ESXi Host Fails to Connect to vCenter with error: “Access to perform the operation was denied. Failed to configure the VIM account. The operation breaks lockdown mode.”
Article ID: 412792
Updated On:
Products
Issue/Introduction
ESXi host(s) failed to reconnect to vCenter.
Impact: vCenter unable to synchronize with host agents, breaking vSAN cluster visibility (Disk Mgmt, Resync Objects) and management tasks.
vCenter Task Console showed:
“Access to perform the operation was denied. Failed to configure the VIM account. The operation breaks lockdown mode.”
“Cannot synchronize host… Failed to sync with the vCenter Agent on the host.”
Host client UI produces Unhandled exception when modifying security/lockdown mode.
ESXi shell verified account access and confirmed lockdown restrictions active.
Cause
The vCenter management agent (vpxa) is unable to sync with the host because lockdown mode blocking required account reconfiguration.
vpxuser (VIM account) could not be updated while the host was is in lockdown, causing repeated synchronization failures.
Resolution
- Disable lockdown mode temporarily.
- Reconnect host in vCenter (which restores vpxuser and re-establishes sync).
- Re-enable lockdown mode for compliance/security after successful reconnect.
- Restart management services (hostd and vpxa) if required to stabilize.
Additional Information
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