Troubleshooting Unexpected Virtual Machine Power-On Events - VMware vSphere

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

 Virtual machines power on automatically after vSAN cluster shutdown and restart.

Environment

 VMware vSphere / vCenter Server.

Cause

A vCenter Scheduled Task is configured on the affected virtual machine(s) to power them on at a specific interval or time.

Resolution

1. Navigate to the Scheduled Tasks view in the vSphere Client for the affected virtual machine(s).
2. Identify tasks related to "Power On" or power state management.
3. Disable or remove the task to prevent automated power-on behavior.
4. Verify the power state behavior by manually powering off the VM and monitoring the tasks to confirm no further automated triggers occur.