vCLS VMs do not start after rebooting ESXi hosts

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi
• VMware vCenter Server
• VMware vCenter Server 8.0

Issue/Introduction

After rebooting ESXi hosts, the vCLS VMs do not power on automatically.

Environment

VMware ESXi 7.x
VMware ESXi 8.x
VMware vCenter Server 7.x
VMware vCenter Server 8.x

Cause

The EAM service does not fully initialize and you may see the following reported in the /var/log/vmware/eam/eam.log:

com.vmware.vim.binding.eam.fault.EamServiceNotInitialized: EAM is still loading from database. Please try again later.

You may also see it mentioned when running a VDT on the VCSA.

Resolution

Update the EAM thumbprint using the vCert utility.

Make sure you take an offline snapshot of the VCSA before making any configuration changes to the VCSA.

Below is an example session resolving the issue:

VCF/VVF Certificate Management Utility (version 6.0.0)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Check current certificate status
 2. View certificate info
 3. Manage certificates
 4. Manage SSL trust anchors
 5. Check configurations
 6. Reset all certificates with VMCA-signed certificates
 7. ESXi certificate operations
 8. Restart services
 9. Generate certificate report
 E. Exit

Select an option [1]: 3

Manage vCenter Certificates
-----------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Machine SSL certificate
 2. Solution User certificates
 3. CA certificates in VMware Directory
 4. CA certificates in VECS Directory
 5. SMS certificates
 6. vCenter Extension thumbprints
 7. STS signing certificates
 8. VMCA certificate
 9. Smart Card CA certificates
10. LDAPS Identity Source certificates
11. Clear expired certificates in BACKUP_STORE in VECS
12. Clear TRUSTED_ROOT_CRLS store in VECS
13. Clear Machine SSL CSR in VECS

Select an option [Return to main menu]: 6

If there is an issue with the thumbprints vCert will alert you and ask if you want to update them.  Follow the prompts.

Additional Information

vCert - expired certificate replacement script

Using the VCF Diagnostic Tool for vSphere (VDT)