ESXi host upgrade version not displayed in vSphere Lifecycle Manager after creating baselines

Products

• VMware vSphere ESX 8.x

Issue/Introduction

When attempting to upgrade ESXi hosts in a cluster to version 8.0 Update 3h (Build 25067014), the corresponding version does not appear in the update view despite a baseline being created in vSphere Lifecycle Manager (vLCM). This prevents the initiation of the remediation process via the traditional baseline method.

Environment

VMware vSphere 8.0 

Cause

With the release of vSphere 8.0, VMware has deprecated vSphere Lifecycle Manager Baselines (formerly known as vSphere Update Manager or VUM). While baselines still exist for legacy support, the preferred and primary method for managing host lifecycles in vSphere 8.x is "vSphere Lifecycle Manager Images."

Resolution

To resolve this, the cluster management must be transitioned from Baselines to Images.

Step 1: Obtain the Upgrade Image

• Download the ESXi 8.0U3h offline bundle (depot zip) from the Broadcom Support portal: VMware-ESXi-8.0U3h-25067014-depot.zip.
• In the vSphere Client, navigate to Lifecycle Manager > Imported ISOs.
• Click IMPORT ISO and upload the downloaded file.
• Verify that 8.0 U3h appears in the list.

Step 2: Transition Cluster to Image-Based Management

• Select the target Cluster in the inventory.
• Navigate to the Updates tab and select Image.
• Click MANAGE WITH IMAGE (or EDIT if an image is already partially configured).
• In the ESXi Version dropdown menu, select 8.0 U3h - 25067014.

Click SAVE.

Perform a Check Compliance and run the Hardware Compatibility (HCL) check before proceeding with remediation.