Restarting the virtual machine results in a black screen

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

• The virtual machine console appears black after a reboot.
• After rebooting, the virtual machine displays a black screen.
• When accessing the virtual machine console through vSphere Client or Remote Desktop, a black screen displays.
• Changing the memory allocated to the virtual machine does not resolve the issue.
• This issue occurs in a secure environment.

Environment

• VMware ESXi 4.0.x Installable
• VMware ESXi 3.5.x Installable
• VMware ESXi 3.5.x Embedded
• VMware ESX 4.0.x
• VMware ESX 4.1.x
• VMware ESX Server 3.5.x
• VMware ESXi 4.0.x Embedded
• VMware ESXi 4.1.x Installable
• VMware vSphere ESXi 5.0
• VMware ESXi 4.1.x Embedded

Resolution

This issue occurs due to a Windows Domain Security Profile that does not allow hot added devices for security reasons. If a hard drive is added while the machine is powered on, it is listed as a Hot Add device in the .vmx file. During reboot, because of the policy, Windows remains at the black screen and does not boot after displaying the Windows Splash Screen.

To work around and prevent this issue from occurring, disable the hot add capability on the virtual machine. For more information, see Disabling the HotAdd/HotPlug capability in ESX/ESXi 4.x and ESXi 5.0 virtual machines (1012225).

 

This workaround is required to match the Windows Group Policy to allow the virtual machine to function properly.

Additional Information

Note: If your issue persists even after performing the workaround, file a support request with Broadcom Support and reference this Knowledge Base article.