VMware vCenter Converter Standalone - 4.0.1 User’s Guide
User's Guide
vCenter Converter Standalone 4.0.1
EN-000158-02
User's Guide
You can find the most up-to-date technical documentation on the VMware Web site at:
http://www.vmware.com/support/
The VMware Web site also provides the latest product updates.
If you have comments about this documentation, submit your feedback to:
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Copyright © 2008, 2009 VMware, Inc. All rights reserved. This product is protected by U.S. and international copyright and
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VMware is a registered trademark or trademark of VMware, Inc. in the United States and/or other jurisdictions. All other marks
and names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective companies.
VMware, Inc.
3401 Hillview Ave.
Palo Alto, CA 94304
www.vmware.com
2 VMware, Inc.
Contents
Updated Information 5
About This Book 7
Introduction 9
1
Migration with Converter Standalone 9
Converter Standalone Components 10
Converter Standalone Features 10
System Requirements 19
2
Supported Operating Systems 19
Installation Space Requirements 20
Supported Source Types 21
Supported Destination Types 23
Restoring VCB Images in Converter Standalone 24
How Conversion Affects the Source Settings When They Are Applied to the Destination 25
Changes That Conversion Causes to Virtual Hardware 26
TCP/IP Port Requirements for Conversion 26
Common Requirements for Remote Hot Cloning of Windows Operating Systems 26
Installing and Uninstalling VMware vCenter Converter Standalone 29
3
Install Converter Standalone in Windows 29
Uninstall, Modify, or Repair Converter Standalone in Windows 30
Perform a Command-Line Installation in Windows 31
Command-Line Options for Windows Installation 31
Perform a Local Installation in Linux 32
Perform a Client-Server Installation in Linux 33
Uninstall Converter Standalone in Linux 34
Modify or Repair Converter Standalone in Linux 34
Connect to a Remote Converter Standalone Server 35
Converting Machines 37
4
Convert a Machine 37
Configuring VMware Virtual Machines 65
5
Configure a Virtual Machine 65
Managing Conversion and Configuration Tasks 73
6
Manage Tasks in the Task List 73
Glossary 79
VMware, Inc. 3
User's Guide
Index 87
4 VMware, Inc.
Updated Information
This User's Guide for vCenter Converter Standalone 4.0.1 is updated with each release of the product or when
necessary.
This table provides the update history of the User's Guide for vCenter Converter Standalone 4.0.1.
Revision Description
EN-000158-02
EN-000158-01 Minor revision.
EN-000158-00 Initial release.
n
In Table 2-1, SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 7.0 is removed from the list as Converter
Standalone does not support this operating system.
n
In Table 2-3, the Third-party virtual machines or system images row is updated to
reflect that Parallels Virtuozzo containers are not supported.
n
In Table 2-4, a new row is added to reflect the limitations related to synchronizing
the source with the destination machine for Windows 2000 sources.
n
In Table 2-4, a new row is added to reflect the limitations related to synchronizing
the source with the destination machine for Windows XP or later sources.
n
In Table 2-5, the Linux host limitations are updated to reflect that VMware Tools
installation is not supported.
n
The topic “Perform a Local Installation in Linux,” on page 32 now contains the
correct filename of the Linux installer file.
n
Step 12 in the "Perform a Client-Server Installation in Linux" topic is updated to
reflect the actual procedure.
n
The topic “Customize the Guest Operating System,” on page 56 is updated to state
explicitly that you cannot customize the guest operating system of Linux source
machines.
n
In Step 1 of the "Save Sysprep Files" topic, the Sysprep files locations for Linux are
updated to reflect the correct location of the files.
n
The topic Virtual Machine Conversion Limitations has been renamed for clarity to
“Conversion Limitations for Virtual Machines,” on page 22.
n
The topic Virtual Appliance Conversion Limitations has been renamed for clarity to
“Conversion Limitations for Virtual Appliances,” on page 23.
n
The topic Powered-On Machine Conversion Limitations has been renamed for
clarity to “Conversion Limitations for Powered-On Machines,” on page 22.
VMware, Inc. 5
User's Guide
6 VMware, Inc.
About This Book
This book, the VMware vCenter Converter Standalone User’s Guide, provides information about installing and
using VMware® vCenter Converter Standalone.
Intended Audience
This book is intended for users who want to do the following:
n
Install, upgrade, or use Converter Standalone
n
Nonintrusively copy and transform physical machines into VMware virtual machines that VMware
vCenter Server manages
The material in this book is written for information systems engineers, software developers, QA engineers,
trainers, salespeople who run demonstrations, and anyone who wants to create virtual machines.
Document Feedback
VMware welcomes your suggestions for improving our documentation. If you have comments, send your
feedback to docfeedback@vmware.com.
VMware Infrastructure Documentation
The VMware Infrastructure documentation consists of the combined VMware vCenter Server and ESX
documentation set.
Technical Support and Education Resources
The following technical support resources are available to you. To access the current version of this book and
other books, go to http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs.
Online and Telephone
Support
VMware, Inc. 7
To use online support to submit technical support requests, view your product
and contract information, and register your products, go to
http://www.vmware.com/support.
User's Guide
Customers with appropriate support contracts should use telephone support
for the fastest response on priority 1 issues. Go to
http://www.vmware.com/support/phone_support.html.
Support Offerings
VMware Professional
Services
To find out how VMware support offerings can help meet your business needs,
go to http://www.vmware.com/support/services.
VMware Education Services courses offer extensive hands-on labs, case study
examples, and course materials designed to be used as on-the-job reference
tools. Courses are available onsite, in the classroom, and live online. For onsite
pilot programs and implementation best practices, VMware Consulting
Services provides offerings to help you assess, plan, build, and manage your
virtual environment. To access information about education classes,
certification programs, and consulting services, go to
http://www.vmware.com/services.
8 VMware, Inc.
Introduction 1
VMware® vCenter Converter Standalone 4.0.1 provides a scalable solution to migrate physical-to-virtual and
virtual-to-virtual machines.
Converter Standalone eases interoperability among the following products.
n
VMware hosted products can be both conversion sources and conversion destinations.
n
VMware Workstation
n
VMware ACE
n
VMware Fusion™
n
VMware Server
n
VMware Player
n
Virtual machines running on ESX that vCenter Server manages can be both conversion sources and
conversion destinations.
n
Unmanaged VMware ESX
n
VMware ESXi Installable
n
VMware ESXi Embedded
You can also restore VMware Consolidated Backup (VCB) images into VMware virtual machines.
This chapter includes the following topics:
n
“Migration with Converter Standalone,” on page 9
n
“Converter Standalone Components,” on page 10
n
“Converter Standalone Features,” on page 10
Migration with Converter Standalone
You can convert virtual machines from different source formats to one of several VMware product destinations.
Use Converter Standalone to accomplish the following tasks:
n
Convert physical and virtual machines to use across different VMware product formats.
n
Move virtual machines to use across different VMware product platforms.
n
Import and export virtual appliances from a local file system or from a URL.
n
Create VMware virtual machines from VCB images.
n
Create VMware virtual machines from third-party formats.
VMware, Inc.
9
User's Guide
n
Reduce the time needed to set up new virtual machine environments.
n
Migrate legacy servers to new hardware without reinstalling operating systems or application software.
n
Perform migrations across heterogeneous hardware.
n
Readjust volume sizes and place volumes on separate virtual disks and migrate the disks across
independent datastores.
n
View audit trails.
Converter Standalone Components
The Converter Standalone application consists of a client, a server, and an agent. The Converter Standalone
client can run on a separate machine. The Converter Standalone server and agent must always run on the same
machine. With this configuration, you can set up and manage conversion tasks remotely.
You use the Converter Standalone client to send conversion requests to the server. The server manages
conversion requests and sends them to the agent. The Converter Standalone agent runs the conversion task.
You can install all components on the same machine and use the Converter Standalone to convert all source
types to all destination types.
You can also install the Converter Standalone client on a separate machine and use the client to manage a
remote Converter Standalone server.
During a client-server installation you must install remote access to allow incoming connections to a Converter
Standalone server.
Converter Standalone Features
VMware® vCenter Converter Standalone provides a set of features to convert physical and virtual machines.
Table 1-1. Converter Standalone Features
Features VMware vCenter Converter Standalone
Supported products Designed for single migrations to VMware products such as
VMware Infrastructure, VMware Player, VMware Workstation, and
VMware Server.
License No licensing support.
Cloning Local and remote hot cloning to hosted products (Workstation, VMware Player,
VMware Server) and ESX.
Task management Single migration at a time. Set up a conversion.
The VMware Converter Boot CD (for cold cloning) is available only with a Converter Enterprise license. For
details about how to install the Boot CD, see the VMware Converter Enterprise for VirtualCenter 2.5 Administration
Guide.
Cloning and System Reconfiguration of Physical Machines
Cloning and system reconfiguration are processes that create the virtual disks and configure the target virtual
machine so that it works successfully in a virtual environment.
Cloning is the process of creating a cloned disk, where the cloned disk is a virtual disk that is an exact copy of
the source physical disk. This process involves copying the data on a physical source machine’s hard disk and
transferring that data to a target virtual disk (the new cloned disk).
System reconfiguration is the process of adjusting the migrated operating system so that it can function on
virtual hardware. This adjustment is performed on the target virtual disk after cloning. The target virtual disk
can then function as a bootable system disk in a virtual machine.
10 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 1 Introduction
Converter Standalone creates a VMware virtual machine based on a source physical machine. The migration
process is nondestructive, so that you can continue to use the original source machine. To run a converted
VMware virtual machine on the same network as the source physical machine, you must modify the network
name and IP address on one of the machines. This modification avoids network related conflicts and allows
the physical and virtual machines to coexist.
NOTE You cannot move original equipment manufacturer (OEM) media between physical machines. The
license is attached to the server when you purchase it from the OEM and you cannot reassign it. You can only
reassign retail and volume licenses to new physical servers. If you migrate an OEM Windows image, you must
have a Windows Server Enterprise or Datacenter Edition license on the ESX host to run multiple virtual
machines.
Hot and Cold Cloning
Although Converter Standalone 4.0.1 supports only hot cloning, you can still perform cold cloning using the
VMware Converter 3.0.3 Boot CD. Hot and cold cloning have different applications that depend on your virtual
environment.
Hot cloning, also called live cloning or online cloning, entails cloning the source machine while it is running
its operating system. Hot cloning allows cloning machines without shutting them down.
When you create a hot clone, the resulting virtual machine is not an exact copy of the source machine because
processes continue to run on the source machine during conversion.
To reduce the difference between the source and the resulting virtual machine, Converter Standalone can shut
down unused Windows services based on your settings on the View/Edit options page. You can set Converter
Standalone to synchronize the destination virtual machine with the source machine after hot cloning. You do
this by transferring from the source to the destination the blocks that were changed during the initial cloning
period.
Converter Standalone can shut down the source machine and power on the destination machine when the
conversion process is complete. This action is the P2V motion that allows migrating a physical machine source
to a virtual machine destination. The destination machine takes over the source machine operations with the
least possible down time.
Cold cloning, also called offline cloning, entails cloning the source machine when it is not running its operating
system. In cold cloning, the user restarts the source machine from a CD that contains an operating system and
the VMware Converter application. This cloning method allows you to create the most consistent copy of the
source machine because nothing changes on the source machine during conversion. Cold cloning leaves no
data on the source machine, but requires physical access to the source machine that is being cloned.
When you cold clone a Linux source, the resulting virtual machine is an exact replica of the source machine
and you cannot reconfigure the virtual machine. You must reconfigure the resulting virtual machine after the
cloning is complete.
Table 1-2 compares the hot and cold cloning modes.
Table 1-2. Hot and Cold Cloning Comparison
Hot Cloning with Converter
Comparison Criteria
Licensing No license required with VMware
Required installation Full Converter Standalone installation
Supported sources Local and remote powered-on
Standalone 4.0.1
vCenter Converter Standalone 4.0.1.
or a server and agent installation.
physical or virtual machines.
Cold Cloning with Converter
Enterprise 3.0.x
License file required for Enterprise
features of VMware Converter
Enterprise.
No installation. Installation occurs
when you reboot the source machine.
Local powered-off physical machines.
VMware, Inc. 11
User's Guide
Table 1-2. Hot and Cold Cloning Comparison (Continued)
Hot Cloning with Converter
Comparison Criteria
Advantages
Disadvantages
Use
Do not use When you do not want anything to be
Standalone 4.0.1
n
Does not require direct access to
the source machine.
n
You can clone the source machine
while it is running.
n
On source systems running MS
Windows 2000, you must install a
special driver and reboot the
system once.
n
Applications that constantly
modify files need to be VSS aware
to allow you to create a consistent
snapshot for cloning.
n
Dynamic source disks are read but
not preserved during volumebased conversions. Dynamic disks
are converted into basic volumes
on the target virtual machine.
n
Clones running source machines
without shutting them down.
n
Use when you have unique
hardware that the boot CD does
not recognize.
installed on the source system.
Cold Cloning with Converter
Enterprise 3.0.x
n
Creates the most consistent copy of
the source machine.
n
Leaves no data on the source
machine.
n
You must restart the source
machine to clone it.
n
Requires physical access to the
source machine.
n
Hardware detection and
configuration of Boot CD.
n
Converter Standalone 4.0.1 features
are not supported.
n
To clone a system that Converter
Standalone does not support.
n
To preserve the exact disk layout in
the target.
n
To preserve logical volumes in
dynamic disks (Windows) or LVM
(Linux).
n
When you want Linux P2V with
automatic reconfiguration.
n
When you do not have physical
access to the source machine.
n
When you cannot afford a long
downtime of the source system.
n
To perform P2V Motion.
Prepare for Cold Cloning
Because VMware vCenter Converter Standalone 4.0.1 does not support cold cloning, you must use an earlier
Converter edition boot CD. The features supported on the boot CD depend on the product version you choose.
VMware Converter 3.0.x Enterprise edition is not a free software product.
Procedure
1 To obtain a boot CD, go to the VMware Download Web site and download Converter 3.0.x Enterprise
installation.
2 Extract the boot CD .iso file from the installation package.
3 Burn the boot CD .iso file on a CD.
What to do next
Follow the on-screen instructions to proceed with cold cloning.
12 VMware, Inc.
agent
vCenter Converter Standalone running
on Windows machine
powered-on
physical machine
ESX/ESXi
source
destination
network
snapshot
source
volumes
Chapter 1 Introduction
Hot Cloning of Physical Machines
Converter Standalone supports only hot cloning of physical machines. VMware Converter 3.0.x supports cold
cloning.
You can select which services to keep running on the source machine while the conversion is running. To have
the destination virtual machine retain all of the blocks that changed in the source system during the cloning
process, you can turn on the synchronization feature. With synchronization on, if any changes occur on the
source machine during the conversion, Converter Standalone copies them to the destination machine after the
conversion is complete. This process helps you to prevent downtime on important services.
NOTE When you hot clone dual-boot systems, you can clone only the default operating system to which the
boot.ini file points. To clone the nondefault operating system, change the boot.ini file to point to the other
operating system and reboot. After you are booted in to the other operating system, you can install Converter
Standalone and hot clone it. If your second operating system is Linux, you can boot it, install the Converter
Standalone Linux version, and clone your distribution.
Local and Remote Cloning of Physical Machines
Local cloning is a migration performed with Converter Standalone running on the source machine. Remote
cloning is migration when Converter Standalone is running on a machine different than the source. When you
perform a remote clone, you can access the remote source machine through the network, as long as it is running.
On physical machine sources running Linux, local cloning is set up and performed like remote cloning.
Remote Hot Cloning of Physical Machine Sources That Are Running Windows
You use the Conversion wizard to set up a migration task and Converter Standalone performs all of the cloning
tasks.
The following workflow is an example of remote hot cloning, in which the physical machine being cloned
experiences no downtime.
1 Converter Standalone prepares the source machine for the conversion.
Converter Standalone installs the agent on the source machine and the agent takes a snapshot of the source
volumes.
2 Converter Standalone prepares the virtual machine on the destination machine.
Converter Standalone creates a virtual machine on the destination machine and the agent copies volumes
from the source machine to the destination machine.
VMware, Inc. 13
agent
vCenter Converter Standalone running
on Windows machine
powered-on
physical machine
ESX/ESXi
copied
volumes
source
destination
network
snapshot
VM
source
volumes
agent
vCenter Converter Standalone running
on Windows machine
powered-on
physical machine
ESX/ESXi
source
destination
network
VM
source
volumes
snapshot
reconfiguration
customization (optional)
User's Guide
3 Converter Standalone completes the conversion process.
The agent installs the required drivers to allow the operating system to boot in a virtual machine and
personalizes the virtual machine, for example, changing the IP information.
4 Optionally Converter Standalone uninstalls the agent from the source machine.
The virtual machine is ready to run on the destination server.
Hot Cloning of Physical Machine Sources That Are Running Linux
Conversions of physical machine sources that are running Linux differ from conversions of Windows sources.
In Windows conversions, Converter Standalone agent is deployed to the source machine and the source
information is pushed to the destination machine.
In Linux conversions, no agent is deployed on the source machine. A helper virtual machine is created instead
and deployed to the destination ESX/ESXi host. The source data is then pulled from the source Linux machine
to the helper virtual machine. After the conversion is over, the helper virtual machine shuts down to become
the target virtual machine the next time you power it on.
Converter Standalone supports converting Linux sources only to managed destinations.
14 VMware, Inc.
vCenter Converter Standalone
agent and server
Converter Standalone
agent deploys helper
virtual machine
powered-on Linux
machine
ESX/ESXi
source
destination
network
Helper
VM
source
volumes
vCenter Converter Standalone
agent and server
powered-on Linux
machine
data copied to the
helper virtual machine
ESX/ESXi
source
destination
network
Helper
VM
source
volumes
Chapter 1 Introduction
The following workflow demonstrates the principles of hot cloning physical machine sources that run Linux
to managed destinations.
1 The Converter Standalone agent uses SSH to connect to the source machine and retrieves source
information. The Converter Standalone agent creates an empty helper virtual machine based on your
conversion task settings. The helper virtual machine serves as a container for the new virtual machine
during conversion. The Converter Standalone agent deploys the helper virtual machine on the managed
destination, an ESX/ESXi host. The helper virtual machine boots from a *.iso file that is located on the
converter Standalone server machine.
2 The helper virtual machine powers on, boots from the Linux image, and connects to the source machine
through SSH. Then it starts retrieving the selected data from the source. While you set up the conversion
task, you can select which source volumes to be copied to the destination machine.
3 Optionally, when data copying is complete, the target virtual machine is reconfigured to allow the
operating system to boot in a virtual machine.
4 The Converter Standalone agent shuts down the helper virtual machine. The conversion process is
complete.
Optionally, you can configure Converter Standalone to power on the newly created virtual machine after the
conversion is complete.
VMware, Inc. 15
User's Guide
Cloning Modes
Converter Standalone implements volume-based cloning, disk-based cloning, and linked cloning.
Table 1-3. Cloning Modes
Cloning Mode Application Description
Volume based Selects the volumes to copy from the
source machine to the destination
machine.
Disk based Creates exact copies of the source
machines, for all types of basic and
dynamic disks.
Linked clone Use to quickly check compatibility of
non-VMware images
Volume-based cloning is relatively
slow. File-level cloning is slower than
block-level cloning. Dynamic disks are
converted into basic volumes on the
target virtual machine.
You cannot select which data to copy.
Disk-based cloning is faster than
volume-based cloning.
For certain third-party sources, the
linked clone is corrupted if you power
on the source machine. Linked cloning
is the fastest (but incomplete) cloning
mode that Converter Standalone
supports.
Volume-Based Cloning
Converter Standalone supports volume-based cloning for hot and cold cloning and to import existing virtual
machines.
In volume-based cloning, all volumes in the destination virtual machine are converted to basic volumes,
regardless of their type in the corresponding source volume. Volume-based cloning at the file or block level is
performed, depending on the volume size you select. Dynamic source disks are read but not preserved during
volume-based conversions. Dynamic disks are converted into basic volumes on the target virtual machine.
Volume-based cloning at
Performed when any size smaller than the original is selected.
the file level
Volume-based cloning at
Performed when the volume size is maintained or extended.
the block level
Depending on the cloning mode, Converter Standalone might not support some types of source volumes.
Table 1-4 shows the supported and unsupported source volume types.
Table 1-4. Supported and Unsupported Source Volumes
Cloning Mode Source Volumes Supported Source Volumes Not Supported
Virtual machine importing
Hot cloning All types of source volumes that
n
Basic volumes
n
All types of dynamic volumes
n
Windows NT 4 with mirrored
volumes
n
Only master boot record (MBR)
disks
Windows recognizes
n
RAID
n
Windows NT4 fault-tolerant
volumes
n
GUID partition table (GPT) disks
n
Any volumes that reside on
Windows NT operating systems
Volume-based cloning at the file level is supported only for FAT, FAT32, NTFS, ext2, ext3, and ReiserFS file
systems.
16 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 1 Introduction
Disk-Based Cloning
Converter Standalone supports disk-based cloning to import existing virtual machines.
Disk-based cloning transfers all sectors from all disks and preserves all volume metadata. The destination
virtual machine receives the same volumes, of the same type as the volumes of the source virtual machine.
Disk-based cloning supports all types of basic and dynamic disks.
Full and Linked Clones
Clones can be full or linked according to the amount of data copied from the source to the destination machine.
A full clone is an independent copy of a virtual machine that shares nothing with the parent virtual machine
after the cloning operation. Ongoing operation of a full clone is separate from the parent virtual machine.
Because a full clone does not share virtual disks with the parent virtual machine, full clones generally perform
better than linked clones. Full clones take longer to create than linked clones. Creating a full clone can take
several minutes if the files involved are large.
You can create a full clone by using any disk clone mode other than the linked clone mode.
A linked clone is a copy of a virtual machine that shares virtual disks with the parent virtual machine in an
ongoing manner. A linked clone is a fast way to convert and run a new virtual machine. You can create a linked
clone from the current state, or snapshot, of a powered-off virtual machine. This practice conserves disk space
and allows multiple virtual machines to use the same software installation.
All files available on the source machine at the moment of the snapshot continue to remain available to the
linked clone. Ongoing changes to the virtual disk of the parent do not affect the linked clone, and changes to
the disk of the linked clone do not affect the source machine. If you make changes to a source Virtual PC and
Virtual Server machines, or to LiveState images, the linked clone is corrupted and you cannot use it anymore.
A linked clone must have access to the source. Without access to the source, you cannot use a linked clone at
all.
To quickly convert a virtual machine, create a linked clone. See “Create a Linked Clone,” on page 53.
Migrating Existing Virtual Machines and System Images
You can move virtual machines between hosted products and managed products. A hosted product runs as
an application on physical machines with an operating system. A managed product is a bare-metal VMware
product that provides a thin software layer (the hypervisor) that enables it to run directly on the physical
machine.
Converting virtual
machines
Configuring virtual
machines
You can move VMware virtual machines between Workstation,
VMware Player, VMware ACE, VMware Fusion, ESX, ESXi Embedded,
ESXi Installable, and VMware Server. You can also import virtual machines
from Microsoft Virtual Server and Virtual PC.
For VMware virtual machines with disks set up by restoration from a backup
of a physical host or by some other direct means of copying, Converter
Standalone prepares the image to run on VMware virtual hardware. If you used
a third-party virtualization software to create a virtual machine on an ESX host,
VMware, Inc. 17
User's Guide
you can use Converter Standalone to reconfigure it. You can also reconfigure
any operating system installed on a multiboot machine if you imported the
virtual machine to an ESX host. Before you reconfigure a multiboot machine,
you must change the boot.ini file.
Converting and
exporting virtual
appliances
You can convert and export virtual appliances stored in Open Virtual Machine
Format (OVF and OVA). You can import a virtual appliance to run in an
existing ESX host or Workstation virtual machine, or you can export an existing
VMware virtual machine to an OVF virtual appliance to share over the
network.
Virtual Appliance Overview
Converter Standalone supports importing virtual appliances stored in OVF 0.9 or OVF 1.0 and creating virtual
appliances stored in OVF 1.0. An appliance is a preconfigured virtual machine that typically includes a
preinstalled guest operating system and other software. Importing virtual appliances allows you to add
preconfigured virtual machines to your vCenter, ESX Server, or Workstation inventory.
Importing a virtual appliance is similar to deploying a virtual machine from a template. You can import a
virtual appliance from any local file system accessible from the source machine or from a remote Web server.
Local file systems can include local disks (such as C:), removable media (such as CDs or USB key chain drives),
and shared network drives.
OVF is not a bootable format. You cannot boot the file in a virtualization platform in its current state. You must
import the appliance to either a hosted or managed destination to boot it.
In addition to importing virtual appliances with Converter Standalone, you can also import OVF virtual
appliances to ESX Server or a VirtualCenter server by using VI Client 2.5.
Every OVF virtual appliance contains a .ovf file with metadata that describes the virtual appliance. An OVF
virtual appliance can be packaged as a .ovf file where the .ovf file is a tarred file that contains all of the files
in the OVF virtual appliance.
Managing Tasks
Converter Standalone provides a task manager to manage conversion tasks and configuration tasks.
After you create a task to import or configure a machine, use the Task View of the task manager to perform
the following tasks:
n
Control the number of concurrent conversion or configuration tasks.
n
Create a copy of a task and edit it.
n
Cancel a task.
n
Delete a task.
n
View a task’s progress.
n
Export and view the log files for a task or for all tasks.
n
Filter tasks that are displayed in the task list.
18 VMware, Inc.
System Requirements 2
This information describes the requirements you must fulfill before you operate VMware® vCenter Converter
Standalone and describes the compatibilities and interoperabilities among the systems on which and with
which Converter Standalone works.
This chapter includes the following topics:
n
“Supported Operating Systems,” on page 19
n
“Installation Space Requirements,” on page 20
n
“Supported Source Types,” on page 21
n
“Supported Destination Types,” on page 23
n
“Restoring VCB Images in Converter Standalone,” on page 24
n
“How Conversion Affects the Source Settings When They Are Applied to the Destination,” on
page 25
n
“Changes That Conversion Causes to Virtual Hardware,” on page 26
n
“TCP/IP Port Requirements for Conversion,” on page 26
n
“Common Requirements for Remote Hot Cloning of Windows Operating Systems,” on page 26
Supported Operating Systems
The Converter Standalone components you can run on an operating system determine the type of support
available: client support, server support, and remote access support. Source support is available if Converter
Standalone can convert the operating system that is installed on a powered-on or virtual machine.
For a list of operating systems on which you can install Converter Standalone components, see Table 2-1.
Table 2-1. Supported Operating Systems
Supported Operating
Systems
Windows NT4 SP6+ N N N Y
Windows 2000 SP4 Y Y Y Y
Windows XP
Professional (32 bit and
64 bit) SP3
Windows 2003 (32 bit
and 64 bit) SP2, Revision
2
VMware, Inc. 19
Client
Support Server Support
Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y Y
Source for
Remote P2V
Source for Virtual Machine
Import
User's Guide
Table 2-1. Supported Operating Systems (Continued)
Supported Operating
Systems
Client
Support Server Support
Source for
Remote P2V
Source for Virtual Machine
Import
Windows Vista (32 bit
and 64 bit) SP1
Windows 2008 Server
(32 bit and 64 bit)
Red Hat Enterprise
Linux 2.1 (32 bit)
Red Hat Linux
Advanced Server 2.1
(32 bit)
Red Hat Enterprise
Linux 3.0 (32 bit and 64
bit)
Red Hat Enterprise
Linux 4.0 (32 bit and 64
bit)
Red Hat Enterprise
Linux 5.0 (32 bit and 64
bit)
SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server 8.0
SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server 9.0 (32 bit and 64
bit)
SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server 10.0 (32 bit and 64
bit)
Ubuntu 5.x N Y N Y
Ubuntu 6.x Y Y Y Y
Ubuntu 7.x (32 bit and 64
bit)
Ubuntu 8.x (32 bit and 64
bit)
Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y Y
N N N Y
N N N Y
N Y N Y
Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y Y
N Y N Y
N Y N Y
Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y Y
Installation Space Requirements
During installation you can select which Converter Standalone components to install. All components require
different disk space to install.
Table 2-2 shows the disk space required to install Converter Standalone and its components.
Table 2-2. Installation Space Requirements
Operating System Installation Component Disk Space Required
Windows Installation file 100MB
Decompressed installation file 100MB
Client 25MB
Server and agent 360MB
Linux Installation file 130MB
20 VMware, Inc.
Table 2-2. Installation Space Requirements (Continued)
Operating System Installation Component Disk Space Required
Supported Source Types
With Converter Standalone, you can convert local or remote powered-on machines, VMware virtual machines,
third-party virtual machines, system images, and OVF or OVA virtual appliances.
Table 2-3 lists the sources that Converter Standalone supports.
Table 2-3. Supported Sources
Source Type Sources
Powered-on machines
VMware Infrastructure virtual
machines
VMware virtual machines
Third-party virtual machines or
system images
OVF or OVA virtual appliances
Chapter 2 System Requirements
Decompressed installation file 500MB
Client 130MB
Server and agent 450MB
n
Windows physical machines (local or remote)
n
Linux physical machines (local and remote)
n
Windows virtual machines running on Hyper-V Server (local and remote)
n
Windows virtual machines running on Citrix XenServer 4 Enterprise Edition (local
and remote)
n
Windows virtual machines running on Virtual Iron version 4.2 (local and remote)
n
ESX 3.x and 4.0
n
ESXi versions 3.5 and 4.0 Installable and ESXi versions 3.5 and 4.0 Embedded
n
ESX Server 2.5.x (if VirtualCenter 2.x manages ESX)
n
vCenter Server 2.0, 2.5, and 4.0
n
VMware Workstation 4.x, 5.x, 6.0.x, and 6.5.x
n
VMware Fusion 1.x and 2.x
n
VMware Player 1.x, 2.x, and 2.5
n
VMware ACE 1.x, 2.x, and 2.5.x
n
VMware Server 1.x, 2.x
n
VMware Consolidated Backup (.vmx)
n
Acronis True Image Echo 9.1 and 9.5, and Acronis True Image 10 Home (.tib).
Supported only in Converter Standalone server and agent for Windows.
n
Symantec Backup Exec System Recovery (formerly LiveState Recovery) 6.5, 7.0, 8.0,
and 8.5, LiveState Recovery 3.0 and 6.0 (.sv2i, .v2i or .iv2i). Supported only in
Converter Standalone server and agent for Windows.
n
Norton Ghost version 10.0, 11.0, 12.0, 13.0, and 14.0 (.sv2i). Supported only in
Converter Standalone server and agent for Windows.
n
Parallels Desktop for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, and 4.0 (.pvs
and .hdd). Parallels Virtuozzo containers are not supported.
n
Parallels Workstation 2.0 (.pvs)
n
All versions of StorageCraft ShadowProtect Desktop, Server, SBS, IT, and so on
(.spf). Supported only in Converter Standalone server and agent for Windows.
n
Microsoft Virtual PC 2004 for Windows and Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 for Windows
(.vmc)
n
Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 and 2005 R2 (.vmc)
n
OVF specification version 0.9 and 1.0
n
Local .ovf or .ova file
n
URL to an .ovf or .ova file
VMware, Inc. 21
User's Guide
You must power off source virtual machines before you convert them. You can convert running virtual
machines only if you follow the procedure for converting powered-on machines.
You can convert local Linux machines by treating them as remote powered-on machines. You must specify the
local IP address and root credentials to proceed.
Conversion Limitations for Powered-On Machines
When you convert a powered-on machine, some conversion features might not be available for certain source
operating systems.
For a list of limitations dependent on the source operating system, see Table 2-4.
Table 2-4. Powered-On Machine Conversion Limitations
Source Operating System Limitations
Windows NT Server SP6+ Only virtual machines can be converted.
Windows 2000 Synchronization is not supported.
Windows XP and later
Linux
n
Synchronization is supported only for volume-based cloning at the block level.
n
Synchronization is supported only for managed destinations.
n
Only volume-based cloning at the file level is supported.
n
Only managed destinations are supported.
Conversion Limitations for Virtual Machines
Certain limitations exist when you convert a virtual machine, depending on the type of operating system on
which you run Converter Standalone.
You must power off source virtual machines before you convert them. You can convert running virtual
machines only if you follow the procedure for converting powered-on machines.
You can convert multiboot virtual machines only if GRUB is installed as the boot loader. LILO is not supported.
For a list of limitations dependent on the host operating system, see Table 2-5.
Table 2-5. Virtual Machine Conversion Limitations
Host Operating System Limitations
Windows 2000 Reconfiguration and customization are supported only for Windows NT4 and
Windows 2000 guest operating systems.
Windows Server 2003
Windows XP
Windows Vista
Windows Server 2008
Linux
n
Disk-based cloning only for Linux guests.
n
Reconfiguration or customization for Linux guests is not supported.
n
VMware Tools installation for Linux guests is not supported.
n
Only disk-based cloning for all guest operating systems.
n
Volume-based cloning is not supported.
n
Gathering volume information for Windows guests is not supported.
n
Conversion of Symantec LiveState Recovery Image, Acronis, Storage Craft, and VCB
is not supported.
n
Reconfiguration is only supported for all Windows guests except Windows NT4.
n
Reconfiguration of Windows guests is not supported if the active partition of the
guest operating system is located on a FAT partition.
n
VMware Tools installation is not supported.
n
Customization is not supported.
22 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 2 System Requirements
Conversion Limitations for Third-Party Virtual Machines or System Images
Converter Standalone can convert third-party virtual machines, system images, and ShadowProtect and
BackupExec System Recovery images. These conversions have some limitations.
Third-party virtual machines and system images have the following limitations:
n
Virtual machines from Macintosh versions of Virtual PC are not supported.
n
The operating system on the source Virtual PC or Virtual Server virtual machine must be a Windows guest
operating system supported by the intended VMware platform (for example, Workstation 5 or 6.0.x). For
a list of supported operating systems, see the Guest Operating System Installation Guide.
Converter Standalone supports Virtual PC and Virtual Server virtual machines with most Windows
operating systems earlier than Windows NT 4.0 and with non-Windows operating systems (for example,
Linux and DOS) only for cloning. Converter Standalone does not support configuring for these systems.
ShadowProtect and Backup Exec System Recovery have the following limitations:
n
Dynamic disks are not supported.
n
All images for the backup of a machine must be in a single folder with no other images placed there.
n
For volume-based cloning, all volumes in the disk up to the active and system volumes must be backed
up. For example, if a disk has four partitions, 1 through 4, with partition 2 as the active volume and partition
3 as the system volume, the backup must include partitions 1 through 3.
n
For incremental images, up to 16 incremental backups are supported.
n
Images of systems with logical drives are not supported if the logical drive is also a system or active volume
(ShadowProtect only).
Conversion Limitations for Virtual Appliances
Some limitations exist when you convert virtual appliances.
The following scenarios are not supported:
n
Converting local and remote physical machines to virtual appliances
n
Selecting a subset of the volumes or resizing the volumes. You must select all volumes for an import and
maintain the size of all of the volumes on the target machine.
n
Converting from OVF to OVF. That is, when both source and destination are virtual appliances.
n
Converting third-party backup images or virtual machine images to a virtual appliance.
n
Converting Windows 2000 virtual machines with scsiport.sys driver version 5.0.2195.7017 to a virtual
appliance.
n
Converting Windows NT 4 SMP virtual machines to a virtual appliance.
Although Converter Standalone does not support the preceding scenarios, in each case you can use Converter
Standalone to first convert the source machine to a VMware virtual machine and then convert that machine to
a virtual appliance.
Supported Destination Types
Converter Standalone can create virtual machines compatible with VMware hosted and managed products.
Converter Standalone can also create virtual appliances for Internet distribution.
Table 2-6 shows the destinations that Converter Standalone supports.
VMware, Inc. 23
User's Guide
Table 2-6. Supported Destinations
Destination Type Supported Versions
VMware Infrastructure virtual machine Managed destinations
n
ESX 3.x and 4.0
n
ESXi 3.x and 4.0 Installable and ESXi 3.x and 4.0
Embedded
n
vCenter Server 2.x and 4.0
VMware virtual machines Hosted destinations
n
VMware Workstation 5.x, 6.0.x, and 6.5.x
n
VMware Fusion 1.x and 2.x
n
VMware ACE 2.0.x and VMware ACE 2.5.x
n
VMware Player 1.x, 2.0.x, and 2.5.x
n
VMware Server 1.x and 2.x
OVF and OVA virtual appliances
n
OVF spec version 1.0
n
Local .ovf or .ova file
NOTE For hosted destinations that reside on SMB or NFS shares, you must use volume-based cloning and
create 2GB disks that are not preallocated.
Restoring VCB Images in Converter Standalone
VMware Consolidated Backup enables you to back up all of the virtual machines of an entire ESX server. The
backup is stored by using Workstation disks, a .vmx file, and a catalog file. Converter Standalone can restore
VCB images to ESX server hosts and convert them to VMware standalone virtual machines.
When it runs on Windows hosts, Converter Standalone supports restoring VCB images of the source operating
systems described in Table 2-1.
The virtual machine conversion limitations for Windows hosts described in Table 2-5 also apply when restoring
VCB images. Restoring VCB images from Linux host operating systems is not supported.
Converter Standalone does not maintain the .nvram file, nor the VMware log files.
Converter Standalone does not read the original location settings from the catalog file. To restore to the same
location, find information such as datastore, host name, folder name, and resource pool in the catalog file and
enter it in the Conversion wizard. In addition, Converter Standalone does not read the original display name
from the catalog file. To use the same name and if you do not remember it, look it up in the catalog file. You
can read the catalog file as a plain text file.
Information Not Preserved When Using Converter Standalone for Managed Product Destinations
When you restore VCB images for managed product destinations (ESX server hosts, for example), Converter
Standalone does not preserve certain hardware backing information from the original image, but rather
substitutes default settings.
Table 2-7 shows which areas are affected.
Table 2-7. Changes to Hardware Information Because of Conversion
Affected Area Behavior
CD-ROM Defaults to device type: client device.
Floppy Defaults to device type: client device.
Network adapters Defaults to the list of network adapters in the GUI. The MAC address is not preserved. The destination
host regenerates the MAC address.
24 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 2 System Requirements
Table 2-7. Changes to Hardware Information Because of Conversion (Continued)
Affected Area Behavior
Serial port Defaults to the physical serial port on destination host machine.
Parallel port Defaults to the physical parallel port on destination host machine.
When you restore images, the Converter Standalone GUI does not preserve certain other virtual machine
properties from the original image, but substitutes default settings. Table 2-8 shows the affected areas.
Table 2-8. Changes to Properties Because of Conversion
Affected Area Behavior
UUID The virtual machine’s BIOS and location, identified by uuid.bios and uuid.location, are not
preserved. The destination host machine regenerates the BIOS and location.
Disk resource allocation Defaults to the values available on the host when the virtual machine is created.
Information Not Preserved for Hosted Product Destinations
When you import a VCB image to a hosted product destination (Workstation, for example), Converter
Standalone cannot guarantee that virtual machine properties can be preserved. This behavior is because
Converter Standalone handles this importation as a normal migration, not a restore.
For more information about VCB images, see the Virtual Machine Backup Guide.
How Conversion Affects the Source Settings When They Are Applied to the Destination
The VMware virtual machine that Converter Standalone creates contains an exact copy of the disk state from
the source physical machine, virtual machine, or system image. Some hardware-dependent drivers and
sometimes the mapped drive letters are not included in the copy.
The following settings from the source computer remain identical:
n
Operating system configuration (computer name, security ID, user accounts, profiles, preferences, and so
on)
n
Applications and data files
n
Each disk partition volume serial number
Because the target and the source virtual machines or system images have the same identities (name, SID, and
so on), running both machines on the same network can result in conflicts. To redeploy the source virtual
machine or system image, ensure that you do not run the source and target images or virtual machines on the
same network at the same time.
For example, if you use Converter Standalone to test the viability of running a Virtual PC virtual machine as
a VMware virtual machine without first decommissioning the original Virtual PC machine, you must resolve
the duplicate ID problem. To resolve this problem, use the optional View/Edit step in the Conversion wizard.
VMware, Inc. 25
User's Guide
Changes That Conversion Causes to Virtual Hardware
Most migrated applications function correctly in the VMware virtual machine because their configuration and
data files have the same location as the source virtual machine. Applications might not work if they depend
on specific characteristics of the underlying hardware such as the serial number or the device manufacturer.
The following hardware changes might occur after virtual machine migration:
n
CPU model and serial numbers (if activated) can be different after the migration. These numbers
correspond to the physical computer hosting the VMware virtual machine.
n
Ethernet adapter can be different (AMD PCNet or VMXnet) with a different MAC address. Each interface
IP address must be individually reconfigured.
n
Graphics card can be different (VMware SVGA card).
n
The number of disks and partitions remains the same, but each disk device can have a different model
and different manufacturer strings.
n
Primary disk controllers can be different from the source machine’s controllers.
n
Applications might not work if they depend on devices that are not available from within a virtual
machine.
TCP/IP Port Requirements for Conversion
Converter Standalone uses specific ports in the conversion process.
For a list of required TCP/IP ports during conversion, see Table 2-9.
Table 2-9. Converter Standalone Port Requirements
Communication Path Port
Converter Standalone server to remote Windows powered-on machine 445, 139, 9089
Converter Standalone server to remote Linux powered-on machine 22
Helper virtual machine to remote Linux powered-on machine 22
Converter Standalone to a VMware vCenter Server 443
Converter Standalone to ESX 3.x 443
Converter Standalone server to a helper virtual machine 443
Powered-on machine to a VMware vCenter Server 443
Powered-on machine to ESX 3.x 443, 902
Common Requirements for Remote Hot Cloning of Windows Operating Systems
The following information can help you avoid issues related to permissions and network access when you
perform hot cloning of Windows operating systems.
To ensure successful remote hot cloning of Windows platforms, verify the following items on the source
machine before you start the application:
n
Ensure that Simple File Sharing is turned off.
n
Ensure that file and printer sharing is not blocked by Windows Firewall.
26 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 2 System Requirements
Ensure That Windows Firewall Does Not Block File and Printer Sharing
If Converter Standalone fails to connect to a remote Windows XP machine and issues a bad username/password
error message, ensure that file and printer sharing is not blocked by Windows Firewall.
Procedure
1 Select Start > Settings > Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Local Security Policy.
2 In the Security Settings list to the left, select Local Policies > Security Options.
3 In the policies list to the right, select Network access: Sharing and Security model for local accounts.
4 Verify that Classic – local users authenticate as themselves is selected.
What to do next
For troubleshooting information about file and printer sharing, see the Microsoft TechNet Web site.
Turn Off Simple File Sharing on Windows XP Professional
To control permissions for individual users, you must turn off Simple File Sharing. Turning Simple File Sharing
off does not turn off the Shared Documents feature. Use the Simple File Sharing UI, located in the folder’s
properties, to configure share and file permissions.
For Windows XP Professional operating systems joined to a workgroup, the Simple File Sharing UI is turned
on by default. Windows XP Professional operating systems joined to a domain use only the classic file sharing
and security interface.
Procedure
1 Select Start > Settings > Control Panel > Folder Options.
2 Click the View tab and deselect Use Simple File Sharing (Recommended).
For additional information about turning simple file sharing on or off, see the Microsoft TechNet Web site.
VMware, Inc. 27
User's Guide
28 VMware, Inc.
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