vCenter Domain Join Fails With Undocumented Exception code 0x00009efc

Products

• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

When attempting to join the vCenter Server Appliance to an Active Directory domain using the domainjoin-cli utility, the operation fails with the following exact error:

ERROR:Undocumented exception [code 0x00009efc]

Environment

vCenter Server Appliance 8.0.x

Cause

A conflicting or stale computer object for the vCenter Server already exists within the target Organizational Unit (OU) in Active Directory, preventing the local Likewise agent from properly establishing a secure machine trust due to a permissions conflict.

Resolution

 

1. Log in to a domain controller or a machine with Active Directory Users and Computers (ADUC) installed.

2. Locate and delete the stale vCenter Server computer object from the target Organizational Unit (OU).

3. Connect to the vCenter Server Appliance via SSH using the root account.

4. Execute the following command to explicitly leave the domain and clear any residual local configuration: /opt/likewise/bin/domainjoin-cli leave

5. Reboot the vCenter Server Appliance to restart all directory and authentication services.

6. Reconnect to the vCenter Server via SSH and execute the domain join command: /opt/likewise/bin/domainjoin-cli join <INSERT_DOMAIN> <INSERT_USERNAME>

7. Log in to the vSphere Client to confirm domain accounts can successfully authenticate.

 

Additional Information

https://knowledge.broadcom.com/external/article/336654/joining-an-esxi-host-or-vmware-vcenter-s.html

https://knowledge.broadcom.com/external/article/314324/removal-of-integrated-windows-authentica.html