5.1
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
- Summary of vCloud API Browsing Requests
- Retrieve the Login URL and List of Supported API Versions
- Create a Login Session Using the Integrated Identity Provider
- Retrieve a List of Organizations Accessible to You
- Retrieve an Administrative View of a Cloud
- Retrieve a List of vSphere Platform Operations and Objects for a Cloud
- Provisioning an Organization
- Summary of vCloud API Provisioning Requests
- Upload an OVF Package to Create a vApp Template
- Download a vApp Template as OVF
- Upload a Media Image
- Copying and Moving with the vCloud API
- Capturing and Importing vApps
- Cataloging vApp Templates and Media Images
- Creating and Using Independent Disks
- View or Change the Owner of an Object
- 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
- Provide User Input Requested by a Virtual Machine
- Attach or Detach an Independent Disk
- Creating and Using vApp Snapshots
- Operate a vApp
- Configuring vApps and Virtual Machines
- Retrieve the Configuration Links for a vApp
- Retrieve the Configuration Links for a Virtual Machine
- Update Multiple Sections of 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
- Update the Storage Profile for a Virtual Machine
- Creating and Managing Organizations
- Summary of Administrative Requests
- Administrator Credentials and Privileges
- Organization Administration
- vDC Administration
- Network Administration
- Catalog Administration
- User and Group Administration
- Working With Roles and Rights
- Controlling Access to vApps and Catalogs
- Managing and Monitoring a Cloud
- Summary of vSphere Platform Extension Requests
- Retrieve or Update System Settings
- Attach a vCenter Server
- Finding Available vCenter Resources
- Create a Provider vDC
- Create an External Network
- Create a Network Pool
- Import a Virtual Machine from vCenter
- Relocate a Virtual Machine to a Different Datastore
- Truststore and Keytab Maintenance
- Retrieve the vSphere URL of an Object
- Working With Object Metadata
- Using the Query Service
- Configuring and Using Blocking Tasks and Notifications
- vCloud Director Extension Services
- XML Representations in the vCloud API
- Index
Objects, References, and Representations
The vCloud API represents objects as XML documents in which object properties are encoded as elements and
attributes with typed values and an explicit object hierarchy defined by an XML schema.
XML representations of first-class vCloud API objects, such as the objects in Figure 1-1, include these attributes.
id
The object identifier, expressed in URN format. The value of the id attribute
uniquely identifies the object, persists for the life of the object, and is never
reused. The id attribute value is intended to provide a context-free identifier
that can be used with the vCloud API entityResolver (see “Retrieve an Object
as an Entity,” on page 312).
type
The object type, specified as a MIME content type.
href
An object reference, expressed in URL format. Because this URL includes the
object identifier portion of the id attribute value, it uniquely identifies the
object, persists for the life of the object, and is never reused. The value of the
href attribute is a reference to a view of the object, and can be used to access a
representation of the object that is valid in a particular context. Although URLs
have a well-known syntax and a well-understood interpretation, a client
should treat each href as an opaque string. The rules that govern how the server
constructs href strings might change in future releases.
Example: Object id, type, and href Attributes
This XML fragment, extracted from the representation of a vApp, shows its id, type, and href attributes.
<VApp
...
id="urn:vcloud:vapp:490af534-1491-452e-8ed6-a5eb54447dac"
type="application/vnd.vmware.vcloud.vApp+xml"
href="https://vcloud.example.com/api/vApp/vapp-490af534-1491-452e-8ed6-a5eb54447dac"
... >
...
</VApp>
Links and Link Relations
The vCloud API makes extensive use of Link elements to provide references to objects and the actions that
they support. These elements are the primary mechanism by which a server tells a client how to access and
operate on an object.
The server creates Link elements in a response body. They are read-only at the client. If a request body includes
a Link element, the server ignores it.
Attributes of a Link Element
In the XML representation of a vCloud object, each Link element has the following form:
<Link rel="
relationship
"
type="application/vnd.vmware.vcloud.
object_type
+xml"
href="
URL
"
name="
string
"/>
vCloud API Programming Guide
12 VMware, Inc.