <conn_options> system module list --enabled=true

esxcli <conn_options> system module list --loaded=true

3Enablethemodel.

esxcli <conn_options> system module set --module=module_name --enabled=true

4Settheparameter.

esxcli system module parameters set --module module_name

--parameter-string="parameter_string"

5Verifythatthemoduleisconfigured.

esxcli <conn_options> system module parameters list --module=module_name

Managing Modules with vicfg-module

NotallVMkernelmoduleshavesettablemoduleoptions.Thefollowingexampleillustrateshowtheexamine

andenableaVMkernelmodules.Specifyoneoftheconnectionoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLI

HostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To examine and set a VMkernel modules

1Runvicfg-module --listtolistthemodulesonthehost.

vicfg-module <conn_options> --list

2Runvicfg-module --set-optionswithconnectionoptions,theoptionstringtobepassedtoamodule,

andthemodulename.Forexample:

vicfg-module <conn_options> --set-options '<parameter_name>=<value>' <module_name>

Toretrievetheoptionstringthatisconfiguredtobepassedtoamodulewhenthemoduleisloaded,run

vicfg-module --get-options.Thisstringisnotnecessarilytheoptionstringcurrentlyinusebythe

module.

vicfg-module <conn_options> --get-options module_name

Verifiesthatamoduleisconfigured.

Using vicfg-authconfig for Active Directory Configuration

ESXicanbeintegratedwithActiveDirectory.ActiveDirectoryprovidesauthenticationforalllocalservices

andforremoteaccessthroughthevSphereWebServicesSDK,vSphereWebClient,PowerCLI,andvSphere

CLI.YoucanconfigureActiveDirectorysettingswiththevSphereWebClient,asdiscussedinthevCenter

ServerandHostManagementdocumentation,orusevicfg-autconfig.

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26 VMware, Inc.

vicfg-authconfigallowsyoutoremotelyconfigureActiveDirectorysettingsonESXihosts.Youcanlist

supportedandactiveauthenticationmechanisms,listthecurrentdomain,andjoinorpartfromanActive

Directorydomain.BeforeyourunthecommandonanESXihost,youmustpreparethehost.

To prepare ESXi hosts for Active Directory Integration

1MakesuretheESXisystemandtheActiveDirectoryserverareusingthesametimezonebyconfiguring

ESXiandADtousesameNTPserver.

TheESXisystem’stimezoneisalwayssettoUTC.

2ConfiguretheESXisystem’sDNStobeintheActiveDirectorydomain.

Youcanrunvicfg-authconfigtoaddthehosttothedomain.Auserwhorunsvicfg-authconfigto

configureActiveDirectorysettingsmusthavetheappropriateActiveDirectorypermissions,andmusthave

administrativeprivilegesontheESXihost.Youcanrunthecommanddirectlyagainstthehostoragainsta

vCenterServersystem,specifyingthehostwith--vihost.

To set up Active Directory

1InstalltheESXihost,asexplainedinthevSphereInstallationandSetupdocumentation.

2InstallWindowsActiveDirectoryonaWindowsServerthatrunsWindows2000,Windows2003,or

Windows2008.SeetheMicrosoftWebsiteforinstructionsandbestpractices.

3SynchronizetimebetweentheESXisystemandWindowsActiveDirectory(AD).

4TestthattheWindowsADServercanpingtheESXihostbyusingthehostname.

ping <ESX_hostname>

5Runvicfg-authconfigtoaddthehosttotheActiveDirectorydomain.

vicfg-authconfig --server=<ESXi Server IP Address>

--username=<ESXi Server Admin Username>

--password=<ESXi Server Admin User's Password>

--authscheme AD --joindomain <AD Domain Name>

--adusername=<Active Directory Administrator User Name>

--adpassword=<Active Directory Administrator User's Password>

Thesystempromptsforusernamesandpasswordsifyoudonotspecifythemonthecommandline.

Passwordsarenotechoedtothescreen.

6CheckthataSuccessfully Joined <Domain Name>messageappears.

7VerifytheESXihostisintheintendedWindowsADdomain.

vicfg-authconfig --server XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX --authscheme AD -c

YouarepromptedforausernameandpasswordfortheESXisystem.

Updating Hosts

Whenyouaddcustomdriversorpatchestoahost,theprocessiscalledanupdate.

UpdateESXi4.0andESXi4.1hostswiththevihostupdatecommand,asdiscussedinthevSphere

Command‐LineInterfaceInstallationandReferenceGuideincludedinthevSphere4.1documentationset.

UpdateESXi5.0hostswithesxcli software vibcommandsdiscussedinthevSphereUpgrade

documentationincludedinthevSphere5.0documentationset.Youcannotrunthevihostupdate

commandagainstESXi5.0orlater.

UpdateESXi5.1hostswithesxcli software vibcommandsdiscussedinthevSphereUpgrade

documentationincludedinthevSphere5.1documentationset.

IMPORTANTAllhoststhatjoinActiveDirectorymustalsobemanagedbyanNTPServertoavoidissueswith

clockskewsandKerberostickets.

VMware, Inc. 27

Chapter 2 Managing Hosts

UpdateESXi5.5hostswithesxcli software vibcommandsdiscussedinthevSphereUpgrade

documentationincludedinthevSphere5.5documentationset.

UpdateESXi6.0hostswithesxcli software vibcommandsdiscussedinthevSphereUpgrade

documentationincludedinthevSphere6.0documentationset.

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

28 VMware, Inc.

VMware, Inc. 27

ThevSphereCLIincludestwocommandsforfilemanipulation.vmkfstoolsallowsyoutomanipulateVMFS

(VirtualMachineFileSystem)andvirtualdisks.vifssupportsremoteinteractionwithfilesonyourESXihost.

Thischapterincludesthefollowingtopics:

“IntroductiontoVirtualMachineFileManagement”onpage 27

“ManagingtheVirtualMachineFileSystemwithvmkfstools”onpage 28

“UpgradingVMFS3VolumestoVMFS5”onpage 29

“ManagingVMFSVolumes”onpage 29

“ReclaimingUnusedStorageSpace”onpage 31

“UsingvifstoViewandManipulateFilesonRemoteESXiHosts”onpage 32

Introduction to Virtual Machine File Management

YoucanusethevSphereWebClientorvCLIcommandstoaccessdifferenttypesofstoragedevicesthatyour

ESXihostdiscoversandtodeploydatastoresonthosedevices.

Dependingonthetypeofstorageyouuse,datastorescanbebackedbythefollowingfilesystemformats:

VirtualMachineFileSystem(VMFS).High‐performancefilesystemthatisoptimizedforstoringvirtual

machines.YourhostcandeployaVMFSdatastoreonanySCSI‐basedlocalornetworkedstoragedevice,

includingFibreChannelandiSCSISANequipment.AsanalternativetousingtheVMFSdatastore,your

virtualmachinecanhavedirectaccesstorawdevicesanduseamappingfile(RDM)asaproxy.

YoumanageVMFSandRDMswiththevSphereWebClient,orthevmkfstoolscommand.

NetworkFileSystem(NFS).TheNFSclientbuiltintoESXiusestheNetworkFileSystem(NFS)protocol

overTCP/IPtoaccessadesignatedNFSvolumethatislocatedonaNASserver.TheESXihostcanmount

thevolumeanduseitforitsstorageneeds.vSpheresupportsversion3and4.1oftheNFSprotocol.

Typically,theNFSvolumeordirectoryiscreatedbyastorageadministratorandisexportedformtheNFS

server.TheNFSvolumesdonotneedtobeformattedwithalocalfilesystem,suchasVMFS.Youcan

mountthevolumesdirectlyandusethemtostoreandbootvirtualmachinesinthesamewaythatyouuse

VMFSdatastores.ThehostcanaccessadesignatedNFSvolumelocatedonanNFSserver,mountthe

volume,anduseitforanystorageneeds.

Managing Files 3

NOTESee“ManagingStorage”onpage 37forinformationaboutstoragemanipulationcommands.

NOTEDatastoresarelogicalcontainers,analogoustofilesystems,thathidespecificsofeachstoragedevice

andprovideauniformmodelforstoringvirtualmachinefiles.DatastorescanbeusedforstoringISOimages,

virtualmachinetemplates,andfloppyimages.ThevSphereWebClientusesthetermdatastoreexclusively.

ThismanualusesthetermdatastoreandVMFS(orNFS)volumetorefertothesamelogicalcontaineronthe

physicaldevice.

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

28 VMware, Inc.

YoumanageNASstoragedevicesfromthevSphereWebClientorwiththeesxcli storage nfs

command.Thediagrambelowillustratesdifferenttypesofstorage,butitisforconceptualpurposesonly.

Itisnotarecommendedconfiguration.

Figure 3-1. Virtual Machines Accessing Different Types of Storage

Managing the Virtual Machine File System with vmkfstools

VMFSdatastoresprimarilyserveasrepositoriesforvirtualmachines.Youcanstoremultiplevirtualmachines

onthesameVMFSvolume.Eachvirtualmachine,encapsulatedinasetoffiles,occupiesaseparatesingle

directory.Fortheoperatingsysteminsidethevirtualmachine,VMFSpreservestheinternalfilesystem

semantics.

Inaddition,youcanusetheVMFSdatastorestostoreotherfiles,suchasvirtualmachinetemplatesandISO

images.VMFSsupportsfileandblocksizesthatenablevirtualmachinestorundata‐intensiveapplications,

includingdatabases,ERP,andCRM,invirtualmachines.SeethevSphereStoragedocumentation.

YouusethevmkfstoolsvCLItocreateandmanipulatevirtualdisks,filesystems,logicalvolumes,and

physicalstoragedevicesonanESXihost.Youcanusevmkfstoolstocreateandmanageavirtualmachinefile

system(VMFS)onaphysicalpartitionofadiskandtomanipulatefiles,suchasvirtualdisks,storedon

VMFS‐3andNFS.Youcanalsousevmkfstoolstosetupandmanagerawdevicemappings(RDMs).

ThevSphereStoragedocumentationincludesacompletereferencetothevmkfstoolscommandthatyoucan

useintheESXiShell.YoucanusemostofthesameoptionswiththevmkfstoolsvCLIcommand.Specifyone

oftheconnectionoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18

inplaceof<conn_options>.

ThefollowingoptionssupportedbythevmkfstoolsESXiShellcommandarenotsupportedbythe

vmkfstoolsvCLIcommand.

--breaklock -B

--chainConsistent -e

--eagerzero -k

--fix -x

--lock -L

iSCSI array NAS appliancefibre array

Host

VMFS

local

ethernet

SCSI

VMFS VMFS NFS

virtual

machine

virtual

machine

virtual

machine

virtual

machine

virtual

machine

SAN LAN LAN LAN

iSCSI

hardware

initiator

ﬁbre

channel

HBA

ethernet

NIC

ethernet

NIC

software

initiator

requires TCP/IP connectivity

Key

physical

disk

datastore

virtual

disk

IMPORTANTThevmkfstoolsvCLIsupportsmostbutnotalloftheoptionsthatthevmkfstoolsESXiShell

commandsupports.SeeVMwareKnowledgeBasearticle1008194.

Youcannotrunvmkfstoolswith--serverpointingtoavCenterServersystem.

VMware, Inc. 29

Chapter 3 Managing Files

--migratevirtualdisk -M

--parseimage -Y

--punchzero -K

--snapshotdisk -I

--verbose -v

Upgrading VMFS3 Volumes to VMFS5

vSphere5.0supportsVMFS5volumes,whichhaveimprovedscalabilityandperformance.Youcanupgrade

fromVMFS3toVMFS5byusingthevSphereWebClient,thevmkfstoolsESXiShellcommand,ortheesxcli

storage vmfs upgradecommand.PassthevolumelabelorthevolumeUUIDtotheESXCLIcommand.

Managing VMFS Volumes

Differentcommandsareavailableforlisting,mounting,andunmountingVMFSvolumesandforlisting,

mounting,andunmountingVMFSsnapshotvolumes.

ManagingVMFSvolumes

esxcli storage filesystem listshowsallvolumes,mountedandunmounted,thatareresolved,

thatis,thatarenotsnapshotvolumes.

esxcli storage filesystem unmountunmountsacurrentlymountedfilesystem.Usethiscommand

forsnapshotvolumesorresolvedvolumes.

Managingsnapshotvolumes

esxcli storage vmfs snapshotcommandscanbeusedforlisting,mounting,andresignaturing

snapshotvolumes.See“MountingDatastoreswithExistingSignatures”onpage 29and“Resignaturing

VMFSCopies”onpage 30.

Managing Duplicate VMFS Datastores

EachVMFSdatastorecreatedinaLUNhasauniqueUUIDthatisstoredinthefilesystemsuperblock.When

theLUNisreplicatedorwhenasnapshotismade,theresultingLUNcopyisidentical,byte‐for‐byte,tothe

originalLUN.Asaresult,iftheoriginalLUNcontainsaVMFSdatastorewithUUIDX,theLUNcopyappears

tocontainanidenticalVMFSdatastore,oraVMFSdatastorecopy,withthesameUUIDX.

ESXihostscandeterminewhetheraLUNcontainstheVMFSdatastorecopy,andeithermountthedatastore

copywithitsoriginalUUIDorchangetheUUIDtoresignaturethedatastore.

WhenaLUNcontainsaVMFSdatastorecopy,youcanmountthedatastorewiththeexistingsignatureor

assignanewsignature.ThevSphereStoragedocumentationdiscussesvolumeresignaturingindetail.

Mounting Datastores with Existing Signatures

YoucanmountaVMFSdatastorecopywithoutchangingitssignatureiftheoriginalisnotmounted.For

example,youcanmaintainsynchronizedcopiesofvirtualmachinesatasecondarysiteaspartofadisaster

recoveryplan.Intheeventofadisasterattheprimarysite,youcanmountthedatastorecopyandpoweron

thevirtualmachinesatthesecondarysite.

WhenyoumounttheVMFSdatastore,ESXiallowsbothreadandwriteoperationstothedatastorethatresides

ontheLUNcopy.TheLUNcopymustbewritable.Thedatastoremountsarepersistentandvalidacross

systemreboots.

IMPORTANTYoucannotupgradeVMFS3volumestoVMFS5withthevmkfstoolscommandincludedin

vSphereCLI.

IMPORTANTYoucanmountaVMFSdatastoreonlyifitdoesnotconflictwithanalreadymountedVMFS

datastorethathasthesameUUID.

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

30 VMware, Inc.

Youcanmountadatastorewithvicfg-volume(see“Tomountadatastorewithvicfg‐volume”onpage 30)or

withESXCLI(see“TomountadatastorewithESXCLI”onpage 30).

Mounting and Unmounting with ESXCLI

Theesxcli storage filesystemcommandssupportmountingandunmountingvolumes.Youcanalso

specifywhethertopersistthemountedvolumesacrossrebootsbyusingthe--no-persistoption.

Usetheesxcli storage filesystemcommandtolistmountedvolumes,mountnewvolumes,and

unmountavolume.Specifyoneoftheconnectionoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHost

ManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To mount a datastore with ESXCLI

1Listallvolumesthathavebeendetectedassnapshots.

esxcli <conn_options> storage filesystem list

2Runesxcli storage filesystem mountwiththevolumelabelorvolumeUUID.

Bydefault,thevolumeismountedpersistently;use--no-persisttomountnonpersistently.

esxcli <conn_options> storage filesystem volume mount

--volume-label=<label>|--volume-uuid=<VMFS-UUID>

Thiscommandfailsiftheoriginalcopyisonline.

Youcanlaterrunesxcli storage filesystem volume unmounttounmountthesnapshotvolume.

esxcli <conn_options> storage filesystem volume unmount

--volume-label=<label>|--volume-uuid=<VMFS-UUID>

Mounting and Unmounting with vicfg-volume

Usethevicfg-volumecommandtolistmountedvolumes,mountnewvolumes,andunmountavolume.

Specifyoneoftheconnectionoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”

onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To mount a datastore with vicfg-volume

1Listallvolumesthathavebeendetectedassnapshotsorreplicas.

vicfg-volume <conn_options> --list

2Runvicfg-volume --persistent-mount withtheVMFS‐UUIDorlabelasanargumenttomounta

volume.

vicfg-volume <conn_options> --persistent-mount <VMFS-UUID|label>

Thiscommandfailsiftheoriginalcopyisonline.

Youcanlaterrunvicfg-volume --unmounttounmountthesnapshotorreplicavolume.

vicfg-volume <conn_options> --unmount <VMFS-UUID|label>

Thevicfg-volumecommandsupportsresignaturingasnapshotvolumeandmountingandunmountingthe

volume.Youcanalsomakethemountedvolumepersistentacrossrebootsandqueryalistofsnapshot

volumesandoriginalvolumes.

Resignaturing VMFS Copies

UsedatastoreresignaturingtoretainthedatastoredontheVMFSdatastorecopy.WhenresignaturingaVMFS

copy,theESXihostassignsanewUUIDandanewlabeltothecopy,andmountsthecopyasadatastore

distinctfromtheoriginal.BecauseESXipreventsyoufromresignaturingthemounteddatastore,unmountthe

datastorebeforeresignaturing.

Thedefaultformatofthenewlabelassignedtothedatastoreissnap-<snapID>-<oldLabel>,where

<snapID>isanintegerand<oldLabel>isthelabeloftheoriginaldatastore.

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Chapter 3 Managing Files

Whenyouperformdatastoreresignaturing,considerthefollowingpoints:

Datastoreresignaturingisirreversible.

TheLUNcopythatcontainstheVMFSdatastorethatyouresignatureisnolongertreatedasaLUNcopy.

Aspanneddatastorecanberesignaturedonlyifallitsextentsareonline.

Theresignaturingprocessiscrashandfaulttolerant.Iftheprocessisinterrupted,youcanresumeitlater.

YoucanmountthenewVMFSdatastorewithoutariskofitsUUIDconflictingwithUUIDsofanyother

datastore,suchasanancestororchildinahierarchyofLUNsnapshots.

YoucanresignatureaVMFScopywithESXCLI(see“ResignaturingaVMFSCopywithESXCLI”onpage 31)

orwithvicfg-volumesee“ResignaturingaVMFSCopywithvicfg‐volume”onpage 31.

Resignaturing a VMFS Copy with ESXCLI

Theesxcli storage vmfs snapshotcommandssupportresignaturingasnapshotvolume.Specifyoneof

theconnectionoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18in

placeof<conn_options>.

To resignature a VMFS copy with ESXCLI

1Listunresolvedsnapshotsorreplicavolumes.

esxcli <conn_options> storage vmfs snapshot list

2 (Optional)Unmountthecopy.

esxcli <conn_options> storage filesystem unmount

3Runtheresignaturecommand.

esxcli <conn_options> storage vmfs snapshot resignature

--volume-label=<label>|--volume-uuid=<id>

Thecommandreturnstothepromptorsignalsanerror.

Afterresignaturing,youmighthavetodothefollowing:

Iftheresignatureddatastorecontainsvirtualmachines,updatereferencestotheoriginalVMFSdatastore

inthevirtualmachinefiles,including.vmx,.vmdk,.vmsd,and.vmsn.

Topoweronvirtualmachines,registerthemwiththevCenterServersystem.

Resignaturing a VMFS Copy with vicfg-volume

Youcanusevicfg-volumetomount,unmount,andresignatureVMFSvolumes.

To resignature a VMFS copy with vicfg-volume

1Makesurethecopyisnotmounted.

2Runvicfg-volumewiththeresignatureoption.

vicfg-volume <conn_options> --resignature <VMFS-UUID|label>

Thecommandreturnstothepromptorsignalsanerror.

Reclaiming Unused Storage Space

WhenVMFSdatastoresresideonthin‐provisionedLUNs,youcanuseESXCLIcommandstoreclaimthe

unusedlogicalblocksofathin‐provisionedLUNformattedwithVMFS.

Whenyourunthecommands,youmustspecifythevolumelabel(--volume-label)orthevolumeid

(--volume-uuid)butyoucannotspecifyboth.

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

32 VMware, Inc.

Ineachiteration,thecommandissuesunmapcommandstothenumberoffilesystemblocksthatarespecified

bytheoptionalreclaim-unitargument,whichdefaultsto200.FornewlycreatedVMFS‐5filesystems,the

filesystemblocksizeisalways1MB.ForVMFS‐3filesystemsorVMFS‐5filesystemsthatwereupgradedfrom

VMFS‐3,thefilesystemblocksizecouldbeoneof1,2,4,8MB.

Thefollowingexamplesillustratehowtousethecommand.

# esxcli storage vmfs unmap --volume-label datastore1 --reclaim-unit 100

# esxcli storage vmfs unmap -l datastore1 -n 100

# esxcli storage vmfs unmap --volume-uuid 515615fb-1e65c01d-b40f-001d096dbf97 --reclaim-unit 500

# esxcli storage vmfs unmap -u 515615fb-1e65c01d-b40f-001d096dbf97 -n 500

# esxcli storage vmfs unmap -l datastore1

# esxcli storage vmfs unmap -u 515615fb-1e65c01d-b40f-001d096dbf97

Using vifs to View and Manipulate Files on Remote ESXi Hosts

Youcanusethevifsutilityfordatastorefilemanagement.

Thevifscommandperformscommonoperationssuchascopy,remove,get,andputonESXifilesand

directories.ThecommandissupportedagainstESXihostsbutnotagainstvCenterServersystems.

SomesimilaritiesbetweenvifsandDOSorUNIX/Linuxfilesystemmanagementutilitiesexist,butthereare

manydifferences.Forexample,vifsdoesnotsupportwildcardcharactersorcurrentdirectoriesand,asa

result,relativepathnames.Usevifsonlyasdocumented.

Insteadofusingthevifscommand,youcanbrowsedatastorecontentsandhostfilesbyusingaWebbrowser.

Connecttothefollowinglocation:

http://ESX_host_IP_Address/host

http://ESX_host_IP_Address/folder

YoucanviewdatacenteranddatastoredirectoriesfromthisrootURL.Forexample:

http://<ESXi_addr>/folder?dcPath=ha-datacenter

http://<ESXi_host_name>/folder?dcPath=ha-datacenter

TheESXihostpromptsforausernameandpassword.

Thevifscommandsupportsdifferentoperationsforthefollowinggroupsoffilesanddirectories.Different

operationsareavailableforeachgroup,andyouspecifylocationswithadifferentsyntax.Thebehaviordiffers

forvSphere4.xandvSphere5.0.

CAUTIONIfyoumanipulatefilesdirectly,yourvSpheresetupmightendupinaninconsistentstate.Usethe

vSphereWebClientoroneoftheothervCLIcommandstomanipulatevirtualmachineconfigurationfilesand

virtualdisks.

vSphere 4.x vSphere 5.0

Host Hostconfigurationfiles.Youmustspecifythe

file’suniquenameidentifier.

Specifyhostlocationsbyusingthe

/host/<path>syntax.

Hostconfigurationfiles.Youmustspecifythe

file’suniquenameidentifier.

Specifyhostlocationsbyusingthe

/host/<path>syntax.

Youcannotlistsubdirectoriesof/host.

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Chapter 3 Managing Files

Toavoidproblemswithdirectorynamesthatusespecialcharactersorspaces,enclosethepathinquotesfor

bothoperatingsystems.

Whenyourunvifs,youcanspecifytheoperationnameandargumentandoneofthestandardconnection

options.Usealiases,symboliclinks,orwrapperscriptstosimplifytheinvocationsyntax.

Options

vifscommand‐specificoptionsallowyoutoretrieveanduploadfilesfromtheremotehostandperforma

numberofotheroperations.Allvifsoptionsworkondatastorefilesordirectories.Someoptionsalsowork

onhostfilesandfilesinthetempdirectory.Youmustalsospecifyconnectionoptions.

Temp The/tmpdirectoryandfilesinthatdirectory.

Specifytemplocationsbyusingthe

/tmp/dir/subdirsyntax.

Notsupported.

Datastores Datastorefilesanddirectories.Youhavetwochoicesforspecifyingadatastore:

Datastoreprefixstyle:'[ds_name] relative_path'.Forexample:

'[myStorage1] testvms/VM1/VM1.vmx'(Linux) or "[myStorage1]

testvms/VM1/VM1.vmx" (Windows)

URLstyle:/folder/dir/subdir/file?dsName=<name>.Forexample:

'/folder/testvms/VM1/VM1.vmx?dsName=myStorage1' (Linux)

"/folder/testvms/VM1/VM1.vmx?dsName=myStorage1" (Windows)

Thetwoexamplepathsrefertoavirtualmachineconfigurationfileforthevirtualmachine

VM1inthetestvms/VM1directoryofthemyStorage1datastore.

IMPORTANTTheconceptsofworkingdirectoryandlastdirectoryorfileoperatedonarenotsupportedwith

vifs.

Command Description Target Syntax

--copy

-c <source>

Copiesafileinadatastoretoanotherlocation

inadatastore.The<source>mustbearemote

sourcepath,the<target>aremotetarget

pathordirectory.

The--forceoptionreplacesexisting

destinationfiles.

Datastore

Temp

copy src_file_path

dst_directory_path

[‐‐force]

copy src_file_path

dst_file_path [‐‐force]

--dir

-D <remote_dir>

Liststhecontentsofadatastoredirectory.Datastore

Temp

dir

datastore_directory_path

--force

-F

Overwritesthedestinationfile.Usedwith

--moveand--copy.

Datastore

Temp

copy src_file_path

dst_file_path [‐‐force]

--get

-g <remote_path>

<local_path>

DownloadsafilefromtheESXihosttothe

machineonwhichyourunvCLI.This

operationusesHTTP GET.

Datastore

Host

get src_dstore_file_path

dst_local_file_path

get src_d store_dir_path

dst_local_file_path

--listdc

-C

Liststhedatacenterpathsavailableonan

ESXisystem.

Datastore

Host

--listds

-S

ListsthedatastorenamesontheESXisystem.

Whenmultipledatacentersareavailable,use

the--dc (-Z)argumenttospecifythename

ofthedatacenterfromwhichyouwanttolist

thedatastore.

Datastore

Host

vifs --listds

--mkdir

-M <remote_dir>

Createsadirectoryinadatastore.This

operationfailsiftheparentdirectoryof

dst_datastore_file_pathdoesnotexist.

Datastore

Temp

mkdir dst_directory_path

vSphere 4.x vSphere 5.0

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

34 VMware, Inc.

Examples

YoucanusevifstointeractwiththeremoteESXiorvCenterServersysteminavarietyofways.Specifyone

oftheconnectionoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18

inplaceof<conn_options>.TheexamplesillustrateuseonaLinuxsystem,usedoublequotesinsteadof

singlequoteswhenonaWindowssystem.

Listing Remote Information

ListalldatacentersonavCenterServersystemwith--listdc,using--servertopointtothevCenter

Serversystem.

vifs --server <my_vc>--username administrator --password <pswd> --listdc

ListalldatastoresonavCenterServersystemwith--listds.

vifs --server <my_vc> --username administrator --password <pswd> --dc kw-dev --listds

ListalldatastoresonanESXihostwith--listds.

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd> --listds

Thecommandliststhenamesofalldatastoresonthespecifiedserver.

Youcanuseeachnamethathasbeenreturnedtorefertodatastorepathsbyusingsquarebracketnotation,

asfollows:

'[my_datastore] dir/subdir/file'

Listthecontentofadirectoryinadatastore.

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd>--dir '[Storage1]'

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd> --dir '[Storage1] WindowsXP'

Thecommandliststhedirectorycontent.Inthisexample,thecommandliststhecontentsofavirtual

machinedirectory.

Content Listing

_________________

vmware-37.log

vmware-38.log

...

vmware.log

...

winxpPro-sp2.vmdk

winxpPro-sp2.vmx

winxpPro-sp2.vmxf

...

Listthecontentsofoneofthedatastores.

--move

-m <source>

Movesafileinadatastoretoanotherlocation

inadatastore.The<source>mustbearemote

sourcepath,the<target>aremotetarget

pathordirectory.

The--forceoptionreplacesexisting

destinationfiles.

Datastore

Temp

move src_file_path

dst_directory_path

[‐‐force]

move src_file_path

dst_file_path [‐‐force]

--put

-p <local_path>

<remote_path>

Uploadsafilefromthemachineonwhichyou

runvCLItotheESXihost.Thisoperationuses

HTTP PUT.

Thiscommandcanreplaceexistinghostfiles

butcannotcreatenewfiles.

Datastore

Host

Temp

put src_local_file_path

dst_file_path

put src_local_file_path

dst_directory_path

--rm

-r <remote_path>

Deletesadatastorefile.Datastore

Temp

rm dst_file_path

--rmdir

-R <remote_dir>

Deletesadatastoredirectory.Thisoperation

failsifthedirectoryisnotempty.

Datastore

Temp

rmdir dst_directory_path

Command Description Target Syntax

VMware, Inc. 35

Chapter 3 Managing Files

vifs <conn_options> --dir '[osdc-cx700-02]'

Thecommandliststhecompletecontentsofthedatastore.

Working with Directories and Files on the Remote Server

Createanewdirectoryinadatastorewith--mkdir <remote_dir>.

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd> --mkdir '[Storage1] test'

Removeadirectorywith--rmdir <remote_dir>.

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd> --rmdir '[Storage1] test'.

Forciblyremoveadirectorywith--rmdir --force <remote_dir>.

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd> --rmdir '[Storage1] test2' --force

Updateafileontheremoteserverwith--put <local_path> <remote_path>.

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd>

--put /tmp/testfile '[Storage1] test/testfile'

Retrieveafilefromtheremoteserverwith--get <remote_path> <local_path>|<local_dir>.The

commandoverwritesthelocalfileifitexists.Ifyoudonotspecifyafilename,thefilenameoftheremote

fileisused.

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd> --get '[Storage1] test/testfile'

/tmp/tfile

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd> --get '[Storage1] test/testfile'

/tmp

Deleteafileontheremoteserverwith-rm <remote_path>.

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd> --rm '[Storage1] test2/testfile'

Forciblyremoveafileontheremoteserverwith--rm <remote_path> --force.

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd> --rm '[Storage1] test2/testfile2'

--force

Moveafilefromonelocationontheremoteservertoanotherlocationwith--move

<remote_source_path> <remote_target_path>.Ifyouspecifyafilename,thefileismovedand

renamedatthesametime.

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd> --move '[Storage1] test/tfile'

'[Storage1] newfile'

Ifthetargetfilealreadyexistsontheremoteserver,thecommandfailsunlessyouuse--force.

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd> --move '[Storage1] test/tfile2'

'[Storage1] test2/tfile' --force

Createacopyofafileontheremoteserveratadifferentlocationontheremoteserver.

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd> --copy '[Storage1] test/tfile'

'[Storage1] test/tfile2'

Ifthetargetfilealreadyexistsontheremoteserver,thecommandfailsunlessyouuse--force.

vifs --server <my_ESXi> --username root --password <pswd> --copy '[Storage1] test/tfile'

'[Storage1] test/tfile2' --force

Example Scenario

Thefollowingexamplescenarioillustratesotherusesofvifs.Specifyoneoftheconnectionoptionslistedin

“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To manage files and directories on the remote ESXi system

1 Createadirectoryinthedatastore.

vifs <conn_options> --mkdir '[osdc-cx700-03] vcli_test'

Youmustspecifytheprecisepath;thereisnoconceptofarelativepath.

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

36 VMware, Inc.

2Placeafilethatisonthesystemfromwhichyouarerunningthecommandsintothenewlycreated

directory.

vifs <conn_options> --put /tmp/test_doc '[osdc-cx700-03] vcli_test/test_doc'

3Moveafileintoavirtualmachinedirectory.

vifs <conn_options> --move '[osdc-cx700-03] vcli_test/test_doc'

'[osdc-cx700-03] winxpPro-sp2/test_doc

Amessageindicatessuccessorfailure.

4 RetrieveoneofthefilesfromtheremoteESXisystem.

Thefollowingexampleretrievesalogfileforanalysis.

vifs <conn_options> --get '[osdc-cx700-03] winxpPro-sp2/vmware.log' ~user1/vmware.log

5Cleanupbyremovingthefileanddirectoryyoucreatedearlier.

vifs <conn_options> --rm '[osdc-cx700-03] vcli_test/test_doc'

vifs <conn_options> --rmdir '[osdc-cx700-03] vcli_test'

VMware, Inc. 37

Avirtualmachineusesavirtualdisktostoreitsoperatingsystem,programfiles,andotherdataassociated

withitsactivities.Avirtualdiskisalargephysicalfile,orasetoffiles,thatcanbecopied,moved,archived,

andbackedup.

Tostorevirtualdiskfilesandmanipulatethefiles,ahostrequiresdedicatedstoragespace.ESXistorageis

storagespaceonavarietyofphysicalstoragesystems,localornetworked,thatahostusestostorevirtual

machinedisks.

Thischapterincludesthefollowingtopics:

“IntroductiontoStorage”onpage 37

“ExaminingLUNs”onpage 40

“DetachingDevicesandRemovingaLUN”onpage 43

“WorkingwithPermanentDeviceLoss”onpage 43

“ManagingPaths”onpage 44

“ManagingPathPolicies”onpage 47

“ManagingNFS/NASDatastores”onpage 51

“MonitoringandManagingSANStorage”onpage 53

“MonitoringandManagingVirtualSANStorage”onpage 53

“MonitoringvSphereFlashReadCache”onpage 54

“MonitoringandManagingVirtualVolumes”onpage 55

“MigratingVirtualMachineswithsvmotion”onpage 56

“ConfiguringFCoEAdapters”onpage 57

“ScanningStorageAdapters”onpage 58

“RetrievingSMARTInformation”onpage 58

Chapter 5,“ManagingiSCSIStorage,”onpage 59discussesiSCSIstoragemanagement.Chapter 6,“Managing

Third‐PartyStorageArrays,”onpage 87explainshowtomanagethePluggableStorageArchitecture,

includingPathSelectionPlugin(PSP)andStorageArrayTypePlugin(SATP)configuration.

ForinformationonmaskingandunmaskingpathswithESXCLI,seethevSphereStoragedocumentation.

Introduction to Storage

FibreChannelSANarrays,iSCSISANarrays,andNASarraysarewidelyusedstoragetechnologiessupported

byVMwarevSpheretomeetdifferentdatacenterstorageneeds.Thestoragearraysareconnectedtoand

sharedbetweengroupsofserversthroughstorageareanetworks.Thisarrangementallowsaggregationofthe

storageresourcesandprovidesmoreflexibilityinprovisioningthemtovirtualmachines.

Managing Storage 4

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

38 VMware, Inc.

Figure 4-1. vSphere Data Center Physical Topology

How Virtual Machines Access Storage

Avirtualdiskhidesthephysicalstoragelayerfromthevirtualmachine’soperatingsystem.Regardlessofthe

typeofstoragedevicethatyourhostuses,thevirtualdiskalwaysappearstothevirtualmachineasamounted

SCSIdevice.Asaresult,youcanrunoperatingsystemsthatarenotcertifiedforspecificstorageequipment,

suchasSAN,inthevirtualmachine.

Whenavirtualmachinecommunicateswithitsvirtualdiskstoredonadatastore,itissuesSCSIcommands.

Becausedatastorescanexistonvarioustypesofphysicalstorage,thesecommandsareencapsulatedintoother

forms,dependingontheprotocolthattheESXihostusestoconnecttoastoragedevice.

Figure 4‐2depictsfivevirtualmachinesthatusedifferenttypesofstoragetoillustratethedifferencesbetween

eachtype.

Figure 4-2. Virtual Machines Accessing Different Types of Storage

server

group 1

virtual machines

server

group 2

server

group 3

fibre channel

storage array

iSCSI

storage array

NAS

storage array

vCenter Server terminal

Web access

vSphere Client

fibre channel switch fabric / IP network

ESX/ESXi

VM VM VM

iSCSI array NAS appliancefibre array

Host

VMFS

local

ethernet

SCSI

VMFS VMFS NFS

virtual

machine

virtual

machine

virtual

machine

virtual

machine

virtual

machine

SAN LAN LAN LAN

iSCSI

hardware

initiator

ﬁbre

channel

HBA

ethernet

NIC

ethernet

NIC

software

initiator

requires TCP/IP connectivity

Key

physical

disk

datastore

virtual

disk

VMware, Inc. 39

Chapter 4 Managing Storage

YoucanusevCLIcommandstomanagethevirtualmachinefilesystemandstoragedevices.

VMFS.Usevmkfstoolstocreate,modify,andmanageVMFSvirtualdisksandrawdevicemappings.

See“ManagingtheVirtualMachineFileSystemwithvmkfstools”onpage 28foranintroductionandthe

vSphereStoragedocumentationforadetailedreference.

Datastores.Severalcommandsallowyoutomanagedatastoresandareusefulformultipleprotocols.

LUNs.Useesxcli storage coreorvicfg-scsidevscommandstodisplayavailableLUNsand

mappingsforeachVMFSvolumetoitscorrespondingpartition.See“ExaminingLUNs”onpage 40.

Pathmanagement.Useesxcli storage coreorvicfg-mpathcommandstolistinformationabout

FibreChanneloriSCSILUNsandtochangeapath’sstate.See“ManagingPaths”onpage 44.Usethe

ESXCLIcommandtoviewandmodifypathpolicies.See“ManagingPathPolicies”onpage 47.

Rescan.Useesxcli storage coreorvicfg-rescanadapter rescantoperformarescan

operationeachtimeyoureconfigureyourstoragesetup.See“ScanningStorageAdapters”on

page 58.

Storagedevices.Severalcommandsmanageonlyspecificstoragedevices.

NFSstorage.Useesxcli storage nfsorvicfg-nastomanageNASstoragedevices.See

“ManagingNFS/NASDatastores”onpage 51.

iSCSIstorage.Useesxcli iscsiorvicfg-iscsitomanagebothhardwareandsoftwareiSCSI.

See“ManagingiSCSIStorage”onpage 59.

Software‐definedstorage.vSpheresupportsseveraltypesofsoftware‐definedstorage.

VirtualSANstorage.Usecommandsintheesxcli vsannamespacetomanageVirtualSAN.See

“MonitoringandManagingVirtualSANStorage”onpage 53.

VirtualFlashstorage.Usecommandsintheesxcli storage vflashnamespacetomanage

VMwarevSphereFlashReadCache.

Virtualvolumes.Virtualvolumesofferadifferentlayerofabstractionthandatastores.Asaresult,

finer‐grainedmanagementispossible..Usecommandsintheesxcli storage vvolnamespace.

Datastores

ESXihostsusestoragespaceonavarietyofphysicalstoragesystems,includinginternalandexternaldevices

andnetworkedstorage.Ahostcandiscoverstoragedevicestowhichithasaccessandformatthemas

datastores.Eachdatastoreisaspeciallogicalcontainer,analogoustoafilesystemonalogicalvolume,where

thehostplacesvirtualdiskfilesandothervirtualmachinefiles.Datastoreshidespecificsofeachstorage

productandprovideauniformmodelforstoringvirtualmachinefiles.

Dependingonthetypeofstorageyouuse,datastorescanbebackedbythefollowingfilesystemformats:

VirtualMachineFileSystem(VMFS).High‐performancefilesystemoptimizedforstoringvirtual

machines.YourhostcandeployaVMFSdatastoreonanySCSI‐basedlocalornetworkedstoragedevice,

includingFibreChannelandiSCSISANequipment.

AsanalternativetousingtheVMFSdatastore,yourvirtualmachinecanhavedirectaccesstorawdevices

anduseamappingfile(RDM)asaproxy.See“ManagingtheVirtualMachineFileSystemwith

vmkfstools”onpage 28.

NetworkFileSystem(NFS).FilesystemonaNASstoragedevice.ESXisupportsNFSversion3over

TCP/IP.ThehostcanaccessadesignatedNFSvolumelocatedonanNFSserver,mountthevolume,and

useitforanystorageneeds.

Storage Device Naming

Eachstoragedevice,orLUN,isidentifiedbyseveraldeviceidentifiernames.

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

40 VMware, Inc.

Device Identifiers

Dependingonthetypeofstorage,theESXihostusesdifferentalgorithmsandconventionstogeneratean

identifierforeachstoragedevice.

SCSIINQUIRYidentifiers.ThehostusestheSCSIINQUIRYcommandtoqueryastoragedeviceand

usestheresultingdata,inparticularthePage83information,togenerateauniqueidentifier.SCSI

INQUIRYdeviceidentifiersareuniqueacrossallhosts,persistent,andhaveoneofthefollowingformats:

naa.<number>

t10.<number>

eui.<number>

TheseformatsfollowtheT10committeestandards.SeetheSCSI‐3documentationontheT10committe

WebsiteforinformationonPage83.

Path‐basedidentifier.IfthedevicedoesnotprovidetheinformationonPage83oftheT10committee

SCSI‐3documentation,thehostgeneratesanmpx.<path>name,where<path>representsthefirstpathto

thedevice,forexample,mpx.vmhba1:C0:T1:L3.ThisidentifiercanbeusedinthesamewayastheSCSI

inquiryidentifiers.

Thempx.identifieriscreatedforlocaldevicesontheassumptionthattheirpathnamesareunique.

However,thisidentifierisneitheruniquenorpersistentandcouldchangeaftereveryboot.

Typically,thepathtothedevicehasthefollowingformat:

vmhba<adapter>:C<channel>:T<target>:L<LUN>

vmbh<adapter>isthenameofthestorageadapter.Thenamereferstothephysicaladapteronthe

host,nottheSCSIcontrollerusedbythevirtualmachines.

C<channel>isthestoragechannelnumber.SoftwareiSCSIadaptersanddependenthardware

adaptersusethechannelnumbertoshowmultiplepathstothesametarget.

T<target>isthetargetnumber.Targetnumberingisdeterminedbythehostandmightchangeifthe

mappingsoftargetsthatarevisibletothehostchange.Targetsthataresharedbydifferenthosts

mightnothavethesametargetnumber.

L<LUN>istheLUNnumberthatshowsthepositionoftheLUNwithinthetarget.Thenumberis

providedbythestoragesystem.IfatargethasonlyoneLUN,theLUNnumberisalwayszero(0).

Legacy Identifiers

InadditiontotheSCSIINQUIRYormpxidentifiers,ESXigeneratesanalternativelegacyname,calledVML

name,foreachdevice.UsethedeviceUIDinstead.

Examining LUNs

ALUN(LogicalUnitNumber)isanidentifierforadiskvolumeinastoragearraytarget.

Target and Device Representation

IntheESXicontext,thetermtargetidentifiesasinglestorageunitthatahostcanaccess.Thetermsdeviceand

LUNdescribealogicalvolumethatrepresentsstoragespaceonatarget.ThetermsdeviceandLUNmeana

SCSIvolumepresentedtothehostfromastoragetarget.

DifferentstoragevendorspresenttheirstoragesystemstoESXihostsindifferentways.Somevendorspresent

asingletargetwithmultipleLUNsonit.Othervendors,especiallyiSCSIvendors,presentmultipletargets

withoneLUNeach.

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Chapter 4 Managing Storage

Figure 4-3. Target and LUN Representations

InFigure 4‐3,threeLUNsareavailableineachconfiguration.Ontheleft,thehostseesonetarget,butthat

targethasthreeLUNsthatcanbeused.EachLUNrepresentsanindividualstoragevolume.Ontheright,the

hostseesthreedifferenttargets,eachhavingoneLUN.

Examining LUNs with esxcli storage core

Useesxcli storage coretodisplayinformationaboutavailableLUNsonESXi5.0.

YoucanrunoneofthefollowingcommandstoexamineLUNs.Specifyoneoftheconnectionoptionslistedin

“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

Listalllogicaldevicesknownonthissystemwithdetailedinformation.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core device list

Thecommandlistsdeviceinformationforalllogicaldevicesonthissystem.Theinformationincludesthe

name(UUID),devicetype,displayname,andmultipathingplugin.Specifythe--deviceoptiontoonly

listinformationaboutaspecificdevice.See“StorageDeviceNaming”onpage 39forbackground

information.

naa.5000c50037b3967e

Display Name: <name> (naa.5000c50037b3967e)

Has Settable Display Name: true

Size: 953869

Device Type: Direct-Access

...

naa.500000e014e7a4e0

Display Name: <name> (naa.500000e014e7a4e0)

Has Settable Display Name: true

Size: 70007

Device Type: Direct-Access

...

mpx.vmhba0:C0:T0:L0

Display Name: Local <name> CD-ROM (mpx.vmhba0:C0:T0:L0)

Has Settable Display Name: false

Size: 0

Device Type: CD-ROM

Listaspecificlogicaldevicewithitsdetailedinformation.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core device list -d mpx.vmhba32:C0:T1:L0

Listalldeviceuniqueidentifiers.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core device list

ThecommandliststheprimaryUIDforeachdevice(naa.xxxorotherprimaryname)andanyotherUIDs

foreachUID(VMLname).Youcanspecify--devicetoonlylistinformationforaspecificdevice.

PrintmappingsforVMFSvolumestothecorrespondingpartition,pathtothatpartition,VMFSUUID,

extentnumber,andvolumenames.

esxcli <conn_option> storage filesystem list

PrintHBAdeviceswithidentifyinginformation.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core adapter list

ThereturnvalueincludesadapterandUIDinformation.

PrintamappingbetweenHBAsandthedevicesitprovidespathsto.

storage array

target

LUN LUN LUN

storage array

target target target

LUN LUN LUN

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

42 VMware, Inc.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core path list

Examining LUNs with vicfg-scsidevs

Usevicfg-scsidevstodisplayinformationaboutavailableLUNsonESXi 4.xhosts.

YoucanrunoneofthefollowingcommandstoexamineLUNs.Specifyoneoftheconnectionoptionslistedin

“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

Listalllogicaldevicesknownonthissystemwithdetailedinformation.

vicfg-scsidevs <conn_options> --list

Thecommandlistsdeviceinformationforalllogicaldevicesonthissystem.Theinformationincludesthe

name(UUID),devicetype,displayname,andmultipathingplugin.Specifythe--deviceoptiontoonly

listinformationaboutaspecificdevice.Thefollowingexampleshowsoutputfortwodevices;theactual

listingmightincludemultipledevicesandthepreciseformatdiffersbetweenreleases.

mpx.vmhba2:C0:T1:L0

Device Type: cdrom

Size: 0 MB

Display Name: Local HL-DT-ST (mpx.vmhba2:C0:T1:L0)

Plugin: NMP

Console Device: /vmfs/devices/cdrom/mpx.vmhba2:C0:T1:L0

Devfs Path: /vmfs/devices/cdrom/mpx.vmhba2:C0:T1:L0

Vendor: SONY Model: DVD-ROM GDRXX8XX Revis: 3.00

SCSI Level: 5 Is Pseudo: Status:

Is RDM Capable: Is Removable:

Other Names:

vml.000N000000XXXdXXXXXXXXaXXXaXX

VAAI Status: nnnn

naa.60060...

Device Type: disk

Size: 614400 MB

Display Name: DGC Fibre Channel Disk (naa.60060...)

...

Listalllogicaldeviceswithabbreviatedinformation.

vicfg-scsidevs <conn_options> --compact-list

TheinformationincludesthedeviceID,devicetype,size,plugin,anddevicedisplayname.

Listalldeviceuniqueidentifiers.

vicfg-scsidevs <conn_options> --uids

ThecommandliststheprimaryUIDforeachdevice(naa.xxxorotherprimaryname)andanyotherUIDs

foreachUID(VMLname).Youcanspecify--devicetoonlylistinformationforaspecificdevice.

Listaspecificlogicaldevicewithitsdetailedinformation.

vicfg-scsidevs <conn_options> -l -d mpx.vmhba32:C0:T1:L0

PrintmappingsforVMFSvolumestothecorrespondingpartition,pathtothatpartition,VMFSuuid,

extentnumber,andvolumenames.

vicfg-scsidevs <conn_options> --vmfs

PrintHBAdeviceswithidentifyinginformation.

vicfg-scsidevs <conn_options> --hbas

ThereturnvalueincludestheadapterID,driverID,adapterUID,PCI,vendor,andmodel.

PrintamappingbetweenHBAsandthedevicesitprovidespathsto.

vicfg-scsidevs <conn_options> --hba-device-list

IMPORTANTYoucanrunvicfg-scsidevs--queryandvicfg-scsidevs --vmfsagainstESXiversion3.5.

TheotheroptionsaresupportedonlyagainstESXiversion4.0andlater.

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Chapter 4 Managing Storage

Detaching Devices and Removing a LUN

BeforeyoucanremoveaLUN,youmustdetachthecorrespondingdevicebyusingthevSphereWebClient,

ortheesxcli storage core device setcommand.Detachingadevicebringsadeviceoffline.Detaching

adevicedoesnotimpactpathstates.IftheLUNisstillvisible,thepathstateisnotsettodead.

To detach a device and remove a LUN

1Migratevirtualmachinesfromthedeviceyouplantodetach.

Forinformationonmigratingvirtualmachines,seethevCenterServerandHostManagement

documentation.

2Unmountthedatastoredeployedonthedevice.See“MountingandUnmountingwithESXCLI”on

page 30.

Iftheunmountfails,ESXCLIreturnsanerror.Ifyouignorethaterror,youwillgetanerrorinstep4when

youattempttodetachadevicewithaVMFSpartitionstillinuse.

3Iftheunmountfailed,checkwhetherthedeviceisinuse.

esxcli storage core device world list -d <device>

IfaVMFSvolumeisusingthedeviceindirectly,theworldnameincludesthestringidle0.Ifavirtual

machineusesthedeviceasanRDM,thevirtualmachineprocessnameisdisplayed.Ifanyotherprocess

isusingtherawdevice,theinformationisdisplayed.

4 Detachthestoragedevice.

esxcli storage core device set -d naa.xxx... --state=off

Detachispersistentacrossrebootsanddeviceunregistration.Anydevicethatisdetachedremains

detacheduntilamanualattachoperation.Rescandoesnotbringpersistentlydetacheddevicesback

online.Apersistentlydetacheddevicecomesbackintheoffstate.

ESXimaintainsthepersistentinformationaboutthedevice’sofflinestateevenifthedeviceis

unregistered.Youcanremovethedeviceinformationbyrunningesxcli storage core device

detached remove -d naa.12.

5 (Optional)Totroubleshootthedetachoperation,listalldevicesthatweredetachedmanually.

esxcli storage core device detached list

6Performarescan.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core adapter rescan

Whenyouhavecompletedstoragereconfiguration,youcanreattachthestoragedevice,mountthedatastore,

andrestartthevirtualmachines.

To reattach the device

1 (Optional)Checkthatthedeviceisdetached.

esxcli storage core device detached list

2 Attachthedevice.

esxcli storage core device set -d naa.XXX --state=on

3Mountthedatastoreandrestartvirtualmachines.See“MountingDatastoreswithExistingSignatures”on

page 29.

Working with Permanent Device Loss

WithearlierESXireleases,anAPD(AllPathsDown)eventresultswhentheLUNbecomesunavailable.The

eventisdifficultforadministratorsbecausetheydonothaveenoughinformationaboutthestateoftheLUN

toknowwhichcorrectiveactionisappropriate.

Getting Started with vSphere Command-Line Interfaces

44 VMware, Inc.

InESXi5.0,theESXihostcandeterminewhetherthecauseofanAllPathsDown(APD)eventistemporary,or

whetherthecauseispermanentdeviceloss.APDLstatusoccurswhenthestoragearrayreturnsSCSIsense

codesindicatingthattheLUNisnolongeravailableorthatasevere,unrecoverablehardwareproblemexist

withit.ESXihasanimprovedinfrastructurethatcanspeedupoperationsofupper‐layerapplicationsina

devicelossscenario.

To Remove a PDL LUN

HowyouremoveaPDLLUNdependsonwhetheritwasinuse.

IftheLUNthatgoesintoPDLisnotinusebyanyuserprocessorbytheVMkernel,theLUNdisappears

byitselfafteraPDL.

IftheLUNwasinusewhenitenteredPLD,deletetheLUNmanuallybyfollowingtheprocessdescribed

in“DetachingDevicesandRemovingaLUN”onpage 43.

To Reattach a PDL LUN

1ReturntheLUNtoworkingorder.

2Removeanyusersofthedevice.

Youcannotbringadevicebackwithoutremovingactiveusers.TheESXihostcannotknowwhetherthe

devicethatwasaddedbackhaschanged.ESXimustbeabletotreatthedevicesimilarlytoanewdevice

beingdiscovered.

3Performarescantogetthedevicebackinworkingorder.

Managing Paths

TomaintainaconstantconnectionbetweenanESXihostanditsstorage,ESXisupportsmultipathing.With

multipathingyoucanusemorethanonephysicalpathfortransferringdatabetweentheESXihostandthe

externalstoragedevice.

IncaseoffailureofanelementintheSANnetwork,suchasanHBA,switch,orcable,theESXihostcanfail

overtoanotherphysicalpath.Onsomedevices,multipathingalsooffersloadbalancing,whichredistributes

I/Oloadsbetweenmultiplepathstoreduceoreliminatepotentialbottlenecks.

ThestoragearchitectureinvSphere4.0andlatersupportsaspecialVMkernellayer,PluggableStorage

Architecture(PSA).ThePSAisanopenmodularframeworkthatcoordinatesthesimultaneousoperationof

multiplemultipathingplugins(MPPs).YoucanmanagePSAusingESXCLIcommands.See“Managing

Third‐PartyStorageArrays”onpage 87.ThissectionassumesyouareusingonlyPSApluginsincludedin

vSpherebydefault.

Multipathing with Local Storage and FC SANs

Inasimplemultipathinglocalstoragetopology,youcanuseoneESXihostwithtwoHBAs.TheESXihost

connectstoadual‐portlocalstoragesystemthroughtwocables.Thisconfigurationensuresfaulttoleranceif

oneoftheconnectionelementsbetweentheESXihostandthelocalstoragesystemfails.

TosupportpathswitchingwithFCSAN,theESXihosttypicallyhastwoHBAsavailablefromwhichthe

storagearraycanbereachedthroughoneormoreswitches.Alternatively,thesetupcanincludeoneHBAand

twostorageprocessorssothattheHBAcanuseadifferentpathtoreachthediskarray.

InFigure 4‐4,multiplepathsconnecteachhostwiththestoragedevice.Forexample,ifHBA1orthelink

betweenHBA1andtheswitchfails,HBA2takesoverandprovidestheconnectionbetweentheserverandthe

switch.TheprocessofoneHBAtakingoverforanotheriscalledHBAfailover.

IMPORTANTDonotplanforAPD/PDLevents,forexample,whenyouwanttoupgradeyourhardware.

Instead,performanorderlyremovalofLUNsfromyourESXiserver,whichisdescribedin“DetachingDevices

andRemovingaLUN”onpage 43,performtheoperation,andaddtheLUNback.

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Chapter 4 Managing Storage

Figure 4-4. FC Multipathing

IfSP1orthelinkbetweenSP1andtheswitchbreaks,SP2takesoverandprovidestheconnectionbetweenthe

switchandthestoragedevice.ThisprocessiscalledSPfailover.ESXimultipathingsupportsHBAandSP

failover.

Afteryouhavesetupyourhardwaretosupportmultipathing,youcanusethevSphereWebClientorvCLI

commandstolistandmanagepaths.Youcanperformthefollowingtasks.

Listpathinformationwithvicfg-mpathoresxcli storage core path.See“ListingPathInformation”

onpage 45.

Changepathstatewithvicfg-mpathoresxcli storage core path.See“ChangingtheStateofaPath”

onpage 46.

ChangepathpolicieswithESXCLI.See“SettingPolicyDetailsforDevicesthatUseRoundRobin”on

page 50.

MaskpathswithESXCLI.SeethevSphereStoragedocumentation.

Manipulatetherulesthatmatchpathstomultipathingpluginstonewlydiscovereddeviceswithesxcli

claimrule.See“ManagingClaimRules”onpage 95.

Runorrerunclaimrulesorunclaimpaths.See“ManagingClaimRules”onpage 95.

Rescanwithvicfg-rescan.See“ScanningStorageAdapters”onpage 58.

Listing Path Information

YoucanlistpathinformationwithESXCLIorwithvicfg-mpath.

Listing Path Information with ESXCLI

Youcanrunesxcli storage core pathtodisplayinformationaboutFibreChanneloriSCSILUNs.

Youcandisplayinformationaboutpathsbyrunningesxcli storage core path.Specifyoneoftheoptions

listedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof

<conn_options>.

Listalldeviceswiththeircorrespondingpaths,stateofthepath,adaptertype,andotherinformation.

SP2

storage array

SP1

switch switch

HBA2 HBA1 HBA3 HBA4

Host 1 Host 2

IMPORTANTUseindustry‐standarddevicenames,withformateui.xxxornaa.xxxtoensureconsistency.

DonotuseVMLLUNnamesunlessdevicenamesarenotavailable.

NamesofvirtualmachineHBAsarenotguaranteedtobevalidacrossreboots.

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46 VMware, Inc.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core path list

Limitthedisplaytoonlyaspecifiedpathordevice.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core path list --path <path>

esxcli <conn_options> storage core path list --device <device>

ListthestatisticsfortheSCSIpathsinthesystem.Youcanlistallpathsorlimitthedisplaytoaspecific

path.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core path stats get

esxcli <conn_options> storage core path stats get --path <path>

Listdetailedinformationforthepathsforthedevicespecifiedwith--device.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core path list -d <naa.xxxxxx>

Listalladapters.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core adapter list

Rescanalladapters.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core adapter rescan

Listing Path Information with vicfg-mpath

Youcanrunvicfg-mpathtolistinformationaboutFibreChanneloriSCSILUNs.

Youcandisplayinformationaboutpathsbyrunningvicfg-mpathwithoneofthefollowingoptions.Specify

oneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplace

of<conn_options>.

Listalldeviceswiththeircorrespondingpaths,stateofthepath,adaptertype,andotherinformation.

vicfg-mpath <conn_options> --list-paths

Displayashortlistingofallpaths.

vicfg-mpath <conn_options> --list-compact

Listallpathswithadapteranddevicemappings.

vicfg-mpath <conn_options> --list-map

ListpathsanddetailedinformationbyspecifyingthepathUID(longpath).ThepathUIDisthefirstitem

inthevicfg-mpath --listdisplay.

vicfg-mpath <conn_options> --list

-P sas.5001c231c79c4a00-sas.1221000001000000-naa.5000c5000289c61b

Listpathsanddetailedinformationbyspecifyingthepathruntimename.

vicfg-mpath <conn_options> -l -P vmhba32:C0:T0:L0

Thereturninformationincludestheruntimename,device,devicedisplayname,adapter,adapter

identifier,targetidentifier,plugin,state,transport,andadapterandtargettransportdetails.

Listdetailedinformationforthepathsforthedevicespecifiedwith--device.

vicfg-mpath <conn_options> -l -d mpx.vmhba32:C0:T1:L0

vicfg-mpath <conn_options> --list --device naa.60060...

Changing the State of a Path

YoucanchangethestateofapathwithESXCLIorwithvicfg-mpath.

IMPORTANTUseindustry‐standarddevicenames,withformateui.xxxornaa.xxxtoensureconsistency.

DonotuseVMLLUNnamesunlessdevicenamesarenotavailable.

NamesofvirtualmachineHBAsarenotguaranteedtobevalidacrossreboots.

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Chapter 4 Managing Storage

Changing Path State with ESXCLI

Youcantemporarilydisablepathsformaintenanceorotherreasons,andenablethepathwhenyouneedit

again.YoucandisablepathswithESXCLI.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLI

HostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

Ifyouarechangingapath’sstate,thechangeoperationfailsifI/Oisactivewhenthepathsettingischanged.

Reissuethecommand.YoumustissueatleastoneI/Ooperationbeforethechangetakeseffect.

To disable a path with ESXCLI

1 (Optional)Listalldevicesandcorrespondingpaths.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core path list

Thedisplayincludesinformationabouteachpath’sstate.

2SetthestateofaLUNpathtooff.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core path set --state off --path vmhba32:C0:T1:L0

Whenyouareready,setthepathstatetoactiveagain.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core path set --state active --path vmhba32:C0:T1:L0

Changing Path State with vicfg-mpath

Youcandisablepathswithvicfg-mpath.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLI

HostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

Ifyouarechangingapath’sstate,thechangeoperationfailsifI/Oisactivewhenthepathsettingischanged.

Reissuethecommand.YoumustissueatleastoneI/Ooperationbeforethechangetakeseffect.

To disable a path with vicfg-mpath

1 (Optional)Listalldevicesandcorrespondingpaths.

vicfg-mpath <conn_options> --list-paths

Thedisplayincludesinformationabouteachpath’sstate.

2SetthestateofaLUNpathtooff.

vicfg-mpath <conn_options> --state off --path vmhba32:C0:T1:L0

Whenyouareready,setthepathstatetoactiveagain.

vicfg-mpath <conn_options> --state active --path vmhba32:C0:T1:L0

Managing Path Policies

ForeachstoragedevicemanagedbyNMP(notPowerPath),anESXihostusesapathselectionpolicy.Ifyou

haveathird‐partyPSPinstalledonyourhost,itspolicyalsoappearsonthelist.Thefollowingpathpolicies

aresupportedbydefault.

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48 VMware, Inc.

Thetypeofarrayandthepathpolicydeterminethebehaviorofthehost.

Multipathing Considerations

Thefollowingconsiderationshelpyouwithmultipathing:

IfnoSATPisassignedtothedevicebytheclaimrules,thedefaultSATPforiSCSIorFCdevicesis

VMW_SATP_DEFAULT_AA.ThedefaultPSPisVMW_PSP_FIXED.

WhenthesystemsearchestheSATPrulestolocateaSATPforagivendevice,itsearchesthedriverrules

first.Ifthereisnomatch,thevendor/modelrulesaresearched,andfinallythetransportrulesare

searched.Ifnomatchoccurs,NMPselectsadefaultSATPforthedevice.

IfVMW_SATP_ALUAisassignedtoaspecificstoragedevice,butthedeviceisnotALUA‐aware,noclaim

rulematchoccursforthisdevice.ThedeviceisclaimedbythedefaultSATPbasedonthedeviceʹs

transporttype.

ThedefaultPSPforalldevicesclaimedbyVMW_SATP_ALUAisVMW_PSP_MRU.TheVMW_PSP_MRUselectsan

active/optimizedpathasreportedbytheVMW_SATP_ALUA,oranactive/unoptimizedpathifthereis

noactive/optimizedpath.Thispathisuseduntilabetterpathisavailable(MRU).Forexample,ifthe

VMW_PSP_MRUiscurrentlyusinganactive/unoptimizedpathandanactive/optimizedpathbecomes

available,theVMW_PSP_MRUwillswitchthecurrentpathtotheactive/optimizedone.

Table 4-1. Supported Path Policies

Policy Description

VMW_PSP_FIXED Thehostusesthedesignatedpreferredpath,ifithasbeenconfigured.Otherwise,thehost

selectsthefirstworkingpathdiscoveredatsystemboottime.Ifyouwantthehosttousea

particularpreferredpath,specifyitthroughthevSphereWebClient,orbyusingesxcli

storage nmp psp fixed deviceconfig set.See“ChangingPathPolicies”onpage 49.

Thedefaultpolicyforactive‐activestoragedevicesisVMW_PSP_FIXED.

Note:IfthehostusesadefaultpreferredpathandthepathʹsstatusturnstoDead,anewpath

isselectedaspreferred.However,ifyouexplicitlydesignatethepreferredpath,itwillremain

preferredevenwhenitbecomesinaccessible.

VMW_PSP_MRU Thehostselectsthepaththatitusedmostrecently.Whenthepathbecomesunavailable,the

hostselectsanalternativepath.Thehostdoesnotrevertbacktotheoriginalpathwhenthat

pathbecomesavailableagain.ThereisnopreferredpathsettingwiththeMRUpolicy.MRU

isthedefaultpolicyforactive‐passivestoragedevices.

TheVMW_PSP_MRUrankingcapabilityallowsyoutoassignrankstoindividualpaths.Toset

rankstoindividualpaths,usetheesxclistoragenmppspgenericpathconfigsetcommand.

Fordetails,seetheVMwareknowledgebasearticle2003468.

VMW_PSP_RR Thehostusesanautomaticpathselectionalgorithmthatrotatesthroughallactivepaths

whenconnectingtoactive‐passivearrays,orthroughallavailablepathswhenconnectingto

active‐activearrays.Automaticpathselectionimplementsloadbalancingacrossthephysical

pathsavailabletoyourhost.LoadbalancingistheprocessofspreadingI/Orequestsacross

thepaths.ThegoalistooptimizethroughputperformancesuchasI/Opersecond,megabytes

persecond,orresponsetimes.

VMW_PSP_RRisthedefaultforanumberofarraysandcanbeusedwithbothactive‐activeand

active‐passivearraystoimplementloadbalancingacrosspathsfordifferentLUNs.

Table 4-2. Path Policy Effects

Policy Active/Active Array Active/Passive Array

MostRecentlyUsed Administratoractionisrequiredtofail

backafterpathfailure.

Administratoractionisrequiredtofailback

afterpathfailure.

Fixed VMkernelresumesusingthepreferred

pathwhenconnectivityisrestored.

VMkernelattemptstoresumebyusingthe

preferredpath.Thisactioncancausepath

thrashingorfailurewhenanotherSPnow

ownstheLUN.

RoundRobinNofailback. Nextpathinroundrobinschedulingis

selected.

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Chapter 4 Managing Storage

WhileVMW_PSP_MRUistypicallyselectedforALUAarraysbydefault,certainALUAstoragearraysneed

touseVMW_PSP_FIXED.TocheckwhetheryourstoragearrayrequiresVMW_PSP_FIXED,seetheVMware

CompatibilityGuideorcontactyourstoragevendor.WhenusingVMW_PSP_FIXEDwithALUAarrays,

unlessyouexplicitlyspecifyapreferredpath,theESXihostselectsthemostoptimalworkingpathand

designatesitasthedefaultpreferredpath.Ifthehostselectedpathbecomesunavailable,thehostselects

analternativeavailablepath.However,ifyouexplicitlydesignatethepreferredpath,itremainspreferred

nomatterwhatitsstatusis.

Bydefault,thePSAclaimrule101masksDellarraypseudodevices.Donotdeletethisrule,unlessyou

wanttounmaskthesedevices.

Changing Path Policies

YoucanchangepathpolicieswithESXCLIorwithvicfg-mpath.

Changing Path Policies with ESXCLI

YoucanchangethepathpolicywithESXCLI.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLI

HostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To change the path policy with ESXCLI

1EnsureyourdeviceisclaimedbytheNMPplugin.OnlyNMPdevicesallowyoutochangethepathpolicy.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp device list

2 Retrievethelistofpathselectionpoliciesonthesystemtoseewhichvaluesarevalidforthe--pspoption

whenyousetthepathpolicy.

esxcli storage core plugin registration list --plugin-class="PSP"

3Setthepathpolicyusingesxcli.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp device set --device naa.xxx --psp VMW_PSP_RR

SeeTable 4‐1,“SupportedPathPolicies,”onpage 48.

4 (Optional)IfyouspecifiedtheVMW_PSP_FIXEDpolicy,youmustmakesurethepreferredpathisset

correctly.

aCheckwhichpathisthepreferredpathforadevice.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp psp fixed deviceconfig get --device naa.xxx

bIfnecessary,changethepreferredpath.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp psp fixed deviceconfig set --device naa.xxx --path

vmhba3:C0:T5:L3

Thecommandsetsthepreferredpathtovmhba3:C0:T5:L3.Runthecommandwith--defaultto

clearthepreferredpathselection.

Changing Path Policies with vicfg-mpath

Youcanchangethepathpolicywithvicfg-mpath.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptions

forvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To change the path policy with vicfg-mpath

1Listallmultipathingpluginsloadedintothesystem.

vicfg-mpath <conn_options> --list-plugins

Ataminimum,thiscommandreturnsNMP(NativeMultipathingPlugin)andMASK_PATH.IfotherMPP

pluginshavebeenloaded,theyarelistedaswell.

2SetthepathpolicybyusingESXCLI.

esxcli <conn_options> nmp device set --device naa.xxx --psp VMW_PSP_RR

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50 VMware, Inc.

SeeTable 4‐1,“SupportedPathPolicies,”onpage 48.

3 (Optional)IfyouspecifiedtheVMW_PSP_FIXEDpolicy,youmustmakesurethepreferredpathisset

correctly.

aFirstcheckwhichpathisthepreferredpathforadevice.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp psp fixed deviceconfig get -d naa.xxxx

bIfnecessary,changethepreferredpath.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp psp fixed deviceconfig set --device naa.xxx --path

vmhba3:C0:T5:L3

Thecommandsetsthepreferredpathtovmhba3:C0:T5:L3

Setting Policy Details for Devices that Use Round Robin

ESXihostscanusemultipathingforfailover.Withcertainstoragedevices,ESXihostscanalsouse

multipathingforloadbalancing.Toachievebetterloadbalancingacrosspaths,administratorscanspecifythat

theESXihostshouldswitchpathsundercertaincircumstances.Differentsettableoptionsdeterminewhenthe

ESXihostswitchespathsandwhatpathsarechosen.Onlyalimitednumberofstoragearrayssupportround

robin.

Youcanuseesxcli nmp roundrobintoretrieveandsetroundrobinpathoptionsonadevicecontrolledby

theroundrobinPSP.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagement

Commands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

Novicfg-commandexistsforperformingtheoperations.TheESXCLIcommandsforsettingroundrobin

pathoptionshavechanged.ThecommandssupportedinESXi4.xarenolongersupported.

To view and manipulate round robin path selection settings with ESXCLI

1 RetrievepathselectionsettingsforadevicethatisusingtheroundrobinPSP.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp psp roundrobin deviceconfig get --device na.xxx

2Setthepathselection.Youcanspecifywhenthepathshouldchange,andwhetherunoptimizedpaths

shouldbeincluded.

Use--bytesor--iopstospecifywhenthepathshouldchange,asinthefollowingexamples:

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp psp roundrobin deviceconfig set --type "bytes" -B 12345

--device naa.xxx

Setsthedevicespecifiedby--devicetoswitchtothenextpatheachtime12345byteshavebeensent

alongthecurrentpath.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp psp roundrobin deviceconfig set --type=iops --iops

4200 --device naa.xxx

Setsthedevicespecifiedby--devicetoswitchafter4200I/Ooperationshavebeenperformedona

path.

UseuseanotospecifythattheroundrobinPSPshouldincludepathsintheactive,unoptimizedstate

intheroundrobinset(1)orthatthePSPshoulduseactive,unoptimizedpathsonlyifnoactive

optimizedpathsareavailable(0).Ifyoudonotincludethisoption,thePSPincludesonlyactive

optimizedpathsintheroundrobinpathset.

Scheduling Queues for Virtual Machine I/O

Bydefault,vSphereprovidesamechanismthatcreatesschedulingqueuesforeachvirtualmachinefile.Each

filehasindividualbandwidthcontrols.ThismechanismensuresthattheI/Oforaparticularvirtualmachine

goesintoitsownseparatequeueanddoesnotinterferewiththeI/Oofothervirtualmachines.

Thiscapabilityisenabledbydefault.Youcanturnitoffbyusingtheesxcli system settings kernel set

-s isPerFileSchedModelActiveoption.

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Chapter 4 Managing Storage

To enable or disable per file I/O scheduling

Runesxcli system settings kernel set -s isPerFileSchedModelActive -v FALSEtodisable

perfilescheduling.

Runesxcli system settings kernel set -s isPerFileSchedModelActive -v TRUEtoenable

perfilescheduling.

Managing NFS/NAS Datastores

ESXihostscanaccessadesignatedNFSvolumelocatedonaNAS(NetworkAttachedStorage)server,can

mountthevolume,andcanuseitforitsstorageneeds.YoucanuseNFSvolumestostoreandbootvirtual

machinesinthesamewaythatyouuseVMFSdatastores.

Capabilities Supported by NFS/NAS

AnNFSclientbuiltintotheESXihypervisorusestheNetworkFileSystem(NFS)protocoloverTCP/IPto

accessadesignatedNFSvolumethatislocatedonaNASserver.TheESXihostcanmountthevolumeanduse

itforitsstorageneeds.vSpheresupportsversions3and4.1oftheNFSprotocol.

Typically,theNFSvolumeordirectoryiscreatedbyastorageadministratorandisexportedformtheNFS

server.TheNFSvolumedoesnotneedtobeformattedwithalocalfilesystem,suchasVMFS.Youcanmount

thevolumedirectlyonESXihosts,anduseittostoreandbootvirtualmachinesinthesamewaythatyouuse

VMFSdatastores.

InadditiontostoringvirtualdisksonNFSdatastores,youcanalsouseNFSasacentralrepositoryforISO

images,virtualmachinetemplates,andsoon.IfyouusethedatastoreforISOimages,youcanconnectthe

virtualmachineʹsCD‐ROMdevicetoanISOfileonthedatastoreandinstallaguestoperatingsystemfromthe

ISOfile.

ESXihostssupportthefollowingsharedstoragecapabilitiesonNFSvolumes:

VMwarevMotionandStoragevMotion

HighAvailability(HA),FaultTolerance,andDistributedResourceScheduler(DRS)

ISOimages,whicharepresentedasCD‐ROMstovirtualmachines

Virtualmachinesnapshots

Hostprofiles

Virtualmachineswithlargecapacityvirtualdisks,ordisksgreaterthan2TB.VirtualdiskscreatedonNFS

datastoresarethin‐provisionedbydefault,unlessyouusehardwareaccelerationthatsupportsthe

ReserveSpaceoperation.NFS4.1doesnotsupporthardwareacceleration.See“HardwareAcceleration

onNASDevices”inthevSphereStoragedocumentation.

InadditiontostoringvirtualdisksonNFSdatastores,youcanalsouseNFSasacentralrepositoryforISO

images,virtualmachinetemplates,andsoon.

TouseNFSasasharedrepository,youcreateadirectoryontheNFSserverandthenmountthedirectoryasa

datastoreonallhosts.IfyouusethedatastoreforISOimages,youcanconnectthevirtualmachineʹsCD‐ROM

devicetoanISOfileonthedatastoreandinstallaguestoperatingsystemfromtheISOfile.

Adding and Deleting NAS File Systems

Youcanlist,add,anddeleteaNASfilesystemwithESXCLIorwithvicfg-nas.

Managing NAS File Systems with ESXCLI

YoucanuseESXCLIasavCLIcommandwithconnectionoptions(see“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHost

ManagementCommands”onpage 18)orintheESXishell.

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52 VMware, Inc.

To manage a NAS file system

1ListallknownNASfilesystems.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nfs list

ForeachNASfilesystem,thecommandliststhemountname,sharename,andhostnameandwhether

thefilesystemismounted.

IfnoNASfilesystemsareavailable,thesystemdoesnotreturnaNASfilesystemandreturnstothe

commandprompt.

2AddanewNASfilesystemtotheESXihost.SpecifytheNASserverwith--host,thevolumetousefor

themountwith--volume-name,andthesharenameontheremotesystemtouseforthisNASmount

pointwith--share.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nfs add --host=dir42.eng.vmware.com --share=/<mount_dir>

--volume-name=nfsstore-dir42

ThiscommandaddsanentrytotheknownNASfilesystemlistandsuppliesthesharenameofthenew

NASfilesystem.Youmustsupplythehostname,sharename,andvolumenameforthenewNASfile

system.

3AddasecondNASfilesystemwithread‐onlyaccess.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nfs add --host=dir42.eng.vmware.com --share=/home

--volume-name=FileServerHome2 --readonly

4 DeleteoneoftheNASfilesystems.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nfs remove --volume-name=FileServerHome2

ThiscommandunmountstheNASfilesystemandremovesitfromthelistofknownfilesystems.

Managing NAS File Systems with vicfg-nas

Youcanusevicfg-nasasavCLIcommandwithconnectionoptions.See“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHost

ManagementCommands”onpage 18.

To manage a NAS file system

1ListallknownNASfilesystems.

vicfg-nas <conn_options> -l

ForeachNASfilesystem,thecommandliststhemountname,sharename,andhostnameandwhether

thefilesystemismounted.IfnoNASfilesystemsareavailable,thesystemreturnsthefollowingmessage:

No NAS datastore found

2AddanewNASfilesystemtotheESXihost.

vicfg-nas <conn_options --add --nasserver dir42.eng.vmware.com -s /<mount_dir>

nfsstore-dir42

ThiscommandaddsanentrytotheknownNASfilesystemlistandsuppliesthesharenameofthenew

NASfilesystem.YoumustsupplythehostnameandthesharenameforthenewNASfilesystem.

3AddasecondNASfilesystemwithread‐onlyaccess.

vicfg-nas <conn_options> -a -y --n esx42nas2 -s /home FileServerHome2

4 DeleteoneoftheNASfilesystems.

vicfg-nas <conn_options> -d FileServerHome1

ThiscommandunmountstheNASfilesystemandremovesitfromthelistofknownfilesystems.

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Chapter 4 Managing Storage

Monitoring and Managing SAN Storage

Theesxcli storage sancommandshelpadministratorstroubleshootissueswithI/Odevicesandfabric,

andincludeFibreChannel,FCoE,iSCSI,SASprotocolstatistics.Thecommandsallowyoutoretrievedevice

informationandI/Ostatisticsfromthosedevice.YoucanalsoissueLoopInitializationPrimitives(LIP)to

FC/FCoEdevicesandyoucanresetSASdevices.

ForFCandFCoEdevices,youcanretrieveFCeventssuchasRSCN,LINKUP,LINKDOWN,FrameDropandFCoE

CVL.ThecommandslogawarningintheVMkernellogifitencounterstoomanyLinkTogglingorframedrops

ThefollowingexampleexaminesandresetsSANstoragethroughaFibreChanneladapter.Insteadoffc,the

informationretrievalcommandscanalsouseiscsi,fcoe,andsas.

To monitor and manage FibreChannel SAN storage

1Listadapterattributes.

esxcli storage san fc list

2 RetrievealleventsforaFibreChannelI/Odevice.

esxcli storage san fc events get

3ClearallI/ODeviceManagementeventsforthespecifiedadapter.

esxcli storage san fc events clear --adapter adapter

4 Resettheadapter

esxcli storage san fc reset

Monitoring and Managing Virtual SAN Storage

VirtualSANisadistributedlayerofsoftwarethatrunsnativelyasapartoftheESXihypervisor.VirtualSAN

aggregateslocalordirect‐attachedstoragedisksofahostclusterandcreatesasinglestoragepoolshared

acrossallhostsofthecluster.

WhilesupportingVMwarefeaturesthatrequiresharedstorage,suchasHA,vMotion,andDRS,VirtualSAN

eliminatestheneedforanexternalsharedstorageandsimplifiesstorageconfigurationandvirtualmachine

provisioningactivities.

YoucanuseESXCLIcommandstoretrievevirtualSANinformation,manageVirtualSANclusters,perform

networkmanagement,addstorage,setthepolicy,andperformothermonitoringandmanagementtasks.Type

esxcli vsan --helpforacompletelistofcommands.

To retrieve Virtual SAN information

1VerifywhichVMkerneladaptersareusedforVirtualSANcommunication.

esxcli vsan network list

2ListstoragedisksthatwereclaimedbyVirtualSAN.

esxcli vsan storage list

3GetVirtualSANclusterinformation.

esxcli vsan cluster get

YoucanactivateVirtualSANwhenyoucreatehostclustersorenableVirtualSANonexistingclusters.When

enabled,VirtualSANaggregatesalllocalstoragedisksavailableonthehostsintoasingledatastoresharedby

allhosts.Youcanlaterexpandthedatastorebyaddingstoragedevicesorhoststothecluster.

YoucanrunthesecommandsintheESXiShellforahost,orthecommandaffectsthetargethostthatyou

specifyaspartofthevCLIconnectionoptions.

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54 VMware, Inc.

To manage a Virtual SAN cluster

1JointhetargethosttoagivenVirtualSANcluster.

esxcli vsan cluster join --cluster-uuid <uuid>

TheUUIDoftheclusterisrequired.

2VerifythatthetargethostisjoinedtoaVirtualSANcluster.

esxcli vsan cluster get

3RemovethetargethostfromtheVirtualSANcluster.

esxcli vsan cluster leave

To add and remove Virtual SAN storage

1Addanhdd(ordatadisk)forusebyVirtualSAN.

esxcli vsan storage add --disks <device_name>

Thecommandexpectsanemptydisk,whichwillbepartitionedorformatted.Specifyadevicename,for

example,mpx.vmhba2:C0:T1:L0.

2AddansdddiskforusebyVirtualSAN.

esxcli vsan storage add --ssd <device_name>

Thecommandexpectsanemptydisk,whichwillbepartitionedorformatted.Specifyadevicename,for

example,mpx.vmhba2:C0:T1:L0.

3ListtheVirtualSANstorageconfiguration.Youcandisplaythecompletelist,orfiltertoshowonlya

singledevice.

esxcli vsan storage list --device <device>

4Removedisksordiskgroups.

YoucanremovedisksordiskgroupsonlywhenVirtualSANisinmanualmode.Fortheautomaticdisk

claimmode,theremoveactionisnotsupported

RemoveanindividualVirtualSANdisk.

esxcli vsan storage remove --disk <device_name>

Insteadofspecifyingthedevicename,youcanspecifytheUUIDifyouincludethe--uuidoption.

Removeadiskgroup’sSSDandeachofitsbackingHDDdrivesfromVirtualSANusage.

esxcli vsan storage remove --ssd <device_name>

Insteadofspecifyingthedevicename,youcanspecifytheUUIDifyouincludethe--uuidoption.

AnySSDthatyouremovefromVirtualSANbecomesavailableforsuchfeaturesasFlashReadCache.

Monitoring vSphere Flash Read Cache

FlashReadCache™letsyouacceleratevirtualmachineperformancethroughtheuseofhostresidentflash

devicesasacache.ThevSphereStoragedocumentationdiscussesvSphereFlashReadCacheinsomedetail.

YoucanreserveaFlashReadCacheforanyindividualvirtualdisk.TheFlashReadCacheiscreatedonlywhen

avirtualmachineispoweredon,anditisdiscardedwhenavirtualmachineissuspendedorpoweredoff.

Whenyoumigrateavirtualmachineyouhavetheoptiontomigratethecache.Bydefaultthecacheismigrated

ifthevirtualflashmoduleonthesourceanddestinationhostsarecompatible.Ifyoudonotmigratethecache,

thecacheisrewarmedonthedestinationhost.Youcanchangethesizeofthecachewhileavirtualmachineis

poweredon.Inthisinstance,theexistingcacheisdiscardedandanewwrite‐throughcacheiscreated,which

resultsinacachewarmupperiod.Theadvantageofcreatinganewcacheisthatthecachesizecanbettermatch

theapplicationʹsactivedata.

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Chapter 4 Managing Storage

FlashReadCachesupportswrite‐throughorreadcaching.Write‐backorwritecachingarenotsupported.

Datareadsaresatisfiedfromthecache,ifpresent.Datawritesaredispatchedtothebackingstorage,suchas

aSANorNAS.Alldatathatisreadfromorwrittentothebackingstorageisunconditionallystoredinthe

cache.

YoucanmanagevSphereFlashReadCachefromthevSphereWebClient.YoucanmonitorFlashReadCache

byusingcommandsintheesxcli storage vflashnamespace.Thefollowingtablelistsavailable

commands.SeethevSphereCommand‐LineInterfaceReferenceortheonlinehelpforalistofoptionstoeach

command.

Monitoring and Managing Virtual Volumes

TheVirtualVolumesfunctionalitychangesthestoragemanagementparadigmfrommanagingspaceinside

datastorestomanagingabstractstorageobjectshandledbystoragearrays.WithVirtualVolumes,an

individualvirtualmachine,notthedatastore,becomesaunitofstoragemanagement,whilestoragehardware

gainscompletecontrolovervirtualdiskcontent,layout,andmanagement.ThevSphereStorage

documentationdiscussesVirtualVolumesinsomedetailandexplainshowtomanagethemusingthevSphere

WebClient.

Thefollowingesxclicommandsareavailableformanagingdisplayinformationaboutvirtualvolumesandfor

unbindingallVirtualVolumesfromallvendorproviders.SeethevSphereStoragedocumentationfor

informationoncreatingVirtualVolumesandconfiguringmultipathingandSCSI‐basedendpoints.

NOTENotallworkloadsbenefitwithaFlashReadCache.Theperformanceboostdependsonyourworkload

patternandworkingsetsize.Read‐intensiveworkloadswithworkingsetsthatfitintothecachecanbenefit

fromaFlashReadCacheconfiguration.ByconfiguringFlashReadCacheforyourread‐intensiveworkloads

additionalI/Oresourcesbecomeavailableonyoursharedstorage,whichcanresultinaperformanceincrease

forotherworkloadseventhoughtheyarenotconfiguredtouseFlashReadCache

Table 4-3. Commands for Monitoring vSphere Flash Read Cache

Command Description

storage vflash cache get Getindividualvflashcacheinfo.

storage vflash cache list Listindividualvflashcaches.

storage vflash cache stats get Getvflashcachestatistics.

storage vflash cache stats reset Resetvflashcachestatistics.

storage vflash device list ListvflashSSDdevices.

storage vflash module get Getvflashmoduleinfo.

storage vflash module list Listvflashmodules.

storage vflash module stats get Getvflashmodulestatistics

Table 4-4. VVol Commands

Command Description

storage vvol daemon unbindall UnbindallVirtualVolumeinstancesfromallstorageprovidersthatare

knowntotheESXihost.

storage vvol protocolendpoint list ListtheVVolprotocolendpointscurrentlyknowntotheESXihost.

storage vvol storagecontainer list ListtheVVolstoragecontainerscurrentlyknowntotheESXhost.

storage vvol storagecontainer

restore

Restorestoragecontainersofvendorprovidersthatareregisteredonthe

host.

storage vvol vasacontext get GettheVASAcontext(VCUUID).

storage vvol vendorprovider list Listthevendorprovidersregisteredonthehost.

storage vvol vendorprovider

restore

Restorethevendorprovidersthatareregisteredonthehost.

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56 VMware, Inc.

Migrating Virtual Machines with svmotion

StoragevMotionmovesavirtualmachine’sconfigurationfile,and,optionally,itsdisks,whilethevirtual

machineisrunning.YoucanperformStoragevMotiontasksfromthevSphereWebClientorwiththe

svmotioncommand.

Youcanplacethevirtualmachineandallofitsdisksinasinglelocation,orchooseseparatelocationsforthe

virtualmachineconfigurationfileandeachvirtualdisk.Youcannotchangethevirtualmachine’sexecution

hostduringamigrationwithsvmotion.

Storage vMotion Uses

StoragevMotionhasseveralusesinadministeringyourvSphereenvironment.

UpgradeESXiwithoutvirtualmachinedowntimeinsituationswherevirtualmachinedisksmustbe

movedtosharedstoragetoallowmigrationwithvMotion.

Performstoragemaintenanceandreconfiguration.YoucanuseStoragevMotiontomovevirtual

machinesoffastoragedevicetoallowmaintenanceorreconfigurationofthestoragedevicewithout

virtualmachinedowntime.

Redistributestorageload.YoucanuseStoragevMotiontomanuallyredistributevirtualmachinesor

virtualdiskstodifferentstoragevolumestobalancecapacityorimproveperformance.

Storage vMotion Requirements and Limitations

YoucanmigratevirtualmachinediskswithStoragevMotionifthevirtualmachineanditshostmeetthe

followingresourceandconfigurationrequirements:

ForESXi5.0andlaterhosts,youcanmigratevirtualmachinesthathavesnapshots.Forearlierversionsof

ESXi,youcannotmigratevirtualmachinesthathavesnapshots.

Virtualmachinedisksmustbeinpersistentmodeorberawdevicemappings(RDMs).Forphysicaland

virtualcompatibilitymodeRDMs,youcanmigratethemappingfileonly.Forvirtualcompatibilitymode

RDMs,youcanusethevSphereWebClienttoconverttothick‐provisionedorthin‐provisioneddisks

duringmigrationaslongasthedestinationisnotanNFSdatastore.Youcannotusethesvmotion

commandtoperformthisconversion.

ThehostonwhichthevirtualmachineisrunningmusthavealicensethatincludesStoragevMotion.

Thehostonwhichthevirtualmachineisrunningmusthaveaccesstoboththesourceandtarget

datastores.

AparticularhostcanbeinvolvedinuptofourmigrationswithvMotionorStoragevMotionatonetime.

See“LimitsonSimultaneousMigrations”inthevCenterServerandHostManagementdocumentationfor

details.

IfyouusethevSphereWebClientformigrationwithsvmotion,thesystemperformsseveralcompatibility

checks.ThesechecksarenotsupportedbythesvmotionvCLIcommand.

Running svmotion in Interactive Mode

Youcanrunsvmotionininteractivemodeusingthe--interactiveoption.Thecommandpromptsyoufor

theinformationitneedstocompletethestoragemigration.

svmotion <conn_options> --interactive

Whenyouuse--interactive,allotheroptionsareignored.

IMPORTANTNoESXCLIcommandforStoragevMotionisavailable.

IMPORTANTWhenrespondingtotheprompts,usequotesaroundinputstringswithspecialcharacters.

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Running svmotion in Noninteractive Mode

Innoninteractivemode,thesvmotioncommandusesthefollowingsyntax:

svmotion [standard vCLI options] --datacenter=<datacenter_name>

--vm <VM config datastore path>:<new datastore>

[--disks <virtual disk datastore path>:<new datastore>,

<virtual disk datastore path>:<new datastore>]

Squarebracketsindicateoptionalelements,notdatastores.

The--vmoptionspecifiesthevirtualmachineanditsdestination.Bydefault,allvirtualdisksarerelocatedto

thesamedatastoreasthevirtualmachine.Thisoptionrequiresthecurrentvirtualmachineconfigurationfile

location.See“Todeterminethepathtothevirtualmachineconfigurationfileanddiskfile”onpage 57.

The--disksoptionrelocatesindividualvirtualdiskstodifferentdatastores.The--disksoptionrequiresthe

currentvirtualdiskdatastorepathasanoption.See“Todeterminethepathtothevirtualmachine

configurationfileanddiskfile”onpage 57.

To determine the path to the virtual machine configuration file and disk file

1Runvmware-cmd -ltolistallvirtualmachineconfigurationfiles(VMXfiles).

vmware-cmd -H <vc_server> -U <login_user> -P <login_password> -h <esx_host> -l

2 ChoosetheVMXfileforthevirtualmachineofinterest.

Bydefault,thevirtualdiskfilehasthesamenameastheVMXfilebuthasa.vmdkextension.

3 (Optional)UsevifstoverifythatyouareusingthecorrectVMDKfile.

To relocate a virtual machine’s storage (including disks)

1 Determinethepathtothevirtualmachineconfigurationfile.

2Runsvmotion:

svmotion

--url=https://myvc.mycorp.com/sdk --datacenter=DC1

--vm=”[storage1] myvm/myvm.vmx:new_datastore”

TheexampleisforWindows.UsesinglequotesonLinux.

To relocate a virtual machine’s configuration file, but leave virtual disks

1 Determinethepathtothevirtualdiskfilesandthevirtualmachineconfigurationfile.

2Runsvmotion,forexample:

svmotion

<conn_options>

--datacenter='My DC'

--vm='[old_datastore] myvm/myvm.vmx:new_datastore'

--disks='[old_datastore] myvm/myvm_1.vmdk:old_datastore, [old_datastore] myvm/myvm_2.vmdk:

old_datastore'

Thiscommandrelocatesthevirtualmachineʹsconfigurationfiletonew_datastore,butleavesthetwodisks

(myvm_1.vmdkandmyvm_2.vmdk)inold_datastore.TheexampleisforLinux.Usedoublequoteson

Windows.Thesquarebracketssurroundthedatastorenameanddonotindicateanoptionalelement.

Configuring FCoE Adapters

ESXicanuseFibreChanneloverEthernet(FCoE)adapterstoaccessFibreChannelstorage.

TheFCoEprotocolencapsulatesFibreChannelframesintoEthernetframes.Asaresult,yourhostdoesnot

needspecialFibreChannellinkstoconnecttoFibreChannelstorage,butcanuse10GbitlosslessEthernetto

deliverFibreChanneltraffic.

IMPORTANTWhenyourunsvmotion,--servermustpointtoavCenterServersystem.

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58 VMware, Inc.

TouseFCoE,youneedtoinstallFCoEadapters.TheadaptersthatVMwaresupportsgenerallyfallintotwo

categories,hardwareFCoEadaptersandsoftwareFCoEadapters.

HardwareFCoEAdapters.HardwareFCoEadaptersincludecompletelyoffloadedspecialized

ConvergedNetworkAdapters(CNAs)thatcontainnetworkandFibreChannelfunctionalitiesonthe

samecard.Whensuchanadapterisinstalled,yourhostdetectsandcanusebothCNAcomponents.In

thevSphereWebClient,thenetworkingcomponentappearsasastandardnetworkadapter(vmnic)and

theFibreChannelcomponentasaFCoEadapter(vmhba).YoudonothavetoconfigureahardwareFCoE

adaptertobeabletouseit.

SoftwareFCoEAdapters.AsoftwareFCoEadapterisasoftwarecodethatperformssomeoftheFCoE

processing.TheadaptercanbeusedwithanumberofNICsthatsupportpartialFCoEoffload.Unlikethe

hardwareFCoEadapter,thesoftwareadaptermustbeactivated.

Scanning Storage Adapters

Youmustperformarescanoperationeachtimeyoureconfigureyourstoragesetup.Youcanscanusingthe

vSphereWebClient,thevicfg-rescanvCLIcommand,ortheesxcli storage core adapter rescan

command.

esxcli storage core adapter rescansupportsthefollowingadditionaloptions:

-a|--allor-A|--adapter=<string>–Scanalladaptersoraspecifiedadapter.

-S|--skip-claim–Skipclaimingofnewdevicesbytheappropriatemultipathplugin.

-F|--skip-fs-scan–Skipfilesystemscan

-t|--type–Specifythetypeofscantoperform.Thecommandeitherscansforallchanges(all)or

foradded,deleted,orupdatedadapters(add,delete,update)

vicfg-rescansupportsonlyasimplerescanoperationonaspecifiedadapter.

To rescan a storage adapter with vicfg-rescan

Runvicfg-rescan,specifyingtheadaptername.

vicfg-rescan <conn_options> vmhba1

Thecommandreturnsanindicationofsuccessorfailure,butnodetailedinformation.

To rescan a storage adapter with ESXCLI

Thefollowingcommandscansaspecificadapterandskipsthefilesystemscanthatisperformedbydefault.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core adapter rescan --adapter=vmhba33 --skip-claim

Thecommandreturnsanindicationofsuccessorfailure,butnodetailedinformation.

Retrieving SMART Information

YoucanuseESXCLItoretrieveinformationrelatedtoSMART.SMARTisamonitoringsystemforcomputer

harddisksthatreportsinformationaboutthedisks.

esxcli storage core device smart get -d device

WhatthecommandreturnsdependsonthelevelofSMARTinformationthatthedevicesupports.Ifno

informationisavailableforaparameter,theoutputdisplaysN/A,asinthefollowingsampleoutput.

Parameter Value Threshold Worst

-----------------------------------------------------

Health Status OK N/A N/A

Media Wearout Indicator N/A N/A N/A

Write Error Count N/A N/A N/A

Read Error Count 119 6 74

Power-on Hours 57 0 57

Power Cycle Count 100 20 100

Reallocated Sector Count 100 36 100

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Chapter 4 Managing Storage

Raw Read Error Rate 119 6 74

Drive Temperature 38 0 49

Driver Rated Max Temperature 62 45 51

Write Sectors TOT Count 200 0 200

Read Sectors TOT Count 100 0 253

Initial Bad Block Count N/A N/A N/A

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60 VMware, Inc.

VMware, Inc. 59

ESXisystemsincludeiSCSItechnologytoaccessremotestorageusinganIPnetwork.YoucanusethevSphere

WebClient,commandsintheesxcliiscsinamespace,orthevicfg-iscsicommandtoconfigureboth

hardwareandsoftwareiSCSIstorageforyourESXisystem.

Thischapterincludesthefollowingtopics:

“iSCSIStorageOverview”onpage 59

“ProtectinganiSCSISAN”onpage 61

“CommandSyntaxforesxcliiscsiandvicfg‐iscsi”onpage 63

“iSCSIStorageSetupwithESXCLI”onpage 68

“iSCSIStorageSetupwithvicfg‐iscsi”onpage 73

“ListingandSettingiSCSIOptions”onpage 77

“ListingandSettingiSCSIParameters”onpage 78

“EnablingiSCSIAuthentication”onpage 82

“SettingUpPortsforiSCSIMultipathing”onpage 83

“ManagingiSCSISessions”onpage 84

SeethevSphereStoragedocumentationforadditionalinformation.

iSCSI Storage Overview

WithiSCSI,SCSIstoragecommandsthatyourvirtualmachineissuestoitsvirtualdiskareconvertedinto

TCP/IPprotocolpacketsandtransmittedtoaremotedevice,ortarget,onwhichthevirtualdiskislocated.To

thevirtualmachine,thedeviceappearsasalocallyattachedSCSIdrive.

Toaccessremotetargets,theESXihostusesiSCSIinitiators.InitiatorstransportSCSIrequestsandresponses

betweenESXiandthetargetstoragedeviceontheIPnetwork.ESXisupportsthesetypesofinitiators:

SoftwareiSCSIadapter.VMwarecodebuiltintotheVMkernel.AllowsanESXihosttoconnecttothe

iSCSIstoragedevicethroughstandardnetworkadapters.ThesoftwareinitiatorhandlesiSCSIprocessing

whilecommunicatingwiththenetworkadapter.

HardwareiSCSIadapter.OffloadsalliSCSIandnetworkprocessingfromyourhost.HardwareiSCSI

adaptersarebrokenintotwotypes.

DependenthardwareiSCSIadapter.LeveragestheVMwareiSCSImanagementandconfiguration

interfaces.

IndependenthardwareiSCSIadapter.LeveragesitsowniSCSImanagementandconfiguration

interfaces.

SeethevSphereStoragedocumentationfordetailsonsetupandfailoverscenarios.

Managing iSCSI Storage 5

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60 VMware, Inc.

YoumustconfigureiSCSIinitiatorsforthehosttoaccessanddisplayiSCSIstoragedevices.

Figure 5‐1depictshoststhatusedifferenttypesofiSCSIinitiators.

ThehostontheleftusesanindependenthardwareiSCSIadaptertoconnecttotheiSCSIstoragesystem.

ThehostontherightusessoftwareiSCSI.

DependenthardwareiSCSIcanbeimplementedindifferentwaysandisnotshown.iSCSIstoragedevices

fromthestoragesystembecomeavailabletothehost.YoucanaccessthestoragedevicesandcreateVMFS

datastoresforyourstorageneeds.

Figure 5-1. iSCSI Storage

Discovery Sessions

AdiscoverysessionispartoftheiSCSIprotocol.Thediscoverysessionreturnsthesetoftargetsthatyoucan

accessonaniSCSIstoragesystem.ESXisystemssupportdynamicandstaticdiscovery.

Dynamicdiscovery.AlsoknownasSendTargetsdiscovery.EachtimetheESXihostcontactsaspecified

iSCSIstorageserver,itsendsaSendTargetsrequesttotheserver.Inresponse,theiSCSIstorageserver

suppliesalistofavailabletargetstotheESXihost.Monitorandmanagewithesxcli iscsi adapter

discovery sendtargetorvicfg-iscsicommands.

Staticdiscovery.TheESXihostdoesnothavetoperformdiscovery.Instead,theESXihostusestheIP

addressesordomainnamesandiSCSItargetnames(IQNorEUIformatnames)tocommunicatewiththe

iSCSItarget.Monitorandmanagewithesxcli iscsi adapter discovery statictargetor

vicfg-iscsicommands.

Foreithercase,yousetuptargetdiscoveryaddressessothattheinitiatorcandeterminewhichstorage

resourceonthenetworkisavailableforaccess.Youcandothissetupwithdynamicdiscoveryorstatic

discovery.Withdynamicdiscovery,alltargetsassociatedwithanIPaddressorhostnameandtheiSCSIname

arediscovered.Withstaticdiscovery,youmustspecifytheIPaddressorhostnameandtheiSCSInameofthe

targetyouwanttoaccess.TheiSCSIHBAmustbeinthesameVLANasbothportsoftheiSCSIarray.

IP network

hardware

iSCSI

host 1

iSCSI storage

HBA2 HBA1

software

iSCSI

host 2

NIC2 NIC1

software

adapter

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Chapter 5 Managing iSCSI Storage

Discovery Target Names

ThetargetnameiseitheranIQNnameoranEUIname.

TheIQNnameusesthefollowingformat:

iqn.yyyy-mm.{reversed domain name}:id_string

Forexample:iqn.2007-05.com.mydomain:storage.tape.sys3.abc

TheESXihostgeneratesanIQNnameforsoftwareiSCSIanddependenthardwareiSCSIadapters.You

canchangethatdefaultIQNname.

TheEUInameisdescribedinIETFrfc3720asfollows:

TheIEEERegistrationAuthorityprovidesaserviceforassigninggloballyuniqueidentifiers[EUI].The

EUI‐64formatisusedtobuildaglobalidentifierinothernetworkprotocols.Forexample,FibreChannel

definesamethodofencodingitintoaWorldWideName.

Theformatiseui.followedbyanEUI‐64identifier(16ASCII‐encodedhexadecimaldigits).

Forexample:

Type EUI-64 identifier (ASCII-encoded hexadecimal)

+--++--------------+

| || |

eui.02004567A425678D

TheIEEEEUI‐64iSCSInameformatcanbeusedwhenamanufacturerisregisteredwiththeIEEE

RegistrationAuthorityandusesEUI‐64formattedworldwideuniquenamesforitsproducts.

CheckintheUIofthestoragearraywhetheranarrayusesanIQNnameoranEUIname.

Protecting an iSCSI SAN

YouriSCSIconfigurationisonlyassecureasyourIPnetwork.Byenforcinggoodsecuritystandardswhenyou

setupyournetwork,youhelpsafeguardyouriSCSIstorage.

Protecting Transmitted Data

AprimarysecurityriskiniSCSISANsisthatanattackermightsnifftransmittedstoragedata.Neitherthe

iSCSIadapternortheESXihostiSCSIinitiatorencryptsthedatathatittransmitstoandfromthetargets,

makingthedatavulnerabletosniffingattacks.Youmustthereforetakeadditionalmeasurestoprevent

attackersfromeasilyseeingiSCSIdata.

AllowingyourvirtualmachinestosharevirtualswitchesandVLANswithyouriSCSIconfiguration

potentiallyexposesiSCSItraffictomisusebyavirtualmachineattacker.Tohelpensurethatintruderscannot

listentoiSCSItransmissions,makesurethatnoneofyourvirtualmachinescanseetheiSCSIstoragenetwork.

ProtectyoursystembygivingtheiSCSISANadedicatedvirtualswitch.

IfyouuseanindependenthardwareiSCSIadapter,makesurethattheiSCSIadapterandESXiphysical

networkadapterarenotinadvertentlyconnectedoutsidethehost.Suchaconnectionmightresultfrom

sharingaswitch.

Ifyouusedependenthardwareorsoftwareiscsiadapter,whichusesESXinetworking,configureiSCSI

storagethroughadifferentvirtualswitchthantheoneusedbyyourvirtualmachines.

YoucanalsoconfigureyouriSCSISANonitsownVLANtoimproveperformanceandsecurity.Placingyour

iSCSIconfigurationonaseparateVLANensuresthatnodevicesotherthantheiSCSIadaptercansee

transmissionswithintheiSCSISAN.WithadedicatedVLAN,networkcongestionfromothersourcescannot

interferewithiSCSItraffic.

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62 VMware, Inc.

Securing iSCSI Ports

WhenyouruniSCSIdevices,theESXihostdoesnotopenportsthatlistenfornetworkconnections.This

measurereducesthechancesthatanintrudercanbreakintotheESXihostthroughspareportsandgaincontrol

overthehost.Therefore,runningiSCSIdoesnotpresentanadditionalsecurityrisksattheESXihostendof

theconnection.

AniSCSItargetdevicemusthaveoneormoreopenTCPportstolistenforiSCSIconnections.Ifsecurity

vulnerabilitiesexistintheiSCSIdevicesoftware,yourdatacanbeatriskthroughnofaultoftheESXisystem.

Tolowerthisrisk,installallsecuritypatchesthatyourstorageequipmentmanufacturerprovidesandlimitthe

devicesconnectedtotheiSCSInetwork.

Setting iSCSI CHAP

iSCSIstoragesystemsauthenticateaninitiatorusinganameandkeypair.ESXisystemssupportChallenge

HandshakeAuthenticationProtocol(CHAP),whichVMwarerecommendsforyourSANimplementation.

TheESXihostandtheiSCSIstoragesystemmusthaveCHAPenabledandmusthavecommoncredentials.

DuringiSCSIlogin,theiSCSIstoragesystemexchangesitscredentialswiththeESXisystemandchecksthem.

YoucansetupiSCSIauthenticationbyusingthevSphereWebClient,asdiscussedinthevSphereStorage

documentationorbyusingtheesxclicommand,discussedin“EnablingiSCSIAuthentication”onpage 82.

TouseCHAPauthentication,youmustenableCHAPonboththeinitiatorsideandthestoragesystemside.

Afterauthenticationisenabled,itappliesfortargetstowhichnoconnectionhasbeenestablished,butdoesnot

applytotargetstowhichaconnectionisestablished.Afterthediscoveryaddressisset,thenewvolumesto

whichyouaddaconnectionareexposedandcanbeused.

ForsoftwareiSCSIanddependenthardwareiSCSI,ESXihostssupportper‐discoveryandper‐targetCHAP

credentials.ForindependenthardwareiSCSI,ESXihostssupportonlyonesetofCHAPcredentialsper

initiator.YoucannotassigndifferentCHAPcredentialsfordifferenttargets.

WhenyouconfigureindependenthardwareiSCSIinitiators,ensurethattheCHAPconfigurationmatches

youriSCSIstorage.IfCHAPisenabledonthestoragearray,itmustbeenabledontheinitiator.IfCHAPis

enabled,youmustsetuptheCHAPauthenticationcredentialsontheESXihosttomatchthecredentialson

theiSCSIstorage.

Supported CHAP Levels

TosetCHAPlevelswithesxcli iscsi adapter setauthorvicfg-iscsi,specifyoneofthevaluesin

Table 5‐1for<level>.OnlytwolevelsaresupportedforindependenthardwareiSCSI.

MutualCHAPissupportedforsoftwareiSCSIandfordependenthardwareiSCSI,butnotforindependent

hardwareiSCSI.

IMPORTANTEnsurethatCHAPissettochapRequiredbeforeyousetmutualCHAP,andusecompatible

levelsforCHAPandmutualCHAP.UsedifferentpasswordsforCHAPandmutualCHAPtoavoidsecurity

risks.

Table 5-1. Supported Levels for CHAP

Level Description Supported

chapProhibitedHostdoesnotuseCHAPauthentication.Ifauthenticationis

enabled,specifychapProhibitedtodisableit.

SoftwareiSCSI

DependenthardwareiSCSI

IndependenthardwareiSCSI

chapDiscouraged Hostusesanon‐CHAPconnection,butallowsaCHAP

connectionasfallback.

SoftwareiSCSI

DependenthardwareiSCSI

chapPreferred HostusesCHAPiftheCHAPconnectionsucceeds,butuses

non‐CHAPconnectionsasfallback.

SoftwareiSCSI

DependenthardwareiSCSI

IndependenthardwareiSCSI

chapRequired HostrequiressuccessfulCHAPauthentication.Theconnection

failsifCHAPnegotiationfails.

SoftwareiSCSI

DependenthardwareiSCSI

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Chapter 5 Managing iSCSI Storage

Returning Authentication to Default Inheritance

ThevaluesofiSCSIauthenticationsettingsassociatedwithadynamicdiscoveryaddressorastaticdiscovery

targetareinheritedfromthecorrespondingsettingsoftheparent.Forthedynamicdiscoveryaddress,the

parentistheadapter.Forthestatictarget,theparentistheadapterordiscoveryaddress.

IfyouusethevSphereWebClienttomodifyauthenticationsettings,youmustdeselecttheInheritfrom

Parentcheckboxbeforeyoucanmakeachangetothediscoveryaddressordiscoverytarget.

Ifyouusevicfg-iscsi,thevalueyousetoverridestheinheritedvalue.

Ifyouuseesxcli iscsicommands,thevalueyousetoverridestheinheritedvalue.YoucansetCHAP

attheselevels:

esxcli iscsi adapter auth chap [get|set]

esxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget auth chap [get|set]

esxcli iscsi adapter target portal auth chap [get|set]

Inheritanceisrelevantonlyifyouwanttoreturnadynamicdiscoveryaddressorastaticdiscoverytargetto

itsinheritedvalue.Inthatcase,useoneofthefollowingcommands:

Dynamicdiscovery:esxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget auth chap set --inherit

Staticdiscovery:esxcli iscsi adapter target portal auth chap set --inherit.

Command Syntax for esxcli iscsi and vicfg-iscsi

InvSphere5.0andlater,youcanmanageiSCSIstoragebyusingeitheresxcli iscsicommandsor

vicfg-iscsioptions.SeethevSphereCommand‐LineInterfaceReference.“esxcliiscsiCommandSyntax”on

page 63and“vicfg‐iscsiCommandSyntax”onpage 65provideanoverview.

esxcli iscsi Command Syntax

Theesxcli iscsicommandincludesanumberofnestednamespaces.Thefollowingtableillustratesthe

namespacehierarchy.Commandsateachlevelareincludedinbold.Manynamespacesincludeboth

commandsandnamespaces.

NOTEYoucansettarget‐levelCHAPauthenticationpropertiestobeinheritedfromthesendtargetleveland

setsendtargetlevelCHAPauthenticationpropertiestobeinheritedfromtheadapterlevel.Resetting

adapter‐levelpropertiesisnotsupported.

Table 5-2. esxcli iscsi Command Overview

adapter[get|list|set]auth chap[set|get]

discovery

[rediscover]

sendtarget

[add|list|remove]

auth chap[get|set]

param[get|set]

statictarget

[add|list|remove]

statusget

target[list]portal[list]auth chap[get|set]

param[get|set]

capabilitiesget

firmware[get|set]

param[get|set]

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64 VMware, Inc.

Key to esxcli iscsi Short Options

ESXCLIcommandsforiSCSImanagementconsistentlyusethesameshortoptions.Forseveraloptions,the

associatedfulloptiondependsonthecommand.

networkportal

[add|list|remove]

ipconfig[get|set]

physicalnetworkportal

[list]

param[get|set]

session[add|list|remove]connectionlist

ibftboot[get|import]

logicalnetworkportallist

pluginlist

software[get|set]

Table 5-2. esxcli iscsi Command Overview

Table 5-3. Short Options for iSCSI ESXCLI Command Options

Lower-case Option Option Upper-case Option Option Number Option

a --address, alias A --adapter 1 --dns1

c --cid 2 --dns2

d --direction D --default

f --file, force

g --gateway

i --ip I --inherit

k --key

l --level

m --method M --module

n --nic N --authname,

--name

o --option

p --plugin

s --isid, subnet,

switch

S --state, secret

v --value

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Chapter 5 Managing iSCSI Storage

vicfg-iscsi Command Syntax

vicfg-iscsisupportsacomprehensivesetofoptions,listedinTable 5‐4.

Table 5-4. Options for vicfg-iscsi

Option Suboptions Description

-A --authentication

-c <level>

-m <auth_method> -b

-v <ma_username>

-x <ma_password>

[-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] [-n <iscsi_name>]]

<adapter_name>

--level <level>

--method <auth_method> --mutual

--mchap_username

<ma_username>

--mchap_password <ma_password>

[

<stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>]

[--name <iscsi_name>]] <adapter_name>

Enablesmutualauthentication.

Youmustenableauthentication

beforeyoucanenablemutual

authentication.

-A --authentication

-c <level>

-m <auth_method>

-u <auth_u_name>

-w <a_password>

[-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] [-n <iscsi_name>]]

<adapter_name>

--level <level>

--method <auth_method>

--chap_password

<auth_u_name>

--chap_username <chap_password>

[

<stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>]

[--name <iscsi_name>]] <adapter_name>

Enablesauthenticationusingthe

specifiedoptions.

-A --authentication

-l <adapter_name>

--list <adapter_name>

Listssupportedauthentication

methods.

-D --discovery

-a -i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname[:<portnum>] <adapter_name>

--add --ip <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>]

<adapter_name>

Addsadynamicdiscovery

address.

-D --discovery

-l <adapter_name>

--list <adapter_name>

Listsdynamicdiscovery

addresses.

-D --discovery

-r -i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname>[:<portnum>] <adapter_name>

--remove --ip <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>]

<adapter_name>

Removesadynamicdiscovery

address.

-H

-l [<adapter_name>]

--list [<adapter_name>]

ListsalliSCSIadaptersora

specifiedadapter.

-L --lun

-l <adapter_name>

--list <adapter_name>

ListsLUNinformation.

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66 VMware, Inc.

-L --lun

-l -t <target_ID> <adapter_name>

--list --target_id <target_id> <adapter_name>

ListsLUNinformationfora

specifictarget.

-N --network (Independent hardware iSCSI only)

-l <adapter_name>

--list <adapter_name>

Listsnetworkproperties.

-N --network (Independent hardware iSCSI only)

-i <ip_addr> <adapter_name>

--ip <ip_addr> <vmhba>

SetstheHBAIPv4addressto

ip_addr.

-N --network (Independent hardware iSCSI only)

-s <subnet_mask> <adapter_name>

--subnetmask <subnet_mask> <adapter_name>

SetstheHBAnetworkmaskto

subnet_mask.

-N --network (Independent hardware iSCSI only)

-g <default_gateway> <adapter_name>

--gateway <default_gateway> <adapter_name>

SetstheHBAgatewayto

default_gateway.

-N --network (Independent hardware iSCSI only)

-i <ip_addr> -s <subnet mask>

-g <default_gateway> <adapter_name>

--ip <ip_addr> --subnetmask <subnet_mask>

--gateway <default_gateway> <adapter_name>

SetstheIPaddress,subnetmask,

anddefaultgatewayinone

command.

-p --pnp (Independent hardware iSCSI only)

-l <adapter_name>

--list <adapter_name>

Listsphysicalnetworkportal

options.

-p --pnp (Independent hardware iSCSI only)

-M <mtu_size> <adapter_name>

--mtu <mtu-size> <adapter_name>

Setsphysicalnetworkportal

options.

-I --iscsiname

-a <alias_name> <adapter_name>

--alias <alias_name> <adapter_name>

SetstheiSCSIinitiatoralias.

-I --iscsiname

-n <iscsi_name> <adapter_name>

--name <iscsi_name> <adapter_name>

SetstheiSCSIinitiatorname.

-I --iscsiname

-l <adapter_name>

--list <adapter_name>

ListsiSCSIinitiatoroptions.

-M --mtu

-p -M <mtu_size> <adapter_name>

--pnp --mtu <mtu-size> <adapter_name>

SetsMTUsize.Usedwiththe

--pnpoption.

-S --static

-l <adapter_name>

--list <adapter_name>

Listsstaticdiscoveryaddresses.

-S --static

-r -i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] -n <target_name>

<adapter_name>

--remove --ip <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] -name

<target_name> <adapter_name>

Removesastaticdiscovery

address.

Table 5-4. Options for vicfg-iscsi (Continued)

Option Suboptions Description

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Chapter 5 Managing iSCSI Storage

-S --static

-a -i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>]

-n <target_name> <adapter_name>

--add --ip <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>]

-name <target_name> <adapter_name>

Addsastaticdiscoveryaddress.

-P --phba

-l <adapter_name>

--list <adapter_name>

Listsexternal,vendor‐specific

propertiesofaniSCSIadapter.

-T --target

-l <adapter_name>

--list <adapter_name>

Liststargetinformation.

-W ‐‐parameter

-l [-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>]

[-n <iscsi_name]] <adapter_name>

--list [--ip <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>]

[--name <iscsi_name]] <adapter_name>

ListsiSCSIparameter

information.

-W ‐‐parameter

-l -k [-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] [-n

<iscsi_name]] <adapter_name>

--list --detail

[--ip <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>]

[--name <iscsi_name]] <adapter_name>

ListsiSCSIparameterdetails.

-W ‐‐parameter

-W -j <name>=<value>

-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:port_num>] [-n <iscsi_name>]]

<adapter_name>

--parameter --set <name>=<value>

--ip <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:port_num>]

[--name <iscsi_name>]] <adapter_name>

SetsiSCSIparameters.

-W ‐‐parameter

-W -o <param_name>

-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:port_num>] [-n <iscsi_name>]]

<adapter_name>

-parameter --reset <param_name>

-ip <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:port_num>]

[-name <iscsi_name>]] <adapter_name>

Returnsparametersindiscovery

targetorsendtargettodefault

inheritancebehavior.

-z --reset_auth

-a -z

-m <auth_method> -b

[-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] [-n <iscsi_name>]]

<adapter_name>

--authentication --reset_auth

--method <auth_method>

[

<stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>]

[--name <iscsi_name>]] <adapter_name>

Resetstargetlevelauthentication

propertiestobeinheritedfrom

adapterlevel.Usedwiththe

--authenticationoption.

Table 5-4. Options for vicfg-iscsi (Continued)

Option Suboptions Description

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68 VMware, Inc.

iSCSI Storage Setup with ESXCLI

YoucansetupiSCSIstorageusingvSphereWebClient,commandsintheesxcli iscsinamespace,or

vicfg-iscsicommands(see“iSCSIStorageSetupwithvicfg‐iscsi”onpage 73).

Setting Up Software iSCSI with ESXCLI

SoftwareiSCSIsetuprequiresseveraltasks.Foreachtask,seethediscussionofthecorrespondingcommand

inthischapterorthereferenceinformationavailablefromesxcli iscsi --helpandtheVMware

DocumentationCenter.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagement

Commands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>

1EnablesoftwareiSCSI.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi software set --enabled=true

2Checkwhetheranetworkportal,thatis,aboundport,existsforiSCSItraffic.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter list

3Ifnoadapterexists,addone.SoftwareiSCSIdoesnotrequireportbinding,butrequiresthatatleastone

VMkernelNICisavailableandcanbeusedasaniSCSINIC.Youcannametheadapterasyouaddit.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi networkportal add -n <portal_name> -A <vmhba>

4 (Optional)Checkthestatus.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi software get

ThesystemprintstrueifsoftwareiSCSIisenabled,orfalseifitisnotenabled.

5 (Optional)SettheiSCSInameandalias.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter set --adapter=<iscsi adapter> --name=<name>

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter set --adapter=<iscsi adapter> --alias=<alias>

6Addadynamicdiscoveryaddressorastaticdiscoveryaddress.

Thetwotypesoftargetdifferasfollows:

Withdynamicdiscovery,allstoragetargetsassociatedwithahostnameorIPaddressarediscovered.

Yourunthefollowingcommand.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget add --address=<ip/dns[:port]>

--adapter=<adapter_name>

Withstaticdiscovery,youmustspecifythehostnameorIPaddressandtheiSCSInameofthestorage

target.Yourunthefollowingcommand.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter discovery statictarget add --address=<ip/dns[:port]>

--adapter=<adapter_name> --name=<target_name>

Whenyoulaterremoveadiscoveryaddress,itmightstillbedisplayedastheparentofastatictarget.You

canaddthediscoveryaddressandrescantodisplaythecorrectparentforthestatictargets.

7 (Optional)SettheauthenticationinformationforCHAP(see“SettingiSCSICHAP”onpage 62and

“EnablingiSCSIAuthentication”onpage 82).Youcansetper‐targetCHAPforstatictargets,per‐adapter

CHAP,orapplythecommandtothediscoveryaddress.

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Chapter 5 Managing iSCSI Storage

Table 5‐1,“SupportedLevelsforCHAP,”onpage 62listswhateachsupportedleveldoes.

Forexample:

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter auth chap set --direction=uni --chap_username=<name>

--chap_password=<pwd> --level=preferred --secret=uni_secret --adapter=vmhba33

8 (Optional)SettheauthenticationinformationformutualCHAPbyrunningesxcli iscsi adapter

auth chap set againwith--directionsettomutualandadifferentauthenticationusernameand

secret.

9 (Optional)SetiSCSIparameters.

See“ListingandSettingiSCSIParameters”onpage 78

10 Aftersetupiscomplete,performrediscoveryandrescanallstoragedevices.Forexample:

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter discovery rediscover

esxcli <conn_options> storage core adapter rescan --adapter=vmhba36

Adapter‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter auth chap set --direction=uni

--chap_username=<name> --chap_password=<pwd>

--level=[prohibited, discouraged, preferred, required]

--secret=<string> --adapter=<vmhba>

Discovery‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget auth chap set --direction=uni

--chap_username=<name> --chap_password=<pwd>

--level=[prohibited, discouraged, preferred, required]

--secret=<string> --adapter=<vmhba>

--address<sendtarget_address>

Target‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter target portal auth chap set --direction=uni

--chap_username=<name> --chap_password=<pwd>

--level=[prohibited, discouraged, preferred, required]

--secret=<string> --adapter=<vmhba>

--name<iscsi_iqn_name>

Adapter‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter auth chap set --direction=mutual

--mchap_username=<name2> --mchap_password=<pwd2>

--level=[prohibited required] --secret=<string2>

--adapter=<vmhba>

Discovery‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget auth chap set

--direction=mutual --mchap_username=<name2>

--mchap_password=<pwd2> --level=[prohibited, required]

--secret=<string2> --adapter=<vmhba>

--address=<sendtarget_address>

Target‐level

CHAP

eesxcli iscsi adapter target portal auth chap set --direction=mutual

--mchap_username=<nam2e> --mchap_password=<pwd2>

--level=[prohibited required] --secret=<string2>

--adapter=<vmhba> --name=<iscsi_iqn_name>

IMPORTANTYouareresponsibleformakingsurethatCHAPissetbeforeyousetmutualCHAP,andfor

usingcompatiblelevelsforCHAPandmutualCHAP.

Adapter‐level

parameters

esxcli iscsi adapter param set --adapter=<vmhba> --key=<key>

--value=<value>

Discovery‐level

parameters

esxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget param set --adapter=<vmhba>

--key=<key> --value=<value>

--address=<sendtarget_address>

Target‐level

parameters

esxcli iscsi adapter target portal param set --adapter=<vmhba>

--key=<key> --value=<value> --address=<address>

--name=<iqn.name>

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70 VMware, Inc.

11 (Optional)IfyouwanttomakeadditionaliSCSIloginparameterchanges(see“ListingandSettingiSCSI

Parameters”onpage 78),youmustlogoutofthecorrespondingiSCSIsessionandlogbackin.

aRunesxcli iscsi session removetologout.

bRunesxcli iscsi session addorrescantheadaptertoaddthesessionback.

Setting Up Dependent Hardware iSCSI with ESXCLI

DependenthardwareiSCSIsetuprequiresseveralhigh‐leveltasks.Foreachtask,seethediscussionofthe

correspondingcommandinthischapterorthereferenceinformationavailablefromesxcli iscsi --help

andtheVMwareDocumentationCenter.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLI

HostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

1 DeterminetheiSCSIadaptertypeandretrievetheiSCSIadapterID.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter list

2 (Optional)SettheiSCSInameandalias.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter set --adapter <adapter_name> --name=<name>

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter set --adapter <adapter_name> --alias=<alias>

3Setupportbindingbyfollowingthesesteps:

aIdentifytheVMkernelportofthedependenthardwareiSCSIadapter.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi logicalnetworkportal list --adapter=<adapter_name>

b ConnectthedependenthardwareiSCSIinitiatortotheiSCSIVMkernelportsbyrunningthe

followingcommandforeachport.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi networkportal add --nic=<bound_vmknic>

--adapter=<iscsi_adapter>

cVerifythattheportswereaddedtothedependenthardwareiSCSIinitiator.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi physicalnetworkportal list --adapter=<adapter_name>

4Addadynamicdiscoveryaddressorastaticdiscoveryaddress.

Thetwotypesoftargetdifferasfollows:

Withdynamicdiscovery,allstoragetargetsassociatedwithahostnameorIPaddressarediscovered.

Yourunthefollowingcommand.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget add --address=<ip/dns[:port]>

--adapter=<adapter_name>

Withstaticdiscovery,youmustspecifythehostnameorIPaddressandtheiSCSInameofthestorage

target.Yourunthefollowingcommand.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter discovery statictarget add --address=<ip/dns[:port]>

--adapter=<adapter_name> --name=<target_name>

Whenyoulaterremoveadiscoveryaddress,itmightstillbedisplayedastheparentofastatictarget.You

canaddthediscoveryaddressandrescantodisplaythecorrectparentforthestatictargets.

5 (Optional)SettheauthenticationinformationforCHAP(see“SettingiSCSICHAP”onpage 62and

“EnablingiSCSIAuthentication”onpage 82).Youcansetper‐targetCHAPforstatictargets,per‐adapter

CHAP,orapplythecommandtothediscoveryaddress.

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Chapter 5 Managing iSCSI Storage

Table 5‐1,“SupportedLevelsforCHAP,”onpage 62listswhateachsupportedleveldoes.

Forexample:

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter auth chap set --direction=uni --chap_username=<name>

--chap_password=<pwd> --level=preferred --secret=uni_secret --adapter=vmhba33

6 (Optional)SettheauthenticationinformationformutualCHAPbyrunningesxcli iscsi adapter

auth chap set againwith--directionsettomutualandadifferentauthenticationusernameand

secret.

7 (Optional)SetiSCSIparameters.

See“ListingandSettingiSCSIParameters”onpage 78

8Aftersetupiscomplete,performrediscoveryandrescanallstoragedevices.Forexample:

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter discovery rediscover

esxcli <conn_options> storage core adapter rescan --adapter=vmhba36

Adapter‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter auth chap set --direction=uni

--chap_username=<name> --chap_password=<pwd>

--level=[prohibited, discouraged, preferred, required]

--secret=<string> --adapter=<vmhba>

Discovery‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget auth chap set --direction=uni

--chap_username=<name> --chap_password=<pwd>

--level=[prohibited, discouraged, preferred, required]

--secret=<string> --adapter=<vmhba>

--address<sendtarget_address>

Target‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter target portal auth chap set --direction=uni

--chap_username=<name> --chap_password=<pwd>

--level=[prohibited, discouraged, preferred, required]

--secret=<string> --adapter=<vmhba>

--name<iscsi_iqn_name>

Adapter‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter auth chap set --direction=mutual

--mchap_username=<name> --mchap_password=<pwd>

--level=[prohibited required] --secret=<string2>

--adapter=<vmhba>

Discovery‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget auth chap set

--direction=mutual --mchap_username=<name>

--mchap_password=<pwd> --level=[prohibited, required]

--secret=<string2> --adapter=<vmhba>

--address=<sendtarget_address>

Target‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter target portal auth chap set --direction=mutual

--mchap_username=<name> --mchap_password=<pwd>

--level=[prohibited required] --secret=<string2>

--adapter=<vmhba> --name=<iscsi_iqn_name>

IMPORTANTYouareresponsibleformakingsurethatCHAPissetbeforeyousetmutualCHAP,andfor

usingcompatiblelevelsforCHAPandmutualCHAP.

Adapter‐level

parameters

esxcli iscsi adapter param set --adapter=<vmhba> --key=<key>

--value=<value>

Discovery‐level

parameters

esxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget param set --adapter=<vmhba>

--key=<key> --value=<value>

--address=<sendtarget_address>

Target‐level

parameters

esxcli iscsi adapter target portal param set --adapter=<vmhba>

--key=<key> --value=<value> --address=<address>

--name=<iqn.name>

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72 VMware, Inc.

9 (Optional)IfyouwanttomakeadditionaliSCSIloginparameterchanges(see“ListingandSettingiSCSI

Parameters”onpage 78),youmustlogoutofthecorrespondingiSCSIsessionandlogbackin.

aRunesxcli iscsi session removetologout.

bRunesxcli iscsi session addorrescantheadaptertoaddthesessionback.

Setting Up Independent Hardware iSCSI with ESXCLI

Withindependenthardware‐basediSCSIstorage,youuseaspecializedthird‐partyadaptercapableof

accessingiSCSIstorageoverTCP/IP.ThisiSCSIinitiatorhandlesalliSCSIandnetworkprocessingand

managementforyourESXisystem.

YoumustinstallandconfiguretheindependenthardwareiSCSIadapterforyourhostbeforeyoucanaccess

theiSCSIstoragedevice.Forinstallationinformation,seevendordocumentation.

HardwareiSCSIsetuprequiresanumberofhigh‐leveltasks.Foreachtask,seethediscussionofthe

correspondingcommand‐lineoptioninthischapterorthereferenceinformation.Specifyoneoftheoptions

listedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof

<conn_options>.

1 DeterminetheiSCSIadaptertypeandretrievetheiSCSIadapterID.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter list

2Configurethehardwareinitiator(HBA)byrunningesxcli iscsi networkportal ipconfig withone

ormoreofthefollowingoptions.

3 (Optional)SettheiSCSInameandalias.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter set --adapter <adapter_name> --name=<name>

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter set --adapter <adapter_name> --alias=<alias>

4Addadynamicdiscoveryaddressorastaticdiscoveryaddress.

Thetwotypesoftargetdifferasfollows:

Withdynamicdiscovery,allstoragetargetsassociatedwithahostnameorIPaddressarediscovered.

Yourunthefollowingcommand.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget add --address=<ip/dns[:port]>

--adapter=<adapter_name>

Withstaticdiscovery,youmustspecifythehostnameorIPaddressandtheiSCSInameofthestorage

target.Yourunthefollowingcommand.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter discovery statictarget add --address=<ip/dns[:port]>

5 (Optional)SettheauthenticationinformationforCHAP(see“SettingiSCSICHAP”onpage 62and

“EnablingiSCSIAuthentication”onpage 82).Youcansetper‐targetCHAPforstatictargets,per‐adapter

CHAP,orapplythecommandtothediscoveryaddress.

-A|--adapter=<str> iSCSIadaptername.(required).

-1|--dns1=<str> iSCSInetworkportalprimaryDNSaddress.

-2|--dns2=<str> iSCSInetworkportalsecondaryDNSaddress.

-g|--gateway=<str> iSCSInetworkportalgatewayaddress.

-i|--ip=<str> iSCSInetworkportalIPaddress(required).

-n|--nic=<str> iSCSInetworkportal(vmknic).

-s|--subnet=<str> iSCSInetworkportalsubnetmask(required).

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Chapter 5 Managing iSCSI Storage

Table 5‐1,“SupportedLevelsforCHAP,”onpage 62listswhateachsupportedleveldoes.

Forexample:

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter auth chap set --direction=uni --chap_username=<name>

--chap_password=<pwd> --level=preferred --secret=uni_secret --adapter=vmhba33

MutualCHAPisnotsupportedforindependenthardwareiSCSIstorage.

6 (Optional)SetiSCSIparameters.

See“ListingandSettingiSCSIParameters”onpage 78

7Aftersetupiscomplete,runesxcli storage core adapter rescan --adapter=<iscsi_adapter>

torescanallstoragedevices.

8Aftersetupiscomplete,performrediscoveryandrescanallstoragedevices.Forexample:

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter discovery rediscover

esxcli <conn_options> storage core adapter rescan --adapter=vmhba36

iSCSI Storage Setup with vicfg-iscsi

YoucansetupiSCSIstorageusingthevSphereWebClient,commandsintheesxcli iscsinamespace(see

“iSCSIStorageSetupwithESXCLI”onpage 68)orthevicfg-iscsicommand.

Setting Up Software iSCSI with vicfg-iscsi

SoftwareiSCSIsetuprequiresanumberofhigh‐leveltasks.Foreachtask,seethediscussionofthe

correspondingcommand‐lineoptioninthischapterorthereferenceinformation.Specifyoneoftheoptions

listedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof

<conn_options>.

1 DeterminetheHBAtypeandretrievetheHBAID.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --adapter --list

2EnablesoftwareiSCSIfortheHBA.

Adapter‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter auth chap set --direction=uni

--chap_username=<name> --chap_password=<pwd>

--level=[prohibited, discouraged, preferred, required]

--secret=<string> --adapter=<vmhba>

Discovery‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget auth chap set --direction=uni

--chap_username=<name> --chap_password=<pwd>

--level=[prohibited, discouraged, preferred, required]

--secret=<string> --adapter=<vmhba>

--address<sendtarget_address>

Target‐level

CHAP

esxcli iscsi adapter target portal auth chap set --direction=uni

--chap_username=<name> --chap_password=<pwd>

--level=[prohibited, discouraged, preferred, required]

--secret=<string> --adapter=<vmhba>

--name<iscsi_iqn_name>

Adapter‐level

parameters

esxcli iscsi adapter param set --adapter=<vmhba> --key=<key>

--value=<value>

Discovery‐level

parameters

esxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget param set --adapter=<vmhba>

--key=<key> --value=<value>

--address=<sendtarget_address>

Target‐level

parameters

esxcli iscsi adapter target portal param set --adapter=<vmhba>

--key=<key> --value=<value> --address=<address>

--name=<iqn.name>

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74 VMware, Inc.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --swiscsi --enable

3 (Optional)Checkthestatus.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --swiscsi --list

ThesystemprintsSoftware iSCSI is enabledorSoftware iSCSI is not enabled.

4 (Optional)SettheiSCSInameandalias.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -I -n <iscsi_name> <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --iscsiname --name <iscsi_name> <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -I -a <alias_name> <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --iscsiname --alias <alias_name> <adapter_name>

5Addadynamicdiscoveryaddressorastaticdiscoveryaddress.

Thetwotypesoftargetdifferasfollows:

Withdynamicdiscovery,allstoragetargetsassociatedwithahostnameorIPaddressarediscovered.

Yourunthefollowingcommand:

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --discovery --add --ip <ip_addr | domain_name> <adapter_name>

Withstaticdiscovery,youmustspecifythehostnameorIPaddressandtheiSCSInameofthestorage

target.Yourunthefollowingcommand:

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --static --add --ip <ip_addr | domain_name>

--name <iscsi_name> <adapter_name>

Whenyoulaterremoveadiscoveryaddress,itmightstillbedisplayedastheparentofastatictarget.You

canaddthediscoveryaddressandrescantodisplaythecorrectparentforthestatictargets.

6 (Optional)SettheauthenticationinformationforCHAP(see“SettingiSCSICHAP”onpage 62and

“EnablingiSCSIAuthentication”onpage 82).

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -A -c <level> -m <auth_method> -u <auth_u_name> -w <chap_password>

[-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] [-n <iscsi_name]] <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --authentication --level <level> --method <auth_method>

--chap_username

<auth_u_name>

chap_password <chap_password>

[

<stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] [-name <iscsi_name]]

<adapter_name>

Thetarget(-i)andname(-n)optiondeterminewhatthecommandappliesto.

7 (Optional)SettheauthenticationinformationformutualCHAPbyrunningvicfg-iscsi -Aagainwith

the-boptionandadifferentauthenticationusernameandpassword.

For<level>,specifychapProhibitedorchapRequired.

chapProhibited–ThehostdoesnotuseCHAPauthentication.Ifauthenticationisenabled,specify

chapProhibitedtodisableit.

chapRequired–ThehostrequiressuccessfulCHAPauthentication.TheconnectionfailsifCHAP

negotiationfails.YoucansetthisvalueformutualCHAPonlyifCHAPissettochapRequired.

For<auth_method>,CHAPistheonlyvalidvalue.

8 (Optional)SetiSCSIparametersbyrunningvicfg-iscsi -W.

Option Result

-iand‐n Commandappliestoper‐targetCHAPforstatictargets.

Only‐i Commandappliestothediscoveryaddress.

Neither-inor‐n Commandappliestoper‐adapterCHAP.

IMPORTANTYouareresponsibleformakingsurethatCHAPissetbeforeyousetmutualCHAP,andfor

usingcompatiblelevelsforCHAPandmutualCHAP.

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Chapter 5 Managing iSCSI Storage

9Aftersetupiscomplete,runvicfg-rescantorescanallstoragedevices.

Setting Up Dependent Hardware iSCSI with vicfg-iscsi

DependenthardwareiSCSIsetuprequiresanumberofhigh‐leveltasks.Foreachtask,seethediscussionof

thecorrespondingcommand‐lineoptioninthischapter,orthereferenceinformation.Specifyoneofthe

optionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof

<conn_options>.

1 DeterminetheHBAtypeandretrievetheHBAID.

vicf-iscsi <conn_options> --adapter --list

2 (Optional)SettheiSCSInameandalias.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -I -n <iscsi_name> <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --iscsiname --name <iscsi_name> <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -I -a <alias_name> <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --iscsiname --alias <alias_name> <adapter_name>

3Setupportbindingbyfollowingthesesteps:

aIdentifytheVMkernelportofthedependenthardwareiSCSIadapter.

esxcli <conn_options> swiscsi vmknic list -d <vmhba>

b ConnectthedependenthardwareiSCSIinitiatortotheiSCSIVMkernelportsbyrunningthe

followingcommandforeachport.

esxcli <conn_options> swiscsi nic add -n <port_name> -d <vmhba>

cVerifythattheportswereaddedtothedependenthardwareiSCSIinitiator.

esxcli <conn_options> swiscsi nic list -d <vmhba>

dRescanthedependenthardwareSCSIinitiator.

vicfg-rescan <conn_options> <vmhba>

4Addadynamicdiscoveryaddressorastaticdiscoveryaddress.

Thetwotypesoftargetdifferasfollows:

Withdynamicdiscovery,allstoragetargetsassociatedwithahostnameorIPaddressarediscovered.

Yourunthefollowingcommand:

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --discovery --add --ip <ip_addr | domain_name> <adapter_name>

Withstaticdiscovery,youmustspecifythehostnameorIPaddressandtheiSCSInameofthestorage

target.Yourunthefollowingcommand:

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --static --add --ip <ip_addr | domain_name>

--name <iscsi_name> <adapter_name>

Whenyoulaterremoveadiscoveryaddress,itmightstillbedisplayedastheparentofastatictarget.You

canaddthediscoveryaddressandrescantodisplaythecorrectparentforthestatictargets.

5 (Optional)SettheauthenticationinformationforCHAP(see“SettingiSCSICHAP”onpage 62and

“EnablingiSCSIAuthentication”onpage 82).

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -A -c <level> -m <auth_method> -u <auth_u_name> -w <chap_password>

[-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] [-n <iscsi_name]] <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --authentication --level <level> --method <auth_method>

--chap_username

<auth_u_name>

chap_password <chap_password>

[

<stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] [-name <iscsi_name]]

<adapter_name>

Thetarget(-i)andname(-n)optiondeterminewhatthecommandappliesto.

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76 VMware, Inc.

6 (Optional)SettheauthenticationinformationformutualCHAPbyrunningvicfg-iscsi -Aagainwith

the-boptionandadifferentauthenticationusernameandpassword.

For<level>,specifychapProhibitedorchapRequired.

chapProhibited–ThehostdoesnotuseCHAPauthentication.Ifauthenticationisenabled,specify

chapProhibitedtodisableit.

chapRequired–ThehostrequiressuccessfulCHAPauthentication.TheconnectionfailsifCHAP

negotiationfails.YoucansetthisvalueformutualCHAPonlyifCHAPissettochapRequired.

For<auth_method>,CHAPistheonlyvalidvalue.

7 (Optional)SetiSCSIparametersbyrunningvicfg-iscsi -W.

8Aftersetupiscomplete,runvicfg-rescantorescanallstoragedevices.

Setting Up Independent Hardware iSCSI with vicfg-iscsi

Withindependenthardware‐basediSCSIstorage,youuseaspecializedthird‐partyadaptercapableof

accessingiSCSIstorageoverTCP/IP.ThisiSCSIinitiatorhandlesalliSCSIandnetworkprocessingand

managementforyourESXisystem.

YoumustinstallandconfiguretheindependenthardwareiSCSIadapterforyourhostbeforeyoucanaccess

theiSCSIstoragedevice.Forinstallationinformation,seevendordocumentation.

HardwareiSCSIsetuprequiresanumberofhigh‐leveltasks.Foreachtask,seethediscussionofthe

correspondingcommand‐lineoptioninthischapter,themanpage(Linux),orthereferenceinformation.

Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18

inplaceof<conn_options>.

1 DeterminetheHBAtypeandretrievetheHBAID.

vicf-iscsi <conn_options> --adapter --list

2Configurethehardwareinitiator(HBA)byrunningvicfg-iscsi -Nwithoneormoreofthefollowing

options.

--list–Listnetworkproperties.

--ip <ip_addr>–SetHBAIPv4address.

--subnetmask <subnet_mask>–SetHBAnetworkmask.

--gateway <default_gateway>–SetHBAgateway.

--set ARP=true|false–EnableordisableARPredirect.

YoucanalsosettheHBAIPv4addressandnetworkmaskandgatewayinonecommand.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --ip <ip_addr> --subnetmask <subnet_mask> --gateway

<default_gateway>

3 (Optional)SettheiSCSInameandalias.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -I -n <iscsi_name> <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --iscsiname --name <iscsi_name> <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -I -a <alias_name> <adapter_name>

Option Result

-iand‐n Commandappliestoper‐targetCHAPforstatictargets.

Only‐i Commandappliestothediscoveryaddress.

Neither-inor‐n Commandappliestoper‐adapterCHAP.

IMPORTANTYouareresponsibleformakingsurethatCHAPissetbeforeyousetmutualCHAP,andfor

usingcompatiblelevelsforCHAPandmutualCHAP.

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Chapter 5 Managing iSCSI Storage

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --iscsiname --alias <alias_name> <adapter_name>

4Addadynamicdiscoveryaddressorastaticdiscoveryaddress.

Thetwotypesoftargetdifferasfollows:

Withdynamicdiscovery,allstoragetargetsassociatedwithanIPaddressarediscovered.Runthe

followingcommand:

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --discovery --add --ip <ip_addr> <adapter_name>

Withstaticdiscovery,youmustspecifytheIPaddressandtheiSCSInameofthestoragetargettobe

added.Runthefollowingcommand:

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --static --add --ip <ip_addr>

--name <iscsi_name> <adapter_name>

Whenyoulaterremoveadiscoveryaddress,itmightstillbedisplayedastheparentofastatictarget.You

canlateraddthediscoveryaddressandrescantodisplaythecorrectparentforthestatictargets.

5 (Optional)SettheauthenticationinformationforCHAPbyrunningvicfg-iscsi -A.

Youcansettheinformationforperadapter,perdiscovery,andpertargetCHAP.See“SettingiSCSI

CHAP”onpage 62and“EnablingiSCSIAuthentication”onpage 82.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --authentication --level <level> --method <auth_method>

--chap_username

<auth_u_name>

chap_password <chap_password>

[

<stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] [-name <iscsi_name]]

<adapter_name>

Thetarget(-i)andname(-n)optiondeterminewhatthecommandappliesto.

MutualCHAPisnotsupportedforindependenthardwareiSCSIstorage.

6 (Optional)SetadditionaliSCSIparametersbyrunningvicfg-iscsi -W.

7Aftersetupiscomplete,callvicfg-rescantorescanallstoragedevices.

Listing and Setting iSCSI Options

YoucanlistandsetiSCSIoptionswithESXCLIorwithvicfg-iscsi.Youcanalsomanageparameters.See

“ListingandSettingiSCSIParameters”onpage 78.

Listing iSCSI Options with ESXCLI

Useesxcli iscsi informationretrievalcommandstolistexternalHBAproperties,informationabout

targets,andLUNs.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagement

Commands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

Runesxcli iscsi adapter firmwaretolistoruploadthefirmwarefortheiSCSIadapter.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter firmware get --adapter=<adapter_name>

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter firmware set --file=<firmware_file_path>

Thesystemreturnsinformationaboutthevendor,model,description,andserialnumberoftheHBA.

Runcommandsintheesxcli iscsi adapter targetnamespace.

esxcli iscsi adapter target portallistsandsetsauthenticationandportalparameters.

esxcli iscsi adapter target listlistsLUNinformation.

Option Result

-iand‐n Commandappliestoper‐targetCHAPforstatictargets.

Only‐i Commandappliestothediscoveryaddress.

Neither-inor‐n Commandappliestoper‐adapterCHAP.

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78 VMware, Inc.

Setting MTU with ESXCLI

IfyouwanttochangetheMTUusedforyouriSCSIstorage,youmustmakethechangeintwoplaces.

Runesxcli network vswitch standard settochangetheMTUofthevirtualswitch.

Runesxcli network ip interface settochangetheMTUofthenetworkinterface.

Listing and Setting iSCSI Options with vicfg-iscsi

Usevicfg-iscsiinformationretrievaloptionstolistexternalHBAproperties,informationabouttargets,and

LUNs.Youcanusethefollowingvicfg-iscsioptionstolistiSCSIparameters.Specifyoneoftheoptions

listedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof

<conn_options>.

Runvicfg-iscsi -P|--phbatolistexternal(vendor‐specific)propertiesofaniSCSIadapter.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -P -l <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --phba --list <adapter_name>

Thesystemreturnsinformationaboutthevendor,model,description,andserialnumberoftheHBA.

Runvicfg-iscsi -T| --targettolisttargetinformation.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -T -l <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --target --list <adapter_name>

Thesystemreturnsinformationabouttargetsforthespecifiedadapter,includingtheiSCSIname(IQNor

EUIformat)andalias.See“DiscoveryTargetNames”onpage 61.

Runvicfg-iscsi -L|--luntolistLUNinformation.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -L -l <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --lun --list <adapter_name>

Thecommandreturnstheoperatingsystemdevicename,busnumber,targetID,LUNID,andLUNsize

fortheLUN.

Runvicfg-iscsi -Lwith-ttolistonlyLUNsonaspecifiedtarget.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -L -l -t <target_ID> <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --lun --list --target_id <target_id> <adapter_name>

ThesystemreturnstheLUNsonthespecifiedtargetandthecorrespondingdevicename,devicenumber,

LUNID,andLUNsize.

Runvicfg-iscsi -p|--pnptolistphysicalnetworkportalinformationforindependenthardwareiSCSI

devices.Youalsousethisoptionwith--mtu.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -p -l <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --pnp --list <adapter_name>

ThesystemreturnsinformationabouttheMACaddress,MTU,andcurrenttransferrate.

Runvicfg-iscsi -I -ltolistinformationabouttheiSCSIinitiator.ESXisystemsuseasoftware‐based

iSCSIinitiatorintheVMkerneltoconnecttostorage.ThecommandreturnstheiSCSIname,aliasname,

andaliassettablebitfortheinitiator.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -I -l vmhba42

Runvicfg-iscsi -p -MtosettheMTUfortheadapter.Youspecifythesizeandadaptername.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -p -M <mtu_size> <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --pnp --mtu <mtu-size> <adapter_name>

Listing and Setting iSCSI Parameters

YoucanlistandsetiSCSIparametersforsoftwareiSCSIandfordependenthardwareiSCSIwithESXCLIor

withvicfg-iscsi.

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Chapter 5 Managing iSCSI Storage

Listing and Setting iSCSI Parameters with ESXCLI

YoucanretrieveandsetiSCSIparametersbyrunningoneofthefollowingcommands.

Table 5‐6listsallsettableparameters.TheseparametersarealsodescribedintheIETFrfc3720.Youcanrun

esxcli iscsi adapter param gettodeterminewhetheraparameterissettableornot.

TheparametersinTable 5‐6applytosoftwareiSCSIanddependenthardwareiSCSI.

YoucanusethefollowingESXCLIcommandstolistparameteroptions.

Runesxcli iscsi adapter param gettolistparameteroptionsfortheiSCSIadapter.

Runesxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget param getoresxcli iscsi adapter target

portal param settoretrieveinformationaboutiSCSIparametersandwhethertheyaresettable.

Runesxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget param getoresxcli iscsi adapter target

portal param settosetiSCSIparameteroptions.

Ifspecialcharactersareinthe<name>=<value>sequence,forexample,ifyouaddaspace,youmustsurround

thesequencewithdoublequotes(“<name> = <value>”).

Adapter‐level

parameters

esxcli iscsi adapter param set --adapter=<vmhba> --key=<key> --value=<value>

Target‐level

parameters

esxcli iscsi adapter target portal param set --adapter=<vmhba> --key=<key>

--value=<value> --address=<address> --name=<iqn.name>

Discovery‐level

parameters

esxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget param set --adapter=<vmhba>

--key=<key> --value=<value> --address=<address>

Table 5-5. Settable iSCSI Parameters

Parameter Description

DataDigestType Increasesdataintegrity.Whendatadigestisenabled,thesystemperformsachecksumover

eachPDUsdatapartandverifiesusingtheCRC32Calgorithm.

Note:SystemsthatuseIntelNehalemprocessorsoffloadtheiSCSIdigestcalculationsfor

softwareiSCSI,thusreducingtheimpactonperformance.

ValidvaluesaredigestProhibited,digestDiscouraged,digestPreferred,or

digestRequired.

HeaderDigest Increasesdataintegrity.Whenheaderdigestisenabled,thesystemperformsachecksumover

theheaderpartofeachiSCSIProtocolDataUnit(PDU)andverifiesusingtheCRC32C

algorithm.

MaxOutstandingR2T MaxOutstandingR2TdefinestheReadytoTransfer(R2T)PDUsthatcanbeintransitionbefore

anacknowledgementPDUisreceived.

FirstBurstLength MaximumamountofunsoliciteddataaniSCSIinitiatorcansendtothetargetduringthe

executionofasingleSCSIcommand,inbytes.

MaxBurstLength MaximumSCSIdatapayloadinaData‐InorasolicitedData‐OutiSCSIsequence,inbytes.

MaxRecvDataSegLen Maximumdatasegmentlength,inbytes,thatcanbereceivedinaniSCSIPDU.

NoopOutInterval Timeinterval,inseconds,betweenNOP‐OutrequestssentfromyouriSCSIinitiatortoaniSCSI

target.TheNOP‐Outrequestsserveasthepingmechanismtoverifythataconnectionbetween

theiSCSIinitiatorandtheiSCSItargetisactive.

Supportedonlyattheinitiatorlevel.

NoopOutTimeout Amountoftime,inseconds,thatcanlapsebeforeyourhostreceivesaNOP‐Inmessage.The

messageissentbytheiSCSItargetinresponsetotheNOP‐Outrequest.Whenthe

NoopTimeoutlimitisexceeded,theinitiatorterminatesthecurrentsessionandstartsanew

one.

Supportedonlyattheinitiatorlevel.

RecoveryTimeout Amountoftime,inseconds,thatcanlapsewhileasessionrecoveryisperformed.Ifthetimeout

exceedsitslimit,theiSCSIinitiatorterminatesthesession.

DelayedAck Allowssystemstodelayacknowledgmentofreceiveddatapackets.

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80 VMware, Inc.

Returning Parameters to Default Inheritance

ThevaluesofiSCSIparametersassociatedwithadynamicdiscoveryaddressorastaticdiscoverytargetare

inheritedfromthecorrespondingsettingsoftheparent.Forthedynamicdiscoveryaddress,theparentisthe

adapter.Forthestatictarget,theparentistheadapterordiscoveryaddress.

IfyouusethevSphereWebClienttomodifyauthenticationsettings,youdeselecttheInheritfromParent

checkboxbeforeyoucanmakeachangetothediscoveryaddressordiscoverytarget.

Ifyouuseesxcli iscsi,thevalueyousetoverridestheinheritedvalue.

Inheritanceisrelevantonlyifyouwanttoreturnadynamicdiscoveryaddressorastaticdiscoverytargetto

itsinheritedvalue.Inthatcase,usethefollowingcommand,whichrequiresthe--nameoptionforstatic

discoveryaddresses,butnotfordynamicdiscoverytargets.

Dynamictarget:esxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget param set

Statictarget:esxcli iscsi adapter target portal param set

Listing and Setting iSCSI Parameters with vicfg-iscsi

YoucanlistandsetiSCSIparametersbyrunningvicfg-iscsi -W.Table 5‐6listsallsettableparameters.

TheseparametersarealsodescribedintheIETFrfc3720.Youcanalsorunvicfg-iscsi --parameter

--list --detailstodeterminewhetheraparameterissettableornot.

TheparametersinTable 5‐6applytosoftwareiSCSIanddependenthardwareiSCSI.

Table 5-6. Settable iSCSI Parameters

Parameter Description

DataDigestType Increasesdataintegrity.Whendatadigestisenabled,thesystemperformsachecksumover

eachPDUsdatapartandverifiesusingtheCRC32Calgorithm.

Note:SystemsthatuseIntelNehalemprocessorsoffloadtheiSCSIdigestcalculationsfor

softwareiSCSI,thusreducingtheimpactonperformance.

ValidvaluesaredigestProhibited,digestDiscouraged,digestPreferred,or

digestRequired.

HeaderDigest Increasesdataintegrity.Whenheaderdigestisenabled,thesystemperformsachecksumover

theheaderpartofeachiSCSIProtocolDataUnit(PDU)andverifiesusingtheCRC32C

algorithm.

MaxOutstandingR2T MaxOutstandingR2TdefinestheReadytoTransfer(R2T)PDUsthatcanbeintransitionbefore

anacknowledgementPDUisreceived.

FirstBurstLength MaximumamountofunsoliciteddataaniSCSIinitiatorcansendtothetargetduringthe

executionofasingleSCSIcommand,inbytes.

MaxBurstLength MaximumSCSIdatapayloadinaData‐InorasolicitedData‐OutiSCSIsequence,inbytes.

MaxRecvDataSegLen Maximumdatasegmentlength,inbytes,thatcanbereceivedinaniSCSIPDU.

NoopOutInterval Timeinterval,inseconds,betweenNOP‐OutrequestssentfromyouriSCSIinitiatortoaniSCSI

target.TheNOP‐Outrequestsserveasthepingmechanismtoverifythataconnectionbetween

theiSCSIinitiatorandtheiSCSItargetisactive.

Supportedonlyattheinitiatorlevel.

NoopOutTimeout Amountoftime,inseconds,thatcanlapsebeforeyourhostreceivesaNOP‐Inmessage.The

messageissentbytheiSCSItargetinresponsetotheNOP‐Outrequest.Whenthe

NoopTimeoutlimitisexceeded,theinitiatorterminatesthecurrentsessionandstartsanew

one.

Supportedonlyattheinitiatorlevel.

RecoveryTimeout Amountoftime,inseconds,thatcanlapsewhileasessionrecoveryisperformed.Ifthetimeout

exceedsitslimit,theiSCSIinitiatorterminatesthesession.

DelayedAck Allowssystemstodelayacknowledgmentofreceiveddatapackets.

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Chapter 5 Managing iSCSI Storage

Youcanusethefollowingvicfg-iscsioptionstolistparameteroptions.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin

“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

Runvicfg-iscsi -W -ltolistparameteroptionsfortheHBA.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -W -l

[-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] [-n <iscsi_name>]] <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --parameter --list

[--ip <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] [--name <iscsi_name>]] <adapter_name>

Thetarget(-i)andname(-n)optiondeterminewhatthecommandappliesto.

Runvicfg-iscsi -W -l -k tolistiSCSIparametersandwhethertheyaresettable.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -W -l -k

[-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname>[:<port_num>] [-n <iscsi_name>]] <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --parameter --list --detail

[--ip <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname>[:<port_num>][--name <iscsi_name>]] <adapter_name>

Runvicfg-iscsi -W -jtosetiSCSIparameteroptions.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -W -j <name>=<value>

-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname>[:port_num>][-n <iscsi_name>]] <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --parameter --set <name>=<value>

--ip <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname>[:port_num>][--name <iscsi_name>]] <adapter_name>

Thetarget(-i)andname(-n)optiondeterminewhatthecommandappliesto.

Ifspecialcharactersareinthe<name>=<value>sequence,forexample,ifyouaddaspace,youmustsurround

thesequencewithdoublequotes(“<name> = <value>”).

Returning Parameters to Default Inheritance

ThevaluesofiSCSIparametersassociatedwithadynamicdiscoveryaddressorastaticdiscoverytargetare

inheritedfromthecorrespondingsettingsoftheparent.Forthedynamicdiscoveryaddress,theparentisthe

adapter.Forthestatictarget,theparentistheadapterordiscoveryaddress.

IfyouusethevSphereWebClienttomodifyauthenticationsettings,youdeselecttheInheritfromParent

checkboxbeforeyoucanmakeachangetothediscoveryaddressordiscoverytarget.

Ifyouusevicfg-iscsi,thevalueyousetoverridestheinheritedvalue.

Inheritanceisrelevantonlyifyouwanttoreturnadynamicdiscoveryaddressorastaticdiscoverytargetto

itsinheritedvalue.Inthatcase,usethe--reset <param_name>option,whichrequiresthe--nameoptionfor

staticdiscoveryaddresses,butnotfordynamicdiscoverytargets.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> --parameter --reset <param_name>

--ip <stor_ip_addr | stor_hostname>[:port_num>] <adapter_name>

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -W -o <param_name>

-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname>[:port_num>] <adapter_name>

Option Result

-iand‐n Commandappliestostatictargets.

Only‐i Commandappliestothediscoveryaddress.

Neither-inor‐n Commandappliestoper‐adapterparameters.

Option Result

-iand‐nCommandappliestoper‐targetCHAPforstatictargets.

Only‐iCommandappliestothediscoveryaddress.

Neither-inor‐nCommandappliestoper‐adapterCHAP.

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82 VMware, Inc.

Enabling iSCSI Authentication

YoucanenableiSCSIauthenticationwithESXCLIorwithvicfg-iscsi.

Enabling iSCSI Authentication with ESXCLI

Theesxcli iscsi adapter authcommandsenableiSCSIauthentication.Mutualauthenticationis

supportedforsoftwareiSCSIanddependenthardwareiSCSI,butnotforindependenthardwareiSCSI(see

“SettingiSCSICHAP”onpage 62).

1 (Optional)SettheauthenticationinformationforCHAP.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter auth chap set --direction=uni --chap_username=<name>

--chap_password=<pwd> --level=[prohibited, discouraged, preferred, required]

--secret=<string> --adapter=<adapter_name>

Youcansetper‐targetCHAPforstatictargets,per‐adapterCHAP,orapplythecommandtothediscovery

address.

per‐adapterCHAP:esxcli iscsi adapter auth chap set

per‐discoveryCHAP:esxcli iscsi adapter discovery sendtarget auth chap set

per‐targetCHAP:esxcli iscsi adapter target portal auth chap set

Forexample:

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter auth chap set --direction=uni --chap_username=User1

--chap_password=MySpecialPwd --level=preferred --secret=uni_secret

--adapter=vmhba33

2 (Optional)SettheauthenticationinformationformutualCHAPbyrunningesxcli iscsi adapter

auth chap set againwiththe-doptionsettomutualoptionandadifferentauthenticationusername

andsecret.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter auth chap set --direction=mutual

--mchap_username=<m_name> --mchap_password=<m_pwd> --level=[prohibited,

required] --secret=<string> --adapter=<adapter_name>

For<level>,specifyprohibitedorrequired.

prohibited–ThehostdoesnotuseCHAPauthentication.Ifauthenticationisenabled,specify

chapProhibitedtodisableit.

required–ThehostrequiressuccessfulCHAPauthentication.TheconnectionfailsifCHAP

negotiationfails.YoucansetthisvalueformutualCHAPonlyifCHAPissettochapRequired.

Fordirection,specifymutual.

To enable mutual authentication

1Enableauthentication.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter auth chap set --direction=uni --chap_username=<name>

--chap_password=<pw> --level=[prohibited, discouraged, preferred, required]

--secret=<string> --adapter=<adapter_name>

Thespecifiedchap_usernameandsecretmustbesupportedonthestorageside.

2ListpossibleVMkernelNICstobind.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi logicalnetworkportal list

IMPORTANTYouareresponsibleformakingsurethatCHAPissetbeforeyousetmutualCHAP,andfor

usingcompatiblelevelsforCHAPandmutualCHAP.UseadifferentsecretinCHAPandmutualCHAP.

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3Enablemutualauthentication.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter auth chap set --direction=mutual

--mchap_username=<m_name> --mchap_password=<m_pwd> --level=[prohibited,

required] --secret=<string> --adapter=<adapter_name>

Thespecifiedmchap_usernameandsecretmustbesupportedonthestorageside.

Makesurethefollowingrequirementsaremet.

CHAPauthenticationisalreadysetupwhenyoustartsettingupmutualCHAP.

CHAPandmutualCHAPusedifferentusernamesandpasswords.Thesecondusernameand

passwordaresupportedformutualauthenticationonthestorageside.

CHAPandmutualCHAPusecompatibleCHAPlevels.

4Aftersetupiscomplete,performrediscoveryandrescanallstoragedevices.Forexample:

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi adapter discovery rediscover

esxcli <conn_options> storage core adapter rescan --adapter=vmhba36

Enabling iSCSI Authentication with vicfg-iscsi

Thevicfg-iscsi-A -coptionsenableiSCSIauthentication.Mutualauthenticationissupportedforsoftware

iSCSIanddependenthardwareiSCSI,butnotforindependenthardwareiSCSI.See“SettingiSCSICHAP”on

page 62.

To enable mutual authentication

1EnableauthenticationontheESXihost.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -A -c <level> -m <auth_method> -u <auth_u_name> -w <chap_password>

[-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>] [-n <iscsi_name]] <adapter_name>

Thespecifiedusernameandpasswordmustbesupportedonthestorageside.

2EnablemutualauthenticationontheESXihost.

vicfg-iscsi <conn_options> -A -c <level> -m <auth_method> -b -u <ma_username>

-w <ma_password> [-i <stor_ip_addr|stor_hostname> [:<portnum>]

[-n <iscsi_name]] <adapter_name>

Makesurethefollowingrequirementsaremet.

CHAPauthenticationisalreadysetupwhenyoustartsettingupmutualCHAP.

CHAPandmutualCHAPusedifferentusernamesandpasswords.Thesecondusernameand

passwordaresupportedformutualauthenticationonthestorageside.

CHAPandmutualCHAPusecompatibleCHAPlevels.

3Aftersetupiscomplete,performrediscoveryandrescanallstoragedevices.

Setting Up Ports for iSCSI Multipathing

Withportbinding,youcreateaseparateVMkernelportforeachphysicalNICusing1:1mapping.Youcanadd

allnetworkadapterandVMkernelportpairstoasinglevSwitch.ThevSphereStoragedocumentationexplains

indetailhowtospecifyportbinding.

Youcannotsetupportsformultipathingbyusingvicfg-iscsi.

Intheexamplesbelow,specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagement

Commands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

IMPORTANTTheESX/ESXi4.xESXCLIcommandsforsettingupiSCSIarenolongersupported.

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To specify port binding

1FindoutwhichuplinksareavailableforusewithiSCSIadapters.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi physicalnetworkportal list --adapter=<adapter_name>

2 ConnectthesoftwareiSCSIordependenthardwareiSCSIinitiatortotheiSCSIVMkernelportsby

runningthefollowingcommandforeachport.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi networkportal nic add --adapter=<adapter_name> --nic=<bound_nic>

3VerifythattheportswereaddedtotheiSCSIinitiatorbyrunningthefollowingcommand:

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi networkportal list --adapter=<adapter_name>

4 (Optional)IfthereareactiveiSCSIsessionsbetweenyourhostandtargets,discontinuethem.See

“RemovingiSCSISessions”onpage 85.

5RescantheiSCSIinitiator.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core adapter rescan --adapter <iscsi adapter>

6TodisconnecttheiSCSIinitiatorfromtheports,runthefollowingcommand.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi networkportal remove --adapter=<adapter_name> --nic=<bound_nic>

Managing iSCSI Sessions

Tocommunicatewitheachother,iSCSIinitiatorsandtargetsestablishiSCSIsessions.Youcanuseesxcli

iscsi sessiontolistandmanageiSCSIsessionsforsoftwareiSCSIanddependenthardwareiSCSI.

Introduction to iSCSI Session Management

Bydefault,softwareiSCSIanddependenthardwareiSCSIinitiatorsstartoneiSCSIsessionbetweeneach

initiatorportandeachtargetport.IfyouriSCSIinitiatorortargethasmorethanoneport,yourhostcan

establishmultiplesessions.Thedefaultnumberofsessionsforeachtargetequalsthenumberofportsonthe

iSCSIadaptertimesthenumberoftargetports.Youcandisplayallcurrentsessionstoanalyzeanddebug

them.Youmightaddsessionstothedefaultforseveralreasons.

Cloningsessions.SomeiSCSIarrayssupportmultiplesessionsbetweentheiSCSIadapterandtarget

ports.Ifyoucloneanexistingsessionononeofthesearrays,thearraypresentsmoredatapathsforyour

adapter.Duplicatesessionsdonotpersistacrossreboot.Additionalsessionstothetargetmighthave

performancebenefits,buttheresultofcloningdependsentirelyonthearray.Youmustlogoutfroman

iSCSIsessionifyouwanttocloneasession.Youcanusetheesxcli iscsi session addcommandto

cloneasession.

EnablingHeaderandDataDigest.IfyouareloggedintoasessionandwanttoenabletheHeaderand

DataDigestparameters,youmustsettheparameter,removethesession,andaddthesessionbackforthe

parameterchangetotakeeffect.YoumustlogoutfromaniSCSIsessionifyouwanttocloneasession.

Establishingtarget‐specificsessions.Youcanestablishasessiontoaspecifictargetport.Thiscanbe

usefulifyourhostconnectstoasingle‐portstoragesystemthat,bydefault,presentsonlyonetargetport

toyourinitiator,butcanredirectadditionalsessionstoadifferenttargetport.Establishinganewsession

betweenyouriSCSIinitiatorandanothertargetportcreatesanadditionalpathtothestoragesystem.

Thefollowingexamplescenariousestheavailablecommands.Runesxcli iscsi session --helpandeach

commandwith--helpforreferenceinformation.Theexampleusesaconfigurationfiletologintothehost.

Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18

inplaceof<conn_options>.

CAUTIONSomestoragesystemsdonotsupportmultiplesessionsfromthesameinitiatornameorendpoint.

AttemptstocreatemultiplesessionstosuchtargetscanresultinunpredictablebehaviorofyouriSCSI

environment.

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Listing iSCSI Sessions

ListasoftwareiSCSIsessionattheadapterlevel.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi session list --adapter=<iscsi_adapter>

ListasoftwareiSCSIsessionatthetargetlevel.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi session list --name=<target> --adapter=<iscsi_adapter>

Logging in to iSCSI Sessions

Youcanuseesxcli iscsi sessiontologintoasession.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“Connection

OptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

LogintoasessiononthecurrentsoftwareiSCSIordependenthardwareiSCSIconfigurationatthe

adapterlevel.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi session add --adapter=<adapter_name>

Forexample:

esxcli --config /host-config-file iscsi session add --adapter=vmhba36

LogintoasessiononthecurrentsoftwareiSCSIordependenthardwareiSCSIconfigurationatthetarget

level.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi session add --name=<target> --adapter=<adapter_name>

Forexample:

esxcli --config /host-config-file iscsi session add -name=iqn.xxx --adapter=vmhba36

AddduplicatesessionswithtargetandsessionIDsincurrentsoftwareiSCSIordependenthardware

iSCSIconfiguration.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi session add --name=<iqn.xxxx> --isid=<session_id>

--adapter=<iscsi_adapter>

iqn.xxxxisthetargetIQN,whichyoucandeterminebylistingallsessions.session_idisthesession’s

iSCSIID.Forexample:

esxcli --config /host-config-file iscsi session add -name=iqn.xxx --isid='00:02:3d:00:00:01'

--adapter=vmhba36

Removing iSCSI Sessions

Youcanuseesxcli iscsi sessiontoremoveiSCSIsessions.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin

“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

RemovesessionsfromthecurrentsoftwareiSCSIordependenthardwareiSCSIconfigurationatthe

adapterlevel.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi session remove --adapter=<iscsi_adapter>

Forexample:

esxcli iscsi session remove --adapter=vmhba36

RemovesessionsfromthecurrentsoftwareiSCSIordependenthardwareiSCSIconfigurationatthetarget

level.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi session remove --name=<iqn> --adapter=<iscsi_adapter>

Forexample:

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi session remove --name=iqn.xxx --adapter=vmhba38

IMPORTANTTheESX/ESXi4.xESXCLIcommandsformanagingiSCSIsessionsarenotsupportedagainst

ESXi5.0hosts.

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RemovesessionsfromthecurrentsoftwareiSCSIordependenthardwareiSCSIconfigurationwithtarget

andsessionID.

esxcli <conn_options> iscsi session remove --name=<iqn.xxxx> --isid=<session id>

--adapter=<iscsi_adapter>

iqn.xxxxisthetargetIQN,whichyoucandeterminebylistingallsessions.session_idisthesession’s

iSCSIID.

Forexample:

esxcli --config /host-config-file iscsi session remove --name=iqn.xxx

--session='00:02:3d:01:00:01' --adapter=vmhba36

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VMwarepartnersandcustomerscanoptimizeperformanceoftheirstoragearraysinconjunctionwith

VMwarevSphereusingVMwarePSA(pluggablestoragearchitecture).Theesxcli storage core

namespacemanagesVMwarePSAandtheesxcli storage nmpnamespacemanagestheVMwareNMP

plug‐in.

ThevSphereStoragedocumentationdiscussesPSAfunctionalityindetailandexplainshowtousethevSphere

ClientorthevSphereWebClienttomanagethePSA,theassociatednativemultipathingplug‐in(NMP)and

third‐partyplug‐ins.

Thischapterusesthefollowingacronyms.

Thischapterincludesthesetopics:

“ManagingNMPwithesxclistoragenmp”onpage 87

“PathClaimingwithesxclistoragecoreclaiming”onpage 93

“ManagingClaimRules”onpage 95

Managing NMP with esxcli storage nmp

TheNMP(NativeMultipathingPlugin)isanextensiblemultipathingmodulethatESXisupportsbydefault.

Youcanuseesxcli storage nmptomanagedevicesassociatedwithNMPandtosetpathpolicies.

TheNMPsupportsallstoragearrayslistedontheVMwarestorageHardwareCompatibilityList(HCL)and

providesapathselectionalgorithmbasedonthearraytype.TheNMPassociatesasetofphysicalpathswith

astoragedevice(LUN).AStorageArrayTypePlugin(SATP)determineshowpathfailoverishandledfora

specificstoragearray.APathSelectionPlugin(PSP)determineswhichphysicalpathisusedtoissueanI/O

requesttoastoragedevice.SATPsandPSPsarepluginswithintheNMPplugin.

Device Management with esxcli storage nmp device

ThedeviceoptionperformsoperationsondevicescurrentlyclaimedbytheVMwareNMPplugin.

Managing Third-Party Storage Arrays 6

Acronym Meaning

PSA PluggableStorageArchitecture.

NMP NativeMultipathingPlugin.GenericVMwaremultipathingmodule.

PSP PathSelectionPlugin.Handlespathselectionforagivendevice.

SATPStorageArrayTypePlugin.Handlespathfailoverforagivenstoragearray.

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esxcli storage nmp device list

ThelistcommandliststhedevicescontrolledbyVMwareNMPandshowstheSATPandPSPinformation

associatedwitheachdevice.ToshowthepathsclaimedbyNMP,runesxcli storage nmp path listto

listinformationforalldevices,orforjustonedevicewiththe--deviceoption.

esxcli storage nmp device set

ThesetcommandsetsthePathSelectionPolicy(PSP)foradevicetooneofthepoliciesloadedonthesystem.

AnydevicecanusethePSPassignedtotheSATPhandlingthatdevice,oryoucanrunesxcli storage nmp

device set --device naa.xxx --psp <psp>tospecificallyoverridethePSPassignedtothedevice.

IfadevicedoesnothaveaspecificPSPset,italwaysusesthePSPassignedtotheSATP.IfthedefaultPSP

fortheSATPchanges,thePSPassignedtothedevicechangesonlyafterrebootorafteradeviceis

reclaimed.Adeviceisreclaimedwhenyouunclaimallpathsforthedeviceandreclaimthepaths.

Ifyouuseesxcli storage nmp device settooverridetheSATPsdefaultPSPwithaspecificPSP,the

PSPchangesimmediatelyandremainstheuser‐definedPSPacrossreboots.AchangeintheSATP’sPSP

hasnoeffect.

Usethe--defaultoptiontoreturnthedevicetousingtheSATP’sPSP.

TosetthepathpolicyforthespecifieddevicetoVMW_PSP_FIXED,runthefollowingcommand:

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp device set --device naa.xxx --psp VMW_PSP_FIXED

Listing Paths with esxcli storage nmp path

UsethepathoptiontolistpathsclaimedbyNMP.Bydefault,thecommanddisplaysinformationaboutall

pathsonalldevices.Youcanfilterinthefollowingways:

Onlyshowpathstoasingedevice(esxcli storage nmp path list --device <device>).

Onlyshowinformationforasinglepath(esxcli storage nmp path list --path=<path>).

Tolistdevices,callesxcli storage nmp device list.

Managing Path Selection Policy Plugins with esxcli storage nmp psp

Useesxcli storage nmp psptomanageVMwarepathselectionpolicypluginsincludedwiththeVMware

NMPpluginandtomanagethird‐partyPSPs.

Options Description

--device <device>

-d <device>

Filterstheoutputofthecommandtoshowinformationaboutasingledevice.Defaultisall

devices.

Options Description

--default

-E

SetsthePSPbacktothedefaultfortheSATPassignedtothisdevice.

--device <device>

-d <device>

DevicetosetthePSPfor.

--psp <PSP>

-P <PSP>

PSPtoassigntothespecifieddevice.Callesxcli storage nmp psp listtodisplayall

currentlyavailablePSPs.SeeTable 4‐1,“SupportedPathPolicies,”onpage 48.

SeevSphereStorageforadiscussionofpathpolicies.

IMPORTANTWhenusedwiththird‐partyPSPs,thesyntaxdependsonthethird‐partyPSPimplementation.

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Retrieving PSP Information

Theesxcli storage nmp pspgeneric deviceconfig getandesxcli storage nmp pspgeneric

pathconfig getcommandretrievesPSPconfigurationparameters.ThetypeofPSPdetermineswhich

commandtouse.

Usenmp pspgeneric deviceconfig getforPSPsthataresettoVMW_PSP_RR,VMW_PSP_FIXEDor

VMW_PSP_MRU.

Usenmp pspgeneric pathconfig getforPSPsthataresettoVMW_PSP_FIXEDorVMW_PSP_MRU.No

pathconfigurationinformationisavailableforVMW_PSP_RR.

ToretrievePSPconfigurationparameters,usetheappropriatecommandforthePSP.

Deviceconfigurationinformation.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp psp generic deviceconfig get --device=<device>

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp psp fixed deviceconfig get --device=<device>

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp psp roundrobin deviceconfig get --device=<device>

Pathconfigurationinformation.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp psp generic pathconfig get --path=<path>

RetrievethePSPconfigurationforthespecifiedpath.

esxcli <conn_options> nmp psp pathconfig generic get --path vmhba4:C1:T2:L23

Theesxcli storage nmp psp listcommandshowsthelistofPathSelectionPluginsonthesystemanda

briefdescriptionofeachplugin.

Setting Configuration Parameters for Third-Party Extensions

The esxcli storage nmp psp generic deviceconfig setandesxcli storage nmp psp generic

pathconfig setcommandssupportfuturethird‐partyPSAexpansion.ThesetconfigcommandsetsPSP

configurationparametersforthosethird‐partyextensions.

Useesxcli storage nmp roundrobin setconfigforotherpathpolicyconfiguration.See“Customizing

RoundRobinSetup”onpage 90.

Youcanrunesxcli storage nmp psp generic deviceconfig set --device=<device>tospecifyPSP

informationforadevice,andesxcli storage nmp psp generic pathconfig set --path=<path>to

specifyPSPinformationforapath.Foreachcommand,use--configtosetthespecifiedconfigurationstring.

Fixed Path Selection Policy Operations

ThefixedoptiongetsandsetsthepreferredpathpolicyforNMPdevicesconfiguredtouseVMW_PSP_FIXED.

Retrieving the Preferred Path

Theesxclistoragenmp fixed deviceconfig getcommandretrievesthepreferredpathonaspecified

devicethatisusingNMPandtheVMW_PSP_FIXEDPSP.

NOTEThepreciseresultsofthesecommandsdependonthethird‐partyextension.Seetheextension

documentationforinformation.

Options Description

--config <config_string>

-c <config_string>

Configurationstringtosetforthedeviceorpathspecifiedby--deviceor--path.See

Table 4‐1,“SupportedPathPolicies,”onpage 48.

--device <device>

-d <device>

Deviceforwhichyouwanttocustomizethepathpolicy.

--path <path>

-p <path>

Pathforwhichyouwanttocustomizethepathpolicy.

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Toreturnthepathconfiguredasthepreferredpathforthespecifieddevice,runthefollowingcommand.

Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18

inplaceof<conn_options>.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp fixed deviceconfig get --device naa.xxx

Setting the Preferred Path

Theesxcli storage nmp fixed deviceconfig setcommandsetsthepreferredpathonaspecifieddevice

thatisusingNMPandtheVMW_PSP_FIXEDpathpolicy.

Tosetthepreferredpathforthespecifieddevicetovmhba3:C0:T5:L3,runthefollowingcommand.Specify

oneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplace

of<conn_options>.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp fixed deviceconfig set --device naa.xxx --path vmhba3:C0:T5:L3

Customizing Round Robin Setup

Theesxcli storage nmp psp roundrobincommandssetsroundrobinpathoptionsonadevicecontrolled

bytheVMW_PSP_RRPSP.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagement

Commands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To specify and customize round robin path policies

1Setthepathpolicytoroundrobin.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp device set --device naa.xxx --psp VMW_PSP_RR

2Specifywhentoswitchpaths.

YoucanchoosethenumberofI/Ooperations,numberofbytes,andsoon.Forexample:

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp psp roundrobin deviceconfig set --type "bytes" -B 12345

--device naa.xxx

Setsthedevicespecifiedby--devicetoswitchtothenextpatheachtime12345byteshavebeensent

alongthecurrentpath.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp psp roundrobin deviceconfig set --type=iops --iops 4200

--device naa.xxx

Setsthedevicespecifiedby--devicetoswitchafter4200I/Ooperationshavebeenperformedonapath.

Retrieving Path Selection Settings

Theesxcli storage nmp psp roundrobin deviceconfig get commandretrievespathselectionsettings

foradevicethatisusingtheroundrobinPSP.Youcanspecifythedevicetoretrievetheinformationfor.

Options Description

--device <device>

-d <device>

Deviceforwhichyouwanttogetthepreferredpath.Thisdevicemustbecontrolledbythe

VMW_PSP_FIXEDPSP.

Options Description

--device <device>

-d <device>

Deviceforwhichyouwanttosetthepreferredpath.Thisdevicemustbecontrolledbythe

VMW_PSP_FIXEDPSP.

Useesxcli storage nmp device --listtolistthepoliciesforalldevices.

--path <path>

-p <path>

Pathtosetasthepreferredpathforthespecifieddevice.

Options Description

-d <device>

--device <device>

Devicetogetroundrobinpropertiesfor.

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Specifying Conditions for Path Changes

Theesxcli storage nmp psp roundrobin deviceconfig setcommandspecifiesunderwhichconditions

adevicethatisusingtheVMW_PSP_RRPSPchangestoadifferentpath.Youcanuse--bytesor--iopsto

specifywhenthepathshouldchange.

Managing SATPs

Theesxcli storage nmp satpcommandsmanageSATPs.Youcanusethesecommandstoperformthe

followingtasks:

Retrieveandsetconfigurationparameters

AddandremoverulesfromthelistofclaimrulesforaspecifiedSATP

SetthedefaultPSPforaspecifiedSATP

ListSATPsthatarecurrentlyloadedintoNMPandtheassociatedclaimrules

ThedefaultSATPforanactive‐activeFCarraywithavendorandmodelnotlistedintheSATPrulesis

VMW_SATP_DEFAULT_AA.

Retrieving Information About SATPs

Theesxcli storage nmp satplistcommandliststheSATPsthatarecurrentlyavailabletotheNMP

systemanddisplaysinformationaboutthoseSATPs.Thiscommandsupportsnooptionsanddisplays

informationabouttheseSATPs.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp satp list

Therule listcommandliststheclaimrulesforSATPs.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp satp rule list

Adding SATP Rules

Claimrulesspecifythatastoragedevicethatusesacertaindriverortransportorhasacertainvendorormodel

shoulduseacertainSATP.Theesxcli storage nmp satp rule addcommandaddsarulethatperforms

suchamappingtothelistofclaimrules.Theoptionsyouspecifydefinetherule.Forexample,thefollowing

commandspecifiesthatifapathhasvendorVMWAREandmodelVirtual,thePSAassignsittothe

VMW_SATP_LOCALSATP.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp satp rule add --satp="VMW_SATP_LOCAL" --vendor="VMWARE"

--model="Virtual" --description="VMware virtual disk”

Options Description

--bytes

-B

NumberofbytestosendalongonepathforthisdevicebeforethePSPswitchestothenextpath.

Youcanusethisoptiononlywhen--typeissettobytes.

--device

-d

Devicetosetroundrobinpropertiesfor.Thisdevicemustbecontrolledbytheroundrobin

(VMW_PSP_RR)PSP.

--iops

-I

NumberofI/OoperationstosendalongonepathforthisdevicebeforethePSPswitchestothe

nextpath.Youcanusethisoptiononlywhen--typeissettoiops.

--type

-t

Typeofroundrobinpathswitchingtoenableforthisdevice.Thefollowingvaluesfortypeare

supported:

bytes:Setthetriggerforpathswitchingbasedonthenumberofbytessentdownapath.

default:Setthetriggerforpathswitchingbacktodefaultvalues.

iops:SetthetriggerforpathswitchingbasedonthenumberofI/Ooperationsonapath.

Anequalsign(=)beforethetypeordoublequotesaroundthetypeareoptional.

--useANO

-U

Ifsetto1,theroundrobinPSPincludespathsintheactive,unoptimizedstateintheroundrobin

set.Ifsetto0,thePSPusesactive,unoptimizedpathsonlyifnoactiveoptimizedpathsare

available.Otherwise,thePSPincludesonlyactiveoptimizedpathsintheroundrobinpathset.

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ThefollowingexamplesillustrateaddingSATPrules.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptions

forvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

AddaSATPrulethatspecifiesthatdiskswithvendorstringVMWAREandmodelstringVirtualshouldbe

addedtoVMW_SATP_LOCAL.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp satp rule add --satp="VMW_SATP_LOCAL" --vendor="VMWARE"

--model="Virtual" --description="VMware virtual disk"

AddaSATPrulethatspecifiesthatdiskswiththedriverstringsomedrivershouldbeaddedto

VMW_SATP_LOCAL.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp satp rule add --satp="VMW_SATP_LOCAL"

--driver="somedriver"

AddarulethatspecifiesthatallstoragedeviceswithvendorstringABCandamodelnamethatstartswith

120shoulduseVMW_SATP_DEFAULT_AA(VMW_SATP_DEFAULT_AAisanexample).

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp satp rule add --satp VMW_SATP_DEFAULT_AA --vendor="ABC"

--model="^120*

Removing SATP Rules

Theesxcli storage nmp satp rule removecommandremovesanexistingSATPrule.Theoptionsyou

specifydefinetheruletoremove.Theoptionslistedfor“A d d i n g SATPRules”onpage 91aresupported.

Option Description

--driver

-D

DriverstringtosetwhenaddingtheSATPclaimrule.

--device

-d

DevicetosetwhenaddingSATPclaimrules.Devicerulesaremutuallyexclusivewith

vendor/modelanddriverrules.

--force

-f

Forceclaimrulestoignorevaliditychecksandinstalltheruleevenifchecksfail.

--model

-M

ModelstringtosetwhenaddingtheSATPclaimrule.Canbethemodelnameorapattern

^mod*,whichmatchesalldevicesthatstartwithmod.Thatis,thepatternsuccessfullymatches

mod1andmodz,butnotmymod1.

Thecommandsupportsthestart/end(^)andwildcard(*)functionalitybutnootherregular

expressions.

--transport

-R

TransportstringtosetwhenaddingtheSATPclaimrule.DescribesthetypeofstorageHBA,

forexample,iscsiorfc.

--vendor

-V

VendorstringtosetwhenaddingtheSATPclaimrule.

--satp

-s

SATPforwhichtheruleisadded.

--claim-option

-c

ClaimoptionstringtosetwhenaddingtheSATPclaimrule.

--description

-e

DescriptionstringtosetwhenaddingtheSATPclaimrule.

--option

-o

OptionstringtosetwhenaddingtheSATPclaimrule.Surroundtheoptionstringindouble

quotes,anduseaspace,notacomma,whenspecifyingmorethanoneoption.

“enable_local enable_ssd”.

--psp

-P

DefaultPSPfortheSATPclaimrule.

--psp-option

-O

PSPoptionsfortheSATPclaimrule.

--type

-t

SettheclaimtypewhenaddingaSATPclaimrule.

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ThefollowingexampleremovestherulethatassignsdeviceswithvendorstringVMWAREandmodelstring

VirtualtoVMW_SATP_LOCAL.

esxcli <conn_options> storage nmp satp rule remove

--satp="VMW_SATP_LOCAL" --vendor="VMWARE" --model="Virtual"

Retrieving and Setting SATP Configuration Parameters

Theesxcli storage nmp satp generic deviceconfig getandesxcli storage nmp satp generic

pathconfig getcommandsretrieveper‐deviceorper‐pathSATPconfigurationparameters.Youcannot

retrievepathsordevicesforallSATPs,youmustretrievetheinformationonepathoronedeviceatatime.

UsethiscommandtoretrieveperdeviceorperpathSATPconfigurationparameters,andtoseewhetheryou

cansetcertainconfigurationparametersforadeviceorpath.

Forexampleesxcli storage nmp satp generic deviceconfig get --device naa.xxxmightreturn

SATP VMW_SATP_LSI does not support device configuration.

esxcli storage nmp satp generic pathconfig get -path vmhba1:C0:T0:L8mightreturnINIT,AVT

OFF,v5.4,DUAL ACTIVE,ESX FAILOVER

Theesxcli storage nmp satp generic deviceconfigsetandesxcli storage nmp satp generic

pathconfig set commandssetconfigurationparametersforSATPsthatareloadedintothesystem,ifthey

supportdeviceconfiguration.Youcansetper‐pathorper‐deviceSATPconfigurationparameters.

TheconfigurationstringsmightvarybySATP.VMwaresupportsafixedsetofconfigurationstringsfora

subsetofitsSATPs.Thestringsmightchangeinfuturereleases.

Runesxcli storage nmp device set --default --device=<device> tosetthePSPforthespecified

devicebacktothedefaultfortheassignedSATPforthisdevice.

Path Claiming with esxcli storage core claiming

Theesxcli storage core claimingnamespaceincludesanumberoftroubleshootingcommands.These

commandsarenotpersistentandareusefulonlytodeveloperswhoarewritingPSApluginsor

troubleshootingasystem.IfI/Oisactiveonthepath,unclaimandreclaimactionsfail.

IMPORTANTThecommandpassestheconfigurationstringtotheSATPassociatedwiththatdeviceorpath.

Options Description

--config

-c

Configurationstringtosetforthepathspecifiedby--pathorthedevicespecifiedby--device.

YoucansettheconfigurationforthefollowingSATPs:

VMW_SATP_ALUA_CX

VMW_SATP_ALUA

VMW_SATP_CX

VMW_SATP_INV

Youcanspecifyoneofthefollowingdeviceconfigurationstrings:

navireg_on–startsautomaticregistrationofthedevicewithNavisphere.

navireg_off–stopstheautomaticregistrationofthedevice.

ipfilter_on–stopsthesendingofthehostnameforNavisphereregistration.Usedifhostis

knownaslocalhost.

ipfilter_off–enablesthesendingofthehostnameduringNavisphereregistration.

--device

-d

DevicetosetSATPconfigurationfor.NotallSATPssupportthesetconfigoptionondevices.

--path

-p

PathtosetSATPconfigurationfor.NotallSATPssupportthesetconfigoptiononpaths.

IMPORTANTThehelpforesxcli storage core claiming includestheautoclaimcommand.Donotuse

thiscommandunlessinstructedtodosobyVMwaresupportstaff.

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Using the Reclaim Troubleshooting Command

Theesxcli storage core claiming reclaimtroubleshootingcommandisintendedforPSAplugin

developersoradministratorswhotroubleshootPSAplugins.Thecommandproceedsasfollows.

Attemptstounclaimallpathstoadevice.

Runstheloadedclaimrulesoneachoftheunclaimedpathstoreclaimthosepaths.

Itisnormalforthiscommandtofailifadeviceisinuse.

Unclaiming Paths or Sets of Paths

Theesxcli storage core claiming unclaimcommandunclaimsapathorsetofpaths,disassociating

thosepathsfromaPSAplugin.Thecommandsfailsifthedeviceisinuse.

Youcanunclaimonlyactivepathswithnooutstandingrequests.YoucannotunclaimtheESXiUSBpartition

ordeviceswithVMFSvolumesonthem.Itisthereforenormalforthiscommandtofail,especiallywhenyou

specifyapluginoradaptertounclaim.

Unclaimingdoesnotpersist.Periodicpathclaimingreclaimsunclaimedpathsunlessclaimrulesare

configuredtomaskapath.SeethevSphereStoragedocumentationfordetails.

IMPORTANTThereclaimcommandunclaimspathsassociatedwithadevice.

YoucannotusethecommandtoreclaimpathscurrentlyassociatedwiththeMASK_PATHpluginbecause

--deviceistheonlyoptionforreclaimandMASK_PATHpathsarenotassociatedwithadevice.

YoucanusethecommandtounclaimpathsforadeviceandhavethosepathsreclaimedbytheMASK_PATH

plugin.

Options Description

--device <device>

-d <device>

Nameofthedeviceonwhichallpathsarereclaimed.

--help Displaysthehelpmessage.

IMPORTANTTheunclaimcommandunclaimspathsassociatedwithadevice.Youcanusethiscommandto

unclaimpathsassociatedwiththeMASK_PATHpluginbutcannotusethe‐‐deviceoptiontounclaimthose

paths.

Options Description

--adapter <adapter>

-A <adapter>

If--typeissettolocation,specifiesthenameoftheHBAforthepathsthatyouwant

tounclaim.Ifyoudonotspecifythisoption,unclaimingrunsonpathsfromall

adapters.

--channel <channel>

-C <channel>

If--typeissettolocation,specifiestheSCSIchannelnumberforthepathsthatyou

wanttounclaim.Ifyoudonotspecifythisoption,unclaimingrunsonpathsfromall

channels.

--claimrule-class <cl>

-c <cl>

Claimruleclasstouseinthisoperation.YoucanspecifyMP(Multipathing),Filter,or

VAAI.Multipathingisthedefault.FilterisusedonlyforVAAI.Specifyclaimrulesfor

bothVAAI_FILTERandVAAIplugintouseit.

--device <device>

-d <device>

If--typeissettodevice,attemptstounclaimallpathstothespecifieddevice.Ifthere

areactiveI/Ooperationsonthespecifieddevice,atleastonepathcannotbeunclaimed.

--driver <driver>

-D <driver>

If--typeisdriver,unclaimsallpathsspecifiedbythisHBAdriver.

--lun <lun_number>

-L <lun_number>

If--typeislocation,specifiestheSCSILUNforthepathstounclaim.Ifyoudonot

specify--lun,unclaimingrunsonpathswithanyLUNnumber.

--model <model>

-m <model>

If--typeisvendor,attemptstounclaimallpathstodeviceswithspecificmodel

information(formultipathingplugins)orunclaimthedeviceitself(forfilterplugins).If

thereareactiveI/Ooperationsonthisdevice,atleastonepathfailstounclaim.

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Thefollowingtroubleshootingcommandtriestounclaimallpathsonvmhba1.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core claiming unclaim --type location -A vmhba1

Runvicfg-mpath <conn_options> -ltoverifythatthecommandsucceeded.

Ifapathisthelastpathtoadevicethatwasinuse,oraifapathwasveryrecentlyinuse,theunclaimoperation

mightfail.Anerrorisloggedthatnotallpathscouldbeunclaimed.Stopprocessesthatmightusethedevice

andwait15secondstoletthedevicebequiesced.Retrythecommand.

Managing Claim Rules

ThePSAusesclaimrulestodeterminewhichmultipathingmoduleshouldclaimthepathstoaparticular

deviceandtomanagethedevice.esxclistorage core claimrulemanagesclaimrules.

ClaimrulemodificationcommandsdonotoperateontheVMkerneldirectly.Insteadtheyoperateonthe

configurationfilebyaddingandremovingrules.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsfor

vCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To change the current claim rules in the VMkernel

1Runoneormoreoftheesxcli storage coreclaimrulemodificationcommands(add,remove,or

move).

2Runesxcli storage core claimrule loadtoreplacethecurrentrulesintheVMkernelwiththe

modifiedrulesfromtheconfigurationfile.

Youcanalsorunesxcli storage core plugin listtolistallloadedplugins.

Adding Claim Rules

Theesxcli storage core claimrule addcommandaddsaclaimruletothesetofclaimrulesonthe

system.YoucanusethiscommandtoaddnewclaimrulesortomaskapathusingtheMASK_PATHclaimrule.

Youmustloadtherulesafteryouaddthem.

--path <path>

-p <path>

If--typeispath,unclaimsapathspecifiedbyitspathUIDorruntimename.

--plugin <plugin>

-P

If--typeisplugin,unclaimsallpathsforaspecifiedmultipathplugin.

<plugin>canbeanyvalidPSApluginonthesystem.BydefaultonlyNMPand

MASK_PATHareavailable,butadditionalpluginsmightbeinstalled.

--target <target>

-T <target>

If--typeislocation,unclaimsthepathswiththeSCSItargetnumberspecifiedby

target.Ifyoudonotspecify--target,unclaimingrunsonpathsfromalltargets.

--type <type>

-t <type>

Typeofunclaimoperationtoperform.Validvaluesarelocation,path,driver,

device,plugin,andvendor.

--vendor <vendor>

-v <vendor>

If--typeisvendor,attemptstounclaimallpathstodeviceswithspecificvendorinfo

formultipathingpluginsorunclaimthedeviceitselfforfilterplugins.Ifthereareany

activeI/Ooperationsonthisdevice,atleastonepathfailstounclaim

Options Description

--adapter <adapter>

-A <adapter>

Adapterofthepathstouse.Validonlyif--typeislocation.

--autoassign

-u

Addsaclaimrulebasedonitscharacteristics.Therulenumberisnotrequired.

--channel <channel>

-C <channel>

Channelofthepathstouse.Validonlyif--typeislocation.

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Claimrulesarenumberedasfollows.

Rules0–100arereservedforinternalusebyVMware.

Rules101–65435areavailableforgeneraluse.Anythirdpartymultipathingpluginsinstalledonyour

systemuseclaimrulesinthisrange.Bydefault,thePSAclaimrule101masksDellarraypseudodevices.

Donotremovethisrule,unlessyouwanttounmaskthesedevices.

--claimrule-class <cl>

-c <cl>

Claimruleclasstouseinthisoperation.YoucanspecifyMP(default),Filter,orVAAI.

Toconfigurehardwareaccelerationforanewarray,addtwoclaimrules,oneforthe

VAAIfilterandanotherfortheVAAIplugin.SeevSphereStoragefordetailed

instructions.

--driver <driver>

-D <driver>

DriverfortheHBAofthepathstouse.Validonlyif--typeisdriver.

--force

-f

Forceclaimrulestoignorevaliditychecksandinstalltherule.

--lun <lun_number>

-L <lun_number>

LUNofthepathstouse.Validonlyif--typeislocation.

--model <model>

-M <model>

Modelofthepathstouse.Validonlyif--typeisvendor.

ValidvaluesarevaluesoftheModelstringfromtheSCSIinquirystring.Run

vicfg-scsidevs <conn_options> -loneachdevicetoseemodelstringvalues.

--plugin

-P

PSAplugintouse.Currently,thevaluesareNMPorMASK_PATH,butthirdpartiescan

shiptheirownPSApluginsinthefuture.

MASK_PATHreferstothepluginMASK_PATH_PLUGIN.Thecommandaddsclaimrules

forthispluginiftheuserwantstomaskthepath.

ESX3.5includestheMaskLUNsadvancedconfigurationoption.Thisoptionisnot

availableinESX/ESXi4.xandESXi5.0.Ithasbeenreplacedbythe

MASK_PATH_PLUGIN.YoucanaddaclaimrulethatcausestheMASK_PATH_PLUGINto

claimthepathtomaskapathorLUNfromthehost.SeethevSphereStorage

documentationfordetails.

--rule <rule_ID>

-r <rule_ID>

RuleIDtouse.Runesxcli storage core claimrule listtoseetheruleID.The

ruleIDindicatestheorderinwhichtheclaimruleistobeevaluated.User‐defined

claimrulesareevaluatedinnumericorderstartingwith101.

--target <target>

-T <target>

Targetofthepathstouse.Validonlyif--typeislocation.

--transport <transport>

-R <transport>

Transportofthepathstouse.Validonlyif--typeistransport.Thefollowingvalues

aresupported:

block–blockstorage

fc–FibreChannel

iscsivendor—iSCSI

iscsi–notcurrentlyused

ide—IDEstorage

sas—SASstorage

sata—SATAstorage

usb–USBstorage

parallel–parallel

unknown

--type <type>

-t <type>

Typeofmatchingtousefortheoperation.Validvaluesarevendor,location,driver,

andtransport.

--vendor

-V

Vendorofthepathstouse.Validonlyif--typeisvendor.

ValidvaluesarevaluesofthevendorstringfromtheSCSIinquirystring.Run

vicfg-scsidevs <conn_options> -loneachdevicetoseevendorstringvalues.

--wwnn World‐WideNodeNumberforthetargettouseinthisoperation.

--wwpn World‐WidePortNumberforthetargettouseinthisoperation.

Options Description

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Chapter 6 Managing Third-Party Storage Arrays

Rules65436–65535arereservedforinternalusebyVMware.

Whenclaimingapath,thePSArunsthroughtherulesstartingfromthelowestnumberanddeterminesisa

pathmatchestheclaimrulespecification.IfthePSAfindsamatch,itgivesthepathtothecorresponding

plugin.Thisisworthnoticingbecauseagivenpathmightmatchseveralclaimrules.

Thefollowingexamplesillustrateaddingclaimrules.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptions

forvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

Addrule321,whichclaimsthepathonadaptervmhba0,channel0,target0,LUN0fortheNMPplugin.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core claimrule add -r 321 -t location -A vmhba0 -C 0 -T 0 -L 0

-P NMP

Addrule429,whichclaimsallpathsprovidedbyanadapterwiththemptscsidriverfortheMASK_PATH

plugin.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core claimrule add -r 429 -t driver -D mptscsi -P MASK_PATH

Addrule914,whichclaimsallpathswithvendorstringVMWAREandmodelstringVirtualfortheNMP

plugin.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core claimrule add -r 914 -t vendor -V VMWARE -M Virtual -P NMP

Addrule1015,whichclaimsallpathsprovidedbyFCadaptersfortheNMPplugin.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core claimrule add -r 1015 -t transport -R fc -P NMP

Converting ESX 3.5 LUN Masks to Claim Rule Format

Theesxcli storage core claimrule convertcommandconvertsLUNmasksinESX3.5format

(/adv/Disk/MaskLUNs)toclaimruleformat.ThecommandwritestheconvertedlistanderasestheoldLUN

maskdata.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”

onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To convert ESX 3.5 format LUN masks to claim rule format

1Run

esxcli storage core claimrule convertwithoutoptions.

ThatcallreturnsNo /adv/Disk/MaskLUNs config entry to convertordisplaysthelistofclaimrules

thatwouldresultfromtheconversion.Forexample:

2Runesxcli storage core claimrule convert --committoactuallycommitthechange.

WhenyouconvertLUNmaskingtotheclaimruleformatafteranupgradefromESX/ESXi3.5toESX/ESXi4.x,

thiscommandconvertsthe/adv/Disk/MaskLUNsadvancedconfigurationentryintheesx.conffiletoclaim

ruleswithMASK_PATHastheplug‐in.

Rule Plugin HbaName Controller Target LUN

120 MASK_PATH vmhba11 0 0 11

121 MASK_PATH vmhba11 0 0 10

122 MASK_PATH vmhba4 0 2 1

IMPORTANTThisconversiondoesnotworkforallinputMaskLUNvariations.Forexample,roleconversion

forsoftwareiSCSILUNsisnotsupported.

Inspectthelistofgeneratedclaimrulescarefullybeforeyoucommitthembyusing--commit.

Table 6-1. esxcli storage core claimrule convert Options

Options Description

--commit

-C

ForcesLUNmaskconfigurationchangestobesaved.Ifyoucallthecommandwithoutthis

parameter,changesarenotsaved,andyoucanfirstinspectthegeneratedclaimrules.

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98 VMware, Inc.

Removing Claim Rules

Theesxcli storage core claimrule removecommandremovesaclaimrulefromthesetofclaimrules

onthesystem.

Thefollowingexampleremovesrule1015.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core claimrule remove -r 1015

Listing Claim Rules

Thelistcommandlistsallclaimrulesonthesystem.Youcanspecifytheclaimruleclassasanargument.

Youcanrunthecommandasfollows.Theequalsignisoptional,sobothformsofthecommandhavethesame

result.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”on

page 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core claimrule list -c Filter

esxcli <conn_options> storage core claimrule list --claimrule-class=Filter

Loading Claim Rules

Theesxcli storage core claimrule loadcommandloadsclaimrulesfromtheesx.confconfiguration

fileintotheVMkernel.Developersandexperiencedstorageadministratorsmightusethiscommandforboot

timeconfiguration.

Thiscommandhasnooptions;italwaysloadsallclaimrulesfromesx.conf.

Moving Claim Rules

Theesxcli storage core claimrule movecommandmovesaclaimrulefromoneruleIDtoanother.

Thefollowingexamplerenamesrule1016torule1015andremovesrule1016.Specifyoneoftheoptionslisted

in“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core claimrule move -r 1015 -n 1016

IMPORTANTBydefault,thePSAclaimrule101masksDellarraypseudodevices.Donotremovethisrule,

unlessyouwanttounmaskthesedevices.

Option Description

--rule <rule_ID>

-r <rule_ID>

IDoftheruletoberemoved.Runesxcli storage core claimrule listtoseetheruleID.

Option Description

--claimrule-class <cl>

-c <cl>

Claimruleclasstouseinthisoperation.YoucanspecifyMP(Multipathing),Filter,or

VAAI.Multipathingisthedefault.FilterisusedonlyforVAAI.Specifyclaimrulesfor

bothVAAI_FILTERandVAAIplugintouseit.SeevSphereStorageforinformationabout

VAAI.

Options Description

--claimrule-class <cl>

-c <cl>

Claimruleclasstouseinthisoperation.

--new-rule <rule_ID>

-n <rule_ID>

NewruleIDyouwanttogivetotherulespecifiedbythe--ruleoption.

--rule <rule_ID>

-r <rule_ID>

IDoftheruletoberemoved.Runesxcli storage core claimrule listtodisplay

theruleID.

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Chapter 6 Managing Third-Party Storage Arrays

Running Path Claiming Rules

Theesxcli storage core claimrule runcommandrunspathclaimingrules.Runthiscommandapply

claimrulesthatareloaded.Ifyoudonotcallrun,thesystemchecksforclaimruleupdateseveryfiveminutes

andappliesthem.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagement

Commands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To load and apply claim rules

1Modifyrulesandloadthem.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core claimrule load

2Quiescethedevicesthatusepathsforwhichyouwanttochangetheruleandunclaimthosepaths.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core claiming unclaim --device=<device>

3Runpathclaimingrules.

esxcli <conn_options> storage core claimrule run

Thiscommandisalsousedfortroubleshootingandboottimeconfiguration.

Options Description

--adapter <adapter>

-A <adapter>

If--typeislocation,nameoftheHBAforthepathstoruntheclaimruleson.To

runclaimrulesonpathsfromalladapters,omitthisoption.

--channel <channel>

-C <channel>

If--typeislocation,valueoftheSCSIchannelnumberforthepathstorunthe

claimruleson.Torunclaimrulesonpathswithanychannelnumber,omitthis

option.

--claimrule-class

-c

Claimruleclasstouseinthisoperation.

--lun <lun>

-L <lun>

If--typeislocation,valueoftheSCSILUNforthepathstorunclaimruleson.To

runclaimrulesonpathswithanyLUN,omitthisoption.

--path <path_UID>

-p <path_UID>

If--typeispath,thisoptionindicatestheuniquepathidentifier(UID)orthe

runtimenameofapathtorunclaimruleson.

--target <target>

-T <target>

If--typeislocation,valueoftheSCSItargetnumberforthepathstorunclaim

ruleson.Torunclaimrulesonpathswithanytargetnumber,omitthisoption

--type

<location|path|all>

-t <location|path|all>

Typeofclaimtoperform.Bydefault,usesall,whichmeansclaimrulesrunwithout

restrictiontospecificpathsorSCSIaddresses.Validvaluesarelocation,path,and

all.

--wait

-w

Youcanusethisoptiononlyifyoualsouse--typeall.

Iftheoptionisincluded,theclaimwaitsforpathstosettlebeforerunningtheclaim

operation.Inthatcase,thesystemdoesnotstarttheclaimingprocessuntilitislikely

thatallpathsonthesystemhaveappearedbeforestartingtheclaimprocess.

Aftertheclaimingprocesshasstarted,thecommanddoesnotreturnuntildevice

registrationhascompleted.

Ifyouaddorremovepathsduringtheclaimingorthediscoveryprocess,thisoption

mightnotworkcorrectly.

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AnESXisystemgrantsaccesstoitsresourceswhenaknownuserwithappropriatepermissionslogsontothe

systemwithapasswordthatmatchestheonestoredforthatuser.YoucanusethevSphereClientorthe

vSphereSDKforallusermanagementtasks.YoucannotcreateESXiuserswiththevSphereWebClient.

Youcanusethevicfg-usercommandtocreate,modify,delete,andlistlocaldirectaccessusersonanESXi

host.YoucannotrunthiscommandagainstavCenterServersystem.

Thischapterincludesthefollowingtopics:

“UsersinthevSphereEnvironment”onpage 101

“vicfg‐userCommandSyntax”onpage 101

“ManagingUserswithvicfg‐user”onpage 102

“AssigningPermissionswithESXCLI”onpage 104

Users in the vSphere Environment

Users,androlescontrolwhohasaccesstovSpherecomponentsandwhatactionseachusercanperform.User

managementisdiscussedindetailinthevSphereSecuritydocumentation.

vCenterServerandESXisystemsauthenticateauserwithacombinationofusername,password,and

permissions.Serversandhostsmaintainlistsofauthorizedusersandthepermissionsassignedtoeachuser.

Privilegesdefinebasicindividualrightsthatarerequiredtoperformactionsandretrieveinformation.ESXi

andvCenterServerusesetsofprivileges,orroles,tocontrolwhichuserscanaccessparticularvSphereobjects.

ESXiandvCenterServerprovideasetofpre‐establishedroles.

TheprivilegesandrolesassignedonanESXihostareseparatefromtheprivilegesandrolesassignedona

vCenterServersystem.WhenyoumanageahostbyusingvCenterServersystem,onlytheprivilegesandroles

assignedthroughthevCenterServersystemareavailable.Ifyouconnectdirectlytothehostbyusingthe

vSphereClient,onlytheprivilegesandrolesassigneddirectlyonthehostareavailable.YoucannotcreateESXi

userswiththevSphereWebClient.

vicfg-user Command Syntax

Thevicfg-usersyntaxdiffersfromothervCLIcommands.Youspecifyoperationsasfollows:

vicfg-user <conn_options> -e <user> -o <add|modify|delete|list>

Ifyoucreateauserwithoutspecifyingtherole(--role),theuserhasnopermissions.Youcannotchangethe

user’srole,youcanonlychangetheuser’spermission.

Managing Users 7

IMPORTANTStartingwithvSphere5.1,youcannolongermanagegroupswithvicfg-user.

IMPORTANTYoucannotusevicfg-usertocreateroles.Youcanmanagesystem‐definedroles.

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Options

Thevicfg-usercommand‐specificoptionsmanipulateusers.Youmustalsospecifyconnectionoptions.See

“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18.

Managing Users with vicfg-user

AuserisanindividualauthorizedtologintoanESXiorvCenterServersystem.

vSpheredoesnotexplicitlyrestrictuserswiththesameauthenticationcredentialsfromaccessingandtaking

actionwithinthevSphereenvironmentsimultaneously.

YoumanageusersdefinedonthevCenterServersystemandusersdefinedonindividualhostsseparately.

ManageusersdefinedonESXiwiththevSphereClient,thevSphereWebServicesSDK,orvicfg-user.

ManagevCenterServeruserswiththevSphereClient,thevSphereWebClient,orthevSphereWeb

ServicesSDK.

EveniftheuserlistsofahostandavCenterServersystemappeartohavecommonusers(forinstance,auser

calleddevuser),theseusersareseparateuserswiththesamename.TheattributesofdevuserinvCenter

Server,includingpermissions,passwords,andsoforth,areseparatefromtheattributesofdevuserontheESXi

host.IfyoulogintovCenterServerasdevuser,youmighthavepermissiontoviewanddeletefilesfroma

datastore.IfyoulogintoanESXihostasdevuser,youmightnothavethesepermissions.

UsersauthorizedtoworkdirectlyonanESXihostareaddedtotheinternaluserlistwhenESXiisinstalledor

canbeaddedbyasystemadministratorafterinstallation.Youcanusevicfg-usertoaddusers,removeusers,

changepasswords,andconfigurepermissions.

IMPORTANTIfyoucreateauserwiththevSphereClient,youcannotmakechangestothatuserwiththe

vicfg-usercommand.

Option Description

--adduser <user_list>

-u <user_list>

Addsthespecifiedusers.Takesacomma‐separatedlistofusers.

--entity <user>

-e <user>

Entitytoperformtheoperationon.StartingwithvSphere5.1,entityis

alwaysuser.

--login <login_id>

-l <login_id>

--newpassword <p_wd>

-p <p_wd>

Passwordforthetargetuser.

--newuserid <UUID>

-i <UUID>

NewUUIDforthetargetuser.

--newusername <name>

-n <name>

Newusernameforthetargetuser.

--operation

-o

Operationtoperform.Specifyadd,modify,delete,orlist.

--role <admin|read-only|no-access>

-r <admin|read-only|no-access>

Roleforthetargetuser.Specifyoneofadmin,read-only,orno-access.

Usersthatyoucreatewithoutassigningpermissionshavenopermissions.

--shell

-s

Grantshellaccesstothetargetuser.Defaultisnoshellaccess.Usethis

commandtochangethedefaultortorevokeshellaccessrightsafterthey

havebeengranted.

Validvaluesareyesandno.

ThisoptionisnotsupportedagainstvSphere5.0systems.Theoptionis

supportedonlyagainstESX.TheoptionisnotsupportedagainstESXi.

IMPORTANTYoucannotmodifyuserscreatedwiththevSphereClientwiththevicfg-usercommand.

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Chapter 7 Managing Users

EachESXihosthasseveraldefaultusers:

Therootuserhasfulladministrativeprivileges.Administratorsusethisloginanditsassociatedpassword

tologintoahostthroughthevSphereClient.Rootuserscancontrolallaspectsofthehostthattheyare

loggedonto.Rootuserscanmanipulatepermissions,creatingusers(onESXihostsonly),workingwith

events,andsoon.

ThevpxuseruserisavCenterServerentitywithrootrightsontheESXihost,allowingittomanage

activitiesforthathost.ThesystemcreatesvpxuserwhenanESXihostisattachedtovCenterServer.

vpxuserisnotpresentontheESXihostunlessthehostisbeingmanagedthroughvCenterServer.

Otherusersmightbedefinedbythesystem,dependingonthenetworkingsetupandotherfactors.

Thefollowingexamplescenarioillustratessomeofthetasksthatyoucanperform.Specifyoneoftheoptions

listedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof

<conn_options>.

To create, modify, and delete users

1Listtheexistingusers.

vicfg-user <conn_options> -e user -o list

Thelistdisplaysallusersthatarepredefinedbythesystemandallusersthatwereaddedlater.

2Addanewuser,specifyingaloginIDandpassword.

vicfg-user <conn_options> -e user -o add -l user27 -p 27_password

Thecommandcreatestheuser.Bydefault,thecommandautogeneratesaUIDfortheuser.

3ListtheusersagaintoverifythatthenewuserwasaddedandaUIDwasgenerated.

vicfg-user <conn_options> -e user -o list

USERS

-------------------

Principal -: root

Full Name -: root

UID -: 0

Shell Access -> 1

-------------------

...

--------------------

Principal -: user27

Full Name -:

UID -: 501

Shell Access -> 0

4Modifythepasswordforuseruser27.

vicfg-user <conn_options> -e user -o modify -l user27 -p 27_password2

ThesystemmightreturnUpdated user user27 successfully.

5Assignread‐onlyprivilegestotheuser(whocurrentlyhasnoaccess).

vicfg-user <conn_options> -e user -o modify -l user27 --role read-only

Thesystempromptswhetheryouwanttochangethepassword,whichmightbeadvisableiftheuserdoes

notcurrentlyhaveapassword.Answeryorn.Thesystemthenupdatestheuser.

Updated user user27 successfully.

Assigned the role read-only

CAUTIONSeetheAuthenticationandUserManagementchapterofvSphereSecurityforinformationaboutroot

usersbeforeyoumakeanychangestothedefaultusers.Mistakesregardingrootuserscanhaveseriousaccess

consequences.

IMPORTANTThecommandlistsamaximumof100users.

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6RemovetheuserwithloginIDuser27.

vicfg-user <conn_options> -e user -o delete -l user27

Thesystemremovestheuserandprintsamessage.

Removed the user user27 successfully.

Assigning Permissions with ESXCLI

StartingwithvSphere6.0,asetofESXCLIcommandsallowsyouto:

Givepermissionstolocalusersandgroupsbyassigningthemoneofthepredefinedroles.

GivepermissionstoActiveDirectoryuserandgroupsifyourESXihosthasbeenjoinedtoanActive

Directorydomainbyassigningthemoneofthepredefinedroles.

Youcanlist,remove,andsetpermissionsforauserorgroup,asshowninthefollowingexample.

1Listpermissions.

esxcli system permission list

Thesystemdisplayspermissioninformation.Thesecondcolumnindicateswhethertheinformationisfor

auserorgroup.

Principal Is Group Role

-----------------------------------

ABCDEFGH\esx^admins true Admin

dcui false Admin

root false Admin

vpxuser false Admin

test1 false ReadOnly

2Setpermissionsforauserorgroup.SpecifytheIDoftheuserorgroup,andsetthe--groupoptionto

truetoindicateagroup.Specifyoneofthreeroles,Admin,ReadOnlyandNoAccess.

excli system permission set --id test1 -r ReadOnly

3Removepermissionsforauserorgroup.

esxcli permission remove --id test1

Youcanmanageaccountswiththefollowingcommands:

esxcli system account add

esxcli system account set

esxcli system account list

esxcli system account remove

IMPORTANTWhenyoumanagelocalusersonyourESXihost,youarenotaffectingthevCenterusers.

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YoucanmanagevirtualmachineswiththevSphereWebClientorthevmware-cmdvCLIcommand.Using

vmware-cmdyoucanregisterandunregistervirtualmachines,retrievevirtualmachineinformation,manage

snapshots,turnthevirtualmachineonandoff,addandremovevirtualdevices,andpromptforuserinput.

Thechapterincludesthesetopics:

“vmware‐cmdOverview”onpage 105

“ListingandRegisteringVirtualMachines”onpage 106

“RetrievingVirtualMachineAttributes”onpage 107

“ManagingVirtualMachineSnapshotswithvmware‐cmd”onpage 108

“PoweringVirtualMachinesOnandOff”onpage 109

“ConnectingandDisconnectingVirtualDevices”onpage 110

“WorkingwiththeAnswerVMAPI”onpage 111

“ForciblyStoppingVirtualMachineswithEXCLI”onpage 111

SomevirtualmachinemanagementutilityapplicationsareincludedinthevSphereSDKforPerl.

ThevSpherePowerCLIcmdlets,whichyoucaninstallforusewithMicrosoftPowerShell,managemany

aspectsofvirtualmachines.

vmware-cmd Overview

vmware-cmdwasincludedinearlierversionoftheESXServiceConsole.Avmware-cmdcommandhasbeen

availableinthevCLIpackagesinceESXiversion3.0.

Olderversionsofvmware-cmdsupportasetofconnectionoptionsandgeneraloptionsthatdifferfromthe

optionsinothervCLIcommands.Thevmware-cmdvCLIcommandsupportstheseoptions.ThevCLI

commandalsosupportsthestandardvCLI--server,--username,--password,and--vihostoptions.

vmware-cmddoesnotsupportotherconnectionoptions.

Managing Virtual Machines 8

IMPORTANTvmware-cmdisnotavailableintheESXiShell.Runthevmware-cmdvCLIcommandinstead.

IMPORTANTvmware-cmdisalegacytoolandsupportstheusageofVMFSpathsforvirtualmachine

configurationfiles.Asarule,usedatastorepathstoaccessvirtualmachineconfigurationfiles.

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Connection Options for vmware-cmd

Thevmware-cmdvCLIcommandsupportsonlythefollowingconnectionoptions.OthervCLIconnection

optionsarenotsupported,forexample,youcannotusevariablesbecausethecorrespondingoptionisnot

supported.

General Options for vmware-cmd

Thevmware-cmdvCLIcommandsupportsthefollowinggeneraloptions.

Format for Specifying Virtual Machines

Whenyourunvmware-cmd,thevirtualmachinepathisusuallyrequired.Youcanspecifythevirtualmachine

usingoneofthefollowingformats:

Datastoreprefixstyle:'[ds_name] relative_path',forexample:

'[myStorage1] testvms/VM1/VM1.vmx'(Linux)

"[myStorage1] testvms/VM1/VM1.vmx" (Windows)

UUID‐basedpath: folder/subfolder/file,forexample:

'/vmfs/volumes/mystorage/testvms/VM1/VM1.vmx'(Linux)

"/vmfs/volumes/mystorage/testvms/VM1/VM1.vmx"(Windows)

Listing and Registering Virtual Machines

RegisteringorunregisteringavirtualmachinemeansaddingthevirtualmachinetothevCenterServerorESXi

inventoryorremovingthevirtualmachine.

ThefollowingexamplescenariolistsallregisteredvirtualmachinesonavCenterServer,unregistersavirtual

machine,andreregistersthevirtualmachine.

Option Description

--server <host>

-H <host>

TargetESXiorvCenterServersystem.

--vihost <target>

-h <target>

Whenyourunvmware-cmdwiththe-HoptionpointingtoavCenterServersystem,use

--vihosttospecifytheESXihosttorunthecommandagainst.

-O <port> Alternativeconnectionport.Thedefaultportnumberis902.

‐‐username <username>

-U <username>

Userwhoisauthorizedtologintothehostspecifiedby--serveror--vihost.

‐‐password <password>

-P <password>

Passwordfortheuserspecifiedby-U.

-Q <protocol> Protocoltouse,eitherhttporhttps.Defaultishttps.

Option Description

--help Printsahelpmessagethatliststheoptionsforthiscommand.

-q Runsinquietmodewithminimaloutput.Theoutputdoesnotdisplaythespecifiedoperationand

arguments.

-v Runsinverbosemode.

IMPORTANTIfyouregisteravirtualmachinewithavCenterServersystem,andthenremoveitfromtheESXi

host,anorphanedvirtualmachineresults.Callvmware-cmd -s unregisterwiththevCenterServersystem

asthetargettoresolvetheissue.

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Chapter 8 Managing Virtual Machines

To list, unregister, and register virtual machines

1Runvmware-cmd -ltolistallregisteredvirtualmachinesonaserver.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_server> -U <login_user> -P <login_password> --vihost <esx_host> -l

ThecommandliststheVMXfileforeachvirtualmachine.

/vmfs/volumes/<storage>/winxpPro-sp2/winxpPro-sp2.vmx

/vmfs/volumes/<storage>/RHEL-lsi/RHEL-lsi.vmx

/vmfs/volumes/<storage>/VIMA0809/VIMA0809.vmx

.....

2Runvmware-cmd -s unregistertoremoveavirtualmachinefromtheinventory.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_server> -U <login_user> -P <login_password> --vihost <esx_host>

-s unregister /vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx

Thesystemreturns0toindicatesuccess,1toindicatefailure.

3Runvmware-cmd -lagaintoverifythatthevirtualmachinewasremovedfromtheinventory.

4Runvmware-cmd -s registertoaddthevirtualmachinebacktotheinventory.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_server> -U <login_user -P <login_password --vihost <esx_host> -s register

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx

Thesystemreturns0toindicatesuccess,1toindicatefailure.

Retrieving Virtual Machine Attributes

vmware-cmdincludesoptionsforretrievinginformationaboutavirtualmachine.Eachoptionrequiresthat

youspecifythevirtualmachinepath(see“FormatforSpecifyingVirtualMachines”onpage 106).Youmust

alsospecifyconnectionoptions,whichdifferfromothervCLIcommands(see“ConnectionOptionsfor

vmware‐cmd”onpage 106).

Youcanusevmware-cmdoptionstoretrieveanumberofdifferentvirtualmachineattributes.Foracomplete

listofoptions,seethevSphereCLIReference.

Theguestinfooptionallowsyoutoretrieveinformationabouttheguestoperatingsystem.Forexample,

youcanretrievethenumberofremoteconsolesallowedbyavirtualmachinebyusingguestinforwith

theRemoteDisplay.maxConnectionsvariable.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx getguestinfo RemoteDisplay.maxConnections

TheHardeningGuideincludesadditionalinformationaboutvariablesyoucanuseinconjunctionwith

guestinfo.Acompletelistisnotavailable.

Thegetuptimeoptionretrievestheuptimeoftheguestoperatingsystemonthevirtualmachine,in

seconds.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx getuptime

getuptime() = 17921

Thegetproductinfo productoptionliststheVMwareproductthatthevirtualmachinerunson.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx getproductinfo product

NOTEWhenyourunagainstavCenterServersystem,youmustspecifythedatacenterandtheresource

pooltoregisterthevirtualmachinein.Thedefaultdatacenterisha-datacenterandthedefaultresource

poolisResources.

WhenyourunagainstanESXihost,youusuallydonotspecifytheresourcepoolanddatacenter.

However,iftwovirtualmachineswiththesamenameexistintworesourcepools,youmustspecifythe

resourcepool.

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Thereturnvalueisesx(VMwareESX),embeddedESX(VMwareESXi),orunknown.

Thegetproductinfo platformoptionliststheplatformthatthevirtualmachinerunson.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx getproductinfo platform

Thereturnvalueiswin32-x86(x86‐basedWindowssystem),linux-x86(x86‐basedLinuxsystem),or

vmnix-x86(x86‐basedESXimicrokernel).

Thegetproductinfo build,getproductinfo majorversion,orgetproductinfo minorversion

optionsretrieveversioninformation.

Thegetstateoptionretrievestheexecutionstateofthevirtualmachine,whichcanbeon,off,

suspended,orunknown.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx getstate

getstate() = on

ThegettoolslastactiveoptionindicateswhetherVMwareToolsisinstalledandwhethertheguest

operatingsystemisrespondingnormally.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx gettoolslastactive

Thecommandreturnsanintegerindicatinghowmuchtimehaspassed,inseconds,sincethelast

heartbeatwasdetectedfromtheVMwareToolsservice.Thisvalueisinitializedtozerowhenavirtual

machinepowerson.Thevaluestaysatzerountilthefirstheartbeatisdetected.Afterthefirstheartbeat,

thevalueisalwaysgreaterthanzerountilthevirtualmachineispowercycledagain.Thecommand

returnsoneofthefollowingvalues:

0–VMwareToolsisnotinstalledornotrunning.

1–Guestoperatingsystemisrespondingnormally.

5–Intermittentheartbeat.Theremightbeaproblemwiththeguestoperatingsystem.

100–Noheartbeat.Guestoperatingsystemmighthavestoppedresponding.

Managing Virtual Machine Snapshots with vmware-cmd

Asnapshotcapturestheentirestateofthevirtualmachineatthetimeyoutakethesnapshot.

Virtualmachinestateincludesthefollowingaspectsofthevirtualmachine.

Memorystate.Contentsofthevirtualmachine’smemory.

Settingsstate.Virtualmachinesettings.

Diskstate.Stateofallthevirtualmachine’svirtualdisks.

Whenyoureverttoasnapshot,youreturntheseitemstothestatetheywereinatthetimethatyoutookthe

snapshot.Ifyouwantthevirtualmachinetoberunningortobeshutdownwhenyoustartit,makesurethat

itisinthatstatewhenyoutakethesnapshot.

Youcanusesnapshotsasrestorationpointswhenyouinstallupdatepackages,orduringabranchingprocess,

suchasinstallingdifferentversionsofaprogram.Takingsnapshotsensuresthateachinstallationbeginsfrom

anidenticalbaseline.ThevSphereVirtualMachineAdministrationdocumentationdiscussessnapshotsindetail.

NOTEYouusuallyusethevmware-cmd guestinfooptiononlywhenVMwareSupportinstructsyoutodo

so.Thecommandisthereforenotdiscussedinthisdocument.

IMPORTANTUsethevSphereWebClienttoreverttoanamedsnapshot.vmware-cmdonlysupportsreverting

tothecurrentsnapshot.

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Chapter 8 Managing Virtual Machines

Taking Virtual Machine Snapshots

Youcantakeasnapshotwhileavirtualmachineisrunning,shutdown,orsuspended.Ifyouareintheprocess

ofsuspendingavirtualmachine,waituntilthesuspendoperationhasfinishedbeforetakingasnapshot.

Ifavirtualmachinehasmultipledisksindifferentdiskmodes,youmustshutdownthevirtualmachinebefore

takingasnapshot.Forexample,ifyouhaveaspecial‐purposeconfigurationthatrequiresyoutousean

independentdisk,youmustshutdownthevirtualmachinebeforetakingasnapshot.

To take a snapshot

1 (Optional)Ifthevirtualmachinehasmultipledisksindifferentdiskmodes,shutdownthevirtual

machine.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx stop soft

2 (Optional)Checkthattheshutdownoperationhasbeencompleted.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx getstate

3Runvmware-cmdwiththecreatesnapshotoption.

Youmustspecifythedescription,quiesceflag(0or1)andmemoryflag(0or1).

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx createsnapshot VM1Aug09

‘test snapshot August 09’ 0 0

4Checkthatthevirtualmachinehasasnapshotbyusingthehassnapshotoption.

Thecallreturns1ifthevirtualmachinehasasnapshotandreturns0otherwise.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx hassnapshot

hassnapshot () = 1

Reverting and Removing Snapshots

Youcanusevmware-cmdtoreverttothecurrentsnapshotortoremoveasnapshot.

Runvmware-cmdwiththerevertsnapshotoptiontoreverttothecurrentsnapshot.Ifnosnapshotexists,the

commanddoesnothingandleavesthevirtualmachinestateunchanged.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx revertsnapshot

Runvmware-cmdwiththeremovesnapshotsoptiontoremoveallsnapshotsassociatedwithavirtual

machine.Ifnosnapshotexists,thecommanddoesnothing.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx removesnapshots

Powering Virtual Machines On and Off

Youcanstart,reboot,stop,andsuspendvirtualmachinesbyusingvmware-cmd.Youmustsupplyavaluefor

thepowerop_modeflag,whichcanbesoftorhard.

IMPORTANTYoucannotusevmware-cmdtoreverttoanamedsnapshot.UsethevSphereWebClienttorevert

toanamedsnapshot.

IMPORTANTYoumusthavethecurrentversionofVMwareToolsinstalledandrunningintheguestoperating

systemtouseasoftpoweroperation.

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110 VMware, Inc.

Softpoweroperations.Whenyouspecifysoftasthepowerop_modevalue,theresultofthecalldepends

ontheoperation.

Hardpoweroperations.vmware-cmdimmediatelyandunconditionallyshutsdown,resets,orsuspends

thevirtualmachine.

Thefollowingexamplesillustratehowtousevmware-cmd.

Start.Usethestartoptiontopoweronavirtualmachineortoresumeasuspendedvirtualmachine.The

powerop_mode,eitherhardorsoft,isrequired.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx start soft

Reset.Whenyouresetthevirtualmachinewiththesoftpower_opmode(thedefault),theguest

operatingsystemisshutdownbeforethereset.

IfVMwareToolsisnotcurrentlyinstalledonthevirtualmachine,youcanperformonlyahardreset

operation.

aCheckthatVMwaretoolsisinstalledsothatyoucanresetthevirtualmachinewiththedefault

power_opmode,whichissoft.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx gettoolslastactive

See“RetrievingVirtualMachineAttributes”onpage 107.

bUsetheresetoptiontoshutdownandrestartthevirtualmachine.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx reset soft

Suspend.Youhavetwooptionsforsuspendingavirtualmachine.

Thesuspendoptionwiththehardpoweropmodeunconditionallyshutsdownavirtualmachine.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx suspend hard

Thesuspendoptionwiththesoftpoweropmoderunsscriptsthatresultinagracefulshut‐downof

theguestoperatingsystemandshutsdownthevirtualmachine.VMwareToolsmustbeinstalledfor

softpowerop_mode.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx suspend soft

Connecting and Disconnecting Virtual Devices

Thevmware-commandoptionsconnectdeviceanddisconnectdeviceallowyoutoconnectthefollowing

typesofdevicestoyourvirtualmachinesandtodisconnectthem:

Networkadapters

CD/DVDdrives

Floppydrives

Thesedevicesmustalreadybedefinedinthevirtualmachinevirtualhardwarelist.

Operation Result

Stop vmware-cmdattemptstoshutdowntheguestoperatingsystemandpowersoffthevirtualmachine.

Reset vmware-cmdattemptstoshutdowntheguestoperatingsystemandrebootsthevirtualmachine.

Suspend vmware-cmdattemptstorunascriptintheguestoperatingsystembeforesuspendingthevirtual

machine.

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ThecommandoptionsconnectanddisconnectadefinedISOorFLPfileoraphysicaldeviceonthehost.After

youconnectadevice,itscontentcanbeaccessedfromtheGuestOS.Fornetworkadapters,theoptionsconnect

thevirtualNICtoitsdefinedportgroupordisconnecttheNIC.Thisisequivalenttoselectingordeselecting

theConnectedcheckboxinthevSphereWebClient.

Youcanconnectordisconnectdevicesifthefollowingconditionsaremet:

Thevirtualmachinehasaguestoperatingsystemthatsupportshot‐plugfunctionality.SeetheOperating

SystemInstallationdocumentation.

Thevirtualmachineisusinghardwareversion7orlater.

Thevirtualmachineispoweredon

Thefollowingexamplesillustrateconnectinganddisconnectingavirtualdevice.Devicenamesarecase

sensitive.

TheconnectdeviceoptionconnectsthevirtualIDEdeviceCD/DVDDrive2tothespecifiedvirtual

machine.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx connectdevice "CD/DVD drive 2"

Thedisconnectdeviceoptiondisconnectsthevirtualdevice.

vmware-cmd -H <vc_system> -U <user> -P <password> --vihost <esx_host>

/vmfs/volumes/Storage2/testvm/testvm.vmx disconnectdevice "CD/DVD drive 2"

Working with the AnswerVM API

TheAnswerVMAPIallowsuserstoprovideinputtoquestions,therebyallowingblockedvirtualmachine

operationstocomplete.Thevmware-cmd --answeroptionallowsyoutoaccesstheinput.Youmightusethis

optionwhenyouwanttoconfigureavirtualmachinebasedonausers’sinput.Forexample:

1Theuserclonesavirtualmachineandprovidesthedefaultvirtualdisktype.

2Whentheuserpowersonthevirtualmachine,itpromptsforthedesiredvirtualdisktype.

Forcibly Stopping Virtual Machines with EXCLI

Insomecases,virtualmachinesdonotrespondtothenormalshutdownorstopcommands.Inthesecases,it

mightbenecessarytoforciblyshutdownthevirtualmachines.Forciblyshuttingdownavirtualmachine

mightresultinguestoperatingsystemdatalossandissimilartopullingthepowercableonaphysical

machine.

Youcanforciblystopvirtualmachinesthatarenotrespondingtonormalstopoperationwiththeesxcli vm

process killcommand.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHost

ManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To forcibly stop a virtual machine

1ListallrunningvirtualmachinesonthesystemtoseetheWorldIDofthevirtualmachinethatyouwant

tostop.

esxcli <conn_options> vm process list

2Stopthevirtualmachinebyrunningthefollowingcommand.

esxcli <conn_options> vm process kill --type <kill_type> --world-id <ID>

Thecommandsupportsthree--typeoptions.Trythetypessequentially(softbeforehard,hardbefore

force).Thefollowingtypesaresupportedthroughthe--typeoption:

soft.GivestheVMXprocessachancetoshutdowncleanly(likekillorkill -SIGTERM)

NOTEThetermsCD/DVD drive,Floppy drive.andNetwork adapter arecase‐sensitive.

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112 VMware, Inc.

hard.StopstheVMXprocessimmediately(likekill -9orkill -SIGKILL)

force.StopstheVMXprocesswhenotheroptionsdonotwork.

Ifallthreeoptionsdonotwork,rebootyourESXihosttoresolvetheissue.

VMware, Inc. 113

ThevSphereCLInetworkingcommandsallowyoutomanagethevSpherenetworkservices.Youcanconnect

virtualmachinestothephysicalnetworkandtoeachotherandconfigurevSpherestandardswitches.Limited

configurationofvSpheredistributedswitchesisalsosupported.YoucanalsosetupyourvSphere

environmenttoworkwithexternalnetworkssuchasSNMPorNTP.

Thischapterincludesthefollowingtopics:

“IntroductiontovSphereNetworking”onpage 113

“RetrievingBasicNetworkingInformation”onpage 115

“NetworkTroubleshooting”onpage 116

“SettingUpvSphereNetworkingwithvSphereStandardSwitches”onpage 117

“SettingUpvSphereNetworkingwithvSphereDistributedSwitch”onpage 128

“ManagingStandardNetworkingServicesinthevSphereEnvironment”onpage 128

“SettingtheDNSConfiguration”onpage 128

“A d d i n g andStartinganNTPServer”onpage 131

“ManagingtheIPGateway”onpage 131

“SettingUpIPsec”onpage 132

“ManagingtheESXiFirewall”onpage 135

“MonitoringVXLAN”onpage 136

Introduction to vSphere Networking

AtthecoreofvSphereNetworkingarevirtualswitches.vSpheresupportsstandardswitches(VSS)and

distributedswitches(VDS).Eachvirtualswitchhasapresetnumberofportsandoneormoreportgroups.

Virtualswitchesallowyourvirtualmachinestoconnecttoeachotherandtoconnecttotheoutsideworld.

Whentwoormorevirtualmachinesareconnectedtothesamevirtualswitch,andthosevirtualmachines

arealsoonthesameportgrouporVLAN,networktrafficbetweenthemisroutedlocally.

Whenvirtualmachinesareconnectedtoavirtualswitchthatisconnectedtoanuplinkadapter,each

virtualmachinecanaccesstheexternalnetworkthroughthatuplink.Theadaptercanbeanuplink

connectedtoastandardswitchoradistributeduplinkportconnectedtoadistributedswitch.

VirtualswitchesallowyourESXihosttomigratevirtualmachineswithVMwarevMotionandtouseIPstorage

throughVMkernelnetworkinterfaces.

UsingvMotion,youcanmigraterunningvirtualmachineswithnodowntime.YoucanenablevMotion

withvicfg-vmknic --enable-vmotion.YoucannotenablevMotionwithESXCLI.

Managing vSphere Networking 9

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114 VMware, Inc.

IPstoragereferstoanyformofstoragethatusesTCP/IPnetworkcommunicationasitsfoundationand

includesiSCSIandNFSforESXi.Becausethesestoragetypesarenetworkbased,theycanusethesame

VMkernelinterfaceandportgroup.

ThenetworkservicesthattheVMkernelprovides(iSCSI,NFS,andvMotion)useaTCP/IPstackinthe

VMkernel.TheVMkernelTCP/IPstackisalsoseparatefromtheguestoperatingsystem’snetworkstack.Each

ofthesestacksaccessesvariousnetworksbyattachingtooneormoreportgroupsononeormorevirtual

switches.

Networking Using vSphere Standard Switches

vSpherestandardswitchesallowyoutoconnectvirtualmachinestotheoutsideworld.

Figure 9-1. Networking with vSphere Standard Switches

Figure 9‐1showstherelationshipbetweenthephysicalandvirtualnetworkelements.Thenumbersmatch

thoseinthefigure.

AssociatedwitheachESXihostareoneormoreuplinkadapters(1).Uplinkadaptersrepresentthe

physicalswitchestheESXihostusestoconnecttothenetwork.Youcanmanageuplinkadaptersusingthe

esxcli network nicorvicfg-nicsvCLIcommand.See“ManagingUplinkAdapters”onpage 122.

Eachuplinkadapterisconnectedtoastandardswitch(2).Youcanmanageastandardswitchand

associateitwithuplinkadaptersbyusingtheesxcli network vswitchorvicfg-vswitchvCLI

command.See“SettingUpVirtualSwitchesandAssociatingaSwitchwithaNetworkInterface”on

page 117.

Associatedwiththestandardswitchareportgroups(3).Portgroupisauniqueconceptinthevirtual

environment.Youcanconfigureportgroupstoenforcepoliciesthatprovideenhancednetworking

security,networksegmentation,betterperformance,highavailability,andtrafficmanagement.Youcan

usetheesxcli network vswitch standard portgrouporvicfg-vswitchcommandtoassociatea

standardswitchwithaportgroup,andtheesxcli network ip interfaceorvicfg-vmkniccommand

toassociateaportgroupwithaVMkernelnetworkinterface.

TheVMkernelTCP/IPnetworkingstacksupportsiSCSI,NFS,andvMotionandhasanassociated

VMkernelnetworkinterface.YouconfigureVMkernelnetworkinterfaceswithesxcli network ip

interfaceorvicfg-vmknic.See“A d d i n g andModifyingVMkernelNetworkInterfaces”onpage 125.

SeparateVMkernelnetworkinterfacesareoftenusedforseparatetasks,forexample,youmightdevote

oneVMkernelNetworkinterfacecardtovMotiononly.Virtualmachinesruntheirownsystems’TCP/IP

stacksandconnecttotheVMkernelattheEthernetlevelthroughvirtualswitches.

physical network adapters

Host1

Host2

port

groups

Network

VM VM VM VM

vSphere Standard Switch

ABCDE

vSphere Standard Switch

ABCDE

virtual

physical

physical network

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Chapter 9 Managing vSphere Networking

Networking Using vSphere Distributed Switches

Whenyouwanttoconnectavirtualmachinetotheoutsideworld,youcanuseastandardswitchora

distributedswitch.Withadistributedswitch,thevirtualmachinecanmaintainitsnetworksettingsevenifthe

virtualmachineismigratedtoadifferenthost.

Figure 9-2. Networking with vSphere Distributed Switches

Eachphysicalnetworkadapter(1)onthehostispairedwithadistributeduplinkport(2),which

representstheuplinktothevirtualmachine.Withdistributedswitches,thevirtualmachinenolonger

dependsonthehost’sphysicaluplinkbutonthe(virtual)uplinkport.Youmanageauplinkports

primarilyusingthevSphereWebClient,orvSphereAPIs.

Thedistributedswitchitself(3)functionsasasinglevirtualswitchacrossallassociatedhosts.Becausethe

switchisnotassociatedwithasinglehost,virtualmachinescanmaintainconsistentnetwork

configurationastheymigratefromonehosttoanother.

Likeastandardswitch,eachdistributedswitchisanetworkhubthatvirtualmachinescanuse.A

distributedswitchcanroutetrafficinternallybetweenvirtualmachinesorlinktoanexternalnetworkby

connectingtophysicalnetworkadapters.YoucreateadistributedswitchusingthethevSphereWeb

ClientUI,butcanmanagesomeaspectsofadistributedswitchwithvicfg-vswitch.Youcanlist

distributedvirtualswitcheswiththeesxcli network vswitchcommand.See“SettingUpVirtual

SwitchesandAssociatingaSwitchwithaNetworkInterface”onpage 117.

Retrieving Basic Networking Information

ServiceconsolecommandsforretrievingnetworkinginformationarenotincludedintheESXiShell.Youcan

insteaduseESXCLIcommandsdirectlyintheshellorusevCLIcommands.

OnESXi5.0,ifconfiginformationshouldbetheinformationoftheVMkernelNICthatattachestothe

ManagementNetworkportgroup.YoucanretrieveinformationbyusingESXCLIcommands.

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface list

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv4 get -n vmk<X>

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv6 get -n vmk<X>

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv6 address list

ForinformationcorrespondingtotheLinuxnetstatcommand,usethefollowingESXCLIcommand.

esxcli <conn_options> network ip connection list

physical network adapters

Host1

Host2

Network

VM VM VM VM

vSphere Distributed Switch

uplink uplink

ABCDEFGH I J

virtual

distributed port group

physical

physical network

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116 VMware, Inc.

Youcanalsopingindividualhostswiththeesxcli network diag pingcommand.Thecommandincludes

optionsforusingICMPv4orICMPv6packetrequests,specifyinganinterfacetouse,specifyingtheinterval,

andsoon.

Network Troubleshooting

YoucanusevCLInetworkcommandstoviewnetworkstatisticsandtroubleshootyournetworkingsetup.The

nestedhierarchyofcommandsallowsyoutodrilldowntopotentialtroublespots.

1Listallvirtualmachinenetworksonahost.

esxcli network vm list

ThecommandreturnsforeachvirtualmachinetheWorldID,name,numberofports,andnetworks,asin

thefollowingexample.

World ID Name Num Ports Networks

----------------------------------------------------

10374 ubuntu-server-11.04-1 2 VM Network, dvportgroup-19

10375 ubuntu-server-11.04-2 2 VM Network, dvportgroup-19

10376 ubuntu-server-11.04-3 2 VM Network, dvportgroup-19

10408 ubuntu-server-11.04-4 3 VM Network, VM Network 10Gbps, dvportgroup-19

2ListtheportsforoneoftheVMsbyspecifyingitsWorldID.

esxcli network vm port list -w 10408

Thecommandreturnsportinformation,asinthefollowingexample.

Port:

Port ID: XXXXXXXX

vSwitch: vSwitch0

Portgroup: VM Network

DVPort ID:

MAC Address: 00:XX:XX:aa:XX:XX

IP Address: 10.XXX.XXX.XXX

Team Uplink: vmnic0

Uplink Port ID: 12345678

Active Filters:

3 Retrievetheswitchstatisticsforaport.

esxcli network port stats get -p 12345678

Thecommandreturnsdetailedstatistics,asinthefollowingexample.

Packet statistics for port 12345678:

Packets received: 517631

Packets sent: 18937

Bytes received: 100471874

Bytes sent: 1527233

Broadcast packets received: 474160

Broadcast packets sent: 107

Multicast packets received: 8020

Multicast packets sent: 8

Unicast packets received: 35451

Unicast packets sent: 18822

Receive packets dropped: 45

Transmit packets dropped: 0

4 Retrievethefilterinformationfortheport.

esxcli network port filter stats get -p 12345678

Thecommandreturnsdetailedstatistics,asinthefollowingexample.

Filter statistics for dvfilter-test:

Filter direction: Receive

Packets in: 202080

Packets out: 202080

Packets dropped: 0

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Chapter 9 Managing vSphere Networking

Packets filtered: 0

Packets faulted: 0

Packets queued: 0

Packets injected: 0

Packet errors: 0

5 RetrievecompletestatisticsforaNIC.

esxcli network nic stats get -n vmnic0

6Getaper‐VLANpackedbreakdownonaNIC.

esxcli network nic vlan stats get -n vmnic0

ThecommandreturnsthenumberofpacketssentandreceivedfortheVLANyouspecified.

Setting Up vSphere Networking with vSphere Standard Switches

Youcansetupyourvirtualnetworkbyperformingthesetasks.

7 Createormanipulatevirtualswitchesusingesxcli network vswitchorvicfg-vswitch.Bydefault,

eachESXihosthasonevirtualswitch,vSwitch0.Youcancreateadditionalvirtualswitchesormanage

existingswitches.See“SettingUpVirtualSwitchesandAssociatingaSwitchwithaNetworkInterface”

onpage 117.

8 (Optional)Makechangestotheuplinkadapterusingesxcli network vswitch standard uplinkor

vicfg-nics.See“ManagingUplinkAdapters”onpage 122.

9 (Optional)Useesxcli network vswitch standard portgrouporvicfg-vswitchtoaddportgroups

tothevirtualswitch.See“ManagingPortGroupswithvicfg‐vswitch”onpage 120.

10 (Optional)Useesxcli network vswitch standard portgroup setorvicfg-vswitchtoestablish

VLANsbyassociatingportgroupswithVLANIDs.See“SettingthePortGroupVLANIDwith

vicfg‐vswitch”onpage 122.

11 Useesxcli network ip interfaceorvicfg-vmknictoconfiguretheVMkernelnetworkinterfaces.

See“A d d i n g andModifyingVMkernelNetworkInterfaces”onpage 125.

Setting Up Virtual Switches and Associating a Switch with a Network Interface

AvirtualswitchmodelsaphysicalEthernetswitch.Youcanmanagevirtualswitchesandportgroupsbyusing

thevSphereWebClient(seethevSphereNetworkingdocumentation)orbyusingvSphereCLIcommands.

Youcancreateamaximumof127virtualswitchesonasingleESXihost.Bydefault,eachESXihosthasasingle

virtualswitchcalledvSwitch0.Bydefault,avirtualswitchhas56logicalports.SeetheConfiguration

MaximumsdocumentonthevSpheredocumentationmainpagefordetails.Portsconnecttothevirtual

machinesandtheESXiphysicalnetworkadapters.

YoucanconnectonevirtualmachinenetworkadaptertoeachportbyusingthevSphereWebClientUI.

Youcanconnecttheuplinkadaptertothevirtualswitchesbyusingvicfg-vswitchoresxcli network

vswitch standard uplink.See“LinkingandUnlinkingUplinkAdapterswithvicfg‐vswitch”on

page 124.

Whentwoormorevirtualmachinesareconnectedtothesamevirtualswitch,networktrafficbetweenthemis

routedlocally.Ifanuplinkadapterisattachedtothevirtualswitch,eachvirtualmachinecanaccessthe

externalnetworkthattheadapterisconnectedto.

Thissectiondiscussesworkinginastandardswitchenvironment.See“NetworkingUsingvSphere

DistributedSwitches”onpage 115forinformationaboutdistributedswitchenvironments.

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Whenworkingwithvirtualswitchesandportgroups,performthefollowingtasks:

1Findoutwhichvirtualswitchesareavailableand(optionally)whattheassociatedMTUandCDP(Cisco

DiscoveryProtocol)settingsare.See“RetrievingInformationaboutVirtualSwitcheswithESXCLI”on

page 118and“RetrievingInformationaboutVirtualSwitcheswithvicfg‐vswitch”onpage 118.

2Addavirtualswitch.See“A d d i n g andDeletingVirtualSwitcheswithESXCLI”onpage 119and“A d d i n g 

andDeletingVirtualSwitcheswithvicfg‐vswitch”onpage 119.

3Foranewlyaddedswitch,performthesetasks:

aAddaportgroup.See“ManagingPortGroupswithESXCLI”onpage 120and“ManagingPort

Groupswithvicfg‐vswitch”onpage 120.

b (Optional)SettheportgroupVLANID.See“SettingthePortGroupVLANIDwithESXCLI”on

page 121and“SettingthePortGroupVLANIDwithvicfg‐vswitch”onpage 122.

cAddanuplinkadapter.See“LinkingandUnlinkingUplinkAdapterswithESXCLI”onpage 124and

“LinkingandUnlinkingUplinkAdapterswithvicfg‐vswitch”onpage 124.

d (Optional)ChangetheMTUorCDPsettings.See“SettingSwitchAttributeswithesxclinetwork

vswitchstandard”onpage 119and“SettingSwitchAttributeswithvicfg‐vswitch”onpage 120.

Retrieving Information About Virtual Switches

YoucanretrieveinformationaboutvirtualswitchesbyusingESXCLIorvicfg-vswitch.Specifyoneofthe

optionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof

<conn_options>.

Retrieving Information about Virtual Switches with ESXCLI

Youcanretrieveinformationaboutvirtualswitchesbyusingesxcli network vswitchcommands.

Listallvirtualswitchesandassociatedportgroups.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard list

Thecommandprintsinformationaboutthevirtualswitch,whichmightincludeitsname,numberof

ports,MTU,portgroups,andotherinformation.TheoutputincludesinformationaboutCDPsettingsfor

thevirtualswitch.Thepreciseinformationdependsonthetargetsystem.Thedefaultportgroupsare

Management NetworkandVM Network.

Listthenetworkpolicysettings(securitypolicy,trafficshapingpolicy,andfailoverpolicy)forthevirtual

switch.Thefollowingcommandsaresupported.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard policy failover get

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard policy security get

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard policy shaping get

Retrieving Information about Virtual Switches with vicfg-vswitch

Youcanretrieveinformationaboutvirtualswitchesbyusingthevcifg-vswitchcommand.Specifyoneof

theoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof

<conn_options>.

CheckwhethervSwitch1exists.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> -c vSwitch1

Listallvirtualswitchesandassociatedportgroups.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> -l

Thecommandprintsinformationaboutthevirtualswitch,whichmightincludeitsname,numberof

ports,MTU,portgroups,andotherinformation.ThedefaultportgroupsareManagement Networkand

VM Network.

RetrievethecurrentCDP(CiscoDiscoveryProtocol)settingforthisvirtualswitch.

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IfCDPisenabledonavirtualswitch,ESXiadministratorscanfindoutwhichCiscoswitchportis

connectedtowhichvirtualswitchuplink.CDPisalink‐levelprotocolthatsupportsdiscoveryof

CDP‐awarenetworkhardwareateitherendofadirectconnection.CDPisbitforwardedthrough

switches.CDPisasimpleadvertisementprotocolwhichbeaconsinformationabouttheswitchorhostand

someportinformation.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --get-cdp vSwitch1

Adding and Deleting Virtual Switches

YoucanaddanddeletevirtualswitcheswithESXCLIandwithvicfg-vswitch.

Adding and Deleting Virtual Switches with ESXCLI

Youcanaddanddeletevirtualswitchesusingtheesxcli network vswitchstandard namespace.Specify

oneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplace

of<conn_options>.

Addavirtualswitch.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard add --vswitch-name=vSwitch42

Youcanspecifythenumberofportgroupswhileaddingthevirtualswitch.Ifyoudonotspecifyavalue,

thedefaultvalueisused.Thesystem‐wideportcountcannotbegreaterthan4096.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard add --vswitch-name=vSwitch42 --ports=8

Afteryouhaveaddedavirtualswitch,youcansetswitchattributes(“SettingSwitchAttributeswithesxcli

networkvswitchstandard”onpage 119)andaddoneormoreuplinkadapters(“LinkingandUnlinking

UplinkAdapterswithESXCLI”onpage 124).

Deleteavirtualswitch.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard remove --vswitch-name=vSwitch42

YoucannotdeleteavirtualswitchifanyportsontheswitcharestillinusebyVMkernelnetworksor

virtualmachines.Runesxcli network vswitch standard list todeterminewhetheravirtualswitch

isinuse.

Adding and Deleting Virtual Switches with vicfg-vswitch

Youcanaddanddeletevirtualswitchesusingthe--add|-aand--delete|-doptions.Specifyoneofthe

optionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof

<conn_options>.

Addavirtualswitch.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --add vSwitch2

Afteryouhaveaddedavirtualswitch,youcansetswitchattributes(“SettingSwitchAttributeswith

vicfg‐vswitch”onpage 120)andaddoneormoreuplinkadapters(“LinkingandUnlinkingUplink

Adapterswithvicfg‐vswitch”onpage 124).

Deleteavirtualswitch.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --delete vSwitch1

YoucannotdeleteavirtualswitchifanyportsontheswitcharestillinusebyVMkernelnetworks,virtual

machines,orvswifs.Runvicfg-vswitch --listtodeterminewhetheravirtualswitchisinuse.

Setting Switch Attributes with esxcli network vswitch standard

Youcansetthemaximumtransmissionunit(MTU)andCDPstatusforavirtualswitch.TheCDPstatusshows

whichCiscoswitchportisconnectedtowhichuplink.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptions

forvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

SettheMTUforavSwitch.

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esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard set --mtu=9000 --vswitch-name=vSwitch1

TheMTUisthesize,inbytes,ofthelargestprotocoldataunittheswitchcanprocess.Whenyousetthis

option,itaffectsalluplinksassignedtothevirtualswitch.

SettheCDPvalueforavSwitch.Youcansetstatustodown,listen,advertise,orboth.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard set --cdp-status=listen

--vswitch-name=vSwitch1

Setting Switch Attributes with vicfg-vswitch

Youcansetthemaximumtransmissionunit(MTU)andCDPstatusforavirtualswitch.TheCDPstatusshows

whichCiscoswitchportisconnectedtowhichuplink.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptions

forvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

SettheMTUforavSwitch.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> -m 9000 vSwitch1

TheMTUisthesize(inbytes)ofthelargestprotocoldataunittheswitchcanprocess.Whenyousetthis

option,itaffectsalluplinksassignedtothevirtualswitch.

SettheCDPvalueforavSwitch.Youcansetstatustodown,listen,advertise,orboth.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --set-cdp ‘listen’

Checking, Adding, and Removing Port Groups

Youcancheck,add,andremoveportgroupswithESXCLIandwithvicfg-vswitch.

Managing Port Groups with ESXCLI

NetworkservicesconnecttovSwitchesthroughportgroups.Aportgroupallowsyoutogrouptrafficand

specifyconfigurationoptionssuchasbandwidthlimitationsandVLANtaggingpoliciesforeachportinthe

portgroup.Avirtualswitchmusthaveoneportgroupassignedtoit.Youcanassignadditionalportgroups.

Youcanuseesxcli network vswitch standard portgroup tocheck,add,andremoveportgroups.

Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18

inplaceof<conn_options>.

Listportgroupscurrentlyassociatedwithavirtualswitch.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard portgroup list

Liststheportgroupname,associatedvirtualswitch,activeclients,andVLANID.

Addaportgroup.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard portgroup add --portgroup-name=<name>

--vswitch-name=vSwitch1

Deleteoneoftheexistingportgroups.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard portgroup remove --portgroup-name=<name>

--vswitch-name=vSwitch1

Managing Port Groups with vicfg-vswitch

Networkservicesconnecttovirtualswitchesthroughportgroups.Aportgroupallowsyoutogrouptraffic

andspecifyconfigurationoptionssuchasbandwidthlimitationsandVLANtaggingpoliciesforeachportin

theportgroup.Avirtualswitchmusthaveoneportgroupassignedtoit.Youcanassignadditionalport

groups.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”on

page 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

Youcanusevicfg-vswitchtocheck,add,andremoveportgroups.

Checkwhetherportgroupsarecurrentlyassociatedwithavirtualswitch.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --check-pg <port_group> vSwitch1

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Thecommandreturns0ifthespecifiedportgroupisassociatedwiththevirtualswitch,andreturns1

otherwise.Usevicfg-vswitch --listtolistallportgroups.

Addaportgroup.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --add-pg <port_group_name> vSwitch1

Deleteoneoftheexistingportgroups.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --del-pg <port_group_name> vSwitch1

Managing Uplinks and Port Groups

YoucanmanageuplinksandportgroupswithESXCLIandwithvicfg-vswitch.

Connecting and Disconnecting Uplink Adapters and Port Groups with ESXCLI

Ifyoursetupincludesoneormoreportgroups,youcanassociateeachportgroupwithoneormoreuplink

adapters(andremovetheassociation).Thisfunctionalityallowsyoutofiltertrafficfromaportgrouptoa

specificuplink,evenifthevirtualswitchisconnectedwithmultipleuplinks.Specifyoneoftheoptionslisted

in“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

Connectaportgroupwithanuplinkadapter.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard portgroup policy failover set

--active-uplinks=vmnic1,vmnic6,vmnic7

Thiscommandfailssilentlyiftheuplinkadapterdoesnotexist.

Makesomeoftheadaptersstandbyinsteadofactive.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard portgroup policy failover set

--standby-uplinks=vmnic1,vmnic6,vmnic7

Connecting and Disconnecting Uplinks and Port Groups with vicfg-vswitch

Ifyoursetupincludesoneormoreportgroups,youcanassociateeachportgroupwithoneormoreuplink

adapters(andremovetheassociation).Thisfunctionalityallowsyoutofiltertrafficfromaportgrouptoa

specificuplink,evenifthevirtualswitchisconnectedwithmultipleuplinks.Specifyoneoftheoptionslisted

in“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

Connectaportgroupwithanuplinkadapter.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --add-pg-uplink <adapter_name> --pg <port_group> <vswitch_name>

Thiscommandfailssilentlyiftheuplinkadapterdoesnotexist.

Removeaportgroupfromanuplinkadapter.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --del-pg-uplink <adapter_name> --pg <port_group> <vswitch_name>

Setting the Port Group VLAN ID

YoucansettheportgroupVLANIDwithESXCLIandwithvicfg-vswitch.

Setting the Port Group VLAN ID with ESXCLI

VLANsallowyoutofurthersegmentasinglephysicalLANsegmentsothatgroupsofportsareisolatedasif

theywereonphysicallydifferentsegments.ThestandardisIEEE802.1Q.

AVLANIDrestrictsportgrouptraffictoalogicalEthernetsegmentwithinthephysicalnetwork.

SettheVLANIDto4095toallowaportgrouptoreachportgroupslocatedonotherVLAN.

SettheVLANIDto0todisabletheVLANforthisportgroup.

IfyouuseVLANIDs,youmustchangetheportgrouplabelsandVLANIDstogethersothatthelabels

properlyrepresentconnectivity.VLANIDsareoptional.

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YoucanusethefollowingcommandsforVLANmanagement:

AllowportgroupstoreachportgroupslocatedonotherVLANs.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard portgroup set -p <pg_name> --vlan-id 4095

CallthecommandmultipletimestoallowallportstoreachportgroupslocatedonotherVLANs.

DisableVLANforportgroupg42

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard portgroup set --vlan-id 0 -p g42

Setting the Port Group VLAN ID with vicfg-vswitch

VLANsallowyoutofurthersegmentasinglephysicalLANsegmentsothatgroupsofportsareisolatedasif

theywereonphysicallydifferentsegments.ThestandardisIEEE802.1Q.

AVLANIDrestrictsportgrouptraffictoalogicalEthernetsegmentwithinthephysicalnetwork.

SettheVLANIDto4095toallowaportgrouptoreachportgroupslocatedonotherVLAN.

SettheVLANIDto0todisabletheVLANforthisportgroup.

IfyouuseVLANIDs,youmustchangetheportgrouplabelsandVLANIDstogethersothatthelabels

properlyrepresentconnectivity.VLANIDsareoptional.

YoucanusethefollowingcommandsforVLANmanagement:

AllowallportgroupstoreachportgroupslocatedonotherVLANs.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --vlan 4095 --pg “ALL” vSwitch2

DisableVLANforportgroupg42.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --vlan 0 --pg g42 vSwitch2

Runvicfg-vswitch -ltoretrieveinformationaboutVLANIDscurrentlyassociatedwiththevirtual

switchesinthenetwork.

Runesxcli network vswitch standard portgroup listtolistallportgroupsandassociatedVLANIDs.

Managing Uplink Adapters

Youcanmanageuplinkadapters,whichrepresentthephysicalNICsthatconnecttheESXihosttothenetwork

byusingtheesxcli network nicsorthevicfg-nicscommand.Youcanalsouseesxcli network

vswitchandesxcfg-vswitchtolinkandunlinktheuplink.

Youcanusevicfg-nicstolistinformationandtospecifyspeedandduplexsettingfortheuplink.

Youcanuseesxcli network nic tolistalluplinks,tolistinformation,tosetattributes,andtobringa

specifieduplinkdownorup.

Managing Uplink Adapters with esxcli network nic

Thefollowingexampleworkflowlistsalluplinkadapters,listspropertiesforoneuplinkadapter,changesthe

uplink’sspeedandduplexsettings,andbringstheuplinkdownandbackup.Specifyoneoftheoptionslisted

in“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To manipulate uplink adapter setup

1Listalluplinksandinformationabouteachdevice.

esxcli <conn_options> network nic list

Youcannarrowdowntheinformationdisplayedbyusingesxcli network nic get

--nic-name=<nic>.

2 (Optional)Bringdownoneoftheuplinkadapters.

esxcli <conn_options> network nic down --nic-name=vmnic0

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3 Changeuplinkadaptersettings.

esxcli <conn_options> network nic set <option>

Specifyoneofthefollowingoptions.

4 (Optional)Bringtheuplinkadapterbackup.

esxcli <conn_options> network nic up --nic-name=vmnic0

Specifying Multiple Uplinks with ESXCLI

Atanytime,oneportgroupNICarrayandacorrespondingsetofactiveuplinksexist.Whenyouchangethe

activeuplinks,youalsochangethestandbyuplinksandthenumberofactiveuplinks.

Thefollowingexampleillustrateshowactiveandstandbyuplinksareset.

1Theportgroupnicarrayis[vmnic1,vmnic0,vmnic3,vmnic5,vmnic6,vmnic7]andactive-uplinksis

settothreeuplinks(vmnic1,vmnic0,vmnic3).Theotheruplinksarestandbyuplinks.

2Yousettheactiveuplinkstoanewset[vmnic3,vmnic5].

3Thenewuplinksoverridetheoldset.TheNICarraychangesto[vmnic3,vmnic5,vmnic6,vmnic7].

vmnic0andvmnic1areremovedfromtheNICarrayandmax-activebecomes2.

Ifyouwanttokeepvmnic0andvmnic1inthearray,youcanmakethoseNICsstandbyuplinksinthe

commandthatchangestheactiveuplinks.

esxcli network vswitch standard portgroup policy failover set -p testPortgroup --active-uplinks

vmnic3,vmnic5 --standby-uplinks vmnic1,vmnic0,vmnic6,vmnic7

-a|--auto Setthespeedandduplexsettingstoautonegotiate.

-D|--duplex=<str> DuplextosetthisNICto.Acceptablevaluesarefullandhalf.

-P | --phy-address SettheMACaddressofthedevice

-l|--message-level=<long> Setthedrivermessagelevel.Messagelevelsandwhattheyimplydifferper

driver.

-n|--nic-name=<str> NameoftheNICtoconfigured.Mustbeoneofthecardslistedinthenic list

command(required).

-p|--port=<str> Selectsthedeviceport.Thefollowingdeviceportsareavailable.

aui–Selectauiasthedeviceport

bnc–Selectbncasthedeviceport

fibre–Selectmiiasthedeviceport

mii–Selectmiiasthedeviceport

tp–Selecttpasthedeviceport

-S|--speed=<long> SpeedtosetthisNICto.Acceptablevaluesare10,100,1000,and10000.

-t|--transceiver-type=<str> Selecttransceivertype.Thefollowingtransceivertypesareavailable.

external–Setthetransceivertypetoexternal

internal–Setthetransceivertypetointernal

-w|--wake-on-lan=<str> SetWake-on-LANoptions.Notalldevicessupportthisoption.Theoptionvalue

isastringofcharactersspecifyingwhichoptionstoenable.

p–Wakeonphyactivity

u–Wakeonunicastmessages

m–Wakeonmulticastmessages

b–Wakeonbroadcastmessages

a–WakeonARP

g–WakeonMagicPacket

s–EnableSecureOnpasswordforMagicPacket

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Managing Uplink Adapters with vicfg-nics

Thefollowingexampleworkflowlistsanuplinkadapter’sproperties,changestheduplexandspeed,andsets

theuplinktoautonegotiateitsspeedandduplexsettings.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“Connection

OptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To manipulate uplink adapter setup

1Listsettings.

vicfg-nics <conn_options> -l

Liststheuplinksinthesystem,theircurrentandconfiguredspeed,andtheirduplexsetting.

2Setthesettingsforvmnic0tofullandthespeedto100.

vicfg-nics <conn_options> -d full -s 100 vmnic0

3Setvmnic2toautonegotiateitsspeedandduplexsettings.

vicfg-nics <conn_options> -a vmnic2

Linking and Unlinking Uplink Adapters with ESXCLI

Whenyoucreateavirtualswitchusingesxcli network vswitch standard add,alltrafficonthatvirtual

switchisinitiallyconfinedtothatvirtualswitch.Allvirtualmachinesconnectedtothevirtualswitchcantalk

toeachother,butthevirtualmachinescannotconnecttothenetworkortovirtualmachinesonotherhosts.A

virtualmachinealsocannotconnecttovirtualmachinesconnectedtoadifferentvirtualswitchonthesame

host.

Havingavirtualswitchthatisnotconnectedtothenetworkmightmakesenseifyouwantagroupofvirtual

machinestobeabletocommunicatewitheachother,butnotwithotherhostsorwithvirtualmachineson

otherhosts.Inmostcases,yousetupthevirtualswitchtotransferdatatoexternalnetworksbyattachingone

ormoreuplinkadapterstothevirtualswitch.

Youcanusethefollowingcommandstolist,add,andremoveuplinkadapters.WhenyoulinkusingESXCLI,

thephysicalNICisaddedasastandbyadapterbydefault.Youcanthenmodifytheteamingpolicytomake

thephysicalNICactivebyrunningthecommandesxcli network vswitch standard policy failover

set.

Listuplinkadapters.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard list

TheuplinkadaptersarereturnedintheUplinkitem.

Addanewuplinkadaptertoavirtualswitch.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard uplink add --uplink-name=vmnic15

vswitch-name=vSwitch0

Removeanuplinkadapterfromavirtualswitch.

esxcli <conn_options> network vswitch standard uplink remove --uplink-name=vmnic15

vswitch-name=vSwitch0

Linking and Unlinking Uplink Adapters with vicfg-vswitch

Whenyoucreateavirtualswitchusingvicfg-vswitch--add,alltrafficonthatvirtualswitchisinitially

confinedtothatvirtualswitch.Allvirtualmachinesconnectedtothevirtualswitchcantalktoeachother,but

thevirtualmachinescannotconnecttothenetworkortovirtualmachinesonotherhosts.Avirtualmachine

alsocannotconnecttovirtualmachinesconnectedtoadifferentvirtualswitchonthesamehost.

Havingavirtualswitchthatisnotconnectedtothenetworkmightmakesenseifyouwantagroupofvirtual

machinestobeabletocommunicatewitheachother,butnotwithotherhostsorwithvirtualmachineson

otherhosts.Inmostcases,yousetupthevirtualswitchtotransferdatatoexternalnetworksbyattachingone

ormoreuplinkadapterstothevirtualswitch.

Youcanusethefollowingcommandstoaddandremoveuplinkadapters:

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Addanewuplinkadaptertoavirtualswitch.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --link vmnic15 vSwitch0

Removeanuplinkadapterfromavirtualswitch.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --unlink vmnic15 vSwitch0

Adding and Modifying VMkernel Network Interfaces

VMkernelnetworkinterfacesareusedprimarilyformanagementtraffic,whichcanincludevMotion,IP

Storage,andothermanagementtrafficontheESXisystem.YoucanalsobindanewlycreatedVMkernel

networkinterfaceforusebysoftwareanddependenthardwareiSCSIbyusingtheesxcli iscsicommands.

TheVMkernelnetworkinterfaceisseparatefromthevirtualmachinenetwork.Theguestoperatingsystem

andapplicationprogramscommunicatewithaVMkernelnetworkinterfacethroughacommonlyavailable

devicedriveroraVMwaredevicedriveroptimizedforthevirtualenvironment.Ineithercase,communication

intheguestoperatingsystemoccursasitwouldwithaphysicaldevice.Virtualmachinescanalso

communicatewithaVMkernelnetworkinterfaceifbothusethesamevirtualswitch.

EachVMkernelnetworkinterfacehasitsownMACaddressandoneormoreIPaddresses,andrespondsto

thestandardEthernetprotocolaswouldaphysicalNIC.TheVMkernelnetworkinterfaceiscreatedwithTCP

SegmentationOffload(TSO)enabled.

YoucanmanageVMkernelNICswithESXCLI(see“ManagingVMkernelNetworkInterfaceswithESXCLI”

onpage 125)andwithvicfg-vmknic(see“ManagingVMkernelNetworkInterfaceswithvicfg‐vmknic”on

page 126).

Managing VMkernel Network Interfaces with ESXCLI

YoucanconfiguretheVMkernelnetworkinterfaceforIPv4(see“ToaddandconfigureanIPv4VMkernel

NetworkInterfaceforIPv4”onpage 125)orforIPv6(see“ToaddandconfigureaVMkernelNetwork

InterfaceforIPv6”onpage 126)withESXCLI.Incontrasttovicfg-vmknic,ESXCLIdoesnotsupport

enablingvMotion.

YoucanaddandconfigureanIPv4VMkernelNICwithESXCLI.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin

“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To add and configure an IPv4 VMkernel Network Interface for IPv4

1AddanewVMkernelnetworkinterface.

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface add --interface-name=vmk<x>

--portgroup-name=<my_portgroup>

YoucanspecifytheMTUsettingafteryouhaveaddedthenetworkinterfacebyusingesxcli network

ip interface set --mtu.

2ConfiguretheinterfaceasanIPv4interface.YoumustspecifytheIPaddressusing--ip,thenetmask,and

thename.Forthefollowingexamples,assumethatVMSF‐VMK‐363isaportgrouptowhichyouwantto

addaVMkernelnetworkinterface.

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv4 set --ipv4=<ip_address>

--netmask=255.255.255.0 --interface-name=vmk<X>

Youcansettheaddressasfollows.

<X.X.X.X>–StaticIPv4address.

DHCP–UseIPv4DHCP.

TheVMkernelsupportsDHCPonlyforESXi4.0andlater.

Whenthecommandfinishessuccessfully,thenewlyaddedVMkernelnetworkinterfaceisenabled.

3ListinformationaboutallVMkernelnetworkinterfacesonthesystem.

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface list

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Thecommanddisplaysthenetworkinformation,portgroup,MTU,andcurrentstateforeachvirtual

networkadapterinthesystem.

YoucanaddandconfigureanIPv6VMkernelNICwithESXCLI.

To add and configure a VMkernel Network Interface for IPv6

1Runesxcli network ip interface addtoaddanewVMkernelnetworkinterface.

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface add --interface-name=vmk<x>

--portgroup-name=<my_portgroup>

YoucanspecifytheMTUsettingafteryouhaveaddedthenetworkinterfacebyusingesxcli network

ip interface set --mtu.

Whenthecommandfinishessuccessfully,thenewlyaddedVMkernelnetworkinterfaceisenabled.

2Runesxcli network ip interface ipv6 address add toconfiguretheinterfaceasanIPv6interface.

YoumustspecifytheIPaddressusing--ipandthename.Forthefollowingexamples,assumethat

VMSF‐VMK‐363isaportgrouptowhichyouwanttoaddaVMkernelnetworkinterface.

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv6 address add --ip=<X:X:X::/X>

--interface-name=vmk<X>

Youcansettheaddressasfollows.

<X:X:X::/X>:StaticIPv6address

--enable-dhcpv6:EnablesDHCPv6onthisinterfaceandattemptstoacquireanIPv6addressfrom

thenetwork.

--enable-router-adv:UsetheIPv6addressadvertisedbytherouter.Theaddressisaddedwhen

theroutersendsthenextrouteradvert.

TheVMkernelsupportsDHCPonlyforESXi4.0andlater.

Whenthecommandcompletessuccessfully,thenewlyaddedVMkernelnetworkinterfaceisenabled.

3ListinformationaboutallVMkernelnetworkinterfacesonthesystem.

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface list

Thelistcontainsthenetworkinformation,portgroup,MTU,andcurrentstateforeachVMkernel

NetworkInterfaceonthesystem.

4YoucanlaterremovetheIPv6addressanddisableIPv6.

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv6 address remove --interface-name=<VMK_NIC>

--ipv6=<ipv6_addr>

esxcli <conn_options> network ip set --ipv6-enabled=false

Managing VMkernel Network Interfaces with vicfg-vmknic

YoucanconfiguretheVMkernelnetworkinterfaceforIPv4(see“ToaddandconfigureanIPv4VMkernel

NetworkInterfacewithvicfg‐vmknic”onpage 126)orforIPv6(see“ToaddandconfigureanIPv6VMkernel

NetworkInterfacewithvicfg‐vmknic”onpage 127).Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptions

forvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To add and configure an IPv4 VMkernel Network Interface with vicfg-vmknic

1Runvicfg-vmknic --addtoaddaVMkernelnetworkinterface.

YoumustspecifytheIPaddressbyusing--ip,thenetmask,andthename.Forthefollowingexamples,

assumethatVMSF‐VMK‐363isaportgrouptowhichyouwanttoaddaVMkernelnetworkinterface.

vicfg-vmknic <conn_options> --add --ip <ip_address> -n 255.255.255.0 VMSF-VMK-363

YoucanspecifytheMTUsettingwhenaddingaVMkernelnetworkinterface.Youcannotchangethat

settingatalatertime.

Whenthecommandcompletessuccessfully,thenewlyaddedVMkernelnetworkinterfaceisenabled.

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2 ChangetheIPaddressasneeded.

vicfg-vmknic <conn_options> --ip <address> VMSF-VMK-363

ForIPv4,chooseoneofthefollowingformats:

<X.X.X.X>–StaticIPv4address.

DHCP–UseIPv4DHCP.

TheVMkernelsupportsDHCPonlyforESXi4.0andlater.

3 (Optional)EnablevMotion.

Bydefault,vMotionisdisabled.

vicfg-vmknic <conn_options> --enable-vmotion VMSF-VMK-363

Youcanlateruse--disable-vmotiontodisablevMotionforthisVMkernelnetworkinterface.

4ListinformationaboutallVMkernelnetworkinterfacesonthesystem.

vicfg-vmknic <conn_options> --list

Thecommanddisplaysthenetworkinformation,portgroup,MTU,andcurrentstateforeachvirtual

networkadapterinthesystem.

To add and configure an IPv6 VMkernel Network Interface with vicfg-vmknic

1Runvicfg-vmknic --addtoaddaVMkernelnetworkinterface.

YoumustspecifytheIPaddressbyusing--ip,thenetmask,andtheportgroupname.Forthefollowing

examples,assumethatVMSF‐VMK‐363isaportgrouptowhichyouwanttoaddaVMkernelnetwork

interface.

YoucanspecifytheMTUsettingwhenyouaddaVMkernelnetworkinterface.Youcannotchangethat

settingatalatertime.

Whenthecommandcompletessuccessfully,thenewlyaddedVMkernelnetworkinterfaceisenabled.

2EnableIPv6.

vicfg-vmknic <conn_options> --enable-ipv6 true VMSF-VMK-363

3 SupplyanIPv6address.

vicfg-vmknic <conn_options> --ip <ip_address> VMSF-VMK-363

ForIPv6,theIPaddresscanhaveoneofthefollowingformats:

<X:X:X::/X>–StaticIPv6address

DHCPV6–UseDHCPIPv6address.TheVMkernelsupportsDHCPonlyforESX/ESXi4.0andlater.

AUTOCONF–UsetheIPv6addressadvertisedbytherouter.IfyoucreateaVMkernelnetworkinterface

withAUTOCONF,anaddressisassignedimmediately.IfyouaddAUTOCONFtoanexisting

vmknic,theaddressisaddedwhentheroutersendsthenextrouteradvert.

4 (Optional)EnablevMotion.

Bydefault,vMotionisdisabled.

vicfg-vmknic <conn_options> --enable-vmotion VMSF-VMK-363

Youcanlateruse--disable-vmotiontodisablevMotionagain.

5ListinformationaboutallVMkernelnetworkinterfacesonthesystem.

vicfg-vmknic <conn_options> --list

Thelistcontainsthenetworkinformation,portgroup,MTU,andcurrentstateforeachvirtualnetwork

adapterinthesystem.

6YoucanlaterremovetheIPv6addressanddisableIPv6.

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vicfg-vmknic <conn_options> --unset-ip <X:X:X::/X> VMSF-VMK-363

vicfg-vmknic <conn_options> --enable-ipv6 false VMSF-VMK-363

Setting Up vSphere Networking with vSphere Distributed Switch

Adistributedswitchfunctionsasasinglevirtualswitchacrossallassociatedhosts.Adistributedswitchallows

virtualmachinestomaintainaconsistentnetworkconfigurationastheymigrateacrossmultiplehosts.See

“NetworkingUsingvSphereDistributedSwitches”onpage 115.

LikeavSpherestandardswitch,eachdistributedswitchisanetworkhubthatvirtualmachinescanuse.A

distributedswitchcanforwardtrafficinternallybetweenvirtualmachinesorlinktoanexternalnetworkby

connectingtouplinkadapters.

Eachdistributedswitchcanhaveoneormoredistributedportgroupsassignedtoit.Distributedportgroups

groupmultipleportsunderacommonconfigurationandprovideastableanchorpointforvirtualmachines

thatareconnectingtolabelednetworks.Eachdistributedportgroupisidentifiedbyanetworklabel,whichis

uniquetothecurrentdatacenter.AVLANID,whichrestrictsportgrouptraffictoalogicalEthernetsegment

withinthephysicalnetwork,isoptional.

YoucancreatedistributedswitchesbyusingthevSphereWebClient.Afteryouhavecreatedadistributed

switch,youcanaddhostsbyusingthevSphereWebClient,createdistributedportgroups,andedit

distributedswitchpropertiesandpolicieswiththevSphereWebClient.Youcanaddandremoveuplinkports

byusingvicfg-vswitch.

SeethevSphereNetworkingdocumentationandthewhitepaperavailablethroughtheResourceslinkat

http://www.vmware.com/go/networkingforinformationaboutdistributedswitchesandhowtoconfigure

themusingthevSphereWebClient.

Youcanaddandremovedistributedswitchuplinkportswithvicfg-vswitch.

Afterthedistributedswitchhasbeensetup,youcanusevicfg-vswitchtoaddorremoveuplinkports.

Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18

inplaceof<conn_options>.

Addanuplinkport.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --add-dvp-uplink <adapter_name> --dvp <DVPort_id>

<dvswitch_name>

Removeanuplinkport.

vicfg-vswitch <conn_options> --del-dvp-uplink <adapter> --dvp <DVPort_id> <dvswitch_name>

Managing Standard Networking Services in the vSphere Environment

YoucanusevCLIcommandstosetupDNS,NTP,SNMP,andthedefaultgatewayforyourvSphere

environment.

Setting the DNS Configuration

YoucansettheDNSconfigurationwithESXCLIorwithvicfg-dns.

Setting the DNS Configuration with ESXCLI

Theesxcli network ip dnscommandlistsandspecifiestheDNSconfigurationofyourESXihost.

IMPORTANTInvSphere5.0,youcannotcreatedistributedvirtualswitcheswithESXCLI.

IMPORTANTYoucannotaddandremoveuplinkportswithESXCLI.

IMPORTANTIfyoutrytochangethehostordomainnameortheDNSserveronhoststhatuseDHCP,anerror

results.

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InnetworkenvironmentswhereaDHCPserverandaDNSserverareavailable,ESXihostsareautomatically

assignedDNSnames.

InnetworkenvironmentswhereautomaticDNSisnotavailableoryoudonotwanttouseautomaticDNS,you

canconfigurestaticDNSinformation,includingahostname,primarynameserver,secondarynameserver,

andDNSsuffixes.

Theesxcli network ip dnsnamespaceincludestwonamespaces.

esxcli network ip dns searchincludescommandsforDNSsearchdomainconfiguration.

esxcli network ip dns serverincludescommandsforDNSserverconfiguration.

ThefollowingexampleillustratessettingupaDNSserver.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“Connection

OptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To set up a DNS Server

1PrintalistofDNSserversconfiguredonthesystemintheorderinwhichtheywillbeused.

esxcli <conn_options> network ip dns server list

IfDNSisnotsetupforthetargetserver,thecommandreturnsanemptystring.

2Addaserverbyrunningesxcli network ip dns server addandspecifyingtheserverIPv4address

orIPv6address.

esxcli <conn_options> network ip dns server add --server=<str>

3 Changethesettingswithesxcli network ip dns.

SpecifytheDNSserverusingthe--dnsoptionandtheDNShost.

esxcli <conn_options> network ip dns server add --server=<server>

RunthecommandmultipletimestospecifymultipleDNShosts.

ConfiguretheDNShostnamefortheserverspecifiedby--server(or--vihost).

esxcli <conn_options> system hostname set --host=<new_host_name>

ConfiguretheDNSdomainnamefortheserverspecifiedby--server(or--vihost).

esxcli <conn_options> system hostname --domain=mydomain.biz

4ToturnonDHCP,enableDHCPandsettheVMkernelNIC.

TurnonDHCPforIPv4

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv4 set --type dhcp/none/static

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv4 set --peer-dns=<str>

TurnonDHCPforIPv6

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv6 set --enable-dhcpv6=true/false

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv6 set --peer-dns=<str>

To modify DNS setup for a preconfigured server

1DisplayDNSpropertiesforthespecifiedserverasfollows:

Listthehostanddomainname.

esxcli <conn_options> system hostname get

ListavailableDNSservers

esxcli <conn_options> network ip dns server list

ListtheDHCPsettingsforindividualVMkernelNICs.

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv4 get

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv6 get

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2IftheDNSpropertiesareset,andyouwanttochangetheDHCPsettings,youmustspecifythevirtual

networkadaptertousewhenoverridingthesystemDNS.OverridetheexistingDHCPsettingasfollows:

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv4 set --type dhcp/none/static

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv6 set --enable-dhcpv6=true/false

Setting the DNS Configuration with vicfg-dns

Thevicfg-dnscommandlistsandspecifiestheDNSconfigurationofyourESXihost.Callthecommand

withoutcommand‐specificoptionstolisttheexistingDNSconfiguration.Youcanalsouseesxcli network

ip dnsforDNSmanagement.

InnetworkenvironmentswhereaDHCPserverandaDNSserverareavailable,ESXihostsareautomatically

assignedDNSnames.

InnetworkenvironmentswhereautomaticDNSisnotavailableornotdesirable,youcanconfigurestaticDNS

information,includingahostname,primarynameserver,secondarynameserver,andDNSsuffixes.

ThefollowingexampleillustratessettingupaDNSserver.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“Connection

OptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To set up DNS

1Runvicfg-dnswithoutcommand‐specificoptionstodisplayDNSpropertiesforthespecifiedserver.

vicfg-dns <conn_options>

IfDNSisnotsetupforthetargetserver,thecommandreturnsanerror.

2Tochangethesettings,usevicfg-dnswith--dns,--domain,or--hostname.

SpecifytheDNSserverbyusingthe--dnsoptionandacomma‐separatedlistofhosts,inorderof

preference.

vicfg-dns <conn_options --dns <dns1,dns2>

ConfiguretheDNShostnamefortheserverspecifiedby--server(or--vihost).

vicfg-dns <conn_options> -n dns_host_name

ConfiguretheDNSdomainnamefortheserverspecifiedby--server(or--vihost).

vicfg-dns <conn_options> -d mydomain.biz

3ToturnonDHCP,usethe--DHCPoption.

vicfg-dns <conn_options> --dhcp yes

To modify DNS setup for a preconfigured server

1Runvicfg-dnswithoutcommand‐specificoptionstodisplayDNSpropertiesforthespecifiedserver.

vicfg-dns <conn_options>

Theinformationincludesthehostname,domainname,DHCPsetting(trueorfalse),andDNSserverson

theESXihost.

2IftheDNSpropertiesareset,andyouwanttochangetheDHCPsettings,youmustspecifythevirtual

networkadaptertousewhenoverridingthesystemDNS.v_nicmustbeoneoftheVMkernelnetwork

adapters.

OverridetheexistingDHCPsettingasfollows:

vicfg-dns <conn_options> --dhcp yes --v_nic <vnic>

IMPORTANTIfyoutrytochangethehostordomainnameortheDNSserveronhoststhatuseDHCP,anerror

results.

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Adding and Starting an NTP Server

Someprotocols,suchasKerberos,musthaveaccurateinformationaboutthecurrenttime.Inthosecases,you

canaddanNTP(NetworkTimeProtocol)servertoyourESXihost.

ThefollowingexampleillustratessettingupanNTPserver.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“Connection

OptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To manage an NTP Server

1Runvicfg-ntp--add toaddanNTPservertothehostspecifiedin<conn_options>anduseahostname

orIPaddresstospecifyanalreadyrunningNTPserver.

vicfg-ntp <conn_options> -a 192.XXX.XXX.XX

2Runvicfg-ntp --starttostarttheservice.

vicfg-ntp <conn_options> --start

3Runvicfg-ntp --listtolisttheservice.

vicfg-ntp <conn_options> --list

4Runvicfg-ntp --stoptostoptheservice.

vicfg-ntp <conn_options> --stop

5Runvicfg-ntp --deletetoremovethespecifiedNTPserverfromthehostspecifiedin<conn_options>.

vicfg-ntp <conn_options> --delete 192.XXX.XXX.XX

Managing the IP Gateway

IfyoumoveyourESXihosttoanewphysicallocation,youmighthavetochangethedefaultIPgateway.You

canusethevicfg-routecommandtomanagethedefaultgatewayfortheVMkernelIPstack.vicfg-route

supportsasubsetoftheLinuxroutecommand’soptions.

Ifyourunvicfg-routewithnooptions,thecommanddisplaysthedefaultgateway.Use--familytoprint

thedefaultIPv4orthedefaultIPv6gateway.Bydefault,thecommanddisplaysthedefaultIPv4gateway.

Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18

inplaceof<conn_options>.

To add, view, and delete a route entry

1AddarouteentrytotheVMkernelandmakeitthedefault.

ForIPv4networks,noadditionaloptionsarerequired.

vicfg-route <conn_options> --add <network_ip> <netmask_IP> <gateway_ip>

Forexample,toaddarouteto192.XXX.100.0through192.XXX.0.1:

vicfg-route <conn_options> -a 192.XXX.100.0/24 192.XXX.0.1

vicfg-route <conn_options> -a 192.XXX.100.0 255.255.255.0 192.XXX.0.1

ForIPv6networks,use--family v6

vicfg-route <conn_options> -f V6 --add <network_ip_and_mask> <gateway_ip>

Forexample:

vicfg-route <conn_options> -f V6 --add 2001:10:20:253::/64 2001:10:20:253::1

IMPORTANTNoESXCLIcommandexistsforaddingandstartinganNTPserver.

IMPORTANTNoESXCLIcommandexiststomanagethedefaultgateway.

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2Listrouteentriestocheckthatyourroutewasaddedbyrunningthecommandwithoutoptions.

vicfg-route <conn_options>

Theoutputlistsallnetworksandcorrespondingnetmasksandgateways.

3Setthedefaultgateway.

ForIPv4,usethissyntax:

vicfg-route <conn_options> 192.XXX.0.1

vicfg-route <conn_options> -a default 192.XXX.0.1

ForIPv6,usethissyntax:

vicfg-route <conn_options> -f V6 -a default 2001:10:20:253::1

4Runvicfg-route --deletetodeletetheroute.Specifyfirstthegateway,andthenthenetwork.

vicfg-route <conn_options> -d 192.XXX.100.0/24 192.XXX.0.1

Setting Up IPsec

YoucansetInternetProtocolSecuritywithesxcli network ip ipseccommandsorwiththevicfg-ipsec

command.whichsecuresIPcommunicationscomingfromandarrivingatESXihosts.Administratorswho

performIPsecsetupmusthaveasolidunderstandingofbothIPv6and IPsec.

ESXihostssupportIPseconlyforIPv6traffic,butnotforIPv4traffic.

Youcannotrunvicfg-ipsecwithavCenterServersystemasthetarget(usingthe--vihostoption).

Youcanrunesxcli network ip ipseccommandswithavCenterServersystemasatarget(usingthe

--vihostoption).

TheVMwareimplementationofIPsecadherestothefollowingIPv6RFCs:

4301SecurityArchitecturefortheInternetProtocol

4303IPEncapsulatingSecurityPayload(ESP)

4835CryptographicAlgorithmImplementationRequirementsforESP

2410TheNULLEncryptionAlgorithmandItsUseWithIPsec

2451TheESPCBC‐ModeCipherAlgorithms

3602TheAES‐CBCCipherAlgorithmandItsUsewithIPsec

2404TheUseofHMAC‐SHA‐1‐96withinESPandAH

4868UsingHMAC‐SHA‐256,HMAC‐SHA‐384,andHMAC‐SHA‐512

Using IPsec with ESXi

WhenyousetupIPseconanESXihost,youenableprotectionofincomingoroutgoingdata.Whathappens

preciselydependsonhowyousetupthesystem’sSecurityAssociations(SAs)andSecurityPolicies (SPs).

AnSAdetermineshowthesystemprotectstraffic.WhenyoucreateanSA,youspecifythesourceand

destination,authentication,andencryptionparameters,andanidentifierfortheSAwiththefollowing

options.

IMPORTANTInESX/ESXi4.1,ESXi5.0,andESXi5.1,IPv6isbydefaultdisabled.YoucanturnonIPv6by

runningoneofthefollowingvCLIcommands:

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv6 set --enable-dhcpv6

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv6 address add

vicfg-vmknic <conn_options> --enable-ipv6

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AnSPidentifiesandselectstrafficthatmustbeprotected.AnSPconsistsoftwologicalsections,aselector,

andanaction.

Theselectorisspecifiedbythefollowingoptions.

Theactionisspecifiedbythefollowingoptions

BecauseIPsecallowsyoutotargetpreciselywhichtrafficshouldbeencrypted,itiswellsuitedforsecuring

yourvSphereenvironment.Forexample,youcansetuptheenvironmentsoallvMotiontrafficisencrypted.

Managing Security Associations

YoucanspecifyanSAandrequestthattheVMkernelusethatSA.ThefollowingoptionsforSAsetupare

supported.

vicfg-ipsec esxcli network ip ipsec

sa-srcandsa-dst --sa-sourceand--sa-destination

spi(securityparameterindex) --sa-spi

sa-mode(tunnelortransport) --sa-mode

ealgoandekey ‐-encryption-algorithmand--encryption-key

ialgoandikey --integrity-algorithmand--integrity-key

vicfg-ipsec esxcli network ip ipsec

src-addrandsrc-port --sa-sourceand--source-port

dst-addranddst-port --destination-port

ulproto --upper-layer-protocol

direction(inorout)--flow-direction

vicfg-ipsec esxcli network ip ipsec

sa-name --sa-name

sp-name --sp-name

action (none, discard, ipsec --action

vicfg-ipsec Option esxcli Option Description

sa-src <source_IP> sa-source

<source_IP>

SourceIPfortheSA.

sa-dst

<destination_IP>

sa-destination

<destination_IP>

DestinationIPfortheSA.

spi sa-spi SecurityParameterIndex(SPI)fortheSA.Mustbeahexadecimal

numberwitha0xprefix.

WhenIPsecisinuse,ESXiusestheESPprotocol(RFC43030),

whichincludesauthenticationandencryptioninformationand

theSPI.TheSPIidentifiestheSAtouseatthereceivinghost.Each

SAyoucreatemusthaveauniquecombinationofsource,

destination,protocol,andSPI.

sa-mode [tunnel |

transport]

sa-mode [tunnel |

transport]

Eithertunnelortransport.

Intunnelmode,theoriginalpacketisencapsulatedinanother

IPv6packet,wheresourceanddestinationaddressesaretheSA

endpointaddresses.

ealgo [null |

3des-cbc |

aes128-cbc]

encryption-algorith

m [null | 3des-cbc |

aes128-cbc]

Encryptionalgorithmtobeused.Choose3des-cbcor

aes128-cbc,ornullfornoencryption.

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YoucanperformthesemaintaskswithSAs:

CreateanSA.Youspecifythesource,thedestination,andtheauthenticationmode.Youalsospecifythe

authenticationalgorithmandauthenticationkeytouse.Youmustspecifyanencryptionalgorithmand

key,butyoucanspecifynullifyouwantnoencryption.Authenticationisrequiredandcannotbenull.

Thefollowingexampleincludesextralinebreaksforreadability.Thelastoption(sa_2intheexample)is

thenameoftheSA.

esxcli network ip ipsec sa add

--sa-source 2001:DB8:1::121

--sa-destination 2001:DB8:1::122

--sa-mode transport

--sa-spi 0x1000

--encryption-algorithm 3des-cbc

--encryption-key 0x6970763672656164796c6f676f336465736362636f757432

--integrity-algorithm hmac-sha1

--integrity-key 0x6970763672656164796c6f67736861316f757432

--sa-name sa_2

ListanSAwithesxcli network ip ipsec sa list.ThiscommandreturnsSAscurrentlyavailable

forusebyanSP.ThelistincludesSAsyoucreated.

RemoveasingleSAwithesxcli network ip ipsec sa remove.IftheSAisinusewhenyourunthis

command,thecommandcannotperformtheremoval.

RemoveallSAswithesxcli network ip ipsec sa remove--removeall.ThisoptionremovesallSAs

evenwhentheyareinuse.

Managing Security Policies

AfteryouhavecreatedoneormoreSAs,youcanaddsecuritypolicies(SPs)toyourESXihosts.WhiletheSA

specifiestheauthenticationandencryptionparameterstouse,theSPidentifiesandselectstraffic.

ThefollowingoptionsforSPmanagementaresupported.

ekey <key> encryption-key

<key>

Encryptionkeytobeusedbytheencryptionalgorithm.Aseries

ofhexadecimaldigitswitha0xprefixoranASCIIstring.

ialgo [hmac-sha1 |

hmac-sha2-256 ]

integrity-algorithm

[hmac-sha1 |

hmac-sha2-256 ]

Authenticationalgorithmtobeused.Choosehmac-sha1or

hmac-sha2-256.

ikey integrity-key Authenticationkeytobeused.Aseriesofhexadecimaldigitsor

anASCIIstring.

vicfg-ipsec Option esxcli Option Description

CAUTIONRunningesxcli network ip ipsec sa remove--removeallremovesallSAsonyour

systemandmightleaveyoursysteminaninconsistentstate.

vicfg-ipsec Option esxcli Option Description

sp-src <ip>/<p_len> sp-source

SourceIPaddressandprefixlength.

sp-dst <ip>/<p_len> sp-destination

DestinationIPaddressandprefixlength.

src-port <port> source-port <port> Sourceport(0‐65535).Specifyanyforanyports.

dst-port <port> destination-port

<port>

Destinationport(0‐65535).Specifyanyforanyports.If

ulprotoisicmp6,thisnumberreferstotheicmp6type.

Otherwise,thisnumberreferstotheport.

ulproto [any | tcp

| udp | icmp6]

upper-layer-protocol

[any | tcp | udp |

icmp6]

Upperlayerprotocol.UsethisoptiontorestricttheSPtoonly

certainprotocols,oruseanytoapplytheSPtoallprotocols.

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Chapter 9 Managing vSphere Networking

YoucanperformthesemaintaskswithSPs:

CreateanSPwithesxcli network ip ipsec add.Youidentifythedatatomonitorbyspecifyingthe

selector’ssourceanddestinationIPaddressandprefix,sourceportanddestinationport,upperlayer

protocol,directionoftraffic,actiontotake,andSPmode.ThelasttwooptionarethenameoftheSAto

useandthenameoftheSPthatisbeingcreated.Thefollowingexampleincludesextralinebreaksfor

readability.

esxcli network ip ipsec add

--sp-source=2001:0DB8:0001:/48

--sp-destination=2001:0DB8:0002:/48

--source-port=23

--destination-port=25

--upper-layer-protocol=tcp

--flow-direction=out

--action=ipsec

--sp-mode=transport

--sp-name sp_2

ListanSPwithesxcli network ip ipsec list.ThiscommandreturnsSPscurrentlyavailable.All

SPsarecreatedbytheadministrator.

RemoveanSPwithesxcli network ip ipsecremove.IftheSPisinusewhenyourunthiscommand,

thecommandcannotperformtheremoval.Youcanrunesxcli network ip ipsecremove

--removeallinsteadtoremovetheSPevenwhenitisinuse.

Managing the ESXi Firewall

Tominimizetheriskofanattackthroughthemanagementinterface,ESXiincludesafirewallbetweenthe

managementinterfaceandthenetwork.Toensuretheintegrityofthehost,onlyasmallnumberoffirewall

portsareopenbydefault.ThevSphereSecuritydocumentationexplainshowtosetupfirewallsforyour

environmentandwhichportsyoumighthavetotemporarilyenableforcertaintraffic.

Youmanagefirewallsbysettingupfirewallrulesets.vSphereSecuritydocumentationexplainshowtoperform

thesetaskswiththevSphereWebClient.Youcanalsouseesxcli network firewalltomanagefirewall

rulesetsandtoretrieveinformationaboutthem.Specifyoneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsfor

vCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To limit shell access

1CheckfirewallstatusandsshServerrulesetstatus.

esxcli <conn_options> network firewall get

Default Action: DROP

dir [in | out] flow-direction [in |

out]

Directioninwhichyouwanttomonitorthetraffic.Tomonitor

trafficinbothdirections,createtwopolicies.

action [none |

discard | ipsec]

action [none | discard

| ipsec]

Actiontotakewhentrafficwiththespecifiedparametersis

encountered.

none‐‐Takenoaction,thatis,allowtrafficunmodified.

discard‐‐Donotallowdatainorout.

ipsec‐‐Usetheauthenticationandencryptioninformation

specifiedintheSAtodeterminewhetherthedatacomefrom

atrustedsource.

sp-mode [tunnel |

transport]

sp-mode [tunnel |

transport]

Mode,eithertunnelortransport.

sa-name sa-name NameoftheSAtousebythisSP.

vicfg-ipsec Option esxcli Option Description

CAUTIONRunningesxcli network ip ipsecremove --removeallremovesallSPsonyoursystem

andmightleaveyoursysteminaninconsistentstate.

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136 VMware, Inc.

Enabled: true

Loaded: true

esxcli <conn_options> network firewall ruleset list --ruleset-id sshServer

Name Enabled

--------- -------

sshServer true

2EnablethesshServerrulesetifitisdisabled.

esxcli <conn_options> network firewall ruleset set --ruleset-id sshServer --enabled true

3 ObtainaccesstotheESXiShellandcheckthestatusoftheallowedAllflag.

esxcli <conn_options> network firewall ruleset allowedip list --ruleset-id sshServer

Ruleset Allowed IP Addresses

--------- --------------------

sshServer All

SeeGettingStartedwithvSphereCommand‐LineInterfacesforinformationonaccessingtheESXiShell.

4SetthestatusoftheallowedAllflagtofalse.

esxcli <conn_options> network firewall ruleset set --ruleset-id sshServer --allowed-all false

5AddthelistofallowedIPaddresses.

esxcli <conn_options> network firewall ruleset allowedip add --ruleset-id sshServer

--ip-address 192.XXX.1.0/24

esxcli <conn_options> network firewall ruleset allowedip add --ruleset-id sshServer

--ip-address 192.XXX.10.10

6ChecktheallowedIPaddresslist.

esxcli <conn_options> network firewall ruleset allowedip list --ruleset-id sshServer

Ruleset Allowed IP Addresses

--------- -----------------------------

sshServer 192.XXX.10.10, 192.XXX.1.0/24

Monitoring VXLAN

Theesxcli network vswithch dvs vmware vxlannamespacesupportscommandsforexploringVXLAN

configurationdetails.Foramoredetailedexampleofthisfunctionality,seetheVMwarevSphereblogpost

aboutthetopic.

1ListallavailableVXLANvNetworkDistributedSwitches.

esxcli network vswitch dvs vmware vxlan list

2ViewtheVXLANstatisticslevel.

esxcli network vswitch dvs vmware vxlan config stats get

3 Changethestatisticslevel,forexample,from0to1.

esxcli network vswitch dvs vmware vxlan config stats set --level 1

Youcandecidetofilterstatisticsasfollows:

ForavNetworkDistributedSwitch,localizedtoanESXihost

ForaVTEPVMkernelinterface

ForaVXLANsegmentID

ForavNetworkDistributedSwitchportID

4ViewstatisticsforaspecificvNetworkDistributedSwitch.

esxcli network vswitch dvs vmware vxlan config stats list --vds-name Cluster01-VXLAN-VDS

5ViewstatisticsforaVXLANsegmentID.

ListtheavailablesegmentIDs

esxcli network vswitch dvs vmware vxlan network list -vds-name Cluster01-VXLAN-VDS

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Chapter 9 Managing vSphere Networking

RunthefollowingcommandtoviewthenetworkstatisticsforaparticularsegmentID

esxcli network vswitch dvs vmware vxlan network stats list --vds-name Cluster01-VXLAN-VDS

--vxlan-id 5000

Retrievenatworkmappinifsomevirtualmachinecommunicationisoccurring.

esxcli network vswitch dvs vmware vxlan network mapping list --vds-name Cluster01-VXLAN-VDS

--vxlan-id 5000

6ViewVXLANstatisticsforaVDSPortID.

esxcli network vswitch dvs vmware vxlan network port list --vds-name Cluster01-VXLAN-VDS

--vxlan-id 5000

7ViewthenetworkstatisticsforaspecificVDSPortID.

esxcli network vswitch dvs vmware vxlan network port list --vds-name Cluster01-VXLAN-VDS

--vxlan-id 5000 vdsport-is 968

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138 VMware, Inc.

VMware, Inc. 139

StartingwiththevSphere4.0release,thevCenterServermakesperformancechartsforCPU,memory,diskI/O,

networking,andstorageavailable.YoucanviewtheseperformancechartsbyusingthevSphereWebClient

andreadabouttheminthevSphereMonitoringdocumentation.Youcanalsoperformsomemonitoringofyour

ESXisystemusingvCLIcommands.

Thischapterincludesthesetopics:

“UsingresxtopforPerformanceMonitoring”onpage 139

“ManagingDiagnosticPartitions”onpage 139

“ManagingCoreDumps”onpage 140

“ConfiguringESXiSyslogServices”onpage 142

“ManagingESXiSNMPAgents”onpage 143

“RetrievingHardwareInformation”onpage 146

Using resxtop for Performance Monitoring

TheresxtopvCLIcommandallowsyoutoexaminehowESXisystemsuseresources.Youcanusethe

commandininteractivemode(default)orinbatchmode.TheResourceManagementdocumentationexplains

howtouseresxtopandprovidesinformationaboutavailablecommandsanddisplaystatistics.

IfyoucannotreachthehostwiththeresxtopvCLIcommand,youmightbeabletousetheesxtopcommand

intheESXiShellinstead.SeeGettingStartedwithvSphereCommand‐LineInterfacesforinformationonaccessing

theshell.

Managing Diagnostic Partitions

Yourhostmusthaveadiagnosticpartition(dumppartition)tostorecoredumpsfordebuggingandforuseby

VMwaretechnicalsupport.

AdiagnosticpartitionisonthelocaldiskwheretheESXisoftwareisinstalledbydefault.Youcanalsousea

diagnosticpartitiononaremotedisksharedbetweenmultiplehosts.Ifyouwanttouseanetworkdiagnostic

partition,youcaninstallESXiDumpCollectorandconfigurethenetworkedpartition.See“ManagingCore

DumpswithESXiDumpCollector”onpage 141.

Thefollowingconsiderationsapply:

AdiagnosticpartitioncannotbelocatedonaniSCSILUNaccessedthroughthesoftwareiSCSIor

dependenthardwareiSCSIadapter.FormoreinformationaboutdiagnosticpartitionswithiSCSI,see

GeneralBootfromiSCSISANRecommendationsinthevSphereStoragedocumentation.

Astandalonehostmusthaveadiagnosticpartitionof110MB.

Monitoring ESXi Hosts 10

IMPORTANTresxtopandesxtoparesupportedonlyonLinux.

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140 VMware, Inc.

IfmultiplehostsshareadiagnosticpartitiononaSANLUN,configurealargediagnosticpartitionthat

thehostsshare.

Ifahostthatusesashareddiagnosticpartitionfails,rebootthehostandextractlogfilesimmediatelyafter

thefailure.Otherwise,thesecondhostthatfailsbeforeyoucollectthediagnosticdataofthefirsthost

mightnotbeabletosavethecoredump.

Diagnostic Partition Creation

YoucanusethevSphereWebClienttocreatethediagnosticpartitiononalocaldiskoronaprivateorshared

SANLUN.Youcannotusevicfg-dumpparttocreatethediagnosticpartition.TheSANLUNcanbesetup

withFibreChannelorhardwareiSCSI.SANLUNsaccessedthroughasoftwareiSCSIinitiatorarenot

supported.

Diagnostic Partition Management

Youcanusethevicfg-dumppartortheesxcli system coredumpcommandtoquery,set,andscananESXi

system’sdiagnosticpartitions.ThevSphereStoragedocumentationexplainshowtosetupdiagnosticpartitions

withthevSphereWebClientandhowtomanagediagnosticpartitionsonaFibreChannelorhardwareiSCSI

SAN.

Diagnosticpartitionscaninclude,inorderofsuitability,paralleladapter,blockadapter,FC,orhardwareiSCSI

partitions.ParalleladapterpartitionsaremostsuitableandhardwareiSCSIpartitionstheleastsuitable.

Managing Core Dumps

Withesxcli system coredump,youcanmanagelocaldiagnosticpartitionsorsetupcoredumponaremote

serverinconjunctionwithESXiDumpCollector.ForinformationaboutESXiDumpCollector,seethevSphere

Networkingdocumentation.

Managing Local Core Dumps with ESXCLI

ThefollowingexamplescenariochangesthelocaldiagnosticpartitionwithESXCLI.Specifyoneofthe

connectionoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplace

of<conn_options>.

To manage a local diagnostic partition

1ShowthediagnosticpartitiontheVMkernelusesanddisplayinformationaboutallpartitionsthatcanbe

usedasdiagnosticpartitions.

esxcli <conn_options> system coredump partition list

2 Deactivatethecurrentdiagnosticpartition.

esxcli <conn_options> system coredump partition set --unconfigure

TheESXisystemisnowwithoutadiagnosticpartition,andyoumustimmediatelysetanewone.

3Settheactivepartitiontonaa.<naa_ID>.

esxcli <conn_options> system coredump partition set --partition=naa.<naa_ID>

4Listpartitionsagaintoverifythatadiagnosticpartitionisset.

CAUTIONIftwohoststhatshareadiagnosticpartitionfailandsavecoredumpstothesameslot,thecore

dumpsmightbelost.

Ifahostthatusesashareddiagnosticpartitionfails,rebootthehostandextractlogfilesimmediatelyafterthe

failure.

IMPORTANTWhenyoulistdiagnosticpartitions,softwareiSCSIpartitionsareincluded.However,SANLUNs

accessedthroughasoftwareiSCSIinitiatorarenotsupportedasdiagnosticpartitions.

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Chapter 10 Monitoring ESXi Hosts

esxcli <conn_options> system coredump partition list

Ifadiagnosticpartitionisset,thecommanddisplaysinformationaboutit.Otherwise,thecommand

showsthatnopartitionisactivatedandconfigured.

Managing Core Dumps with ESXi Dump Collector

Bydefault,acoredumpissavedtothelocaldisk.YoucanuseESXiDumpCollectortokeepcoredumpsona

networkserverforuseduringdebugging.ESXiDumpCollectorisespeciallyusefulforAutoDeploy,but

supportedforanyESXi5.0andlaterhost.ESXiDumpCollectorsupportsothercustomization,including

sendingcoredumpstothelocaldisk.

ESXiDumpCollectorisincludedwiththevCenterServerautorun.exeapplication.YoucaninstallESXi

DumpCollectoronthesamesystemasthevCenterServerserviceoronadifferentWindowsorLinux

machine.SeevSphereNetworking.

YoucanconfigureESXihoststouseESXiDumpCollectorbyusingtheHostProfilesinterfaceofthevSphere

WebClient,orbyusingESXCLI.Specifyoneoftheconnectionoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLI

HostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To manage core dumps with ESXi Dump Collector

1SetupanESXisystemtouseESXiDumpCollectorbyrunningesxcli system coredump.

esxcli <conn_options> system coredump network set --interface-name vmk0

--server-ipv4=1-XX.XXX --port=6500

YoumustspecifyaVMkernelportwith--interface-name,andtheIPaddressandportoftheserverto

sendthecoredumpsto.IfyouconfigureanESXisystemthatisrunninginsideavirtualmachine,you

mustchooseaVMkernelportthatisinpromiscuousmode.

2EnableESXiDumpCollector.

esxcli <conn_options> system coredump network set --enable=true

3 (Optional)CheckthatESXiDumpCollectorisconfiguredcorrectly.

esxcli <conn_options> system coredump network get

ThehostonwhichyouhavesetupESXiDumpCollectorsendscoredumpstothespecifiedserverbyusing

thespecifiedVMkernelNICandoptionalport.

Managing Core Dumps with vicfg-dumppart

Thefollowingexamplescenariochangesthediagnosticpartition.Specifyoneoftheconnectionoptionslisted

in“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplaceof<conn_options>.

To manage a diagnostic partition

1ShowthediagnosticpartitiontheVMkerneluses.

vicfg-dumppart <conn_options> -t

2Displayinformationaboutallpartitionsthatcanbeusedasdiagnosticpartitions.Use-ltolistall

diagnosticpartitions,-ftolistalldiagnosticpartitionsinorderofpriority.

vicfg-dumppart <conn_options> -f

Theoutputmightappearasfollows.

Partition name on vml.mpx.vmhba36:C0:T0:L0:7 -> mpx.vmhba36:C0:T0:L0:7

3 Deactivatethediagnosticpartition.

vicfg-dumppart <conn_options> -d

TheESXisystemisnowwithoutadiagnosticpartition,andyoumustimmediatelysetanewone.

4Settheactivepartitiontonaa.<naa_ID>.

vicfg-dumppart <conn_options> -s naa.<naa_ID>

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5Runvicfg-dumppart -tagaintoverifythatadiagnosticpartitionisset.

vicfg-dumppart <conn_options> -t

Ifadiagnosticpartitionisset,thecommanddisplaysinformationaboutit.Otherwise,thecommand

informsyouthatnopartitionisset.

Configuring ESXi Syslog Services

AllESXihostsrunaSyslogservice,whichlogsmessagesfromtheVMkernelandothersystemcomponentsto

localfilesortoaremotehost.YoucanusethevSphereWebClient,orusetheesxcli system syslog

commandtoconfigurethefollowingparametersofthesyslogservice.

Remotehostandport.RemotehosttowhichSyslogmessagesareforwardedandportonwhichthe

remotehostreceivesSyslogmessages.Theremotehostmusthavealoglistenerserviceinstalledand

correctlyconfiguredtoreceivetheforwardedsyslogmessages.Seethedocumentationforthesyslog

serviceinstalledontheremotehostforinformationonconfiguration.

Transportprotocol.LogscanbesentbyusingUDP(default),TCPorSSLtransports.

Localloggingdirectory.Directorywherelocalcopiesofthelogsarestored.Thedirectorycanbelocated

onmountedNFSorVMFSvolumes.Onlythe/scratchdirectoryonthelocalfilesystemispersistent

acrossreboots.

Uniquedirectorynameprefix.SettingthisoptiontotruecreatesasubdirectorywiththenameoftheESXi

hostunderthespecifiedloggingdirectory.ThismethodisespeciallyusefulifthesameNFSdirectoryis

usedbymultipleESXihosts.

Logrotationpolicies.Setsmaximumlogsizeandthenumberofarchivestokeep.Youcanspecifypolicies

bothglobally,andforindividualsubloggers.Forexample,youcansetalargersizelimitforthevmkernel

log.

Aftermakingconfigurationchanges,restartthesyslogservice(vmsyslogd)byrunningesxcli system

syslog reload.

Theesxcli system syslogcommandallowsyoutoconfiguretheloggingbehaviorofyourESXisystem.

WithvSphere5.0,youcanmanagethetop‐levelloggerandsubloggers.Thecommandhasthefollowing

options.

IMPORTANTTheesxcli system syslogcommandistheonlysupportedcommandforchangingESXi5.0

andlaterloggingconfiguration.Thevicfg-syslogcommandandeditingconfigurationfilesisnotsupported

forESXi5.0andcanresultinerrors.

Option Description

mark Marksalllogswiththespecifiedstring.

reload Reloadstheconfiguration,andupdatesanychangedconfigurationvalues.

config get Retrievesthecurrentconfiguration.

config set Setstheconfiguration.Useoneofthefollowingoptions.

--logdir=<path>–Savelogstoagivenpath.

--loghost=<host>–Sendlogstoagivenhost.See“esxclisystemsyslogExamples”on

page 143.

--logdir-unique=<true|false>–Specifywhetherthelogshouldgotoaunique

subdirectoryofthedirectoryspecifiedinlogdir.

--default-rotate=<int>–Defaultnumberoflogrotationstokeep.

--default-size=<int>–Sizebeforerotatinglogs,inKB.

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esxcli system syslog Examples

Thefollowingworkflowillustrateshowyoumightuseesxcli system syslogforlogconfiguration.Specify

oneoftheoptionslistedin“ConnectionOptionsforvCLIHostManagementCommands”onpage 18inplace

of<conn_options>.

1Showconfigurationoptions.

esxcli <conn_options> system syslog config get

Default Rotation Size: 1024

Default Rotations: 8

Log Output: /scratch/log

Logto Unique Subdirectory: false

Remote Host: <none>

2Setalllogstokeeptwentyrotationsbeforeoverwritingtheoldestlog.

esxcli <conn_options> system syslog config set --default-rotate=20

3SettherotationpolicyforVMkernellogsto10rotations,rotatingat2MB.

esxcli <conn_options> system syslog config logger --id=vmkernel --size=2048 --rotate=10

4Sendlogstoremotehostmyhost.mycompany.com.Thelogswillusethedefaulttransport(UDP)andport

(514).

esxcli system syslog config set --loghost='myhost.mycompany.com'

5 Savethelocalcopyoflogsto/scratch/mylogsandsendanothercopytotheremotehost.

esxcli <conn_options> system syslog config set --loghost='tcp://myhost.mycompany.com:1514'

--logdir='/scratch/mylogs'

Yousetthedirectoryontheremotehostbyconfiguringtheclientrunningonthathost.Youcanusethe

vSphereWebClienttoredirectsystemlogstoaremotehostbychangingtheSystem.global.logHost

advancedsetting.

6Sendalogmessagetoalllogssimultaneously.

esxcli <conn_options> system syslog mark --message="this is a message!"

7Reloadthesyslogdaemonandapplyconfigurationchanges.

esxcli <conn_options> system syslog reload

Managing ESXi SNMP Agents

SimpleNetworkManagementProtocol(SNMP)allowsmanagementprogramstomonitorandcontrol

networkeddevices.YoucanmanagevSphere5.0SNMPagentswithvicfg-snmpcommandsdiscussedhere.

vCenterServerandESXisystemsincludedifferentSNMPagents.

config logger list Showcurrentlyconfiguredsubloggers.

config logger set Setconfigurationoptionsforaspecificsublogger.Useoneofthefollowingoptions.

--id=<str>–IDoftheloggertoconfigure(required).

--reset=<str>–Resetvaluestodefault.

--rotate=<long>–Numberofrotatedlogstokeepforaspecificlogger(requires--id).

--size=<long>–Sizeoflogsbeforerotationforaspecificlogger,inKB(requires--id).

Option Description

IMPORTANTSignificantenhancementstoSNMP,includingsupportforSNMPv3,areincludedinESXi5.1.The

newfunctionalityismanagedthroughESXCLIcommands.SeethevSphereMonitoringandPerformance

documentationthatisavailableinthevSphere5.1DocumentationCenter.

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vCenterServerSNMPagent.TheSNMPagentincludedwithvCenterServercansendtrapswhenthe

vCenterServersystemisstartedorwhenanalarmistriggeredonvCenterServer.ThevCenterServer

SNMPagentfunctionsonlyasatrapemitteranddoesnotsupportotherSNMPoperations(forexample,

GET).

YoucanmanagethevCenterServeragentwiththevSphereWebClientbutnotwiththevCLIcommand.

Host‐basedembeddedSNMPagent.ESXi4.0andlaterincludesanSNMPagentembeddedinthehost

daemon(hostd)thatcansendtrapsandreceivepollingrequestssuchasGETrequests.

YoucanmanageSNMPonESXihostswiththevicfg-snmpvCLIcommand,butnotwiththevSphere

ClientorwiththeESXCLIcommand.

Net‐SNMP‐basedagent.VersionsofESXreleasedbeforeESX/ESXi4.0includeaNet‐SNMP‐basedagent.

YoucancontinuetousethisNet‐SNMP‐basedagentinESX4.xwithMIBssuppliedbyyourhardware

vendorandotherthird‐partymanagementapplications.However,tousetheVMwareMIBfiles,youmust

usethehost‐basedembeddedSNMPagent.

TousetheNET‐SNMPbasedagentandhost‐basedembeddedSNMPagentatthesametime,makeoneofthe

agentslistenonanondefaultport.Bydefault,bothagentsusethesameport.

Thehost‐basedembeddedSNMPagentisdisabledbydefault.Configuringandenablingtheagentrequires

thatyouperformthefollowingtasks:

1ConfigureSNMPCommunities.See“ConfiguringSNMPCommunities”onpage 144.

2ConfiguretheSNMPAgent.Youhavethefollowingchoices:

“ConfiguringtheSNMPAgenttoSendTraps”onpage 144

“ConfiguringtheSNMPAgentforPolling”onpage 145

Configuring SNMP Communities

BeforeyouenabletheESXiembeddedSNMPagent,youmustconfigureatleastonecommunityfortheagent.

AnSNMPcommunitydefinesagroupofdevicesandmanagementsystems.Onlydevicesandmanagement

systemsthataremembersofthesamecommunitycanexchangeSNMPmessages.Adeviceormanagement

systemcanbeamemberofmultiplecommunities.

ToconfigureSNMPcommunities,runesxcli system snmp setorvicfg-snmp -c,specifyinga

comma‐separatedlistofcommunities.Forexample:

esxcli system snmp set -c public, internal

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> -c public, internal

Eachtimeyouspecifyacommunitywiththiscommand,thesettingsthatyouspecifyoverwritetheprevious

configuration.

Configuring the SNMP Agent to Send Traps

YoucanusetheSNMPagentembeddedinESXitosendvirtualmachineandenvironmentaltrapsto

managementsystems.Toconfiguretheagenttosendtraps,youmustspecifyatarget(receiver)address,the

community,andanoptionalport.Ifyoudonotspecifyaport,theSNMPagentsendstrapstoUDPport162

onthetargetmanagementsystembydefault.

Configuring a Trap Destination with ESXCLI

1Makesureacommunityissetup.

esxcli system snmp get <conn_options>

Current SNMP agent settings:

Enabled: 1

UDP port: 161

Communities: public

Notification targets:

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2Setthetargetaddress,portnumber,andcommunity.

esxcli <conn_options> system snmp set -t target.example.com@163/public

Eachtimeyouspecifyatargetwiththiscommand,thesettingsyouspecifyoverwriteallpreviously

specifiedsettings.Tospecifymultipletargets,separatethemwithacomma.

YoucanchangetheportthattheSNMPagentsendsdatatoonthetargetusingthe--targetsoption.

ThatportisUDP162bydefault.

3 (Optional)EnabletheSNMPagentifitisnotyetrunning.

esxcli <conn_options> system snmp set --enable=yes

4 (Optional)Sendatesttraptoverifythattheagentisconfiguredcorrectly.

esxcli <conn_options> system snmp test

TheagentsendsawarmStarttraptotheconfiguredtarget.

Configuring a Trap Destination with vicfg-snmp

1Makesureacommunityissetup.

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> --show

Current SNMP agent settings:

Enabled: 1

UDP port: 161

Communities: public

Notification targets:

2Runvicfg-snmp --targetwiththetargetaddress,portnumber,andcommunity.

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> -t target.example.com@163/public

Eachtimeyouspecifyatargetwiththiscommand,thesettingsyouspecifyoverwriteallpreviously

specifiedsettings.Tospecifymultipletargets,separatethemwithacomma.

YoucanchangetheportthattheSNMPagentsendsdatatoonthetargetusingthe--targetsoption.

ThatportisUDP162bydefault.

3 (Optional)EnabletheSNMPagentifitisnotyetrunning.

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> --enable

4 (Optional)Sendatesttraptoverifythattheagentisconfiguredcorrectly.

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> --test

TheagentsendsawarmStarttraptotheconfiguredtarget.

Configuring the SNMP Agent for Polling

IfyouconfiguretheESXiembeddedSNMPagentforpolling,itcanlistenforandrespondtorequestssuchas

GETrequestsfromSNMPmanagementclientsystems.

Bydefault,theembeddedSNMPagentlistensonUDPport161forpollingrequestsfrommanagement

systems.Youcanusethevicfg-snmpcommandtoconfigureanalternativeport.Toavoidconflictswithother

services,useaUDPportthatisnotdefinedin/etc/services.

Configuring the SNMP Agent for Polling with ESXCLI

1Runvicfg-snmp --targetwiththetargetaddress,portnumber,andcommunity.

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> -c public -t target.example.com@163/public

IMPORTANTBoththeembeddedSNMPagentandtheNet‐SNMP‐basedagentavailableintheESX4.xservice

consolelistenonUDPport161bydefault.IfyouareusinganESX4.xsystem,changetheportforoneagent

toenablebothagentsforpolling.

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Eachtimeyouspecifyatargetwiththiscommand,thesettingsyouspecifyoverwriteallpreviously

specifiedsettings.Tospecifymultipletargets,separatethemwithacomma.

YoucanchangetheportthattheSNMPagentsendsdatatoonthetargetbyusingthe--targetsoption.

ThatportisUDP162bydefault.

2 (Optional)Specifyaportforlisteningforpollingrequests.

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> -p <port>

3 (Optional)IftheSNMPagentisnotenabled,enableit.

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> --enable

4Runvicfg-snmp --testtovalidatetheconfiguration.

Thefollowingexampleshowshowthecommandsareruninsequence.

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> –c public –t example.com@162/private --enable

# next validate your config by doing these things:

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> -–test

walk –v1 –c public esx-host

Configuring the SNMP Agent for Polling with vicfg-snmp

1Runvicfg-snmp --targetwiththetargetaddress,portnumber,andcommunity.

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> -c public -t target.example.com@163/public

Eachtimeyouspecifyatargetwiththiscommand,thesettingsyouspecifyoverwriteallpreviously

specifiedsettings.Tospecifymultipletargets,separatethemwithacomma.

YoucanchangetheportthattheSNMPagentsendsdatatoonthetargetbyusingthe--targetsoption.

ThatportisUDP162bydefault.

2 (Optional)Specifyaportforlisteningforpollingrequests.

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> -p <port>

3 (Optional)IftheSNMPagentisnotenabled,enableit.

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> --enable

4Runvicfg-snmp --testtovalidatetheconfiguration.

Thefollowingexampleshowshowthecommandsareruninsequence.

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> –c public –t example.com@162/private --enable

# next validate your config by doing these things:

vicfg-snmp <conn_options> -–test

walk –v1 –c public esx-host

Retrieving Hardware Information

CommandsindifferentESXCLInamespacesmightdisplaysomehardwareinformation,buttheesxcli

hardwarenamespaceisspecificallyintendedtogiveyouthatinformation.Thenamespaceincludes

commandsforgettingandsettingCPUproperties,forlistingbootdevices,andforgettingandsettingthe

hardwareclocktime.

YoucanalsousetheipminamespacetoretrieveIPMIsystemeventlogs(SEL)andsensordatarecords(SDR).

Thecommandsupportsbothget(singlereturnvalue)andlist(multiplereturnvalues)commandsandreturns

rawsensorinformation.

SeethevCLIReferenceortheESXCLIonlinehelpfordetails.

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Index

Numerics

3.5 LUN masks 97

Active Directory 25, 26

active path 47

ARP redirect 76

authentication

algorithm (IPsec) 134

default inheritance 63

key (IPsec) 134

returning to default inheritance 63

AUTOCONF 127

backing up configuration data 24

CDP 118, 119, 120

Challenge Handshake Authentication Protocol 62

changing IP gateway 131

CHAP 62

chapDiscouraged 62

chapPreferred 62

chapProhibited 62

chapRequired 62

Cisco Discovery Protocol 118

claim rules

adding 95

converting 97

deleting 98

from 3.5 systems 97

from LUN mask 97

listing 98

loading 98

moving 98

rule IDs 96

running 99

commands with esxcfg prefix 12

configuration data

backing up 24

restoring 24

configuration files, path 57

copying files 33

core dumps 140

ESXi Dump Collector 141

local 140

managing 141

creating directories 33

datastores

mounting 30

NFS 50

overview 39

default gateway 132

default inheritance 63, 80, 81

default port groups 118

dependent hardware iSCSI 59, 70, 75

device management 44, 87

device mappings 41, 42

DHCP 129, 130

DHCPV6 127

diagnostic partitions

creating 140

example 140, 141

managing 139

directory management 35

directory names with special characters 33

discovery sessions 60

discovery targets 61

disk file path 57

distributed switches 113, 114, 115, 117

DNS 128, 129, 130

downloading files 33

duplicate datastores 29

dynamic discovery 60

encryption algorithm (IPsec) 133

encryption key (IPsec) 134

esxcfg prefix 12

esxcli network ip commands 125

esxcli network ip dns 129

esxcli network nic commands 123

esxcli network vswitch commands 118, 120, 124

esxcli storag

nfs commands 51

esxcli storage core

claiming commands 93

claimrule commands 95

claimrule convert commands 97

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claimrule delete command 98

claimrule list command 98

claimrule load command 98

claimrule move command 98

claimrule run command 99

device list 41

esxcli storage core adapter rescan 58

esxcli storage core claiming

reclaim command 94

unclaim command 94

esxcli storage core path 45, 47

esxcli storage nmp 87

device list command 88

device set command 88

fixed deviceconfig commands 89

path list command 88

psp commands 88, 89

psp roundrobin commands 90

roundrobin 50, 90

satp commands 91

esxcli system coredump 140

ESXi Dump Collector 139, 141

EUI name 45, 46, 61

examples

backup with vMA 24

configure VMkernel NIC for IPv4 125

configure VMkernel NIC for IPv6 126

DNS setup 129

enable and set NetQueue modules 25

entering maintenance mode 22, 23

iSCSI storage setup 68, 70, 73, 75

managing users 103

route entry setup 131

svmotion 57

uplink adapter setup 122

external HBA properties 78

failover 44

FC LUNs 39

Fibre Channel LUNs 39

file management

introduction 27

vifs 28, 35

file path, configuration file 57

file systems

NAS 51

VMFS 29

fixed path selection policy 89

gateway, IP 131

groups 101, 104

hard power operations 110

hardware iSCSI setup tasks 72, 76

HBA mappings 42

HBA properties 78

hosts

managing 21

shutdown or reboot 21

ifconfig, ESXCLI equivalents 115

independent hardware iSCSI

definition 59

setup tasks 72, 76

inheritance 81

IP gateway 131

IP storage 114

IPsec 132

IPv4 125, 126

IPv6 126, 127

IQN name 61

iSCSI

authentication 63, 82, 83

default inheritance 80, 81

dependent hardware iSCSI 70, 75

discovery target names 61

independent hardware iSCSI 72, 76

LUNs 39

mutual authentication 82, 83

options 77

overview 59

parameters 79, 80

parameters, returning to default inheritance 80,

port binding 70, 75

ports for multipathing 83

remove sessions 85

securing ports 62

security 61

sessions 84, 85

setup examples 68, 70, 73, 75

Kerberos 131

license 56

listing IP gateway 131

loading claim rules 98

lockdown mode 19

logical devices, listing 42

LUN masks, convert to claim rule 97

LUNs

VMware, Inc. 149

Index

names 45, 46

overview 40

MAC address, VMkernel NIC 125

MagicPacket 123

maintenance mode 22, 23

Managing 44, 59, 122

managing 140

managing local core dumps 140

managing NMP 87

managing paths 44

managing physical network interfaces 122

migrating virtual machines,svmotion 55

mount datastores 30

MTU 119, 120

multipathing 44, 45

mutual authentication 82, 83

mutual CHAP 69, 71, 74, 76, 82, 83

naa.xxx device name 45, 46

NAS datastores, datastores, NAS 50

NAS file systems 51

NetQueue VMkernel modules 25

network adapters

duplex value 122

managing 122

speed 122

network interfaces 117, 122

networking

vDS 128

vSS 117

NFS datastores 50

NFS, capabilities 51

NMP 44, 87

NTP server 131

offload iSCSI 59

orphaned virtual machine 106

parameters

default inheritance (iSCSI) 81

setting (iSCSI) 80

partitions, diagnostic 140

path change conditions for round robin 91

path claiming 93

path operations 88

path policies 47, 89, 90

path state, changing 46

paths

active 47

changing state 46

disabling 47

listing 46

listing with ESXCLI 45

managing 44

preferred 49, 50, 89

performance monitoring 139

physical network interfaces 122

platform support 14

Pluggable Storage Architecture 44

port binding 70, 75, 84

port groups 114, 121, 122

adding 120

and uplink adapter 121

default 118

removing 120

ports, iSCSI multipathing 83

power operations 110

powerop_mode 110

preferred path 49, 50, 89

PSA 44

acronym 87

managing claim rules 95

PSP

acronym 87

information 89

operations 88

raw devices 39

rebooting hosts 21

removing snapshots 109

rescanning adapters 58

rescanning storage 39, 58

rescanning storage adapters 58

resignature VMFS copy 31

restoring configuration data 24

resxtop 13, 139

reverting snapshots 109

RFCs (vicfg-ipsec) 132

roles 101

round robin

operations 50, 90

path change conditions 91

retrieve settings 90

route entry setup 131

rule IDs 96

rules 92

claim rules 95

SATP rules 92

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150 VMware, Inc.

SATP

configuration parameters 93

deleting rules 92

retrieve settings 91

rules, adding 91

securing iSCSI ports 62

security associations (IPsec) 133

security policies (IPsec) 134

sessions, iSCSI 85

Simple Network Management Protocol 143

snapshots 108, 109

SNMP

communities 144

management 143

polling 145

traps 144

soft power operations 110

software iSCSI setup tasks 68, 70, 73, 75

spaces in directory names 33

special characters

in directories 33

vicfg-iscsi 79, 81

standard networking services 128

starting NTP server 131

state of path, changing 46

static discovery 60

stopping virtual machines 111

storage

creating directories with vifs 33

overview 37

path claiming 93

rescanning 39, 58

virtual machines 38

storage array target 40

storage device naming 39

supported platforms 14

svmotion 55

interactive Mode 56

license for storage vMotion 56

limitations 56

noninteractive mode 56

requirements 56

special characters 56

switch attributes 119, 120

syslog server specification 142

TCP Segmentation Offload 125

TCP/IP 72, 76, 114

transport mode 133

TSO 125

tunnel mode 133

unregister virtual machines 107

uplink adapters 114, 122

and port groups 121

setup 124

useANO (round robin) 50

user input 111

users

creating 103

in vSphere environment 101

modifying 103

VDS 113

vicfg-authconfig 25

vicfg-cfgbackup 23, 24

vicfg-dumppart 140, 141

vicfg-hostops 21, 22

vicfg-ipsec 133, 134

vicfg-iscsi

command syntax 63

default inheritance for authentication 63

default inheritance for parameters 80, 81

iscsi parameter options 81

vicfg-module 24

vicfg-mpath 46

vicfg-nas 50, 52

vicfg-nics 124

vicfg-ntp 131

vicfg-rescan 58, 75

vicfg-scsidevs

3.5 support 42

list options 42

vicfg-snmp 143

vicfg-syslog 142

vicfg-user 101, 102, 104

vicfg-vmknic 125

vicfg-volume 29

vicfg-vswitch 117, 120

vifs 28, 32

virtual devices 110

virtual machine configuration file path 57

virtual machines

attributes 107

file management 27

listing 106, 107

managing 107

migration with svmotion 55

network settings 115

orphaned 106

path 106

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Index

registering 106, 107

starting 109

stopping 111

storage VMotion 56

vmware-cmd 107

virtual switches 113, 117, 118

MTU 119, 120

retrieving information 118

vicfg-vswitch 117

VLAN ID 121, 122

VMFS

duplicate datastores 29

resignature copy 30

resignaturing 31

VMFS3 to VMFS5 conversion 29

VMkernel modules 24

VMkernel network interfaces 125

VMkernel NIC 125

enable VMotion 127

IPv4 125, 126

IPv6 126, 127

VMkernel NICs 125

vmkfstools 28

VML LUN names 45, 46

VMotion 114, 127

VMW_PSP_FIXED 48

VMW_PSP_MRU 48

VMW_PSP_RR 48

vmware-cmd

connection options 106

general options 106

server options 106

snapshots 108

virtual machine options 107

VMware Tools 110

vSphere distributed switches 115, 128

VSS 113

Windows Active Directory 26

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152 VMware, Inc.

Vmware VSphere Command Line Interface Concepts And Examples V Center Server 6.0 Esxi Vcenter 60 En

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