Changing the network teaming failback delay (TeamPolicyUpDelay) is not working as expected on the ESXi hosts when the VDS has DVPGs with Beacon Probing enabled.

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

• When beacon probing is enabled on a DVPG in DVS, TeamPolicyUpDelay setting is not honored for other DVPGs/Segments that do not use Beacon Probing. As a result, uplinks that transition from DOWN to UP state is immediately considered to be UP by ESX.
  
  
• Configuration of the NIC failback was performed according to the KB article Changing the network teaming failback delay fails in ESXi Host ; however, the failback delay fails to operate as intended. Modifying the delay parameter to alternative values yields the same unsuccessful result.

Environment

ESXi 7.0, 8.0
NSX 3.2.x, 4.1.x, 4.2.0. 4.2.1
VCF 9.0

Cause

Beacon Probing is enabled on some DVPGs in the same VDS, which is interfering with the TeamPolicyUpDelay settings.

Resolution

This issue is fixed in NSX 4.2.2 and VCF 9.1.

Workaround:

• Disable Beacon Probing on all DVPGs in the host switch and use Link status only.
• TeamPolicyUpDelay value should work as expected after applying the changes.

 

Additional Information

Impact : TeamPolicyUpDelay defines the time, in milliseconds, that the ESX host waits after detecting that a pNIC has transitioned from a down state to an up state before the host starts using the pNIC again for network traffic. This delay helps to ensure that the pNIC has fully recovered and stabilized before it is put back into use.

Usually TeamPolicyUpDelay is modified when physical switch upgrades are happening. By bringing an uplink to UP state immediately, it can impact the traffic as the connections may not reset immediately via the new uplink.

Please also refer to the Broadcom Knowledge Base (KB) articles :

Duplicate packets are sent out of the ESXi to physical switches when both the available uplinks on a DVS flap causing traffic outage

Wait period defined by TeamPolicyUpDelay not honored resulting in network outage.

Changing the network teaming failback delay fails in ESXi Host

TeamPolicyUpDelay is not working as expected when beacon probing is enabled on a DVPG in DVS.