For some reason VMware Fusion 5 (Even VMware Fusion 5 Professional) lacks a UI option to create Independent, Persistent VMDKs. But it can easily be done in the .vmx
file using a text editor:
VMware documentation about changing disk mode says that the disk must not have any snapshots, so you may need to delete all snapshots. Consider making a backup first
- Shut down your virtual machine and quit VMware Fusion. (Yes, this is necessary)
- Locate the Virtual Machine's package in the Finder. Right click on it and select "Show Package Contents"
- Locate the
.vmx
file and open it with a text editor (you can right click and select "Open with > Text Edit") Search through until you find the line containing name of the virtual disk (vmdk) which you want to make persistent. It should look something like:
scsi0:1.fileName = "Virtual Disk-000001.vmdk"
(Though it might be
ide0:0
, or the bus numbers might be different)Add below that line the following:
scsi0:1.mode = "independent-nonpersistent"
Make sure to match the bus description. So if your device is
ide0:0
you'd writeide0:0.mode
- Save the file and relaunch VMware Fusion, you should be good to go.