CSIM Technical Notes

VMware vSphere Client on Windows XP

Starting with ESXi 5.5, the VMware vSphere Client cannot run on Windows XP due to some incompatibilities on the cipher used.

You need to modify the rhttpproxy service to reduce the implied security by allowing the host to communicate using weak cipher suites:

1. Connect to the host via SSH.
2. Navigate to the directory /etc/vmware/rhttpproxy/
3. Backup the config.xml file. Do not skip this step.
4. Edit config.xml and add the <cipherList>ALL</cipherList> parameter between the <ssl>...</ssl> section of the configuration file. Use the model below as an example:

   <config>
      ...
      <vmacore>
         ...
         <ssl>
            <doVersionCheck> false </doVersionCheck>
            <useCompression>true</useCompression>
            <libraryPath>/lib/</libraryPath>
            <handshakeTimeoutMs>120000</handshakeTimeoutMs>
            <cipherList>ALL</cipherList>
         </ssl>
         ...
      </vmacore>
      ...
   </config>
   

5. Save and close the config.xml file
6. Reset the rhttpproxy service for the change to take effect by running the command:

   /etc/init.d/rhttpproxy restart