Citrix Systems 6.2.0 manual Importing and Exporting VMs, Supported Formats, Format Description

Chapter 11. Importing and Exporting VMs

XenServer allows you to import VMs from and export them to a number of different formats. Using the XenCenter Import wizard, you can import VMs from disk images (VHD and VMDK), Open Virtualization Format (OVF and OVA) and XenServer XVA format. You can even import VMs that have been created on other virtualization platforms, such as those offered by VMware and Microsoft.

Note:

When importing VMs that have been created using other virtualization platforms, it is necessary to configure or "fix up" the guest operating system to ensure that it boots on XenServer. The Operating System Fixup feature in XenCenter aims to provide this basic level of interoperability. For more information, see Section 11.2, “Operating System Fixup”.

Using the XenCenter Export wizard, you can export VMs to Open Virtualization Format (OVF and OVA) and XenServer XVA format.

When importing and exporting VMs, a temporary VM — the Transfer VM — is used to perform the import/export of OVF/OVA packages and disk images. You need to configure networking settings for the Transfer VM in the XenCenter Import and Export wizards. For more information, see Section 11.3, “The Transfer VM”.

You can also use the xe CLI to import VMs from and export them to XenServer XVA format.

11.1. Supported Formats

Format	Description
Open Virtualization Format (OVF and OVA)	OVF is an open standard for packaging and
	distributing a virtual appliance consisting of one or
	more VM(s).
Disk image formats (VHD and VMDK)	Virtual Hard Disk (VHD) and Virtual Machine Disk
	(VMDK) format disk image files can be imported
	using the Import wizard. Importing a disk image may
	be appropriate when there is a virtual disk image
	available, with no OVF metadata associated.
XenServer XVA format	XVA is a format specific to Xen-based hypervisors
	for packaging an individual VM as a single file
	archive, including a descriptor and disk images. Its file
	extension is .xva.
XenServer XVA Version 1 format	XVA Version 1 is the original format specific to Xen-
	based hypervisors for packaging an individual VM as
	a single file archive, including a descriptor and disk
	images. Its file extension is ova.xml.

Which Format to Use?

Consider using OVF/OVA format to:

•Share XenServer vApps and VMs with other virtualization platforms that support OVF

•Save more than one VM

•Secure a vApp or VM from corruption and tampering

•Include a license agreement

•Simplify vApp distribution by storing an OVF package in an OVA file

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