Upgrading vCenter Server Appliance from 7.0.0.10700 to 7.0.1.00100
I recently had the need to upgrade my vCenter Server Appliance (VCSA) from version 7.0.0.10700 to 7.0.1.00100. The process turned out to be more challenging than expected, but I was able to successfully complete the upgrade using a combination of methods. In this blog post, I will detail my experience and the solutions I found for the issues I encountered.
Difficulties with Online Upgrade
I started by attempting the online upgrade using the built-in upgrade tool in the VAMI (vCenter Appliance Management Interface). However, due to my poor internet connection, the upgrade failed repeatedly with errors related to the server being non-operational. I suspect that this was caused by the unreliable internet connection, but it made the process more complicated.
Downloading the Patch ISO
To overcome this issue, I decided to download the VCSA patch ISO from the VMware website directly. I obtained the ISO file from the following link: This ISO contains all the necessary updates and patches for the VCSA.
Attaching the Patch ISO to the VCSA
Once I had downloaded the ISO, I uploaded it to a datastore and attached it to the VCSA. To do this, I used the Appliance Management Service (AMS) and navigated to the “Upgrade” section. From there, I selected the attached ISO file and began the upgrade process.
First Upgrade Attempt Failure
The first attempt at upgrading failed with an error message indicating that the update installation had failed, and the vCenter server was non-operational. After checking all services and finding everything to be in order, I realized that the issue was related to the Appliance Management Service (AMS). To resolve this, I stopped the AMS service, deleted the “software_update_state.conf” file, and then started the AMS service again.
Second Upgrade Attempt Failure
The second attempt at upgrading failed with an error message indicating that a signature could not be verified. This suggested that the patch ISO might be corrupt or invalid. To check the integrity of the ISO, I used the md5sum command to verify its digital signature. However, the command was not available on the patch download page, so I had to refer to the release notes instead:
The result of the md5sum command showed that the ISO was still connected to my VCSA, so I quickly disconnected it and re-ran the command. This time, the result confirmed that the ISO was valid and had not been corrupted during the download process.
Upgrade Using Appliance Shell
Since the previous two attempts at upgrading had failed, I decided to try a different approach using the appliance shell. To access the appliance shell, I had to connect to the VCSA using a remote desktop client and then navigate to the “Appliance Shell” option in the VAMI. From there, I could see the staged content and install the staged rpms using the following command:
“`
sudo yum install * rpms
“`
This command installed all the staged rpms and completed the upgrade successfully.
Conclusion
Upgrading my VCSA from version 7.0.0.10700 to 7.0.1.00100 was not as straightforward as I had expected. However, by using a combination of methods and troubleshooting the issues that arose, I was able to successfully complete the upgrade. The solutions I found for the issues I encountered may be helpful to others who face similar challenges in the future.