The vCloud API provides several ways for you to make vApp templates, vApps, media images, and independent disks available to users in a vCloud Director organization.

The vCloud API allows you to upload and download OVF packages and ISO-format media images. Operations are characterized as uploads when they transfer content from a vCloud API client system to a target catalog in a vCloud Director organization, and as downloads when a vCloud API client requests the transfer of content from vCloud Director. A POST request initiates an upload, and a GET request initiates a download. The vCloud Director transfer service facilitates uploads and downloads and provides temporary storage for files. Uploaded vApp templates and media images are made available as catalog items in the target catalog.

In addition to uploading, you can use the following operations to provision an organization with vApp templates, vApps, and media images:

Cloning

The vCloud API cloneVApp operation creates a copy of a vApp in a specified VDC. You can specify whether to delete the source vApp after the operation completes. Deleting the source vApp after cloning it moves or renames it.

Capturing

The vCloud API captureVApp operation creates a vApp template from a vApp and places the template in a specified catalog.

Importing

A system administrator can import a virtual machine from a vCenter server that is registered to the cloud. You can import the virtual machine as a vApp or as a vApp template. You can add an imported template to a catalog or download it as an OVF package.

Adopting

In the default configuration, the system automatically discovers vCenter VMs contained by in any resource pool that backs an organization VDC. A system administrator can also can configure an organization VDC to adopt existing vCenter resource pools and the VMs they contain. The system administrator can make these discovered VMs available for adoption by organization members.

Subscribing

Organizations that have the appropriate permissions can create catalogs with external subscriptions. These contents of these catalogs are downloaded from a catalog hosted on another instance of vCloud Director, or any Web site that implements the VMware Content Subscription Protocol. See Create a Catalog With an External Subscription.

You can also create independent disks that are contained by an organization VDC and can be connected to any virtual machine in that VDC.

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