Knowledge Base
Checking connectivity to a VMware ACE Management Server
Symptoms
- Deployed ACE won't start or power on
- Error while opening the ACE
- You see the following error :
Purpose
This article guides you through the process of determining if a lack of communication between a client computer and a VMware ACE Management Server (AMS) is preventing an ACE Instance from powering on.
Resolution
If an error message is seen indicating that an ACE Instance is unable to contact its ACE Management Server (AMS), check the following:
Note: The default port for an AMS is 443, but it is possible to change this. If the AMS is not using port 443, follow steps 2-4 but substitute the port that is actually being used.
Note: The default port for an AMS is 443, but it is possible to change this. If the AMS is not using port 443, follow steps 2-4 but substitute the port that is actually being used.
- Confirm that the ACE Instance is configured to contact the AMS on the correct port:
- On the computer running VMware Workstation ACE Edition, bring up the VMware Workstation user interface and click the entry for the ACE Master on which the ACE Instance was built.
- Click ACE > ACE Server.
- An application window displays the IP address of the AMS and the port number that were configured for the ACE Instance.
Note: The port number used by the AMS was determined at the time of its installation.
- Confirm that there is no firewall blocking the client computer from establishing an outbound network connection on port 443 to any other computer on the same network as the AMS. Since the AMS cannot be reached on port 443, test connectivity to other computers on this port that you know to be listening. (By default, any website that is accessed with https:// listens on port 443.) For more information, see Testing port connectivity with the Telnet command (1003487) .
Note: If there is a host quarantine policy it must allow for port 443 communication to the AMS.
- Verify that the AMS is working as expected. If there are other ACE Instances that have been deployed, check port 443 connectivity from one of these client computers to the AMS. For more information, see Testing port connectivity with the Telnet command (1003487) .
Note: If no other client computers can contact the AMS, then reboot the AMS and test again.
- Confirm that there is no firewall on the AMS or the network to that it is attached to, that is blocking inbound connections on port 443 from the client computer.
- If this is the only client computer that still cannot contact the AMS, verify that there is nothing wrong with the client. For more information, see Verifying the health of an operating system (1003956). If testing shows that this client is healthy, uninstall and reinstall the ACE Instance.
- If the AMS still cannot be reached by any client, verify that there is nothing wrong with the AMS computer. For more information, see Verifying the health of an operating system (1003956). If testing shows that the AMS is healthy, uninstall and reinstall the AMS.
Warning: Prior to removal/reinstallation of your AMS, you will need to back up the AMS DB. If you do not back up the AMS DB so it can be restored upon reinstallation, currently deployed ACE instances will be orphaned (i.e., will not be able to reconnect) and the only way to repair them will be to force field users to redeploy, very likely resulting in loss of any data/work in their instance..To prevent data loss it is critical the AMS db be backed up prior to uninstall/reinstall." In the event an AMS is uninstalled without a backup, ACE Masters can be used to re-publish policy sets. However, using this method is essentially identical to a complete redeployment for the end-users, as any pre-existing instance data will be lost using this method. For more information on Database backup, see http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vmware_ace2_manual.pdf page 60.
Request a Product Feature
To request a new product feature or to provide feedback on a VMware product, please visit the Request a Product Feature page.
Permalink to: Checking connectivity to a VMware ACE Management Server
Actions
