Reconstructing VM from Backup - possible?

[KFlash]

My old VM is not working anymore.

Could I simply replace the source vdi in the /disk folder and delete the content of /snapshots?

Or is this not working and I have to create a new machine?

[KFlash]

And there is one more technical question:

After I created a snapshot. To which vdi file are new installed applications stored, and to which files data (like eMail account content).

[mpack]

No, you must create a new VM. This is all in the CloneVDI release notes, into which I put a lot of work and hence I do not intend to repeat the instructions here. RTFM.

Snapshots do not work as you imagine. VirtualBox knows nothing about files and applications. It is changed disk sectors which are written to the difference file.

[KFlash]

THANK YOU!!!!

The new VM has ALL my files, so I lost NOTHING! Thank you!
1 week of struggeling is over.


Now a very important question: How do I backup a VM correctly? What files do I have to copy?

[mpack]

If this is now a v4 format VM (i.e. a ".vbox" file exists, and a vdi) and if you took my advice about moving the clone .VDI into the VM folder, then all you need to do to back it up is copy the entire VM folder, with contents, to secondary media. To restore it, you can simply copy it back, overwriting an existing but broken VM. In some cases the VM registration may have been lost, in which case copy the VM folder back, then use Machine|Add... to reregister the VM (the .vbox file).