8 VBoxManage (change with "--vsys 0 --unit 9 --scsitype {BusLogic|LsiLogic}" disable with "--vsys 0 --unit 9 --ignore") 10: IDE controller, type PIIX4 (disable with "--vsys 0 --unit 10 --ignore") 11: Hard disk image: source image=WindowsXp.vmdk, target path=/home/user/disks/WindowsXp.vmdk, controller=9 channel=0 (change controller with "--vsys 0 --unit 11 --controller id" disable with "--vsys 0 --unit 11 --ignore") As you can see, the individual configuration items are numbered, and depending on their type support different command-line options. The import subcommand can be directed to ignore many such items with a --vsys X --unit Y --ignore option, where X is the number of the virtual system (zero unless there are several virtual system descriptions in the appliance) and Y the item number, as printed on the screen. In the above example, Item #1 specifies the name of the target machine in VirtualBox. Items #9 and #10 specify hard disk controllers, respectively. Item #11 describes a hard disk image in this case, the additional --controller option indicates which item the disk image should be connected to, with the default coming from the OVF file. You can combine several items for the same virtual system behind the same --vsys option. For example, to import a machine as described in the OVF, but without the sound card and without the USB controller, and with the disk image connected to the IDE controller instead of the SCSI controller, use this: VBoxManage import WindowsXp.ovf --vsys 0 --unit 5 --ignore --unit 6 --ignore --unit 11 --controller 10 8.9 VBoxManage export This command exports one or more virtual machines from VirtualBox into a virtual appliance in OVF format, including copying their virtual disk images to compressed VMDK. See chapter 1.12, Importing and exporting virtual machines, page 26 for an introduction to appliances. The export command is simple to use: list the machine (or the machines) that you would like to export to the same OVF file and specify the target OVF file after an additional --output or -o option. Note that the directory of the target OVF file will also receive the exported disk images in the compressed VMDK format (regardless of the original format) and should have enough disk space left for them. Beside a simple export of a given virtual machine, you can append several product information to the appliance file. Use --product, --producturl, --vendor, --vendorurl and --version to specify this additional information. For legal reasons you may add a license text or the content of a license file by using the --eula and --eulafile option respectively. As with OVF import, you must use the --vsys X option to direct the previously mentioned options to the correct virtual machine. For virtualization products which aren’t fully compatible with the OVF standard 1.0 you can enable a OVF 0.9 legacy mode with the --legacy09 option. 8.10 VBoxManage startvm This command starts a virtual machine that is currently in the “Powered off” or “Saved” states. Note: This is provided for backwards compatibility only. We recommend to start virtual machines directly by running the respective front-end, as you might otherwise miss im- portant error and state information that VirtualBox may display on the console. This is especially important for front-ends other than VirtualBox, our graphical user in- terface, because those cannot display error messages in a popup window. See chapter 7.1.2, VBoxHeadless, the remote desktop server, page 91 for more information. 116