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Cloning a Virtual Machine

A clone is a copy of a virtual machine. You can do anything with a clone that you could with the original virtual machine.

Installing a guest operating system and applications can be time consuming. By cloning a virtual machine, you can easily deploy many copies of a fully configured virtual machine, without the need to install the same operating system and applications in each copy.

Clones may be linked or full:

  • 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 entirely separate from the parent virtual machine.
  • A linked clone is a copy of a virtual machine that shares virtual disks with the parent virtual machine in an ongoing manner. This conserves disk space, and allows multiple virtual machines to use the same software installation.

    • The Clone Virtual Machine Wizard automatically copies everything required for a duplicate virtual machine. You don't have to locate the original virtual machine files, identify the files needed, and copy them manually. The Clone Virtual Machine Wizard automatically creates a new MAC address and other unique identifiers for the duplicate virtual machine.

    Refer to Cloning a Virtual Machine for more information regarding clones.

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