VM UUID error after quick migration job

[prepetti]

Hello,

I migrated a VM from an old ESX 3.5 to a new vSphere 5.5 instance, using the Quick Migration function in Backup & Replication free edition 7.0.0.690. It was fine. Now I want to process the migrated VM with vCenter Converter Standalone client. When I select it, the GUI shows the error message "A general system error occurred: Invalid Argument".
Looking more deeply in the logs, I can see the message "ManagedVmLocation does not have VM MoRef or VM UUID".
How can I solve this ?

Thanks.

[Vitaliy S.]

Hello Pierangelo,

Can you please tell me why do you want to use vCenter Converter for? Every VM registered in the VI does have both VM UUID and mored ID, so VMware support should assist you with this in a more efficient way in this case.

Thank you!

[prepetti]

Of course. I am evaluating, so to say, Backup&Replication as an infrastructure maintainance tool. I want to be able to interchange between Veeam and VMWare tools, not to be locked into one of them in case of emergency. In this use case, I want to copy a VM by Veeam one way and by VMW back.
The VM was migrated by your tool in the first place, so I am wondering whether the quick migration job makes some ID information invalid, or something else. This may well be a VMWare tool problem, I know, and I am asking them too about it. I just hope not to be told "ask the other side" by both.

Thanks
Pierangelo

[veremin]

The VM was migrated by your tool in the first place, so I am wondering whether the quick migration job makes some ID information invalid, or something else.

During registration on the target host the said VM got a new MorefID, but that's more about updating ID, rather than breaking things up. Thanks.

[Vitaliy S.]

Check moref ID via Managed Object Browser (MOB) just to confirm that VM has this ID. Also I would try to repeat that with any other VM (could be any VM you just created) and run this procedure once again to see the result.

[prepetti]

I am afraid I do not know about a Managed Object Browser. Is it a function of Backup & Replication ?

According to VMware, the problem with the VM is about a "vc.uuid" property missing in the *.vmx configuration file. Could the migration job possibly remove it ?

Thanks,
Pierangelo

[veremin]

Can you tell us between which VMware instances you've migrated those VMs? Between standalone hosts? Between VCs? How those entities are added to VB&R (as standalone or via VC)? Thanks.

[foggy]

I am afraid I do not know about a Managed Object Browser. Is it a function of Backup & Replication ?

MOB is a web-based application that is accessed by using the FQDN or IP address of your ESXi host or vCenter Server in a web browser, just like this: https://hostname.domain.local/mob/

[prepetti]

I migrated from an ESX 3.5 to a vSphere 5.5 instance. vCenter is not running yet, so I guess they are(were) standalone hosts. The 3.5 is no more because the physical server had faulty disks and has been reformatted after fixing them. By the way, the disk faults are the reason why I had to migrate the VMs in the first place. In any case, I can't investigate any further on the source ESX 3.5.

Thanks
Pierangelo

[prepetti]

@foggy

I can connect to the MOB, but it lists functions of the whole host. I have no idea about how to retrieve info about a single guest VM.

Thanks

[foggy]

You can browse the "content" property and further through the "rootFolder" to the datastore object and then to the actual VM.

That said, as far as I know, "vc.uuid" is a vCenter property that is generated when you add VM to inventory, so not surprisingly you do not have it in configuration file, since you do not have vCenter. I recommend asking VMware for assistance with the original issue.

[veremin]

Could the migration job possibly remove it ?

And answering your question, no Quick Migration couldn't remove that property. Moreover, that property wasn't even present on that VM, since VM was running on standalone host. Thanks.

[prepetti]

Thanks to everyone