Windows Server images not booting, failing to join domain and local account requiring password reset in Aria Automation

Products

• VMware Aria Suite

Issue/Introduction

Symptoms:

• Cloudbase Cloud-init commands are not executing as expected in Windows images typically after performing windows updates.
• The local account is forced to reset password despite the cloud-init config being set to 'first_logon_behaviour=no' , this can have a knock on affect for any extensibility or scripts which may be leveraging local account access.
• The virtual machine may not boot correctly and throws error:

"The computer restarted unexpectedly or encountered an unexpected error. Windows installation cannot proceed. To install Windows. click “OK’ to restart the computer. and then restart the installation"

• Checking within the windows guest OS the domain join operation has failed.

Environment

VMware Aria Automation 8.x

Cause

The issue can occur due to Domain Join security hardening changes outlined in Microsoft KB article 5020276

Resolution

To resolve the issue follow the steps in the Take Action section of Microsoft KB article 5020276.

Typically the solution requires adding the Aria Automation Active Directory integration service account to the active directory group that is allowed to perform remote calls to SAM DB but this may vary depending on the implementation.

For further assistance in this regard contact Microsoft Support.