VirtualBox Snapshots

VBoxManage

VBoxManage is the command-line command used for most VirtualBox management functions, including snapshots. It's documentation can be found at: https://www.virtualbox.org/manual/ch08.html

Finding a VM's Name

Most VBoxManage commands require you to specify which VM you want to manage, either by name or UUID. The best way I’ve found to figure out which VM is which is to halt all of your VMs, except for the one you want to manage, then execute: VBoxManage list runningvms

Your output will look something like:

12:57 $ VBoxManage list runningvms
"vagrant-ansible-druw_default_1485536207171_75158" {7ce8011e-c2b0-4bae-8396-6c8b50e630b8}

The string in quotes is the VM's name. The string in curly brackets is its UUID. For the following commands, the name and UUID can be used interchangably.

Additional options for VBoxManage list can be found in the VBoxManage manual.

Taking a Snapshot

You can take a snapshot of a VM whether it's running or not. To take or restore a snapshot of a VM, use: VBoxManage snapshot

The syntax is: VBoxManage snapshot <uuid|vmname> take SnapshotName

e.g. VBoxManage snapshot "vagrant-ansible-druw_default_1485536207171_75158" take FirstSnap will take a snapshot named FirstSnap of the VM named "vagrant-ansible-druw_default_1485536207171_75158".

Restoring a Snapshot

You can only restore a snapshot if the VM is halted. To restore a snapshot of a VM, use: VBoxManage snapshot

The syntax is: VBoxManage snapshot <uuid|vmname> restore SnapshotName

e.g. VBoxManage snapshot "vagrant-ansible-druw_default_1485536207171_75158" restore FirstSnap will restore a snapshot named FirstSnap to the VM named "vagrant-ansible-druw_default_1485536207171_75158".

Listing Existing Snapshots

To list existing snapshots, use: VBoxManage snapshot list

Additional Snapshot options

Additional options for VBoxManage snapshot can be found in the VBoxManage manual.