Nested ESXI running on Sangfor ASV

EduardoOliveira Lv1Posted May-05-2026 21:11

Hello team,

I have been trying to simulate a small vmware enviroment (one host, one vcenter) on top of my sangfor asv, only to demonstrate to customer the integration of scp with vcenter.

Although, when i try to install ESXi 8.0 on avm it gives me problem with network interfaces ( not detecting any interface).

Is it possible to run a nested esxi on top of asv?

By solving this question, you may help 821 user(s).

Posting a reply earns you 2 coins. An accepted reply earns you 20 coins and another 10 coins for replying within 10 minutes. (Expired) What is Coin?

Enter your mobile phone number and company name for better service. Go

Thomas Caimi Lv1Posted May-06-2026 01:18
  
Hi Eduardo,
   I've never tried to run any nested virtualization on Sangfor HCI, so these are only guesses.

Try to change the network type inside the VM, to check if it can help recognizing it; the first thing that comes to mind, but I could be wrong, it's that the VM go "out" on the network via th Edge Network, while the SCP goes trough the Management Netowrk (if I recall correctly).

If the latter it's true, I think it cannot "talk" to the Management Network without some kind of "bridge"; as I said earlier, I never tried nested virtualization, so this are only guesses.

Let us know if you discover something about it, have a good day,
   Thomas
Prosi Lv3Posted May-06-2026 12:21
  
Yes it is possible to run a nested esxi on top of asv.
However, this is not always supported by Sangfor ASV, and your NIC issue is a known limitation.
Sangfor ASV doesn't fully emulate ESXi-supported hardware, resulting in:
- ESXi runs fine
- But no supported NIC drivers are detected
- Result: no network interfaces
This isn't uncommon outside of VMware-on-VMware setups.
AR Lv3Posted May-06-2026 19:53
  
Yes it is possible to run a nested esxi on top of ASV.
But this is not always supported by Sangfor ASV and your NIC problem is a known restriction.

Sangfor ASV does not fully emulate the hardware supported by ESXi and therefore:
ESXi is working fine
- But no supported NIC drivers found
- Result: No network interface
This is not uncommon in non-VMware-on-VMware environments.
Humayun Ahmed Lv4Posted May-06-2026 20:15
  
For your use case (SCP + vCenter demo):
Don’t fight ESXi 8

Use:
ESXi 7.0 + vCenter 7

Fully compatible
Faster setup
No driver headache
Works perfectly for demos
EduardoOliveira Lv1Posted May-07-2026 10:54
  
The only way i was able to make it work was with ESXI 6.7

Although now i am having this issue

"This host does not support Intel VT-x."

Do you know if there is anyway to enable that for a vm?
Muhammad Abid Lv2Posted May-07-2026 13:55
  
Yes, nested ESXi deployment on Sangfor ASV is possible for lab/testing purposes, including SCP and vCenter integration demonstrations.

However, ESXi 8.0 may face NIC detection issues depending on the virtual hardware and NIC type presented by the AVM.

Possible considerations:

ESXi 8.0 has limited support for some legacy virtual NIC drivers
Try changing the VM network adapter type if available
In some cases, ESXi 7.0 works more smoothly in nested environments
Ensure virtualization extensions (Intel VT-x / AMD-V) are exposed to the guest VM
Resource reservation (CPU/RAM) may also help improve stability

For demonstration and integration testing, many engineers prefer using:

ESXi 7.x for better compatibility
Nested virtualization enabled on the hypervisor
VMXNET3/E1000 compatible adapters where supported

If supported by your ASV version, enabling nested virtualization at the host level may resolve the issue.

You may also check with Sangfor support regarding officially supported nested virtualization scenarios for ESXi 8.0.

I Can Help:

Change

Board Leaders

NyxZale...

Weekly Sharers

Newbie5...

Weekly Questioners