When you upgrade vCenter Server, your system must meet minimum storage requirements.

The storage requirements per folder depend on the vCenter Server services deployed on the machine, the upgrade deployment model, and the size of your vSphere inventory. The installer dynamically calculates the storage requirement during the upgrade, and verifies that the machine has sufficient free disk space before proceeding with the upgrade.

During installation, you can select a folder other than the default C:\Program Files\VMware folder to install vCenter Server and the Platform Services Controller. You can also select a folder other than the default C:\ProgramData\VMware\vCenterServer\ in which to store data. The following table lists the absolute minimum disk space requirements for the different deployment models. The requirements change depending on the installed vCenter Server services and the vSphere inventory size.

Table 1. vCenter Server Minimum Storage Requirements Depending On the Deployment Model
Default Folder vCenter Server with an Embedded Platform Services Controller vCenter Server with an External Platform Services Controller External Platform Services Controller
Program Files 6 GB 6 GB 1 GB
ProgramData 8 GB 8 GB 2 GB
System folder (to cache the MSI installer) 3 GB 3 GB 1 GB