You upgrade the vSphere Replication appliance and the vSphere Replication server by using a downloadable ISO image.

Prerequisites

  • Upgrade the vCenter Server instance that vSphere Replication extends.

  • Download the VMware-vSphere_Replication-6.5.x.x-build_number.iso image from the vSphere Downloads page. Copy the ISO image file to a datastore that is accessible from the vCenter Server instance that you use with vSphere Replication.

  • If the vSphere Replication version that you run is not supported for direct upgrade to vSphere Replication 6.5, upgrade your vSphere Replication instance to a supported version. For example, to upgrade vSphere Replication 5.5 to 6.5, you must first upgrade 5.5 to 5.8.0.2, and then upgrade 5.8.0.2 to 6.1. See the interoperability matrix at http://www.vmware.com/resources/compatibility/sim/interop_matrix.php for solution upgrade paths for vSphere Replication.

  • Verify that the vSphere Replication appliance has an OVF environment or context. See KB article Checking and Restoring the OVF Context of the vSphere Replication Appliance (2106709).

  • Shut down and power off the vSphere Replication virtual machine.

Procedure

  1. Right-click the vSphere Replication virtual machine and select Edit Settings.
  2. If you are upgrading a vSphere Replication Server appliance, reconfigure the virtual machine to increase its memory from 512 MB to 716 MB RAM.
  3. On the Virtual Hardware tab, select CD/DVD Drive > Datastore ISO File.
  4. Navigate to the ISO image in the datastore.
  5. For File Type, select ISO Image and click OK.
  6. Select the option to connect at power on and follow the prompts to add the CD/DVD drive to the vSphere Replication virtual machine.
  7. Power on the vSphere Replication virtual machine.
  8. In a Web browser, log in to the virtual appliance management interface (VAMI).

    The URL for the VAMI is https://vr_appliance_address:5480.

  9. Click the Update tab.
  10. Click Settings, select Use CDROM Updates, and click Save Settings.
  11. Click Status and click Check Updates.

    The appliance version appears in the list of available updates.

  12. Click Install Updates and click OK.
  13. After the updates install, click the System tab and click Reboot.
  14. After the appliance reboots, start the console of the vSphere Replication virtual machine to monitor the process.

    The vSphere Replication appliance reboots two more times for the upgrade procedure to complete.

  15. After the vSphere Replication appliance reboots, log in to the VAMI and repeat the steps to register the vSphere Replication appliance with vCenter Single Sign-On.

    This registers the vSphere Replication appliance in the Lookup Service and SSO or updates an existing vSphere Replication registration.

  16. Log out of the vSphere Web Client, clear the browser cache, and log in again to see the upgraded appliance.

What to do next

Note:

If step 15 is not performed, the status of the vSphere Replication server will turn to Enabled (Configuration issue). You must log in to the VAMI and register the vSphere Replication appliance with the Lookup Service and SSO. See Register the vSphere Replication Appliance with vCenter Single Sign-On.

If your infrastructure uses more than one vSphere Replication Server, you must upgrade all vSphere Replication Server instances to version 6.5.

Important:

If the vSphere Replication appliance that you upgraded uses the embedded database, you must apply additional configuration to enable the support of up to 2000 replications. See http://kb.vmware.com/kb/2102463. No additional configuration is required for vSphere Replication appliances that are configured to use an external database.