HowTo P2V hard disk from defunct computer?

[silvi4000]

I have a laptop the wont boot due to a defective motherboard. The harddisk is good and the filesystem has no errors. This laptop ran some some software that had to activated based on a "computer" fingerprint challenge/response and the company is no longer in bussines. A reinstallation on a new computer cant be done without a new activation key. What I would like to try is to convert this drive to a virtual machine so the software can be used again (asuming it doesnt check for this fingerprint everytime it runs).

Is there a way to make a virtual machine from a removed drive using another computer?

Will moving this disk to another laptop (with completely diferent hardware) and running a bootable version of P2V work?

[mikefoley]

Ghost the disk, restore to a newly created VM, run VMware Converter to convert the VM to a new VM. Should work fine.

mike

[silvi4000]

I tought about that but the version of ghost I have can only image the drive if I boot from CD. I guess I could try putting the drive in a newer laptop and booting from the GHOST CD. It would be easier to connect the drive as an external drive using a usb adapter. Can newer versions of GHOST image slave/external drives while running in WINDOWS?

thanks for the help

[Peter_vm]

Ghost32.exe can run from WinPE (BartPE) CD-ROM and create disk image on a network share.

[continuum · Accepted solution]

> It would be easier to connect the drive as an external drive using a usb adapter.

Do that. Next create a new VM named old-notebook.vmx

Add physical disk - specify the USB-disk - call new disk "usb-import.vmdk"

Next run vmware-vdiskmanager against the newly created "usb-import.vmdk".

> vmware-vdiskmanager.exe -r "usb-import.vmdk" -t 1 "imported-disk.vmdk"

Next exchange "usb-import.vmdk" with "imported-disk.vmdk" in the vmx-file of the new VM

Finally run converter against 'old-notebook.vmx' and let it configure the drivers.

No need to use ghost at all. When done you can test the new VM and when it works - throw away the old disk.

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description of vmx-parameters:

VMware-liveCD:

[silvi4000]

Im testing this tomorrow. If importing the drive as an external usb drive doesnt work I'll then try the GHOST image aproach.

Thanks for the help

[continuum]

If it doesn't work 0 you do something wrong - I have done this several times

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description of vmx-parameters:

VMware-liveCD:

[Peter_vm]

He did not say that does not work.

He said "If it does not work, ..."

[continuum]

Yes - and I meant: if it does not work tomorrow - you made a mistake ...

___________________________________

description of vmx-parameters:

VMware-liveCD:

[stonemj]

This is what I did.

Plugged in the HDD via USB adapter

Created a blank VM in VM Workstation.

Added a secondary HDD, using a physical disk, using the now USB external HDD

Edited the VMX to have the scsi0:0.fileName to be the name of the secondary HDD.

Ran VM Convertor's 'Configure Machine' program on the VM

Exported VM to ESXi server.

Boots up A-OK