Exporting appliance not working

[EAN]

I am using VirtualBox 5.1.8 and I have a VM that I want to export. The VM itself is working properly and doesn't have any issues.
When I go to File, Export Appliance, I select the VM and click Export.
It creates an .OVA file in the target directory, but it is only 13 KB with some XML content. The VM .VDI file is approx 42 GB, so obviously the export is not working properly.
There is no "Exporting Appliance..." progress dialog, there are on error messages, and nothing to indicate something wrong.
Looking at the end of the log file I don't see anything related to "export" or "appliance".

I am able to successfully export a different VM, so the export feature in general seems to be working, just not with the VM I want.

Please advise.

[scottgus1]

I am able to successfully export a different VM

This would indicate that the exporting sub-system is working right, and that something is unusual about the VM in question.

Is the VM that is not exporting completely shut down, not save-stated? Is it a linked clone of another VM?

[EAN]

It is completely shut down.
It is a clone. I do not remember selecting linked clone when I created it. I used to make many snapshots until I read an article advising against that because of possible performance issues. So I deleted all my snapshots and created a clone. I started using the clone as my primary VM and deleted the original.

[scottgus1]

In my experiment with a DOS base guest and another linked clone, if I deleted the base and instructed to delete the files, the guest disappears from the Virtualbox list, but then a popup reports that deleting is not possible because of the clone. All the base files still exist. I then export the remaining clone and the export completes. I can import the guest on a different host just fine and it runs fine.

Seems that Clones are processed into a new vmdk disk and then put into the .ova file

Can you see anything different between the exportable and non exportable guests? Please post in a zip file the two guests' .vbox files, identifying which is exportable and which isn't.

[EAN]

SOLVED: removing the storage controller for the DVD drive got it working. That is the most noteworthy difference I could find between the 2 .VBOX files.

I attached the .VBOX files (as they were before making any changes) in case there is something useful there. "Windows 7..." is the one that did not export.

Thanks.

[scottgus1]

Good on ya for getting this issue fixed! Seems the DVD drive had the Guest Additions CD in it. I wonder if that was the cause. - I did just test the exportable guest I have with the Guest Additions CD in the dvd drive and it exported fine. Guess this must just be one of those glitches...