You cannot manage vCenter licenses directly through standard Linux commands. You must use specialized VMware command-line tools. The two primary methods are:
Once the license is in your inventory, you can apply it to your vCenter Server asset. You can retrieve the vCenter asset and assign the license with a few quick steps: powershell
Ensure your license key matches the major version of your vCenter Server. A vSphere 7.x license key will return an invalid key error if applied to a vSphere 8.x vCenter Server via CLI.
PowerCLI is a powerful tool for automating and managing VMware environments, especially when it comes to vCenter. vcenter license key command line
If you need to remove a specific license and revert the host to Evaluation Mode (60 days), the vim-cmd does not have a direct "remove" switch. Instead, you typically re-apply the evaluation mode logic or re-install.
If you need help fine-tuning your scripts or troubleshooting a specific error code, tell me: The exact you are running (e.g., 7.0, 8.0). The specific error message printed to your console.
Are you looking to deploy this as part of a script? Share public link You cannot manage vCenter licenses directly through standard
You are trying to apply an ESXi host license key directly to the vCenter asset, or the version mismatch exists (e.g., applying a vSphere 7 key to a vSphere 8 instance).
Get-VMHost | Set-VMHost -LicenseKey "XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX"
Alternatively, view all licenses available in the vCenter assignment pool: powershell You can retrieve the vCenter asset and assign
The vim-cmd utility is an and does not exist inside the vCenter Server Appliance shell. If you need to license individual ESXi hosts directly from their respective command lines (without vCenter), use the following syntax on the specific host: 1. View current host license: vim-cmd vimsvc/license --show Use code with caution. 2. Assign a new host license key:
Error: "The license key entered is not valid for this product"
First she added the new license:
esxcli software license add --license-key="XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX"
To apply a new license key directly to the host: