ESXCLI Commands

esxcli software Commands

Command	Description	Options Help
software apply	Applies a complete image with a software spec that specifies base image, addon and components to install on the host.	--depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or a local offline bundle .zip file on the server. (required) --dry-run Performs a dry-run. Report the VIB-level operations that would be performed, but do not change anything in the system. --no-hardware-warning Allows the transaction to ignore hardware precheck warnings. A hardware precheck error will continue to be shown with this option. Use of this option may result in device not functioning normally. --no-live-install Forces an install to /altbootbank even if the VIBs are eligible for live installation or removal. Will cause installation to be skipped on PXE-booted hosts. --no-sig-check Bypasses acceptance level and signing verifications. Use of this option poses a large security risk and will result in a SECURITY ALERT warning being displayed in vSphere Web Client. --proxy Specifies a proxy server for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections, in the format of proxy-url:port. --software-spec | -s Specifies the JSON software spec to apply on the host. A local file path or a remote URL can be supplied. (required) --help Show the help message.
software acceptance get	Gets the host acceptance level. This controls what VIBs will be allowed on a host.	--help Show the help message.
software acceptance set	Sets the host acceptance level. This controls what VIBs will be allowed on a host.	--level Specifies the acceptance level to set. Should be one of VMwareCertified / VMwareAccepted / PartnerSupported / CommunitySupported. (required) --help Show the help message.
software addon get	Display the installed Addon on the host and the managed DPU(s).	--rebooting-image Displays information for the ESXi image which becomes active after a reboot, or nothing if the pending-reboot image has not been created yet. If not specified, information from the current ESXi image in memory will be returned. --help Show the help message.
software baseimage get	Display the installed baseimage on the host.	--rebooting-image Displays information for the ESXi image which becomes active after a reboot, or nothing if the pending-reboot image has not been created yet. If not specified, information from the current ESXi image in memory will be returned. --help Show the help message.
software component apply	Installs Component packages from a depot. Components may be installed, upgraded. WARNING: If your installation requires a reboot, you need to disable HA first.	--component | -n Specifies Components from a depot, using one of the following forms: name, name:version. --depot | -d Specifies the full remote URL to the depot's index.xml, or a local file path to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --dry-run Performs a dry-run only. Report the Component-level operations that would be performed, but do not change anything in the system. --no-sig-check Bypasses acceptance level verification, including signing. Use of this option poses a large security risk and will result in a SECURITY ALERT warning being displayed in vSphere Web Client. --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software component get	Displays detailed information about one or more installed Components on host and managed DPU(s).	--component | -n Specifies one or more installed Components to display more information about. If this option is not specified, then all of the installed Components will be displayed. Must be one of the following forms: name, name:version. --rebooting-image Displays information for the ESXi image which becomes active after a reboot, or nothing if the pending-reboot image has not been created yet. If not specified, information from the current ESXi image in memory will be returned. --help Show the help message.
software component list	Lists the installed Component packages on the host and the managed DPU(s).	--rebooting-image Displays information for the ESXi image which becomes active after a reboot, or nothing if the pending-reboot image has not been created yet. If not specified, information from the current ESXi image in memory will be returned. --help Show the help message.
software component remove	Removes components from the host. WARNING: If your installation requires a reboot, you need to disable HA first.	--component | -n Specifies one or more Components on the host to remove. Must be one of the following forms: name, name:version. (required) --dry-run Performs a dry-run only. Report the Components-level operations that would be performed, but do not change anything in the system. --help Show the help message.
software component signature verify	Verifies the signatures of installed Components on the host and the managed DPU(s) and displays the name, version, vendor, acceptance level and the result of signature verification for each of them.	--rebooting-image Displays information for the ESXi image which becomes active after a reboot. If not specified, information from the current ESXi image in memory will be returned. --help Show the help message.
software component vib list	List VIBs in an installed Component on the host and the managed DPU(s).	--component | -n Specifies an installed Components to display more information about. Must be one of the following forms: name, name:version. (required) --rebooting-image Displays information for the ESXi image which becomes active after a reboot, or nothing if the pending-reboot image has not been created yet. If not specified, information from the current ESXi image in memory will be returned. --help Show the help message.
software profile get	Display the installed image profile on host and managed DPU(s).	--rebooting-image Displays information for the ESXi image which becomes active after a reboot, or nothing if the pending-reboot image has not been created yet. If not specified, information from the current ESXi image in memory will be returned. --help Show the help message.
software profile install	Installs or applies an image profile from a depot to this host. This command completely replaces the installed image with the image defined by the new image profile, and may result in the loss of installed VIBs. The common vibs between host and image profile will be skipped. To preserve installed VIBs, use profile update instead. WARNING: If your installation requires a reboot, you need to disable HA first.	--depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --dry-run Performs a dry-run only. Report the VIB-level operations that would be performed, but do not change anything in the system. --force | -f Bypasses checks for package dependencies, conflicts, obsolescence, and acceptance levels. Really not recommended unless you know what you are doing. Use of this option will result in a warning being displayed in vSphere Web Client. Use this option only when instructed to do so by VMware Technical Support. --maintenance-mode Pretends that maintenance mode is in effect. Otherwise, installation will stop for live installs that require maintenance mode. This flag has no effect for reboot required remediations. --no-hardware-warning Allows the transaction to proceed when hardware precheck returns a warning. A hardware error will continue to be shown with this option. Use of this option may result in device not functioning normally. --no-live-install Forces an install to /altbootbank even if the VIBs are eligible for live installation or removal. Will cause installation to be skipped on PXE-booted hosts. --no-sig-check Bypasses acceptance level verification, including signing. Use of this option poses a large security risk and will result in a SECURITY ALERT warning being displayed in vSphere Web Client. --ok-to-remove Allows the removal of installed VIBs as part of applying the image profile. If not specified, esxcli will error out if applying the image profile results in the removal of installed VIBs. --profile | -p Specifies the name of the image profile to install. (required) --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software profile update	Updates the host with VIBs from an image profile in a depot. Installed VIBs may be upgraded (or downgraded if --allow-downgrades is specified), but they will not be removed. Any VIBs in the image profile which are not related to any installed VIBs will be added to the host. WARNING: If your installation requires a reboot, you need to disable HA first.	--allow-downgrades If this option is specified, then the VIBs from the image profile which update, downgrade, or are new to the host will be installed. If the option is not specified, then the VIBs which update or are new to the host will be installed. --depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --dry-run Performs a dry-run only. Report the VIB-level operations that would be performed, but do not change anything in the system. --force | -f Bypasses checks for package dependencies, conflicts, obsolescence, and acceptance levels. Really not recommended unless you know what you are doing. Use of this option will result in a warning being displayed in vSphere Web Client. Use this option only when instructed to do so by VMware Technical Support. --maintenance-mode Pretends that maintenance mode is in effect. Otherwise, installation will stop for live installs that require maintenance mode. This flag has no effect for reboot required remediations. --no-hardware-warning Allows the transaction to proceed when hardware precheck returns a warning. A hardware error will continue to be shown with this option. Use of this option may result in device not functioning normally. --no-live-install Forces an install to /altbootbank even if the VIBs are eligible for live installation or removal. Will cause installation to be skipped on PXE-booted hosts. --no-sig-check Bypasses acceptance level verification, including signing. Use of this option poses a large security risk and will result in a SECURITY ALERT warning being displayed in vSphere Web Client. --profile | -p Specifies the name of the image profile to update the host with. (required) --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software profile validate	Validates the current image profile on the host and managed DPU(s) against an image profile in a depot.	--depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --profile | -p Specifies the name of the image profile to validate the host with. (required) --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software sources addon get	Display details about Addons in the depots.	--addon | -a Specify the Addon to display, in one of the follwing formats: name, name:version. (required) --depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software sources addon list	List all Addons in the depots.	--depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software sources baseimage get	Display details about a Base Image from the depot.	--baseimageversion | -b Specifies the name of the Base Image to display. (required) --depot | -d Specifies full remote URL of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software sources baseimage list	List all the Base Images in a depot.	--depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software sources component get	Displays detailed information about one or more Components in the depot	--component | -n Specifies one or more Components in the depot to display more information about. If this option is not specified, then all of the Component packages from the depot will be displayed. Must be one of the following forms: name, name:version. --depot | -d Specifies the full remote URL to the depot's index.xml, or a local file path to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software sources component list	List all the Components from depots.	--depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software sources component vib list	List VIB packages in the specified Component in a depot.	--component | -n Specifies a Component to display information about. Must be one of the following forms: name, name:version. (required) --depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software sources profile get	Display details about an image profile from the depot.	--depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --profile | -p Specifies the name of the image profile to display. (required) --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software sources profile list	List all the image profiles in a depot.	--depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software sources vib get	Displays detailed information about one or more VIB packages in the depot	--depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --vibname | -n Specifies one or more VIBs in the depot to display more information about. If this option is not specified, then all of the VIB packages from the depot will be displayed. Must be one of the following forms: name, name:version, vendor:name, or vendor:name:version. --viburl | -v Specifies one or more URLs to VIB packages to display information about. http:, https:, ftp:, and file: are all supported. --help Show the help message.
software sources vib list	List all the VIBs from depots.	--depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. (required) --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --help Show the help message.
software vib get	Displays detailed information about one or more installed VIBs on the host and the managed DPU(s).	--rebooting-image Displays information for the ESXi image which becomes active after a reboot, or nothing if the pending-reboot image has not been created yet. If not specified, information from the current ESXi image in memory will be returned. --vibname | -n Specifies one or more installed VIBs to display more information about. If this option is not specified, then all of the installed VIBs will be displayed. Must be one of the following forms: name, name:version, vendor:name, or vendor:name:version. --help Show the help message.
software vib install	Installs VIB packages from a URL or depot. VIBs may be installed, upgraded, or downgraded. WARNING: If your installation requires a reboot, you need to disable HA first.	--depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. --dry-run Performs a dry-run only. Report the VIB-level operations that would be performed, but do not change anything in the system. --force | -f Bypasses checks for package dependencies, conflicts, obsolescence, and acceptance levels. Really not recommended unless you know what you are doing. Use of this option will result in a warning being displayed in vSphere Web Client. Use this option only when instructed to do so by VMware Technical Support. --maintenance-mode Pretends that maintenance mode is in effect. Otherwise, installation will stop for live installs that require maintenance mode. This flag has no effect for reboot required remediations. --no-live-install Forces an install to /altbootbank even if the VIBs are eligible for live installation or removal. Will cause installation to be skipped on PXE-booted hosts. --no-sig-check Bypasses acceptance level verification, including signing. Use of this option poses a large security risk and will result in a SECURITY ALERT warning being displayed in vSphere Web Client. --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --vibname | -n Specifies VIBs from a depot, using one of the following forms: name, name:version, vendor:name, or vendor:name:version. --viburl | -v Specifies one or more URLs to VIB packages to install. http:, https:, ftp:, and file: are all supported. If 'file:' is used, then the file path must be an absolute path on the ESXi host. --help Show the help message.
software vib list	Lists the installed VIB packages on the host and the managed DPU(s).	--rebooting-image Displays information for the ESXi image which becomes active after a reboot, or nothing if the pending-reboot image has not been created yet. If not specified, information from the current ESXi image in memory will be returned. --help Show the help message.
software vib remove	Removes VIB packages from the host. WARNING: If your installation requires a reboot, you need to disable HA first.	--dry-run Performs a dry-run only. Report the VIB-level operations that would be performed, but do not change anything in the system. --force | -f Bypasses checks for package dependencies, conflicts, obsolescence, and acceptance levels. Really not recommended unless you know what you are doing. Use of this option will result in a warning being displayed in vSphere Web Client. Use this option only when instructed to do so by VMware Technical Support. --maintenance-mode Pretends that maintenance mode is in effect. Otherwise, remove will stop for live removes that require maintenance mode. This flag has no effect for reboot required remediations. --no-live-install Forces an remove to /altbootbank even if the VIBs are eligible for live removal. Will cause installation to be skipped on PXE-booted hosts. --vibname | -n Specifies one or more VIBs on the host to remove. Must be one of the following forms: name, name:version, vendor:name, vendor:name:version. (required) --help Show the help message.
software vib update	Update installed VIBs to newer VIB packages. No new VIBs will be installed, only updates. WARNING: If your installation requires a reboot, you need to disable HA first.	--depot | -d Specifies full remote URLs of the depot index.xml or server file path pointing to an offline bundle .zip file. --dry-run Performs a dry-run only. Report the VIB-level operations that would be performed, but do not change anything in the system. --force | -f Bypasses checks for package dependencies, conflicts, obsolescence, and acceptance levels. Really not recommended unless you know what you are doing. Use of this option will result in a warning being displayed in vSphere Web Client. Use this option only when instructed to do so by VMware Technical Support. --maintenance-mode Pretends that maintenance mode is in effect. Otherwise, installation will stop for live installs that require maintenance mode. This flag has no effect for reboot required remediations. --no-live-install Forces an install to /altbootbank even if the VIBs are eligible for live installation or removal. Will cause installation to be skipped on PXE-booted hosts. --no-sig-check Bypasses acceptance level verification, including signing. Use of this option poses a large security risk and will result in a SECURITY ALERT warning being displayed in vSphere Web Client. --proxy Specifies a proxy server to use for HTTP, FTP, and HTTPS connections. The format is proxy-url:port. --vibname | -n Specifies VIBs from a depot, using one of the following forms: name, name:version, vendor:name, or vendor:name:version. VIB packages which are not updates will be skipped. --viburl | -v Specifies one or more URLs to VIB packages to update to. http:, https:, ftp:, and file: are all supported. VIB packages which are not updates will be skipped. --help Show the help message.
software vib signature verify	Verifies the signatures of installed VIB packages on the host and the managed DPU(s) and displays the name, version, vendor, acceptance level and the result of signature verification for each of them	--rebooting-image Displays information for the ESXi image which becomes active after a reboot. If not specified, information from the current ESXi image in memory will be returned. --help Show the help message.