"attempted operation cannot be performed in the current state" error in vCenter when deleting powered off machines in vRealize Automation 8

Products

• VMware Aria Suite

Issue/Introduction

Symptoms:

When deleting an already powered off virtual machine in vRealize Automation 8.x in vSphere you will see a failed power off task:

Power Off virtual machine <VM name> The attempted operation cannot be performed in the current state ("Powered off").

Environment

VMware vRealize Automation 8.x

Cause

This is done to be safe and ensure that a machine is powered off in vCenter before being deleted by vRA.
We do not check the VM's power state in vRA due to the times difference between enumeration, the state may be different in vCenter compared to what vRA assumes it to be.

Resolution

This is the by design behaviour of the product and these power off failure notifications are safe to ignore