Moving an ESXi host between domains in VMware Cloud Foundation requires decommissioning of the host

Products

• VMware SDDC Manager
• VCF Operations

Issue/Introduction

In VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) environments, administrators may require restructuring or consolidation of clusters within the management domain/workload domain.

A common request involves moving an ESXi host from a workload domain to the management domain or vice versa to achieve a single-cluster configuration.

The question arises whether this host migration can be performed directly, without executing a full decommissioning and recommissioning process through SDDC Manager.

Environment

VMware Cloud Foundation 5.x
VMware Cloud Foundation 9.x

Cause

In VCF, moving a host from a workload domain to the management domain is not supported through SDDC Manager.

This limitation exists because:

• SDDC Manager tightly manages inventory, configuration, and lifecycle operations for all components within the domain, including clusters and hosts.

• Each cluster is treated as an independent logical entity. Moving a host outside of the supported decommissioning workflow can lead to configuration drift or management inconsistencies.

• Integrated services such as NSX-T, vSAN, and vSphere profiles are closely associated with the host’s original cluster context. Manual host relocation can disrupt these integrations and result in an unsupported state of the environment.

Resolution

If there is a requirement to reuse a host in a different workload domain, you must decommission, re-image, and commission the host before adding it to the workload domain.

To perform a cluster consolidation while maintaining supportability and operational stability, follow the supported workflow below:

A. Decommission the ESXi Host

1. In the navigation pane, click Inventory > Hosts
2. Click Unassigned Hosts
3. In the hosts table, select the host(s) you want to decommission.
4. Click Decommission Selected Hosts.
5. Activate or deactivate Skip failed hosts during decommissioning.
   This setting is enabled by default. When enabled, hosts that fail are skipped, and decommissioning continues on the remaining hosts.
6. Click Confirm.
   

For more detailed information and prerequisites, refer to Decommission Hosts

B. Re-image the decommissioned host before commissioning it again and adding it to a workload domain.

C. Commission the ESXi Host

1. In the navigation pane, click Inventory > Hosts.
2. Click Commission Hosts.
3. On the Checklist page, review the prerequisites and confirm by clicking Select All.
4. Click Proceed.
5. Select whether you want to add hosts one at a time or import multiple hosts at once from a JSON file.
6. Verify that the server fingerprint is correct for each host and then activate the Confirm All Fingerprints toggle.
7. Click Validate All.
   VMware Cloud Foundation validates the host information you provided. Each host is marked as Valid or Invalid.
   For invalid hosts, you can correct the problem and validate again, or select the host and click Remove to proceed with commissioning the valid hosts.
8. Click Next.
9. Activate or deactivate Skip failed hosts during commissioning.
   This setting is enabled by default. When enabled, hosts that fail are skipped, and commissioning continues on the remaining hosts.
10. Click Commission.
    The Hosts page appears, and the status of the commission task is displayed in the Tasks window.
    

For more detailed information and prerequisites, refer to Commission Hosts

Additional Information

Following the supported decommission and recommission workflow ensures that SDDC Manager maintains complete visibility and control of all components in the environment.

This prevents lifecycle management disruptions and preserves integration consistency across NSX-T, vSAN, and vSphere services.

For detailed procedural guidance, refer to the official VMware documentation:
Remove a Host from a Cluster in a Workload Domain – VCF 5.2 and Earlier