Snip up new VM using snap of existing VM

Question

I have existing VM which is having all the required setting. I want to snip up a new VM with similar settings. Can i take snap of the existing VM to snip the new similar VM ?

If yes, how can i do it , Any link or steps will help.

Using : Microsoft Hyper-v manager , Windows Server 2012

Thanks in Advance

Answer 1

Hyper-V does not have any features to "clone" an existing VM. However, there is a way around. You can Export the VM and Import it back. Here are the steps:

1. Export the VM in to a folder from Hyper-V Manager or Powershell "Export-VM" command. While it is not necessary, I would recommend turning off the VM first to make sure all pending writes in memory are committed to the disk.
2. Now from Hyper-V Manager, right click on the Server and select "Import Virtual Machine..."
3. Select the folder you exported the VM to and follow the prompts.
4. When you are at "Choose Import Type", select "Copy the virtual machine (create new unique ID)" option. This will make sure the import does not overwrite the existing VM.
5. Follow the prompts and finish the import. You can rename VM when import completes so that you do not have two VMs with the same name and configuration.

Note that the snapshots and saved states and VHDs from earlier VMs carry over to the new VM. You may want to discard some of this in the new VM to keep it fresh.