Restarting hostd (mgmt-vmware) on ESX hosts restarts hosted virtual machines where virtual machine Startup/Shutdown is enabled

Details
This is an issue with virtual machines that are set to automatically start or stop and that are hosted on ESX 3.x. Manually shutting down, starting up, or restarting hostd through the service console causes hosted virtual machines that are set to automatically change power states to stop, start, or restart, respectively. 

Disable Virtual Machine Startup/Shutdown for the ESX host through VirtualCenter or a VMware Infrastructure (VI) Client that is directly connected to the host.

 

GUI Method 

To disable Virtual Machine Startup/Shutdown:

1. Log in to VirtualCenter.
2. Select the ESX Server host where you want restart hostd.
3. Select the Configuration tab.
4. Select Virtual Machine Startup/Shutdown.
5. Select Properties.
6. Deselect Allow Virtual machines to start and stop automatically with the system.

CLI Method

If the host is not reachable through VirtualCenter or the VI Client:

1. Log in to the ESX Server service console as root.
2. At the command line run vimsh.
3. At the [/] prompt, type:
   hostsvc/autostartmanager/enable_autostart 0
    
4. Type exit. You can now safely restart mgmt-vmware (hostd).