5.5
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 or vApp Template as OVF
- Upload a Media Image
- Download a Media Image
- Capturing and Importing vApps
- Managing Catalog Items
- Creating and Using Independent Disks
- View or Change the Owner of an Object
- Controlling Access to vApps and Catalogs
- Deploying and Operating vApps
- Summary of vCloud API vApp and Virtual Machine Operations Requests
- Create a vApp From a Template
- Create a vApp From an OVF Package
- Compose a vApp From Existing Virtual Machines
- Recompose a vApp to Add or Remove Virtual Machines
- Clone a vApp
- Capture a vApp as a Template
- Update vApp Access Controls
- 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
- Managing and Monitoring a Cloud
- Summary of System Administration 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
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 catalog.
VMware, Inc.
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