Daniel Micanek virtual Blog – Like normal Dan, but virtual.
How vSphere GPU Modes and Assignment Policies Determine Host Level Placement – Frank Denneman
In the last article, we tracked a GPU-backed VM from resource configuration to host selection. DRS evaluated the cluster, Assignable Hardware filtered hosts for GPU compatibility, DRS ran its Goodness calculation, and picked a destination host. Now, the host is selected. But the placement is […]
How Same Size vGPU Mode and Right-sizing Shape GPU Placement Efficiency – Frank Denneman
Architecting AI Infrastructure – Part 5 In the previous article, we looked at how GPUs are placed within an ESXi host and how GPU modes and assignment policies determine which physical GPU a workload uses. These decisions impact more than just the initial placement of workloads. They also shape [..]
Quick Tip – Debugging “stuck” vSphere Supervisor being removed
Disabling or deactivating vSphere Supervisor can take some time depending on the number of resources you may have deployed, which all need to be properly cleaned up. In case the removal is taking longer than expected, there is not much information provided to the user in the vSphere UI. […]
When integrating a Microsoft Certificate Authority (CA) with VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) Operations / Fleet Management in VCF 9.0, you may hit a frustrating blocker: the “Configure Certificate Authority for VCF Management” wizard fails with:
“Certificate authorities update failed”
This is documented in Broadcom KB 406901 and, importantly, it’s not always a connectivity or permissions problem—it can be a password character parsing issue.
In the Configure Certificate Authority for VCF Management wizard, the validation/update step fails with:
On the VCF Operations appliance, you’ll typically find a 401 Unauthorized in:
/var/log/vrlcm/vmware_vrlcm.logExample (as shown in the KB):
Exception occurred while trying to validate Microsoft CAHttpClientErrorException$Unauthorized: 401 Unauthorized401 - Unauthorized: Access is denied due to invalid credentials.At first glance, this looks like wrong credentials or insufficient permissions. But KB 406901 highlights a very specific trigger.
This is a known issue with special characters in the CA service account password, specifically:
# or &Even if the username/password are correct, the wizard’s CA validation request can fail in a way that surfaces as a 401 Unauthorized.
Change the Microsoft CA service account password to a value that does NOT contain:
#&Use a “safe” password character set (letters + numbers is the simplest) to avoid re-triggering the issue.
Go back to the Configure Certificate Authority for VCF Management wizard, enter the updated credentials, and run the validation/update again.
Mixed Size vGPU Mode in Practice – Frank Denneman
Architecting AI Infrastructure – Part 6: Last time, I looked at how Same Size vGPU mode works with different assignment policies and how right-sizing profiles can make placement more flexible. The main point was that both profile variety and assignment choices have a big impact on how much GPU [..]
Release Notes – Holodeck
This page documents the key features, enhancements, and capabilities available in Holodeck releases.
Quick Tip – No space left on device when upgrading VCF Operations using VCF Operations Fleet Manager to VCF 9.0.2 – William Lam
Yesterday, I began upgrading my VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) environment from version 9.0.1 to the latest 9.0.2 release. After successfully upgrading VCF Operations Fleet Manager, I then proceeded to upgrade VCF Operations, which includes running a pre-validation to ensure everything was okay […]
Quick Tip – NSX Edge fails DNS pre-check as part of VCF 9.0.2 Upgrade – William Lam
As I continue my VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) 9.0.2 upgrade journey, I have now reached the core SDDC components, including vCenter, NSX, and ESX. NSX Manager and NSX Edges was up first and before the upgrade begins, a pre-check is performed. I was not expecting any issues but to my surprise, I […]
DSM 9.0.2 – New Microsoft SQL Server Enhancements – SQL Server Agent Support – Cormac Hogan
VMware Data Service Manager 9.0.2.0 has achieved General Availability (GA) status, and is now readily accessible from the Broadcom Download Portal. You can see the full DSM 9.0.2 release notes here. In this post, I want to revisit our efforts to deliver a Microsoft SQL Server data service. […]
Every Mini PC & SFF Hardware Announced at CES 2026 – William Lam
I always look forward to the annual announcements at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), with a specific eye toward new hardware platforms and innovations well suited for running VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) in a lab environment. This year is no exception, although acquiring affordable memory [..]
