One target fails PXE boot while the catalog stays healthy

02 / EVIDENCE

The previous network identity was no longer responding

The target's previous IP address did not return a reverse DNS record:

Resolve-DnsName <Old-IP>

The result indicated that the DNS record did not exist.

The neighbour-table check also showed the address as unreachable:

Get-NetNeighbor -IPAddress <Old-IP>

The old IP address could not be confirmed as active, and the affected target could not complete its normal network boot.

03 / ISOLATION

The fault was limited to the target's virtual NIC or network identity

The vDisk remained operational because other targets using it were booting successfully. There was also no indication of a general PVS or PXE service outage.

Direct access to the DHCP infrastructure was not available during the investigation. Rather than making changes to the shared image or PVS services, the virtual NIC was replaced as a controlled test.

This would give the target:

• A new virtual NIC
• A new MAC address
• A new DHCP request
• Potentially a different IP address

The PVS target-device record would then need to be updated with the new MAC address.

04 / FIX

Replace the NIC and update the PVS target record

The following changes were completed:

1. Powered off the affected virtual machine.
2. Removed its existing virtual NIC.
3. Added a new virtual NIC using the same network and adapter type.
4. Recorded the MAC address assigned to the new NIC.
5. Updated the target device's MAC address in the PVS console.
6. Powered on the virtual machine.

The new NIC received a different IP address, and the target completed its PVS boot successfully.

05 / VALIDATION

The target returned to service with the new network identity

After the NIC replacement, we confirmed that:

1. The target completed the network boot.
2. The correct PVS target-device record was used.
3. The operating system started successfully.
4. The target received a new IP address.
5. The machine was available for normal use.