ESXI Host's in a Cisco Hyperflex Cluster gets stuck while entering maintenance mode

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

When maintenance mode is initiated from vCenter, the ESXi host may remain in an “In Progress” state under Tasks for an extended period because the HyperFlex storage controller VM stays powered on.

Environment

VMware vSphere ESXi 8.X

VMware vCenter server 8.X

Cause

Before a host can enter maintenance mode, all virtual machines must be powered off or migrated to another host.

The ESXi host is unable to complete the maintenance mode operation when initiated from vCenter because the HyperFlex storage controller VM remains powered on.

Cisco HyperFlex maintenance mode performs additional Cisco HX Data Platform–specific operations beyond standard ESXi maintenance mode. Therefore, for maintenance tasks on storage cluster nodes after the initial cluster creation, always use Cisco HX maintenance mode instead of the standard ESXi maintenance mode.

Resolution

Initiate maintenance mode for the HyperFlex cluster ESXi host directly using the Cisco HyperFlex (HX) Connect user interface.

For detailed steps on how to enter or exit Cisco HyperFlex Maintenance Mode, refer to the following Cisco documentation:

Cisco HyperFlex Systems Upgrade Guide for VMware ESXi, Release 4.0 - Detailed Pre-Upgrade Procedures [Cisco HyperFlex HX Data Platform]

Maintenance Modes for Storage Cluster Nodes

For further assistance or queries related to Cisco HyperFlex Maintenance Mode operations, please contact Cisco Support.