Hewlett Packard Enterprise released HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1 LTS in July 2026. Rather than introducing major user-interface changes, this release focuses primarily on improving HVM cluster upgrade reliability, expanding automation capabilities, protecting network configurations, and resolving operational issues identified in previous versions.

HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1 includes several important enhancements, particularly for organizations operating HVM clusters. The ability to manage cluster layout upgrades through the API and CLI, improved handling of HVM Host agent upgrades, and fixes related to shared datastore infrastructure are among the most significant changes included in this release.

HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1 Release Information

According to the official release notes, the primary version and compatibility details are as follows:

• Product version: HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1 LTS
• Release date: July 2026
• Compatible Plugin API version: 1.4.1
• Compatible HPE Morpheus VM Essentials Worker version: 9.0.0 or later

After upgrading the Morpheus appliance to version 9.0.1, administrators are advised to verify whether HVM Host agent upgrades are also available.

The agent can be upgraded from the detail page of each HVM Host by expanding the ACTIONS menu and selecting Upgrade Agent.

As an alternative, administrators can select Download Agent Script to download a host-specific shell script. The downloaded script can then be transferred to or executed on the corresponding HVM Host through a terminal session.

An important consideration is that each agent upgrade script is unique to its associated HVM Host. A script downloaded for one host must not be used on another host. Therefore, administrators must download and execute the correct script for every HVM Host in the environment.

Not every platform upgrade includes a new HVM Host agent version. Nevertheless, verifying host agent versions after the appliance upgrade remains an important post-upgrade task.

API and CLI Enhancements

Updating Cluster Layout Versions Through the API and CLI

HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1 introduces the ability to update a cluster layout version through both the API and the CLI.

Previously, HVM cluster version transitions could require a greater number of manual operations. With the new capability, cluster layout upgrades can be integrated into automation scripts, orchestration workflows, and standardized enterprise maintenance procedures.

This enhancement may provide significant advantages in scenarios such as:

• Centrally upgrading multiple HVM clusters
• Building standardized maintenance workflows
• Integrating upgrade procedures with infrastructure automation systems
• Reducing errors caused by repetitive manual operations
• Managing cluster upgrades through scripts
• Creating repeatable upgrade processes for large environments
• Incorporating cluster upgrades into automated operational runbooks

API and CLI support allows administrators to manage cluster layout upgrades without relying exclusively on the Morpheus user interface.

This is particularly useful for organizations that follow Infrastructure as Code principles or use centralized automation platforms for operational management.

HVM Enhancements

Updated Boot Loader Certificates in Virtual Machine Templates

Virtual machine templates in HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1 have been updated to include 2023 base boot loader certificates.

This update is intended to ensure compatibility with future Secure Boot updates from Microsoft and other vendors.

Secure Boot verifies that only trusted and digitally signed components are executed during the system startup process. Outdated boot loader certificates may eventually cause newer operating systems or security updates to fail during the boot process.

The updated boot loader certificates provide several benefits:

• Improved compatibility with future Microsoft Secure Boot updates
• Reduced risk of boot failures in newer operating system templates
• Continued operation of the trusted boot chain
• Reduced dependency on older certificates
• Better preparation for future operating system security requirements

Although this change may not result in an immediately visible difference in the management interface, it is important for long-term operating system compatibility and Secure Boot readiness.

Morpheus Core Enhancements

License Tier-Based Access Control for AI Features

HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1 introduces license tier-based gating for AI-related functionality.

The availability of artificial intelligence features can now be controlled according to the following license tiers:

• VM Essentials
• Advanced
• Enterprise

This mechanism enables AI-related features and services to be displayed or activated according to the organization’s licensed edition.

License-based feature control provides a clearer distinction between the capabilities available in each product tier. It also helps prevent users from configuring or attempting to use functionality that is not included in their license.

Organizations planning to use AI-related capabilities should therefore verify which features are included in their current HPE Morpheus license tier.

Morpheus Central WebSocket Configuration Enabled by Default

The HPE Morpheus VM Essentials installer now enables Morpheus Central WebSocket configuration by default.

This change is designed to simplify registered tunnel connections between HPE Morpheus VM Essentials and Morpheus Central.

In previous versions administrators could be required to perform additional configuration steps to enable WebSocket-based connectivity. With version 9.0.1, the installer automatically prepares the relevant configuration by default.

This enhancement can simplify the following operations:

• Establishing Morpheus Central connectivity,
• Configuring registered tunnel connections,
• Centrally managing distributed Morpheus environments,
• Connecting systems located behind firewalls or NAT devices,
• Reducing manual configuration requirements during deployment,
• Improving the consistency of Morpheus Central registrations,

Organizations using proxy servers, SSL inspection, restrictive firewall rules, or network address translation should still verify that the required WebSocket communication is permitted.

Networking Enhancements

HVM Network Plugin Network Preservation

The HVM Network Plugin has been updated to preserve existing networks on a node when that node is deleted from the cluster. In previous scenarios, removing a node from a cluster could potentially affect network objects associated with that node. Version 9.0.1 is designed to ensure that existing network configurations remain intact when a cluster node is removed.

This improvement is especially valuable during:

• Node replacement procedures,
• Cluster maintenance,
• Hardware decommissioning,
• Cluster restructuring,
• Node recovery operations,

Preserving the network configuration reduces the risk of service disruption and prevents administrators from having to manually recreate network objects after a node is removed.

ArubaCX Network Plugin Improvements

A similar improvement has been introduced for the ArubaCX Network Plugin. When a node is removed from a cluster, existing Open vSwitch, or OVS, networks on the ArubaCX switches are now preserved. This prevents node deletion operations from unintentionally removing or modifying existing OVS network configurations. The enhancement improves operational reliability in environments where network configurations are provisioned automatically through ArubaCX integrations.

HVM Cluster Upgrade Fixes

A significant portion of the fixes included in HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1 focuses on HVM cluster layout upgrades.

Cluster Layout Upgrade Failures During the Finalize Phase

In previous versions, an HVM cluster layout upgrade could fail during the finalize phase.

When this occurred:

• Nodes could incorrectly re-enter maintenance mode.
• The user interface could display an incorrect cluster layout version.
• Administrators could be uncertain whether the upgrade had completed successfully.
• Additional manual recovery steps could be required.

Version 9.0.1 resolves this issue and improves the accuracy of both the cluster state and the layout version displayed in the user interface after an upgrade.

UEFI Firmware Asset Version Mismatch

Cluster creation could fail after nodes were added because of a mismatch between bundled UEFI firmware asset versions. This issue could prevent a newly configured HVM cluster from being created successfully, even though the nodes had already been added to the environment. The UEFI firmware asset version mismatch has been corrected in version 9.0.1, improving the reliability of cluster creation and node addition operations.

Maintenance Mode and Agent Recovery Race Condition

A race condition could cause a cluster layout upgrade to fail when a host entered maintenance mode while its agent was still recovering after a restart. A race condition occurs when two processes overlap in an unexpected order and produce an inconsistent result. In this case, the timing between agent recovery and maintenance mode operations could interrupt the cluster layout upgrade. Version 9.0.1 resolves this race condition, allowing maintenance mode and agent recovery operations to be handled more reliably during an upgrade.

Database Connection Closure During Long-Running Upgrades

Long-running cluster layout upgrades could fail during the finalize phase if the database connection was closed by the connection pool. This issue was more likely to occur in larger clusters or environments where the upgrade process took longer than expected. Version 9.0.1 improves the handling of database connections during long-running upgrade procedures and prevents the finalize phase from failing because of an unexpectedly closed connection.

Automated Handling of HVM Host Agent Upgrades

In earlier versions, HVM Host agents sometimes had to be upgraded manually before a cluster layout upgrade could succeed. If the agents were not upgraded beforehand, the cluster layout upgrade could fail. HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1 improves the upgrade process by correctly handling automated agent upgrades.

This enhancement provides several operational benefits:

• Reduced dependency on manual agent upgrades,
• Fewer upgrade failures caused by outdated agents,
• Better integration between appliance and host upgrade workflows,
• Reduced administrative workload in larger environments,
• More consistent cluster upgrade procedures,

Even though the process now handles agent upgrades automatically, administrators should still verify all HVM Host agent versions after the platform upgrade.

HPE Clustered Datastore Improvements

Datastore Entering Read-Only State After Kernel Upgrade

A GFS2 datastore, now displayed in the Morpheus interface as HPE Clustered Datastore (Shared LUN), could incorrectly enter a read-only state after a kernel upgrade and node reboot.

A shared datastore entering read-only mode can cause serious operational problems, including:

• Virtual machines being unable to write data,
• Failure to create new virtual machines,
• Snapshot operation failures,
• Virtual machine startup failures,
• Application interruptions,
• Cluster service disruptions,
• Backup or restore failures,

Version 9.0.1 resolves this issue and improves datastore behavior after kernel upgrades and node reboots.

This is one of the most important fixes in the release for production environments using shared LUN-based clustered storage.

SCSI Reservation Key Cleanup

During an upgrade to HVM layout version 1.3, SCSI reservation keys were not always cleared correctly from multipath configurations. SCSI reservation mechanisms coordinate access to shared storage resources between cluster nodes. Old or invalid reservation keys remaining in the multipath configuration can prevent hosts from accessing shared storage correctly. Version 9.0.1 ensures that SCSI reservation keys are properly cleared during the HVM 1.3 layout upgrade process. This reduces the risk of storage access conflicts and helps ensure that cluster nodes can reconnect to shared storage successfully after an upgrade.

Backup Restore and Virtual Machine Cloning Fix

Backup restoration or virtual machine cloning could previously fail if the original source image had been deleted from the Morpheus Library. Version 9.0.1 resolves this dependency and allows backup restoration or VM cloning to complete even when the original source image no longer exists in the library.

This correction is important in scenarios such as:

• Removing old virtual machine templates from the library,
• Restoring a virtual machine from a retained backup,
• Recovering a machine whose original template was deleted,
• Creating a new virtual machine from an existing backup,
• Applying image retention and cleanup policies,

The improvement makes backups less dependent on the lifecycle of the original source template.

HVM Cluster Summary Page Improvements

Formatting and labeling inconsistencies on the HVM cluster summary page have been corrected. Although this change does not modify cluster functionality, it improves the consistency and readability of information displayed to administrators. Accurate labels and consistent formatting are particularly important during troubleshooting, cluster health assessments, and upgrade validation.

CLI Improvements

Some CLI commands and prompts required for clustered datastore configuration were missing in previous versions. HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1 adds the missing CLI capabilities for configuring:

• Heartbeat targets,
• Secure metadata parameters,

Heartbeat targets are used to support connectivity and health monitoring between cluster components. Secure metadata parameters are associated with the protected configuration of clustered datastore services. Adding the missing CLI commands allows administrators to perform these configurations more completely through command-line tools and automation workflows.

Morpheus Core Fixes

Support Bundles Page Redirection

Refreshing the browser while viewing the Support Bundles tab could incorrectly redirect the user to the main Health tab. This behavior has been corrected in version 9.0.1. Administrators can now refresh the Support Bundles page and remain within the same tab, which provides a more consistent troubleshooting experience.

Agent Upgrade Failure When /tmp Is Mounted with noexec

Morpheus agent upgrades could fail with a “permission denied” error on hosts where the /tmp directory was mounted using the noexec option. The noexec mount option prevents executable files from being launched directly from the associated filesystem. It is commonly used as part of Linux operating system hardening standards. Previous agent upgrade procedures could conflict with this security configuration. Version 9.0.1 resolves the issue and allows Morpheus agent upgrades to work correctly on systems where /tmp is mounted with noexec. This is an important improvement for organizations that apply strict Linux security baselines.

Blank Storage Server URL and Credential Fields

Editing a storage server from the list view could result in blank URL and credential fields. This regression has been fixed in version 9.0.1. Existing storage server settings are now displayed correctly when administrators open the storage server configuration for editing.

“Ports Are Listening” Installer Error

Appliance upgrades could fail with a “ports are listening” error if the initial appliance configuration had not completed successfully. The message could incorrectly suggest that required ports were being used by another process, preventing the upgrade from continuing. Version 9.0.1 resolves this installer issue and improves upgrade handling when the initial appliance configuration is incomplete.

Missing Error Message for Network Configuration Failures

In previous versions, the user interface could fail to display an error when a network configuration save operation was unsuccessful. This could cause users to assume that the network configuration had been saved correctly. Version 9.0.1 now displays an error message when the network configuration cannot be saved. This improvement helps administrators detect configuration failures more quickly and begin troubleshooting without relying on background logs alone.

Special Characters in Instance Names

A regression introduced overly restrictive validation for instance names displayed in the Morpheus user interface. As a result, certain special characters could not be used even when they should have been accepted. Version 9.0.1 corrects the validation logic and restores support for permitted special characters in instance names.

RabbitMQ Plugin Enablement During Appliance Upgrades

RabbitMQ plugin enablement could fail during an appliance upgrade because of deprecated RabbitMQ policies. This could interrupt the appliance upgrade process or leave RabbitMQ-related functionality in an incomplete state. Version 9.0.1 resolves the issue by improving the handling of deprecated policies during RabbitMQ plugin activation.

AlletraMP Plugin Fix

When creating a storage volume under an existing volume set using the AlletraMP Plugin, the system could incorrectly create a new volume set instead of placing the volume under the selected existing volume set.

Version 9.0.1 corrects this behavior.

The fix provides several benefits:

• Prevents unnecessary volume sets from being created,
• Keeps storage resources organized,
• Ensures volumes are created in the correct hierarchy,
• Improves consistency in automated provisioning workflows,
• Reduces the need for manual storage cleanup,
• Improves the reliability of HPE Alletra MP integration,

Considerations Before Upgrading to Version 9.0.1

Before upgrading to HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1, administrators should review the overall health and configuration of the environment.

Backup and Rollback Planning

Before starting the upgrade, administrators should back up or prepare recovery procedures for the following components:

• Morpheus appliance database,
• Appliance configuration,
• HVM cluster configuration,
• Network definitions,
• Storage definitions,
• Plugin configurations,
• Certificates,
• Custom integrations,
• Automation scripts,
• External service credentials,
• Relevant operating system configuration files,

A tested rollback plan should also be available in case the upgrade cannot be completed successfully.

HVM Cluster Health Validation

All cluster nodes should be verified as healthy before the upgrade begins.

Administrators should review the following areas:

• All cluster nodes are online.
• HVM Host agent services are running.
• Clustered datastore access is healthy.
• Multipath configurations are operating correctly.
• No hosts are unexpectedly in maintenance mode.
• No incomplete cluster layout upgrade is present.
• No critical storage or network alarms exist.
• Virtual machines are operating normally.
• Cluster services are synchronized.
• Sufficient free capacity is available.

Any unresolved cluster, storage, or networking issue should be addressed before the version upgrade.

Plugin Compatibility

The compatibility of HVM Network, ArubaCX, AlletraMP, and third-party plugins should be verified before upgrading. The compatible Plugin API version for HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1 is 1.4.1. Organizations using internally developed or customized plugins should test them against the compatible Plugin API before applying the update to production.

Firewall and WebSocket Requirements

Because Morpheus Central WebSocket configuration is now enabled by default, communication requirements between the appliance and Morpheus Central should be reviewed. Depending on the organization’s network architecture, administrators may need to verify:

• Firewall rules,
• Proxy server configuration,
• WebSocket traffic,
• SSL inspection policies,
• NAT rules,
• Registered tunnel connections,
• Certificate trust,
• DNS resolution,
• Outbound access requirements,

Default enablement does not automatically guarantee that WebSocket traffic will pass through restrictive security devices.

Recommended Post-Upgrade Checks

After upgrading to HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1, verifying only the appliance version is not sufficient. The appliance, HVM Hosts, agents, cluster layouts, storage services, networking components, and plugins should all be validated.

Recommended post-upgrade checks include:

1. Verify that all appliance services are running.
2. Confirm that version 9.0.1 is displayed in the user interface.
3. Verify that all HVM clusters are online and healthy.
4. Confirm the cluster layout versions.
5. Review the HVM Host agent version on every host.
6. Run Upgrade Agent where required.
7. Confirm that HPE Clustered Datastores are mounted in read-write mode.
8. Review multipath status on all hosts.
9. Verify that no stale SCSI reservation keys remain.
10. Test virtual machine startup and shutdown operations.
11. Test virtual machine migration operations.
12. Create a temporary test virtual machine.
13. Perform a test backup restoration.
14. Test virtual machine cloning.
15. Verify that network configurations are displayed correctly.
16. Confirm that existing networks remain intact.
17. Validate ArubaCX and OVS network configurations.
18. Test storage provisioning through the AlletraMP Plugin.
19. Generate a Support Bundle.
20. Verify Morpheus Central registered tunnel connectivity.
21. Confirm WebSocket communication.
22. Review appliance and host logs for upgrade-related errors.
23. Validate monitoring and alerting integrations.
24. Confirm that custom scripts and API integrations continue to work.

General Evaluation of HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1

HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1 is primarily a maintenance and stability release rather than a feature-heavy platform redesign.

Its most important improvements include API and CLI support for cluster layout upgrades, automated handling of HVM Host agent upgrades, and network preservation when nodes are removed from clusters.

The fixes related to HVM cluster layout upgrade finalization, agent recovery race conditions, and long-running database connections significantly improve the reliability of cluster upgrade operations.

The correction of the HPE Clustered Datastore read-only issue after kernel upgrades is particularly important for production environments using shared LUN storage.

The proper cleanup of SCSI reservation keys also reduces the risk of shared storage access problems after an HVM layout upgrade.

Additional improvements, including support for agent upgrades on hosts with /tmp mounted as noexec, RabbitMQ plugin fixes, visible network configuration error messages, special character support in instance names, and corrected AlletraMP volume provisioning, provide a more consistent management experience across the platform.

Overall, HPE Morpheus VM Essentials 9.0.1 should be considered an important LTS update for organizations using HVM clusters, HPE Clustered Datastore, Morpheus Central, ArubaCX networking, or HPE Alletra MP storage integrations.

Organizations that previously experienced issues with cluster layout upgrades, host agent updates, datastore accessibility, or automated network and storage provisioning should evaluate version 9.0.1 through a controlled testing and deployment process.