Sharing a VM

mayhem87

Limp Gawd
Joined
Oct 21, 2008
Messages
358
Hey all,

I am trying to virtualize my work computer so that its independent of the machine I am running it on. Basically I want to be able to have access to the VM from 3 different computers. This way if I am home I can just load it from my desktop and when I leave I can put it on my laptop or another computer.

I rather not try and move the VM using a USB due to lack of perfomance. All my computers currently have SSD's so I am used to having things kinda snappy. After looking at VMWare Workstations ability to share VM's I thought about that approach but it seems all it does is let you clone the VM so then you have two seperate VM's.

Is there anything out there that will give me the ability to access a VM from multiple computers, not necessarily at the same time, and then sync changes across all devices with that vm?

I would just stand up a server at home and vpn in to access it if it were that easy but unfortunately not all the places I travel to have access to the internet or are easily acceptable. If there is a way to do VDI where I can save the machine state offline and then once connected back to the net am able to resync at home that could work.

Thanks,
 
I do this all the time on my windows VMs on my ESXI VM host. You can basically just rdp into it, from anywhere, provided you properly port-foward the rdp port. you can basically log in as a user in computer a, disconnect, then log back in as the same user in computer b, and continue the session, while not even logging out. You can also do this in linux via xRDP.
 
You could test having the VM on a USB3.0 external SSD. The performance might not be terrible for normal office work.
 
Looks like VMWare View does what I'm looking for. Has a component called Local Mode. Now to figure out if its part of the VMUG.

I can't do the RDP as the remote locations that I travel to may or may not have internet access.

Yea USB is kinda my last resort. I am also very absent minded so can only imagine an hour into traveling I will have forgotten the USB =(
 
That's sounds more like moving the vm, rather than sharing it.
Keeping it on a USB would be the best option, although moving it between 3 machines might trip up activation
 
I also can't think of anything better than a fast USB3 stick. Something like Sandisk Extreme Pro, which is actually an SSD.

...although moving it between 3 machines might trip up activation
I don't think that will be a problem. Isn't that kind of the point of virtualization?
 
So you're going to clone your work machine, and then want to run your work machine in a VM, one of which, on the same machine that it came from?

Are you in AD environment? Why not build a fresh VM?
 
ill check out that Sandisk thanks for the heads up.

Yes the work laptop is on AD. They gave me a rather big dell laptop that is a pain to carry around. Currently using a lenovo laptop which is what I want to move the VM to. The VM itself really isnt important i just dont want to maintain 3 seperate work vm's depending on the computer i wish to use that day.
 
Well, I would not do a p2v of your work machine to a VM to use either or. That is a no go. You cannot have two machines with the same name on the network.

Host this "VM" on a server somewhere and connect to it via vpn+rdp, or spin up fresh/virgin VMs with unique machine names, ideally an image with fresh sysprep.
 
Looks like ssd usb3.0 is your best bet sadly. Of you had internet access you could host in the cloud for a small monthly cost.
 
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