Note:

Delete a VMware ESXi Host from an Oracle Cloud VMware Solution Cluster

Introduction

This tutorial details the tasks to delete a VMware ESXi host from your Oracle Cloud VMware Solution cluster. This process ensures proper removal from vCenter Server, NSX Manager, and the OCI Console. Remember, this action is permanent and cannot be undone.

Objectives

We will guide you through:

By following these tasks, you can effectively scale down your VMware cluster to meet your resource needs.

Prerequisites

Task 1: Delete the VMware ESXi Host from vCenter and NSX Manager

In this task, we will remove the ESXi host from your vCenter cluster and NSX Manager.

  1. Prepare the ESXi host for removal.

    1. Log in to the vCenter Server and locate the ESXi host you want to retire.

    2. Ensure all virtual machines on the target host are either powered off or migrated to other hosts within the cluster. A host with running VMs cannot enter maintenance mode.

    vCenter - ESXi Host to Terminate

  2. To enter maintenance mode, right-click the ESXi host and select Maintenance Mode and Enter Maintenance Mode.

    vCenter - Enter Maintenance Mode

    Data Migration Options (Based on Host Type):

    • Standard Shapes: By default, powered off and suspended VMs are migrated to other hosts. Accept the defaults and submit the task.

      vCenter - Standard Shape - Enter Maintenance Mode

    • Dense Shapes: In addition to the default migration, select Full data migration from the vSAN data migration drop-down menu. This ensures complete data evacuation from the host.

      vCenter - Dense Shape - Enter Maintenance Mode

    Note: Click PRE-CHECK to validate the vSAN migration process before proceeding to maintenance mode.

    vCenter - Dense Shape - Pre-check Maintenance Mode

  3. Verify successful maintenance mode entry.

    • Standard Shapes: Due to minimal data movement, this should be quick.

      vCenter - Standard Shape - Maintenance Mode

    • Dense Shapes:

      • vSAN data evacuation can take time depending on the environment. Monitor the progress.

        vCenter - Dense Shape - Maint Mode

      • Ensure successful entry to maintenance mode before continuing to avoid data loss or downtime.

        vCenter - Dense Shape - Maint Mode Complete

  4. To isolate the host from the cluster, right-click the host and click Move, and select the datacenter.

    vCenter - Move host from Cluster to Datacenter

  5. To monitor NSX configuration removal, log in to NSX Manager and observe the automatic removal of NSX configuration on the host.

    NSX - Remove NSX Configuration on Host

  6. Verify NSX configuration removal completion. In NSX Manager, under Other Nodes, confirm the host shows Not Configured.

    NSX - Host successfully unconfigured for NSX

  7. Disconnect the ESXi host. In vCenter Server, right-click the host and click Connection, Disconnect.

    vCenter - Disconnect ESXi Host

  8. Verify host disconnected status as the host should now appear as Disconnected in vCenter Server.

    vCenter - ESXi Host Disconnected

  9. Verify the health of your environment in both vCenter Server and NSX Manager.

  10. To remove the host from inventory, right-click the host and select Remove from Inventory. This permanently removes the host from your vCenter inventory (proceed with caution).

    vCenter - Remove ESXi host from inventory

Task 2: Delete the VMware ESXi Host from Oracle Cloud VMware Solution SDDC

In this task, permanently delete the ESXi host from your Oracle Cloud VMware Solution SDDC in the OCI Console.

  1. Locate the ESXi host in OCI Console.

    1. Log in to the OCI Console and navigate to the VMware SDDC.

    2. Within the SDDC cluster list, locate the specific Cluster containing the ESXi host you want to delete.

    OCI - Locate SDDC Cluster and ESXi Host to Terminate

  2. Initiate host deletion.

    1. Click the three dots next to the target ESXi host.

    2. Select Terminate ESXi host.

    OCI - Initiate ESXi Host Termination

    Note: This action permanently removes the host from your OCI environment. There is no way to recover it after this point.

  3. The OCI Console will display the deletion task in progress. You can also monitor its status in the Work Requests section of the specific cluster.

    OCI - Monitor Work Request for Host Termination

  4. Verify successful deletion.

    • Once the task completes successfully, the ESXi host will no longer be listed in the cluster.

    • As discussed in the prerequisites section, if you had a longer commitment for the ESXi host, billing may continue until the commitment period ends, even after host deletion.

    OCI - Host Termination Successful

  5. After deletion, confirm that the remaining cluster health remains as expected.

Important: Deleting an ESXi host is a permanent action. Ensure you have thoroughly planned and migrated any necessary workloads before proceeding.

Verify Minimum Requirements: After deleting a host, verify your SDDC still meets minimum requirements to avoid potential issues.

This tutorial provided instructions for both Standard and Dense host shapes. If you have any further questions, refer to the official Oracle Cloud VMware Solution documentation.

Acknowledgments

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