How to Convert a Physical Linux Machine to VMware ESXi (P2V) - Two Proven Methods
Learn how to convert a physical Linux machine to a VMware ESXi virtual machine using two proven physical-to-virtual (P2V) migration methods.
In this step-by-step tutorial, you will see how to migrate an Ubuntu 24.04 LTS physical server to VMware ESXi using:
- VMware vCenter Converter Standalone
- Native Linux tools (dd, qemu-img, and vmkfstools)
These methods allow you to safely migrate physical Linux systems to virtual infrastructure for modernization, disaster recovery, hardware replacement, or virtualization projects.
Want to follow along? All commands used in this video are available in the blog post:
https://www.nakivo.com/blog/vmware-p2v-linux-conversion-comprehensive-walkthrough/
Try NAKIVO Backup & Replication free for 15 days: https://www.nakivo.com/resources/download/trial-download/
0:00 Introduction
0:38 Method 1: Preparing SSH on the Linux machine
2:35 Installing and configuring VMware vCenter Converter
5:06 Destination and conversion settings
8:12 Fixing the boot error and rerunning the job
14:22 Installing VMware Tools
15:09 About NAKIVO Backup & Replication
15:57 Method 2: Creating a disk image with dd
18:16 Converting the disk (VMDK to ESXi format)
22:57 Creating the VM and finishing up