VBoxManage list vms|runningvms fails

[ktwilight]

I've searched around the forum and bugtracker, and also asked in IRC but found nothing relevant to my problem. The problem is not being able to list the running vms in CLI.

For sure the VM is running...

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# ps ax | grep VirtualBox
 3175 ?        Ssl    0:07 /usr/lib/virtualbox/VirtualBox
 4411 ?        Sl    13:26 /usr/lib/virtualbox/VirtualBox -comment Windows 2000 General -startvm a394c04d-ca2d-4946-96a6-dd83d9f1b7ac

Executing VBoxManage to check for runningvms shows me nothing...

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# VBoxManage list runningvms
VirtualBox Command Line Management Interface Version 2.1.2
(C) 2005-2009 Sun Microsystems, Inc.
All rights reserved.

Alternative check to confirm that the vm is detected is to run showvminfo both using UUID and Name. Both gave me errors.

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# VBoxManage showvminfo a394c04d-ca2d-4946-96a6-dd83d9f1b7ac
VirtualBox Command Line Management Interface Version 2.1.2
(C) 2005-2009 Sun Microsystems, Inc.
All rights reserved.

[!] FAILED calling a->virtualBox->GetMachine (uuid, machine.asOutParam()) at line 1872!
[!] Primary RC  = VBOX_E_OBJECT_NOT_FOUND (0x80BB0001) - Object corresponding to the supplied arguments does not exist
[!] Full error info present: true , basic error info present: true 
[!] Result Code = VBOX_E_OBJECT_NOT_FOUND (0x80BB0001) - Object corresponding to the supplied arguments does not exist
[!] Text        = Could not find a registered machine with UUID {a394c04d-ca2d-4946-96a6-dd83d9f1b7ac}
[!] Component   = VirtualBox, Interface: IVirtualBox, {339abca2-f47a-4302-87f5-7bc324e6bbde}
[!] Callee      = IVirtualBox, {339abca2-f47a-4302-87f5-7bc324e6bbde}


# VBoxManage showvminfo 'Windows 2000 General'
VirtualBox Command Line Management Interface Version 2.1.2
(C) 2005-2009 Sun Microsystems, Inc.
All rights reserved.

[!] FAILED calling a->virtualBox->FindMachine (Bstr(a->argv[0]), machine.asOutParam()) at line 1876!
[!] Primary RC  = VBOX_E_OBJECT_NOT_FOUND (0x80BB0001) - Object corresponding to the supplied arguments does not exist
[!] Full error info present: true , basic error info present: true 
[!] Result Code = VBOX_E_OBJECT_NOT_FOUND (0x80BB0001) - Object corresponding to the supplied arguments does not exist
[!] Text        = Could not find a registered machine named 'Windows 2000 General'
[!] Component   = VirtualBox, Interface: IVirtualBox, {339abca2-f47a-4302-87f5-7bc324e6bbde}
[!] Callee      = IVirtualBox, {339abca2-f47a-4302-87f5-7bc324e6bbde}

Am I doing something wrong? Or...?

Other relevant information

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# uname -a
Linux eXiSts 2.6.26-1-amd64 #1 SMP Sat Jan 10 17:57:00 UTC 2009 x86_64 GNU/Linux

# dpkg -l 'virtualbox-2.1' | tail -1
ii  virtualbox-2.1                       2.1.2-41885_Debian_lenny   Sun xVM VirtualBox

Thanks first!

[ktwilight]

Hm, it seems that I can't run it as root. As normal user, it's perfectly fine.

Am guessin' this is expected.

[Sasquatch]

Running it as a different user (root in this case) will of course produce no output when there are no VMs running as root.

[ktwilight]

Yup, just thought root has a know-all-see-all...

Now I just need to figure out how to incorporate my script with this situation. Thanks!

[Sasquatch]

You can use su -u <username> to run things as a different user when running things from the root account. Check this first by starting a VM and run the listvm command from a root terminal.

[glindauer]

Thanks for this great post! I had the exact same problem

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VBoxManage: error: Could not find a registered machine named 'windows'
VBoxManage: error: Details: code VBOX_E_OBJECT_NOT_FOUND (0x80bb0001), component VirtualBox, interface IVirtualBox, callee nsISupports

but it would happen intermittently, and I just couldn't figure it out.

Of course, just as you say, it was because I was logged in as a different user from the one the machine ran under.

I appreciate the solution!

Greg

[bleve97]

I'm seeing this on a VB 4.1.8 install on CentOS 6.2 host, windows server (SBS 2011 and 2008 R2 server) guests :

[synstrat@mule ~]$ VBoxManage list vms
"synstrat01-2011" {2968cbe7-2596-430a-829d-be408d7ac50f}
"synstrat02" {63a4bf9c-9e31-4432-9df3-505dee93ad20}
[synstrat@mule ~]$ VBoxManage list runningvms
[synstrat@mule ~]$


synstrat02 and synstrat01-2011 are both running, and the VM is running as the correct user (or "VBoxManage list vms" would not see them).

Any suggestions?

[bleve97]

no ideas? No suggestions?

[jigglywiggly]

i have the same problme
i have a ups and it calls a save state function
but it runs it as root
therefore it sees nothing with

VBoxManage list runningvms


help?

[timthetortoise]

su -u <username-for-running-vms> VBoxManage list runningvms