This sounds like a great use of 'Roles' and 'Permissions' which can be customized so that a user can manage his/her VM without the ability to delete/remove a VM, you'll need vCenter to implement this.
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William Lam
VMware vExpert 2009
VMware ESX/ESXi scripts and resources at:
VMware Code Central - Scripts/Sample code for Developers and Administrators
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