"Virtual Switches" page fails to load with error "TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'config')" in ESX 9.1 Host Client UI

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

• When navigating to the Networking > Virtual Switches tab in the ESX 9.1 Host Client UI, the page is completely empty.
• The browser console or a pop-up in the UI displays the following error: TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'config')

  
  
  
• Management of virtual switches through vSphere Client (vCenter UI) works as expected.
• This is a cosmetic UI defect and does not impact the underlying ESX server, virtual switch/DVS, or active traffic flow.

Environment

VMware vSphere ESX 9.1.x

Cause

This issue is caused by an unhandled Null Pointer Exception (NPE) in the ESX Host Client user interface. When rendering networking diagrams, the UI attempts to evaluate configuration settings of a VM’s network adapter virtualPort object. If this object is null or undefined (e.g., a VM #### is connected to a port group #### that is missing its virtual port), the UI throws an unhandled exception and fails to render the page.

Resolution

• Broadcom engineering is aware about this issue and it is targeted to be fixed in a future release of ESX. Pease subscribe to this article to be updated on the fix status. For more information on subscribing to articles, see Subscribe to a Broadcom knowledge article by article or product
• To manage host network settings, utilize the vSphere Client (vCenter UI) instead of the standalone ESX Host Client.

Additional Information

• You can identify the affected VM (e.g., via HAR file analysis or checking for VMs with missing port group associations) and temporarily disconnect its network adapter or move it to a different port group.
• 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.