ESXi help! VMs are not loading up..

[Sir Asvald]

I am need of some help with my ESXi "Server". It's running 6.5u2. The problem: Server became unresponsive everything stopped working, found out the USB had stopped working. Created a new installation and booted up. Now when I try to register my VMs that I have on my datastore, I get "invalid" and everything is greyed out, I cannot do anything. I even tried to create a new VM and use the same VMDK but nothing loads up..

 

 

Can someone help? I need my VMs back, I have my Domain Controllers on there.

 

 

Thanks.

 

[leadeater]

Could you post the full error when trying to start the VM, using the old and new VMX. Also create a new VM and just check the host is fully working.

 

Also could you post the contents of both VMX files, basically wan to check that the original and new VM are using the same bios type (BIOS vs EFI) and SCSI controllers etc.

[leadeater]

Also have a look through this, mostly the lock file part: https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/1003742

 

Could be that when the USB drive failed the host wasn't able to release file locks or something similar when you had to shut it down.

 

And maybe check this too: https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/2085907

[Sir Asvald]

7 minutes ago, leadeater said:

Could you post the full error when trying to start the VM, using the old and new VMX. Also create a new VM and just check the host is fully working.

 

Also could you post the contents of both VMX files, basically wan to check that the original and new VM are using the same bios type (BIOS vs EFI) and SCSI controllers etc.

 

4 minutes ago, leadeater said:

Also have a look through this, mostly the lock file part: https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/1003742

 

Could be that when the USB drive failed the host wasn't able to release file locks or something similar when you had to shut it down.

 

And maybe check this too: https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/2085907

Okay this is all going crazy... This is some turn of events. Turns out the original USB is working again...? not sure how. I plugged it in and it loaded it up..

[Sir Asvald]

1 hour ago, leadeater said:

Also have a look through this, mostly the lock file part: https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/1003742

 

Could be that when the USB drive failed the host wasn't able to release file locks or something similar when you had to shut it down.

 

And maybe check this too: https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/2085907

Sigh..I am going reinstall everything... FeelsBadMan

[BloodKnight7]

you up and running?

[Sir Asvald]

16 minutes ago, BloodKnight7 said:

you up and running?

Yeah. I had to reinstall everything. Datastores all got messed up.

[BloodKnight7]

you mean... like re-create even the VMs? oh man... if that was the case so sorry I arrived too late. We could had regenerated the VMs from their vmdk-flat files.

[Sir Asvald]

9 minutes ago, BloodKnight7 said:

you mean... like re-create even the VMs? oh man... if that was the case so sorry I arrived too late. We could had regenerated the VMs from their vmdk-flat files.

Thanks, not to worry. It's a home lab just for learning. Now I will do back ups of my data.

[leadeater]

10 hours ago, Sir Asvald said:

Sigh..I am going reinstall everything... FeelsBadMan

Awww, big sad 

[Sir Asvald]

8 hours ago, leadeater said:

Awww, big sad 

 

[BloodKnight7]

16 hours ago, Sir Asvald said:

Thanks, not to worry. It's a home lab just for learning. Now I will do back ups of my data.

Next time just remember, as long as you keep your vmdk-flat file(s) you can regenerate and recover all your vms even if everything else goes to hell.