"The certificate assigned to this host is not valid yet. You should install a valid certificate" display on ESXi host

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

• ESXi / ESX is new installed.
• On the console of ESXi host the following message is displayed:
  
  The certificate assigned to this host is not valid yet. You should install a valid certificate.
  
  
•  Add the host to vCenter Server is failed with error:
  
  Cannot contact the specified host. The host may not be available on the network, a network configuration problem may exist, or the management services on this host may not be responding.

Environment

VMware vSphere ESXi 8.x
VMware vSphere ESX 9.x

Cause

The issue is caused by a system time that is set to the future during ESXi installation.

Resolution

1. Correct the system time (using NTP is recommended):
   
   
   • Open the ESXi Host Client
   • Go to Host > Manage > System > Time & date
   • Click Edit NTP Settings
   • Set the startup policy to "Start and stop with host"
   • Add an NTP server (for example: pool.ntp.org)
   • Save the settings
   • Then go to Host > Manage > System > Services
   • Select the NTP Daemon (ntpd) service and start it
     
     
2. Regenerate the SSL certificate:
   
   
   • Start SSH service from the Services menu
   • Connect to the host via SSH as root
   • Make sure the time is sync with command: date
   • Regenerate certificate: /sbin/generate-certificates
   • Restart the hostd service with: /etc/init.d/hostd restart