Exporting a Virtual Machine
Export a virtual machine (VM) from a system in order to save an image of the VM to a network-mounted folder (that is, directory) or to a USB device. Exporting a VM from an everRun system makes the VM image available for importing to another system or for importing back to the same everRun system to restore or duplicate the original VM. An exported VM can function as a backup of the original VM. You can directly export a VM from the everRun system as described in this topic, or you can create and export a snapshot. For an overview of snapshots, see Managing Snapshots.
Prepare for exporting a VM by inserting a USB device or by creating a network-mounted folder to store an exported VM in your environment. If you are using a USB device, insert it into the current primary node of the system (displayed as noden (primary) on the Physical Machines page). If you are using a folder, create a folder for either a Windows share or a Network File System (NFS) export. A Windows share is also known as a Common Internet File System (CIFS) share (Samba, for example). Then mount the folder or USB device in the host operating system of the everRun system, as described in this topic. When you initiate an export in the everRun Availability Console, the everRun system saves the VM as standard Open Virtualization Format (OVF) and Virtual Hard Disk (VHD) files.
Notes:
- Because the source VM must be shut down to export is, consider scheduling a planned maintenance period for this process (or consider taking a snapshot that you can export at a later time, as described in Creating a Snapshot).
- The time required for the export depends on the size and number of volumes in the source VM as well as network bandwidth. For example, transferring a VM with one 20 GB boot disk over a 1Gb network may take about 30 minutes.
- If you will continue to use the source VM after exporting it, remember to set a different MAC address and IP address for the VM when you import it on the target system.
- If the everRun system switches from the primary PM to the secondary PM during an export, the process fails. This does not affect the continuous uptime of the system. You can delete the partially exported files from the network-mounted folder and export the files again.
- The maximum size of a vfat file that you can export is 4 GB. If you try to export a vfat file larger than 4 GB, the export will fail.
- For Linux-based VMs, when exporting a VM to another system, you do not need to modify the /etc/fstab file. When exporting a VM from an Avance system to an everRun system, consider editing the file to comment out entries for data volumes and allow only the boot volume to mount. Because Linux-based VMs may use different device names on another system, the new VM may boot into single-user mode if it cannot mount the volumes with their original device names. You can restore the /etc/fstab entries in the new VM with the correct device names after the import process, as described below in Troubleshooting.
- For Ubuntu-based VMs running some older Ubuntu releases, you may need to edit the /boot/grub/grub.cfg file and change the gfxmode parameter to text (for example, set gfxmode=text) before exporting a VM; otherwise, the new VM's console may hang on another system. You can restore the original setting in the source VM after the migration.
In addition, Windows-based VMs require Windows-specific preparation.
To prepare for exporting a VM (Windows-based VMs only)
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Log on to the everRun system with the everRun Availability Console.
- On the Virtual Machines page, select the VM to export.
- Click Console to open the console of the VM and log on to the Windows guest operating system.
- Ensure that all volumes are labeled accurately, as summarized in Managing Windows Drive Labels.
- Run the Windows System Preparation Tool (Sysprep) to prepare the guest operating system for redeployment.
To export a VM
- Log on to the everRun system with the everRun Availability Console.
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On the Virtual Machines page, select the VM that you want to export, and click Shutdown. Wait for the VM to shut down. See The Virtual Machines Page.
- With the VM selected, click Export to open the export wizard.
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Select one of the following:
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Mount device via Windows Share (CIFS/SMB)
The export destination is a folder on a CIFS share. Enter a Username, Password, and Repository value. For Repository, enter a value in the format \\machine_URL\ShareName (for example, \\192.168.1.34\MyExportVMs).
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Mount device via NFS
The export destination is a folder on a remote system, accessed through NFS. Enter a Repository value, which is the URL of the remote system, in the format nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn (do not include http:// or https://).
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Mount USB
For USB partition list, select a partition from the pull-down menu.
- For Export Path: /mnt/ft-export:, type the path of the location where you want the VM to be exported and its OVF and VHD files to be stored. For example, if you want to export the VM to a new folder named ocean1, type ocean1.
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Click Mount.
If the mount succeeds, the repository appears under Device URL and the Export VM button becomes active; otherwise, an alert appears.
- Select the volumes to include under Boot Volume to Export and Data Volumes to Export. (The boot volume is required.)
- Click Export VM to export the VM.
You can monitor the Export Status in the Summary tab for the VM that you are exporting. Progress is reported as the percentage (%) completed for the whole export and for each volume. When the process is complete, the status changes to Export completed successfully.
To cancel the export, click Cancel next to the Export progress percentage. A dialog box opens, asking you to confirm the cancellation. Click Yes to cancel.
The everRun system exports the VHD files (volumes) first, then it exports the OVF file. You can confirm that the process is finished when the OVF file appears in the folder.
After the export process, if you want to import or restore the OVF and VHD files on an everRun system, see Importing an OVF File.
To unmount the device, see Mounting a USB Device or Network-mounted Folder on the everRun System.
Troubleshooting
If necessary, use the following information to resolve problems with the export process.
To clean up after a canceled or failed export from the everRun system
Remove the VM files from the export folder or create a new folder for a subsequent export.