Setup guide
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VMware vSphere® 5.0 Upgrade
Best Practices
The upgrade process is online and nondisruptive. Virtual machines can continue to run on the datastore while it
is being upgraded. Upgrading VMFS is a one-way operation. There is no option to reverse the upgrade after it is
done. Also, after a file system has been upgraded, it will no longer be accessible by older ESX/ESXi 4.x hosts, so
you must ensure that all hosts accessing the datastore are running ESXi 5.0. In fact, there are checks built in to
vSphere that will prevent you from upgrading to VMFS-5 if any of the hosts accessing the datastore are running
a version of ESX/ESXi that is older than 5.0.
As with any upgrade, VMware recommends that a backup of your virtual machines be made prior to upgrading
your VMFS-3 to VMFS-5.
After the VMFS-5 volume is in place, the size can be extended to approximately 60TB, even if it is a single extent,
and 2TB virtual machine disks (VMDKs) can be created, no matter what the underlying file block size. These
features are available “out of the box,” without any additional configuration steps.
Refer to the vSphere Upgrade Guide for more information on features that require VMFS version 5, the
dierences between VMFS versions 3 and 5, and how to upgrade.
The following table provides a matrix showing the supported VMware Tools, virtual hardware and VMFS versions
in ESXi 5.0.
FEATURE ESX/ESXI 4.X ESXI 5.X
VMware Tools 4.x Yes Yes
VMware Tools 5.x Yes Yes
VMFS-3 Yes Yes
VMFS-5 No Yes
Virtual Hardware
1
3,4,7 4,7,8
Table 3 . ESXi 5.0 supports upgrading Virtual Hardware versions 3 and later.
Conclusion
Upgrading from vSphere 4.x to vSphere 5.0 is a straightforward process that begins with upgrading vCenter
Server, is followed by upgrading/migrating your ESXi hosts and concludes with upgrading the virtual machines
and VMFS volumes. Prior to upgrading, verify that your hardware meets the minimum upgrade requirements
and identify an upgrade path. The upgrade steps will vary depending on the migration path and chosen
upgrade tool. In all cases, it is recommended that you have a rollback plan in case unforeseen problems
necessitate reverting back to the prior release. Although we did not encounter any issues during our tests, every
environment is unique and can present unanticipated challenges. It is highly recommended that you create a
test plan and rehearse the upgrade procedure in a nonproduction environment prior to upgrading production
hosts. Careful planning, proper preparation, and following the guidance set forth in this paper are key to
ensuring a smooth and seamless upgrade experience.
Additional Resources
Additional resources—including checklists, configuration worksheets and other materials to help you upgrade
to vSphere 5.0 and migrate to ESXi 5.0—can be found in the ESXi Info Center at http://www.vmware.com/
products/vsphere/esxi-and-esx/index.html.