Exporting a VM

When you export a VM you are creating a back up of the VM at that point in time. This is a great way to be able to migrate a VM from one system to another or even create a back up.

When exporting a VM there are a few items we need to think about when doing this.

Check the Virtual Hardware Version.
If you plan to export the VM and use it on a different system you want to make sure that the Virtual Hardware Version is compatible.
Remove Snapshots
When you export a VM a snapshot will not be included. It is recommended to remove snapshots as during the export process having snapshots might cause issues. Better to be safe and remove them.
Disconnect Removeable Media
You should remove all media that is connected/mounted on the virtual DVD/CD Drive, floppy or USB controllers. When you export your VM the media will not be included and will cause errors when you go to import the VM.

Export File Types

When you export a VM you will have two options: OVA (Open Virtualization Application/Appliance) and OVF (Open Virtualization Format). What are the differences?

If you select OVF it will contain several different files: ovf, vmdk, nvram and possibly more. You would need to include all files to import this VM on another host.

If you select an OVA it will create a single file that can be used for distribution and importing on a new host. Believe it or not an OVA file is just a TAR archive that contains all the files you would get when exporting to OVF.

Which one should you pick when exporting? I find using an OVA file much easier to use. It is a single file that you need to distribute. If, by chance, you need to modify the contents of a VM that is exported in an OVA file you can use tar to extract the contents and modify it as needed.

You might notice that VirtualBox provides the ability to export to OCI (Oracle Cloud Infrastructure) , but this is only for exporting to a remote cloud servers. This will not create a local file.

How to Export

I have provide two videos showing how to export our MX Linux VM that we previously created. The first video shows how to export a VM to an OVA file and the second video shows how to export a VM to OVF. The process is very similar between VMware Fusion and VMware Workstation. The demos below show how to do it in VMware Fusion.

Exporting to OVA

Exporting to OVF

VirtualBox

In VirtualBox you will see the option as Export to OCI (Oracle Cloud Infrastructure). Once you select this a new window will appear and you will be able to change the format to Open Virtualization Format (OVF) (second image below). Depending on how you name your file in VirtualBox will determine if it is an OVA or OVF file. Choose the correct file extension for how you wish to export the VM.

I would recommend always making sure the manifest file is created.

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