Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Documentation

Upgrading an SDDC From V7 to V8

You can upgrade the VMware software in an SDDC from version 7 to version 8.

When the upgrade becomes available, a message and Upgrade button is provided on the details page of the SDDC that you use to begin the workflow when you're ready. The upgrade workflow is a combination of automated processes and prompts for manual processes that you must perform in a specific order. The upgrade workflow doesn't let you proceed in the upgrade until each step has been completed. Before you begin the upgrade, review the steps carefully to be sure you understand the process.

Important

You can't upgrade an SDDC and its hosts directly from version 6 to version 8. You must first upgrade from version 6 to version 7, then upgrade again from version 7 to version 8.

Prerequisites

Follow these prerequisite steps to ensure compatibility and protect against potential data loss:

  1. Check upgrade compatibility

    Use the VMware Upgrade Path Interoperability Matrix to verify support for the upgrade path:

  2. Perform necessary backups

    Before you upgrade, be sure that you have backups of all SDDC components. This step is crucial to restore configurations if the upgrade fails or if you have issues with any of the virtual machines (VMs). Backups provide the necessary restore points to address any issues that might arise during or after the upgrade process.

  3. Verify unified management cluster size

    Verify that the management cluster is configured with at least four hosts. Having the correct number of hosts allows seamless upgrades and is especially important for NSX. If the cluster only has three hosts, consider adding a fourth host or manually managing VM migrations during the upgrade.

  4. Verify administrative privileges

    Verify that you have the necessary administrative privileges within OCI, vCenter, NSX Manager, and HCX Manager. These permissions are required for managing SDDC resources, including hosts, clusters, network configurations, and datastores. For more information on configuring privileges for OCI VMware Solution, see Identity and Access Management (IAM) Policies.

  5. Verify environment compatibility

    Verify that all VMware and third-party products in the environment are compatible and compliant with the new VMware version, verifying interoperability across all integrated systems.

Using the Console

  1. Upgrade the SDDC:
    1. Navigate to the SDDC Details page.
    2. In the upgrade notification at the top of the details page, click Upgrade.
    3. Select the new version.
    4. Click Upgrade.
  2. Upgrade the SDDC management cluster:
    1. Navigate to the SDDC management cluster's Details page.
    2. In the upgrade notification at the top of the page, click Upgrade
    3. Select the new version.
    4. Click Upgrade.
  3. Upgrade vCenter:
    1. Navigate to the management cluster's Details page.
    2. In the upgrade notification at the top of the page, click Get updated binaries and licenses.
    3. After downloading, visit vCenter and update the licenses and binaries with the updated versions in the following order:
      1. NSX components
      2. vCenter server appliance
      3. vSphere cluster
    4. When you're finished, return to the notification in the management cluster details page, and check I have updated the binaries and licenses in vCenter. Then, click Next.
  4. Upgrade the ESXi hosts in the management cluster:
    1. Navigate to the management cluster's Details page.
    2. In the management cluster upgrade notification, click Upgrade cluster hosts.
    3. In the Upgrade status list, click the Upgrade available link for a host in the list. A list of all hosts in the management cluster with an available upgrade appears.
    4. Click the Upgrade available link for a host in the list.
    5. (Optional) In the Upgrade ESXi host page, enable notifications for the host. See Configuring Notifications for more information.
    6. Check I understand that I must delete the old host after the new host is successfully created, or I will be charged for both hosts, then click Upgrade.
    7. Repeat steps a-f for each host in the management cluster.
      Caution

      Upgrading more than one host at a time can impact SDDC performance.
    8. When all ESXi hosts in the cluster have been successfully upgraded, delete the old hosts.
      Important

      The new hosts use the hourly billing rate and begin billing as soon as they're active. After the old host is deleted, the new host is updated to use the billing interval of the old host. Be sure to delete old hosts in a timely manner to avoid unnecessary charges. You can't undo deleting an old host.
      1. Navigate to the management cluster's Details page.
      2. A notification appears in the management cluster Details page that the old host has been upgraded. In the notification, click the name of the old host.
      3. In the old host's Details page, click Terminate.
      4. Click Terminate ESXi host to confirm.
      Note

      Old hosts that still need to be deleted have a status of Needs attention in the ESXi hosts lists.
  5. When the upgrade is complete for all hosts in the management cluster, upgrade each workload cluster and its ESXi hosts in turn:
    1. Use the instructions in step 2 to upgrade the workload cluster.
    2. Use the instructions in step 4 to upgrade the workload cluster hosts.
    Note

    You can't proceed to upgrading workload clusters until hosts in the management cluster have completed upgrading, and you delete the old hosts.
    Tip

    • Upgrading SDDCs, clusters, and hosts can take a significant amount of time. Here are some ways you can view progress:
      • In the SDDC details page, click Upgrade Status to view hosts being upgraded.
      • Click Work Requests to view details about the work request associated with an upgrade.
      • Visit the ESXi hosts page in a cluster to view the status for all hosts in that particular cluster. Hosts being upgraded show Updating in the Status column.