Change VLAN ID on Service Console without downtime

[beaconfield]

Hello!

I have been browsing the interwebs for an answer to this question and have found bits and pieces but I'd like to layout my situation and get some feedback. We are running vSphere 4.

The idea is this: change the Service Console VLAN ID without losing network connectivity to the VMs running on the host.

Current Setup

We have two ESX hosts each with identical networking. vSwitch0 has two vmnics attached to it (one active, one standby). The physical vmnics are connected to a switch that uses access mode with VLAN 2 (in other words EST).

The port groups on vSwitch0 are the Service Console and the VMkernel.

I would like to: 1) change the physical switch ports to trunk ports (all VLANs), and 2) configure VLAN IDs for the Service Console and VMkernel ( in other words VST) without downtime for the VMs running on the host.

Is this possible? I can provide more info if needed. Thank you!

By the way - one of the plans I had to do this was to either disconnect the host from vCenter and make the change at the console or just make the change at the console and see if it came back alive. What's the best way?

The command is this: # esxcfg-vswitch -v 2 -p "Service Console" vSwitch0

[a2alpha]

If you can separate one of the two vmnics from vSwitch0 and plug one physically into the desired port on the switch with whatever VLAN you need. Create another vSwitch and link the new vmnic to the new vSwitch. Create a service console port group with IP address etc on that switch.

Make sure you can access the host through this by pointing the viclient direct to the new ip address. Once you know its working, remove the host from vCenter and then add it back in using the new ip address. You can then delete the old vSwitch0 add the additional vmnic to the new vSwitch in whatever config you like.

Incidently as your virtual machines are on a different vSwitch with different vmnics to the service console, as long as the host isnt in an HA cluster then you can reconfigure the service console switch from the command line and take it offline without affecting the virtual machines. The only thing is that you would need to do it all at the command line at the console as you won't have access to the host from the client.

Hope this helps,

Dan

[beaconfield]

@a2aplha - Thanks for you response. So let me ask this question:

Which order is preferred:

-Add the VLAN ID to the Service Console, then configure trunking on the switch port

OR

-Configure trunking on the switch port, then add the VLAN ID to the Service Console

What I'm getting at here is that I'd like to sort of pull the rug out from under the SC if I can do it without losing network with the VMs and if I understand my setup correctly, I can. In other words, I'd like to reconfigure vSwitch0 as simply as possible and I don't care if the SC loses network.

So my plan is to reconfigure the trunking and the VLAN ID, but I need to know what the best order is. For example, if I add the VLAN ID first to the SC, will it continue to work, or will it lose network? It'll be in the same VLAN at that point. Then I could configure trunking on the switch port and I'm done...

OR I could bring the swtich port down, configure trunking on it, bring the port back up and then configure the VLAN ID on the SC and see what happens.

[beaconfield]

My ESX Network Configuration for vSwitch0.

[a2alpha]

Hi beaconfield, What will it be in the same VLAN as? Not sure I follow.

If you change the VLAN ID it is pretty instant so if the port is already configured then you may find its still connected but if the port isn't then you'll lose connectivity and have to reconfigure the port at that stage and hope that it all works.

The other safer option is:

Make vmnic6 standby for vmkernel port group and service console

Reconfigure the physical nic port which vmnic6 is cabled into for the VLAN you want or trunk

Create new Service Console port group with a temporary IP address and the correct VLAN ID

Make vmnic6 active for the temporary new Service Console port group

Make vmnic6 active for vSwitch6

- - - -

At this point you should have connectivity to the new Service Console, proving your desired config of port and VLAN ID.

Connect a new VI Client connection to the host using the new Service Console.

- - - -

Reconfigure the vmkernel port with the correct VLAN ID

Reconfigure the Service Console with the correct VLAN ID

Reconfigure the physical port how you want it.

- - - -

Remove the active and standby config of all the port groups changed earlier

Close the viclient connection

Open the connection to the original Service Console IP

Remove the additional Service Console

- - - -

That should do it.

Dan

[rob2500]

There is one other way that I have done that has been very successful for us.

It takes two people one on the network side and one on the esx console

The one on the console types esxcfg-vswitch -v 2 -p "Service Console" vSwitch0

and wait for the network person to get their part ready once they are ready to implement their configuration on the esxconsole hit the enter key and then have the network person hit the enter key. It will drop one to two pings.

Timing and correctness is key. If you do the networking first to you will lose connection and if you wait too long you will drop too many connections.

This is an option though and it works.