From 2ee7aea0767d3a261151b7e9e9369b705aa4540d Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: DanHam Date: Fri, 6 Jul 2018 22:26:35 +0100 Subject: [PATCH] VMX builder: Extend doc for new linked clones capability --- website/source/docs/builders/vmware-vmx.html.md.erb | 13 ++++++++++++- 1 file changed, 12 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-) diff --git a/website/source/docs/builders/vmware-vmx.html.md.erb b/website/source/docs/builders/vmware-vmx.html.md.erb index 03c144de9..5ce8ef4e3 100644 --- a/website/source/docs/builders/vmware-vmx.html.md.erb +++ b/website/source/docs/builders/vmware-vmx.html.md.erb @@ -137,7 +137,18 @@ builder. doesn't shut down in this time, it is an error. By default, the timeout is `5m` or five minutes. -- `linked` (boolean) - Virtual machine is created a linked clone. +- `linked` (boolean) - By default Packer creates a 'full' clone of + the virtual machine specified in `source_path`. The resultant virtual + machine is fully independant from the parent it was cloned from. + + Setting `linked` to `true` instead causes Packer to create the virtual + machine as a 'linked' clone. Linked clones use and require ongoing + access to the disks of the parent virtual machine. The benefit of a + linked clone is that the clones virtual disk is typically very much + smaller than would be the case for a full clone. Additionally, the + cloned virtual machine can also be created much faster. Creating a + linked clone will typically only be of benefit in some advanced build + scenarios. Most users will wish to create a full clone instead. Defaults to `false`. - `skip_compaction` (boolean) - VMware-created disks are defragmented and