Error: /usr/sbin/esxupdate exit status: 7 during VMware Live Recovery host configuration

Products

• VMware Live Recovery

Issue/Introduction

Host configuration fails on ESXi hosts during VMware Live Recovery (VLR) or vSphere Replication deployment. The process stops when the host is unable to download the required Host-Based Replication (HBR) agent VIB from the appliance. This typically occurs in environments where appliances and hosts reside in separate DNS domains without a two-way trust.

Symptoms

• vCenter displays the error: An error occurred during host configuration: /usr/sbin/esxupdate returned with exit status: 7.
• ESXi host esxupdate.log shows: esximage.Errors.VibDownloadError: ('https://####:443/vib/vmware-hbr-agent.vib', None, "('https://####:443/vib/vmware-hbr-agent.vib', '', 'Name or service not known')")
• nslookup on the ESXi host returns a loopback address or fails to resolve the VLR appliance FQDN.

Environment

• VMware Live Recovery 9.x
• vSphere Replication 8.x / 9.x
• VMware vSphere ESXi 7.x / 8.x
• Multi-domain infrastructure (e.g., vCenter in domain-a.#### and VLR in domain-b.####)

Cause

The ESXi host cannot resolve or trust the identity of the VLR appliance because the appliance lacks a valid Pointer (PTR) record in the DNS domain used by the ESXi host. Without a valid PTR record, the host cannot establish the secure connection required to download the VIB.

Resolution

1. Create DNS Records: Coordinate with the DNS team to create PTR records for the VMware Live Recovery appliances within the DNS domain used by the ESXi hosts.
2. Update Appliance Identity: Verify the VLR appliance hostnames and certificates match the new FQDNs registered in DNS.
3. Perform VAMI Reconfiguration:
   1. Log in to the VLR Appliance Management Interface (VAMI) at both the protected and recovery sites.
   2. Select the Summary tab.
   3. Click Reconfigure and follow the wizard to refresh the network identity and site registration.
4. Remediate Hosts: In the vSphere Client, retry the host remediation or "Install" task for the replication agent to trigger a successful VIB installation.

Additional Information

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