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7.11. Creating a Cloned Virtual Machine Based on a Template

Cloned virtual machines are based on templates and inherit the settings of the template. A cloned virtual machine does not depend on the template on which it was based after it has been created. This means the template can be deleted if no other dependencies exist.

Note

If you clone a virtual machine from a template, the name of the template on which that virtual machine was based is displayed in the General tab of the Edit Virtual Machine window for that virtual machine. If you change the name of that template, the name of the template in the General tab will also be updated. However, if you delete the template from the Manager, the original name of that template will be displayed instead.
When creating a virtual machine from a template, you can choose the format of the disk: either RAW or QCOW2. If the Storage Allocation is Thin, the format of the disk will be marked as QCOW2 and you will not be able to change it. If the Storage Allocation is Clone, you can select either QCOW2 or RAW.

Procedure 7.18. Cloning a Virtual Machine Based on a Template

  1. Click the Virtual Machines tab.
  2. Click New VM.
  3. Select the Cluster on which the virtual machine will run.
  4. Select a template from the Based on Template drop-down menu.
  5. Enter a Name, Description and any Comments. You can accept the default values inherited from the template in the rest of the fields, or change them if required.
  6. Click the Resource Allocation tab.
  7. Select the Clone radio button in the Storage Allocation area.
  8. Select the disk format from the Format drop-down list. This affects the speed of the clone operation and the amount of disk space the new virtual machine initially requires.
    • Selecting QCOW2 results in a faster clone operation and provides optimized usage of storage capacity. Disk space is allocated only as it is required. This is the default selection.
    • Selecting Raw results in a slower clone operation and provides optimized virtual machine read and write operations. All disk space requested in the template is allocated at the time of the clone operation.
  9. Use the Target drop-down menu to select the storage domain on which the virtual machine's virtual disk will be stored.
  10. Click OK.

Note

Cloning a virtual machine may take some time. A new copy of the template's disk must be created. During this time, the virtual machine's status is first Image Locked, then Down.
The virtual machine is created and displayed in the Virtual Machines tab. You can now assign users to it, and can begin using it when the clone operation is complete.