Error: "HOST_IP_HAS_BEEN_CHANGED_OOB" during cluster expansion in SDDC Manager

Products

• VMware SDDC Manager / VCF Installer

Issue/Introduction

• When attempting to expand a cluster or add a host to a Management Workload Domain in SDDC Manager, the workflow fails during the validation phase with the following error: "Cluster expansion failed due to: HOST_IP_HAS_BEEN_CHANGED_OOB for <hostname> [VSAN]"

Additional Symptoms:

• The vSAN IP allocations in the Network Pool do not match the actual VMkernel configurations on the ESX hosts.
• vSAN Skyline Health is Green, indicating the host configuration is functional but out of sync with SDDC Manager.

Environment

VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) 9.1

Cause

This issue occurs due to configuration drift. The vSAN IP addresses or gateways were modified directly on the ESX hosts or via vCenter Server ('out-of-band') instead of through SDDC Manager. Consequently, the SDDC Manager database ('vcf_network' table) retains the original IP records, creating a mismatch that triggers a safety validation failure during expansion.

Resolution

To resolve this issue, perform an Inventory Sync to reconcile the SDDC Manager database with the live environment.

1. Take a snapshot of the SDDC Manager virtual machine.
2. Log in to the 'VCF Operations' interface.
3. Navigate to 'Operate' > 'Inventory'.
4. Select the impacted Management Domain and click 'Sync Inventory'.
5. Wait for the task to complete successfully. This process forces SDDC Manager to overwrite stale database records with the current data from the vCenter Server.
6. Retry the cluster expansion workflow in SDDC Manager.

Note: If the inventory sync fails, review the task details for specific error messages. Common failures are typically related to expired certificates, invalid passwords, or general infrastructure connectivity issues. If the issue persists, contact Broadcom support for further assistance.