Detaching a storage LUN from a ESXi host failed with "The resource '<<vml_id>>' is in use."

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi
• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

• Detaching a storage LUN from ESXi host(s) fails with "The resource '<<vml_id>>' is in use."
• When unpresenting or decommissioning a storage device from ESXi host(s), administrator needs to detach the device from all visible host(s) but some host fails with this error.
• In vpxd.log, following error is found.
  

  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.mmmZ info vpxd[12340] [Originator@6876 sub=Default opID=<<opid>>] [VpxLRO] -- ERROR task-20303 -- storageSystem-30 -- vim.host.StorageSystem.detachScsiLun: vim.fault.ResourceInUse:
  --> Result:
  --> (vim.fault.ResourceInUse) {
  -->    faultCause = (vmodl.MethodFault) null,
  -->    faultMessage = <unset>,
  -->    type = "Can't Detach RDM LUN",
  -->    name = "<<vml_id>>"
  -->    msg = "Received SOAP response fault from [<SSL(), /vpxa>]: detachScsiLun
  --> Received SOAP response fault from [ /sdk>]: detachScsiLun
  --> The resource '<<vml_id>>' is in use."
  --> }
  --> Args:
  -->
  --> Arg lunUuid:
  --> "<<vml_id>>"

• In hostd.log, following error is found.
  
  

  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.mmmZ info hostd[2102689] [Originator@6876 sub=Vimsvc.TaskManager opID=<<opid>> user=<<user_name>>] Task Completed : haTask-ha-host-vim.host.StorageSystem.detachScsiLun-86249828 Status error
  
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.mmmZ info hostd[2102689] [Originator@6876 sub=Solo.Vmomi opID=<<opid>> user=<<user_name>>] Throw vim.fault.ResourceInUse
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.mmmZ info hostd[2102689] [Originator@6876 sub=Solo.Vmomi opID=<<opid>> user=<<user_name>>] Result:
  --> (vim.fault.ResourceInUse) {
  -->    type = "Can't Detach RDM LUN",
  -->    name = "<<vml_id>>",
  -->    msg = "",
  --> }

Environment

VMware vSphere ESXi

VMware vSphere vCenter server

Cause

Some Virtual machine(s) still attaches the device (LUN) as a RDM device and when detaching the LUN, hostd (RDMManager) checks it is registered(VM attaches the device) or not and throws an error if it is registered in some VM(s).

Resolution

• Find the virtual machine(s) which still attaches the device as RDM and remove that device from the VM(s). And try to detach the device again.
• How to find the VM(s) which attaches the specific device (vml) as a RDM ?
  
  Following PowerCLI command shows us the virtual machine name and the disk number if the specified vml is attached to the VM.
  
  

  PS> Get-VM | Get-HardDisk -Disktype "RawPhysical","RawVirtual" | Where-Object {$_.DeviceName -eq "vml.<<vml_id>>"} | Format-Table -Property  Parent,DeviceName,Name -Autosize
  
  Parent        DeviceName       Name
  ------        ----------       ----
  <<VM_Name>>  vml.<<vml_id>>    Hard disk 3