8.1

Table Of Contents
Protecting Your Virtual Machines 8
You can protect your virtual machines from data loss and other problems by using snapshots, AutoProtect,
complimentary anti-virus software, and backup applications.
This chapter includes the following topics:
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“Snapshots,” on page 91
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“AutoProtect,” on page 93
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“Install McAfee AntiVirus Plus in a Windows Virtual Machine,” on page 94
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“Copy a Virtual Machine to External Media,” on page 95
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“Using Time Machine When You Have Fusion on Your Mac,” on page 95
Snapshots
Taking a snapshot in Fusion lets you preserve the state of the virtual machine so that you can return to that
state.
You might take a snapshot any time you are about to take an action in your virtual machine and you are
unsure of the consequences. For example, you might take a snapshot before you make a change to your
virtual machine's system software, such as an operating system upgrade or a major configuration change. If
something doesn't work as expected after the change, you can restore the snapshot to return the virtual
machine to its previous state.
You might also take a snapshot before you go on to the Internet, or log in to an unknown network. If your
computer acquires a software virus or spyware, you can restore the snapshot to return the virtual machine
to its previous uninfected state.
A snapshot captures the entire state of the virtual machine at the time you take the snapshot.
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Memory state – Contents of the virtual machine memory
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Settings state – Virtual machine settings
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Disk state – State of all the virtual disks
A snapshot is not the same as a backup. It is not a copy of your virtual machine.
View Snapshots for a Virtual Machine
The Snapshots window shows all of the snapshots for a virtual machine.
The Snapshots window shows manual snapshots and AutoProtect snapshots.
VMware, Inc.
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