Upgrade free ESXi via command line

It is possible to update a free ESXi server directly.

First enable httpClient in the Firewall:

# open Firefall:
esxcli network firewall ruleset set -e true -r httpClient

Then check which patchset you want:

# Check for patchset:
esxcli software sources profile list -d https://hostupdate.vmware.com/software/VUM/PRODUCTION/main/vmw-depot-index.xml
esxcli software sources profile list -d https://hostupdate.vmware.com/software/VUM/PRODUCTION/main/vmw-depot-index.xml | grep ESXi-7 | sort

update:

# update to patch level ESXi-5.5.0-20150204001-standard
esxcli software profile update -d https://hostupdate.vmware.com/software/VUM/PRODUCTION/main/vmw-depot-index.xml -p ESXi-5.5.0-20150204001-standard