vmkfstools -x check /path/to/your/orphaned-flat.vmdk If it reports a problem, run:
Run this simple cron job or script weekly: vmdk recovery file
find /vmfs/volumes/*/*/*.vmdk -size -10k -exec cp {} /backup/descriptors/ \; Those tiny descriptor files take up kilobytes of space but save hours of panic. Don't confuse a missing map with missing data. If you see a -flat.vmdk file sitting on your datastore, your VM is not dead—it's just sleeping. With vmkfstools and ten minutes of focus, you can bring it back to life. vmkfstools -x check /path/to/your/orphaned-flat