VCF Usage Meter 9.x displays "E_NO_CONNECTION" and fails to connect to vCenter endpoint due to DNS resolution failure

Products

• VMware Usage Meter

Issue/Introduction

• The VMware Usage Meter displays a Health Score of ERROR.

• The following error codes are reported by the Usage Meter: E_NO_CONNECTION, W_NO_PRODUCT_DATA.

• The vCenter endpoint loses connection to the VMware Usage Meter, displaying the error message: "Failed to connect to endpoint: IP:443".

• Network troubleshooting reveals that the Usage Meter appliance can successfully ping the vCenter endpoint IP but it is unable to resolve the vCenter appliance hostname.

Environment

VMware vCloud Usage Meter 9.x

Cause

This issue occurs when an incorrect DNS server is configured on the Usage Meter appliance. Because the vCenter IP address is reachable but the hostname cannot be resolved, the connection failure is directly tied to the incorrect DNS configuration preventing hostname resolution.

Resolution

Verify the DNS Failure

Before making changes, you can verify that DNS resolution is failing by logging in to the VMware Usage Meter appliance command line (via SSH or console) and running the following commands:

1. Test Forward DNS Resolution: Verify if the Usage Meter can resolve the vCenter Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN) to an IP address.
   nslookup <vCenter_FQDN>
   (If DNS is failing, the output will likely show an error such as ** server can't find <vCenter_FQDN>: NXDOMAIN or it will time out.)
2. Test Reverse DNS Resolution: Verify if the Usage Meter can resolve the vCenter IP address back to its FQDN.
   nslookup <vCenter_IP_Address>

If either of these commands fails to return the correct IP address or hostname, it confirms that the DNS server configured on the Usage Meter appliance is incorrect or missing the appropriate records.

Resolve the Issue

To fix the incorrect DNS configuration and restore the connection:

1. Log in to the VMware Usage Meter VAMI page at https://<Usage_Meter_IP>:5480
2. Navigate to the network settings and change the DNS server configuration to a valid DNS server capable of resolving your vCenter environment's hostnames.
3. Save the new DNS configuration.
4. Log in to the VMware Usage Meter web interface.
5. Navigate to your vCenter endpoints.
6. Edit the affected vCenter Server endpoint and save it to refresh the connection. The connection should now successfully re-establish.

Additional Information

For a complete list of API error codes and general troubleshooting steps for the VCF Usage Meter, refer to the official documentation on VCF Usage Meter Management in the VCF Business Services Console.