This part covers how to deploy VCF management services and the license server in a VMware Cloud Foundation 9.1 environment. You run this step after the management domain is built and after VCF Operations and SDDC Manager are both at version 9.1. VCF management services is the container cluster that hosts fleet lifecycle, SDDC lifecycle, the software depot, the identity broker, and the Salt services, and the same workflow deploys the license server that every product in your fleet reports to. Plan for one free /27 management block and five host records before you begin, because the installer validates all of them up front.

You drive the whole task from the VCF Operations user interface. You will open the Install Components workflow, connect to the VCF Operations instance, enter one CIDR block and five fully qualified domain names, set a password, and start the install. Deployment is a single guided flow, so most of your effort goes into getting DNS and IP reservations correct beforehand. Complete every row in the prerequisites below before you click Install.

VCF management services replaces several standalone appliances from earlier releases. Fleet lifecycle and SDDC lifecycle take over the work that the standalone Fleet Management Appliance handled in VCF 9.0, and they now run as containers on the management cluster rather than as separate virtual appliances. Software depot holds the install and upgrade bundles for the fleet, the identity broker handles single sign on, and the Salt master and Salt RaaS services support configuration and remote task execution. Grouping these services into one runtime is why the deployment asks for a single CIDR block and a small set of host records rather than a separate address plan for each appliance.

License server is deployed by the same workflow but stays a distinct component with its own FQDN. It becomes the single license authority for every product in the fleet, which is why it needs a dedicated host record and accepts IPv4 addressing only. Record the license server FQDN in your address plan first, because the precheck rejects the whole submission if that record is missing or points inside the runtime block.

Prerequisites

Confirm each item below before you start. A single missing reverse DNS record or a wrongly placed IP address stops the deployment at the precheck stage.

Plan your addresses next. Reserve one free /27 block for the runtime, then reserve five more addresses outside that block for the five FQDNs. Create both a forward record and a reverse record for every one of the five host names, as described in Part 3, VCF 9.1 network, DNS and NTP setup.

Deployment steps

Step 1 confirm the management components are at 9.1

Install Components appears only after both management components report 9.1.

1. Log in to VCF Operations with an administrator account.
2. Click Build in the top navigation bar.
3. Click Lifecycle in the left pane.
4. Expand VCF Instances and select the instance that hosts VCF Operations.
5. Confirm that VCF Operations and SDDC Manager both report version 9.1.

Step 2 reserve the /27 block and create DNS records

Address planning is where most deployments succeed or fail. Get it right before you touch the wizard.

1. Reserve one free /27 CIDR block on the management network, for example 10.0.10.0/27.
2. Pick five more IP addresses that sit outside that block, one for each component FQDN.
3. Create a forward A record for each of the five FQDNs.
4. Create a matching reverse PTR record for each of the five IP addresses.
5. Use lowercase letters only in every FQDN.
6. Confirm the license server FQDN maps to an IPv4 address.

Step 3 stage the install binaries in the software depot

All nine bundles must be present, or the install stops partway.

1. Open depot configuration in VCF Operations.
2. Download or upload the bundles for VCF services runtime, fleet lifecycle, SDDC lifecycle, software depot, identity broker, Salt RaaS, Salt master, telemetry, and license server.
3. For an offline site, use the VCF Download Tool to pull the bundles to an offline depot first.
4. Confirm each bundle shows as available before you continue.

Step 4 open the Install Components workflow

This is the guided flow that stages every management service.

1. In VCF Operations, click Build.
2. Click Lifecycle in the left pane.
3. Expand VCF Instances and select the instance that hosts VCF Operations.
4. Click the SDDC Manager Updates tab.
5. Click the Available Upgrades tab.
6. In the Next steps section, click Install Components.

If you want to script the deployment instead of using the wizard, the SDDC Manager API gives you more control over IP allocation. The wizard accepts a CIDR block, while the API also lets you supply an exact list of IP addresses, which helps when you do not have a contiguous free range. Request an API token first, then drive the install programmatically.

curl -k -X POST https://sddc-manager.corp.local/v1/tokens \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"username":"administrator@vsphere.local","password":"YourPassword"}'

Use the returned token as a bearer token against the VCF management components endpoints. Send a POST to /v1/vcf-management-components/validations to precheck your input, then a POST to /v1/vcf-management-components to start the deployment. Both calls take the same values you enter in the wizard, plus the custom IP allocation option. Watch progress in VCF Operations under Build, then Tasks.

Step 5 connect to the VCF Operations instance

Register the new components against your running VCF Operations.

1. In the Components Installation dialog, enter the VCF Operations FQDN.
2. Enter the administrator username.
3. Enter the administrator password.
4. Click Connect.

Step 6 enter the network and FQDN settings

Fill each field from your planning table. Values are case sensitive, so keep every FQDN lowercase.

1. In the VCF services runtime CIDR block field, enter your free /27, for example 10.0.10.0/27.
2. In the VCF services runtime FQDN field, enter the lowercase runtime host name.
3. In the Fleet component FQDN field, enter the fleet host name.
4. In the Instance component FQDN field, enter the instance host name.
5. If prompted, enter the Identity broker FQDN.
6. In the License server FQDN field, enter the license host name, which must map to IPv4.

Step 7 set the password and start the install

Review everything once, then commit. Deployment can take a while, so leave the flow running.

1. In the VCF services runtime password field, set a strong password for the local admin account.
2. Check every field against your planning table.
3. Click Install.
4. Leave the dialog open and let the workflow run to completion.
5. Do not move the new VMs to a different resource pool or folder after deployment, because later patching and scale out operations would fail.

Verify the deployment

Deployment runs as a background task, so you do not need to keep the dialog open for the full duration. Track the task and confirm that the new services are healthy before you move on to licensing.

1. In VCF Operations, click Build, then Tasks, and follow the new VCF management services deployment task to completion.
2. Return to Lifecycle, expand VCF Instances, and confirm the new components report a healthy state on the instance that hosts VCF Operations.
3. Check that all five FQDNs resolve and that each service answers on its address before you continue.
4. If you need a system managed service account password later, retrieve it with the documented password retrieval procedure instead of resetting it by hand.

Register and apply licenses

The Install Components workflow deploys the license server, but it does not license your fleet. Licensing is a separate task that you complete in VCF Operations and in the VCF Business Services console at vcf.broadcom.com. After you deploy or upgrade VCF Operations to 9.1, the instance runs in evaluation mode for up to 90 days, and you must register and license the environment inside that window.

Starting with 9.1 the license server is mandatory. If you reached 9.1 by upgrading from 9.0.x, your existing licenses move from the VCF Operations instance to the license server automatically once the license server is deployed. On a new instance you add the licenses yourself. Each license server holds the licenses for one VCF Operations instance, and you can keep licenses for several products on the same server.

Step 8 register VCF Operations and the license server

You need at least one VCF Operations instance and one license server registered before you can add or assign any license.

1. Confirm that the Virtual Management Infrastructure (VIM) adapter is running in VCF Operations, because license management depends on it.
2. Choose connected or disconnected mode. Connected mode registers with an activation code and reports usage automatically. Disconnected mode uses manual file transfer for registration, usage reporting, and license updates.
3. In the VCF Business Services console, start the registration and register both the VCF Operations instance and the license server.
4. In disconnected mode, supply the registration file and, new in 9.1, the confirmation file that lists every license server. Submit the confirmation file within three hours, because it expires after that.

Step 9 add licenses to the license server

1. In the VCF Business Services console, go to Licensing, then Licenses.
2. Click Add to VCF Operations to open the Add Licenses to a VCF Operations Instance wizard.
3. Select the licenses, then the target VCF Operations instance, then the license server, stepping through Next at each screen.
4. Review the summary and click Save and Next. In disconnected mode, download the license file and click Finish.
5. In VCF Operations, go to Licensing, then Licenses & Registration, and click Update Licenses so the licenses are ready to assign. In disconnected mode, import the license file instead.

Step 10 assign a primary license to each vCenter

A primary license is the base entitlement for a vCenter instance. Assign one to every vCenter you manage.

1. In VCF Operations, click Manage, then Licensing, then Licenses & Registration.
2. Select the Version 9+ tab.
3. In the vCenter Systems table, select one or more version 9 vCenter instances managed by this VCF Operations instance.
4. Click Assign Primary License, pick a license that has enough capacity, and click Assign.
5. Assign any add-on licenses after the primary license is in place.

A primary license flows down to connected assets, so the ESX hosts under each vCenter are licensed automatically once the vCenter holds a valid primary license. A host that exceeds the available capacity is added in evaluation mode and disconnects after its 90 day evaluation if you do not add capacity or assign an override license. It reconnects on its own when enough capacity is free.

Allow up to 20 minutes for a newly integrated vCenter instance or VCF instance to appear on the Licenses tab, so wait for it to list before you try to assign a license.

About The Author

Dr. Pranay Jha

Dr. Pranay Jha is a Cloud and AI Consultant with 18+ years of experience in hybrid cloud, virtualization, and enterprise infrastructure transformation. He specializes in VMware technologies, multi-cloud strategy, and Generative AI solutions. He holds a PhD in Computer Applications with research focused on Cloud and AI, has published multiple research papers, and has been a VMware vExpert since 2016 and a VMUG Community Leader.

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