Virtual machine automatic startup fails on ESXi after host reboot or power restoration

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi
• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

• ESXi hosts power on correctly after a reboot or power outage.
• Virtual Machines (VMs) configured for "Automatic Startup" remain in a powered-off state.
• Individual VM settings show AutoStart as enabled, but the host does not initiate power-on tasks.
• Manual power-on of the VMs works without issue.

Note: Automatic startup is not supported when the virtual machine is vSphere HA enabled. 

Environment

• ESXi 7.x
• ESXi 8.x
• ESX 9.x

Cause

This issue occurs if the global host setting for AutoStart is disabled on the ESXi host.

In VMware vSphere, the AutoStart feature follows a hierarchy:

Global Host Setting: Acts as a master switch (SystemDefaults).
Individual VM Setting: Defines the specific behavior for that VM.

If the Global Host Setting is set to "Disabled," the host will ignore all individual VM startup configurations. This can be counterintuitive as the UI may still allow the configuration of individual VMs even when the global feature is toggled off.

Resolution

To resolve this issue, AutoStart must be enabled at the host level.

Option 1: Using the vSphere Client (Recommended)

1. Log into vSphere Client.
2. Select affected ESXi host in the inventory.
3. Navigate to the Configure tab.
4. Under Virtual Machines, select VM Startup/Shutdown.
5. Click Edit.
6. Ensure the checkbox "Automatically start and stop the virtual machines with the system" is selected.
7. Verify that the desired VMs are listed in the "Automatic ordered" or "Automatic" Startup group. (If VMs are not seen in the list, follow the below steps)
   1. Navigate to the manual startup window and select the VMs 
   2. Use the "Move to" option to move the VMs to the desired group 
8. Click OK.

Option 2: Using the ESXi Command Line (CLI)

Verify if the configuration is active without rebooting the host by running the following command:
vim-cmd hostsvc/autostartmanager/autostart

If configured correctly, the host will attempt to trigger the startup flow.

If global settings are enabled, the "Recent Tasks" pane will show a failure message that the VM is already in the requested state.
If global settings are disabled, no tasks will be created, and no errors will be generated.

Additional Information

Automating the process of starting and stopping virtual machines
VM with AutoStart feature enabled is not starting
Configure Autostart Options for a Virtual Machine in the VMware Host Client in 9.x