Problem
Occasionally after a server reboot the Virtual Center Service is not started this has been a bug in vmware with different releases as long as I can remember, you can start the services manually but they do not start on their own.
Resolution
Create a .bat file with following script:
net start MSSQL$SQLEXP_VIM ping 127.0.0.1 -n 120 -w 1000 > null net start vpxd
Note: for SQL Server substitute MSSQLSERVER in the above batch file instead of MSSQL$SQLEXP_VIM.
Set script to run on boot. For 2003 systems:
Open the local computer policy (Start > Run and type in gpedit.msc and press Enter)
Expand Computer Configuration>Windows Settings>Scripts
In the right-hand pane, double-click Startup and add your script.
Set SQL and VC services to manual startup.