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Table Of Contents
- vCloud API Programming Guide
- Contents
- vCloud API Programming Guide
- About the VMware vCloud API
- Hello vCloud: A Simplified RESTful Workflow
- Exploring a Cloud
- Provisioning an Organization with vApps, Templates, and Media
- Deploying and Operating vApps
- Summary of vCloud API vApp and Virtual Machine Operations Requests
- Create a vApp From a Template
- Compose a vApp From Existing Virtual Machines
- Recompose a vApp to Add or Remove Virtual Machines
- Operate a vApp
- Configuring vApps and Virtual Machines
- Retrieve the Configuration Links for a vApp
- Retrieve the Configuration Links for a Virtual Machine
- Retrieve or Update a Modifiable Section
- Update a vApp Network Configuration
- Update the NetworkConnectionSection of a Virtual Machine
- Retrieve or Modify the CPU Configuration of a Virtual Machine
- Retrieve or Modify the GuestCustomizationSection of a Virtual Machine
- Retrieve or Modify ProductSection Elements
- Retrieve or Modify Groups of Related Sections in a Virtual Machine
- Retrieve or Modify the Hard Disk Configuration of a Virtual Machine
- Creating, Provisioning, and Managing Organizations
- Summary of Administrative Requests
- Administrator Credentials and Privileges
- Organization Administration
- Network Administration
- vDC Administration
- Catalog Administration
- User and Group Administration
- Working With Roles and Rights
- Controlling Access to vApps and Catalogs
- Using vCloud API Extensions to Provision and Manage a Cloud
- Working With Object Metadata
- Using the Query Service
- Configuring and Using Blocking Tasks and Notifications
- XML Representations in the vCloud API
- Index
Deploying and Operating vApps 5
The vCloud API supports programmatic access to a range of self-service datacenter operations that allow users
to create, configure, deploy, and operate vApps.
The initial configuration of a vApp is established in the OVF package on which its source template is based.
In the vCloud API, vApp templates are based on OVF 1.0. These templates can be retrieved from catalogs and
transformed into virtual systems, called vApps, through a process called instantiation, which binds a
template’s abstract resource requirements to resources available in a vDC.
About OVF
OVF is a widely accepted standard format that applies to many virtualization technologies.
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Virtual machines and appliances are distributed as OVF packages by many vendors.
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Many vendors, including VMware, offer tools that simplify creating and customizing OVF, support
converting virtual machines on existing virtualization platforms to OVF, or both.
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OVF can express the complex relationships between virtual appliances in enterprise applications. The
author of the appliance can handle most of the complexity, rather than the user who deploys it.
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OVF is extensible, allowing new policies and requirements to be inserted by ISVs and implemented by
the virtualization platforms that support them without requiring changes to other clients, other platforms,
or the vCloud API itself.
Administrators and advanced users should become familiar with the details of the OVF standard before
developing applications with the vCloud API. The complete OVF specification document is available at
http://www.dmtf.org/standards/published_documents/DSP0243_1.0.0.pdf. An informative white paper on
OVF is available at http://www.dmtf.org/standards/published_documents/DSP2017_1.0.0.pdf.
A virtual machine is typically made up of one or more virtual disk files that contain the operating system and
applications that run on the virtual machine, and a configuration file containing metadata that describe how
the virtual machine is configured and deployed. An OVF package includes these components, as well as
optional certificate and manifest files. The package can be distributed and stored as a collection of individual
files, or as a single archive (OVA) file. The vCloud API does not support uploading or downloading OVA files.
vApp Life Cycle
A vApp contains one or more Vm elements, which represent individual virtual machines. It also contains
information that defines operational details for the vApp and the virtual machines that it contains. The vApp
lifecycle includes several distinct states:
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An OVF package, the form in which vApps are typically distributed.
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A vApp template, created when a client uploads an OVF package to a vDC.
VMware, Inc.
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