Installing existing machine: which .vmdk file?

[drfrot]

Hi,

I would like to install an existing virtual machine on my MacBook. I have the .vmware bundle on the hard drive (all 11GB), but when I choose to "Install from existing virtual disk", I am presented with no less than 44 different .vmdk files. They vary in size between a few KB and a couple of GB - I guess this is the "2GB chunk" version mentioned in the user guide - and all have the same "last modified" date on them.

Which do I choose to install this existing virtual machine?

Thanks for any advice

Giles

[rriva]

maybe the one with the lowest ID ?

put the list here.

Bye

Riccardo Riva

VCP,RHCE,FCNSA

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[aetm · Accepted solution]

If the VM is from an existing Fusion system, just doubleclick on the VM itself to open it - instead of going file by file.

If you want to open it from the vmdk file, it is the one without number - typically something around 4 KB of size. If you open that file in a text editor you should see that it contains all the individual files that that VM needs for powering up.

[WoodyZ]

If you want to open it from the vmdk file, it is the one without number - typically something around 4 KB of size. If you open that file in a text editor you should see that it contains all the individual files that that VM needs for powering up.

In a case such as this where the OP has not provided a directory listing and the .vmx or .log files and where we do not know the current state of the virtual machine as to whether or not it has any snapshots in play then advising to use "the one without number" could be a problem if run to long before the OP realized that everything isn't there because there are snapshots and now the base disk has been been modified out from under the snapshots.

Bottom line is one shouldn't advise someone to mount a disk like this without knowing the overall state of the virtual machine and it's current configuration.

Without knowing the overall state of the virtual machine in a case such as this then advising to just execute the package is really the only acceptable answer!

[WoodyZ]

I would like to install an existing virtual machine on my MacBook. I have the .vmware bundle on the hard drive (all 11GB), but when I choose to "Install from existing virtual disk", I am presented with no less than 44 different .vmdk files. They vary in size between a few KB and a couple of GB - I guess this is the "2GB chunk" version mentioned in the user guide - and all have the same "last modified" date on them.

Which do I choose to install this existing virtual machine?

If you have copied a Virtual Machine Package from another system or wherever and it is already has the .vmwarevm extension then you can simply double-click it as suggested by however if you are trying to use the existing virtual hard drive to create a new virtual machine then we need to know whether or not there are snapshots in play and you need to provide a copy of the .vmx configuration file and the vmware*log files and a directory listing of the Virtual Machine Package so have a look at to provide that information if the latter is the case.

[drfrot]

Thanks all,

Double clicking the original had no effect (nothing at all happened once VMWare Fusion had opened), hence wishing to set up a new virtual machine by using the old one

Selecting the un-numbered (2kb) .vmdk file from the list worked a treat.

Interestingly it won't let me overwrite the original installation, but I guess I could always delete the original and rename the new one.

Thanks for your help

G