HOW TO: Use the VCF Diagnostic Tool for VMware vSphere vCenter Server

1. Download the VCF Diagnostic Tool

Visit the Broadcom website to download the correct version of the VCF Diagnostic Tool (VDT) for your vSphere version.
Ensure you have the appropriate version compatible with your vCenter Server appliance (e.g., vdt 1.1.4 for vCenter 6.5, 6.7, 7.0 or vdt 2.0.x for vCenter 7.0 and 8.0). The link is provided in the description.

2. Transfer the VCF Diagnostic Tool to vCenter Server

Use a file transfer tool, such as WinSCP, to upload the downloaded VCF Diagnostic Tool zip file to the /root directory of the vCenter Server appliance. Ensure that SSH is enabled on the vCenter Server.

3. SSH into the vCenter Server

Open your terminal or SSH client.
SSH into the vCenter Server appliance using the root credentials:

# ssh vcenter-server-ip

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Replace vcenter-server-ip with the actual IP address of your vCenter Server.

3. Change Directory to /root/

Once connected via SSH, navigate to the /root/ directory where the tool was uploaded:

# cd /root/

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4. Unzip the VDT Tool

Unzip the downloaded VCF Diagnostic Tool file:

# unzip vdt-<version_number>.zip

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Replace <version_number> with the actual version of the tool you downloaded.

5. Navigate to the Unzipped Directory

Change directory to the unzipped folder that was created during the extraction:

# cd vdt-<version_number>/

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6. Run the VCF Diagnostic Tool

Execute the diagnostic tool using the following command:

# python vdt.py

When prompted, enter the root password for the vCenter Server. If you do not provide credentials, many of the checks will still run without authentication.

7. Review the Output

The VCF Diagnostic Tool will perform a series of checks, including:

vCenter Basic Info
SSO Checks (e.g., Lookup Service)
Active Directory Integration
vCenter Certificates
Disk Space and DNS Functionality
Time Sync & NTP Functionality
Root Account Validity

The results are categorized as PASS/FAIL/WARN. Scroll through the command line output and review any issues that are identified.

8. Troubleshooting and Logs

If the tool hangs or encounters errors, press ctrl-c to stop the execution.
Review the logs generated at /var/log/vmware/vcf/vdt/.

If any check seems unclear or results are inaccurate, apply traditional troubleshooting methods or report the issue to VMware support for further investigation.