VAMI backup fails at 98% with the error: "BackupManager encountered an exception. See logs for details".

Products

• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

• The VAMI backup fails with a generic error at 98% completion .
• The /var/log/vmware/applmgmt/backup.log contains the following error
  
  ERROR: BackupManager encountered an exception: File contains no section headers. file: '/etc/systemd/network/10-eth0.network', line: 1 'B\n'

Environment

• VMware vCenter Server Appliance 8.x

Cause

The network configuration file /etc/systemd/network/10-eth0.network has been incorrectly modified, often containing invalid stray characters before than required [Match] and [Network] sections.

Resolution

To resume backups, follow these steps:

Take a snapshot of the VCSA before performing any changes. Refer Snapshot Best practices for vCenter Server Virtual Machines

• Log in to the vCenter Server Appliance via SSH.
• Verify if there are any stray characters or empty lines at the beginning of the 10-eth0.network file
  • cat /etc/systemd/network/10-eth0.network 
• Create a backup copy of the file before editing
  • cp /etc/systemd/network/10-eth0.network /etc/systemd/network/10-eth0.network.bak
• Navigate to the network directory and edit the file using vi editor.
  • cd /etc/systemd/network/
  • vi 10-eth0.network
  • Remove any corrupted text and replace it with the following structure:
    

    [Match]
Name=eth0

    [Network]
Address=####.####.####.####/##
Gateway=####.####.####.####
DNS=####.####.####.####
    
    Note: The #### represents the current IP, Gateway, and DNS information for the environment. Do not alter these existing values.

  • Save and exit (:wq!).
• Verify the interface status: ip addr show eth0