Virtual Machine Guest Operations

The vSphere Web Services SDK enables you to do operations inside a virtual machine, by communicating with the guest operating system.

Authenticating with the Guest Operating System
Authentication is required for most guest operations. Before you invoke a method that affects the guest, you must establish your credentials with the guest operating system and acquire a GuestAuthentication object that you pass to the method.
Running Guest OS Operations
Guest OS operations manipulate processes, files, folders, and environment variables in a virtual machine's guest operating system.
Guest Operating System Customization
You can use the vSphere Web Services SDK to customize several attributes of the guest operating system. The CustomizationSpec data object allows you to specify network and identity settings in the guest operating system.
Guest Network Customization for Stopped Virtual Machines
You can customize certain settings in the guest operating system with the help of the vSphere Web Services SDK. Customization is simpler for a virtual machine that is not running.
Guest Network Customization for Instant Clone Virtual Machines
You can customize the network settings in the guest operating system with the help of the vSphere Web Services SDK. For instant clone operations, you must customize the clone without stopping the guest operating system.
Resetting the Network Stack in a Running Virtual Machine
In any case where you change the network identity settings in the guest operating system of a running virtual machine, you must reset the network stack for the virtual NIC to cause it to adopt the new settings. You can do this by invoking the VirtualMachineGuestCustomizationManager.RestartNetwork_Task method after you customize the network settings, or you can do the reset from the guest operating system, as with a physical machine. The way to reset a NIC differs, depending on the operating system.