Downgrading device drivers in VMware ESXi

Products

VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

This article provides the steps to downgrade a device driver in VMware ESXi.

Note: Do not downgrade drivers unless suggested by the vendor. Ensure of any caveats of downgrading the driver. For more information, see the related driver release notes in the vendors advisory.

Resolution

To downgrade a device driver, download the target driver to install, uninstall the current driver, and then install the older driver.

For more information on installing device drivers, see Download and install async drivers in VMware ESXi.

To obtain the driver installation bundle, remove the existing driver and install the new driver:

Download the older driver version from VMware by Broadcom Download Page > My Downloads > click "Free Software Downloads available HERE" > VMware vSphere ESX Drivers
Copy the offline bundle zip file to the ESXi host using the datastore browser.
Put the ESXi host in maintenance mode.

To put the ESXi host in maintenance mode, right-click the ESXi host and click Enter Maintenance Mode. Alternatively, from the ESXi host command line:

esxcli system maintenanceMode set --enable true
Ensure the host is in maintenance mode:

esxcli system maintenanceMode get

Example Output:

Enabled
Remove the current device driver:

esxcli software vib remove -n <vendor vib name> -f

Example when removing an HP driver:

Message: The update completed successfully, but the system needs to be rebooted for the changes to be effective. Reboot Required: true VIBs Installed: VIBs Removed: Hewlett-Packard_bootbank_scsi-hpsa_5.5.0.58-1OEM.550.0.0.1331820 VIBs Skipped:

Note: The exact vendor vib name can be obtained by running the 'esxcli software vib list' command and checking the output for the driver VIB in question.
Install the vib driver bundle that is downloaded and copied into the ESXi host in Step 1 and 2. To install the driver:

esxcli software vib install -d <location of the zip file>

Example:

esxcli software vib install -d /vmfs/volumes/datastore/driver-offine_bundle.zip

Example Output:

Message: The update completed successfully, but the system needs to be rebooted for the changes to be effective. Reboot Required: true VIBs Installed: Hewlett-Packard_bootbank_scsi-hpsa_5.5.0.50-1OEM.550.0.0.1198611 VIBs Removed: VIBs Skipped:
Reboot the ESXi host:

esxcli system shutdown reboot -r 'replace driver'
To check the result:

esxcli software profile get

Example Output:

Description: 2014-05-27T20:38:44.530790+00:00: The following VIBs are installed: scsi-hpsa 5.5.0.50-1OEM.550.0.0.1198611 ---------- 2014-05-27T20:35:30.656249+00:00: The following VIBs have been removed: scsi-hpsa 5.5.0.58-1OEM.550.0.0.1331820 ----------
Ensure that the correct driver downgrade is successful and the correct version is running:

esxcli software vib get -n <driver name>

Example:

esxcli software vib get -n scsi-hpsa

Example Output:

Hewlett-Packard_bootbank_scsi-hpsa_5.5.0.50-1OEM.550.0.0.1198611 Name: scsi-hpsa Version: 5.5.0.50-1OEM.550.0.0.1198611 Type: bootbank Vendor: Hewlett-Packard Acceptance Level: VMwareCertified Summary: hpsa: scsi driver for VMware ESX Description: HP Smart Array SCSI Driver ReferenceURLs: Creation Date: 2013-08-19 Depends: vmkapi_2_2_0_0, com.vmware.driverAPI-9.2.2.0 Conflicts: Replaces: Provides: Maintenance Mode Required: True Hardware Platforms Required: Live Install Allowed: False Live Remove Allowed: False Stateless Ready: True Overlay: False Tags: driver, module Payloads: scsi-hps
After ensuring that the procedure is successful, exit maintenance mode. To exit maintenance mode using the vSphere Web Client, right-click and select Exit Maintenance mode.

Alternatively, from the ESXi host command line:

esxcli system maintenanceMode set --enable false
Ensure the host is no longer in maintenance mode:

esxcli system maintenanceMode get

Example Output:

Disabled

Additional Information

To find additional information about a specific driver:

esxcli software vib get -n <driver name>

For example, to get more information about the HP hpsa driver:

esxcli software vib get -n scsi-hpsa

Example output:

Hewlett-Packard_bootbank_scsi-hpsa_5.5.0.58-1OEM.550.0.0.1331820
Name: scsi-hpsa
Version: 5.5.0.58-1OEM.550.0.0.1331820
Type: bootbank
Vendor: Hewlett-Packard
Acceptance Level: VMwareCertified
Summary: hpsa: scsi driver for VMware ESX
Description: HP Smart Array SCSI Driver
ReferenceURLs:
Creation Date: 2013-12-16
Depends: vmkapi_2_2_0_0, com.vmware.driverAPI-9.2.2.0
Conflicts:
Replaces:
Provides:
Maintenance Mode Required: True
Hardware Platforms Required:
Live Install Allowed: False
Live Remove Allowed: False
Stateless Ready: True
Overlay: False
Tags: driver, module

“esxcli software vib” commands to patch an ESXi 6.x/7.x host

Download and install async drivers in VMware ESXi