VCF 9.1 Online Software Depot configuration fails during initial setup

Products

• VCF Operations

Issue/Introduction

In the VCF 9.1 unified architecture, the Online Software Depot relies on the VCF Business Services Console to validate entitlements. If the local License Server is missing, misconfigured (e.g., deployed with a short name instead of an FQDN), or failing to sync usage data, the Broadcom backend flags the environment as unentitled and silently drops or rejects subsequent depot authentication requests. The following error is displayed in the Online Software Depot configuration:

"A Problem has occurred on the server. Please retry or contact the service provider and provide the reference token. Reference token:R9D1QU"

 

 

 

Environment

VCF 9.1x

Cause

VCF 9.1 architectural shift moved away from legacy, standalone Download Tokens (used in 9.0.2 and earlier) to a unified Business Services Console model. As outlined in the VCF 9.1 Deployment Guide and Broadcom Licensing Framework, the Software Depot and the License Server now share the same backend entitlement validation pathway. A failure in the latter inherently breaks the former.

 

Resolution

To resolve the issue:

1. Pause Online Software Depot configuration.

2. Deploy or redeploy the standalone VCF License Server Appliance, ensuring the full FQDN is used during OVA deployment rather than a short name to prevent DNS sync mismatches.

3. Register the License Server in the VCF Business Services Console (vcf.broadcom.com) and verify it is actively syncing.

4. Once the License Server sync is established, generate a new Software Depot Activation Code and configure the depot in the VCF Operations UI.

 

Additional Information

Make sure customer is on 9.1, SR 37046425 came in as a VCF 9.0.2 case, however customer confirmed, VCF Operations and SDDC Manager were already on 9.1.

kb: 443216 -  Disconnected depot: active" in Build > Software Depot after registering the Online Depot in VCF 9.1

kb: 440630 - Upgrade Sequence and Related Issues for VMware Cloud Foundation and vSphere Foundation 9.1 (license server is mandatory component in 9.1 and must be deployed before setting up software depot)