ESX 4.1

With ESX it is sometimes necessary to run the command services vmware-mgmt restart should you not be able to connect with the VI client or if you need the host to re-read the esx.conf configuration file because changes you have made at the console are not visible in VirtualCenter. The services command is not available on ESXi

ESXi 40 does ship with the ability to run SSH, but this is disabled by default (and is not supported). If you just need to access the console of ESXi, then you only need to perform steps 1 – 3. 1) At the console of the ESXi host, press ALT-F1 to access the console window.2)