Installation guide

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VMware ESX Server Administration Guide
In some circumstances — for example, if you are moving the virtual machine but
want to keep the same UUID — you may want to assign a specific UUID to the virtual
machine. In that case, you need to override the automatically generated UUID value.
To do so, edit the virtual machine’s configuration file as described in this section to set
the value of the parameter uuid.bios.
Comparing the Generated UUID to Configuration File Parameters
When a virtual machine is powered on, ESX Server generates a UUID as described
above and compares it to the values for uuid.location and (if it exists)
uuid.bios in the configuration file.
If the automatically generated UUID matches the value of uuid.location, ESX
Server checks for uuid.bios. If uuid.bios exists, its value is used as the virtual
machine’s UUID. If uuid.bios does not exist, the automatically generated value is
used.
If the automatically generated UUID does not match the value of uuid.location,
the newly generated value is used as the virtual machine’s UUID and is saved to the
configuration file, replacing the previous value of uuid.location and (if it exists)
uuid.bios.
Note: Any changes to the UUID take effect only after the virtual machine is rebooted.
Setting the UUID for a Virtual Machine that Is Not Being Moved
To assign a specific UUID to a virtual machine that is not being moved, add one line to
the configuration file. You may use the configuration file editor in the VMware
Management Interface by completing one of the following:
• In the management interface, click the arrow to the right of the terminal icon for
that virtual machine and select Configure Options in the virtual machine menu
(see Using the Virtual Machine Menu on page 95), then click the link under
Verbose Options. Create an option called uuid.bios and set the value as
described below.
• Log in to the service console and, using a text editor there, open the virtual
machine’s configuration file (.vmx). Add the following line:
uuid.bios = <uuidvalue>
The UUID value (<uuidvalue>) must be surrounded by quotation marks. A sample
configuration option might look like this:
uuid.bios = "00 11 22 33 44 55 66 77-88 99 aa bb cc dd ee
ff"