Learn about the command options that the esxcli storage vvol takes. The topics also provide solutions to problems that you might encounter when using vSphere Virtual Volumes.

Virtual Volumes and esxcli Commands

You can use the esxcli storage vvol commands to troubleshoot your Virtual Volumes environment.

The following command options are available.

Table 1. esxcli storage vvol commands
Namespace Command Option Description
esxcli storage core device list Identify protocol endpoints. The output entry Is VVOL PE: true indicates that the storage device is a protocol endpoint.
esxcli storage vvol nvme info get Get information for the Virtual Volumes NVMe host information.
esxcli storage vvol storagearray list List containers or protocol endpoints on the storage array.
esxcli storage vvol storagecontainer list List all available storage containers.
abandonedvvol scan Scan the specified storage container for abandoned Virtual Volumes.
esxcli storage vvol daemon unbindall Unbind all virtual volumes from all VASA providers known to the ESXi host.
esxcli storage vvol protocolendpoint list List all protocol endpoints that your host can access.
startforceunbind Unbind all Virtual Volumes on the PE with zero open handle count.
esxcli storage vvol stats Track performance statistics. For information, see Collecting Statistical Information for Virtual Volumes.
esxcli storage vvol vasacontext get Show the VASA context (VC UUID) associated with the host.
esxcli storage vvol vasaprovider list List all storage (VASA) providers associated with the host.
esxcli storage vvol virtualvolume unmap Reclaim the space by unmapping free blocks from VMFS config volumes. For information, see Reclaim Space on the vSphere Virtual Volumes Datastores.
esxcli storage vvol vmstats get Get the Virtual Volumes information and statistics for a specific virtual machine.

Collecting Statistical Information for Virtual Volumes

You can use the vvol stats command in your ESXi host to track performance statistics.

The following command options are available.

Command Description Options
esxcli storage vvol stats get Get statistics for all VASA providers (default), or for specified namespace or entity in the given namespace. -e|--entity=str Enter entity ID.

-n|--namespace=str Enter node namespace expression.

-r|--raw Use raw format output.
esxcli storage vvol stats list List all the statistics nodes (default), or nodes under a specified namespace. -n|--namespace=str Enter node namespace expression.
esxcli storage vvol stats enable Activate statistics tracking for the complete namespace.
esxcli storage vvol stats disable Deactivate statistics tracking for the complete namespace.
esxcli storage vvol stats add Activate statistics tracking for a specific entity under a specific namespace. -e|--entity=str Enter entity ID.

-n|--namespace=str Enter node namespace expression.
esxcli storage vvol stats remove Removes specific entity for statistics tracking under the specified namespace. -e|--entity=str Enter entity ID.

-n|--namespace=str Enter node namespace expression.
esxcli storage vvol stats reset Reset the statistics counter for the specified statistics namespace or entity. -e|--entity=str Enter entity ID.

-n|--namespace=str Enter node namespace expression.

Virtual Volumes Datastore Is Inaccessible

After you create a Virtual Volumes datastore, it remains inaccessible.

Problem

The vSphere Client shows the datastore as inaccessible. You cannot use the datastore for virtual machine provisioning.

Cause

This problem might occur when you fail to configure protocol endpoints for the SCSI-based storage container or NVMe ANA groups mapped to the virtual datastore. Like traditional LUNs, SCSI protocol endpoints need to be configured so that an ESXi host can detect them.

Solution

Before creating virtual datastores for SCSI-based containers, make sure to configure protocol endpoints on the storage side.

Failures When Migrating VMs or Deploying VM OVFs to Virtual Volumes Datastores

Your attempts to migrate a virtual machine or to deploy a VM OVF to Virtual Volumes datastores fail.

Problem

An OVF template or a VM being migrated from a nonvirtual datastore might include additional large files, such as ISO disk images, DVD images, and image files. If these additional files cause the configuration virtual volume to exceed its 4-GB limit, migration or deployment to a virtual datastore fails.

Cause

The configuration virtual volume, or config-vVol, contains various VM-related files. On traditional nonvirtual datastores, these files are stored in the VM home directory. Similar to the VM home directory, the config-vVol typically includes the VM configuration file, virtual disk and snapshot descriptor files, log files, lock files, and so on.

On virtual datastores, all other large-sized files, such as virtual disks, memory snapshots, swap, and digest, are stored as separate virtual volumes.

Config-vVols are created as 4-GB virtual volumes. Generic content of the config-vVol usually consumes only a fraction of this 4-GB allocation, so config-vVols are typically thin-provisioned to conserve backing space. Any additional large files, such as ISO disk images, DVD images, and image files, might cause the config-vVol to exceed its 4-GB limit. If such files are included in an OVF template, deployment of the VM OVF to Virtual Volumes storage fails. If these files are part of an existing VM, migration of that VM from a traditional datastore to Virtual Volumes storage also fails.
Note: Starting with vSphere 7.0 Update 2, partners can increase the config-vVol to above 4 GB. Work with your Virtual Volumes partner on implementing this if it is supported by your partner and applicable to your environment.

Solution

  • For VM migration. Before migrating a VM from a traditional datastore to a virtual datastore, remove excess content from the VM home directory to keep the config-vVol under the 4-GB limit.
  • For OVF deployment. Because you cannot deploy an OVF template that contains excess files directly to a virtual datastore, first deploy the VM to a nonvirtual datastore. Remove any excess content from the VM home directory, and migrate the resulting VM to Virtual Volumes storage.