8.0

n A stack upgrade might result in changes to parts of a multi-module driver setup, or to the ESXi
I/O stack that supports a multi-module driver.
n BIOS or device firmware upgrades might lead to incomplete port or slot information.
n Changes in the slot position of a device.
Note If you remove a device from the system, the alias configuration of the I/O adapters of the
device is removed. If you add the same devices back to the system later, the I/O adapters of the
device might not receive their previous aliases.
Device Alias Configuration in ESXi Clusters
Initial alias configuration is the same across a cluster of identical systems. However, even on a
cluster that is considered homogenous, small differences in hardware or firmware might result in
differences in the alias configuration between hosts.
Differences in the processing order during driver binding can also result in differences in alias
configuration. For example, a NIC driver registers two uplinks, uplink-1 and uplink-2, for two ports
of the same PCI device, where one of the ports is not hardware enumerable by the system. Timing
changes in the order of registration of the uplinks might result in differences in how the
ESXi hosts
assign aliases to the uplinks. One ESXi host might assign the hardware-based alias to uplink-1, and
another ESXi host might assign the hardware-based alias to uplink-2.
To match alias configuration across homogeneous hosts, you can use host profiles. The Device
Alias Configuration host profile applies alias configuration to an ESXi host by mapping devices in
the alias configuration to the ESXi host devices. The mapping operation is based on the hardware
information sources that are used as the basis for initial alias assignment. For more information
about information sources used for alias assignment, see the Knowledge Base article KB 2091560.
The Device Alias Configuration host profile also flags errors, for example, when a device is present
in the host profile but not present on the host.
A heterogenous cluster does not have the same default alias configuration across its hosts. Due to
the differences between the devices, a host profile cannot be applied cleanly.
Using ESXi Shell Commands to View Device Alias Information
On a running ESXi system, you can view information about I/O adapter aliases by running
commands in an ESXi Shell.
Using ESXi Shell Commands to View Device Alias Information
Command
Description
device alias list
Lists all current I/O adapter aliases.
device alias get -n<alias>
Displays the physical device that an I/O adapter alias maps
to.
VMware ESXi Installation and Setup
VMware, Inc. 198