Deploy a new vSAN ESA Cluster from an existing cluster
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Deploy a new vSAN ESA Cluster from an existing cluster

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Article ID: 436377

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Updated On:

Products

VMware vSAN

Issue/Introduction

Symptoms:

  • The vSAN ESA cluster is in a failed state (e.g., "vSAN is inaccessible and might have been disabled").
  • Standard vCenter "Deactivate vSAN" tasks hang or fail with metadata errors.
  • The original disk pools, host configuration, and cluster object must be manually purged to allow for a clean "Greenfield" redeployment.

Environment

VMware vSAN ESA (All Versions)

Cause

Corruption of the vSAN ESA storage pool metadata or inconsistent cluster membership state prevents the standard UI from re-initializing the cluster.

Resolution

Perform a full purge of the existing vSAN configuration using the vSphere Client before recreating the environment.

Phase 1: Purge existing vSAN ESA Configuration (vSphere Client)

1. Prepare Hosts

  • In the vSphere Client, right-click each host in the cluster and select Maintenance Mode > Enter Maintenance Mode. Select No Data Migration.
  • Warning: This process is destructive to any data currently residing on the vSAN disks.

2. Remove vSAN ESA Disk

  • Select an ESXi host in the inventory.
  • Navigate to Configure > vSAN > Disk Management.
  • Select a host and click View Disks, select the disk and click Remove Disk.
  • Repeat this for every host in the cluster. This action wipes the vSAN ESA metadata from the NVMe drives.

3. Decommission the Cluster Object

  • Navigate to the Cluster object in the inventory.
  • Go to Configure > vSAN > Services.
  • Click Turn Off vSAN to disable the vSAN cluster.
  • Optional: Once vSAN is disabled, drag all hosts out of the Cluster object and into the Datacenter folder.
  • Optional: Right-click the now-empty Cluster object and select Delete. This ensures no lingering "vSAN ESA Enabled" flags remain in the vCenter Database (VCDB).

Alternative Method (CLI): If the UI "Remove" or "Deactivate" tasks fail, log in to each host via SSH and run:

esxcli vsan storagepool list                                # Identify Pool UUID
esxcli vsan storagepool remove -d <diskID>    # Remove Each Disk Individually (can also use -u <UUID>)
esxcli vsan cluster leave                                     # Force leave cluster

Phase 2: Greenfield vSAN ESA Redeployment

1. Create a New Cluster Object

  • Right-click the Datacenter and select New Cluster.
  • In the "Basics" page:
    • Toggle "vSAN" to ON.
    • Toggle "vSAN ESA" to ON.
    • Enable vSphere Lifecycle Manager (vLCM) (required for ESA).
  • Complete the wizard to create the new cluster object.

2. Add Hosts & Initialize Storage

  • Drag the purged ESXi hosts into the new cluster.
  • Navigate to the Cluster object > Configure > vSAN > Services to enable any required services.
  • Navigate to the Cluster object > Configure > vSAN > Disk Management > click Configure (or Claim Unused Disks under Disk Management).
  • Select the eligible NVMe devices to build the new ESA storage pool.
  • Exit Maintenance Mode on the hosts once the vsanDatastore is visible and healthy.
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