Sample Scripts for Managing vSphere with VMware PowerCLI
To help you get started with VMware PowerCLI , this documentation provides a set of sample scripts that illustrate basic and advanced tasks in vSphere administration.
Connect to a vCenter ServerSystem PowerCLI cmdlets on vSphere and perform administration or monitoring tasks, you must establish a connection to an ESXi host or a vCenter Server system. Manage Virtual Machines on vSphere PowerCLI , you can automate various administration tasks on virtual machines, for example retrieving information, shutting down and powering off virtual machines. Add a Standalone Host to a vCenter Server System Add-VMHost cmdlet. After adding the hosts, you will be able to manage them through the vCenter Server system.Set the License Key for a Host on vCenter Server vCenter Server system by using the LicenseKey parameter of the Set-VMHost cmdlet. Activate Maintenance Mode for a Host on vCenter Server Set-VMHost cmdlet. Create vSphere Inventory Objects PowerCLI cmdlets, you can automate creating different inventory objects on vSphere. Create Virtual Machines on vCenter Server Using an XML Specification File Manage Virtual Machine Templates on vCenter Server PowerCLI to create virtual machines templates and convert them to virtual machines on vCenter Server.Create and Use Snapshots on vCenter Server Snapshot parameter of Get-VM to take a snapshot of virtual machines and then revert the states of the virtual machines back to the snapshot. Update the Resource Configuration Settings of a Virtual Machine on vCenter Server Set-VMResourceConfiguration cmdlet to modify the resource configuration properties of a virtual machine, including memory, CPU shares, and other settings.Get a List of Hosts on a vCenter Server System and View Their Properties PowerCLI , you can get information about all available hosts in a data center and view their properties. Change the Host Advanced Configuration Settings on vCenter Server Move a Virtual Machine to a Different Host Using VMware vSphere vMotion Move a Virtual Machine to a Different Datastore Using VMware vSphere Storage vMotion Move a Virtual Machine to a Different vCenter Server System vCenter Server system to another by using Cross vCenter Server vMotion. Create a Host Profile on a vCenter Server System ESXi hosts. With PowerCLI , you can automate creation and modifying of host profiles. Apply a Host Profile to a Host on vCenter Server Manage Statistics and Statistics Intervals on vCenter Server PowerCLI cmdlets to automate tasks for viewing and managing statistics for vCenter Server inventory objects.Modify the Settings of the NIC Teaming Policy for a Virtual Switch Create a vApp on vCenter Server PowerCLI , you can create and manage vApps.Modify the Properties of a vApp PowerCLI , you can start and stop vApps, and modify their properties.Export or Import vApps Create an iSCSI Host Storage Add Passthrough Devices to a Host and Virtual Machine Create a Custom Property Based on an Extension Data Property Create a Script-Based Custom Property for a vSphere Object Apply a Customization Object to a Cloned Virtual Machine Modify the Default NIC Mapping Object of a Customization Specification Modify Multiple NIC Mapping Objects of a Customization Specification Create Multiple Virtual Machines that Use Static IP Addresses Create Multiple Virtual Machines with Two Network Adapters Create a vSphere Role and Assign Permissions to a User PowerCLI , you can automate management of vSphere permissions, roles, and privileges. View the Action Triggers for an Alarm on vCenter Server Create and Modify Alarm Actions and Alarm Triggers on vCenter Server PowerCLI , you can create and modify vCenter Server alarm actions and alarm triggers.Remove Alarm Actions and Triggers Create and Modify Advanced Settings for a Cluster vCenter Server system by creating and modifying custom advanced settings for it.Modify the vCenter Server Email Configuration Modify the vCenter Server SNMP Configuration Use Esxtop to Get Information on the Virtual CPUs of a Virtual Machine Get-EsxTop cmdlet to retrieve real-time data for troubleshooting performance problems. Filter vSphere Objects with Get-View Get-View cmdlet to filter vSphere objects before performing various actions on them.Populate a View Object with Get-View Get-View to retrieve PowerCLI views from previously retrieved view objects.Update the State of a Server-Side Object Get-View cmdlet to update server-side objects.Reboot a Host with Get-View Modify the CPU Levels of a Virtual Machine with Get–View and Get–VIObjectByVIView Get-View and Get-VIObjectByVIView cmdlets.Browse the Default Inventory Drive Create a New Custom Inventory Drive New-PSDrive cmdlet.Manage Inventory Objects Through Inventory Drives PowerCLI Inventory Provider to browse, modify, and remove inventory objects from inventory drives.Browse the Default Datastore Drives PowerCLI Datastore Provider to browse the default datastore drives: vmstore and vmstores .Create a New Custom Datastore Drive PowerCLI Datastore Provider to create custom datastore drives.Manage Datastores Through Datastore Drives PowerCLI Datastore Provider to browse datastores from datastore drives.Modify the Timeout Setting for Web Tasks Set-PowerCLIConfiguration to modify the PowerCLI settings for long-running Web tasks. Using Tags Network Management with vSphere Distributed Switches VMware.VimAutomation.VDS module let you manage networking with vSphere distributed switches and port groups. Create a Virtual Machine from a Content Library Item Create a vApp from a Content Library Item Create a New VM-VM DRS Rule Create a New VM-VMHost DRS Rule