You can clone virtual machines only if you have Fusion Pro. You do not need to find and manually copy the parent virtual machine files.

Note:

  • You can access cloning options from the right-click menu, Virtual Machine menu and snapshot manager.

  • You cannot create linked clones from encrypted virtual machines.

  • You cannot create linked or full clones from restricted virtual machines.

  • You cannot create linked or full clones from Boot Camp virtual machines.

  • You can create full clones from encrypted virtual machines.

  • You can create a cloned virtual machine from the powered off snapshot of the parent virtual machine.

Prerequisites

  • Familiarize yourself with the types of clones. See Using Linked Clones and Using Full Clones.

  • If making a linked or full clone from the current state of a virtual machine, power down the virtual machine.

Procedure

  1. (Optional) To create a clone from the current state of a virtual machine:
    1. Select a virtual machine from the Virtual Machine Library.
    2. Click Virtual Machine and select either Create Full Clone or Create Linked Clone, depending on the type of clone you want to create.

      Fusion takes a snapshot of the selected virtual machine when creating a linked clone.

  2. (Optional) To create a clone from a snapshot of a virtual machine:
    1. Select a virtual machine from the Virtual Machine Library.
    2. Click Snapshots.
    3. Select a snapshot and right-click. Select either Create Full Clone or Create Linked Clone, depending on the type of clone you want to create.
  3. Type a name for the clone and click Save.

    A full clone can take several minutes to create, depending on the size of the virtual disk that is being duplicated.

Results

The clone appears in the Virtual Machine Library.

A linked clone virtual machine is designated by a clone badge in the Virtual Machine Library. The parent virtual machine name is shown under the virtual machine name in the Virtual Machine Library display. In snapshot manager, a snapshot which has a linked clone virtual machine is designated with a snapshot badge.

What to do next

If the parent virtual machine uses a static IP address, change the static IP address of the clone before the clone connects to the network to prevent IP address conflicts.

Although the cloning process creates a new MAC address for the clone, other configuration information, such as the virtual machine name and static IP address configuration, is identical to that of the parent virtual machine.