Install VMware vSphere (ESXi) Update Via Command Line 🌱

Downloading the Update

1. Open a web browser and navigate to https://customerconnect.vmware.com/
2. Register or login with an existing account
3. Search for vmware vsphere
4. Filter the results to Downloads
5. Select the result for the target version of VMware vSphere
6. Use the Select Version dropdown to set the target update version
7. Scroll down and download the VMware vSphere Hypervisor (ESXi) Offline Bundle

Applying the Update

1. Log into the VMware vSphere ESXi web UI
2. Enable the SSH service if it is not already enabled by selecting Actions > Services > Enable Secure Shell (SSH)
3. Select Storage from the left navigation menu
4. Click Datastore browser in the main content area > Select a target Data store > Click Upload > Browse to and select the downloaded Offline Bundle .zip file
5. After the upload completes, connect to the ESXi host via SSH
6. Run the following commands
   # put the host into maintenance mode
   vim-cmd hostsvc/maintenance_mode_enter
   # list datastores
   ls /vmfs/volumes
   # run the update, replacing the datastore name and update file name
   esxcli software vib install -d "/vmfs/volumes/datastore1/ESXi670-201912001.zip"
   # after the update completes, reboot the host
   reboot
   # once the host is back up, log back in
   # take the host out of maintenance mode
   vim-cmd hostsvc/maintenance_mode_exit
7. Log back into the VMware vSphere ESXi web UI
8. Verify the updated version is displayed