VMWare Image Modification

Question

Hi, I was just wondering if I already have an image that exists, can I create an image based on the existing one, except I want to make changes to the exisiting one (mainly configurations). Thanks.

Answer 1

Yes, you can just copy the image off to external storage. Just find the image file(s) on your drive and do the copy when the image is not running. You can then change the original all you want. Is this what you are after?

Answer 2

I do this all the time. I actually keep each of my VMs in a separate directory and duplicate the entire directory to make a copy. All references within the VMX file (configuration) are relative to the current directory.

One thing you need to watch out for. The VMX file has a line with the MAC address of the virtual network card:

ethernet0.generatedAddress = "00:0c:29:ff:1f:c7"

You'll need to change that if you want to run both VMs at the same time - I usually just bump the final digit up by 1 (to c8).

I also change the displayName in that file so I can tell the difference between them when they're running.

Answer 3

Depending on what your needs are, you might try the (free) VMWare Converter. It lets you change drive sizes and other image parameters.

Answer 4

What I do is create a base "clean" VM which I then run Sysprep on before cloning. You can run into a few problems when you don't reset the 'unique' elements of a windows installation and you're trying to run them simultaneously.

I'm running ~20 VMs at the moment and if any one gets seriously messed up (they're used for testing) I've got clean base images of Windows 2000, Windows XP, Vista and Server 2003 at the ready so I can be back up and running in 20mins or less.

Answer 5

As others have said, this is exactly how you implement full backups for your VMs.

When the VM is not running, merely copy the virtual disks into a different location, then restart the VM.