This article provides information about upgrading to vCenter Server 5.0.
Note: This article assumes that you have read the vSphere Upgrade Guide. This guide contains definitive information. If there is a discrepancy between the guide and this article, assume that the guide is correct.
Resolution
vCenter Server should be the first product upgraded in your vSphere environment, followed by Update Manager (if applicable), then your ESXi hosts.
Minimum hardware requirements
The vCenter Server 5.0 system can be a physical machine or virtual machine. Additionally, it comes pre-packaged as the vCenter Server Linux Appliance. For more information, see the ESXi and vCenter Server Installation Guide andvSphere Compatibility Matrix.
This table outlines the minimum hardware requirements:
To learn more and to read the entire article at its source, please refer to the following page, Upgrading to vCenter Server 5.0 best practices (2003866)- VMware Knowledge Base - latest articles