NCD – How do I create snapshots of VMs?
You can capture the state of a VM or vApp at a particular moment in time by taking a snapshot of the VM or vApp. Snapshots are often useful, for example, if you are experimenting or testing and need to return readily to an established baseline configuration.
To take a snapshot of a VM, access the Snapshots facility in "Config" section of the VM details page.
To take a snapshot of all VMs in a vApp, access the Snapshots section of the vApp details page.
You can Revert to, Delete, or overwrite an existing snapshot from the same respective snapshot facilities.
Cautions and Limitations
- Snapshots are meant for short term use (24-72 hours) and should not be confused with a backup.
- Snapshots can degrade the performance of a virtual machine and possibly the ESXi Host over time.
- Snapshots are not recommended on virtual disks any larger than 2 TB.
- Editing virtual machine hardware while a VM has a snapshot is not recommended and/or cannot be done. Example: Adding or re-sizing a virtual hard disk, adding or changing a vNic adapter.
Snapshots can negatively affect the performance of a virtual machine. Also, you might see a delay in the amount of time it takes the virtual machine to power-on. Performance degradation can depend on how long the snapshot or snapshot tree is in place, the depth of the tree, and how much the virtual machine and its guest operating system have changed from the time you took the snapshot. Do not run production virtual machines from snapshots on a permanent basis.