I have created a vRealize Orchestrator (vRO) workflow that updates VCSA. If integrated into the vSphere Web Client it is just one click from the workflow to start an update of the vCenter – VCSA. There are a couple of options that you can change. Of course then it is more than one click. Download at the very end.
The workflow performs a couple of operations, not just the update itself. The idea is that you could schedule the update during times you are not in the office and perform other necessary operations like snapshot and backup and health check.
If vRealize Orchestrator (vRO) is integrated with the vSphere Web Client in order to start the workflow, you need to right click on the vCenter (VCSA) VM and then navigate to the bottom of the menu to vRealize Orchestrator -> Run Workflow…
Then you need to select the workflow to run. In our case Update VCSA. In order for this workflow to show here, it must have been configured as a context action. I will explain this in a future blog post.
The workflow will connect to the VCSA through the vAPI endpoint and collect available patches. If it found multiple patches you will have to select the one you would like to install. If there is only one patch, maybe because you are using a local https repository, you can click run. That would be your one click update.
The Options menu appears once patches were found. Select the Options tab to see more options. By default the workflow takes a VM Snapshot. The variable reqFreeSpaceinDS is set to 200. This means that at least 200GB (plus VM memory) must be available as free space in the vCenter VMs datastore in order for the workflow the create a snapshot. By default the workflow also takes a backup. It picks this information from the VCSA backup schedule. If there is no schedule set, you need to provide the Backup Location and Backup User parameter manually. The variable backupUserDefaultPasswd can be set to the password for the backup location. If none is set, you need to specify the password here. Email address is optional. If you specify an email the result of the backup will be send to that email address.
In the Error Handling tab is the option to Ignore Health or Services. What that means is that the workflow checks for the VCSA health and if all services that are set to start automatically are start and healthy. By default the workflow will not continue to proceed with the update (including taking snapshot and backup) if this check fails. If you want to continue the update despite these checks failed you can select that option here.
Clicking Run in the lower right starts the update. If “Stay on current screen” is left unselect, you are automatically taken to the Workflow Run screen.
In the Workflow Run screen, you can monitor the state of the workflow and observe the event log of the workflow. It will display events happening during update. If you are updating from a local https repository it should take 35 minutes for a tiny VCSA. If you are updating from the internet it can take significantly longer. Also if you have a big VCSA VM the backup can take longer.
You can also observe the backup state in the The vCenter Server Appliance Management Interface (VAMI).
The workflow also posts events in the VMs event log.
If you have specified an email address it will send an email to that address with the final result of the update.
Below is a short demo of the workflow.
DISCLAIMER: Use at you own risk. I am not liable for any damage caused by this workflow package, workflow, file or code.
The worflow is free to use. Give credit where credit is due. Do not claim this work as your own.
Share and spread the word. Feedback appreciated.
Check out ‘One Click’ VMware vCenter Update. https://wp.me/p2hhPD-6l
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