vSAN Stretched cluster showing incorrect configuration type of 'Single site' when logged-in as user with Read-only permissions.

Products

• VMware vSAN

Issue/Introduction

When logged-in to the vSphere Client using a vSphere user with Read-only permissions, UI pane at Cluster > vSAN > Configure > Fault Domains may incorrectly show the cluster as 'Single site' instead of 'Stretched cluster' and Witness info section absent:

When checking this via an administrator user with all permissions, this correctly shows the cluster as configuration type of 'Stretched cluster'.

Environment

vSAN 8.x
vSAN 9.x

Cause

This issue occurs due to the Read-only permissions set only being applied to some of the vSphere inventory objects required to determine whether the cluster is a Stretched cluster or not.

Resolution

For this to function correctly, this is required to be set both on the Cluster and the Witness inventory objects or alternatively, on a top-level inventory object such as the vCenter managing both the vSAN cluster and Witness host (and with 'Propagate to children' enabled).