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VMware and Broadcom documentation uses “vSphere Client” to mean different things depending on the context, and the meaning has shifted over time.
1. The Legacy C# Desktop Client
This is the original Windows application (thick client) that many long-time admins remember. The final version shipped as vSphere 6.0 Update 3 in February 2017. It is deprecated and unsupported — VMware stopped developing it after vSphere 6.0, and it cannot connect to vSphere 6.5 or later. Its only remaining use is for legacy ESXi 5.x/6.0 hosts that cannot be upgraded.
2. HTML5 vSphere Client (vCenter Management Interface)
Today, “vSphere Client” officially refers to the HTML5-based web application built into every vCenter Server deployment. VMware introduced the HTML5-based vSphere Client in vSphere 6.5 and fully deprecated the Flash-based vSphere Web Client in vSphere 7. There is no separate download — you access it by navigating to your vCenter Server’s address.
VMware Host Client (ESXi Host Client)
This is a separate web-based tool for managing a single ESXi host that is not connected to vCenter Server. It provides essential VM and host management functions and is also useful for emergency access when vCenter is unavailable. The VMware Host Client is currently in maintenance mode, and Broadcom plans to replace it in a future release.
Whether you are using the modern HTML5 vSphere Client or the VMware Host Client, the following capabilities form the foundation of day-to-day management:
|
Client |
Type |
Connects To |
When to Use |
Current Status |
|
Legacy vSphere Client (C#) |
Desktop app (Windows only) |
ESXi 5.x/6.0 or vCenter (old) |
Legacy hosts only |
Deprecated; final version 6.0 U3 (Feb 2017) |
|
vSphere Client (HTML5) |
Web app (browser) |
vCenter Server (7.0/8.0) |
Primary daily management |
Actively developed; part of every vCenter deployment |
|
VMware Host Client |
Web app (browser) |
Single ESXi host directly |
Standalone hosts; emergency access |
Maintenance mode; replacement application in development |
For modern vCenter environments (vSphere 7.0 / 8.0): The HTML5 vSphere Client is built into the vCenter Server Appliance (VCSA). There is nothing separate to download. Simply open a supported web browser and navigate to your vCenter Server’s IP address or FQDN (e.g., https://vcenter.yourdomain.com). The login page loads immediately. Ensure the firewall allows vSphere Client to access vCenter Server on port 443.
For standalone ESXi hosts (VMware Host Client): Open a browser and navigate to the ESXi host’s IP address. The VMware Host Client login page appears. This works for all modern ESXi versions without any additional installation.
For the legacy C# desktop client (old ESXi 5.x / 6.0 only): Since vCenter is not available in such environments, you will need to download and install the installer through the Broadcom Support Portal. Follow these steps:
Step 1. Log in to the Broadcom Support Portal at https://support.broadcom.com with your registered credentials.
Step 2. On the left-hand side menu, click “My Downloads”.
Step 3. Select your entitled product (e.g., “VMware vSphere – Enterprise”).
Step 4. Choose the major vSphere version (e.g., 6.0). Note: The portal UI may vary over time as Broadcom continues to refine the experience.
Step 5. Locate the vSphere Client installer in the product group listing.
Step 6. Accept the Broadcom EULA by checking the agreement checkbox, then proceed with the download.
Step 7. After downloading, run the installer.
Step 8. During the first connection, accept the certificate security warning and log in with your ESXI credentials. And follow the prompt to complete the installation.
The steps differ depending on whether you are connecting to a vCenter Server (multi-host management) or a standalone ESXi host. Select the scenario that matches your environment. Before you begin, ensure your firewall allows access on the required ports: port 443 for the vSphere Client to vCenter Server connection, and port 902 for vCenter Server to ESXi host VM console traffic.
Step 1. Open a supported web browser. In the address bar, enter the URL in the format https://<vcenter-ip-or-fqdn>
Step 2. On first connection, the browser displays a certificate security warning — this is expected when vCenter uses the default self-signed certificate. Proceed by clicking “Advanced” → “Accept the Risk and Continue” (Firefox) or “Details” → “Continue to this webpage” (Edge).
Step 3. On the login page, enter your vCenter Single Sign-On credentials. The default administrator account uses the format administrator@vsphere.local and the password set during vCenter installation. If a different SSO domain was configured during installation, log in as administrator@yourdomain instead.
Step 4. Click “Login”. The vSphere Client main interface loads in your browser.
Step 1. Open a supported web browser. In the address bar, enter the URL using the format https://<esxi-ip-or-fqdn>/ui
Step 2. When the certificate security warning appears, accept the risk and continue as described above.
Step 3. On the login screen, enter the ESXi host credentials — typically the root user name and the password set during ESXi installation.
Step 4. Click “Login” to access the VMware Host Client dashboard.
Once logged in, you will see:
Here, we provides the detailed steps to Create a Virtual Machine, cluster and Monitor performance to guide you how to use it.
Step 1. In the vSphere Client inventory, select the data center, host, or cluster where the VM will reside.
Step 2. Click the “Actions” and choose “New Virtual Machine”.
Step 3. The New Virtual Machine Creation wizard will be launched. “Select a creation type” > “Create a New Virtual Machine“. and click “Next“.
Step 4. Enter a unique name for the VM and select the target location (data center or folder). Click “Next“.
Step 4. Choose the compute resource (host or cluster) on which the VM will run and click “Next“.
Step 5. Select the target datastore for VM files, then click “Next”.
Step 6. Choose the guest OS family and version, and click “Next”.
Step 7. Customize virtual hardware:
Step 8. Click “Next“, review the configuration on the summary page, and click “Finish” to create the VM. Optionally, check “Power on after creation” before finishing.
This operation requires a vCenter Server instance. It is not available in the VMware Host Client.
Step 1. In the vSphere Client, right‑click the data center object in the inventory tree.
Step 2. Select “New Cluster”.
Step 3. Provide a cluster name and, optionally, enable “DRS” and “vSphere HA” by checking the corresponding boxes. Click “OK” to create the cluster.
Step 1. In the vSphere Client inventory, navigate to a “VM” > “host” > “cluster” or “datastore” for which you want to view performance.
Step 2. Click the “Monitor” tab.
Step 3. Under the “Performance” section, choose “Overview” for summary charts or Advanced for detailed, customizable views.
Step 4. Select the desired time range (Real‑time, last hour, day, week, month, or custom range).
Step 5. Select the performance chart type (CPU, Memory, Disk, Network, etc.) from the drop‑down menus.
For VMs, you can also view guest‑OS performance counters.
Step 6. Use the chart options (zoom, drag‑select, and refresh) to focus on specific intervals.
To export data, click the export icon and choose CSV or image format.
Understanding vSphere Client communication paths is important for firewall configuration and secure remote access.
The vSphere Client runs entirely in the user’s browser, managing and displaying HTML5 views. It communicates with the vsphere-ui service — an OSGi Java application server running on every vCenter Server node — to request HTML and JavaScript files along with vSphere inventory data. The vsphere-ui service in turn communicates with all vCenter Server backend services using a variety of API styles and protocols, maintaining an authenticated session connection to each.
Broadcom documentation specifies the following firewall requirements for vSphere Client connections:
For VMware Remote Console (VMRC) connections: the firewall must allow VMRC to access vCenter Server on port 443 and to access the ESXi host on port 902 for VMRC versions before 11.0, and port 443 for VMRC version 11.0 and greater.
For direct ESXi connections via VMware Host Client, the firewall must allow access to the ESXi host on ports 443 and 902. The VMware Host Client uses port 902 to provide a connection for guest operating system MKS activities on virtual machines.
The vSphere Client is designed for daily operations and visual monitoring. It is not the only way to manage your infrastructure. Depending on your use case, these alternatives may be more appropriate:
1. Issue: “vSphere Client service has stopped working” & 503 Service Unavailable
Symptom and Causes: This is one of the most common errors vSphere administrators encounter. The vCenter UI may display a banner stating “vSphere Client service has stopped working” along with a 503 Service Unavailable page. According to Broadcom KB articles, the root cause can be either ESXi host CPU exhaustion (CPU at 100%) or ESXi host memory exhaustion (memory at 100%). When the underlying ESXi host running the VCSA hits 100% CPU or memory utilization, the vCenter Server Appliance becomes unstable, leading to service failures. High CPU contention often causes vCenter services to time out during their keep-alive checks, leading the watchdog (vmon) to stop them.
Solution:
Step 1: Free up Host Resources: Log directly into the ESXi Host Client (not vCenter) using the host’s IP address. Identify non-critical VMs and power them off to bring host CPU/memory usage below 90%. Ensure the vCenter VM has a resource reservation to prevent future throttling.
Step 2. Restart vCenter Services: Once the host has breathing room, SSH into the vCenter Server and check service status with service-control –status –all, then restart with service-control –stop –all && service-control –start –all. Broadcom also recommends using Skyline Health Diagnostics for further troubleshooting.
2. “No Healthy Upstream” Error
Symptom and Causes:The “no healthy upstream” error — frequently paired with a 503 response — means the Envoy proxy in vCenter cannot connect to backend services like vsphere-ui, vpxd, or vapi-endpoint. Common causes include:
Solution:
Step 1. Take a snapshot of the vCenter VM before making changes.
Step 2. SSH into the VCSA, run df -h to check for full partitions, and free space if any log volume is at 100 %.
Step 3. Check certificate expiry — if the STS or machine certificate has expired, use the Certificate Manager (/usr/lib/vmware-vmca/bin/certificate-manager) to renew it (Option 8 “Reset all certificates” is often the fastest path).
Step 4. Restart the service stack with service-control –stop –all && service-control –start –all. Allow 10‑15 minutes for all services to initialise before testing.
Step 5. If the error persists, inspect the vSphere Client logs (/var/log/vmware/vsphere-ui/logs/vsphere_client_virgo.log) for OutOfMemoryError, and verify that the VCSA has enough RAM assigned.
vSphere client is primary tool for managing vSphere infrastructure, but it doesn’t provide robust native backup and disaster recovery capabilities. For organizations managing large VMware environments, dedicated backup software is usually required. To protect all of your VMs easily, we recommend i2Backup provided by Information2 (Info2soft).
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Key Benefits:
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“vSphere Client” now is a powerful, cross-platform HTML5 management interface in the vSphere ecosystem. If you are managing vCenter Server 7.0 or 8.0, the modern vSphere Client is already waiting for you. If you are using legacy ESXi hosts on versions 5.x or 6.0, the Broadcom Support Portal remains your source for the old C# client, though upgrading should be your long-term goal.
Beyond day-to-day management, protecting your virtual infrastructure with a reliable backup solution is equally critical. i2Backup by Info2soft offers vSphere-native, agentless backup with CBT support, LAN-free data transfer, and kernel-level ransomware protection — all manageable through a unified console.
Q: Is the vSphere Client free?
A: The HTML5 vSphere Client is included with every vCenter Server license at no additional cost. Access to the Broadcom Support Portal for downloads requires valid license entitlements. The VMware Host Client is included with ESXi and also requires no separate license.
Q: How do I find and download the old vSphere Client (C# desktop client)?
A: Log in to the Broadcom Support Portal, navigate to My Downloads, select your entitled vSphere product and version (6.0 or earlier), and locate the vSphere Client installer. This client is deprecated and should only be used for legacy ESXi 5.x/6.0 hosts.
Q: What is the difference between vSphere Client and vSphere Web Client?
A: The vSphere Web Client was the Flash-based predecessor, deprecated in vSphere 7.0. The modern vSphere Client is an HTML5-based interface that replaced it and is now the primary management UI for vCenter Server.
Q: Can the vSphere Client run on a Mac or Linux?
A: Yes. The modern HTML5 vSphere Client runs in any supported web browser (Chrome 89+, Firefox 80+, Microsoft Edge 90+, Safari 9.0+) on Windows, Mac OS, or Linux.
Q: Why does my vSphere Client show “503 Service Unavailable”?
A: Common causes include ESXi host memory exhaustion (100% utilization), expired vCenter certificates, full disk partitions on the VCSA, or failed backend services (vsphere-ui, vpxd). Check host resource usage and certificate validity first.
Q: How has the Broadcom acquisition changed the download process?
A: All VMware downloads — including vSphere, ESXi, and vCenter — now go through the Broadcom Support Portal. You must register a Broadcom account and have valid license entitlements bound to your Site ID to access downloads. Old VMware Customer Connect links no longer function.
