VMware

3 Mins Read

The Truth About Implementing Powerful VM Insights with vim-cmd in vSphere

Voiced by Amazon Polly

Introduction

In a VMware vSphere environment, managing virtual machines (VMs) is a fundamental task for administrators. VMware provides a powerful tool called ‘ vim-cmd ‘ to gain insights into the VMs running on an ESXi host. In this DIY guide, we will explore how to use vim-cmd commands to list essential information about the VMs on your ESXi host.

Customized Cloud Solutions to Drive your Business Success

  • Cloud Migration
  • Devops
  • AIML & IoT
Know More

Prerequisites

Before we start, make sure you have the following prerequisites in place:

  1. Access to an ESXi host in your vSphere environment.
  2. Familiarity with basic command-line interface (CLI) concepts.
  3. Administrative access to your ESXi host.

Understanding vim-cmd

vim-cmd is a command-line tool that provides a comprehensive set of commands for managing VMs, hosts, and other aspects of your VMware environment. It is particularly useful for listing VMs and retrieving information about them.

Benefits of vim-cmd

Fine-Grained Control: It allows you to access detailed information about VMs, their configuration, and their status.

Scripting and Automation: It can be used for scripting and automation, making it a valuable tool for managing multiple VMs efficiently.

 

Listing VM Information with `vim-cmd`

To use vim-cmd, you must access the ESXi host’s command-line interface. You can do this by enabling SSH access to the host or the ESXi Shell directly. Let us explore some of the scenario-based tasks and solutions.

Task-1 List all registered VMs on

the host.

Command:
vim-cmd vmssvc/ getallvms
Output:

Task-2 Get information about a specific VM by its VM ID.
Command:
vim-cmd vmsvc/get.config
Output:

Task-3 List the VM’s power state (on/off).

Command:
vim-cmd vmsvc/power.getstate
Output:

Task-3 To power on / power off VMs. You should have the VM ID of that VM first.

Command:
vim-cmd vmsvc/power.on  Output:


Task-4 Managing Snapshots of VMs using vim-cmd.

  1. Capture a snapshot: To create a snapshot for a VM using vim-cmd, you’ll need to specify the VM’s ID and provide a name for the snapshot. Use the following command:
    Command:
    vim-cmd vmsvc/snapshot.create
  2. To view/list all snapshots of VM.Command:
    vim-cmd vmsvc/snapshot.get
    Output:
  3. Reverting to a Snapshot.
    Command:
    vim-cmd vmsvc/snapshot.revert
    Output:


    Here, VM’s current state is snap03, and let’s revert to its snap02 state, whose Snapshot ID = 2.
  4. Deleting a specific snapshot.Identify the VM ID
    vim-cmd vmsvc/getallvms
    Identify the Snapshot ID
    vim-cmd vmsvc/snapshot.get
    Remove a particular snapshot.Command:
    vim-cmd vmsvc/snapshot.remove

    Output:Let us s remove snap01, whose snapshot id =1.

Conclusion

vim-cmd is a versatile tool for administrators in a VMware vSphere environment. It empowers you to list and access essential information about VMs running on your ESXi host efficiently.

Whether managing a single VM or multiple VMs, vim-cmd provides fine-grained control and the capability to script and automate tasks, making it an essential part of your vSphere toolkit. Stay curious, explore the commands, and tailor your VM management to precisely meet your organization’s specific needs.

Get your new hires billable within 1-60 days. Experience our Capability Development Framework today.

  • Cloud Training
  • Customized Training
  • Experiential Learning
Read More

About CloudThat

CloudThat is a leading provider of Cloud Training and Consulting services with a global presence in India, the USA, Asia, Europe, and Africa. Specializing in AWS, Microsoft Azure, GCP, VMware, Databricks, and more, the company serves mid-market and enterprise clients, offering comprehensive expertise in Cloud Migration, Data Platforms, DevOps, IoT, AI/ML, and more.

CloudThat is the first Indian Company to win the prestigious Microsoft Partner 2024 Award and is recognized as a top-tier partner with AWS and Microsoft, including the prestigious ‘Think Big’ partner award from AWS and the Microsoft Superstars FY 2023 award in Asia & India. Having trained 850k+ professionals in 600+ cloud certifications and completed 500+ consulting projects globally, CloudThat is an official AWS Advanced Consulting Partner, Microsoft Gold Partner, AWS Training PartnerAWS Migration PartnerAWS Data and Analytics PartnerAWS DevOps Competency PartnerAWS GenAI Competency PartnerAmazon QuickSight Service Delivery PartnerAmazon EKS Service Delivery Partner AWS Microsoft Workload PartnersAmazon EC2 Service Delivery PartnerAmazon ECS Service Delivery PartnerAWS Glue Service Delivery PartnerAmazon Redshift Service Delivery PartnerAWS Control Tower Service Delivery PartnerAWS WAF Service Delivery PartnerAmazon CloudFront Service Delivery PartnerAmazon OpenSearch Service Delivery PartnerAWS DMS Service Delivery PartnerAWS Systems Manager Service Delivery PartnerAmazon RDS Service Delivery PartnerAWS CloudFormation Service Delivery PartnerAWS ConfigAmazon EMR and many more.

FAQs

1. Can I schedule regular snapshots for my VMs using vim-cmd?

ANS: – vim-cmd itself does not provide scheduling features. You can implement snapshot schedules using vSphere’s automation and scheduling features or third-party tools.

2. How can I check the available snapshots for a VM and their details before deciding which one to delete?

ANS: – You can use the vim-cmd vmsvc/snapshot.get command to list the available snapshots and their details for a specific VM before deciding to delete a snapshot.

3. Is there a way to recover a deleted snapshot using vim-cmd if I deleted it accidentally?

ANS: – No, the deletion of a snapshot is irreversible using vim-cmd. It’s crucial to double-check before deleting a snapshot to avoid accidental data loss.

4. Why vim-cmd is useful to admins of data centres?

ANS: – VMware provides a command-line tool for managing various aspects of virtualized environments, making it an essential utility for data center administrators.

WRITTEN BY Rahulkumar Mehta

Share

Comments

    Click to Comment

Get The Most Out Of Us

Our support doesn't end here. We have monthly newsletters, study guides, practice questions, and more to assist you in upgrading your cloud career. Subscribe to get them all!