Managed Object - VirtualMachine

Property of
ApplyStorageRecommendationResult, AutoStartPowerInfo, CannotChangeDrsBehaviorForFtSecondary, CannotChangeHaSettingsForFtSecondary, CannotPowerOffVmInCluster, CheckResult, ClusterAffinityRuleSpec, ClusterAntiAffinityRuleSpec, ClusterAttemptedVmInfo, ClusterDasVmConfigInfo, ClusterDrsFaultsFaultsByVm, ClusterDrsMigration, ClusterDrsVmConfigInfo, ClusterNotAttemptedVmInfo, ClusterVmGroup, Datastore, DVSSummary, FailToLockFaultToleranceVMs, FaultToleranceCannotEditMem, FaultTolerancePrimaryConfigInfo, FaultTolerancePrimaryPowerOnNotAttempted, FaultToleranceSecondaryConfigInfo, FaultToleranceSecondaryOpResult, FaultToleranceVmNotDasProtected, HostSystem, HostVmciAccessManagerAccessSpec, InvalidDasRestartPriorityForFtVm, InvalidDrsBehaviorForFtVm, MountError, Network, NoHostSuitableForFtSecondary, NotSupportedDeviceForFT, PowerOnFtSecondaryFailed, PowerOnFtSecondaryTimedout, ReplicationDiskConfigFault, ReplicationVmConfigFault, ReplicationVmFault, ResourcePool, StorageDrsVmConfigInfo, StorageMigrationAction, StoragePlacementAction, StoragePlacementSpec, VirtualDiskId, VirtualMachineDiskDeviceInfo, VirtualMachineSnapshotTree, VirtualMachineSummary, VmAlreadyExistsInDatacenter, VmEventArgument, VmWwnConflict
Parameter to
AcquireCredentialsInGuest, ChangeFileAttributesInGuest, CheckCompatibility_Task, CheckMigrate_Task, CheckRelocate_Task, CreateTemporaryDirectoryInGuest, CreateTemporaryFileInGuest, DeleteDirectoryInGuest, DeleteFileInGuest, DisableSecondaryVM_Task, EnableSecondaryVM_Task, InitiateFileTransferFromGuest, InitiateFileTransferToGuest, ListFilesInGuest, ListProcessesInGuest, MakeDirectoryInGuest, MakePrimaryVM_Task, MoveDirectoryInGuest, MoveFileInGuest, PowerOnMultiVM_Task, QueryVMotionCompatibility, QueryVMotionCompatibilityEx_Task, ReadEnvironmentVariableInGuest, RecommendHostsForVm, ReleaseCredentialsInGuest, StartProgramInGuest, TerminateFaultTolerantVM_Task, TerminateProcessInGuest, ValidateCredentialsInGuest, ValidateMigration
Returned by
CloneVM_Task, CreateChildVM_Task, CreateVM_Task, FindByDatastorePath, RegisterChildVM_Task, RegisterVM_Task
Extends
ManagedEntity
See also
CustomizationSpec, Datastore, DiskChangeInfo, EnvironmentBrowser, FaultToleranceSecondaryOpResult, Folder, GuestInfo, HostSystem, HttpNfcLease, ManagedEntity, ManagedEntityStatus, MethodFault, Network, ResourceConfigSpec, ResourcePool, StorageRequirement, VirtualDisk, VirtualMachineCapability, VirtualMachineCloneSpec, VirtualMachineConfigInfo, VirtualMachineConfigSpec, VirtualMachineDisplayTopology, VirtualMachineFileLayout, VirtualMachineFileLayoutEx, VirtualMachineMksTicket, VirtualMachineMovePriority, VirtualMachinePowerState, VirtualMachineRelocateSpec, VirtualMachineRuntimeInfo, VirtualMachineSnapshot, VirtualMachineSnapshotInfo, VirtualMachineStorageInfo, VirtualMachineSummary, VirtualMachineTicket


Managed Object Description

VirtualMachine is the managed object type for manipulating virtual machines, including templates that can be deployed (repeatedly) as new virtual machines. This type provides methods for configuring and controlling a virtual machine.

VirtualMachine extends the ManagedEntity type because virtual machines are part of a virtual infrastructure inventory. The parent of a virtual machine must be a folder, and a virtual machine has no children.

Destroying a virtual machine disposes of all associated storage, including the virtual disks. To remove a virtual machine while retaining its virtual disk storage, a client must remove the virtual disks from the virtual machine before destroying it.

Properties

Name Type Description
capabilityVirtualMachineCapability

Information about the runtime capabilities of this virtual machine.
config*VirtualMachineConfigInfo

Configuration of this virtual machine, including the name and UUID.

This property is set when a virtual machine is created or when the reconfigVM method is called.

The virtual machine configuration is not guaranteed to be available. For example, the configuration information would be unavailable if the server is unable to access the virtual machine files on disk, and is often also unavailable during the initial phases of virtual machine creation.

datastore* PManagedObjectReference[]
to a Datastore[]

A collection of references to the subset of datastore objects in the datacenter that is used by this virtual machine.
environmentBrowserManagedObjectReference
to a EnvironmentBrowser

The current virtual machine's environment browser object. This contains information on all the configurations that can be used on the virtual machine. This is identical to the environment browser on the ComputeResource to which this virtual machine belongs.
guest*GuestInfo

Information about VMware Tools and about the virtual machine from the perspective of VMware Tools. Information about the guest operating system is available in VirtualCenter. Guest operating system information reflects the last known state of the virtual machine. For powered on machines, this is current information. For powered off machines, this is the last recorded state before the virtual machine was powered off.
guestHeartbeatStatusManagedEntityStatus

The guest heartbeat. The heartbeat status is classified as:
  • gray - VMware Tools are not installed or not running.
  • red - No heartbeat. Guest operating system may have stopped responding.
  • yellow - Intermittent heartbeat. May be due to guest load.
  • green - Guest operating system is responding normally.
The guest heartbeat is a statistics metric. Alarms can be configured on this metric to trigger emails or other actions.
layout*VirtualMachineFileLayoutDeprecated. As of vSphere API 4.0, use layoutEx instead.

Detailed information about the files that comprise this virtual machine.


layoutEx*VirtualMachineFileLayoutEx

Detailed information about the files that comprise this virtual machine.

Can be explicitly refreshed by the RefreshStorageInfo operation.

Since vSphere API 4.0
network* PManagedObjectReference[]
to a Network[]

A collection of references to the subset of network objects in the datacenter that is used by this virtual machine.
parentVApp*ManagedObjectReference
to a ManagedEntity

Reference to the parent vApp.

Since vSphere API 4.1
resourceConfig*ResourceConfigSpec

The resource configuration for a virtual machine. The shares in this specification are evaluated relative to the resource pool to which it is assigned. This will return null if the product the virtual machine is registered on does not support resource configuration.

To retrieve the configuration, you typically use childConfiguration.

To change the configuration, use UpdateChildResourceConfiguration.

resourcePool*ManagedObjectReference
to a ResourcePool

The current resource pool that specifies resource allocation for this virtual machine.

This property is set when a virtual machine is created or associated with a different resource pool.

Returns null if the virtual machine is a template or the session has no access to the resource pool.

rootSnapshot*ManagedObjectReference[]
to a VirtualMachineSnapshot[]

The roots of all snapshot trees for the virtual machine.

Since vSphere API 4.1
runtimeVirtualMachineRuntimeInfo

Execution state and history for this virtual machine.

The contents of this property change when:

  • the virtual machine's power state changes.
  • an execution message is pending.
  • an event occurs.

snapshot*VirtualMachineSnapshotInfo

Current snapshot and tree. The property is valid if snapshots have been created for this virtual machine.

The contents of this property change in response to the methods:


storage*VirtualMachineStorageInfo

Storage space used by the virtual machine, split by datastore. Can be explicitly refreshed by the RefreshStorageInfo operation.

Since vSphere API 4.0
summaryVirtualMachineSummary

Basic information about this virtual machine. This includes:
  • runtimeInfo
  • guest
  • basic configuration
  • alarms
  • performance information

Properties inherited from ManagedEntity
alarmActionsEnabled, configIssue, configStatus, customValue, declaredAlarmState, disabledMethod, effectiveRole, name, overallStatus, parent, permission, recentTask, tag, triggeredAlarmState
Properties inherited from ExtensibleManagedObject
availableField, value
*May not be presentP Required privilege: System.View

Methods

Methods defined in this Managed Object
AcquireMksTicket, AcquireTicket, AnswerVM, CheckCustomizationSpec, CloneVM_Task, ConsolidateVMDisks_Task, CreateScreenshot_Task, CreateSecondaryVM_Task, CreateSnapshot_Task, CustomizeVM_Task, DefragmentAllDisks, DisableSecondaryVM_Task, EnableSecondaryVM_Task, EstimateStorageForConsolidateSnapshots_Task, ExportVm, ExtractOvfEnvironment, MakePrimaryVM_Task, MarkAsTemplate, MarkAsVirtualMachine, MigrateVM_Task, MountToolsInstaller, PowerOffVM_Task, PowerOnVM_Task, PromoteDisks_Task, QueryChangedDiskAreas, QueryFaultToleranceCompatibility, QueryUnownedFiles, RebootGuest, ReconfigVM_Task, RefreshStorageInfo, reloadVirtualMachineFromPath_Task, RelocateVM_Task, RemoveAllSnapshots_Task, ResetGuestInformation, ResetVM_Task, RevertToCurrentSnapshot_Task, SetDisplayTopology, SetScreenResolution, ShutdownGuest, StandbyGuest, StartRecording_Task, StartReplaying_Task, StopRecording_Task, StopReplaying_Task, SuspendVM_Task, TerminateFaultTolerantVM_Task, TurnOffFaultToleranceForVM_Task, UnmountToolsInstaller, UnregisterVM, UpgradeTools_Task, UpgradeVM_Task
Methods inherited from ManagedEntity
Destroy_Task, Reload, Rename_Task
Methods inherited from ExtensibleManagedObject
setCustomValue

AcquireMksTicket

Deprecated. As of vSphere API 4.1, use AcquireTicket instead.

Creates and returns a one-time credential used in establishing a remote mouse-keyboard-screen connection to this virtual machine. The correct function of this method depends on being able to retrieve TCP binding information about the server end of the client connection that is requesting the ticket. If such information is not available, the NotSupported fault is thrown. This method is appropriate for SOAP and authenticated connections, which are both TCP-based connections.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.ConsoleInteract

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
VirtualMachineMksTicketA one-time credential used in establishing a remote mouse-keyboard-screen connection.

Faults

Type Description
NotSupportedThrown if it cannot retrieve TCP binding information about the client connection. For example, TCP binding information is not available for a client connection that is not TCP-based.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.

Show WSDL type definition



AcquireTicket

Creates and returns a one-time credential used in establishing a specific connection to this virtual machine, for example, a ticket type of mks can be used to establish a remote mouse-keyboard-screen connection.

A client using this ticketing mechanism must have network connectivity to the ESX server where the virtual machine is running, and the ESX server must be reachable to the management client from the address made available to the client via the ticket.

Acquiring a virtual machine ticket requires different privileges depending on the types of ticket:

Required Privileges
Dynamic - See discussion above
Since
vSphere API 4.1

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
ticketTypexsd:string

The type of service to acquire, the set of possible values is described in VirtualMachineTicketType.

Return Value

Type Description
VirtualMachineTicketA one-time credential used in establishing a remote connection to this virtual machine.

Faults

Type Description
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine is not connected.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.

Show WSDL type definition



AnswerVM

Responds to a question that is blocking this virtual machine.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.AnswerQuestion

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
questionIdxsd:string

The value from QuestionInfo.id that identifies the question to answer.
answerChoicexsd:string

The contents of the QuestionInfo.choice.value array element that identifies the desired answer.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
ConcurrentAccessThrown if the question has been or is being answered by another thread or user.
InvalidArgumentThrown if the questionId does not apply to this virtual machine. For example, this can happen if another client already answered the message.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.

Show WSDL type definition



CheckCustomizationSpec

Checks the customization specification against the virtual machine configuration. For example, this is used on a source virtual machine before a clone operation to catch customization failure before the disk copy. This checks the specification's internal consistency as well as for compatibility with this virtual machine's configuration.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Provisioning.Customize

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
specCustomizationSpec

The customization specification to check.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
CustomizationFaultA subclass of CustomizationFault is thrown.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.

Show WSDL type definition



CloneVM_Task

Creates a clone of this virtual machine. If the virtual machine is used as a template, this method corresponds to the deploy command.

Any % (percent) character used in this name parameter must be escaped, unless it is used to start an escape sequence. Clients may also escape any other characters in this name parameter.

The privilege required on the source virtual machine depends on the source and destination types:

If customization is requested in the CloneSpec, then the VirtualMachine.Provisioning.Customize privilege must also be held on the source virtual machine.

The Resource.AssignVMToPool privilege is also required for the resource pool specified in the CloneSpec, if the destination is not a template. The Datastore.AllocateSpace privilege is required on all datastores where the clone is created.

Required Privileges
None

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
folder PManagedObjectReference
to a Folder

The location of the new virtual machine.
namexsd:string

The name of the new virtual machine.
specVirtualMachineCloneSpec

Specifies how to clone the virtual machine.
P Required privilege: VirtualMachine.Inventory.CreateFromExisting

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation. The info.result property in the Task contains the newly added VirtualMachine upon success.

Faults

Type Description
CustomizationFaultThrown if a customization error happens. Typically, a specific subclass of this exception is thrown.
FileFaultThrown if there is an error accessing the virtual machine files.
InsufficientResourcesFaultThrown if this operation would violate a resource usage policy.
InvalidArgumentThrown if the host cannot run this virtual machine.
InvalidDatastoreThrown if the operation cannot be performed on the target datastores.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, if the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
MigrationFaultThrown if it is not possible to migrate the virtual machine to the destination host. This is typically due to hosts being incompatible, such as mismatch in network polices or access to networks and datastores. Typically, a more specific subclass is thrown.
NotSupportedThrown if the operation is not supported by the current agent.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmConfigFaultThrown if the virtual machine is not compatible with the destination host. Typically, a specific subclass of this exception is thrown, such as IDEDiskNotSupported.



ConsolidateVMDisks_Task

Consolidate the virtual disk files of the virtual machine by finding hierarchies of redo logs that can be combined without violating data dependency. The redundant redo logs after merging are then deleted. Consolidation improves I/O performance since less number of virtual disk files need to be traversed; it also reduces the storage usage. However additional space is temporarily required to perform the operation. Use EstimateStorageForConsolidateSnapshots_Task to estimate the temporary space required. Consolidation can be I/O intensive, it is advisable to invoke this operation when guest is not under heavy I/O usage.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.State.RemoveSnapshot
Since
vSphere API 5.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if if there is a problem creating or accessing the virtual machine's files for this operation. Typically a more specific fault for example NoDiskSpace is thrown.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, if the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmConfigFaultThrown if a virtual machine configuration issue prevents consolidation. Typically, a more specific fault is thrown such as InvalidDiskFormat if a disk cannot be read, or InvalidSnapshotFormat if the snapshot configuration is invalid.



CreateScreenshot_Task

Create a screen shot of a virtual machine.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.CreateScreenshot
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if there is a problem with creating or accessing one or more files needed for this operation.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the virtual machine is not powered on.
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine is not ready to respond to such requests.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.



CreateSecondaryVM_Task

Creates a secondary virtual machine to be part of this fault tolerant group.

If a host is specified, the secondary virtual machine will be created on it. Otherwise, a host will be selected by the system.

If the primary virtual machine (i.e., this virtual machine) is powered on when the secondary is created, an attempt will be made to power on the secondary on a system selected host. If the cluster is a DRS cluster, DRS will be invoked to obtain a placement for the new secondary virtual machine. If the DRS recommendation (see ClusterRecommendation) is automatic, it will be automatically executed. Otherwise, the recommendation will be returned to the caller of this method and the secondary will remain powered off until the recommendation is approved using ApplyRecommendation. Failure to power on the secondary virtual machine will not fail the creation of the secondary.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.CreateSecondary
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
host*ManagedObjectReference
to a HostSystem

The host where the secondary virtual machine is to be created and powered on. If no host is specified, a compatible host will be selected by the system. If a host cannot be found for the secondary or the specified host is not suitable, the secondary will not be created and a fault will be returned.
*Need not be set

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation. The info.result property in the Task returns an instance of the FaultToleranceSecondaryOpResult data object, which contains a reference to the created VirtualMachine and the status of powering it on, if attempted.

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if there is a problem accessing the virtual machine on the filesystem.
InsufficientResourcesFaultThrown if this operation would violate a resource usage policy.
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine's configuration information is not available.
ManagedObjectNotFoundThrown if a host is specified and it does not exist.
NotSupportedThrown if the virtual machine is marked as a template, or it is not in a vSphere HA enabled cluster.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmConfigFaultThrown if a configuration issue prevents creating the secondary. Typically, a more specific fault such as VmConfigIncompatibleForFaultTolerance is thrown.
VmFaultToleranceIssueThrown if any error is encountered with the fault tolerance configuration of the virtual machine. Typically, a more specific fault like FaultToleranceNotLicensed is thrown.



CreateSnapshot_Task

Creates a new snapshot of this virtual machine. As a side effect, this updates the current snapshot.

Snapshots are not supported for Fault Tolerance primary and secondary virtual machines.

Any % (percent) character used in this name parameter must be escaped, unless it is used to start an escape sequence. Clients may also escape any other characters in this name parameter.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.State.CreateSnapshot

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
namexsd:string

The name for this snapshot. The name need not be unique for this virtual machine.
description*xsd:string

A description for this snapshot. If omitted, a default description may be provided.
memoryxsd:boolean

If TRUE, a dump of the internal state of the virtual machine (basically a memory dump) is included in the snapshot. Memory snapshots consume time and resources, and thus take longer to create. When set to FALSE, the power state of the snapshot is set to powered off.

capabilities indicates whether or not this virtual machine supports this operation.

quiescexsd:boolean

If TRUE and the virtual machine is powered on when the snapshot is taken, VMware Tools is used to quiesce the file system in the virtual machine. This assures that a disk snapshot represents a consistent state of the guest file systems. If the virtual machine is powered off or VMware Tools are not available, the quiesce flag is ignored.
*Need not be set

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation. The info.result property in the Task contains the newly created VirtualMachineSnapshot upon success.

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if there is a problem with creating or accessing one or more files needed for this operation.
InvalidNameThrown if the specified snapshot name is invalid.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed in the current power state of the virtual machine.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
NotSupportedThrown if the host product does not support snapshots or if the host does not support quiesced snapshots and the quiesce parameter is set to true; or if the virtual machine is a Fault Tolerance primary or secondary
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
SnapshotFaultThrown if an error occurs during the snapshot operation. Typically a more specific fault like MultipleSnapshotsNotSupported is thrown.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmConfigFaultThrown if the virtual machine's configuration is invalid. Typically, a more specific fault like InvalidSnapshotState is thrown.



CustomizeVM_Task

Customizes a virtual machine's guest operating system.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Provisioning.Customize

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
specCustomizationSpec

The customization specification object.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
CustomizationFaultA subclass of CustomizationFault is thrown.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.



DefragmentAllDisks

Defragment all virtual disks attached to this virtual machine.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.DefragmentAllDisks
Since
VI API 2.5

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if there is an error accessing the disk files.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the virtual machine is poweredOn.
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine is not connected.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.

Show WSDL type definition



DisableSecondaryVM_Task

Disables the specified secondary virtual machine in this fault tolerant group. The specified secondary will not be automatically started on a subsequent power-on of the primary virtual machine. This operation could leave the primary virtual machine in a non-fault tolerant state.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.DisableSecondary
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
vmManagedObjectReference
to a VirtualMachine

The secondary virtual machine specified will be disabed. This field must specify a secondary virtual machine that is part of the fault tolerant group that this virtual machine is currently associated with. It can only be invoked from the primary virtual machine in the group.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
InvalidStateThrown if the host is in maintenance mode or if the virtual machine's configuration information is not available.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmFaultToleranceIssueThrown if any error is encountered with the fault tolerance configuration of the virtual machine. Typically, a more specific fault like InvalidOperationOnSecondaryVm is thrown.



EnableSecondaryVM_Task

Enables the specified secondary virtual machine in this fault tolerant group.

This operation is used to enable a secondary virtual machine that was previously disabled by the DisableSecondaryVM_Task call. The specified secondary will be automatically started whenever the primary is powered on.

If the primary virtual machine (i.e., this virtual machine) is powered on when the secondary is enabled, an attempt will be made to power on the secondary. If a host was specified in the method call, this host will be used. If a host is not specified, one will be selected by the system. In the latter case, if the cluster is a DRS cluster, DRS will be invoked to obtain a placement for the new secondary virtual machine. If the DRS recommendation (see ClusterRecommendation) is automatic, it will be executed. Otherwise, the recommendation will be returned to the caller of this method and the secondary will remain powered off until the recommendation is approved using ApplyRecommendation.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.EnableSecondary
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
vmManagedObjectReference
to a VirtualMachine

The secondary virtual machine specified will be enabled. This field must specify a secondary virtual machine that is part of the fault tolerant group that this virtual machine is currently associated with. It can only be invoked from the primary virtual machine in the group.
host*ManagedObjectReference
to a HostSystem

The host on which the secondary virtual machine is to be enabled and possibly powered on. If no host is specified, a compatible host will be selected by the system. If the secondary virtual machine is not compatible with the specified host, the secondary will not be re-enabled and a fault will be returned.
*Need not be set

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation. The info.result property in the Task returns an instance of the FaultToleranceSecondaryOpResult data object, which contains a reference to the VirtualMachine and the status of powering it on, if attempted.

Faults

Type Description
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine's configuration information is not available, if the secondary virtual machine is not disabled, or if a power-on is attempted and one is already in progress.
ManagedObjectNotFoundThrown if a host is specified and it does not exist.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmConfigFaultThrown if a configuration issue prevents enabling the secondary. Typically, a more specific fault such as VmConfigIncompatibleForFaultTolerance is thrown.
VmFaultToleranceIssueThrown if any error is encountered with the fault tolerance configuration of the virtual machine. Typically, a more specific fault like InvalidOperationOnSecondaryVm is thrown.



EstimateStorageForConsolidateSnapshots_Task

Estimate the temporary space required to consolidation disk files. The estimation is a lower bound if the childmost writable disk file will be consolidated for an online virtual machine, it is accurate for all other situations. This is because the space requirement depending on the size of the childmost disk file and how write intensive the guest is.

This method can be used prior to invoke consolidation via ConsolidateVMDisks_Task.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.State.RemoveSnapshot
Since
vSphere API 5.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if if there is a problem accessing the virtual machine's files for this operation. Typically a more specific fault FileLocked is thrown.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, if the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmConfigFaultThrown if a virtual machine configuration issue prevents the estimation. Typically, a more specific fault is thrown.



ExportVm

Obtains an export lease on this virtual machine. The export lease contains a list of URLs for the virtual disks for this virtual machine, as well as a ticket giving access to the URLs.

See HttpNfcLease for information on how to use the lease.

Required Privileges
VApp.Export
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a HttpNfcLease
The export lease on this VirtualMachine. The export task continues running until the lease is completed by the caller.

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if there is an error accessing the virtual machine files.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the virtual machine is powered on.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, if the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.

Show WSDL type definition



ExtractOvfEnvironment

Returns the OVF environment for a virtual machine. If the virtual machine has no vApp configuration, an empty string is returned. Also, sensitive information is omitted, so this method is not guaranteed to return the complete OVF environment.
Required Privileges
VApp.ExtractOvfEnvironment
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
xsd:string

Faults

Type Description
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine is not running
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.

Show WSDL type definition



MakePrimaryVM_Task

Makes the specified secondary virtual machine from this fault tolerant group as the primary virtual machine.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.MakePrimary
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
vmManagedObjectReference
to a VirtualMachine

The secondary virtual machine specified will be made the primary virtual machine. This field must specify a secondary virtual machine that is part of the fault tolerant group that this virtual machine is currently associated with. It can only be invoked from the primary virtual machine in the group.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
InvalidStateThrown if the host is in maintenance mode or if the virtual machine's configuration information is not available.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmFaultToleranceIssueThrown if any error is encountered with the fault tolerance configuration of the virtual machine. Typically, a more specific fault like InvalidOperationOnSecondaryVm is thrown.



MarkAsTemplate

Marks a VirtualMachine object as being used as a template. Note: A VirtualMachine marked as a template cannot be powered on.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Provisioning.MarkAsTemplate

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if there is an error accessing the virtual machine files.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the virtual machine is not powered off.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, if the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
NotSupportedThrown if marking a virtual machine as a template is not supported.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
VmConfigFaultThrown if the template is incompatible with the host, such as the files are not accessible.

Show WSDL type definition



MarkAsVirtualMachine

Clears the 'isTemplate' flag and reassociates the virtual machine with a resource pool and host.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Provisioning.MarkAsVM

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
pool PManagedObjectReference
to a ResourcePool

Resource pool to associate with the virtual machine.
host*ManagedObjectReference
to a HostSystem

The target host on which the virtual machine is intended to run. The host parameter must specify a host that is a member of the ComputeResource indirectly specified by the pool. For a stand-alone host or a cluster with DRS, it can be omitted and the system selects a default.
*Need not be set P Required privilege: Resource.AssignVMToPool

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if there is an error accessing the virtual machine files.
InvalidDatastoreThrown if the operation cannot be performed on the target datastores.
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine is not marked as a template.
NotSupportedThrown if marking a template as a virtual machine is not supported.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
VmConfigFaultThrown if the virtual machine is not compatible with the host. For example, a DisksNotSupported fault if the destination host does not support the disk backings of the template.

Show WSDL type definition



MigrateVM_Task

Migrates a virtual machine's execution to a specific resource pool or host.

Requires Resource.HotMigrate privilege if the virtual machine is powered on or Resource.ColdMigrate privilege if the virtual machine is powered off or suspended.

Required Privileges
Dynamic - See discussion above

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
pool* PManagedObjectReference
to a ResourcePool

The target resource pool for the virtual machine. If the pool parameter is left unset, the virtual machine's current pool is used as the target pool.
host*ManagedObjectReference
to a HostSystem

The target host to which the virtual machine is intended to migrate. The host parameter may be left unset if the compute resource associated with the target pool represents a stand-alone host or a DRS-enabled cluster. In the former case the stand-alone host is used as the target host. In the latter case, the DRS system selects an appropriate target host from the cluster.
priorityVirtualMachineMovePriority

The task priority (@see vim.VirtualMachine.MovePriority).
state*VirtualMachinePowerState

If specified, the virtual machine migrates only if its state matches the specified state.
*Need not be set P Required privilege: Resource.AssignVMToPool

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if, in a case where the virtual machine configuration file must be copied, the destination location for that file does not have the necessary file access permissions.
InsufficientResourcesFaultThrown if this operation would violate a resource usage policy.
InvalidArgumentThrown if the target host and target pool are not associated with the same compute resource or if the host parameter is left unset when the target pool is associated with a non-DRS cluster.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the state argument is set and the virtual machine does not have that power state.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state or the target host's current state. For example, if the virtual machine configuration information is not available or if the target host is disconnected or in maintenance mode.
MigrationFaultThrown if it is not possible to migrate the virtual machine to the destination host. This is typically due to hosts being incompatible, such as mismatch in network polices or access to networks and datastores. Typically, a more specific subclass is thrown.
NoActiveHostInClusterThrown if a target host is not specified and the cluster associated with the target pool does not contain at least one potential target host. A host must be connected and not in maintenance mode in order to be considered as a potential target host.
NotSupportedThrown if the virtual machine is marked as a template.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TimedoutThrown if one of the phases of the migration process times out.
VmConfigFaultThrown if the virtual machine is not compatible with the destination host. Typically, a specific subclass of this exception is thrown, such as IDEDiskNotSupported.



MountToolsInstaller

Mounts the VMware Tools CD installer as a CD-ROM for the guest operating system. To monitor the status of the tools install, clients should check the tools status, toolsVersionStatus and toolsRunningStatus
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.ToolsInstall

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine is not running, or the VMware Tools CD is already mounted.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
VmConfigFault
VmToolsUpgradeFaultThrown if the VMware Tools CD failed to mount.

Show WSDL type definition



PowerOffVM_Task

Powers off this virtual machine. If this virtual machine is a fault tolerant primary virtual machine, this will result in the secondary virtual machine(s) getting powered off as well.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.PowerOff

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the power state is not poweredOn.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, if the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
NotSupportedThrown if the virtual machine is marked as a template.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.



PowerOnVM_Task

Powers on this virtual machine. If the virtual machine is suspended, this method resumes execution from the suspend point.

When powering on a virtual machine in a cluster, the system might implicitly or due to the host argument, do an implicit relocation of the virtual machine to another host. Hence, errors related to this relocation can be thrown. If the cluster is a DRS cluster, DRS will be invoked if the virtual machine can be automatically placed by DRS (see DrsBehavior). Because this method does not return a DRS ClusterRecommendation, no vmotion nor host power operations will be done as part of a DRS-facilitated power on. To have DRS consider such operations use PowerOnMultiVM_Task.

If this virtual machine is a fault tolerant primary virtual machine, its secondary virtual machines will be started on system-selected hosts. If the virtual machines are in a VMware DRS enabled cluster, then DRS will be invoked to obtain placements for the secondaries but no vmotion nor host power operations will be considered for these power ons.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.PowerOn

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
host*ManagedObjectReference
to a HostSystem

(optional) The host where the virtual machine is to be powered on. If no host is specified, the current associated host is used. This field must specify a host that is part of the same compute resource that the virtual machine is currently associated with. If this host is not compatible, the current host association is used.
*Need not be set

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
DisallowedOperationOnFailoverHostThrown if the host specified is a failover host. See ClusterFailoverHostAdmissionControlPolicy.
FileFaultThrown if there is a problem accessing the virtual machine on the filesystem.
InsufficientResourcesFaultThrown if this operation would violate a resource usage policy.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the power state is poweredOn.
InvalidStateThrown if the host is in maintenance mode or if the virtual machine's configuration information is not available.
NotEnoughLicensesThrown if there are not enough licenses to power on this virtual machine.
NotSupportedThrown if the virtual machine is marked as a template.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmConfigFaultThrown if a configuration issue prevents the power-on. Typically, a more specific fault, such as UnsupportedVmxLocation, is thrown.



PromoteDisks_Task

Promotes disks on this virtual machine that have delta disk backings.

A delta disk backing is a way to preserve a virtual disk backing at some point in time. A delta disk backing is a file backing which in turn points to the original virtual disk backing (the parent). After a delta disk backing is added, all writes go to the delta disk backing. All reads first try the delta disk backing and then try the parent backing if needed.

Promoting does two things

  1. If the unlink parameter is true, any disk backing which is shared shared by multiple virtual machines is copied so that this virtual machine has its own unshared version. Copied files always end up in the virtual machine's home directory.
  2. Any disk backing which is not shared between multiple virtual machines and is not associated with a snapshot is consolidated with its child backing.

If the unlink parameter is true, the net effect of this operation is improved read performance, at the cost of disk space. If the unlink parameter is false the net effect is improved read performance at the cost of inhibiting future sharing.

This operation is only supported if deltaDiskBackingsSupported is true.

This operation is only supported on VirtualCenter.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Provisioning.PromoteDisks
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
unlinkxsd:boolean

If true, then these disks will be unlinked before consolidation.
disks*VirtualDisk[]

The set of disks that are to be promoted. If this value is unset or the array is empty, all disks which have delta disk backings are promoted.
*Need not be set

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task

Faults

Type Description
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the virtual machine is not powered off or suspended
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine is not ready to respond to such requests.
NotSupportedThrown if the host doesnt support disk promotion APIs.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.



QueryChangedDiskAreas

Get a list of areas of a virtual disk belonging to this VM that have been modified since a well-defined point in the past. The beginning of the change interval is identified by "changeId", while the end of the change interval is implied by the snapshot ID passed in.

Note that the result of this function may contain "false positives" (i.e: flag areas of the disk as modified that are not). However, it is guaranteed that no changes will be missed.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Provisioning.DiskRandomRead
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
snapshot*ManagedObjectReference
to a VirtualMachineSnapshot

Snapshot for which changes that have been made sine "changeId" should be computed. If not set, changes are computed against the "current" snapshot of the virtual machine. However, using the "current" snapshot will only work for virtual machines that are powered off.
deviceKeyxsd:int

Identifies the virtual disk for which to compute changes.
startOffsetxsd:long

Start Offset in bytes at which to start computing changes. Typically, callers will make multiple calls to this function, starting with startOffset 0 and then examine the "length" property in the returned DiskChangeInfo structure, repeatedly calling queryChangedDiskAreas until a map forthe entire virtual disk has been obtained.
changeIdxsd:string

Identifyer referring to a point in the past that should be used as the point in time at which to begin including changes to the disk in the result. A typical use case would be a backup application obtaining a changeId from a virtual disk's backing info when performing a backup. When a subsequent incremental backup is to be performed, this change Id can be used to obtain a list of changed areas on disk.
*Need not be set

Return Value

Type Description
DiskChangeInfoReturns a data structure specifying extents of the virtual disk that have changed since the thime the changeId string was obtained.

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if the virtual disk files cannot be accessed/queried.
InvalidArgumentThrown if deviceKey does not specify a virtual disk, startOffset is beyond the end of the virtual disk or changeId is invalid or change tracking is not supported for this particular disk.
NotFoundThrown if the snapshot specified does not exist.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.

Show WSDL type definition



QueryFaultToleranceCompatibility

This API can be invoked to determine whether a virtual machine is compatible for Fault Tolerance. The API only checks for VM-specific factors that impact compatibility for Fault Tolerance. Other requirements for Fault Tolerance such as host processor compatibility, logging nic configuration and licensing are not covered by this API. The query returns a list of faults, each fault corresponding to a specific incompatibility. If a given virtual machine is compatible for Fault Tolerance, then the fault list returned will be empty.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Config.QueryFTCompatibility
Since
vSphere API 4.1

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
MethodFault[]

Faults

Type Description
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state.
NotSupportedThrown if the virtual machine is a template or this operation is not supported.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
VmConfigFaultThrown if the virtual machine's configuration is invalid.

Show WSDL type definition



QueryUnownedFiles

For all files that belong to the vm, check that the file owner is set to the current datastore principal user, as set by HostDatastoreSystem.ConfigureDatastorePrincipal
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Config.QueryUnownedFiles
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
xsd:string[]The list of file paths for vm files whose ownership is not correct. Use FileManager.ChangeOwner to set the file ownership.

Faults

Type Description
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.

Show WSDL type definition



RebootGuest

Issues a command to the guest operating system asking it to perform a reboot. Returns immediately and does not wait for the guest operating system to complete the operation.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.Reset

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the power state is not powered on.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, if the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
ToolsUnavailableThrown if VMware Tools is not running.

Show WSDL type definition



ReconfigVM_Task

Reconfigures this virtual machine. All the changes in the given configuration are applied to the virtual machine as an atomic operation.

Reconfiguring the virtual machine may require any of the following privileges depending on what is being changed:

Creating a virtual machine may require the following privileges: In addition, this operation may require the following privileges:
Required Privileges
Dynamic - See discussion above

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
specVirtualMachineConfigSpec

The new configuration values.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
ConcurrentAccessThrown if the changeVersion does not match the server's changeVersion for the configuration.
CpuHotPlugNotSupportedThrown if the current configuration of the VM does not support hot-plugging of CPUs.
DuplicateNameThrown if the specified name already exists in the parent folder.
FileFaultThrown if there is a problem creating or accessing the virtual machine's files for this operation. Typically a more specific fault like NoDiskSpace or FileAlreadyExists is thrown.
InsufficientResourcesFaultThrown if this operation would violate a resource usage policy.
InvalidDatastore
InvalidNameThrown if the specified name is invalid.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the power state is poweredOn and the virtual hardware cannot support the configuration changes.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed in the current state of the virtual machine. For example, because the virtual machine's configuration is not available.
MemoryHotPlugNotSupportedThrown if the current configuration of the VM does not support hot-plugging of memory.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
TooManyDevicesThrown if the device specifications exceed the allowed limits.
VmConfigFaultThrown if the spec is invalid. Typically, a more specific subclass is thrown.
VmWwnConflictThrown if the WWN of the virtual machine has been used by other virtual machines.



RefreshStorageInfo

Explicitly refreshes the storage information of this virtual machine, updating properties storage, layoutEx and storage.
Required Privileges
System.Read
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.

Show WSDL type definition



reloadVirtualMachineFromPath_Task

Reloads the configuration for this virtual machine from a given datastore path. This is equivalent to unregistering and registering the virtual machine from a different path. The virtual machine's hardware configuration, snapshots, guestinfo variables etc. will be replaced based on the new configuration file. Other information associated with the virtual machine object, such as events and permissions, will be preserved.

This method is only supported on vCenter Server. It can be invoked on inaccessible or orphaned virtual machines, but it cannot be invoked on powered on, connected virtual machines. Both the source virtual machine object and the destination path should be of the same type i.e. virtual machine or template. Reloading a virtual machine with a template or vice-versa is not supported.

Note: Since the API replaces the source configuration with that of the destination, if the destination configuration does not refer to a valid virtual machine, it will create an invalid virtual machine object. This API should not be invoked on fault tolerant virtual machines since doing so will leave the original virtual machine's configuration in an invalid state. It is recommended that you turn off fault tolerance before invoking this API.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Config.ReloadFromPath
Since
vSphere API 4.1

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
configurationPathxsd:string



Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task

Faults

Type Description
AlreadyExistsThrown if the virtual machine is already registered.
FileFaultThrown if there is a problem creating or accessing the files needed for this operation.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the virtual machine is powered on.
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine is busy or not ready to respond to such requests.
NotSupportedThrown if invoked on ESX server or if invoked on a virtual machine with the destination path for a template and vice-versa.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmConfigFaultThrown if the format / configuration of the virtual machine is invalid. Typically, a more specific fault is thrown such as InvalidFormat if the configuration file cannot be read, or InvalidDiskFormat if the disks cannot be read.



RelocateVM_Task

Relocates a virtual machine's virtual disks to a specific location; optionally moves the virtual machine to a different host as well.

Additionally requires the Resource.HotMigrate privilege if the virtual machine is powered on (for Storage VMotion), and Datastore.AllocateSpace on any datastore the virtual machine or its disks are relocated to.

If the "pool" field of the RelocateSpec is set, additionally requires the Resource.AssignVMToPool privilege held on the specified pool.

Required Privileges
Resource.ColdMigrate

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
specVirtualMachineRelocateSpec

The specification of where to relocate the virtual machine.
priority*VirtualMachineMovePriority

The task priority (@see vim.VirtualMachine.MovePriority).

Since vSphere API 4.0
*Need not be set

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
DisallowedOperationOnFailoverHostThrown if the virtual machine is powered on and is being migrated to a failover host. See ClusterFailoverHostAdmissionControlPolicy.
FileFaultThrown if there is an error accessing the virtual machine files.
InsufficientResourcesFaultThrown if this operation would violate a resource usage policy.
InvalidArgumentin the following cases:
  • the target host and target pool are not associated with the same compute resource
  • the target pool represents a cluster without DRS enabled, and the host is not specified
  • Datastore in a diskLocator entry is not specified
  • the specified device ID cannot be found in the virtual machine's current configuration
  • the object specified in relocate cannot be found
InvalidDatastoreThrown if the operation cannot be performed on the target datastores.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the host or virtual machine's current state. For example, if the host is in maintenance mode, or if the virtual machine's configuration information is not available.
MigrationFaultThrown if it is not possible to migrate the virtual machine to the destination host. This is typically due to hosts being incompatible, such as mismatch in network polices or access to networks and datastores. Typically, a more specific subclass is thrown.
NotSupportedThrown if the virtual machine is marked as a template.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TimedoutThrown if one of the phases of the relocate process times out.
VmConfigFaultThrown if the virtual machine is not compatible with the destination host. Typically, a specific subclass of this exception is thrown, such as IDEDiskNotSupported.



RemoveAllSnapshots_Task

Remove all the snapshots associated with this virtual machine. If the virtual machine does not have any snapshots, then this operation simply returns successfully.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.State.RemoveSnapshot

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
consolidate*xsd:boolean

(optional) If set to true, the virtual disks of the deleted snapshot will be merged with other disk if possible. Default to true.

Since vSphere API 5.0
*Need not be set

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed in the current power state of the virtual machine.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, if the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
NotSupportedThrown if the host product does not support snapshots.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
SnapshotFaultThrown if an error occurs during the snapshot operation. Typically, a more specific fault like InvalidSnapshotFormat is thrown.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.



ResetGuestInformation

Clears cached guest information. Guest information can be cleared only if the virtual machine is powered off.

This method can be useful if stale information is cached, preventing an IP address or MAC address from being reused.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Config.ResetGuestInfo

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine is not powered off.
NotSupportedThrown if the virtual machine is marked as a template.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.

Show WSDL type definition



ResetVM_Task

Resets power on this virtual machine. If the current state is poweredOn, then this method first performs powerOff(hard). Once the power state is poweredOff, then this method performs powerOn(option).

Although this method functions as a powerOff followed by a powerOn, the two operations are atomic with respect to other clients, meaning that other power operations cannot be performed until the reset method completes.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.Reset

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the power state is suspended.
InvalidStateThrown if the host is in maintenance mode.
NotEnoughLicensesThrown if there are not enough licenses to reset this virtual machine.
NotSupportedThrown if the virtual machine is marked as a template.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.



RevertToCurrentSnapshot_Task

Reverts the virtual machine to the current snapshot. This is equivalent to doing snapshot.currentSnapshot.revert.

If no snapshot exists, then the operation does nothing, and the virtual machine state remains unchanged.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.State.RevertToSnapshot

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
host*ManagedObjectReference
to a HostSystem

(optional) Choice of host for the virtual machine, in case this operation causes the virtual machine to power on.

If a snapshot was taken while a virtual machine was powered on, and this operation is invoked after the virtual machine was powered off, the operation causes the virtual machine to power on to reach the snapshot state. This parameter can be used to specify a choice of host where the virtual machine should power on.

If this parameter is not set, and the vBalance feature is configured for automatic load balancing, a host is automatically selected. Otherwise, the virtual machine keeps its existing host affiliation.

This is not supported for virtual machines associated with hosts on ESX 2.x servers.

suppressPowerOn*xsd:boolean

(optional) If set to true, the virtual machine will not be powered on regardless of the power state when the current snapshot was created. Default to false.

Since vSphere API 4.0
*Need not be set

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
DisallowedOperationOnFailoverHostThrown if the virtual machine is being reverted to a powered on state and the host specified is a failover host. See ClusterFailoverHostAdmissionControlPolicy.
InsufficientResourcesFaultThrown if this operation would violate a resource usage policy.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed in the current power state of the virtual machine.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, if the virtual machine configuration information is not available or if an OVF consumer is blocking the operation.
NotFoundThrown if the virtual machine does not have a current snapshot.
NotSupportedThrown if the host product does not support snapshots.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
SnapshotFaultThrown if an error occurs during the snapshot operation. Typically, a more specific fault like InvalidSnapshotFormat is thrown.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmConfigFaultThrown if a configuration issue prevents the power-on. Typically, a more specific fault, such as UnsupportedVmxLocation, is thrown.



SetDisplayTopology

Sets the console window's display topology as specified.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.ConsoleInteract
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
displaysVirtualMachineDisplayTopology[]

The topology for each monitor that the virtual machine's display must span.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the power state is not poweredOn.
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine is not connected.
NotSupportedThrown if the Guest Operating system does not support setting the display topology
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
ToolsUnavailableThrown if VMware Tools is not running.

Show WSDL type definition



SetScreenResolution

Sets the console window's resolution as specified.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.ConsoleInteract

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
widthxsd:int

The screen width that should be set.
heightxsd:int

The screen height that should be set.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the power state is not poweredOn.
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine is not connected.
NotSupportedThrown if the Guest Operating system does not support setting the screen resolution.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
ToolsUnavailableThrown if VMware Tools is not running.

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ShutdownGuest

Issues a command to the guest operating system asking it to perform a clean shutdown of all services. Returns immediately and does not wait for the guest operating system to complete the operation.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.PowerOff

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the power state is not powered on.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, if the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
ToolsUnavailableThrown if VMware Tools is not running.

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StandbyGuest

Issues a command to the guest operating system asking it to prepare for a suspend operation. Returns immediately and does not wait for the guest operating system to complete the operation.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.Suspend

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the power state is not powered on.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, if the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
ToolsUnavailableThrown if VMware Tools is not running.

Show WSDL type definition



StartRecording_Task

Initiates a recording session on this virtual machine. As a side effect, this operation creates a snapshot on the virtual machine, which in turn becomes the current snapshot.

This is an experimental interface that is not intended for use in production code.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.Record
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
namexsd:string

The name for the snapshot associated with this recording. The name need not be unique for this virtual machine.
description*xsd:string

A description for the snapshot associated with this recording. If omitted, a default description may be provided.
*Need not be set

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation. The info.result property in the Task contains the newly created VirtualMachineSnapshot associated with the recording on success.

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if there is a problem with creating or accessing one or more files needed for this operation.
HostIncompatibleForRecordReplayThrown if the virtual machine is located on a host that does not support record/replay.
InvalidNameThrown if the specified snapshot name is invalid.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed in the current power state of the virtual machine.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
NotSupportedThrown if the host product does not support record functionality or if the virtual machine does not support this
RecordReplayDisabledThrown if the record/replay config flag has not been enabled for this virtual machine.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
SnapshotFaultThrown if an error occurs during the snapshot operation. Typically, a more specific fault like MultipleSnapshotsNotSupported is thrown.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmConfigFault
VmConfigIncompatibleForRecordReplayThrown if the virtual machine configuration is incompatible for recording.



StartReplaying_Task

Starts a replay session on this virtual machine. As a side effect, this operation updates the current snapshot of the virtual machine.

This is an experimental interface that is not intended for use in production code.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.Replay
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
replaySnapshotManagedObjectReference
to a VirtualMachineSnapshot

The snapshot from which to start the replay. This snapshot must have been created by a record operation on the virtual machine.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if there is a problem with creating or accessing one or more files needed for this operation.
HostIncompatibleForRecordReplayThrown if the virtual machine is located on a host that does not support record/replay.
InvalidArgumentThrown if replaySnapshot is not a valid snapshot associated with a recorded session on this virtual machine.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed in the current power state of the virtual machine.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
NotFoundThrown if replaySnapshot is no longer present.
NotSupportedThrown if the host product does not support record/replay functionality or if the virtual machine does not support this capability.
RecordReplayDisabledThrown if the record/replay config flag has not been enabled for this virtual machine.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
SnapshotFaultThrown if an error occurs during the snapshot operation. Typically, a more specific fault like InvalidSnapshotFormat is thrown.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmConfigFault
VmConfigIncompatibleForRecordReplayThrown if the virtual machine configuration is incompatible for replaying.



StopRecording_Task

Stops a currently active recording session on this virtual machine.

This is an experimental interface that is not intended for use in production code.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.Record
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if there is a problem with creating or accessing one or more files needed for this operation.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed in the current power state of the virtual machine.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, the virtual machine does not have an active recording session.
NotSupportedThrown if the host product does not support record/replay functionality or if the virtual machine does not support this capability.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
SnapshotFaultThrown if an error occurs during the snapshot operation. Typically, a more specific fault like InvalidSnapshotFormat is thrown.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.



StopReplaying_Task

Stops a replay session on this virtual machine.

This is an experimental interface that is not intended for use in production code.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.Replay
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
FileFaultThrown if there is a problem with creating or accessing one or more files needed for this operation.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed in the current power state of the virtual machine.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, the virtual machine does not have an active recording session.
NotSupportedThrown if the host product does not support record/replay functionality or if the virtual machine does not support this capability.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
SnapshotFaultThrown if an error occurs during the snapshot operation. Typically, a more specific fault like InvalidSnapshotFormat is thrown.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.



SuspendVM_Task

Suspends execution in this virtual machine.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.Suspend

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the power state is not poweredOn.
InvalidStateThrown if the operation cannot be performed because of the virtual machine's current state. For example, if the virtual machine configuration information is not available.
NotSupportedThrown if the virtual machine is marked as a template.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.



TerminateFaultTolerantVM_Task

Terminates the specified secondary virtual machine in a fault tolerant group. This can be used to test fault tolerance on a given virtual machine, and should be used with care.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.TerminateFaultTolerantVM
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
vm*ManagedObjectReference
to a VirtualMachine

The secondary virtual machine specified will be terminated, allowing fault tolerance to activate. If no virtual machine is specified, all secondary virtual machines will be terminated. If vm is a primary, InvalidArgument exception is thrown. This field must specify a virtual machine that is part of the fault tolerant group that this virtual machine is currently associated with. It can only be invoked from the primary virtual machine in the group. If the primary virtual machine is terminated, an available secondary virtual machine will be promoted to primary. If no secondary exists, an exception will be thrown and the primary virtual machine will not be terminated. If a secondary virtual machine is terminated, it may be respawned on a potentially different host.
*Need not be set

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
InvalidStateThrown if the host is in maintenance mode or if the virtual machine's configuration information is not available.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmFaultToleranceIssueThrown if any error is encountered with the fault tolerance configuration of the virtual machine. Typically, a more specific fault like InvalidOperationOnSecondaryVm is thrown.



TurnOffFaultToleranceForVM_Task

Removes all secondary virtual machines associated with the fault tolerant group and turns off protection for this virtual machine. This operation can only be invoked from the primary virtual machine in the group.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.TurnOffFaultTolerance
Since
vSphere API 4.0

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
InvalidStateThrown if the host is in maintenance mode or if the virtual machine's configuration information is not available.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.
VmFaultToleranceIssueThrown if any error is encountered with the fault tolerance configuration of the virtual machine. Typically, a more specific fault like InvalidOperationOnSecondaryVm is thrown.



UnmountToolsInstaller

Unmounts VMware Tools installer CD.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.ToolsInstall

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine is not running, VMware Tools is not running or the VMware Tools CD is already mounted.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
VmConfigFault

Show WSDL type definition



UnregisterVM

Removes this virtual machine from the inventory without removing any of the virtual machine's files on disk. All high-level information stored with the management server (ESX Server or VirtualCenter) is removed, including information such as statistics, resource pool association, permissions, and alarms.

Use the Folder.RegisterVM method to recreate a VirtualMachine object from the set of virtual machine files by passing in the path to the configuration file. However, the VirtualMachine managed object that results typically has different objects ID and may inherit a different set of permissions.

Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Inventory.Unregister

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.

Return Value

Type Description
None

Faults

Type Description
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the virtual machine is powered on.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.

Show WSDL type definition



UpgradeTools_Task

Begins the tools upgrade process. To monitor the status of the tools install, clients should check the tools status, toolsVersionStatus and toolsRunningStatus.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Interact.ToolsInstall

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
installerOptions*xsd:string

Command line options passed to the installer to modify the installation procedure for tools.
*Need not be set

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
InvalidStateThrown if the virtual machine is not running or is suspended.
NotSupportedThrown if upgrading tools is not supported.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if an upgrade is already taking place.
ToolsUnavailableThrown if VMware Tools is not running.
VmConfigFault
VmToolsUpgradeFaultThrown if the upgrade failed.



UpgradeVM_Task

Upgrades this virtual machine's virtual hardware to the latest revision that is supported by the virtual machine's current host.
Required Privileges
VirtualMachine.Config.UpgradeVirtualHardware

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
_thisManagedObjectReference A reference to the VirtualMachine used to make the method call.
version*xsd:string

If specified, upgrade to that specified version. If not specified, upgrade to the most current virtual hardware supported on the host.
*Need not be set

Return Value

Type Description
ManagedObjectReference
to a Task
This method returns a Task object with which to monitor the operation.

Faults

Type Description
AlreadyUpgradedThrown if the virtual machine's hardware is already up-to-date.
InvalidPowerStateThrown if the power state is not poweredOff.
InvalidStateThrown if the host is in maintenance mode, if an invalid version string is specified, or if the virtual machine is in a state in which the operation cannot be performed. For example, if the configuration information is not available.
NoDiskFoundThrown if no virtual disks are attached to this virtual machine.
RuntimeFaultThrown if any type of runtime fault is thrown that is not covered by the other faults; for example, a communication error.
TaskInProgressThrown if the virtual machine is busy.