5 Common Errors While Installing vRealize Operations Manager

By: Tim Sheldon, Blue Medora

Understanding the most common errors associated with installing VMware’s vRealize Operations Manager (vROps) can drastically improve user experience. Currently, 85% of Blue Medora’s support tickets are related to user error during vRealize Operations installation and configuration. Below, I have outlined the top five errors that we see vROps users encountering, and how to avoid them if you’re looking to install vRealize Operations or integrate third-party management packs.

1.  Undersized nodes.

   During the initial configuration of a vROps node, you are required to select a specific size. Once the size is selected, a set number of virtual resources are assigned to the node, such as CPU.

   The size of the node is dependent on how many objects are in your environment and what resources are being collected. This problem most commonly occurs is when vRealize Operations users do not follow the correct sizing guide or they underestimate the amount of metrics that will be collected. For a listing of all sizing guidelines for vCenter/vRealize Operations versions, refer to VMware’s Knowledge Base article (2093783).

2. Malfunctioning nodes.

   If you create a new node and forget to restart vRealize Operations before you begin adding management packs, it will start malfunctioning. A few of the biggest problems we have found from customer interactions are sometimes vRealize Operations won’t let you license correctly, collections won’t come up properly, and object relationships will not populate.

   If you are seeing the above consequences of a malfunctioning node, do not despair! Oftentimes, a simple redescribe can solve the issue.

   Here are the steps to manually redescribe the adapter:

   1. Log in to the vRealize Operations Manager user interface.
   2. In the left-pane of vRealize Operations Manager, click the Administration tab, then click Support.
   3. Select Redescribe.

3. Issue with third-party hardware.

   Many times when users have issues with their install, it is because they intend to integrate with third-party hardware, which is not functioning correctly. In these situations, there might be additional installation or configuration actions that must take place outside of vRealize.

   If you are running into issues, be sure to review the vRealize prerequisites, as well as the prerequisites for the third-party hardware you plan to use.

4. Management Pack and license are out of sync.

   Occasionally, users will receive an error reporting an invalid license. First, check to make sure you do in fact have a valid, unexpired license. If this isn’t the issue, it is possible that the Management Pack and vRealize system are out of sync. This can often be resolved with a redescribe or rebooting the individual node or cluster. Please refer to the steps outlined in error #2 above on how to complete a redescribe.

5. Firewall blocking the ports.

   Ports need to be unblocked. If ports are being blocked, users may experience a variety of errors. Most commonly, the Test Connection will fail if a firewall is preventing communication between vRealize and the node you are attempting to monitor.
   
   If you are running into issues, be sure to review vRealize prerequisites, as well as the Management Pack prerequisites for which ports need to be accessible.

These are the five most common errors that Blue Medora’s support team has encountered with customers while installing and configuring vRealize Operations Manager. For more helpful support articles and guides to navigate through vRealize Operations and third-party management packs, visit support.bluemedora.com.