ESXi hosts display a disconnected status within the Operations UI

Products

• VCF Operations
• VMware Cloud Foundation

Issue/Introduction

• All ESXi hosts reflect a disconnected state within the Operations UI and Fleet UI. Validations of the credentials within the SDDC Manager database using the password_lookup tool indicate that passwords are correct and unchanged.
• Direct SSH connections to the ESXi hosts fail because the SSH service is disabled.
• Initial password remediation workflows complete successfully, but the hosts continuously reflect a disconnected status within the management layer. 

Environment

VMware Cloud Foundation 9.0.x

Cause

This issue occurs due to the enablement of Lockdown mode on the ESXi hosts in conjunction with a disabled SSH service.

This dual condition blocks the necessary administrative communication pathways and state synchronization mechanisms utilized by the management layer (including SDDC Manager and Fleet UI processes), preventing the collection of health metrics or the execution of host-state remediation.

Resolution

To restore connectivity and re-establish management synchronization, perform the following steps:

1. Access the vCenter Server managing the affected ESXi hosts via the vSphere Client.

2. For each affected ESXi host, navigate to the Configure tab, expand System, and select Security Profile.

3. Under the Lockdown Mode section, click Edit, set the mode to Disabled, and confirm the configuration change.

4. Under the Services section of the Security Profile, locate the SSH service, select it, and ensure the service is started and running.

5. Log in to the VCF Operation interface.

6. Navigate to Fleet Management > Passwords.

7. Select the disconnected ESXi hosts.

8. Click Remediate Password.

9. Enter the existing password that currently works for direct login to the host.