Failed to run reconfigure-database error encountered when joining a standby cell in VMware Cloud Director

Products

• VMware Cloud Director

Issue/Introduction

• Joining a new standby cell does not complete successfully.
• The database connection succeeds but fails to establish a secure connection with an error similar to the following in /opt/vmware/var/log/vcd/configure-vcd.log:
  
  

  INFO: connecting to primary database
WARNING: --upstream-node-id not supplied, assuming upstream node is primary (node ID: #####)
INFO: standby registration complete
NOTICE: standby node "<cell name>" (ID: #####) successfully registered
Configuring VCD from response file (/opt/vmware/vcloud-director/data/transfer/responses.properties).
2025-05-21 02:38:09 | setupvcd.sh | Configuring VCD from response file (/opt/vmware/vcloud-director/data/transfer/responses.properties).
-^H.\^H|^H./^H-^H.\^H|^H./^H-^H.[5]

  Database configuration complete.

  Reconfiguring vCD to use a secure database connection.
2025-05-21 02:38:13 | setupvcd.sh | Reconfiguring vCD to use a secure database connection.
Invalid database configuration provided. Aborting configuration of local cell.
2025-05-21 02:38:35 | setupvcd.sh | [ERROR] Failed to run reconfigure-database. See /opt/vmware/vcloud-director/logs/cell-management-tool.log for details. Aborting.
2025-05-21 02:38:35 | configure-vcd.sh | [ERROR] setupvcd script failed to execute.
2025-05-21 02:38:36 | cleanup-vcd.sh | Starting cleanup script.
2025-05-21 02:38:36 | cleanup-vcd.sh | The following error code was provided as argument to script: 23

• In /opt/vmware/vcloud-director/logs/cell-management-tool.log, an error resembling the following is seen:
  
  2025-05-21 02:38:35,923 | ERROR    | main                      | ReconfigureDatabaseCommand     | Invalid database configuration: SSL error: PKIX path building failed: sun.security.provider.certpath.SunCertPathBuilderException: unable to find valid certification path to requested target |
org.postgresql.util.PSQLException: SSL error: PKIX path building failed: sun.security.provider.certpath.SunCertPathBuilderException: unable to find valid certification path to requested target
        at org.postgresql.ssl.MakeSSL.convert(MakeSSL.java:67)
...
2025-05-21 02:38:35,927 | ERROR    | main                      | ReconfigureDatabaseCommand     | Invalid database configuration provided. Aborting configuration of local cell. |
  
  
• When connecting to the VAMI on the primary cell (i.e., https://<vCD primary cell address>:5480), the certificate has expired.

Environment

VMware Cloud Director 10.5.1.x

Cause

The appliance management certificate is used for both the cell VAMI and for secure postgres database connections. If this certificate is no longer valid since it has expired, trusted connections may fail.

Resolution

Update the appliance management certificates, as detailed in the section 'Replace or Renew the VMware Cloud Director Appliance Management Certificates' from the following document, and re-attempt joining a standby cell:

Certificate Management in the VMware Cloud Director Appliance 10.5.1 and Later

Additional Information

For additional information regarding the management of appliance certificates, including the use of custom certificates or the replacement of certificates on 10.5.0, please refer to the document below:

SSL Certificate Creation and Management of Your VMware Cloud Director Appliance