What is vmkernel nic. This interface is the management interface for the .

What is vmkernel nic The vmnics are basically only uplinks from the vSwitch to the physical switch (es). The functionalities of VMkernel VMware calls VMkernel a microkernel because it runs on bare metal The VMkernel networking layer provides connectivity to hosts and handles the standard system traffic of vSphere vMotion, IP storage, Fault Tolerance, vSAN , and others. The very first vmkernel interface - vmk0 is created during the installation of ESXi. The virtual machine and the physical adapter exchange data without using the VMkernel as an intermediary. Mar 19, 2025 · Configure a VMkernel NIC for Host Services: Go to the Networking section and select the VMkernel NICs tab > click Add VMkernel NIC > choose to create a new port group > specify the IP address, subnet mask, and default gateway as required > optionally, assign a VLAN ID if your management network uses one > click Create 5. Adds either a Console NIC if ConsoleNIC is set, or a VMKernel NIC otherwise. IE when i select the physical nic, it lights up with 1 path to 1 vmk port. ” Enter a name for the VMkernel port and choose the vSwitch that you want to connect to. This cmdlet creates a new HostVirtualNIC (Service Console or VMKernel) on the specified host. This article provides you with the steps to perform a vmkping test between your ESXi hosts. . It acts as a liaison between virtual machines (VMs) and the physical hardware that supports them, such as ESXi hosts. Dedicate a VMkernel adapter to only one Learn how to set up VMkernel adapters to provide network connectivity to hosts and to accommodate system traffic of vMotion, IP storage, Fault Tolerance logging, vSAN , and so on. Sep 22, 2023 · Learn how to configure vMotion networks and discover the vMotion network best practices in VMware vSphere Client. The VM portgroups attaches to virtual network cards to the Virtual Mar 30, 2017 · One of the enhancements of vMotion is Multi-NIC vMotion, introduced in vSphere 5. In Nov 26, 2011 · Hello everybody, I've created my clusters and everything around nic teaming vmotion fault tolerance and so on BUT!! : There's things I can't understand Which vmnic is used for storage vmotion??! I explain, when I vmotion a VM from host to and other , no problem the correct vmnic is used, with the nic teaming definition. Feb 7, 2021 · What is VMkernel and why it is important? VMkernel is a POSIX-like operating system developed by VMware. The VMkernel NIC also handles the system traffic for VMware vSphere® vMotion®, IP storage, Fault Tolerance, logging, vSAN , and so on. Creates a port group with a name specified by the PortGroup parameter on the virtual switch passed through the VirtualSwitch parameter. May 8, 2017 · Definition of VMkernel VMkernel is a proprietary host kernel module developed by VMware for its ESX/ESXi Server. log file. From the PC, if I ping the management IP address of the ESXi host the pings are intermittent. Click Next. 1. Configure NIC teaming, failover, and load balancing depending on the network configuration on the physical switch and the topology of the standard switch. The VMkernal is responsible for allocating memory, scheduling CPUs and providing other hardware abstraction and operating system (OS Jan 7, 2018 · vmkernel network can be defined as the network/portgroup used by ESXi itself for performing ESXi related tasks. VMkernel network interfaces are used primarily for management traffic, which can include vMotion, IP Storage, and other management traffic on the ESXi system. b. For Dec 26, 2014 · If you have ssh access to a VMWare ESXi server these commands can help you navigate the different networking settings on the server. Multiple VMkernel adapters on a single physical NIC? So this is a basic question about VMkernel adapters: Is it possible to set multiple VMkernel adapters, each with their own IP address, via distributed virtual switch to a single physical NIC? If so, I guess in this case VLAN tagging/trunking is necessary? Thank you in advance! In the VMware Host Client , you can add and remove VMkernel network adapters (NICs), as well as view and modify the VMkernel NIC settings. Oct 28, 2025 · To set up Multi-NIC vMotion in vSphere on a Standard vSwitch: Log into the vSphere Client and select the host from the inventory panel. Luckily, I have already written detailed guides on how NIC teaming works in VMware: Introduction to NIC Teaming in VMware vSphere Networking – This article reviews why we use NIC teaming, and goes in more detail about what the different NIC teaming mechanisms are. Port binding is used in iSCSI when multiple VMkernel ports for iSCSI reside in the same broadcast domain and IP subnet to allow multiple paths to an iSCSI array that broadcasts a single IP address. Configure the NFS Target: The NFS storage target should export a mount point accessible to the ESXi hosts. Feb 22, 2022 · What is VMkernel? VMkernel is a POSIX (Portable Operating System Interface)-like operating system (OS) developed by VMware. Apr 26, 2025 · VMkernel adapters are part of every host. Create a new vSphere standard switch or use an existing vSwitch. You can set up VMkernel adapters for the standard system traffic on vSphere standard switches and on vSphere distributed switches. 3) A VMkernel TCP/IP interface MAC address is a generated MAC address based on a hash of the system UUID and the name of the interface (vmkX). We'll show that option in a minute. Give the storage VM a NIC in the VM Network with an address in that same subnet, and your host will be able to connect to it via iSCSI. You might observe the following: A VMkernel port is required on each ESX server where the following services will be used: vMotion iSCSI NFS Fault Tolerance Without a VMkernel port none of these services can be used on the ESX server. Thus, the vMotion process can involve multiple adapters. If you are using standard switches for networking, ensure that the network labels used for virtual machine port groups are consistent across hosts. Jan 19, 2024 · To sepearte out the funcitons - use unique vlans for vmkernel, vmotion, storage and then all the production vm vlans. Jun 21, 2019 · VMkernel is the OS inside the ESXi product - it boots, it discovers hardware and loads drivers, it schedules processes and controls access to the underlying hardware. Mar 17, 2023 · This example shows how to add a VMkernel NIC to an ESXi host in VMware ESXi 7. Use powershell and add another virtual NIC for the OS and place it in the correct VLAN. B. x with the HPE custom ISO on Synergy 480 g10 blades, a virtual standard switch is automatically created with a name of “pgUSB” and the uplink is to a Physical Adapter named vusb0. Thanks! Aug 13, 2025 · For troubleshooting purposes, it may be necessary to test VMkernel network connectivity between ESXi hosts in your environment. A. On the Port properties, enable vMotion Traffic and select Next. Add another NIC add it to the appropriate network. Here is what youre looking for Migrating a VMkernel interface used for the management network between standard vSwitches (2037654) You will not achieve this without the console. Vmkernel ports (and the associated vmkernel NIC) are virtual interfaces used by the host for management, IP storage, vMotion, vSAN etc. 168. Multi-NIC vMotion provides load balancing for vMotion network traffic over multiple network interface controllers (NICs). In this post we will see on How to create vSAN VMkernel step by step or How to configure vSAN VMkernel step by step. VMware provides 3 types of virtual switch, the virtual Standard Switch (vSS), the virtual Distributed Switch (vDS), and May 21, 2020 · ESXi. VMkernel NICs are distinct from the regular virtual network adapters that connect VMs to the network. The VMkernel networking layer handles system traffic, as well as connecting ESXi hosts with each other and with vCenter. 2. Be careful to disable HA for this operation ! Also watch the notes in this KB Article: This method also works if used in an SSH root login, but only if you SSH into a previously created secondary management interface Sep 19, 2025 · While the bnxtnet driver is used as an example throughout this guide, the principles apply to any network driver from any manufacturer. What Mar 4, 2019 · Removing a physical NIC of a standard or distributed switch containing the management VMkernel network adapter. Keep in mind that you should back up your VMware vSphere VMs to ensure data availability and minimize downtime in case of a disruption. 15. Create a VMkernel adapter on a host that is associated with a distributed switch to provide network connectivity to the host and to handle the traffic for vSphere vMotion, IP storage, Fault Tolerance logging, vSAN , and others. Today I am going to talk about TCP/IP stacks in VMkernels (for vSphere 6). I bring this up because the picture in your thread shows the word "standby" by vmnic6. Sep 5, 2016 · *) On ESXi the MAC address of the PXE booted NIC, or the first physical NIC, by PCI slot, is stolen and given to the VMkernel TCP/IP interface vmk0. This means when you want your ESXi to make use of large MTU for accessing a NFS datastore, you'll need to make sure that distributed virtual switches, physical network interfaces, vmkernel portgroups, physical switches at system level and per port level and filers are configured with the proper MTU. Use the ESXi Shell or SSH into the ESXi host. 4. The management network for example is essentially based on VMkernel networking, but this is not the only one. Here is I’ll describe some useful console commands that will helps you to create a management network adapter (VMkernel) and configure them. Properties Displays the port properties and NIC settings of the VMkernel adapter. On the Configure tab, expand Networking and select VMkernel adapters . Create Additional Port May 27, 2025 · NIC port teaming refers to a vSphere configuration that uses more than one NIC port as a resource for one or more responsibilities, such as VM traffic, or VMkernel traffic like vMotion, or vSAN. Create and configure Management Network using ESXi Command line 3 minute read I want to continue my last post about esxcli tool. Apr 8, 2011 · Do I aggregate two ports one from each NIC (for redundancy) and have two vNICs in the vSwitch or do I aggregate all four ports to a single vNIC? Or no aggregation - can I have active/standby ports in the vmkernel where all four are separate and active each with a standby that is active in another vmkernel? Apr 10, 2018 · Introduction In the world of virtualization and connectivity, the virtual switch is one of the most fundamental components, providing networking connectivity between virtual machines, along with connecting them to the physical world. May 7, 2024 · This chapter contains the following sections: About VMkernel NICs Modifying VMkernel NIC Port Properties About VMkernel NICs The VMware VMkernel networking interface provides network connectivity for the host, and handles VMware vMotion, traffic management, and fault tolerance. 255 00:51:47:3c:20:cc 1500 40960 true Jan 6, 2016 · No matter which physical interface (vmnic) you select, the IP address is assigned to the VMkernel port (vmk). Click the Configuration tab and select Networking. c Learn how to create a VMkernel network adapter on a vSphere standard switch to provide network connectivity for hosts and to handle the system traffic for vSphere vMotion, IP storage, Fault Tolerance logging, vSAN , and so on. If you use Link Aggregation Protocol (LAG/LACP), the vSAN network can be configured with a single VMkernel adapter. Aug 22, 2025 · This article provides steps to configure the VMkernel network for vSAN prior to running the vSAN setup wizard in vCenter. Aug 22, 2023 · To create the vMotion network, you can use VMkernel ports with jumbo frames enabled and NIC teaming set. Dec 26, 2019 · The biggest challenge with MTU is to have the environment properly configured end-to-end. Nov 5, 2024 · Here you will find out: what is VMkernel port and Networking Layer what they have in common when DiskInternals can help you Are you ready? Let's read! What is a VMkernel port? The VMkernel port is a virtual adapter; that is, it is a special device with which the vSphere host communicates with the outside world. vSphere Networking provides information about configuring networking for VMware vSphere , including how to create vSphere distributed switches and vSphere standard switches. This can be used to isolate backup traffic from other traffic types. Checking my current production setup, I can see that in a similar configuration, the NICs appear to be individually linked to the vmk ports. For consistent networking configuration throughout all hosts, you can assign the same physical NIC on every host to the same uplink on the distributed switch. The Network switch will need to trunk all the vlans and set the vmkernel vlan as native. What is the benefit of adding more VMkernel to this host? I've added an additional one to the vswitch as well as the Distributed switch. 7. Much like the virtual machines that run on the ESXi hosts, the vmkernel would also need to interface with the network for a variety of purposes. Mar 3, 2023 · The "Virtual switch vSwitch_vMotion was successfully created" message appears. For this example we see that vmk0 (the host's management vmkernel adapter) is currently using vmnic1. On the Select target device page, select either an existing standard switch or a New vSphere standard switch. Sep 19, 2022 · What is VMkernel Nic? About VMkernel NICs The VMware VMkernel networking interface provides network connectivity for the host, and handles VMware vMotion, traffic management, and fault tolerance. How do i assign the NICs to the vmk ports individually? I am running 6. , this excludes the VM production network as we have vm network for that. Apr 13, 2025 · SR-IOV passthrough Representation of a virtual function (VF) on a physical NIC with SR-IOV support. Access the ESXi host's vmkernel. That is where you set the vmk to use an active / standby adapter by overriding the vSwitch failover order. In vSphere, uplink traffic refers to the network traffic sent from virtual machines (VMs), VMkernel ports, or other May 8, 2018 · vSAN requires an VMkernel network adapter for the network communication between vSAN Cluster. In addition commands to work with Port Groups, vSwitches, NetStack, Uplinks will be placed here in the one quick post Feb 9, 2022 · A vSwitch with a VMKernel port and VM ports is configured to use both physical NICs in an Active/Active configuration: I have run esxtop and can see that the ESXi host has chosen the physical NIC connected to Switch 2 for the VMKernel port. Oct 8, 2025 · This article provides information on setting up the correct NIC teaming policies to allow iSCSI port binding. This adapter type is suitable for virtual machines where latency might cause failure or that require more CPU resources. 255. To connect to a vSwitch, a virtual machine must have a virtual NIC (vNIC) mapped to it -- just like how physical machines can't connect to a network without a working network adapter. It balances one vMotion session across all available VMkernel adapters. Thus, any service at the second or third level is delivered to the vSphere host Jan 16, 2024 · This example shows how to add a VMkernel NIC to an ESXi host in VMware ESXi 8. Jun 24, 2025 · On each host, configure a VMkernel port group for vMotion. com About VMkernel NICs The VMware VMkernel networking interface provides network connectivity for the host, and handles VMware vMotion, traffic management, and fault tolerance. When these counters show higher values, the rate that the numbers increase can be a helpful tool. A VM needs VMkernel to communicate with the ESXi server. Aug 3, 2019 · I just started playing around with vSphere hypervisor (free version), and so it wasn't something i would call complicated but then Vmkernel NIC appeared. Dec 9, 2024 · The following article provides information about some ESXCLI commands that can be used to gather information about the configuration of the host, for example the Host Hardware Configuration, Storage, and Virtual Switch Information. The other physical NIC is connected to a distributed switch that also processes the same type of traffic. Since these won't need to talk outside the host, a vSwitch with no physical network interfaces will work just fine. See What is Teaming and Failover Policy and Load Balancing Algorithms Available for Virtual Switches for more information. It will help you to do the networking operations using command line. In your image you are in vSwitch Manager - and that is just to create the vSwitches that your VMs would use. Oct 30, 2019 · Multiple VMkernel interfaces per physical NIC If you have an environment that has already 10, 25, or 100Gb NICs, and you still find the vMotion process is taking a long time, other tweaks can still speed up and optimize the vMotion process. To monitor the counters and see if the numbers are increasing, use the command below: $ watch esxcli network nic stats get -n vmnic# It How do I Set Up VMkernel Networking LACP Support on a vSphere Distributed Switch Back Up and Restore Network Configurations Rollback and Recovery of the Management Network vSphere Networking Policies How to Use VLANs to Isolate Network Traffic Manage Network Resources vSphere Network I/O Control MAC Address Management Configure vSphere for IPv6 This article explains how to create a VMkernel port for iSCSI storage on a standard virtual switch. vmkerne;/ESXi uses these vmkernl portgroups for multiple tasks like management, VMotion, iSCSI storage, vSphere replication, FT. They enable ESXi hosts to perform network operations that are host-level, not VM-level — meaning they serve the May 12, 2016 · Today we will focus on some ESXi Commands for networking. May 31, 2021 · A new feature in vSphere 7 is the ability to configure a VMkernel port used for backups in NBD (Network Block Device) respectively Network mode. What is it used for ? Why management networ See full list on nakivo. :smileyhappy: I think of the VMkernel ports as virtual network cards connected to the hypervisor itself. To diagnose potential network driver/firmware issues, follow these steps to analyze the ESXi host's vmkernel. You'll need a VMKernel port group for the host to use to connect, and a Virtual Machine port group for the VM to "plug in". You can add a VMkernel network adapter (NIC) on a VMware vSphere® Standard Edition™ switch to provide network connectivity for hosts. Apr 11, 2025 · You isolate the network traffic to the vSphere Replication Server by dedicating a VMkernel NIC on each ESXi host on the primary site that sends data to the vSphere Replication Server. Configure network settings for the vMotion VMkernel interface and click Next. Is there any reason not to tick the 'Provisioning' box on the vmnic being used for vMotion? It looks like that should push the cold migrations down the vMotion 20Gb+ route. a. vSphere Networking Content feedback and comments We have a multi-10G vMotion network but only a 1G manager network. Add two or more NICs to the required standard switch. Those commands are VMware esxi specific and allows us to view, modify, add network configurations Configure the same MTU on all VMkernel network adapters in a vSphere Distributed Switch. Select the VMkernel adapter that resides on the target distributed or standard switch and click Edit . The VMkernel layer handles all the I/O requests from virtual machines, effectively bridging the gap between hardware and virtual resources. May 14, 2025 · 1. The VMkernel is the liaison between virtual machines (VMs) and the physical hardware that supports them. Note: Ensure Jul 28, 2025 · For more information and exceptions about Multiple-NIC vMotion, see Multiple-NIC vMotion in vSphere For more information about VMkernel Networking in vSphere, see VMkernel Networking Layer NOTE: Configurations with more than one vmknic interface on the same IP subnet is not supported. Dec 26, 2019 · Network Interface Card (NIC) is assigned with IP address and associated with NSG rules, which is used for the communication between virtual machine's or internal network or internet. May 30, 2012 · Only ESX uses the Service Console; in ESXi, the VMkernel instead serves as the management front-end. Jun 19, 2012 · Note: Discussion renamed from "Hi dear Ali" to "Difference between VM and VMkernel portgroups". Also, enter an IP address and subnet mask for the VMkernel port, and configure any other network settings as needed. Virtual machine port groups are what you attach a virtual machines virtual NIC to and will show up under networks when you edit a VMs settings. VMkernel network adapters have, or can have several functions: Management Traffic – configuration and management communication for the host, vCenter Server, and HA traffic. There is also a vmkernel created “vmk1” with an IP 16. This interface is the management interface for the Jul 23, 2018 · It’s been a while since I posted something, but I was busy with university duties and to be honest I couldn’t spend time on publishing things but, here we are! First, I am currently studying for the VCAP6 – DCV Deployment Exam (3V0-623) and I am learning a lot with it, so maybe I will post more topics related with. Feb 16, 2018 · Enable jumbo frames on a VMkernel network interface by changing the maximum transmission units (MTU) of the VMkernel interface. For example, you can assign vmnic1 from hosts ESXi A and ESXi B to Uplink 1 . You can also bind a newly created VMkernel network interface for use by software and dependent hardware iSCSI by using the esxcli iscsi commands. Apr 6, 2011 · However, in the NIC Teaming configuration for the vmkernel (located in the properties of the vmk) there is a tab for NIC Teaming. , you should create a VMkernel NIC for management of the relevant port group. It is an integral part of VMware’s virtualization platform that allows direct interaction with the physical server and its resources. About VMkernel NICs The VMware VMkernel networking interface provides network connectivity for the host, and handles VMware vMotion, traffic management, and fault tolerance. Dec 14, 2023 · How to configure the network on an ESXi host using the command line explains how to create a standard switch (VSS), a port group (PG), and a management vmkernel interface using the esxcli command. Up to this release, there was no direct option to select VMkernel port for backup. Click Add Networking and choose VMkernel as the Connection Type. Port binding is required for iSCSI vmkernels when they are in the same subnet. We want to do a lot of cold migrations (powered off VMs) which will use the mgmt network by default. Once the networking is in place, using the vsphere web client you can modify the vmkernel/etc networking as follows: When it comes to the vmkernel interface, which is the software stack on the ESXi host that interacts with the vCenter Server and performs additional duties such as doing vMotion events and providing the iSCSI initiator service in certain configurations, the plot thickens. Migrating the management VMkernel adapter from vSphere standard to distributed switch. The vmkping command will, by default, use any path to reach the destination IP. Oct 13, 2023 · Master VMware networking with 5 concepts: vSphere switches, uplink utilization, failovers, VLAN tagging strategies, and VMkernel ports. Am not sure if you are getting confused between vmkernel ports and virtual machine port groups. With a default installation of ESXi, the vmkernel interface is a logical node on a default virtual switch, which will You can use advanced NIC teaming methods with multiple VMkernel adapters to configure the vSAN network. Add NFS Datastore: Use the vSphere Client or ESXCLI to add the NFS datastore to the ESXi host. Placing VMs on VLANs would be done at the VM NIC level not at the switch level. Provisioning NFS Datastores: Create a VMkernel NIC: Ensure you have a virtual switch configured with a VMkernel NIC for IP-based storage. One NIC is connected to a vsphere standard switch, and processes vmotion, management traffic, etc. Because this subject can sometimes seem complex and confusing, I created this simple post to explain it. Does anyone know what this is for, and can it safely be removed? Thanks Nov 7, 2025 · The data these counters display are additive of issues that are external to the ESXi kernel and only what is being reported to the ESXi host from the NIC driver. Dec 11, 2024 · In order to troubleshoot network issues for a specific virtual machine running in vSphere, it is crucial to first determine which physical NIC (Uplink) on the ESXi Host the VM finally is using for sending uplink traffic. Add a VMkernel interface (VMkernel NIC) To add a new VMkernel interface (VMkernel NIC) from the VMware ESXi web interface, go to "Networking -> VMkernel NICs" and click : Add VMkernel NIC. In the "Add VMkernel NIC" window that appears, you will find several settings : Feb 13, 2025 · A friend asked me to help solve an issue related to an entire vSAN cluster going down after changing MTU values. Sep 17, 2017 · What is VMkernel TCP/IP and why to use it? The purpose of a TCP/IP Stack configuration in VMware vSphere Hosts is to setup the Networking Parameters which will allow the communication between the Hosts themselves including the Virtual Machines, other Virtual Appliances and last but not least the Network Storage. log file: 1. Aug 29, 2023 · A VMkernel NIC in an ESXi host is used for management purposes, such as handling management-related traffic, vMotion, iSCSI, or other services. 5. Jul 6, 2016 · This how-to article explains how to remove and re-create Management network VMkernel interface using ESXi CLI. You set up VMkernel adapters to provide network connectivity to hosts and to accommodate system traffic of vMotion, IP storage, Fault Tolerance logging, vSAN , and so on. Navigate to the ` /var/log/ ` directory. The port properties include the port group (network label) to which the adapter is associated, the VLAN ID, and the enabled services. Nov 5, 2025 · On the Select connection type page, select VMkernel Network Adapter and click Next. Ensure that virtual machines have access to the same subnets on source and destination hosts. If several VMkernel network adapters, configured with different MTUs, are connected to vSphere distributed switches, you might experience network connectivity problems. VMware vMotion, lets you migrate powered on virtual machines with no downtime. These interfaces act as network node points for the vmkernel. Jun 1, 2023 · Adding a VMkernel NIC If you want to use a dedicated VM network, storage network, vMotion network, Fault Tolerance logging network, etc. On these virtual NICs you could set IP addresses and then use them for Management, vMotion and connecting to IP based storage. Jan 29, 2017 · In this post we will see on how you can manage the esxi networking using esxcli command line. See About VMware vMotion and vCenter Jun 22, 2023 · Select the “ VMkernel NICs ” tab and click on “ Add VMkernel NIC. By specifying an additional parameter we can send out a ping command via a specific vmkernel port. Before removing the NIC from the DVS make sure that whichever NIC to be used on the standard switch is configured to pass management traffic (for example a specific VLAN). BUT, when I migrated a VM to a datastore to another, every time, but Aug 4, 2021 · When I install ESXi 7. VMkernel Adapters (vmkNICs) are a critical part of VMware vSphere networking. You can also create VMkernel adapters on the source and target vSphere Replication hosts to isolate the replication data traffic. 5 255. 0 192. Nov 4, 2025 · Virtual machines Vmkernel network adapters (including services like Management, vMotion, VSAN, iSCSI, NFS, and NSX) Physical Nic interfaces The trigger for an event such as "Up" or "Down" is typically an external event upstream from the physical NIC. Nov 27, 2019 · There are a number of ways to accomplish this in VMware vSphere Networking. List all VMkernel NICS: /usr/sbin/esxcfg-vmknic -lInterface Port Group IP Address Netmask Broadcast MAC Address MTU TSO MSS Enabledvmk0 VMkernel 192. What is the VMkernel NIC necessary for? The VMware VMkernel networking interface provides network connectivity for the host, and handles VMware vMotion, traffic management, and fault tolerance. jpki rhh afas ejtf cetg wrmg png vptoi gtsbhr sjvvjfk tznz wicybujd wsag deuqhe qskianm