Migrating a 2-Node vSAN Stretched Cluster with IP and FQDN changes within the same vCenter

Products

• VMware vSAN
• VMware vSphere ESXi
• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

This article outlines the process of relocating a 2-node vSAN stretched cluster from one datacenter to another within the same vCenter. The migration involves physically moving the ESXi hosts, assigning them new IP addresses and FQDNs, and reconfiguring the cluster to function seamlessly in the new location.

Environment

vCenter
ESXi
vSAN

Resolution

The following steps will help achieve the objective of relocating a 2-node vSAN stretched cluster to a new datacenter within the same vCenter. These steps ensure a clean shutdown, network reconfiguration, physical relocation, and proper reinitialization of the cluster.

1. Disable the vSAN Stretched Cluster
   Steps are available at Convert a vSAN Stretched Cluster to a Single Site vSAN Cluster
   
   
2. Shut Down the vSAN Cluster
   Gracefully shut down the entire cluster by following the procedure outlined in Step 1: Shut down the vSAN cluster from this article:
   Manually Shut Down and Restart the vSAN Cluster
    
3. Disconnect and remove the hosts from vCenter. See Remove a Host from vCenter Server for instructions.
   
   
4. Update Host Network Configuration
   Change the IP addresses and FQDNs of the ESXi hosts as per the new site’s networking scheme using the DCUI.
   Instructions are available at Changing the ESXi server management IP address
   
   
5. Shut down the physical servers and transport them to the new location.
   
   
6. Power On Hosts in the new location and ensure the ESXi hosts are accessible and reachable with the new IP/FQDN settings.
   
   
7. Restart the vSAN Cluster
   Bring the vSAN cluster back online by following Step 2: Restart the vSAN cluster from this article:
   Manually Shut Down and Restart the vSAN Cluster
   
   
8. Re-enable the stretched cluster and add the Witness host using the procedure described in Manually Configure vSAN Stretched Cluster

If you encounter any issues while following steps from this article, you may engage Broadcom Technical Support Team for further assistance.

Additional Information

Broadcom has discontinued RoBo licensing - Unable to apply a vSAN license to a 2 host RoBo cluster