Error: "Hot migration is disabled in vmkernel on host" - VMware Cloud Foundation 9.1

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi
• VMware Cloud Foundation

Issue/Introduction

• Virtual machine fails to migrate to or from an ESX host with the error messages:

  Hot migration is disabled in vmkernel on host <Hostname>

  The operation is not supported on the object. Host '####' does not support this operation because it is disabled in vmkernel.

• Running the command vsish -e get /config/Migrate/intOpts/Enabled, returns a current value of 0, which confirms that the migration functionality is disabled.
  
  
  

Environment

• VMware Cloud Foundation 9.1
• vSphere ESX 9.1

Cause

The migrate module is administratively disabled at the ESX host level, preventing the vmkernel from processing vMotion requests regardless of the network configuration.

Resolution

To restore vMotion functionality, enable the migration module using the following methods:

Method 1: Configuring via ESX Command Line (CLI)

1. Connect to the affected ESX host using an SSH session.

2. Verify the migration module status by running the following command: 
   
   vsish -e get /config/Migrate/intOpts/Enabled

3. If the value returned is 0, enable the module using the below command:

   vsish -e set /config/Migrate/intOpts/Enabled 1

4. Check if the migrate module is loaded and enabled:
   
   esxcli system module list | grep migrate

5. If the module is disabled, ensure it is configured to load on boot:
   
   esxcli system module set -e true -m migrate

6. Restart the management agents (hostd and vpxa) to apply the changes:
   
   /etc/init.d/hostd restart
/etc/init.d/vpxa restart

7. Retry the Virtual machine migration to the Host.

Should the issue persist, verify the Advanced system settings in vCenter for the ESX Host.

Method 2: Configuring via vCenter Advanced System Settings

1. Log into vCenter and select the affected ESXi host.

2. Navigate to Configure > System > Advanced System Settings.

3. Search for the parameter Migrate.Enabled.

4. If the value is set to 0, click Edit and change the value to 1.

5. Retry the VM migration to verify it completes successfully.

Additional Information

• For more information, see KB article vMotion failing with error 0xbad0020 as migrate module is not enabled on ESXi host
• Contact Broadcom support