VLSR - Clearing the vSphere client cache and removing older plugins when Site Recovery plugin fails to download in vCenter (312655)
Article ID: 312655
Updated On:
Products
Issue/Introduction
VMware Site Recovery plug-in fails to deploy in vCenter
Download plug-in errors:
Error downloading plug-in. Make sure that the URL is reachable and the registered thumbprint is correct. vCenter.broadcom.com: Name or service not known
Cannot complete the operation. See the event log for details. Error downloading plug-in. URL is unreachable. status code: 503, reason phrase: Service Unavailable
Environment
VMware vSphere Replication 9.x
VMware vCenter Server 6.x
VMware vCenter Server 7.x
Cause
1. Missing plugins in web/HTML client. New Plugin deployed does load in the vSphere Web Client.
2. vCenter upgrade is rolled back to a previous version OR you have incorrect installations and upgrades.
3. Certificate in SRM & VRMS VAMI is assigned to short name or IP address instead of FQDN.
4. Plug-in not loading due to the browser cache.
Resolution
Plug-in log locations:
vCenter - /var/log/vmware/vsphere-ui/logs/vsphere_client_virgo.log
SRM/VRMS - /var/log/vmware/dr-client-plugin/drplugin.log
Before proceeding with the below action plan, try and open the vCenter in an incognito tab or a different browser to check if the plug-in still shows failed. Sometimes, due to the browser cache the plug-in will keep on showing failed and does not show the site recovery plug-in.
Opening the vCenter in an incognito tab should show the correct plug-in deployed.
In case we still see the plug-in status as failed, continue following the below action plan.
Verify if you have unwanted plugins for vCenter Appliance.
vSphere replication (vrms/vcHms)
Site Recovery Manager (vcDr)
Site Recovery Plugin 8.x (vrUi)
NOTE: Take powered OFF snapshots of vCenter. Ignore the PSC, if you don't have it.
1. Record the ESXi host on which vCenter and PSC is homed
2. Set DRS to manual mode for the clusters in which these hosts reside.
3. Login to vCenter & PSC VAMI. Shutdown the vCenters first followed by the PSCs.
4. Once all nodes are shutdown, snapshot vCenter & PSC from the host client.
5. Power ON the PSCs first followed by the vCenter
NOTE: For vCenter server 6.x and below replace vsphere-ui with vsphere-client in the below commands.
root@VCSA [ ~ ]# service-control --stop vsphere-ui (Any vCenter users logged in will be logged off)
Operation not cancellable. Please wait for it to finish...
Performing stop operation on service vsphere-ui...
Successfully stopped service vsphere-ui
root@VCSA [ ~ ]# cd /usr/lib/vmware-vsphere-ui/server/work/
root@VCSA [ /usr/lib/vmware-vsphere-ui/server/work ]# ls
root@VCSA [ /usr/lib/vmware-vsphere-ui/server/work ]# rm -rf *
root@VCSA [ ~ ]# cd /storage/vsphere-ui/SerenityDB/serenity
root@VCSA [ /storage/vsphere-ui/SerenityDB/serenity ]# ls
root@VCSA [ /storage/vsphere-ui/SerenityDB/serenity ]# rm -rf *
root@VCSA [ ~ ]# cd /etc/vmware/vsphere-ui/vc-packages/vsphere-client-serenity/
root@VCSA [ /etc/vmware/vsphere-ui/vc-packages/vsphere-client-serenity ]# ls
com.dell.emc.nw-19.6.0.94 com.vmware.lcm.client-7.0.3.500 com.vmware.vrops.install-7.0.203.10000 com.vmware.vsphere.client.h5vsan-7.0.203.10000 com.vmware.vxrail-9.1.0.0
root@VCSA [ /etc/vmware/vsphere-ui/vc-packages/vsphere-client-serenity ]# rm -rf *
root@VCSA [ ~ ]# cd /etc/vmware/vsphere-ui/cmCatalog
root@WEMA-HQVXVCENTER [ /etc/vmware/vsphere-ui/cmCatalog ]# ls
root@VCSA [ /etc/vmware/vsphere-ui/cmCatalog ]# rm -rf *
NOTE: Only remove older version or unwanted plug-ins from this location.
root@VCSA [ ~ ]# cd /etc/vmware/vsphere-ui/cm-service-packages/com.vmware.cis.vsphereclient.plugin
root@VCSA [ /etc/vmware/vsphere-ui/cm-service-packages/com.vmware.cis.vsphereclient.plugin ]# ls
com.vmware.h4.vsphere.client-0.4.3.0 com.vmware.vrUi-8.5.0.18710000 com.vmware.vrUi-8.6.0.20554592 com.vmware.vum.client-7.0.3.19478898
root@VCSA [ /etc/vmware/vsphere-ui/cm-service-packages/com.vmware.cis.vsphereclient.plugin ]# rm -rf com.vmware.vrUi-8.5.0.18710000
root@VCSA [ /etc/vmware/vsphere-ui/cm-service-packages/com.vmware.cis.vsphereclient.plugin ]# ls
com.vmware.h4.vsphere.client-0.4.3.0 com.vmware.vrUi-8.6.0.20554592 com.vmware.vum.client-7.0.3.19478898
root@VCSA [ ~ ]# service-control --start vsphere-ui
Operation not cancellable. Please wait for it to finish...
Performing start operation on service vsphere-ui...
Successfully started service vsphere-ui
If the issue is resolved, remove all snapshots at once if vCenter/PSC is in ELM (Enhanced Linked Mode)
Additional Information
1. Stopping the vSphere client UI service will log out users logged into vCenter
2. Restarting all vCenter services when backups are running will stall all running backup jobs.
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