Converting Ubuntu 8.X machine to virtual machine error

[heilnut]

I'm trying to move this machine to a virtual machine. I have moved 2 other linux machines with no problems, but I believe they are version 6.X of Ubuntu. I'm able to make it to the point of Starting to clone the volume mounted on '/' but then it runs about 5 seconds and gives me this error:

Error: Failed to clone the volume mounted on '/' from IP address....

In the logs I see some different errors, but one stood out as

tar: This does not look like a tar archive

I'm not sure if this is normal or not when it fails. This would be the 4th machine I've ever converted so I'm a big time newbie here. Any help is appreciated. I'm also not sure which log file I should attach but I have attached one of them.

Thanks for any help in advance.

[heilnut]

I should also mention that I am trying to resize the disk too. I did it on the last two machines no problem. I'm trying to take a 73G drive down to a 5 gig since there is no reason for this machine to be 73G.

[AndreTheGiant]

ssh_exchange_identification: Connection closed by remote host

The error is in SSH connection.

Be sure to enable it also for root user.

Andre

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[heilnut]

How would I be able to start the converting process without root having access to SSH? It would typically fail before retrieving any info if the root didn't have access to SSH.

[AndreTheGiant]

Enable root access.

http://www.askdavetaylor.com/how_do_i_enable_root_login_with_ssh.html

Andre

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[heilnut]

I guess what I should have said, is that I already have SSH access. Otherwise I wouldn't be able to start the conversion process at all. I've checked the SSH config file and do show that root has access. I wish these log files would tell me more than they do. I had no problems converting two other linux machines. I'm not sure what to do when it just states that the clone process has failed. Is there any other files I can provide for someone to check?

Thanks for the help so far.

[vmweathers · Accepted solution]

A few things to check in such cases (failing during tar/cloning)

1) make sure your source password does not contain a backslash -- we have a known bug for this causing the clone to fail

2) make sure the helper VM IP is allowed to SSH to the source (check /etc/hosts.allow and /etc/hosts.deny on the source)

3) check if a partial hostname is being used with incomplete DNS settings (e.g., no DNS search suffixes specified) (This is not a problem in your case since you are using a raw IP)

4) if the cloning has gone on for awhile before failing, then you might be cloning sparse files, and in Converter 4.0 will need to enable sparse file handling: http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1008303 (Converter 4.0.1 has made sparse file retention the default behavior)

Please look at these threads:

http://communities.vmware.com/thread/184321?start=15&tstart=0

http://communities.vmware.com/message/1228109#1228109

(If your question has been resolved please mark the answers as "Helpful" or "Correct".)

[heilnut]

Well son of a gun. I thought I had looked at the hosts.allow list and had put the helper address in there at one time. Guess I didn't. That solved the issue. So yes it was a SSH issue. I put the helper address in the hosts.allow list and it's currently cloning.

Thanks for all your help. I appreciate it.

[frankernet]

Dear all,

I'm facing with a particular kind of problem :

when I try to convert a "Powered-on machine", the first option

represented by the radio button "This local machine" is UNABLED ...

I can only perform a remote virtualization ...

Any idea ?

REVIEW

a) I'm running Converter GUI on a Linux sistem (ubuntu 8.x) ... is this a mistake ?

b) all the things listed in previous posts are satisfied (enabled root access, directive ALL : ALL in /etc/hosts.allow,

keepSparseFile set TRUE in

converter-agent.xml)

:-S

Thanks in advance.

Francesco