Unable to add the host to SDDC Manager; failing with an error: vSAN Partition found/exisits on the host, needs clean-up.

Products

• VMware vSAN
• VMware Cloud Foundation
• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

During host commissioning or workload domain deployment in VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF), the SDDC Manager validation process fails. This occurs when the target ESXi host contains existing vSAN metadata or partition tables from a previous environment, regardless of whether the host was configured for Original Storage Architecture (OSA) or Express Storage Architecture (ESA).

Unable to add / Commission ESXi host in the SDDC manager with storage type vSAN

 

Environment

• Product: VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) 4.x, 5.x, 9.x

• Storage: vSAN OSA (Disk Groups) or vSAN ESA (Storage Pools)

• Components: SDDC Manager, ESXi

Cause

The VCF deployment engine requires "clean" disks to ensure predictable partitioning and ownership.

• For OSA: Lingering partition tables or vSAN disk group metadata remain on the SSD/HDD.

• For ESA: The NVMe devices are still logically claimed by a vSAN Storage Pool. The installer will not automatically overwrite these partitions to prevent accidental data loss on potentially active volumes.

Resolution

Note: Ensure the host is not part of any active vSAN cluster and does not contain any active objects before proceeding with the steps. 

Refer: Monitor Virtual Objects in the vSAN Cluster

Follow one of the below options

Option 1 - UI option

Delete vSAN partitions from the disks in order to address the issue. 

1. Log into affected ESXi host's web client.

2. Navigate to Storage > Devices > Select the vSAN eligible device.

3. Click on Actions > Clear partition table.

4. Repeat Step 2 & 3 for the remaining vSAN eligible devices on the affected host.

 

Option 2 - ESXi CLI

1. Identify the Architecture and Disk State

Log in to the ESXi host via SSH as root and check the current vSAN disk status:

vdq -i

Disks marked as "Ineligible" with a reason involving "vSAN partition" must be cleared.

2. Clean Up vSAN Express Storage Architecture (ESA)

If the host was previously in an ESA cluster:

1. List the storage pool devices: esxcli vsan storagepool list

2. Remove each device: esxcli vsan storagepool remove -u <DEVICE_UUID>

3. Leave the cluster: esxcli vsan cluster leave

3. Clean Up vSAN Original Storage Architecture (OSA)

If the host was previously in an OSA cluster:

1. List disk groups: esxcli vsan storage list

2. Remove the disk group (this clears all disks in the group):

   esxcli vsan storage remove -s <SSD_NAA_ID>
   

   (Alternatively, use -d for individual data disks if required).

4. Clear Persistent Partitions (General)

If vdq -i still shows partitions, use partedUtil to delete them manually:

1. Identify the partition number: partedUtil getptbl /vmfs/devices/disks/<NAA_ID>

2. Delete the vSAN partition (usually partition 1 or 2):

   partedUtil delete /vmfs/devices/disks/<NAA_ID> <PARTITION_NUMBER>
   

5. Final Verification

Confirm all intended disks show as Eligible:

Bash

 

vdq -qH

Once confirmed, retry the commissioning process in SDDC Manager.

 

Additional Information

KB 404922: VCF 9.0 deployment failing in the vSAN disks validation