Recover Vmdk From Datastore [better] -

vmkfstools -V /vmfs/volumes/datastore1 # Scans for recoverable VMDK signatures This outputs a list of candidate VMDKs with their start sector and size.

vmkfstools -x repair /vmfs/volumes/datastore1/VM/VM.vmdk Recover a deleted VMDK by scanning free blocks (VMFS5/6 only). recover vmdk from datastore

Administrator deleted a production VM folder via datastore browser. VMDK shows as zero bytes but flat data exists

VMDK shows as zero bytes but flat data exists. recover vmdk from datastore

Clone a partially readable VMDK (skip bad blocks).

| Task | Command | |------|---------| | List deleted files | vmfsundelete /vmfs/volumes/DS -l | | Recover by inode | vmfsundelete -R -i 12345 -o /recovery/disk.vmdk | | Repair VMDK header | vmkfstools -x repair disk.vmdk | | Clone VMDK skipping errors | vmkfstools -i bad.vmdk -d thin good.vmdk | | Scan for recoverable VMDK signatures | vmkfstools -V /vmfs/volumes/DS | | Show VMDK descriptor info | cat disk.vmdk |