Patching vCenter Server Appliance via CLI

Products

• VMware vCenter Server
• VMware vCenter Server 6.0
• VMware vCenter Server 7.0
• VMware vCenter Server 8.0

Issue/Introduction

This article provides instruction on how to patch the vCenter Server through the command line.

Resolution

1. Download the full patch ISO (FP.ISO) from the Broadcom Support Portal.
   
   
2. Upload the patch to an existing datastore and attach the iso to the vCenter Server VM.
   
   
3. SSH to the vCenter Server using FQDN or I.P and login with root account credentials
   
   
4. Access the Appliance shell (appliancesh) and not Bash Shell to perform the patch
   
   
   • When in the appliance shell, the prompt will begin with: command>
     
     
   • For more information, refer to KB Toggling the vCenter Server Appliance default shell.
     
     
5. Stage the packages located in the .ISO file mounted to the vCenter Server VM:
   
   software-packages stage --iso --acceptEulas


6. After the staging completes, list or install the staged packages:
   
   
   • To verify the version of the mounted ISO:
     
     software-packages list --staged
     
     
   • To install the staged packages:
     
     software-packages install --staged
     
     
7. Once completed, an output will state: "Packages upgraded successfully, Reboot is required to complete the installation”.
   
   
8. If the patch installation requires a reboot of the appliance, run the following command to restart the appliance:
   
   shutdown reboot -r "patch reboot"

Additional Information

Install vCenter Server Patches