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RSYNC for VMware ESXi

Rsync is a lightweight, proven tool for reliable file replication, migration, and backup. It is also a staple on Linux systems, but sadly VMware never included it with ESXi, perhaps favoring commercial backup solutions.

This project restores essential Linux functionality on VMware ESXi by providing a fully static and portable rsync build, enabling reliable host-to-host and datastore-to-datastore file replication.

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Prebuilt Rsync Binaries:

If you dont wan't to build your own, download here:

• Latest version: rsync v3.4.1 for ESXi

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🔨 Rsync Build Script Supported Platforms

Debian 13 | Ubuntu 24 | RHEL 9 & 10 | Fedora 42 & 43

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Building Your ESXi Compatible Rsync Binary

All build files are created in $HOME/build-static

RedHat specific Notes:

• The build script will first try to install the distro package glibc-static.
• If glibc-static is unavailable in the OS repo, the script automatically builds glibc-static and extracts it to $HOME/build-static.

1. On a fresh supported system, run the build script (not as root or sudo):

   ./rsync-esxi-builder-multiOS.sh

2. Copy the compiled rsync binary from $HOME/build-static/rsync/bin to all ESXi hosts.

3. On each ESXi host, set execute permissions on the new rsync executable:

   chmod 755 /path/to/rsync

4. From ESXi 8 onwards you must manually permit execution of non-native binaries:

   esxcli system settings advanced set -o /User/execInstalledOnly -i 0

5. Enable the ssh service and change the Esxi firewall to permit sshClient connections:

   vim-cmd hostsvc/enable_ssh
   vim-cmd hostsvc/start_ssh
   esxcli network firewall ruleset set --ruleset-id=sshClient --enabled=true

6. Configure destination RSA or EdDSA SSH keys for passwordless host-to-host authentication.

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💻 Companion Rsync-for-Esxi Replication Script

This replication script is written in POSIX-compliant shell and supports replication between ESXi, BusyBox, and GNU/Linux systems.