ESXi host stuck "in progress" when entering maintenance mode

Products

• VMware vCenter Server
• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

An ESXi host that has been instructed to enter maintenance mode may show "in progress" for an indefinite amount of time under Tasks in the vCenter server.

• When this happens, no virtual machines are migrated and the task cannot be cancelled.
• Other tasks by vCenter are unable to be processed for the ESXi host.

Cause

Before a host can enter maintenance mode all virtual machines need to be powered off or migrated to another host.

• A quick test to determine if all virtual machines can be vMotioned manually can often expose the real reason for the Maintenance mode problem.
• Common problems are a connected CD-ROM or if the virtual machine is on local storage. These will prevent vMotion from being possible. It is prudent to verify all vMotion validation requirements before proceeding.

Resolution

Note: Before performing the steps in this article, please refer to Restarting the Management agents in ESXi for important information on restarting the Management agents.

 

If the ESXi never times out and is stuck at "In Progress" and the ESXi host appears to be in normal state when logged into its host client, perform the following steps:

1. Verify the date and time is correct in the environment, including vCenter and all ESXi hosts. It is possible the host lost communication with the vCenter due to the date/time being out of sync.
   • For vCenter, review Date/Time config in the VAMI (port 5480) interface.
   • For ESXi, review the configuration tab for the host.
2. Restart the VMware Virtual Center service (vpxd). For steps on restarting the Virtual Center Server service, see: Stop, Start or Restart Services on vCenter Server 6.x or Higher.