You can power off or restart any ESXi host using the vSphere Client. Powering off a host disconnects it from vCenter Server, but does not remove it from the inventory.

Procedure

  1. Navigate to Home > Hosts and Clusters and select a host.
  2. Power off all virtual machines running on the ESXi host.
  3. Right-click the ESXi host and select Power > Reboot or Power > Shut Down.
    • If you select Reboot, the ESXi host shuts down and reboots.
    • If you select Shut Down, the ESXi host shuts down. You must manually power the system back on.
  4. Provide a reason for the reboot or shut down operation and click Ok.
    This information is added to the log.