vMotion fails with error "Virtual machine is not ready for the migration operation" due to mirror netstack mismatch

Products

• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

• When attempting to migrate a virtual machine via vMotion, the operation fails at the compatibility check or during execution.
• Users will see the following error message in the vSphere Client : " Virtual machine is not ready for the migration operation. 
A dvPort connected to the VM is configured to use mirror netstack instance for mirror traffic, but the host does not have an active mirror netstack instance or virtual adapter that uses mirror netstack instance."

Environment

VMware vCenter Server

Cause

The root cause is a configuration discrepancy between the source and destination ESXi hosts. The virtual machine is associated with a mirror TCP/IP stack (netstack) on its current host to facilitate traffic mirroring. vMotion requires the destination host to have an identical mirror netstack instance and an associated virtual adapter to support the VM's networking requirements upon arrival.

Resolution

To resolve this issue, you must create the mirror stack configuration across all participating hosts in the cluster.

1. Identify Source Configuration:

   • Log in to the source ESXi host via CLI or check the Host Networking settings in the vSphere UI.

   • Note the specific mirror netstack instance name and the associated VMkernel adapter (vmknic) used for mirror traffic.

2. Configure Destination Host:

   • Navigate to the Destination Host > Configure > Networking > TCP/IP configuration.

   • Ensure the mirror stack is present and active.

   • Create or verify a VMkernel adapter on the destination host that is specifically assigned to the mirror TCP/IP stack.

3. Validate Consistency:

   • Ensure that the MTU settings and VLAN IDs for the mirror virtual adapters match across both hosts.

4. Retry Migration:

   • Once the destination host has an active mirror netstack instance and virtual adapter, re-run the vMotion wizard.

Additional Information

If traffic mirroring is no longer required for the virtual machine, an alternative workaround is to disable the port mirroring property on the VM's dvPort before attempting the migration.

Additional Doc-  https://techdocs.broadcom.com/us/en/vmware-cis/vsphere/vsphere/8-0/vsphere-networking/monitoring-network-packets/working-with-port-mirroring/port-mirroring-interoperability.html