VMware Converter Workflow for Linux conversions.

Step 1: Validate source

• connect to source Linux VM via SSH (port 22 by default/specify port number in the IP address field if using custom ports
• The account used must be a part of sudoers (must be able to run a sudo command without prompting for a password.

add the below line visudo
nik ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD:ALL

Note: User "nik" to be replaced with the user have you on your setup.

Here’s an example from my setup

nik@mail:~$ sudo cat /etc/sudoers
#
# This file MUST be edited with the 'visudo' command as root.
#
# Please consider adding local content in /etc/sudoers.d/ instead of
# directly modifying this file.
#
# See the man page for details on how to write a sudoers file.
#
Defaults        env_reset
Defaults        mail_badpass
Defaults        secure_path="/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin:/snap/bin"

# Host alias specification

# User alias specification

# Cmnd alias specification

# User privilege specification
root    ALL=(ALL:ALL) ALL

# Members of the admin group may gain root privileges
%admin ALL=(ALL) ALL

# Allow members of group sudo to execute any command
%sudo   ALL=(ALL:ALL) ALL

# See sudoers(5) for more information on "#include" directives:

#includedir /etc/sudoers.d
nik ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD:ALL

Step 2: Validate Destination

• connect to ESXi host/vCenter (port 80, 443, 902)
• Polls for avilable Host (vCenter), Datastore, Networking portgroups, Space.

• Virtual machine options, Select what Data to copy
• Hardware resource (like vCPU, Memory, nics
• Advanced Options like Power off source, Power on destination, Install tools
• IP details for The Helper VM (if there is no DHCP on the enveronmnet)

A Helper VM is a standby operating environment (live boot) which needs a temporary IP address. The VM helps with the conversion and needs to be able to communicate with the VMware converter server (443) and the source virtual machine (22).

When the job is submitted, Converter creates a dummy virtual machine on the esxi host and boots it via ISO (helper VM iso: converter-helper-vm-x64.iso or converter-helper-vm.iso found at C:\Program Files (x86)\VMware\VMware vCenter Converter Standalone\

By Default, the root/user login for the helper VM is disabled. Inorder to enable this, change the config file located at:
C:\ProgramData\VMware\VMware vCenter Converter Standalone\converter-worker.xml

C:\ProgramData\VMware\VMware vCenter Converter Standalone\converter-worker.xml 

change:    <useSourcePasswordInHelperVm>false</useSourcePasswordInHelperVm>
to 
<useSourcePasswordInHelperVm>true</useSourcePasswordInHelperVm>

Restart all converter related services via services.msc

The root password will now be the same as the password that was used to connect to the source VM

when the Helper VM is on the network, it attempts to ssh into the source linux VM and runs a query like that to the below:

 ssh user@source_linux_IP -p 22 "sudo tar --one-file-system --sparse -C '/' -cf - ." | /us r/bin/tar --numeric-owner --delay-directory-restore -C '/home/p2vtest/' -xf 

Similarly, the other partitions are copied over to the Helper VM (review the helper-VM logs for others)

Once all volume’s are copied over, the filesystem (root and other volume’s, sda, sdb) are re-mapped with the respective path

The bootloader/GRUB is rebuilt (This is native to the version of linux have you, Running custom kernel can break this process)

 /usr/lib/vmware-converter/installGrub.sh