The VIX API. Dawson Dean and Matt LaMantia

Transcription

1 The VIX API Dawson Dean and Matt LaMantia

2 Agenda What is the VIX API? Use Cases API overview Conclusion

3 What is the VIX API? A programming interface for automating both VM operations Things you would do through the Workstation UI and guest operations Making things happen inside the guest OS VIX-based application or script VIX Library Guest ops Host ops Application Operating System VMware Virtualization Platform

4 What Products does VIX Support? Server 1.0 Workstation 6.0 (currently in beta) 6.0 Beta now!

5 Key Themes Simplicity The API is small Works with VMware Workstation. Requires no special infrastructure Focus on what customers use VMs for Power operations Snapshot operations Run a program in the guest OS Copy files between host and guest OS Language and platform independent C, Perl, shell COM (coming soon) Asynchronous, but easy to use synchronously

6 Comparison to Other VMware APIs VIX API VI SDK vmperl, vmcom Target customer and scale Stand-alone customer controls individual instances Enterprise customer Deprecated Connectivity (current) VMware Workstation VMware Server ESX Server VirtualCenter ESX Server GSX Server Language bindings C Perl COM Web service protocol, multiple client-side language bindings (Java, VB.net, C#, C++, Perl, Python) through third-party toolkits Perl COM

7 Different Customers for VIX and VIM VI SDK - Enterprise Management Customer VMs are managed in a data center. There is always a server and a network Management tools for resource control, VM deployment, VM control VIX API - Stand-alone (personal) customer VMs are unmanaged Just files that can be copied by the user No official list of hosts Hosts may be added, removed, started or stopped at any time Could be a laptop There may be no network, and no central server VMs may be integrated with tools like IDEs Guest OS functionality

8 Agenda What is the VIX API? Use Cases API overview Conclusion

9 VIX Lets You Integrate Virtualization into Your Own Solutions You are the innovators Customers: Build tools and scripts on our APIs meet needs not provided by our UI automate processes in VMs ISVs: Build software on top of our platform add even more value Full Object Model API C, Perl, COM (VB, C#, VBScript) We use these same APIs to build our own GUIs!

10 Example: IDE integration Both Visual Studio and Eclipse

11 Example: IDE integration Select and configure a VM Write code in IDE Select Debug in VM VMware extension Launches the selected VM Shares a folder in the guest Runs program via shared folder Attaches debugger to guest process A VM becomes a runtime environment for a host application

12 VIX Lets You Use VMs for Special-Purpose Solutions A VM can encapsulate a specific task, not a just simulated computer Each bug repro case Each test case Each build environment Each untrusted application Each customer configuration from a support call Change the way you work with VMs Each person can have hundreds or thousands of VM s Search, automation, etc. You need to do things in the guest, not just on the virtual hardware

13 Example: Nightly Build Script Power on a VM Set up data files, like source code or config files Copy data files from host to guest Set up shared folders between VM and local host Run an application inside the VM Check to see the application completed successfully Copy result files back to the host Test result files

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20 Variations on the Scenario Different applications Patch installers Test suites A large application that requires special environment An untrusted application Run it as a script From a cron job On demand From another application, like VisualStudio Different VMs Write on one platform, then test on every Windows OS Run Linux application as a script from windows A VM makes any script into a self-contained environment

21 Agenda What is the VIX API? Use Cases API overview Conclusion

22 Object Types Host One host machine may contain several VMs VM One VM, running or not Represents both the VM configuration and guest OS Job The state of a currently executing asynchronous operation Snapshot The state of one VM snapshot May be only one, or several of these for a VM More in future releases Simple object model

23 Object Handles All objects are opaque handles Each handle has a type, VM, Team, Job, etc. Handles are reference counted All handles have properties Typed Name/Value pairs Names are defined by us There is a separate mechanism for customer metadata Value Types are integer, int64, string, bool, handle (In the future we will add blobs) All configuration state of any handle type is available through properties

24 Basic Handle Operations AddRef and Release GetHandleType GetPropertyType (metadata) GetProperties, SetProperties Subscribe, unsubscribe to events

25 Basic Host Operations Connect, Disconnect Local or remote host Workstation, Server Register and Unregister VMs Only on server FindItems Find running VMs PumpEvents

26 Basic VM Operations Open Power operations PowerOn, Off, Suspend, Reset Delete Snapshots Create, revert, delete, get Misc. UpgradeVirtualHardware, InstallTools

27 Guest OS Functions Process Operations Run programs on guest List processes Kill a process File Operations Copy files between host and guest Delete files on guest or test if file exists Other Get and set environment variables LoginToGuest, LogoutFromGuest

28 Basic Job Operations Wait CheckCompletion GetErrorStatus

29 C Sample Code Run a Program in the Guest VixError err = VIX_OK; VixHandle hosthandle, jobhandle, vmhandle; jobhandle = VixHost_Connect(...); err = VixJob_Wait(jobHandle,..., &hosthandle,...); jobhandle = VixVM_Open(hostHandle, "c:\\vm\myvm.vmx",...); err = VixJob_Wait(jobHandle,..., &vmhandle,...); jobhandle = VixVM_WaitForToolsInGuest(vmHandle,...); err = VixJob_Wait(jobHandle, ); jobhandle = VixVM_LoginInGuest(vmHandle, "name", "password",...); err = VixJob_Wait(jobHandle, ); jobhandle = VixVM_RunProgramInGuest(vmHandle, "c:\\myprogram.exe",...); err = VixJob_Wait(jobHandle,..., &exitcode,...); jobhandle = VixVM_PowerOff(vmHandle,...); err = VixJob_Wait(jobHandle, );

30 Perl Sample Code - Run a Program in the Guest use VMware::Vix::Simple; use VMware::Vix::API::Constants; my $err; my $vmhandle; my $hosthandle; ($err, $hosthandle) = HostConnect(VIX_API_VERSION, VIX_SERVICEPROVIDER_VMWARE_SERVER, " ", 902, "myusername", "mypassword",0, VIX_INVALID_HANDLE); ($err, $vmhandle) = VMOpen($hostHandle, "/vms/red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.vmx"); $err = VMPowerOn($vmHandle, 0, VIX_INVALID_HANDLE); $err = VMWaitForToolsInGuest($vmHandle, 10); $err = VMLoginInGuest($vmHandle, "username", "userpassword", 0); $err = VMRunProgramInGuest($vmHandle, "/usr/bin/x11/xclock", "-update 1", VIX_RUNPROGRAM_RETURN_IMMEDIATELY, VIX_INVALID_HANDLE);

31 Shell Sample Code Run a Program in the Guest vmrun runprograminguest -gu <guest-user> -gp <guest-password> c:\vm\myvm.vmx c:\program.exe

32 Agenda What is the VIX API? Use Cases API overview Conclusion

33 Future Plans You Tell Us What You Want More functions in the guest OS Windows Registry? Environment variables? UI Windows? More language bindings COM (we are currently investigating) Java? Python? Embedding virtualization UI? Virtualization as a runtime component for apps VM creation and configuration Insert/eject disks? Create VMs? Add or remove devices? Change a SCSI controller to IDE? Different Products Workstation, player, ESX, server? Teams functions

34 We Want Your Feedback Customer forum Ask questions, give suggestions, tell us about your use cases Immediately after this talk follow signs Join us for a snack! Dawson Dean, technical lead: ddean@vmware.com Matt LaMantia, manager: lamantia@vmware.com

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36 Some or all of the features in this document may be representative of feature areas under development. Feature commitments must not be included in contracts, purchase orders, or sales agreements of any kind. Technical feasibility and market demand will affect final delivery.