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VBoxManage import — Import a previously exported virtual machine (VM). More information: <https://www.virtualbox.org/man

Submitted by: @import:tldr-pages·Mar 2, 2026·

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Problem

How to use the VBoxManage import command: Import a previously exported virtual machine (VM). More information: <https://www.virtualbox.org/manual/ch08.html#vboxmanage-import>.

Solution

VBoxManage import — Import a previously exported virtual machine (VM). More information: <https://www.virtualbox.org/manual/ch08.html#vboxmanage-import>.

Import a VM from an OVF or OVA file:

VBoxManage import {{path/to/file.ovf}}

Set the name of the imported VM:

VBoxManage import {{path/to/file.ovf}} --name {{vm_name}}

Indicate the folder where the configuration of the imported VM will be stored:

VBoxManage import {{path/to/file.ovf}} --basefolder {{path/to/directory}}

Register the imported VM in VirtualBox:

VBoxManage import {{path/to/file.ovf}} --register

Perform a dry run to check the import without actually importing:

VBoxManage import {{path/to/file.ovf}} --dry-run

Set the guest OS type (one of VBoxManage list ostypes) for the imported VM:

VBoxManage import {{path/to/file.ovf}} --ostype {{ostype}}

Set the memory (in megabytes) for the imported VM:

VBoxManage import {{path/to/file.ovf}} --memory {{1}}

Set the number of CPUs for the imported VM:

VBoxManage import {{path/to/file.ovf}} --cpus {{1}}

Code Snippets

Import a VM from an OVF or OVA file

VBoxManage import {{path/to/file.ovf}}

Set the name of the imported VM

VBoxManage import {{path/to/file.ovf}} --name {{vm_name}}

Indicate the folder where the configuration of the imported VM will be stored

VBoxManage import {{path/to/file.ovf}} --basefolder {{path/to/directory}}

VBoxManage import {{path/to/file.ovf}} --register

Perform a dry run to check the import without actually importing

VBoxManage import {{path/to/file.ovf}} --dry-run

Context

tldr-pages: common/VBoxManage import

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