"vSphere HA virtual machine failover failed" error when vSphere HA triggers a failover for specific VMs

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi
• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

• vSphere HA triggers a failover for all the VMs on a host that is in powered off/not-responding state, but the task fails for specific VMs with the error
  vSphere HA virtual machine failover failed

• CD/DVD device is attached to the VMs and selected to be connected at power on.
• VMs successfully perform vMotion (live migration) to any ESXi host within the vSphere cluster without error. However, the associated High Availability (HA) failover operation for these VMs consistently fails, regardless of the ESXi host.
• As per /var/run/log/fdm.log for the Primary host.
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS Db(167) Fdm[2102515]: [Originator@6876 sub=Placement opID=29fd####] Vm /vmfs/volumes/65fa30ef-11bc16a6-da4c-############/<VM_Name>/<VM_Name>.vmx failed placement with fault [N3Vim5Fault21NoActiveHostInClusterE:0x000000f2a38####
YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS Db(167) Fdm[2102515]: [Originator@6876 sub=Placement opID=29fd####] Setting insufficient resource timeout to 60 seconds and retrying placement for vm /vmfs/volumes/65fa30ef-11bc16a6-da4c-############/<VM_Name>/<VM_Name>.vmx
YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS Db(167) Fdm[2102515]: [Originator@6876 sub=Placement opID=29fd####] Reset the placement status of vm /vmfs/volumes/65fa30ef-11bc16a6-da4c-############/<VM_Name>/<VM_Name>.vmx to 0, vim.fault.NoActiveHostInCluster (vim.fault.NoActiveHostInCluster)
  
  
• /var/run/log/hostd.log confirms that the ISO file is inaccessible.
  

  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS In(166) Hostd[20999##]: [Originator@6876 sub=Vmsvc.vm:/vmfs/volumes/65fb84b0-153da07a-2068-############/<VM_Name>/<VM_Name>.vmx] CacheDatastores: fileBacking [] /vmfs/volumes/65f04c41-b644631a-b35a-############/datastorename /<filename>.iso has null datastore reference
YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS Db(167) Hostd[20999##]: [Originator@6876 sub=Vmsvc.vm:/vmfs/volumes/65fb84b0-153da07a-2068-############/<VM_Name>/<VM_Name>.vmx] Handling vmx message 1053800: Cannot connect file "/vmfs/volumes/65f04c41-b644631a-b35a-############/datastorename /<filename>.iso" as a CD-ROM image: Could not find the file

Environment

• VMware vSphere ESXi 7.x
• VMware vSphere ESXi 8.x
• VMware vCenter Server 7.x
• VMware vCenter Server 8.x

Cause

• The primary cause is the VM having a CD/DVD drive attached to an ISO file that is stored on a datastore only accessible by the current (source) ESXi host.
• High Availability, requires the recovering host to fully power on and access the VM's configuration and all attached devices. If an ESXi host attempts to failover and restart the VM but cannot reach the attached ISO file, it deems itself incompatible for the failover operation, leading to failure. The VM cannot be restarted because the necessary storage component is unavailable on the potential failover host.

Resolution

• Detach the ISO file attached to the VM. Steps to detach the ISO file,
  
  • Locate the VM: In the vSphere Client inventory, navigate to the affected Virtual Machine.
  • Edit Settings: Right-click the VM and select Edit Settings.
  • Identify the CD/DVD Drive: In the Virtual Hardware tab, expand the section for the CD/DVD Drive.
  • Change Status:
    • Change the Connection setting to ensure "Connected" and "Connect at power on" are unchecked. or,
    • Change the Media setting from "Datastore ISO File" to "Client Device" or "Host Device".
    • Confirm and Save: Click OK to apply the changes and close the Edit Settings window.