GNet Solutions » GNU/Linux Administration

Importing¶

• You can import an .ova archive through File -> Import Applicance in the VirtualBox GUI. The wizard allows to discard attached peripherals and “reinitialize the MAC address of all networks cards”. This latter option is important in the case you are importing to the same VirtualBox the .ova comes.

• The same can be achieved from command line:
  

  VBoxManage import exampleVM.ova
  

Exporting¶

• In the VirtualBox GUI click on File -> Export Appliance and choose the machine you want. If you click the Hide Description button then several metadata may be edited and set destination path.

• And the same can be done from command line:
  

  VBoxManage export "exampleVM" -o exampleVM.ova
  

Cloning¶

• To clone an existing virtual machine, select it in the VirtualBox GUI main window and right-click Machine -> Clone. In the wizard, set the destination machine name, choose if you want a independent machine (full clone) or create a virtual disk only with differences (linked clone). Source machine snapshots can be cloned too. Do not forget to set “reinitialize the MAC address of all network cards”.

• And the command line way:
  

  VBoxManage clonevm "exampleVM" --name "clonedVM" --register