VCF 9.x Brownfield Import fails with "Cluster does not have any DVS in use"

Products

• VCF Operations

Issue/Introduction

• When performing a brownfield import to VCF 9.x, the validation phase fails at Existing components with the following error:
  
  Cluster does not have any DVS in use.
Remediation: Ensure cluster has at least on DVS is use.

  
  
  
• Prior to importing the workload domain, the existing vCenter was verified to ensure that all Distributed Virtual Switches (DVS) have at least one attached host - Import of workload domain fails with the error "Cluster does not have DVS shared by all the hosts for #####"

Environment

VCF 9.0

Cause

No common DVS for all hosts in the cluster. 

The VCF 9.x import validation includes strict network guardrails that requires:

• A Common DVS: Every host within a cluster must be associated with at least one common Distributed Virtual Switch.
• Active Uplink Mappings: The shared DVS must have at least one physical network adapter (vmnic) mapped to an uplink on every host in the cluster.

Note: If the hosts are split across different DVS (e.g., in a stretched cluster where Site A and Site B use separate Distributed Switches) without a single DVS spanning all hosts, or if a common DVS exists but lacks physical uplink assignments on some hosts, the guard rail will still fail.

Resolution

To resolve this issue, you must ensure at least one Distributed Virtual Switch (DVS) is symmetrically configured across all hosts in the cluster.

1. Verify Common DVS Connectivity

Ensure that all hosts in the cluster (e.g., all hosts across both sites in a stretched configuration) are added to at least one common DVS.

2. Configure Mandatory Uplink Mappings

For the common DVS identified in Step 1:

• Navigate to the Networking tab in vCenter.
• Select the Distributed Switch > Configure > Manage Physical Adapters.
• Ensure that every host has at least one vmnic assigned to a DVS uplink.

3. Once a single DVS is shared by all hosts and contains at least one physical uplink mapping per host, re-run the VCF migration validation.