Back in 2011 I posted screen shots for using the fat client to download a VM from an ESX/ESXI host to use in VMware Workstation. I never updated that post when Workstation added a download feature, so here is the screen shots for downloading with Workstation 12.5 Pro.
The old version is still relevant if you’re using Workstation Player, although I plan on another update with new screen shots from the web client.
Moving VMs using Workstation Pro
Launch Workstation Pro and connect to your ESXi server
Right click on the VM in question and choose download.
Note that if the VM can’t be powered off or if you only want to download some of the disks, clone the original VM, modify it as needed, and download the clone.
Power on and enjoy!
