Unable to edit the virtual machine settings to connect to CD/DVD image on a local disk in vSphere Web Client 5.5 Update 3 or later, and 6.0

Products

• VMware vCenter Server
• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

• You are unable to connect a local ISO image to the virtual machine in the vSphere Web Client.
• The option to connect to a CD/DVD image (ISO) on a local disk is not available in a virtual machine settings from the vSphere Web Client.

Environment

• VMware vSphere Web Client 5.5.x
• VMware vSphere Web Client 6.0.x
• VMware vCenter Server Appliance 6.0.x
• VMware vCenter Server 5.5.x
• VMware vCenter Server Appliance 5.5.x
• VMware vCenter Server 6.0.x

Cause

This issue occurs due to the functionality which requires the use of the Netscape Plug-in API (NPAPI). NPAPI is deprecated by all modern browsers.

For more information about the deprecation of NPAPI, see the Chromium Developers article Saying Goodbye to Our Old Friend NPAPI.

Resolution

If you want to connect the virtual machine to an ISO Image located on your local machine, use one of these options:

• Use the vSphere Client.
• Download and install the standalone VMRC which has the ability to connect to ISO images on local disk. For more information, see Downloading and Installing the standalone VMware Remote Console (VMRC) in vSphere 5.x and 6.0 (2091284).
• Use VMware Workstation 11 to connect to vCenter Server or ESXi Host.