Troubleshooting Boot from Software FCoE for an ESXi Host

If the installation or boot of ESXi from a software FCoE LUN fails, you can use several troubleshooting methods.

Problem

When you install or boot ESXi from FCoE storage, the installation or the boot process fails. The FCoE setup that you use includes a VMware software FCoE adapter and a network adapter with partial FCoE offload capabilities.

Solution

• Make sure that you correctly configured boot parameters in the option ROM of the FCoE network adapter.
• During installation, monitor the BIOS of the FCoE network adapter for any errors.
• If possible, check the VMkernel log for errors.
• Use the esxcli command to verify whether the boot LUN is present.

  esxcli conn_options hardware bootdevice list