You can use evaluation mode to access the full ESXi feature set, including features you have not purchased a license for. For example, in evaluation mode, you can use vMotion, HA, DRS, and other features, even if you have not licensed those features.

Sometimes we are in a hurry when installing a vSphere environment and forget little things like entering license keys, especially the vCenter license key. Remember, the vCenter license that comes with VMware vSphere, the vCenter Server evaluation license, lasts 60 days, as do the other VMware evaluation licenses. This means your vCenter server license expires on day 61 if you forgot to enter the vCenter license key at the time of deployment. Install mac os x server on vmware esxi 6 0.

Hopefully we only forget to update our vSphere licenses in development and test environments, since it is in the have verification testing for plans for production environments, right? It should be as easy as just grabbing the vCenter license key and plopping it in to VMware vCenter, but sometimes it is not. I am going to show you one of the most common issues I have seen when updating and expired VMware vCenter server license and how to fix it. This lesson also applies to updating or assigning ESXi licenses.

(This article talks about updating an expired vCenter license in the C# client which has been deprecated. If you are looking for how to update an expired vCenter license using the vSphere Web Client, be sure to look. If you aren’t already using the vSphere Web Client, to learn more about it.) How to Reset a VMware vCenter Evaluation License One of the most common questions when dealing with an expired vCenter license is “How do I reset a vCenter evaluation license?”.

Unfortunately, the answer is you cannot. Once your 60 day evaluation license has expired you have two options: • Enter a valid license key from VMware into vCenter, which this article shows you how to do. • Build a new vCenter and add your hosts to it. This will give you another 60 day evaluation period. There is not an easy way to get around the evaluation license other than rebuilding vCenter. Once again, it is important to make sure you always enter a valid license into vCenter for any production environment! Hotfix stone era rhinestone design software.

Two Steps to Adding a vCenter License There are two components when you are adding a license like the vCenter license to VMware vSphere. First, you must add the license to vCenter server.

Then, you assign it to an asset, in this case vCenter itself. Now, let’s take a look at how to do these two things. Adding a vCenter License I am sure you have seen this screen before, but look what happened when I tried to copy and paste my complete vCenter license key in! It did not make it. This can be frustrating since if you forgot to put your key in, chances are things are not working in your environment very well at all at the moment.

Take a deep breath. Do you know how I got to the screen to enter the vCenter license? Right click your vCenter in the left Navigator pane, and select Assign License In fact you can also do this on your ESXi hosts to assign their VMware licenses. Now, back to your vCenter server license key. I can only see the first five characters I pasted in, and I could not add the license key to vCenter.

If you see this issue, do not panic. There is still a way to get that key into vCenter. Why bother you ask?

Well, once the vCenter Server license has expired you will be able to do much. While things will still “work” to some extent, there are many things you will not be able to do. Say goodbye to adding hosts to your inventory. If your ESXi host licenses are also expired, then you will really be in trouble.