Virtual Machine does not have network connectivity

Products

• VMware vCenter Server
• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

• Virtual machines do not have network connectivity.
• Virtual machines cannot connect to the network.
• APIPA address is incorrectly auto-assigned.
  
• Duplicate IP is detected.
  

Environment

VMware vCenter Server 
VMware vSphere ESXi 

Resolution

Verify that the virtual machine guest operating system windows networking settings are configured properly.

1. Verify that the virtual network adapter is present and enabled:
1. Click Start > Run.
2. Execute:  devmgmt.msc
3. Click on the + next to Network adapters to ensure that there is an entry and that it is enabled.
   If Network adapters is not present, there may not be a virtual network adapter connected to the virtual machine. For more information, see Verifying virtual network adapter is present and connected to virtual machine.
2. Verify that the network is enabled:
1. Click Start > Run.
2. Execute: control
3. Click Network Connections and verify that the Local Area Connection is enabled and its status is Connected.
3. Verify the proper TCP/IP settings.
1. Right-click the Local Area Connection and click Properties.
2. Highlight Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) and click Properties.
3. Please check with your Network administrator to confirm that the IP address, Subnet mask, Default gateway, and DNS servers are correct. Change them if necessary.

Note: If a duplicate IP is detected, locate the machine with the listed conflicting hardware mac address to re-configure it's IP address.

 

Additional Information

Run esxtop via a putty session, then hit the 'n' key for networking, the VM's connection status and vmnic can be determined from the list.

For related information, see Troubleshooting when a virtual machine loses network connection after vMotion.

Note, Automatic Private IP Addressing (APIPA) allows devices to self-assign dynamic IP addresses if they cannot do so through a DHCP server or due to a duplicate IP address. The possible range of APIPA addresses is limited between 169.254.0.1 and 169.254.255.254, giving it a subnet mask of 255.255.0.0 (which can, alternatively, be displayed as “/16”).