Cannot Connect SSH Error When Creating VMware ESXi Backup Set

June 4, 2025

Product Version

AhsayOBM: 7.5.0.0 - 7.17.x

Operating System

All Platforms

Symptom

When creating a backup set on a VMware ESXi host the following error is shown by AhsayOBM "Cannot connect SSH, please check the SSH settings" .

vmware-esxi-cannot-connect-ssh-error-01.png

Cause

The SSH setting is disabled on the VMware ESXi host.

To perform a backup of guests virtual machines on a VMware host, AhsayOBM needs to login to the VMware host using SSH using the root account via port 22 (default).

Resolution

To resolve this issue:

  1. Enable SSH on the VMware.
  2. After enabling SSH verify the setup is correct by using telnet from the AhsayOBM machine, i.e. telnet esxi_host 22
Troubleshooting