VCF 9.1 upgrade fails with "VCF Instance Cloud Proxy Registration validation failed"

Products

• VCF Operations
• VCF Operations/Automation (formerly VMware Aria Suite)
• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

• During a VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) 9.1 upgrade, the Components Installation (VCF Management Services deployment) fails.
• The SDDC Manager UI displays the error: "VCF Instance Cloud Proxy Registration validation failed".
• When attempting to manually add the VCF account/adapter in VCF Operations, it fails with: "Failed to create AI resource. Resource with same key already exists".

Cause

This issue occurs because the VCF Instance adapter in VCF Operations is not correctly associated with a functional Unified Cloud Proxy. During the 9.1 upgrade, SDDC Manager validates that the VCF instance is correctly registered through a Cloud Proxy. If the integration is missing, stale, or pointing to an incorrect collector group, the validation fails. The "same key" error indicates a conflict with a pre-existing, stale integration entry in the database.

Resolution

To resolve this issue, you must manually update the VCF adapter integrations to point to the correct Cloud Proxy:

1. Access VCF Operations: Log in to the VCF Operations (formerly Aria Operations) user interface with administrative privileges.
2. Navigate to Integrations: Go to Administration > Integrations.
3. Update VCF Instance Mapping:
   • Locate the VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) adapter instance.
   • Select the instance and click Edit.
   • Ensure that the Collector/Group is set to the newly deployed or designated Unified Cloud Proxy.
   • Repeat this for all associated workload domains and vCenter instances within the same VCF Instance.
4. Verify Health Status: Confirm that the Cloud Proxy status is reported as Healthy and Online within the VCF Operations console.
5. Trigger Inventory Sync:
   • In the VCF Operations UI, navigate to Fleet Management > Lifecycle > VCF Management > Components.
   • Select the operations component and click Trigger inventory sync.
6. Retry Upgrade Validation: Return to the SDDC Manager UI and retry the VCF Management Services deployment. The validation should now pass, allowing the installation to proceed.