Unable to start WCP service in vCenter Server: "Operation not allowed on a disabled service"

Products

• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

• Unable to start the WCP service in vCenter Server via CLI and  vCenter Server Appliance Management Interface (VAMI).

• Attempting to start the service using service-control results in a "Skip" message:

  # service-control --start wcp
  Operation not cancellable. Please wait for it to finish ...
  Performing start operation on service wcp ...
  Service wcp startup type is not automatic. Skip

• Attempting to start the service using vmon-cli explicitly flags the service as disabled:

  # vmon-cli --start wcp
  Start service request failed. Error: Operation not allowed on a disabled service.

• In the VAMI -> Services, the options to edit or modify the Startup Type for the Workload Control Plane service are greyed out.

Environment

VMware vCenter 8.x

VMware vCenter 9.x

Cause

This issue occurs when the WCP service's startup configuration state is DISABLED rather than MANUAL or AUTOMATIC. When a service is explicitly set to disabled, standard service-control commands skip the operation, and the VAMI UI locks the dropdown menu to prevent administrative changes.

Resolution

To resolve this issue, bypass the VAMI UI and use the vmon-cli utility to forcefully update the service's startup type back to AUTOMATIC.

1. Connect to the vCenter Server Appliance (VCSA) via SSH and log in with the root account.

2. Validate the current startup type and state of the WCP service:

• vmon-cli -s wcp
  Note: The output will likely show Starttype: DISABLED and RunState: STOPPED

3. Update the startup type for the WCP service to AUTOMATIC:

• vmon-cli --update wcp --starttype AUTOMATIC

4. Start the WCP service:

• service-control --start wcp

5. Verify the WCP service has successfully started and is in a healthy state:

• vmon-cli -s wcp

6. Log back into the VAMI (https://<vcenter-fqdn>:5480) and verify that the Startup Type for the Workload Control Plane service now displays as Automatic and the options are no longer greyed out.

Additional Information

Setting vCenter server services start up type to Manual/Automatic mode via either Command line or VAMI Page