SRM actual failover fails with the error: "Unable to access file ds:///vmfs/volumes/####-####-####/"

Products

• VMware Live Recovery

Issue/Introduction

Symptoms:

• SRM planned migration might fail with few virtual machines reporting the error:

Unable to access file ds:///vmfs/volumes/####-####-####/

• Protection configuration is failing due to a placeholder creation error as below, the placeholder VMs are not being created successfully.

Placeholder Create Error: Unable to access file ds:///vmfs/volumes/6798c2e9-e2d35210-5ca9-0025b52aa02a/

• The migration has shut down the VM on the production site and currently is in process of creating a placeholder VM under the same production site.
• In the /var/log/vmware/srm/vmware-dr.log file, you see entries similar to:

03:00 [92668 verbose 'LocalVcServer-PCM' opID=279bbc83 remoteTask=task-488793] [PCM] Recording new filter 'sessionId[522b6]52cd053a-2d2e-ed16-580c-b972dda651df' for token '509' and connection version '1'
2017-10-26T20:23:38.343+03:00 [92668 error 'RemoteTaskMonitor' remoteTask=task-488793] Dr::Internal::RemoteTaskBase::HandleTaskError: The remote task failed, error=
--> (vim.fault.CannotAccessFile) {
-->    faultCause = (vmodl.MethodFault) null, 
-->    faultMessage = (vmodl.LocalizableMessage) [
-->       (vmodl.LocalizableMessage) {
-->          key = "com.vmware.vim.vpx.file.creation.Error", 
-->          arg = (vmodl.KeyAnyValue) [
-->             (vmodl.KeyAnyValue) {
-->                key = "filename", 
-->                value = "/vmfs/volumes/54465721-########-####-##########39"
-->             }
-->          ], 
-->          message = "/vmfs/volumes/54465721-########-####-##########39 could not be created"
-->       }
-->    ], 
-->    file = "ds:///vmfs/volumes/54465721-########-####-##########39/"
-->    msg = "Unable to access file ds:///vmfs/volumes/54465721-########-####-##########39/"
--> }
03:00 [92668 error 'RemoteTaskMonitor' remoteTask=task-488793] Dr::Internal::RemoteTask<class Dr::TypedMoRef<class Vim::VirtualMachine,void> const >::Fail: The remote task failed

• Recovery plan report error similar to:

Prepare VMs for migration,Unable to access file ds:///vmfs/volumes/54465721-########-####-##########39/

Cause

This issue typically occurs during the creation of a placeholder VM in Site Recovery Manager (SRM). It happens when the placeholder datastore configured in the SRM mappings is not visible to the ESXi host on the production site for the affected virtual machines.

Since the placeholder VM relies on the datastore being accessible, its creation will fail if the datastore cannot be accessed by the ESXi host. 

Resolution

Workaround

• Go to Home > Site Recovery > Sites > Production site > Placeholder Datastore.

• Make a note of the respective datastore and validate if this datastore is visible to the ESXI host where the impacted virtual machines were registered (Production Site).

Note: Ideally, it would not be visible.

• Select a datastore that is visible and accessible by all ESXi hosts in the cluster.