Running VMWare ESXi 60 days trial license? Reset the license
Reset Vmware 60 days trial license
Are you working on lab VMWare ESXi which has got 60 days trial license? At times, you realize that you are almost end of the trial and you wont be able to use ESXi anymore until you install a license. Well, you can reset the license and you can again use ESXi for next 60 days. And when the trial ends again, reset the license again.
READ THE WARNING:
Before we learn how to reset the license, i would like you to read the warning carefully.
WARNING: This is for education/informational testing/development purposes only. It should not be used on a production server.
WARNING: This trick will only work with an ESX(i) stand alone server. It will not work if the ESX(i) server is connected to a vCenter Server, as the vCenter Server knows better than to let you do this. (you can always remove and readd the ESX(i) server to vCenter.)
Enable SSH and Login to the server via Putty:
To reset the license, you need to first enable SSH on your ESXi Machine. If you are not sure how to enable SSH on ESXi, follow the article below –
https://www.uccollabing.com/2016/05/12/enable-ssh-on-vsphere-esxi/
- Once SSH is enabled, Launch Putty and SSH to ESXi Server
- Type the following command:
rm /etc/vmware/vmware.lic —> This command will remove vmware.lic file
rm /etc/vmware/license.cfg —> This command will remove license.cfg file
ls /etc/vmware/ —> This command will list all the files present in the directory /etc/vmware/ . Make sure that vmware.lic and license.cfg is not present
reboot —> This command will reboot the ESXi server
- Once the ESXi is up, login to ESXi using Vsphere Client and you should be able to see “Your evaluation license will expire within 60 days!“
Hope this helps!
I am working in an IT company and having 10+ years of experience into Cisco IP Telephony and Contact Center. I have worked on products like CUCM, CUC, UCCX, CME/CUE, IM&P, Voice Gateways, VG224, Gatekeepers, Attendant Console, Expressway, Mediasense, Asterisk, Microsoft Teams, Zoom etc. I am not an expert but i keep exploring whenever and wherever i can and share whatever i know. You can visit my LinkedIn profile by clicking on the icon below.
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Hi,
just wanted to mention that this was a saving grace –
It got me out of a pickle…..
thank you so much…
You can actually get a permanent ESXi license from VMWare for free at https://my.vmware.com/en/web/vmware/evalcenter?p=free-esxi7 but they do require that you sign up to get it.
I use it at home in my lab. I wrote about it briefly in my blog at https://colla.blog/?p=415
this does not work in ESXi 6.7 , no idea what version this is meant for.
Hi,
What if esxi 6.7 evaluation already expired. Will i be able to reset it again ?
Any help would be appreciated.