I'm pretty new to all the VMware world, so this is probably mainly a question about the right set of documentation to look at. I'm trying to clone/copy a VM that I installed on an ESXi installation.
I was trying to follow along with the top example here:
Is there a way to clone an existing VM on an ESXi server without having to re-import it?
However, I'm using the vSphere client to connect to the ESXi box and manage it, and the vSphere client is telling me it won't let me rename the vmdk file.
The real answer I want is how do I clone the VM I installed if I want to spin up 5 copies. Is there another utility I can use to copy the vmdk file, then create a new virtual machine using it? Any idea why they nerfed the feature in vSphere client?
Best Answer
The best way to do this, is to enable SSH access. You may then use the normal compliment of CLI utilities, such as vmkfstools, or simply copy the folder. Shut down the VM, then perform the copy. Once the copy is complete, browse the datastore, enter the new folder, right-click on the new .vmx file and select 'Add to inventory'.