Diagnosis firstFailure type confirmed before intervention
VMWARE / VIRTUALISATION
Recover virtual workloads from the storage layer upward.
Virtual recovery may require storage reconstruction, VMFS analysis, snapshot-chain repair and guest-filesystem validation. DriveDiggers treats each layer separately so the final workload is not assumed healthy just because a VMDK opens.
Protect the source mediaStop creating snapshots, consolidating disks or reformatting datastores. Preserve the storage and export logs before making changes to inventory or extents.
Diagnostic workspaceReady
MODE
Evidence-firstACCESS
Read-onlySTATUS
Awaiting intake
Evidence-firstACCESS
Read-onlySTATUS
Awaiting intake
Controlled handlingCase access limited to approved work
Approval checkpointRecovery route explained before work
Priority intakeUrgent incidents assessed by impact
Failure signals
Recognise the warning. Avoid the second failure.
A recovery case often becomes harder after an automatic repair, rebuild or repeated restart. These symptoms mean the source should be preserved before the next decision.
Datastore missing
VMFS volumes disappear, report zero capacity or no longer mount across hosts.
VMDK or snapshot errors
Descriptor, extent, delta or snapshot-chain files are missing or inconsistent.
Deleted virtual machine
VM folders, disks or datastore content were removed, formatted or overwritten.
Guest corruption
The VM registers or boots, but the guest filesystem, database or application data is damaged.
Recovery capability
A workflow matched to the failure layer.
Technology changes, but the rule stays the same: protect the source, prove the reconstruction and validate priority data before return.
VIRT.01Datastore reconstruction
Storage, RAID and VMFS layers are validated before virtual disk extraction.
VIRT.02Snapshot-chain analysis
Descriptors, extents and delta relationships are mapped without consolidating the source.
VIRT.03Guest-level validation
Recovered virtual disks are checked for filesystem and priority-application consistency.
Case workflow
Four checkpoints from incident to validated data.
Capture the incident
Device, symptoms, urgency and previous actions are recorded.
Protect and assess
The source is stabilised and the failure layer is identified.
Review the recovery plan
Scope, timing and quotation are confirmed before recovery proceeds.
Verify and return
Recovered priority data is checked and returned through an agreed method.
Faster intake
Bring the evidence that reduces guesswork.
- Hypervisor and datastore versions
- Storage topology and RAID/SAN details
- VM names, VMDK layout and snapshot history
- Host logs and every action taken since failure
Incident protocolDo not consolidate an unknown snapshot chain.
Consolidation and storage migration can write heavily to source extents. Preserve datastore evidence before attempting inventory or snapshot repair.
Start the evaluationTechnical questions
Before you power it on again.
Every incident is different. These answers explain the safest general starting point.
Can a deleted VMware virtual machine be recovered?
Possibly, depending on subsequent datastore writes, VMFS metadata, thin-provisioning behaviour and the condition of the underlying storage.
Can you repair a broken snapshot chain?
Snapshot relationships can often be reconstructed when the required base and delta extents remain available. Never delete or consolidate snapshots before evaluation.
Do you recover Hyper-V virtual disks too?
Virtual disk and guest recovery principles also apply to VHD/VHDX and other platforms, although the metadata and snapshot structures differ.
Will the recovered VM boot immediately?
Not necessarily. A valid virtual disk can still contain guest-level corruption. Important files, databases and services must be checked separately.
Start with the evidence
Tell us what failed and what matters most.
Submit the symptoms, media details and urgency. No recovery work begins without approval.