Bringup fails on the Create NFS Datastore on Hosts task in VMware Cloud Foundation on VxRail

Products

• VMware Cloud Foundation

Issue/Introduction

Symptoms:

• Bringup fails on the Create NFS Datastore on Hosts task in VMware Cloud Foundation on VxRail
• You see messages similar to the following in the /var/log/vmware/vcf/vcf-bringup-debug.log on the Cloud Builder VM:

2019-03-22T13:34:37.118+0000 [bringup-app-ems,[af9c2dd48cf92701,7663]] ERROR [c.v.e.s.c.util.vsphere.HostProxy,pool-2-thread-8] Exception trying to create NAS DS on host 172.x.x.11
com.vmware.vim.binding.vim.fault.PlatformConfigFault: An error occurred during host configuration.

• You see messages similar to the following in the /var/log/vmware/vcf/vcf-bringup-debug.log on the Cloud Builder VM. One or more of the subnet masks noted is not what was entered in the deployment parameters spreadsheet:

2019-03-22T13:34:38.216+0000 [bringup-app-ems,[af9c2dd48cf92701,7663]] ERROR [c.v.e.s.o.model.error.ErrorFactory,pool-2-thread-8] [3IJ1FH] VCF_HOST_CREATE_NFS_DATASTORE_FAILED nfsParam: com.vmware.evo.sddc.bringup.plugin.model.esxi.Esxi@2d125fcb[
  hostCredentials=java.util.ArrayList@4de3c8b{
    com.vmware.evo.sddc.bringup.plugin.model.creds.HostCredential@2cd04c66[
      hostname=xxxxx-esx01.xxx.xx.dell.local,
      username=root,
      password=*****,
      privateIp=com.vmware.ipam.glcm.legacy.inventory.model.IpAllocation@7ec0b811[
        address=172.x.x.11,
        dhcpEnabled=false,
        netmask=255.255.255.0,
        gateway=172.x.x.1,
        cidr=
      ],
      mgmtIp=com.vmware.ipam.glcm.legacy.inventory.model.IpAllocation@6b387d49[
        address=172.x.x.11,
        dhcpEnabled=false,
        netmask=255.255.255.0,
        gateway=172.x.x.1,
        cidr=
      ],
      sshKeyPath=<null>
    ],

 

Note: The preceding log excerpts are only examples. Date, time, and environmental variables may vary depending on your environment.

Environment

VMware Cloud Foundation 3.x
VMware Cloud Foundation 4.x

Resolution

This is a known issue affecting VMware Cloud Foundation on VxRail. There is currently no resolution.

Workaround:

Use the following steps to workaround this issue:

1. End the current bringup. This will necessitate re-imaging the ESXi hosts so that they can be used in a new bringup attempt. Ensure that the Dell EMC RASR (Rapid Appliance Self Recovery) process is used.

2. In the Cloud Builder UI, upload the deployment parameters spreadsheet but do not click the Validate button.

3. SSH to the Cloud Builder VM as the admin user and then issue the su - command to switch to the root user.

4. Open the /tmp/sddcspec-<UUID>.json file with a text editor.

5. Change the value of "subnet" field under "HostSpecs" -> "ipAddressPrivate"

Note: There is one "subnet" field for each ESXi host in the file. The same change will need to be made for each host.

6. Save and close the file.

7. Use a file transfer utility to copy the /tmp/sddcspec-<UUID>.json file from the Cloud Builder VM to the local system.

8. In the Cloud Builder UI, upload the modified json file that was copied in Step 7.

9. Proceed with validation and bringup as usual.

Additional Information

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