VM name change

Quick question guys, I was reading on vmware's documentation that if you change the name of a VM in the vSphere client, the name of the files and folders associated dont change until a Storage vMotion has been performed. I just Storage vMotioned it, browsed the datastore and although the VM's folder name changed, the files within retained the old names. This expected behaviour? And how do I rename individual files within the folder, if I can at all?

Thank you.

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jibbajabba

Something didn't go well then ... If you rename a VM in vCenter and sVmotion it, it SHOULD be renaming them properly.

Here an example

Which files weren't renamed ?

ScreenHunter_09 Jul. 11 11.24.gif

ScreenHunter_08 Jul. 11 11.23.gif

Essendon

Thanks for the reply jibba, none of the files got renamed. I mean the vmdk's the config files, all of them retained the old names. Odd. I'll have another go at it in the morning, me eyes are burning from 8 hours of almost non-stop reading and labbing.

dave330i

It's a bug in vSphere 5. Can't remember if it was fixed in update 1.

QHalo

VMware KB: vSphere5 Storage vMotion does not rename virtual machine files on completing migration
VMware KB: Renaming a virtual machine and its files

jibbajabba

dave330i wrote: »

It's a bug in vSphere 5. Can't remember if it was fixed in update 1.

Looks like the KB was updated in November last .. probably not .. How can a bug like that even go through QA ..

Tackle

We don't use anything cool like vMotion for copies/backups/renaming.
Best to make a copy of a VM the first time you do this (don't add it to inventory, re-name fist). DO NOT PERFORM WHEN THE VM HAS A SNAPSHOT!

What I do is remove the VM from inventory, rename the folder from the datastore view. Then I WinSCP to connect to the datastore (vmfs), browse to the volume, datastore name, then finally VM folder name.

Open the folder. What I do is rename the vswp, vmxf, vmx, vmsd, both vmdk files and nvmram to the new VM name. Then, I open the VMX file and re-name the nvram line, displayname and extendedconfigfile to the new name. I also open up the smaller vmdk file (there are 2 of them), then rename the only line that has the old VM name in it.

Be careful not to rename VM-flat.vmdk with newname.vmdk, it needs to keep the -flat part example: newname-flat.vmdk. Then close out of WinSCP and add to inventory. If this was a copy you made, put it on a Vlan until you sysprep it.

Hopefully this helps.

Akaricloud

Interesting.. I've done in vSphere 5 successfully many times and it was even a section of the vSphere 5 lab that I took.

scott28tt

They changed the code they used for Storage vMotion between vSphere 4 and 5 - the files no longer being renamed was one of the side effects. It's the same with Update 1 as far as I know...

scott28tt

Akaricloud wrote: »

it was even a section of the vSphere 5 lab that I took.

It does state in the lab book for the vSphere 5 ICM class that the files get renamed but they actually don't - the lab book note was "inherited" from the vSphere 4 version of the class.

blargoe

scott28tt wrote: »

It does state in the lab book for the vSphere 5 ICM class that the files get renamed but they actually don't - the lab book note was "inherited" from the vSphere 4 version of the class.

Interesting...

Essendon

Thank you everyone for your input. Just like one of you said, wonder how this got past QA.

So on the exam if I get a question which says how do you rename a VM, do I go with svMotion??

undomiel

I'd evaluate the other answers and make sure whether they can actually do what the question is asking for. Rule out the other answers and you'll probably find that only one answer will work for the given situation.

dave330i

Essendon wrote: »

Thank you everyone for your input. Just like one of you said, wonder how this got past QA.

So on the exam if I get a question which says how do you rename a VM, do I go with svMotion??

Yes. It's suppose to work.

jibbajabba

Essendon wrote: »

...So on the exam if I get a question

Best bet is whatever the documentation says it is, no matter whether it works or not

vSphere Documentation Center

(didn't find any reference regarding renaming during vsmotion tho)

scott28tt

jibbajabba wrote: »

Best bet is whatever the documentation says it is, no matter whether it works or not

I definitely agree with that principle...

Crikey

jibbajabba wrote: »

Best bet is whatever the documentation says it is, no matter whether it works or not

That's the Microsoft way, for sure.