ServiceNow VMware vCenter Discovery Probes Troubleshooting - Support and Troubleshooting

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VMware vCenter Discovery Probes Troubleshooting Troubleshooting playbook for validating VMware credentials, MID-to-vCenter connectivity, vCenter probe orchestration, ECC queue flow, sensor processing, ESXi/VM relationships, and common vCenter Discovery failure modes.

Flow: probe and sensor based Launcher: VMWare - vCenter Datacenters Credential type: VMware Primary endpoint: vCenter API Components: classifiers, probes, and sensors Contents

Overview vCenter Discovery Components Requirements Checklist vCenter Probe Map Expected Execution Flow Probe Parameters Detailed Troubleshooting Expected Errors and Signals Common Scenarios and Resolutions Validation and Evidence Known Issues and Limitations Overview VMware vCenter Discovery uses the vCenter API to discover vCenter, datacenters, clusters, ESXi hosts, VMs, VM NICs, networks, datastores, tags, storage, and selected license data. The modern flow is multi-probe: the legacy VMWare - vCenter probe remains present, but current vCenter discovery is driven by VMWare - vCenter Datacenters , which triggers the object-specific probes.

Scope note: Do not treat this as a pattern-debug article. vCenter is primarily a classic probe and sensor workflow. Troubleshoot it through Discovery schedules, classifiers, probes, sensors, ECC queue records, MID logs, and CMDB/IRE results. Item Value Why it matters Primary discovery target vCenter server or vCenter appliance Discover vCenter first so vCenter-managed ESXi hosts, VMs, datastores, and relationships are populated from the vCenter inventory. Primary credential VMware credential Valid VMware credentials are sufficient for vCenter Discovery; Windows credentials are not required for vCenter Discovery when VMware credentials work. Main launcher probe VMWare - vCenter Datacenters This probe triggers the probes that collect datacenters, clusters, hosts, VMs, storage, networks, and datastores. Legacy probe VMWare - vCenter Present for backward compatibility but not the normal launcher in upgraded/current implementations. Common CI expectation vCenter, ESXi hosts, VMs, VM instances, datastores, networks, and relationships A successful vCenter run can update multiple related classes even though the Discovery run device list may show only the vCenter target. vCenter Discovery Components Component map: Use these ServiceNow record and MID implementation names to locate inactive components, missing sensors, customizations, or release-specific differences. vCenter Classifiers Classifier Typical state Troubleshooting use vCenter Yes Primary classifier for vCenter target discovery. If this does not fire, check port scan/classification before troubleshooting downstream probes. ESX Yes ESX host classifier used for ESX/ESXi host discovery paths. Do not confuse ESX OS classification with vCenter inventory collection. VMware application classifiers May be inactive VMware service/application classifiers such as Platform Services Controller, Horizon, Workspace ONE, RabbitMQ, and Site Recovery Manager may exist but are not part of the primary vCenter inventory probe chain. vCenter Probes and MID Implementations Probe Description MID implementation to search in logs VMWare - vCenter Datacenters Gets vCenter datacenters and triggers object probes for VMs, clusters, datastores, and networks. It replaces the older VMWare - vCenter probe for Discovery flows in current releases. VMWarevCenterDatacentersProbe VMWare - vCenter VMs Explores VMs and triggers VM NIC collection. VMWarevCenterVMsProbe VMWare - vCenter VM NICs Explores NICs installed in virtual machines. VMWarevCenterVMNICsProbe VMWare - vCenter VM Tags Explores tags for discovered VMs. VMWarevCenterVMTagsProbe VMWare - vCenter Clusters Explores clusters and resource pools; relates clusters to resource pools, ESX hosts, folders, or datacenters; triggers ESX host collection. VMWarevCenterClustersProbe VMWare - vCenter Cluster DRS Probe Collects cluster DRS groups and rules. VMWarevCenterClusterDRSProbe VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts Explores ESX servers and host mounts; triggers ESX host storage collection. VMWarevCenterESXHostsProbe VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts Storage Explores host hardware including network adapters, disks, HBAs, FC ports, iSCSI, and FC disks. VMWarevCenterESXHostsStorageProbe VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts License Explores ESX host license data. VMWarevCenterESXHostsLicenseProbe VMWare - vCenter Datastores Explores datastores, datastore host mounts, and datastore disks. VMWarevCenterDatastoresProbe VMWare - vCenter Networks Explores virtual networks. VMWarevCenterNetworksProbe VMWare - vCenter Classify Verifies whether the target is a vCenter IP. Classifier/probe path for vCenter target validation. VMWare - vCenter Older probe for vCenter hosts, resource pools, and virtual machines. Keep it in mind for older releases and upgraded deployments. VMWarevCenterProbe ESX - OS Determines whether the target is an ESX host. ESX OS classification/probe path. vCenter Sensors Sensor Description Failure impact VMWare - vCenter Datacenters Processes VMware datacenters and triggers probes for VMs, datastores, clusters, and networks. If broken, downstream object probes may never launch. VMWare - vCenter Clusters Processes clusters and resource pools, and triggers ESX host probes. Clusters or hosts may be missing even when vCenter authentication works. VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts Processes ESX servers and host mounts; triggers storage probes. ESXi host CIs, host mounts, and storage follow-on probes may be missing. VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts Storage Processes ESX host storage data. Host disks, HBAs, FC/iSCSI data, and datastore disk relationships can be incomplete. VMWare - vCenter VMs Processes VM data and triggers VM NIC probes. VM inventory can be missing or VM NIC probes may not launch. VMWare - vCenter VM NICs Processes VM NICs. VM IP/MAC and network relationship evidence can be incomplete. VMWare - vCenter VM Tags Processes VMware tag data for discovered VMs. vCenter tags may not appear on VM records or relationships. VMWare - vCenter Datastores Processes datastores, host mounts, and datastore disks. Datastore CIs and storage relationships can be incomplete. VMWare - vCenter Networks Processes VMware networks. Network CIs and VM/host network relationships can be missing. VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts License Processes ESX host license data. License details may not populate even when hosts are discovered. VMWare - vCenter Cluster DRS Sensor Processes cluster DRS groups and rules. DRS group/rule details may be absent. VMWare - vCenter Classify Classify sensor for vCenter. vCenter target may not enter the VMware probe chain. Requirements Checklist Area Required check Failure symptom when missing How to validate Role User running Discovery administration must have the Discovery administration capability needed to configure schedules and credentials. Cannot configure or run schedules, credentials, probes, or sensors. Confirm the user can access Discovery schedules, credentials, probes, sensors, and Discovery logs. Credential type Create a credential with type VMware , not Windows, SSH, or generic basic auth. Credential test fails, classifier falls through to non-vCenter probes, or logs show wrong credential type attempts. Open the credential record and confirm type, active state, MID applicability, and order. vCenter permission The VMware account must have the read-only role in vCenter. For SAM/license tracking, include the vCenter license administration privilege when license data is required. vCenter may classify, but ESXi, VM, tag, datastore, or license data can be incomplete or missing. Log in to vCenter with the Discovery account and verify that it can browse the datacenters, clusters, hosts, VMs, tags, datastores, and license views required for the intended inventory scope. Credential format For domain accounts, use a vCenter-supported username format such as Domain\UserName or the UPN format accepted by the target vCenter. Credential test fails even when the same user works interactively in vCenter. Compare the exact username format in ServiceNow with the format used to log in to vCenter successfully. MID server MID is Up, validated, assigned to the schedule or credential as needed, and can reach the vCenter API endpoint. ECC output stays ready, credential test cannot reach vCenter, or the vCenter probe never starts. Check MID status, MID application assignment, ECC output consumption, and HTTPS reachability from the MID host to vCenter. Network Allow MID-to-vCenter HTTPS/API connectivity. In many environments this means port 443 ; some deployments also expose vCenter/vSphere appliance services on 5480 or 9443 . Errors such as unable to establish connection to https:// /sdk , credential validation failure, or vCenter classifier not launching. From the MID host, test DNS, TCP connectivity, and browser/curl access to the vCenter URL and /sdk endpoint if allowed by policy. Schedule target Target the vCenter server or appliance, not each ESXi host, for normal vCenter-managed ESXi discovery. Standalone host discovery produces limited or unexpected results, or vCenter relationships are missing. Check the Discovery schedule IP range or quick discovery target and confirm it includes vCenter. Probe and sensor records The vCenter probes and matching sensors must be active and paired correctly. ECC payload contains data but CMDB records do not update, or errors indicate missing sensor/processing logic. Compare active probe and sensor records for VMWare - vCenter* and ESX - OS . Payload size Large vCenter inventories may require page-size tuning rather than disabling probes. Timeouts, very large ECC payloads, partial updates, or long sensor processing time. Use documented page_size and vcenter_timeout parameters on the appropriate triggering probe. CMDB/IRE Identifier and reconciliation rules must allow the discovered payload to update existing vCenter, ESXi, VM, datastore, and network CIs. Duplicate CIs, stale records, or payload visible in ECC but no update on the expected record. Review identification results, sys_object_source , class identifiers, and reconciliation rules for the affected CI class. vCenter Probe Map The following probe and sensor names make up the vCenter Discovery flow. Use the exact names when searching discovery_probes , discovery_sensor , ECC queue topics, and MID logs. Component availability can vary by ServiceNow release and installed content version.

Probe or sensor Role in the flow Primary output to verify Common first failure layer VMWare - vCenter Classify Classifies the target as vCenter and starts the vCenter flow. vCenter classification and next probe launch. Port/classifier, credential type, or network reachability. VMWare - vCenter Datacenters Launcher probe for current vCenter discovery. Gets datacenter-level inventory and triggers object probes. Datacenters plus triggered probes for hosts, VMs, networks, datastores, and clusters. Credential permission, payload timeout, or disabled downstream probe parameter. VMWare - vCenter Clusters Collects vCenter cluster data and can trigger host/storage probes. Cluster CIs, DRS-related data, ESXi host triggers. Cluster permissions or disabled host probe parameters. VMWare - vCenter Cluster DRS Probe Collects DRS-related cluster data. Cluster DRS details where available. Cluster DRS data absent or privilege-restricted. VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts Creates and updates ESXi host records and relationships to vCenter components; triggers host storage discovery. ESXi hosts, host relationships, host mount data. Read-only scope, page size, sensor processing, IRE match/update. VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts Storage Collects ESXi host hardware/storage details such as adapters, disks, HBAs, FC/iSCSI data, and datastore disk relationships. Host storage, adapters, HBAs, FC ports, iSCSI, disk relationships. Storage payload size, missing controller data, or post-processing failure. VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts License Collects ESXi host license-related data. License fields and related license records when enabled/available. Missing license privilege or disabled license probe path. VMWare - vCenter VMs Collects virtual machines from vCenter and triggers VM NIC and tag probes depending on parameters. VMware VM instance records and VM-to-server relationships. Payload size, VM power/state filtering, no OS-level server Discovery yet. VMWare - vCenter VM NICs Collects VM NIC information. NICs, IP/MAC evidence, network relationships. VM NIC probe disabled, stale network mapping, or missing guest tools data. VMWare - vCenter VM Tags Collects vCenter tags for VMs where supported. Tag attributes and tag relationships. Tag API permissions or probe disabled through VM parameters. VMWare - vCenter Networks Collects vCenter network objects. Networks and relationships to VMs/hosts. Network probe disabled, page-size timeout, or permission gaps. VMWare - vCenter Datastores Collects datastore objects. Datastore CIs and host/VM storage relationships. Datastore probe disabled, page-size timeout, or storage privileges. VMWare - Standalone ESXi Server Standalone ESXi discovery path where supported by the release and configuration. Standalone ESXi host details. Unsupported target assumptions, direct host connectivity, or missing ESXi credentials. ESX - OS ESX operating system classification/probe path. ESX host OS-level classification. Classification, protocol, or credential mismatch. Expected Execution Flow Discovery schedule or Quick Discovery targets the vCenter IP/FQDN. Shazzam/port scanning detects the vCenter service endpoint and classification evaluates the target. VMWare - vCenter Classify classifies the target and routes the work to the vCenter discovery chain. VMWare - vCenter Datacenters authenticates through the VMware credential and collects datacenter-level data. The Datacenters sensor triggers downstream object probes according to parameters: VMs, VM NICs, VM tags, networks, datastores, clusters, hosts, and host storage. Each downstream probe creates ECC output and input records; the MID collects vCenter API data and returns payloads to the instance. Each matching discovery_sensor parses payloads, creates or updates CMDB CIs, and creates relationships. IRE and reconciliation decide whether payloads update existing records or create new records. VMware event collector, if configured, can later update VM changes without requiring a full vCenter rediscovery for every event. Probe Parameters Parameter caution: Disable parameters are set on the triggering probe. If a disabled probe normally triggers another probe, the dependent probe will not collect data either. Prefer page-size tuning before turning off inventory branches. Probe Useful parameters When to use Risk VMWare - vCenter Datacenters debug , vcenter_timeout , disable_vm_probe , disable_network_probe , disable_datastore_probe , disable_cluster_probe , disable_vm_nic_probe , disable_host_probe , disable_host_storage_probe , datacenters_only Enable debug for raw vCenter data during focused troubleshooting; increase timeout for slow vCenter responses; temporarily isolate branches in very large inventories. Disabling a branch hides expected CIs and can break downstream relationships. VMWare - vCenter VMs page_size default 100 , disable_vm_nic_probe , disable_vm_tags_probe , disable_vm_nic_vnics , disable_vm_nic_vdisks Reduce payload size, isolate VM inventory issues, or control VM NIC/tag collection. VM records can be present while OS-level server CIs are not discovered yet; do not confuse VM instance inventory with host OS discovery. VMWare - vCenter Networks page_size default 500 Large network inventories or timeout-prone payloads. Very small page size increases probe count and run time. VMWare - vCenter Datastores page_size default 500 Large datastore inventories or payload-size failures. Storage relationships remain incomplete until datastore payloads process successfully. VMWare - vCenter Clusters page_size default 1000 , disable_host_probe , disable_host_storage_probe Cluster-heavy environments or isolation of host/storage branches. Host and storage branches can be unintentionally skipped. VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts page_size default 10 , disable_host_storage_probe ESXi host branch timeouts or host-storage noise. Storage hardware/relationship details will not update if storage is disabled. VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts Storage page_size default 175 Large HBA/FC/iSCSI/storage payloads. Too-large page size can cause payload or sensor failures; too-small page size increases run duration. Detailed Troubleshooting 1. vCenter is not classified or only SSH/Windows checks appear Confirm the schedule target is the vCenter IP/FQDN, not only the OS host or an ESXi host. Confirm the vCenter ports are reachable from the MID Server. At minimum, validate HTTPS access to the vCenter API endpoint expected by your environment. Confirm the vCenter classifier and VMWare - vCenter Classify probe/sensor are active. Review discovery_log for classification messages. If the logs only show SSH or Windows credential failures, the vCenter classifier may not have fired. Use MID logs to confirm the vCenter port probe/classifier ran. If it did not run, check Shazzam port results and port probe configuration. For a vCenter running on a Windows or Linux host, remember that OS discovery and vCenter application discovery are related but not the same evidence path. 2. VMware credential test fails Confirm the credential record type is VMware . Confirm username format. For domain accounts, test the exact value in vCenter, such as Domain\UserName or the accepted UPN format. Confirm the account has read-only role at the correct vCenter scope. If license data is required, confirm the license administration privilege as well. Confirm the credential applies to the MID Server running the schedule. From the MID host, test DNS resolution and TCP/HTTPS connectivity to the vCenter endpoint. If using an external credential store, confirm the returned username, domain, and password are exactly what vCenter expects. A credential can be fetched successfully from the vault but still be malformed for vCenter login. 3. vCenter CI is created, but ESXi hosts or VMs are missing Check ECC Queue for VMWare - vCenter Datacenters . If it ran, inspect whether it triggered VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts , VMWare - vCenter VMs , VMWare - vCenter Clusters , and other object probes. Confirm the downstream probes and sensors are active. Missing or inactive sensor records can leave data in payloads without CMDB updates. Check Datacenters probe parameters for disable_host_probe , disable_vm_probe , disable_cluster_probe , disable_datastore_probe , and related flags. Confirm the vCenter account can see the affected ESXi hosts and VMs in the vCenter UI. If the payload contains ESXi or VM data but records are not updated, shift investigation to the matching sensor, IRE, reconciliation, and CMDB class identifiers. Do not expect OS-level Linux or Windows server records to be fully populated from VMware inventory alone. Discover the guest OS separately with SSH/Windows credentials if OS-level CI details are required. 4. ESXi host payload exists, but ESXi CI records are not updating Open the ECC input for VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts and confirm the host data exists in the payload. Open the matching VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts sensor and confirm it is active. Check sensor errors in discovery_log and ECC input state. A processed payload can still fail to update CMDB if the sensor or IRE rejects it. Review identifiers for ESXi/hardware classes. Host matching often depends on stable IDs such as BIOS UUID/correlation ID, serial number, managed object reference data, or other VMware identifiers depending on class and release behavior. Check sys_object_source for the affected ESXi CI to determine whether the payload matched an existing object or attempted to create a new one. If only some hosts are missing, compare affected versus working host objects in vCenter: datacenter, cluster, permissions, connection state, maintenance mode, hardware serial visibility, and inventory folder scope. 5. VM records exist, but Windows/Linux server CIs are not discovered Separate VMware inventory from guest OS discovery. vCenter probes collect VM inventory and VM instance data; OS-level server details require normal server discovery against the VM IPs. Confirm the VM has IP/MAC data visible through vCenter or VMware Tools where applicable. Confirm the relevant VM NIC probes ran and populated network evidence. Run or schedule normal IP-based Discovery for the guest IPs with Windows or SSH credentials. Check relationship creation between the server CI and the VMware VM instance. Missing relationships often trace to missing IP/MAC data, duplicate CIs, or IRE mismatch. 6. Large vCenter runs timeout or return partial inventory Identify the first probe that times out or creates an oversized ECC payload. Use the probe-specific page_size parameter instead of disabling whole object branches. For slow vCenter responses, evaluate vcenter_timeout on VMWare - vCenter Datacenters . Enable debug temporarily on VMWare - vCenter Datacenters only for a focused test, because it returns raw vCenter data in probe payloads and can increase payload size. Review MID capacity, ECC queue backlog, sensor processing time, and whether multiple large vCenter schedules overlap. 7. Probe and sensor customization or drift is suspected Use the component names in this article to identify inactive probes, missing sensors, or release-specific differences. Confirm the probe and sensor pair for the affected branch are both active. For example, VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts requires both a probe and a sensor path. Check whether any vCenter probe or sensor record has been customized, overridden, deactivated, or replaced by update-set changes. Search MID logs for the implementation name, such as VMWarevCenterDatacentersProbe or VMWarevCenterESXHostsProbe , to confirm the expected MID script include executed. If the probe returns data but the sensor does not update CMDB, compare sensor behavior first. If the sensor updates CMDB but the wrong record is touched, move to IRE/reconciliation. 8. Tags, networks, datastores, or license data are missing but core inventory works Identify the missing object branch: tags, networks, datastores, ESX host license, or host storage. Check the parent probe parameters. For example, VM tag collection depends on the VM branch and disable_vm_tags_probe behavior. Confirm the matching object probe and sensor are active: VMWare - vCenter VM Tags , VMWare - vCenter Networks , VMWare - vCenter Datastores , VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts License , or VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts Storage . Confirm the vCenter account can see the missing object type in the vCenter UI. Read-only inventory access may be enough for core VM/host discovery but still be insufficient for tags or license details depending on vCenter configuration. For large environments, lower the relevant page_size and rerun only the affected branch where possible. Expected Errors and Signals Signal or error Likely layer First checks Next action Unable to establish connection to https:// /sdk Network, TLS, endpoint, or credential path DNS, port reachability from MID, vCenter service health, proxy/firewall, credential type. Test the vCenter URL from the MID host; then rerun credential test and Quick Discovery. Credential test fails for one vCenter but works for others Target-specific network, account scope, domain format, or vCenter configuration Compare target vCenter endpoint, account permissions, username format, and MID route. Have the VMware team validate the exact account on that vCenter and confirm firewall rules from the MID. Discovery only creates the vCenter CI Downstream probe trigger, permissions, disabled probe parameter, or sensor failure ECC queue for VMWare - vCenter Datacenters and triggered probes; active sensor records; disable flags. Find the first missing downstream probe and troubleshoot that branch. ESXi/VM data appears in ECC payload but not in CMDB Sensor, post-processing, IRE, or reconciliation ECC input state, matching sensor, discovery log errors, identification logs, sys_object_source . Do not retest credentials first; inspect sensor and CMDB update path. VMs discovered but Linux/Windows server CIs missing Expected inventory boundary VM instance records versus guest OS server records; Windows/SSH credentials and ports for guest IPs. Run guest OS Discovery separately and validate VM-to-server relationships. Only some ESXi hosts missing vCenter permission scope, host state, cluster/folder scope, IRE duplicate/no-match Affected host visibility in vCenter with Discovery account, host connected state, payload presence, identifiers. Compare working and non-working host payloads and identification results. Warnings about controller or FC port data Host storage branch VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts Storage payload, storage data completeness, HBA/FC controller fields. Tune storage probe page size, review sensor behavior, and isolate whether the warning blocks CI updates or is non-fatal noise. ECC output stuck in ready MID pickup problem MID up/validated, application assignment, queue backlog, wrong MID selection. Fix MID health before investigating vCenter credentials. ECC input stuck in processing or error Sensor or payload processing Error string, sensor script, payload size, IRE errors. Resolve sensor exception or reduce payload size with page-size parameters. MID log shows expected probe implementation did not run Probe trigger or classifier routing Parent sensor, disabled parameter, classifier result, probe active state. Find the first parent probe/sensor that did not launch the next branch. Probe implementation runs but no child probes appear Parent sensor trigger logic or disabled branch VMWare - vCenter Datacenters , VMWare - vCenter Clusters , or VMWare - vCenter VMs sensor behavior; disable flags. Check parent sensor processing before adjusting child probes. Common Scenarios and Resolutions Scenario Likely explanation Recommended action vCenter discovers but ESXi/VM records do not appear where expected The vCenter account may lack read-only access at the required inventory level, or the vCenter ESX hosts/VM sensor path may not have completed. Verify that the vCenter account can browse hosts and VMs; confirm VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts , VMWare - vCenter VMs , and their matching sensors ran and processed. VMware inventory exists but guest OS CIs are missing VMware credentials discover VM instance data; Linux and Windows server records require separate guest OS Discovery with the appropriate credentials. Validate cmdb_ci_vm_instance or VMware instance data first, then discover guest IPs with SSH or Windows credentials if server CIs are required. Credential validation fails only for selected vCenters The selected endpoint may have a MID-to-vCenter firewall, routing, account-format, or external credential-store configuration difference. Test from the MID host, confirm the username format, and verify any external credential-store domain or hostname fields used to construct the login. vCenter probe never starts and Discovery falls back to SSH Blocked vCenter ports can prevent classification from launching the VMware probe chain. Confirm that vCenter service ports are open from the MID and check Shazzam/port probe results before changing credentials. ESXi payload visible but ESXi records do not update The problem is likely in post-processing, sensor execution, IRE, or reconciliation when VMWarevCenterESXHostsProbe returns data but CMDB records remain stale. Inspect the matching sensor and IRE path. Preserve the ECC input payload and sensor logs before changing schedule or credential configuration. Standalone ESXi expectation Standalone ESXi support and component availability can vary by release. Check the release and the presence of VMWare - Standalone ESXi Server . Do not use standalone ESXi assumptions to troubleshoot a normal vCenter-managed ESXi inventory issue. Validation and Evidence Run Quick Discovery against one known vCenter through the intended MID Server. Confirm the classifier/probe sequence includes VMWare - vCenter Classify and VMWare - vCenter Datacenters . Confirm downstream ECC entries appear for object probes such as VMWare - vCenter ESX Hosts , VMWare - vCenter VMs , VMWare - vCenter Datastores , VMWare - vCenter Networks , and VMWare - vCenter Clusters . Confirm ECC inputs are processed and no sensor errors remain for the first failed object branch. Validate vCenter CI, datacenter, cluster, ESXi host, VM instance, datastore, network, NIC, and relationship records expected for the target inventory. If data appears in the payload but not in CMDB, capture the ECC input details, probe name, sensor name, a sanitized payload excerpt, Discovery log messages, identification errors, and target CI class. If data is absent from payload, capture the vCenter account permission scope, target object visibility in vCenter, probe parameters, MID connectivity test, and credential test result. Known Issues and Limitations The legacy VMWare - vCenter probe can still exist, but current vCenter Discovery uses the multi-probe flow triggered by VMWare - vCenter Datacenters . Disabling a vCenter probe through parameters can also disable dependent inventory branches. VMware inventory discovery is not the same as guest OS Discovery. Use Windows or SSH Discovery for detailed guest operating system CIs. Large inventories can require page-size and timeout tuning; increasing debug output can increase payload size. vCenter event collector updates selected VM changes after setup, but it does not replace the need for a working vCenter Discovery flow. Component names and behavior can vary by ServiceNow release and installed content version. Confirm the available probes and sensors before applying a workaround.