Convert Physical Machines to Virtual Ones Using VMware vCenter Converter Standalone 5.0

The latest version of the VMware vCenter Converter Windows installer, which is free to use, can be downloaded from www.vmware.com. The download size download is about 126 MB and is simple to install. Once installed this wizard driven application can be used to perform multiple IP-based conversions from a central location leading to better management. Also this utility supports almost every known virtualization platform and is not limited to VMware. Using this application one can convert formats such as Microsoft Hyper-V, Virtual PC and Virtual Server, and backup images of physical machines such as Symantec Backup Exec System Recovery or Norton Ghost to VMware virtual machines. One can also convert Windows and Linux-based physical machines and third-party image formats to VMware virtual machines.

In our test setup we took one target computer with Windows XP (machine 1) running the relevant application, and then used a second computer (machine 2) as a central conversion server and installed VMware's converter application on it. We used a shared folder on machine 2 to store the VM of machine 1. To start conversion we need to start the converter application and click on 'Convert machine' tab on top. This would start the wizard prompting you to select which machine you want to convert---the host machine or any other machine on the network. In our test we took one of the machines in our network. Once credentials of the target machine are populated, the next step is to put the converter agent on the machine. The application should do it automatically, however, the internal firewall and administrative rights might prevent you from putting the agent application at a remote location. To overcome this issue, you can directly install the agent on a target machine. For this, go to 'C:\Program Files\VMware\VMware vCenter Converter Standalone' and find the 'VMware-Converter-Agent' application. Copy and install it on the target machine.

Once a connection has been established between the agent and the central converter, you need to specify the storage path, destination type, and the type of VM you want to convert. In this setup we created VM for VMware player which was stored in a shared folder on the network. Before conversion begins, you can edit the configuration of the created VM by clicking on 'Edit' link under 'Options'.

The conversion process takes some time depending on the target machine. You get a step-by-step update under 'Log Highlight' window.

After completion of the conversion, we found two new files on the storage drive (.vmx and .vmdk). We used the VMware player to run the freshly converted machine.