By default SSH is not enabled in ESXi. Follow the steps below to enable it
- At the ESXi console, press alt+F1
- Type: unsupported
- Enter the root password
- At the prompt type “vi /etc/inetd.conf”
- Look for the line that starts with “#ssh”
- Remove the “#” (press the “x” if the cursor is on the character)
- Save “/etc/inetd.conf” by typing “:wq!” or “ZZ“
- Restart the management service “/sbin/services.sh restart” or reboot the host
This works with ESX3i & ESX4i.
Thanks! I will be needing to do this on a new machine that I just deployed.
Cheers – you got me most of the way there.
One more thing that you need to do:
ps -x | grep inetd
kill -HUP [pid of inetd]
THAT will start the ssh daemon.