You can add and configure an IPv4 VMkernel NIC by using ESXCLI.

Specify one of the options listed in Connection Options for vCLI Host Management Commands in place of <conn_options>.

Procedure
1

Add a new VMkernel network interface. 

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface add --interface-name=vmk<X> --portgroup-name=<my_portgroup>

You can specify the MTU setting after you have added the network interface by using esxcli network ip interface set --mtu.

2

Configure the interface as an IPv4 interface.

You must specify the IP address by using --ip, the netmask, and the name. For the following examples, assume that VMSF-VMK-363 is a port group to which you want to add a VMkernel network interface. 

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface ipv4 set --ipv4=<ip_address> --netmask=255.255.255.0 --type=<value> --interface-name=vmk<X>

You can set the address as follows.

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--ipv4=<X.X.X.X> --netmask=<X.X.X.X> --type=static – Static IPv4 address.

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--type=dhcp – Use IPv4 DHCP.

The VMkernel supports DHCP only for ESXi 4.0 and later.

When the command finishes successfully, the newly added VMkernel network interface is enabled.

3

List information about all VMkernel network interfaces on the system. 

esxcli <conn_options> network ip interface list

The command displays the network information, port group, MTU, and current state for each virtual network adapter in the system.