Remove VxRail deployed host from vCenter inventory can cause network issues

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

• Removing a VxRail host from the vCenter inventory, especially if not done correctly through the VxRail Manager, can lead to management sync issues and configuration "ghosts" in the vCenter database. In ESXi 8.0, the environment is particularly sensitive to the host's Config Store and vDS (Distributed Switch) mappings.

• Immediate Impact and Risk

  • VxRail Orchestration Break: Removing a host manually from vCenter bypasses the VxRail Manager’s lifecycle management. This can cause the VxRail Manager to lose track of the node, potentially failing future cluster expansions or upgrades.
  • Potential network interruptions

Environment

ESX and VxRail

Resolution

Contact Dell VxRail support for proper process of ESX hosts management

Additional Information

• VDS Configuration Ghosting: If the host is still associated with a vSphere Distributed Switch (vDS), you may see errors like A general system error occurred: vDS host error. This happens because vCenter still expects the host to be a member of the switch. Unable to remove decommissioned ESXi host from vCenter Server inventory with an error " A general system error occurred: vDS host error: see faultCause"
• Stale Objects: VM templates or stale VM entries registered to the host can prevent its removal, resulting in a The resource 'hostname' is in use fault. Error: "The resource 'hostname' is in use" when removing an ESXi host from vCenter