vSphere Replication and vCenter Server: Disable In-Product Feedback Survey Popups

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

Users encounter recurring in-product feedback survey popups within the VMware vSphere Replication (VRMS) and VMware vCenter Server HTML5 interfaces. These prompts persist even after selecting the "Don't ask me again" option or disabling the Customer Experience Improvement Program (CEIP).

• Recurring satisfaction survey popups appearing during active administrative sessions.
• "Don't ask me again" selection fails to persist across browser sessions.
• Browser developer traces show active polling to trigger-events?client_id=esp-prod returning HTTP 200 OK.

Environment

• VMware vCenter Server 8.x
• VMware vSphere Replication 9.0.x

Cause

The Enterprise Service Platform (ESP) Feedback mechanism integrated into the vCenter Client framework triggers the prompts. This service operates independently of the vCenter CEIP settings. The vCenter Client framework relies on static JavaScript bundles that hardcode background heartbeats to query backend feature flags for survey rendering.

Resolution

Implement either a global appliance-level override or a local browser session override to suppress the feedback prompts.

Method 1: Appliance-Level Suppression (Global - Recommended)

1. Connect to the vCenter Server Appliance (vCSA) via SSH.
2. Open the following file in a text editor: /etc/vmware/vsphere-ui/webclient.properties
3. Add or update the property: esp.fs.disabled=true
4. Restart the vSphere UI service: service-control --restart vsphere-ui

Method 2: Browser-Level Suppression (Local)

1. Open browser Developer Tools (F12) and navigate to the Application or Storage tab.
2. Under Local Storage, select the vCenter site URL.
3. Inject the following key-value pair:
   • Key: h5-esp-fs-mode
   • Value: disabled
4. Refresh the browser session.

For updates on permanent fix status, subscribe to the article (reference: Article 275360).

Additional Information

• Refresh button spinning continuously in vSphere Client
• vCenter UI is slow in airgapped environment
• To speak with a customer representative or a Support Engineer see Contact Support. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on your respective region.