ESXi PSOD with "Fatal CPU mismatch on feature"

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

• ESXi PSOD occurred after the upgrade

Environment

VMware vSphere ESXi

Cause

Starting with ESXi 7.0, a CPU uniformity check is enforced. A PSOD may occur if a mismatch in CPU features is detected.

Resolution

•  To bypass the CPU uniformity check:

1. 1. Reboot the ESXi and press SHIFT+O to edit the boot options.
   2. Append cpuUniformityHardCheckPanic=FALSE and press ENTER.
   3. Run the following command on the ESXi to make the option permanent.
      
      # esxcli system settings kernel set -s cpuUniformityHardCheckPanic -v FALSE

•  Request the Hardware vendor to ensure the uniformity of CPU features.