Tips for editing a .vmx file

Products

• VMware
• VMware Desktop Hypervisor
• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

This article provides tips for editing a virtual machine's configuration file (.vmx).

Resolution

Working with the .vmx file

Some workaround procedures include steps that require editing .vmx files.

Note these important characteristics of the .vmx file:

The .vmx file is typically located in the directory where the virtual machine is created.

• In Windows XP and Server 2003, the default location for the file is:
  
  C:\Documents and Settings\your_user_name\My Documents\Virtual Machines\virtual_machine_name.vmx
   
• In Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008, the default location for the file is:
  
  C:\Users\your_user_name\My Documents\Virtual Machines\virtual_machine_name.vmx
   
• In Linux, run the vmware-cmd -l command to list the full path to all registered .vmx files.
• For ESXi, the vmInventory.xml (located in /etc/vmware/hostd) contains the .vmx file path of every virtual machine registered to it.
• The virtual machine actively writes to its .vmx file. Never edit this file while its virtual machine is running.
• Changes to the file are usually version specific. In case of an upgrade, the workaround that was implemented may no longer work.

Before editing the .vmx file

• Always power off the virtual machine.
• Make sure the user is logged in with the correct permission level to edit the file.
• Make a backup copy of the .vmx file. If the edits break the virtual machine, rolling back to the original version of the file is an option.
• For more information on using the vi editor to edit files, see Adding/Deleting/Editing a host entry on vCenter server or ESXi host using vi editor.
  
  Note: VMware by Broadcom also recommends making a backup copy of the edited file. If future administrative changes to the virtual machine overwrite the edited version, take the time to cut and paste the specific section that is important from the backup copy into the current file. Do not replace an entire .vmx file with an older backup.

 

ESXi with vCenter Server

Manual additions to the .vmx file from ESXi are not recognized in vCenter Server. This can cause manual additions to the .vmx file to be overwritten. To resolve this issue, make the required changes to the .vmx file and see Reloading a vmx file without removing the virtual machine from inventory.

Alternatively, to modify the virtual machines .vmx file:

1. Remove the virtual machine from vCenter Server inventory.
   
   To remove the virtual machine from the vCenter Server inventory, right-click the virtual machine and click Remove from Inventory.
    
2. Edit the .vmx file.
3. Re-register the virtual machine from the ESXi command line.
   
   vim-cmd solo/registervm /vmfs/volumes/datastore/virtual_machine_directory/virtual_machine_name.vmx
   
   For example:
   vim-cmd solo/registervm /vmfs/volumes/Storage1/vm1/vm1.vmx