Migrate a VM on a ESXI host 6 to another host on ESXI 7

[Jmeans2500]

I currently have 4 VM's on an old server hosting VMWARE ESXI 6.0 and need to move them to a slightly newer server using VMWARE ESXI 7.0. Since I can't use the migrate feature to move the vm's between the two. What is the next best method?

[ssalmanhafiz]

Unfortunately, there is no way with version 6.0 that ensures the VM stays online.

One possible option is to move VMs from 6.0 to 7.0 is to power off the VM and do an offline migration, if they are both in connected vCenters. 

Second option would be if you have shared datastore, to register on other hosts.

Third options is by restoring from backup.

Fourth option is by copying the files manually using WinSCP.

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[Tinto1970 · Accepted solution]

I suggest you to install Veeam Community (free) and use the Migration feature.

[Jmeans2500]

thank you, I will give that a shot

[Jmeans2500]

The two don't have a shared datastore unfortunately. I powered one of the VM's but each are around 2-4 TB in size and downloading the vmdk file to load onto the other host was taking forever and to much time to keep the vm offline.

[Jmeans2500]

thank you for this suggestion, this worked and was easy to do.

[aurora-chase]

Hi,

I found an article about moving virtual machines from one ESXi host to another that might be helpful to you. The article is titled "How to Move VM from One ESXi Host to Another in 4 Ways?" and you can find it at the following link: https://www.vinchin.com/vm-migration/move-vm-from-one- esxi-host-to-another.html. 
Hope this information is helpful to you.

Good luck with your migration

[Tinto1970]

Vinchin is another backup & replication software. It's available a 60 days trial.

Veeam community is limited to 10 VMs but totally free with no time limitation. It's also a "best of breed" so I would recommend Veeam again.