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clipcomet
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unknown invalid After lightning attack

good morning im haveing troble on geting one of my 2003 server up again after  a storm yesterday where the power was knocked out and now its unknow to the server..

now that im kind of new to the hole VMware im not 100% sure what info there is needed to help so i will post all the info i can think of that can be needed

plz post if you have any idea's or need any more info

many thx up front

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a_p_
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is there no way to add the snapshot manuly to the 12345 that i have working on the base file??

What you need to do to add a snapshot disk to a VM, is to edit the vmx file manually and then re-register the VM. However, starting the VM from the base disk, at least destroyed the snapshot chain. If you are lucky the chain can be repaired without much corruption on the virtual disk! The shorter the VM ran on the base disk, the better the chance to recover.

To repair the snapshot chain you need to edit the snapshot's header/descriptor vmdk file. This can only be done on the console directly or through SSH.

Here are the steps to take:

  • power off the 12345 VM
  • right click the 12345 and click "Remove from Inventory"
  • logon to the console or SSH
  • cd to the 12345 folder (e.g. cd /vmfs/volumes/datastore1/12345)
  • edit the 12345.vmx file and replace File+JQ-2fUser server win2003.vmdk by File+JQ-2fUser server win2003-000001.vmdk
  • view File+JQ-2fUser server win2003.vmdk and make note of the CID value
  • edit File+JQ-2fUser server win2003-000001.vmdk and set the parentCID to the CID found in the previous step
  • right click the vmx file in the datastore browser and select "Add to Inventory"
  • take another snapshot and make sure it is created (you should see File+JQ-2fUser server win2003-000002.vmdk in the datastore)

Now you should be able to start the VM from the snapshot. After the VM is up and running make sure you run a file system check (e.g. "chkdsk /f" for each drive in Windows). If everything works again, don't forget to delete the snapshots.

André

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idle-jam
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can you remove the invalid from the list, then using datastore browser to right click on the VMX and register the virtual machine and follow by powering up ..

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clipcomet
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i can remove it but when i add it again the keep saying unknown Smiley Sad  and still can't power it on i have tryed that a few times

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idle-jam
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can you create a new VM and select custom and when comes to disk point back to this existing disk?

clipcomet
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i was able to make a new server and named it 12345 and use the base file [datastore1] File+JQ-2fUser server win2003/File+JQ-2fUser server win2003.vmdk as a harddrive so now it can run .. BUT i can't/ or i dont know how to add the snapshots to the new system.??

and many thx so fare

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idle-jam
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how about select the one with 000001.vmdk it should link back the snapshot with the parent vmdk? also i notice vswp file is there it should not be there when it VM is powered off. you can try delete it and see if u can power up the original VM.

clipcomet
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sadly i had no luck this time

i tryed to make a vm mashine on the 00001.vmdk but i just got a error (see jpg for prove)

i removed the file you told me and removed the unknowen and tryed to add it again and got an unknowen 1 now...

is there no way to add the snapshot manuly to the 12345 that i have working on the base file??

again thx for your reply's

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Marcj1
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You can try creating a new snapshot on the 12345 machine connected to the base disk and right after use "Delete All" to see if that consolidates everything.  If not, clone 12345 with the base disk connected and without doing any customization.  The new machine should be a duplicate of the original but with the snapshots properly removed.  If you do not have vCenter then you can use the standalone converter for the cloning.

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a_p_
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is there no way to add the snapshot manuly to the 12345 that i have working on the base file??

What you need to do to add a snapshot disk to a VM, is to edit the vmx file manually and then re-register the VM. However, starting the VM from the base disk, at least destroyed the snapshot chain. If you are lucky the chain can be repaired without much corruption on the virtual disk! The shorter the VM ran on the base disk, the better the chance to recover.

To repair the snapshot chain you need to edit the snapshot's header/descriptor vmdk file. This can only be done on the console directly or through SSH.

Here are the steps to take:

  • power off the 12345 VM
  • right click the 12345 and click "Remove from Inventory"
  • logon to the console or SSH
  • cd to the 12345 folder (e.g. cd /vmfs/volumes/datastore1/12345)
  • edit the 12345.vmx file and replace File+JQ-2fUser server win2003.vmdk by File+JQ-2fUser server win2003-000001.vmdk
  • view File+JQ-2fUser server win2003.vmdk and make note of the CID value
  • edit File+JQ-2fUser server win2003-000001.vmdk and set the parentCID to the CID found in the previous step
  • right click the vmx file in the datastore browser and select "Add to Inventory"
  • take another snapshot and make sure it is created (you should see File+JQ-2fUser server win2003-000002.vmdk in the datastore)

Now you should be able to start the VM from the snapshot. After the VM is up and running make sure you run a file system check (e.g. "chkdsk /f" for each drive in Windows). If everything works again, don't forget to delete the snapshots.

André

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clipcomet
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many thx i got it working again Smiley Happy many thx for all ya help

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