vCenter Server VAMI backups are not removing despite a retention policy being defined

Products

• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

This is a known issue where the API returned from the backup server may append "../" or "./" for the file path. This does not translate correctly for vCenter when decoding the returned path and prevents the backup scheduler from removing older backups following the retention policy.

Symptoms:

• vCenter Server is running vSphere 6.7 Update 3b or later.

Note: If running a version prior to 6.7 Update 3b, please refer to VCSA VAMI backup is failing to delete old backups according to retention policy before proceeding.

• A backup retention policy is configured, however older backups continue to remain on the backup location.
• When executing 'python /usr/lib/applmgmt/backup_restore/scripts/SchedulerCron.py' on the vCenter Server command line, the following error or similar is displayed:

Error code : 4312
Starting the scheduled retention jobs.

• When running the above command, in /var/log/vmware/applmgmt/backupScheduler.log, the following log message is seen:

Err incorrect padding

Environment

VMware vCenter Server Appliance 6.7.x

Cause

The backup server returns "../" or "./" for the filepath of the backup which does not decode properly for the backup retention policy when cleaning up directories. This is a known issue, and VMware Engineering is actively working towards a fix.

Resolution

This issue is resolved in vCenter Server 6.7 Patch 05.

vCenter Server 7.0 is not impacted by this issue.

Workaround:
VMware recommends to manually remove any older backups that are not cleaned up.

Additional Information

Impact/Risks:
Backups are not cleaned up per the retention policy and may risk unnecessary disk capacity for the backup location.