Increasing disk space in VMware is a simple process that requires a few steps. The following steps outline the process of increasing the disk space on a VMware virtual machine.
Step 1: Shut down the virtual machine
First, you need to shut down the virtual machine to which you want to add more disk space. This is important because you cannot modify the disk of a virtual machine that is running.
Step 2: Access the VMware vSphere client
Next, you need to access the VMware vSphere client. This is the primary interface through which you can manage your VMware virtual machines.
Step 3: Select the virtual machine
Select the virtual machine to which you want to add more disk space. Right-click on the virtual machine and select “Edit Settings.”
Step 4: Increase the virtual disk size
In the “Hardware” tab of the “Virtual Machine Properties” window, select the virtual disk you want to resize. Click on “Edit.” This will open the “Virtual Hard Disk Properties” window.
In the “Hard disk” section of the “Virtual Hard Disk Properties” window, specify the new total size of the disk in the “Size (GB)” box. You can also change the provisioned size of the virtual disk in the “Provisioned Size (GB)” box. After making the necessary changes, click “OK” to save the changes.
Note that the new disk size you set must be larger than the current disk size. You cannot shrink the disk in the same process.
Step 5: Extend the file system
After increasing the virtual disk size, you need to extend the file system within the virtual machine’s operating system to use the additional space. Depending on the operating system you have installed on the virtual machine, you can perform the following steps:
For Windows operating systems:
Access the Disk Management interface by right-clicking Windows “Start,” selecting “Disk Management” from the context menu, or you can open the search field and search for “diskmgmt.msc.”
Find the disk you want to extend and select it.
Right-click on the disk and select “Extend Volume.”
In the “Extend Volume Wizard,” click “Next.”
Select the amount of space you want to allocate to the partition, then click “Next.”
For Linux operating systems:
Boot into a live CD or live Linux environment from a USB stick.
Open a terminal and type:
sudo fdisk –l
Locate the device under which your partition exists. For example, if you have one ext4 partition, it will probably be /dev/sda1.
Open GParted partition editor (you can find it in the live environment menus or install it if it is not present) and configure the amount of free space to the partition.
After extending the file system to use the additional space, you can start the virtual machine and confirm that the disk space has increased.
In conclusion, by following these steps, you can quickly increase the disk space on your VMware virtual machine, which increases your machine’s performance. Make sure to back up any critical data before making these changes, and always be cautious when modifying virtual machine settings.