Vmfs: Recovery

Have you ever recovered a "dead" VMFS datastore? What trick worked for you? Let me know in the comments below. Always ensure you have current, restorable backups before attempting filesystem repairs. The author assumes no liability for data loss resulting from the misuse of these commands.

partedUtil getptbl /vmfs/devices/disks/naa.6000c29c4c5a2b1c If the output is gibberish or empty, the partition table is zeroed out. You need to know the old partition size. Usually, a VMFS datastore uses the entire LUN (Partition starting at sector 2048). recovery vmfs

Stay calm. Run esxcfg-scsidevs . Use vmkfstools -V . And whatever you do, Have you ever recovered a "dead" VMFS datastore

Create a new partition (assuming a standard 1MB offset): Always ensure you have current, restorable backups before

voma -m vmfs -f fix -d /vmfs/devices/disks/naa.6000c29c4c5a2b1c:1 voma will scan every file descriptor, fix chain corruption, and rebuild the allocation map. This tool has saved my bacon more times than I can count. Once the repair completes (or the mount succeeds), rescan again and verify the heartbeat.

partedUtil setptbl /vmfs/devices/disks/naa.6000c29c4c5a2b1c gpt partedUtil add /vmfs/devices/disks/naa.6000c29c4c5a2b1c 1 2048 [End_Sector_Number] To find the end sector: partedUtil getUsableSectors /vmfs/devices/disks/naa.6000c29c4c5a2b1c

Once the partition is recreated, attempt the mount again: