We need to upgrade an application from Version X to Version X++. Due to security concerns, the customer does not want to perform the upgrade through the UI. Instead, we are considering providing an OVA file with the updated application version.The setup is as follows:The target environment is VMware ESXi 6.7.
A VM with App Version X++ is installed.
The OVA file consists of VMDK and OVF files.
The VMDK is thin-provisioned with provisioned size of 275 GB and an actual size of 22 GB, but while exporting, the VMDK expands to 275 GB, which is the full disk size.
Problem: We need to export VMDK with only the 22 GB of actual data, but VMware ESXi 6.7 does not seem to provide an option to shrink or reduce the VMDK size during export.We also attempted to redefine the capacity of the VMDK in the old OVF file and then upload it. However, this resulted in a size mismatch issue, preventing us from proceeding.Upgrading to a higher version of ESXi is not an option.
What We Have Tried:
- Checking for thin-provisioned exports (no option available in ESXi 6.7).
- Exploring VMDK splitting to reduce size.
- Modifying the OVF file to redefine VMDK capacity (resulted in a size mismatch).
- Reviewing community/documentation for any workarounds on ESXi 6.7.
Request for Expert Advice:We are looking for a reliable method to export only the 22 GB of actual data from the VM while staying within the constraints of VMware ESXi 6.7.Has anyone encountered a similar issue, or does anyone have recommendations on efficiently exporting a VMDK without including unused disk space?Any insights or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.Thanks in advance!