The ESXi Dump Collector sends the state of the VMkernel memory, that is, a core dump to a network server when the system encounters a critical failure.
The ESXi Dump Collector in ESXi 5.1 and later supports both vSphere Standard and Distributed Switches. The ESXi Dump Collector can also use any active uplink adapter from the team of the port group that handles the VMkernel adapter for the collector.
Changes to the IP address for the ESXi Dump Collector interface are automatically updated if the IP addresses for the configured VMkernel adapter changes. The ESXi Dump Collector also adjusts its default gateway if the gateway configuration of the VMkernel adapter changes.
If you try to delete the VMkernel network adapter used by the ESXi Dump Collector, the operation fails and a warning message appears. To delete the VMkernel network adapter, disable dump collection and delete the adapter.
There is no authentication or encryption in the file transfer session from a crashed host to the ESXi Dump Collector. You should configure the ESXi Dump Collector on a separate VLAN when possible to isolate the ESXi core dump from regular network traffic.
For information about installing and configuring the ESXi Dump Collector, see the vCenter Server Installation and Setup documentation.
