Authentication error - Backend service authentication error with path /esx-lcm in vCenter Server

Products

• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

Users encounter authentication failures when attempting to access lifecycle management functionalities in the vSphere Client. This often impacts ESXi upgrade cycles.

* The vSphere Client displays: `Backend service authentication error. Failed to log into back-end service with path '/esx-lcm'`
* vAPI Endpoint status may show as 'Healthy with Warning'.
* The following error is observed in `/var/log/vmware/vsphere-ui/logs/apigw.log`:
  `vAPI login error com.vmware.vcenter.apigw.security.AuthenticationException: Failed to log into [uri=http://localhost:1080/esx-lcm ...]`

Environment

VMware vCenter Server 8.x

VMware vCenter Server 9.x

Cause

A communication or authentication failure occurs between the vAPI Gateway and the vSphere Lifecycle Manager (vLCM) service, which typically stems from hung backend lifecycle processes.

The error explicitly references the /esx-lcm path, isolating the failure to the communication layer between the vAPI Gateway and the vLCM service endpoint rather than a global vCenter subsystem failure.

Resolution

To resolve this issue, perform a sequenced restart of the lifecycle management services. 

1. Log into the vCenter Server Appliance (VCSA) via SSH as a root user.
2. Stop and restart the Lifecycle Manager service:

   service-control --stop vlcm && service-control --start vlcm 

3. Stop and restart the Update Manager service:

   service-control --stop vmware-updatemgr && service-control --start vmware-updatemgr 

4. Restart the vAPI Endpoint service:

   service-control --restart vmware-vapi-endpoint

If the issue persists, refer to [Contact Broadcom Support](https://knowledge.broadcom.com/external/article/206567/contact-broadcom-support.html ) for further assistance.

Additional Information

For steps on managing Broadcom support cases, see [Creating and Managing Broadcom Support Cases](https://knowledge.broadcom.com/external/article/142884/creating-and-managing-broadcom-support-c.html ).