VxRail cluster expansion fails in SDDC Manager with "Failed to load Host cluster details" error

Products

• VMware SDDC Manager / VCF Installer

Issue/Introduction

• Adding a host to a VxRail cluster via SDDC Manager fails, generating the following error in the UI:
  
  Failed to load Host cluster details. Http failure response for [URL]: 500 Internal Server Error
  
  
• The following error is observed in /var/log/vmware/vcf/domainmanager/domainmanager.log when SDDC Manager fails to discover VxRail nodes:
  
  

  ERROR [vcf_dm,...] Error fetching hosts
  com.vmware.vxrail.vcf.hostmanager.error.VxRailHostManagerException: No new VxRail hosts discovered for cluster with name [cluster_name].
  ...
  INFO [vcf_dm,...] Async Response status while getting response: FAILED
  INFO [vcf_dm,...] Async Response Inside getQueryResults VxRail, {"errorResponse":{"errorCode":"NO_VXRAIL_HOST_FOUND","message":"No new VxRail hosts discovered for cluster with name [cluster_name]."},"status":"FAILED"}

Environment

VMware Cloud Foundation 5.x

Cause

Expanding a VxRail cluster in VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) requires adding a node to an existing VI Workload Domain (WLD).

The expansion process requires two sequential steps:

• VxRail Manager (via vCenter): Manages initial hardware discovery and cluster configuration.

• SDDC Manager: Integrates the new host into the Workload Domain and deploys necessary network components, such as NSX.

Resolution

Phase 1: Expand the VxRail Cluster (vCenter)

To begin the host expansion, leverage the VxRail Manager plugin in vCenter. (Note: Up to 6 hosts can be added concurrently).

1. Log into vCenter and select the VxRail cluster you are expanding.

2. Navigate to the Configure tab -> Add VxRail Hosts. The newly discovered host should appear here. Click the ADD Host button in the top right corner.

3. In the wizard's initial screen, select the newly discovered host and click NEXT.

4. Enter your vSphere SSO credentials.

5. Select a network configuration profile that matches the existing cluster nodes.

6. Enter the ESXi and Local Management account credentials, as well as the pre-configured ESXi Hostname. Click NEXT.

7. Enter the required ESXi, vMotion, and vSAN IP details for the new host. Click ADD for each IP entry, then click NEXT.

8. Review all configuration details. Click VALIDATE to begin the pre-check process.

9. Check the box for Maintenance Mode. (This is required because SDDC Manager needs to perform additional configurations, like NSX-T installation, after the VxRail expansion). Once validation is successful, click FINISH.

10. The workflow progress can be monitored directly from vCenter and VxRail Manager until the host is successfully added to the VxRail cluster.

Phase 2: Add VxRail Host to VCF WLD (SDDC Manager)

1. Log into the SDDC Manager dashboard.

2. Go to Inventory -> Workload Domains -> Select your VI WLD -> Clusters -> Select the specific cluster.

3. From the cluster dashboard, click the ACTIONS dropdown menu and select Add VxRail Hosts.

4. The wizard will automatically detect the host that was just added via VxRail Manager. Select it, enter the ESXi host SSH password, and click NEXT.

5. Wait for the SDDC Manager validation to complete. Once successful, click FINISH to initiate the SDDC workflow.

6. Track the execution steps from the Tasks pane in SDDC Manager. The workflow will handle necessary VCF integrations, including preparing the host as an NSX-T Transport Node.

Additional Information

For more information: Add a VxRail node to the cluster