How to Disable or Remove vSphere Client Plugins in vCenter Server

Products

• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

This article provides information for disabling/removing vCenter Server vSphere Client Plugins.

In certain occasions, it may be needed to disable specific products integrating with the vCenter Server: compliance requirements, third-party product vulnerabilities, interoperability issues, etc. As part of this user interface plugins need to be disabled and undeployed from the vSphere Client.

Environment

VMware vCenter Server 6.7.x
VMware vCenter Server 7.0.x

Resolution

Depending on the required level of disablement there are 3 ways to remove a UI plugin from the vSphere Client:

Note : In linked mode the resolution should performed on every affected vCenter Server.

1. Hiding the plugin UI extensions:
 

vSphere Client contains a dedicated administration UI for managing Client plugins: Administration > Client Plugins. For more information, see Monitor Client Plugins. Using the Disable button effectively hides the plugin extensions from the vSphere Client UI but keeps the plugin deployed and operational.

Note: This method can be used for addressing visual problems but is NOT suitable for preventing interoperability, security or performance issues.

2. Blocking plugin deployment:

A plugin can be marked as incompatible in the vSphere Client's compatibility matrix. This prevents the plugin from being deployed in the vSphere Client thus making it inactive. At the same time the plugin is still registered with the vCenter Server and, after the issues are resolved, can be marked compatible again without the need to re-install the product.

Note: This method can be used for addressing interoperability, security or performance issues.

To Disable vCenter Server plugin, please use the below links:

1. How to Disable VMware Plugins in vCenter Server per VMSA-2021-0002, VMSA-2021-0010, VMSA-2021-0010

 

3. Unregistering the plugin from the vCenter Server:

A plugin can be removed from the Extension Manager of the vCenter Server which effectively uninstalls it from the vSphere environment. For more information, see  Cannot remove or disable unwanted plug-ins from vCenter Server and vCenter Server Appliance.

Note: If the vCenter Server is in linked mode then the plugin has to be unregistered from the Extension Manager of every vCenter Server in which it's registered. This is needed as vCenter Server uses a plugin-discovery algorithm that will discover and try to deploy the plugin if it's registered in the Extension Manager of any of the linked vCenter Servers. In such environments using the solution described in "2. Blocking plugin deployment" might be the most appropriate.