This issue may occur if the .vmx configuration file of the virtual machine cannot be located. The virtual machine's datastore may be resignatured, or the virtual machine folder may be renamed or moved.
If the virtual machine's folder or the .vmx file has been renamed or moved:
- Shut down the virtual machine using a RDP, Citrix, or SSH connection.
- In the vSphere client connection to vCenter Server, right-click the virtual machine and click Remove from Inventory.
- Locate the virtual machine folder and configuration file using one of these methods:
- Use the vSphere clients Datastore Browser. For more information, see the Working with Files in the Datastore Browser section of the Basic System Administration Guide.
- Connect to the ESX host as root using an SSH client.
Note: For more information, see Connecting to an ESX host using a SSH client (1019852).
- Run this command to determine the UUID of the datastore of the .vmx file:
find /vmfs/volumes -name vmname.vmx -print
Note: The .vmx file name in this command is case sensitive. If you are uncertain of the case, use -iname instead of -name.
- To correlate the datastore UUID with the datastore name, run this command:
- In ESX – vdf
- In ESXi – df
Note: Alternatively, you can use the ls -l /vmfs/volumes command to determine the UUID of datastores.
- If the .vmx file for the virtual machine is found and the datastore name is identified in Step 3, add the virtual machine back to inventory. For more information, see the Return a virtual machine or Template to vCenter Server portion section of the Basic System Administration Guide.