Most vCloud API objects have a number of common attributes. With the exception of name, none of these attributes are required in request bodies, and are ignored if included. All of them are included in response bodies.

Every object requires a name attribute. The string value of this attribute is included in all object references, and can be used as the display name for the object. The value of name must be unique within a given scope.

Requirements for Unique Object Names

Object Type

Name Scope

ProviderVdc

Cloud

Org

Cloud

Vdc

Organization

Catalog

Organization

CatalogItem

Catalog

vAppTemplate

None

vApp

Organization

Vm

vApp

Media

Catalog

Disk

None

Network

Container (Organization VDC, vApp, or cloud)

These attributes are common to all object representations.

id

The object identifier, expressed in URN format. The value of the id attribute uniquely identifies the object, persists for the life of the object, and is never reused. The id attribute value is intended to provide a context-free identifier that can be used with the vCloud API entityResolver (see Retrieve an Object as an Entity).

type

The object type, specified as a MIME content type.

href

An object reference, expressed in URL format. This reference includes the object identifier portion of the id attribute value, and supplies additional information, including the current location of the object when accessed in a specific view. Although URLs have a well-known syntax and a well-understood interpretation, a client should treat each href as an opaque string. The rules that govern how the server constructs href strings might change in future releases.

Objects such as VAppTemplate, VApp, and Vm, that extend the ResourceEntity type have a status attribute whose value indicates the state of the object. In this table, YES indicates that a status value is allowed for the object listed in the column header. The status value for a VAppTemplate or VApp, which contain Vm objects that each have a status attribute of their own, is computed from the status of the contained objects. When returned in an XML representation, status has a numeric value. When returned by the query service, it has a string value.

status Attribute Values for VAppTemplate, VApp, Vm, and Media Objects

Numeric Value

String Value

Description

vAppTemplate

vApp

Vm

Media

-1

FAILED_CREATION

The object could not be created.

YES

YES

YES

YES

0

UNRESOLVED

The object is unresolved.

YES

YES

YES

YES

1

RESOLVED

The object is resolved.

YES

YES

YES

YES

2

DEPLOYED

The object is deployed.

No

No

No

No

3

SUSPENDED

The object is suspended.

No

YES

YES

No

4

POWERED_ON

The object is powered on.

No

YES

YES

No

5

WAITING_FOR_INPUT

The object is waiting for user input.

No

YES

YES

No

6

UNKNOWN

The object is in an unknown state.

YES

YES

YES

No

7

UNRECOGNIZED

The object is in an unrecognized state.

YES

YES

YES

No

8

POWERED_OFF

The object is resolved and powered off.

YES

YES

YES

No

9

INCONSISTENT_STATE

The object is in an inconsistent state.

No

YES

YES

No

10

MIXED

Children do not all have the same status.

YES

YES

No

No

11

DESCRIPTOR_PENDING

Upload initiated, OVF descriptor pending.

YES

No

No

No

12

COPYING_CONTENTS

Upload initiated, copying contents.

YES

No

No

No

13

DISK_CONTENTS_PENDING

Upload initiated , disk contents pending.

YES

No

No

No

14

QUARANTINED

Upload has been quarantined.

YES

No

No

No

15

QUARANTINE_EXPIRED

Upload quarantine period has expired.

YES

No

No

No

16

REJECTED

Upload has been rejected.

YES

No

No

No

17

TRANSFER_TIMEOUT

Upload transfer session timed out.

YES

No

No

YES

18

VAPP_UNDEPLOYED

The vApp is resolved and undeployed.

YES

No

No

No

19

VAPP_PARTIALLY_DEPLOYED

The vApp is resolved and partially deployed.

YES

No

No

No

VDC objects have their own set of status values and mappings.

status Attribute Values for VDC Objects

Numeric Value

String Value

Description

-1

FAILED_CREATION

The VDC could not be created.

0

NOT_READY

The VDC is not ready for use

1

READY

The VDC Is ready for use

2

UNKNOWN

The VDC status could not be retrieved

3

UNRECOGNIZED

The VDC status cannot be mapped to a known state.