The Disk namespace provides commands for configuring the virtual disks of a virtual machine. A virtual disk has a backing such as a VMDK file. The backing has an independent lifecycle from the virtual machine when it is detached from the virtual machine. The Disk.create command provides the ability to create a new virtual disk. When creating a virtual disk, a new VMDK file may be created or an existing VMDK file may used as a backing. Once a VMDK file is associated with a virtual machine, its lifecycle will be bound to the virtual machine. In other words, it will be deleted when the virtual machine is deleted. The Disk.delete command provides the ability to detach a VMDK file from the virtual machine. The Disk.delete command does not delete the VMDK file that backs the virtual disk. Once detached, the VMDK file will not be destroyed when the virtual machine to which it was associated is deleted.
List of commands:
dcli com vmware vcenter vm hardware disk list
Description
Returns commonly used information about the virtual disks belonging to the virtual machine.
Options
| Option Name | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
vm |
string | Yes | Virtual machine identifier. The parameter must be an identifier for the resource type: VirtualMachine. |
Example
dcli com vmware vcenter vm hardware disk list --vm testId
dcli com vmware vcenter vm hardware disk get
Description
Returns information about a virtual disk.
Options
| Option Name | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
vm |
string | Yes | Virtual machine identifier. The parameter must be an identifier for the resource type: VirtualMachine. |
disk |
string | Yes | Virtual disk identifier. The parameter must be an identifier for the resource type: com.vmware.vcenter.vm.hardware.Disk. |
Example
dcli com vmware vcenter vm hardware disk get --vm testId --disk testId
dcli com vmware vcenter vm hardware disk create
Description
Adds a virtual disk to the virtual machine. While adding the virtual disk, a new VMDK file may be created or an existing VMDK file may be used to back the virtual disk.
Options
| Option Name | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
vm |
string | Yes | Virtual machine identifier. The parameter must be an identifier for the resource type: VirtualMachine. |
type |
string | No | Type of host bus adapter to which the device should be attached. If unset, guest-specific default values will be used Valid values are: {IDE, SCSI, SATA} |
ide‑primary |
bool | No | Flag specifying whether the device should be attached to the primary or secondary IDE adapter of the virtual machine. If unset, the server will choose a adapter with an available connection. If no IDE connections are available, the request will be rejected. |
ide‑master |
bool | No | Flag specifying whether the device should be the master or slave device on the IDE adapter. If unset, the server will choose an available connection type. If no IDE connections are available, the request will be rejected. |
scsi‑bus |
int | No | Bus number of the adapter to which the device should be attached. |
scsi‑unit |
int | No | Unit number of the device. If unset, the server will choose an available unit number on the specified adapter. If there are no available connections on the adapter, the request will be rejected. |
sata‑bus |
int | No | Bus number of the adapter to which the device should be attached. |
sata‑unit |
int | No | Unit number of the device. If unset, the server will choose an available unit number on the specified adapter. If there are no available connections on the adapter, the request will be rejected. |
backing‑type |
string | No | Backing type for the virtual disk. Valid values are: {VMDK_FILE} |
backing‑vmdk‑file |
string | No | Path of the VMDK file backing the virtual disk. This option is optional and it is only relevant when the value of type is VMDK_FILE. |
new‑vmdk‑name |
string | No | Base name of the VMDK file. The name should not include the '.vmdk' file extension. If unset, a name (derived from the name of the virtual machine) will be chosen by the server. |
new‑vmdk‑capacity |
int | No | Capacity of the virtual disk backing in bytes. If unset, defaults to a guest-specific capacity. |
Example
dcli com vmware vcenter vm hardware disk create --vm testId
dcli com vmware vcenter vm hardware disk update
Description
Updates the configuration of a virtual disk. An update command can be used to detach the existing VMDK file and attach another VMDK file to the virtual machine.
Options
| Option Name | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
vm |
string | Yes | Virtual machine identifier. The parameter must be an identifier for the resource type: VirtualMachine. |
disk |
string | Yes | Virtual disk identifier. The parameter must be an identifier for the resource type: com.vmware.vcenter.vm.hardware.Disk. |
backing‑type |
string | No | Backing type for the virtual disk. Valid values are: {VMDK_FILE} |
backing‑vmdk‑file |
string | No | Path of the VMDK file backing the virtual disk. This option is optional and it is only relevant when the value of type is VMDK_FILE. |
Example
dcli com vmware vcenter vm hardware disk update --vm testId --disk testId
dcli com vmware vcenter vm hardware disk delete
Description
Removes a virtual disk from the virtual machine. This command does not destroy the VMDK file that backs the virtual disk. It only detaches the VMDK file from the virtual machine. Once detached, the VMDK file will not be destroyed when the virtual machine to which it was associated is deleted.
Options
| Option Name | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
vm |
string | Yes | Virtual machine identifier. The parameter must be an identifier for the resource type: VirtualMachine. |
disk |
string | Yes | Virtual disk identifier. The parameter must be an identifier for the resource type: com.vmware.vcenter.vm.hardware.Disk. |
Example
dcli com vmware vcenter vm hardware disk delete --vm testId --disk testId