Windows 2025 Guest Operating system fails to deploy and boot when EVC enabled within the Cluster

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi
• VMware vSphere ESXi 8.0

Issue/Introduction

Issue is applicable for the environment having EVC enabled clusters using any baseline apart from "Intel Nehalem Generation"

• Deploying New Windows 2025 VM from ISO image fails and the ISO image does not load, even if we "press the key to boot from the CD" the VM keeps looping back loading into the BIOS
  
  
   
• Deploying a VM Windows 2025 from template also fails with below message 
  
   

Environment

• ESXi 8.x 
  
  
• Windows 2025 

Cause

• Windows Server 2025 officially requires the SSE4.2 and POPCNT CPU instructions for full support for deployment and boot up

Resolution

• If the Cluster has varied CPU model and family numbers and this will require a EVC to be enabled within the cluster, Deploying Windows 2025 will require "Intel Nehalem Generation" to support SSE4.2 and POPCNT CPU instructions
  
  
• Enable the EVC cluster with  "Intel Nehalem Generation" to boot and Deploy the Windows 2025 guest OS.
  
  
  
   
• If the CPU model within the cluster consistent across all the ESXi Host nodes, then EVC is not required to be enabled within the cluster