Unable to see files while browsing datastore in Virtual Center

Products

• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

Symptoms:

• When logged in to vCenter Server, datastores appear empty
• When logged into the host directly using Virtual Infrastructure Client, datastores show all files and folders on the datastore.

Cause

This is issue occurs if a special character is contained within the file or folder name.

Resolution

For the folder or file to be seen, it must be renamed without the special character.

To rename the file or folder:

1. Log into the ESX/ESXi host using Tech Support Mode. For more information, see Using Tech Support Mode in ESXi 4.1 and ESXi 5.0 (1017910) and Connecting to an ESX host using a SSH client (1019852)
2. Navigate to the datastore directory cd /vmfs/volumes/<datastorename>
3. Use the command ls to list the folder and files
4. Use the mv command to rename the file
   
   Example
   :
   mv "originalname" "newname"
    
5. Go to Virtual Center to refresh the datastore:
    
   1. Select an ESX host with access to the datastore.
   2. Click the Configuration tab.
   3. Click the Storage section (under Hardware Category).
   4. Click Refresh (in the upper-right corner).

Additional Information

Using Tech Support Mode in ESXi 4.1, ESXi 5.x, and ESXi 6.x
Connecting to an ESX host using an SSH client
Virtual Center でデータストアを参照するとき、ファイルを表示できない