Question 1

Which .vmdk file do I open when there are several?

Accepted Answer

The small one without a number: a VMware disk is often a descriptor of a few hundred bytes (Windows 10.vmdk) plus the files that hold the data, named -s001.vmdk, -s002.vmdk and so on for a disk split into 2 GB pieces, or -flat.vmdk for a disk allocated in full, as on ESXi. Choose the descriptor and its data files together, or open the descriptor and add the files the page asks for. A disk that is one large .vmdk opens on its own.

Question 2

Can I open a VMware snapshot (-000001.vmdk)?

Accepted Answer

Not on its own here. A snapshot file holds only what changed after the snapshot was taken, so the files are spread between it and its parent. Open the parent disk (the name without -000001) to see the files as they were when the snapshot was taken. To see them as they are now, either delete or consolidate the snapshots in VMware first, or convert the snapshot together with its parent in the Virtual Disk Converter, which follows the chain, and open the VHDX it makes here.

Question 3

Can it open an OVA or OVF export?

Accepted Answer

Not directly. An .ova file is a TAR archive holding an .ovf description and the disk as a streamOptimized VMDK, a compressed kind this viewer cannot list. Extract the .vmdk first (7-Zip opens .ova files, and Windows 10 and 11 can with tar -xf in a command prompt), convert it to VHDX in the Virtual Disk Converter, which reads streamOptimized disks, and open the VHDX here. Opening the streamOptimized .vmdk here still shows the summary of its partitions.

Question 4

How do I turn a VMDK into a VHDX or QCOW2?

Accepted Answer

With the Virtual Disk Converter on this site: it converts VMDK to VHDX or VHD for Hyper-V, QCOW2 for QEMU, KVM and Proxmox, VDI for VirtualBox, or a raw IMG, in the browser as well.

Question 5

What does it show for a disk encrypted with BitLocker?

Accepted Answer

The summary marks the partition as encrypted with BitLocker, and its files are not listed: they cannot be read without the password or recovery key, and this page does not decrypt BitLocker. Start the virtual machine and unlock the drive there, or convert the disk to VHDX, attach it in Windows (double-click the .vhdx) and unlock the drive with its password or recovery key. Other partitions on the same disk are still listed.

Question 6

Can I open a VMDK on my phone or tablet?

Accepted Answer

Yes, in Chrome on Android and Safari on an iPhone or iPad: tap the box and pick the .vmdk from the Files app, Downloads or a cloud drive (a file in iCloud Drive or another cloud is downloaded to the phone first). The disk is read a piece at a time rather than loaded whole, but listing every file of a large Windows disk needs a lot of memory, and a phone can run out of it where a computer would not.

Question 7

Is the VMDK uploaded anywhere?

Accepted Answer

No. The disk is read by this browser tab, with 7-Zip compiled to WebAssembly; nothing is sent anywhere.

Free VMDK viewer: open VMware virtual disks online