HPE News – Can’t Upgrade VMware ESXi March 2020 Images to May 2021 Images

We are going to upgrade our ESXi servers and this is a bad news for us. Upgrade Fails From March 2020 HPE ESXi 6.5 U3, 6.7 U3 Custom Image to May 2021 HPE ESXi 6.7 U3, 7.0 U1, 7.0 U2 Custom Images.

The Problem

When upgrading the Operating System on an HPE ProLiant server with the March 2020 HPE ESXi 6.5 U3 Custom Image to the May 2021 HPE ESXi 6.7 U3, 7.0 U1, 7.0 U2 Custom Images, or upgrading the Operating System on an HPE ProLiant server with the March 2020 HPE ESXi 6.7 U3 Custom Image to the May 2021 HPE ESXi 7.0 U1, 7.0 U2 Custom Images; the upgrade fails with the following errors:

• Operating System upgrade via VMware Update Manager (VUM)/vSphere LifeCycle Manager (vLCM)

• Operating System upgrade via HPE iLO Virtual Media

• Operating System upgrade via OS profile upgrade

Resolution

To resolve this issue, perform either of the following workarounds:

• Upgrade to the October 2020 or January 2020 HPE ESXi 6.7 U3 Custom Image first, before upgrading to the May 2021 HPE ESXi 6.7 U3 Custom Image; or upgrade to the October 2020, January 2021 or March 2021 7.0 U1, 7.0 U2 Custom Image first, before upgrading to the May 2021 HPE ESXi 7.0 U1, 7.0 U2 Custom Image.
  • Note: Contact HPE support to acquire a copy of the older October 2020, January 2021 or March 2021 HPE Custom Image ISO or Offline bundle for ESXi 6.7 U3, 7.0 U1, 7.0 U2.

OR

• Manually uninstall the ssacli vib from the ESXi host (using “esxcli software vib remove” command), before upgrading to the May 2021 HPE ESXi 6.7 U3 Custom Image or to the May 2021 HPE ESXi 7.0 U1, 7.0 U2 Custom Image.