Template deployment from Aria Automation fails across vSAN 9.1 clusters

Products

• VCF Automation

Issue/Introduction

When deploying a virtual machine from a template located on a separate vSAN 9.1 cluster using VMware Aria Automation 8.18.1, the deployment fails. This behavior occurs due to a security-related change in ESXi 9.1 that prevents cross-cluster access for virtual disks during the cloning process.

Symptoms:

• Deployment task fails in Aria Automation.
• Error messages observed:
  • "Unable to access virtual disk;Hard disk 1; from the host. Either the host is disconnected from the datastore or has insufficient privilege. Details: Unable to access file [<VSAN_CLUSTER_A>] /<VIRTUAL_MACHINE_TEMPLATE>.vmdk"
  • "Failed to clone <VIRTUAL_MACHINE_TEMPLATE> on <ESX_IN_CLUSTER_A>, in <DATACENTER> to <VIRTUAL_MACHINE> on <ESX_IN_CLUSTER_B>"

Environment

Aria Automation 8.18.X

Cause

The destination ESXi 9.1 host lacks the required access permissions to the source vSAN cluster where the VM template resides. This is the result of a security-related architectural change implemented in ESXi 9.1.

Resolution

To resolve this issue, implement one of the following workarounds:

1. Configure vSphere Content Library: Utilize the vSphere Content Library to distribute templates across all relevant clusters. This ensures the template is accessible to the destination cluster.
2. Duplicate Templates: Manually duplicate the required VM templates to all destination vSAN clusters to ensure local template availability.