How to Recover lost/deleted configuration file in Workstation VM

Products

• VMware Desktop Hypervisor

Issue/Introduction

This article provides steps to recover a Workstation virtual machine .vmx configuration file which has been deleted or corrupted, provided that the virtual disk .vmdk file still exists.

Environment

VMware Workstation 10.x (Windows)
VMware Workstation 10.x (Linux)
VMware Workstation Pro 16.x (Windows)
VMware Workstation 11.x (for Linux)
VMware Workstation Pro 15.x (Windows)
VMware Workstation Pro 16.x (Linux)
VMware Workstation 8.x (Linux)
VMware Workstation Pro 14.x (for Linux)
VMware Workstation 7.x (Linux)
VMware Workstation 8.x (Windows)
VMware Workstation 11.x (for Windows)
VMware Workstation 9.x (Windows)
VMware Workstation Pro 14.x (for Windows)
VMware Workstation 7.x (Windows)
VMware Workstation 9.x (Linux)
VMware Workstation Pro 15.x (Linux)

Resolution

It is recommended to create a new virtual machine and pointing it to the existing virtual disk files. This procedure recreates the configuration file for your existing virtual machine, as well as other supporting files.

Process to create a new .vmx configuration file:

1. In Workstation, click Create New Virtual Machine from the Home tab or select File > New Virtual Machine.
2. Select Custom Virtual Machine.
   
   Note: By default, the new .vmx file is created in a new folder. If you want the .vmx file to be created in the same location as your existing virtual disk .vmdk file, choose your existing virtual machine folder when creating the new virtual machine.
    
3. Respond to the prompts in the wizard until you reach the Select a Disk screen.
4. Select Use Existing Disk and browse to your existing virtual disk .vmdk file.
5. Follow the remaining steps in the wizard until it is complete.
6. Start the virtual machine by double-clicking on the new .vmx file.