Installing async drivers in ESXi 7.x/8.x using esxcli and offline bundle

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

This article contains steps to install async drivers using esxcli and offline bundle async driver zip file.

Environment

VMware vSphere ESXi 8.X
VMware vSphere ESXi 7.X

Resolution

 To install async drivers using esxcli and offline bundle async driver zip file:

1. Extract the contents of the async driver zip file.
2. Identify the offline-bundle.zip file(s).
3. Log in to the ESXi host using the vSphere Client with administrator privileges, such as root.
4. Using the Datastore Browser, upload the offline-bundle.zip file(s) to a datastore in the ESXi host.
5. Enter the host into maintenance mode.
6. Log in as the ESXi console root to by using SSH or iLO/DRAC.
7. Copy the offline-bundle.zip file to a datastore accessible by the ESXi host using this command:
   
   cp offline-bundle.zip /vmfs/volumes/datastore_name
8. Run this command to install the drivers using the offline bundle:
   
   esxcli software vib install -d /path/offline-bundle.zip
   
   Note: This command requires an absolute path.
   
   For example:
   esxcli software vib install -d /vmfs/volumes/datastore_name/offline-bundle.zip
   
   Note: If this command fails, unzip the file and try running the same command. If hostd does not respond, try using localcli instead of esxcli.
   
   For example:
   localcli software vib install -d /vmfs/volumes/datastore_name/offline-bundle.zip
9. Restart the ESXi host.
10. To confirm that the VIB is installed successfully, run this command:
    
    esxcli software vib list | grep -i vib_name
11. Exit maintenance mode.

 

Additional Information

VMware Skyline Health Diagnostics for vSphere - FAQ
For procedure to install using other methods refer to VMware KB : Download and install async drivers in VMware ESXi
Refer also  to VMware KB -  Identifying and downloading the appropriate driver for your adapter: Process and FAQ