VM Cloning Guide

Migrate VMs between hypervisors using restartOS's built-in cloning capabilities. This guide explains how to use the clone-source and clone-target commands to auto-discover VMs running from different hypervisors.

Prerequisites

Two or more VMs running restartOS
VMs running from different hypervisors (e.g., VMware, VirtualBox, KVM)
Network connectivity between VMs

Step 1: Boot the Source VM

Boot the VM you want to clone from. This VM will act as the source for the cloning operation.

Step 2: Run clone-source

In the source VM, run the following command:

clone-source

This will start a listener on your network that other VMs can discover.

Step 3: Boot the Target VM

Boot the VM you want to clone into. This VM will act as the target for the cloning operation.

Step 4: Run clone-target

In the target VM, run the following command:

clone-target

This will automatically discover the source VM on your network.

Step 5: Initiate the Clone

Once discovered, you can initiate a full disk clone from source to target. The cloning process will transfer all data and configuration from the source VM to the target VM.

Troubleshooting

If the target VM doesn't discover the source, check that both VMs are on the same network
Ensure firewall settings allow traffic between the VMs
Verify that clone-source is running in the source VM

Common Questions