Updating Applications for Advanced Transport

To update your applications for advanced transport with managed disk, follow these steps:

Procedure

  1. Find all instances of VixDiskLib_Connect() and change them to VixDiskLib_ConnectEx().

    The vixDiskLib sample program was extended to use VixDiskLib_ConnectEx() with the -mod option.

  2. Likewise, change VixDiskLib_Init() to VixDiskLib_InitEx() and be sure to call it only once.
  3. Disable virtual machine relocation with the VixDiskLib_PrepareForAccess() call.
  4. Add parameters in the middle:
    • TRUE for high performance read-only access, FALSE for read/write access.
    • Snapshot moRef, if applicable.
    • NULL to accept transport method defaults (recommended).
  5. Re-enable virtual machine relocation with the VixDiskLib_EndAccess() call.
  6. Find VixDiskLib_Disconnect() near the end of program, and for safety add a VixDiskLib_Cleanup() call immediately afterwards.
  7. Compile with the new flexible-transport-enabled version of VixDiskLib.

    The advanced transport functions are useful for backing up or restoring data on virtual disks managed by VMware vSphere. Backup is based on the snapshot mechanism, which provides a data view at a certain point in time, and allows access to quiescent data on the parent disk while the child disk continues changing.