VxRail Addendum
Extra steps for a Dell VxRail environment, layered on top of the general upgrade guidance in Overview – not a replacement for it. Read the general flow first; this doc only covers what is different or additional because the hardware is VxRail. The non-hardware workstreams (Aria → VCF fleet, Identity, Disaster Recovery, integrations) are general – see Overview, do not duplicate them here.
Status: draft. Structure and the Dell process below are from a live VxRail 5.2.2 → VCF 9.1 planning cycle (planned against 9.1.0; VCF 9.1.1 went GA on 2026-09-03). Re-confirm every version, build, and step against the current Dell KBs and the Broadcom matrix for your target build.
Release-stream context
VCF on VxRail follows a Dell-coordinated release stream separate from the standard VCF cadence – VxRail Manager and SDDC Manager have historically interacted directly during cluster lifecycle operations, and VxRail-specific VCF builds ship from Dell.
- Supported versions: Broadcom KB 306446 (“Supported versions of VMware Cloud Foundation on VxRail”).
- Minimum source: VCF 5.2 on VxRail 8.0.300.
- Dell recommends: VCF 5.2.2 on VxRail 8.0.361 or later before starting the 9.1 upgrade.
What changes in VCF on VxRail 9.x
The integration model changes – a brownfield 5.x → 9.x move is a model conversion, not a patch.
| Area | 5.x model | 9.x model |
|---|---|---|
| Software lifecycle | SDDC Manager interacts directly with VxRail Manager | SDDC Manager no longer interacts with VxRail Manager; standard VCF lifecycle management |
| Hardware lifecycle | VxRail Manager handles software and hardware/firmware | A new component (Dell-internal “Vx0 Manager” / “VxRail.next”) handles hardware lifecycle and firmware – primary in the management domain, secondary alongside each workload-domain cluster |
| Hypervisor patching | vSphere Update Manager (VUM) baselines | vSphere Lifecycle Manager (vLCM) images – mandatory. Convert every baseline-managed cluster before the upgrade |
| Bundle stream | VxRail-specific VCF builds | Single VCF codebase across vendors; VxRail nodes treated like vSAN Ready Nodes |
| Dell engagement | Optional for routine upgrades | Dell Professional Services (RPS) engagement expected for the brownfield conversion |
VxRail Manager → VxRail Operations Manager conversion. The upgrade converts the legacy VxRail Manager (VXM) appliance to the new VxRail Operations Manager (VOM) architecture. This is out-of-family. During the conversion the vCenter VxRail plugin UI is briefly unavailable while the management IP switches from VXM to VOM – this is expected.
Unsupported deployment types (VCF on VxRail 9.1)
Not supported for the 9.1 upgrade path – wait for a later release:
- Stretched clusters
- Dynamic nodes
- 2-node deployments
- Satellite node deployments
The Dell RPS engagement
Technical Consultation
Dell runs a Technical Consultation per SDDC before the upgrade. It produces:
- Pre-check results (SOS, VCFverify, VCFcheck) and a go / no-go.
- The agreed code path (source VCF + VxRail versions → target VCF + VxRail versions) and method (Sequential).
- A per-domain upgrade plan with current and target build numbers for every component.
- A responsibility split (see below).
- A rough time estimate.
- A checklist covering: number of workload domains / clusters / hosts; BOM compatibility; async-patched-site status; code download method (online / offline); stretched cluster; witness nodes; NSX Federation; SDDC Federation; Aria enabled; Tanzu enabled; RP4VMs enabled.
The consultation is per site – a two-site (primary + DR) estate needs a consultation and plan for each, aligned so the DR pair moves in step.
Responsibility split
Dell’s upgrade order and who runs each step:
| # | Action | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Upgrade VCF Operations to 9.1 (required component; must be in place before the SDDC upgrade begins) | Customer |
| 2 | Upgrade SDDC Manager 5.2.x → 9.1 via the 5.2.x SDDC Manager UI | Dell RPS |
| 3 | Apply configuration updates in the 9.1 SDDC UI – Fleet LCM and VCF Management Services Platform; ensure unique FQDNs, static IPs, and forward / reverse DNS for all VCF components | Customer |
| 4 | In VCF Operations: configure the depot, download binaries, create the management-domain upgrade plan | Customer |
| 5 | Run update prechecks from VCF Operations / SDDC Manager | Dell RPS |
| 6 | In VCF Operations: upgrade NSX (Global Managers first where NSX Federation is used, then Local Manager), then vCenter | Dell RPS |
| 7 | In the vCenter VxRail plugin: upload the bundle, upgrade VxRail Manager and ESXi to 9.1 (VXM → VOM conversion) | Dell RPS |
| 8 | In VCF Operations: finalize the NSX upgrade (Edge and host components) | Dell RPS |
| 9 | Upgrade the vSphere Distributed Switch version | Dell RPS |
| 10 | Update the vSAN on-disk format version, if applicable | Dell RPS |
Then the same sequence for each workload domain.
Findings that trace to a hardware fault, firmware limit, or Dell design guidance route to Dell for investigation – RPS does not own those items directly. Track them the same as any other finding until Dell provides a resolution or workaround.
Credentials Dell needs before the window
SDDC Manager (vcf + root) · vCenter Server (administrator + root) · NSX-T Manager (admin + root) · VxRail Manager (mystic + root) · ESXi node root · iDRAC root (or equivalent) · VMware Customer Connect account · Dell Support account.
Where this plugs into the general flow
| General (Overview) | On VxRail |
|---|---|
| Phase 7 – ESX / host-cluster upgrade | Replaced by the VxRail plugin bundle (ESXi + Dell Add-on drivers + Dell firmware + VXM → VOM). Do not use the generic per-host path or the online VxRail Manager UI. |
| Phase 5 / 6 – NSX Local Manager, vCenter | Driven from the SDDC Manager 9.1 UI / VCF Operations Fleet Management by Dell RPS, not the generic path. |
| Prerequisites – vLCM images | Hard requirement on VxRail: all baseline-managed clusters converted to vLCM images first. |
| Conditional – NSX Global Manager | Applies whenever the Dell checklist shows NSX Federation = Yes. |
The Aria → VCF fleet migration, the VIDM → Identity Broker transition, and the Disaster Recovery convergence are not VxRail-specific – follow Overview.
References
- Dell KB 000478885 – “VxRail: How to perform an upgrade to VCF 9.1”
- Dell KB 000021470 – “VCF on VxRail: General Upgrade Information”
- Dell – “RPS General Procedure: VCF on VxRail Upgrade – Customer Preparation Guide”
- Broadcom KB 306446 – “Supported versions of VMware Cloud Foundation on VxRail”