You can uninstall NSX-T Data Center from a ESXi host.

Caution: Uninstalling NSX-T Data Center from an ESXi host is disruptive if the physical interfaces or VMkernel interfaces are connected to N-VDS. If the host or cluster is participating in other applications such as vSAN, those applications might be affected by the uninstall.

Prerequisites

If you are uninstalling NSX-T Data Center from a standalone ESXi host, verify the following settings:

  • If there are VMkernel adapters on the host that must be migrated to another switch during uninstallation, ensure that the network uninstall mapping is configured. See Verify Host Network Mappings for Uninstall.

  • In vCenter Server, put the hosts in maintenance mode and power off VMs running on the hosts if you want to migrate VMkernel adapters during uninstallation.

Procedure

  1. From a browser, log in with admin privileges to an NSX Manager at https://<nsx-manager-ip-address>.
  2. Select System > Fabric > Nodes > Host Transport Nodes.
  3. From the Managed by drop-down menu, select None: Standalone Hosts.
  4. Select the host and click Delete. In the confirmation dialog box, by default Uninstall NSX Components is selected. Uncheck Force Delete and click Delete.

    The NSX-T Data Center software is removed from the host. It might take up to 5 minutes for all NSX-T Data Center software to be removed.

  5. If the uninstall fails, select the host and click Delete again. In the confirmation dialog box, check Force Delete and click Delete.
    The host transport node is deleted from the management plane, but the host might still have NSX-T Data Center software installed.
  6. Verify that the NSX-T Data Center software is removed from the host.
    1. Log into the host's command-line interface as root.
    2. To check for NSX-T Data Center software packages on the ESXi host, run esxcli software vib list | grep -E 'nsx|vsipfwlib' .
  7. (Host on an N-VDS switch) If the host goes into a failed state and NSX-T Data Center VIBs cannot be removed, then run the del nsx command to remove NSX-T Data Center from the host.
    1. Before running the del nsx command, put the ESXi host in maintenance mode. The vCenter Server does not allow the host to be put in maintenance mode unless all running VMs on the host are in powered off state or moved to a different host.
    2. Log in to the ESXi CLI terminal, run nsxcli -c del nsx.
    3. Read the warning message. Enter Yes if you want to go ahead with NSX-T Data Center uninstallation.
      Carefully read the requirements and limitations of this command:
      1.Read NSX-T documentation for 'Remove a Host from NSX-T Data Center or Uninstall NSX-T Data Center Completely'.
      2.Deletion of this Transport Node from the NSX-T UI or API failed, and this is the last resort.
      3.If this is an ESXi host:
      a.The host must be in maintenance mode.
      b. All resources attached to NSXPGs must be moved out.
      If the above conditions for ESXi hosts are not met, the command WILL fail.
      4. For command progress check /scratch/log/nsxcli.log on ESXi host or /var/log/nsxcli.log on non-ESXi host.
      Are you sure you want to remove NSX-T on this host? (yes/no)
      Important: After running the del nsx command, do not use the Resolve functionality in the NSX Manager UI to reprepare the host that is in Disconnected state . If you use the Resolve functionality, the host might go into Degraded state.
    4. Verify that the existing VMkernel and physical NICs on the N-VDS switch are migrated to a new vSwitch. If there are more than one N-VDS switches on the host, each N-VDS switch is migrated to a separate vSwitch. For example, if the host has N-VDS1and N-VDS2, the VMkernel adapters and physical NICs are migrated to vSwitch1 and vSwitch 2.
    5. Select each host and click Remove NSX.
    6. In the popup window, select Force Delete and begin uninstallation.
    7. On the ESXi host, verify that system message displayed is Terminated. This message indicates that NSX-T Data Center is completely removed from the host.
      After running del nsx, NSX-T Data Center removes all existing host switches, migrates VMkernels and physical NICs to the newly created vSwitches, detaches the transport node from NSX Manager and removes NSX-T Data Center VIBs from the host.

Results

When the NSX-T Data Center software is successfully removed, no packages are listed. If any NSX software packages remain on the host, contact VMware support.