Understanding and Monitoring vCenter Snapshot Operations Through Logging

Products

• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

Users may find it challenging to monitor or track virtual machine (VM) snapshot operations in vCenter Server logs. Specifically, the VM names are not readily visible in some log entries related to snapshot creation and deletion.

Environment

- VMware vCenter Server 7.0 and later
- VMware vSphere environments where snapshot monitoring is required

Cause

vCenter Server uses different logging mechanisms for various operations. The vpxd (vCenter Server daemon) logs primarily use VM IDs for referencing virtual machines, which can make it difficult to identify specific VMs in snapshot operation logs. However, the journalctl logs provide more human-readable information, including VM names for snapshot operations.

Resolution

To effectively monitor snapshot operations with VM names visible, follow these steps:

1. Access the vCenter Server Appliance:
   
   
   
   1. Use SSH to connect to the vCenter Server Appliance.
   
   
   2. Log in with appropriate credentials.
   
   
   
   


2. View the vpxd service logs:
   
   
   
   1. Run the following command:
      
      
      
      • 
        

        journalctl -b

        
        
      
      
      
      
   
   
   2. This command displays the vpxd service logs, which contain detailed information about various vCenter operations.
   
   
   
   


3. Identify snapshot operation entries:
   
   
   
   1. Look for log entries containing "[vim.event.TaskEvent]" along with either "Create virtual machine snapshot" or "Remove snapshot".
   
   
   2. These entries will include the VM name, making it easy to identify which VM the snapshot operation was performed on.
   
   
   
   


4. Set up monitoring and alerts:
   
   
   
   1. Configure your syslog server to receive logs from vCenter Server.
   
   
   2. Create alerts that trigger on journalctl entries containing the relevant snapshot operation keywords.
   
   
   
   

Additional Information

- For more information on configuring syslog in vCenter Server, refer to the VMware documentation on Configure Streaming of Events to a Remote Syslog Server