# vmware_guest_move – Moves virtual machines in vCenter

New in version 2.7.

- Synopsis
- Requirements
- Parameters
- Notes
- Examples
- Return Values
- Status

## Synopsis

- This module can be used to move virtual machines between folders.

## Requirements

The below requirements are needed on the host that executes this module.

- python >= 2.6
- PyVmomi

## Parameters

Parameter | Choices/Defaults | Comments
--- | --- | ---
datacenter string / required |  | Destination datacenter for the move operation

dest_folder
string / required

Absolute path to move an existing guest
The dest_folder should include the datacenter. ESX's datacenter is ha-datacenter.
This parameter is case sensitive.
Examples:
dest_folder: /ha-datacenter/vm
dest_folder: ha-datacenter/vm
dest_folder: /datacenter1/vm
dest_folder: datacenter1/vm
dest_folder: /datacenter1/vm/folder1
dest_folder: datacenter1/vm/folder1
dest_folder: /folder1/datacenter1/vm
dest_folder: folder1/datacenter1/vm
dest_folder: /folder1/datacenter1/vm/folder2

hostname string |  | The hostname or IP address of the vSphere vCenter or ESXi server. If the value is not specified in the task, the value of environment variable `VMWARE_HOST` will be used instead. Environment variable support added in Ansible 2.6.
moid string added in 2.9 |  | Managed Object ID of the instance to manage if known, this is a unique identifier only within a single vCenter instance. This is required if `name` or `uuid` is not supplied.
name string |  | Name of the existing virtual machine to move. This is required if `uuid` or `moid` is not supplied.

name_match
string

Choices:
- first ←
- last

If multiple virtual machines matching the name, use the first or last found.

password string |  | The password of the vSphere vCenter or ESXi server. If the value is not specified in the task, the value of environment variable `VMWARE_PASSWORD` will be used instead. Environment variable support added in Ansible 2.6. aliases: pass, pwd
port integer added in 2.5 | Default: 443 | The port number of the vSphere vCenter or ESXi server. If the value is not specified in the task, the value of environment variable `VMWARE_PORT` will be used instead. Environment variable support added in Ansible 2.6.
proxy_host string added in 2.9 |  | Address of a proxy that will receive all HTTPS requests and relay them. The format is a hostname or a IP. If the value is not specified in the task, the value of environment variable `VMWARE_PROXY_HOST` will be used instead. This feature depends on a version of pyvmomi greater than v6.7.1.2018.12
proxy_port integer added in 2.9 |  | Port of the HTTP proxy that will receive all HTTPS requests and relay them. If the value is not specified in the task, the value of environment variable `VMWARE_PROXY_PORT` will be used instead.

use_instance_uuid
boolean
added in 2.8

Choices:
- no ←
- yes

Whether to use the VMware instance UUID rather than the BIOS UUID.

username string |  | The username of the vSphere vCenter or ESXi server. If the value is not specified in the task, the value of environment variable `VMWARE_USER` will be used instead. Environment variable support added in Ansible 2.6. aliases: admin, user
uuid string |  | UUID of the virtual machine to manage if known, this is VMware's unique identifier. This is required if `name` or `moid` is not supplied.

validate_certs
boolean

Choices:
- no
- yes ←

Allows connection when SSL certificates are not valid. Set to `false` when certificates are not trusted.
If the value is not specified in the task, the value of environment variable `VMWARE_VALIDATE_CERTS` will be used instead.
Environment variable support added in Ansible 2.6.
If set to `yes`, please make sure Python >= 2.7.9 is installed on the given machine.

## Notes

Note

- Tested on vSphere 5.5 and vSphere 6.5

## Examples

    - name: Move Virtual Machine
      vmware_guest_move:
        hostname: "{{ vcenter_hostname }}"
        username: "{{ vcenter_username }}"
        password: "{{ vcenter_password }}"
        datacenter: datacenter
        validate_certs: no
        name: testvm-1
        dest_folder: "/{{ datacenter }}/vm"
      delegate_to: localhost

    - name: Move Virtual Machine using MoID
      vmware_guest_move:
        hostname: "{{ vcenter_hostname }}"
        username: "{{ vcenter_username }}"
        password: "{{ vcenter_password }}"
        datacenter: datacenter
        validate_certs: no
        moid: vm-42
        dest_folder: "/{{ datacenter }}/vm"
      delegate_to: localhost

    - name: Get VM UUID
      vmware_guest_facts:
        hostname: "{{ vcenter_hostname }}"
        username: "{{ vcenter_username }}"
        password: "{{ vcenter_password }}"
        validate_certs: no
        datacenter: "{{ datacenter }}"
        folder: "/{{datacenter}}/vm"
        name: "{{ vm_name }}"
      delegate_to: localhost
      register: vm_facts

    - name: Get UUID from previous task and pass it to this task
      vmware_guest_move:
        hostname: "{{ vcenter_hostname }}"
        username: "{{ vcenter_username }}"
        password: "{{ vcenter_password }}"
        validate_certs: no
        datacenter: "{{ datacenter }}"
        uuid: "{{ vm_facts.instance.hw_product_uuid }}"
        dest_folder: "/DataCenter/vm/path/to/new/folder/where/we/want"
      delegate_to: localhost
      register: facts

## Return Values

Common return values are documented here, the following are the fields unique to this module:

Key | Returned | Description
--- | --- | ---

instance
dictionary

always

metadata about the virtual machine
Sample:
{'annotation': None, 'current_snapshot': None, 'customvalues': {}, 'guest_consolidation_needed': False, 'guest_question': None, 'guest_tools_status': None, 'guest_tools_version': '0', 'hw_cores_per_socket': 1, 'hw_datastores': ['LocalDS_0'], 'hw_esxi_host': 'DC0_H0', 'hw_eth0': {'addresstype': 'generated', 'ipaddresses': None, 'label': 'ethernet-0', 'macaddress': '00:0c:29:6b:34:2c', 'macaddress_dash': '00-0c-29-6b-34-2c', 'summary': 'DVSwitch: 43cdd1db-1ef7-4016-9bbe-d96395616199'}, 'hw_files': ['[LocalDS_0] DC0_H0_VM0/DC0_H0_VM0.vmx'], 'hw_folder': '/F0/DC0/vm/F0', 'hw_guest_full_name': None, 'hw_guest_ha_state': None, 'hw_guest_id': 'otherGuest', 'hw_interfaces': ['eth0'], 'hw_is_template': False, 'hw_memtotal_mb': 32, 'hw_name': 'DC0_H0_VM0', 'hw_power_status': 'poweredOn', 'hw_processor_count': 1, 'hw_product_uuid': '581c2808-64fb-45ee-871f-6a745525cb29', 'instance_uuid': '8bcb0b6e-3a7d-4513-bf6a-051d15344352', 'ipv4': None, 'ipv6': None, 'module_hw': True, 'snapshots': []}

## Status

- This module is not guaranteed to have a backwards compatible interface. [preview]
- This module is maintained by the Ansible Community. [community]

### Authors

- Jose Angel Munoz (@imjoseangel)

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