--- title: Export a virtual machine --- # Export a virtual machine {#virt-exporting-vms} Export a virtual machine (VM) and its associated disks to import it into another cluster, or for another use case, such as forensic volume analysis. You create a `VirtualMachineExport` custom resource (CR) by using the command-line interface. Alternatively, you can use the `virtctl vmexport` command to create a `VirtualMachineExport` CR and to download exported volumes. > [!NOTE] > You can migrate virtual machines between OpenShift Virtualization clusters by using the Migration Toolkit for Virtualization. ## Creating a VirtualMachineExport custom resource {#virt-creating-virtualmachineexport_virt-exporting-vms} You can create a `VirtualMachineExport` custom resource (CR) to export persistent volume claims (PVCs) from a `VirtualMachine`, `VirtualMachineSnapshot`, or `PersistentVolumeClaim` CR. You can export the following objects: - VM: Exports the persistent volume claims of a specified VM. - VM snapshot: Exports PVCs contained in a `VirtualMachineSnapshot` CR. - PVC: Exports a PVC. If the PVC is used by another pod, such as the `virt-launcher` pod, the export remains in a `Pending` state until the PVC is no longer in use. The `VirtualMachineExport` CR creates internal and external links for the exported volumes. Internal links are valid within the cluster. External links can be accessed by using an `Ingress` or `Route`. The export server supports the following file formats: - `raw`: Raw disk image file. - `gzip`: Compressed disk image file. - `dir`: PVC directory and files. - `tar.gz`: Compressed PVC file. **Prerequisites** - The VM must be shut down for a VM export. - You have installed the OpenShift CLI (`oc`). **Procedure** 1. Create a `VirtualMachineExport` manifest to export a volume from a `VirtualMachine`, `VirtualMachineSnapshot`, or `PersistentVolumeClaim` CR according to the following example and save it as `example-export.yaml`. `VirtualMachineExport` example: ```yaml apiVersion: export.kubevirt.io/v1beta1 kind: VirtualMachineExport metadata: name: example-export spec: source: apiGroup: "kubevirt.io" kind: VirtualMachine name: example-vm ttlDuration: 1h ``` - `spec.source.apiGroup` defines the API group of the resource that you want to export: - Use `"kubevirt.io"` for `VirtualMachine`. - Use `"snapshot.kubevirt.io"` for `VirtualMachineSnapshot`. - Use `""` for `PersistentVolumeClaim`. - `spec.source.kind` defines the data source for the export. There are three primary values used for this field: - `VirtualMachine` - `VirtualMachineSnapshot` - `PersistentVolumeClaim` - `spec.ttlDuration` defines the length of time before the export resource is automatically deleted. The default is 2 hours. 2. Create the `VirtualMachineExport` CR: ```terminal $ oc create -f example-export.yaml ``` 3. Get the `VirtualMachineExport` CR: ```terminal $ oc get vmexport example-export -o yaml ``` The internal and external links for the exported volumes are displayed in the `status` stanza: Output example: ```yaml apiVersion: export.kubevirt.io/v1beta1 kind: VirtualMachineExport metadata: name: example-export namespace: example spec: source: apiGroup: "" kind: PersistentVolumeClaim name: example-pvc tokenSecretRef: example-token status: conditions: - lastProbeTime: null lastTransitionTime: "2022-06-21T14:10:09Z" reason: podReady status: "True" type: Ready - lastProbeTime: null lastTransitionTime: "2022-06-21T14:09:02Z" reason: pvcBound status: "True" type: PVCReady links: external: cert: |- -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE----- ... -----END CERTIFICATE----- volumes: - formats: - format: raw url: https://vmexport-proxy.test.net/api/export.kubevirt.io/v1beta1/namespaces/example/virtualmachineexports/example-export/volumes/example-disk/disk.img - format: gzip url: https://vmexport-proxy.test.net/api/export.kubevirt.io/v1beta1/namespaces/example/virtualmachineexports/example-export/volumes/example-disk/disk.img.gz name: example-disk internal: cert: |- -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE----- ... -----END CERTIFICATE----- volumes: - formats: - format: raw url: https://virt-export-example-export.example.svc/volumes/example-disk/disk.img - format: gzip url: https://virt-export-example-export.example.svc/volumes/example-disk/disk.img.gz name: example-disk phase: Ready serviceName: virt-export-example-export ``` - `status.links.external` defines external links that are accessible from outside the cluster by using an `Ingress` or `Route`. - `status.links.internal` defines internal links that are valid only inside the cluster. ## Accessing exported virtual machine manifests {#virt-accessing-exported-vm-manifests_virt-exporting-vms} After you export a virtual machine (VM) or snapshot, you can get the `VirtualMachine` manifest and related information from the export server. **Prerequisites** - You have installed the OpenShift CLI (`oc`). - You exported a virtual machine or VM snapshot by creating a `VirtualMachineExport` custom resource (CR). > [!NOTE] > `VirtualMachineExport` objects that have the `spec.source.kind: PersistentVolumeClaim` parameter do not generate virtual machine manifests. **Procedure** 1. To access the manifests, you must first copy the certificates from the source cluster to the target cluster. 1. Log in to the source cluster. 2. Save the certificates to the `cacert.crt` file by running the following command: ```terminal $ oc get vmexport -o jsonpath={.status.links.external.cert} > cacert.crt ``` Replace `` with the `metadata.name` value from the `VirtualMachineExport` object. 3. Copy the `cacert.crt` file to the target cluster. 2. Decode the token in the source cluster and save it to the `token_decode` file by running the following command: ```terminal $ oc get secret export-token- -o jsonpath={.data.token} | base64 --decode > token_decode ``` Replace `` with the `metadata.name` value from the `VirtualMachineExport` object. 3. Copy the `token_decode` file to the target cluster. 4. Get the `VirtualMachineExport` custom resource by running the following command: ```terminal $ oc get vmexport -o yaml ``` 5. Review the `status.links` stanza, which is divided into `external` and `internal` sections. Note the `manifests.url` fields within each section, for example: ```yaml apiVersion: export.kubevirt.io/v1beta1 kind: VirtualMachineExport metadata: name: example-export spec: source: apiGroup: "kubevirt.io" kind: VirtualMachine name: example-vm tokenSecretRef: example-token status: #... links: external: #... manifests: - type: all url: https://vmexport-proxy.test.net/api/export.kubevirt.io/v1beta1/namespaces/example/virtualmachineexports/example-export/external/manifests/all - type: auth-header-secret url: https://vmexport-proxy.test.net/api/export.kubevirt.io/v1beta1/namespaces/example/virtualmachineexports/example-export/external/manifests/secret internal: #... manifests: - type: all url: https://virt-export-export-pvc.default.svc/internal/manifests/all - type: auth-header-secret url: https://virt-export-export-pvc.default.svc/internal/manifests/secret phase: Ready serviceName: virt-export-example-export ``` - `status.links.external.manifests.url` where the `type` is `all` contains the `VirtualMachine` manifest, `DataVolume` manifest, if present, and a `ConfigMap` manifest that contains the public certificate for the external URL’s ingress or route. - `status.links.external.manifests.url` where the `type` is `auth-header-secret` contains a secret containing a header that is compatible with Containerized Data Importer (CDI). The header contains a text version of the export token. 6. Log in to the target cluster. 7. Get the `Secret` manifest by running the following command: ```terminal $ curl --cacert cacert.crt -H \ "x-kubevirt-export-token:token_decode" -H \ "Accept:application/yaml" ``` - Replace `` with an `auth-header-secret` URL from the `VirtualMachineExport` YAML output. - Reference the `token_decode` file that you created earlier. For example: ```terminal $ curl --cacert cacert.crt https://vmexport-proxy.test.net/api/export.kubevirt.io/v1beta1/namespaces/example/virtualmachineexports/example-export/external/manifests/secret -H "x-kubevirt-export-token:token_decode" -H "Accept:application/yaml" ``` 8. Get the manifests of `type: all`, such as the `ConfigMap` and `VirtualMachine` manifests, by running the following command: ```terminal $ curl --cacert cacert.crt -H \ "x-kubevirt-export-token:token_decode" -H \ "Accept:application/yaml" ``` - Replace `` with a URL from the `VirtualMachineExport` YAML output. - Reference the `token_decode` file that you created earlier. For example: ```terminal $ curl --cacert cacert.crt https://vmexport-proxy.test.net/api/export.kubevirt.io/v1beta1/namespaces/example/virtualmachineexports/example-export/external/manifests/all -H "x-kubevirt-export-token:token_decode" -H "Accept:application/yaml" ``` **Next steps** - You can now create the `ConfigMap` and `VirtualMachine` objects on the target cluster by using the exported manifests. **Additional resources** {._additional-resources} - [Migration Toolkit for Virtualization](https://access.redhat.com/products/migration-toolkits-virtualization) - [virtctl vmexport command](/openshift-docs-markdown/virt/getting_started/virt-using-the-cli-tools#vm-export-commands_virt-using-the-cli-tools)