Failed to delete Tier-1 (Edge Gateway) from VCD with error "cannot be deleted as either it has children or it is being referenced by other objects"

Products

• VMware NSX
• VMware vCloud Director 5.x

Issue/Introduction

• When attempting to decommission or remove a Tier-1 Gateway (Edge Gateway) from the VMware Cloud Director (VCD) interface, the deletion task fails with a system error.
• Error Message:

The object <Tier-1 Path> cannot be deleted as either it has children or it is being referenced by other objects <Tier-1 Path/session-time-profile-bindings/default> (Error code: 500030)

Environment

VMware NSX

VMware vCloud Director

Cause

The deletion is blocked because the Tier-1 Gateway is still associated with a Session Timer Profile within the NSX Manager/ Security/ General Settings/ Firewall

Resolution

To resolve this, you must manually remove the reference within the NSX Manager UI before retrying the deletion in VCD.

Step 1: Remove Reference in NSX Manager

1. Log in to your NSX Manager admin console.

2. Navigate to the Security tab.

3. In the left-hand pane, go to Settings > General Settings.

4. Select the Firewall tab.

5. Locate the Session Timer Profile section.

6. Click Edit on the profile being referenced .

7. Under the gateway references, uncheck the specific Tier-1 Gateway you are trying to decommission.

8. Click Save to apply the changes.

Step 2: Delete Tier-1 from VCD

1. Log back into the VMware Cloud Director provider portal.

2. Navigate to Networking > Edge Gateways.

3. Find the target Edge Gateway in the list.

4. Click the vertical ellipsis (three dots) next to the gateway name or select it and look for the Delete button at the top.

5. Confirm the deletion in the pop-up dialogue.

The object should now be removed successfully as the underlying NSX reference has been cleared.