File Extension Library


.VMCZ File Extension

  • Developer by: Microsoft
  • Category: Compressed Files

What are .VMCZ files and how to open them?

Can't open .VMCZ file? Are you wondering what it contains? On our site we will explain to you what this file is, what it is used for and what software opens the .VMCZ file.

What is a .VMCZ file extension?

.VMCZ file extension is created by Microsoft. .VMCZ has been classified as Compressed Files.

.VMCZ is Hyper-V Compressed Virtual Machine

A VMCZ file contains a compressed virtual machine (VM) created by Microsoft Hyper-V, a Windows virtualization program. It stores the state, data, and hardware configuration of a VM at the time of the file creation in a Zip-compressed package. VMCZ files are exported by Hyper-V to share and copy virtual machines to other computers or servers.

Microsoft Hyper-V allows users to run multiple operating systems as virtual machines in Windows, as well as create and manage virtualized software and hardware components. Hyper-V software also comes with Hyper-V Manager, which is a tool that provides a friendly user interface (UI) for interacting with Hyper-V. Hyper-V Manager is available as an optional program built into Windows systems that support Hyper-V.

Microsoft introduced the VMCZ file type when it added the virtual machine export capability to Hyper-V Manager with the release of the Windows 10 Insider Build of 16226 in June 2017. The feature was introduced through the addition of a "Share" button to the UI of Hyper-V Manager that allows users to export a Hyper-V VM as a compressed VMCZ file.

The Share feature makes it easier for users to copy virtual machines and transport them to other locations. After moving a VMCZ file to another system with Hyper-V installed, a user can simply double-click the file to import it into Hyper-V.

Since a VMCZ file is a Zip-compressed package, a user can also manually extract the contents of the package with a Zip-decompression utility, such as Microsoft File Explorer, Corel WinZip, 7-Zip, or WinRAR. The contents typically include a VM hard disk drive .VHD or .VHDX file, a VM configuration .VMCX file, and a VM run state VMRS file.

To export a virtual machine in Hyper-V Manager as a VMCZ file, select the "Share" button in the toolbar or right-click a virtual machine, then select Export.

NOTE: Hyper-V was first released with Windows Server 2008 and has been made available for free beginning with Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012. It is available in 64-bit versions of Windows 10 Pro, Enterprise, and Education.

List of all softwares that can open the Hyper-V Compressed Virtual Machine
Windows
Microsoft Hyper-V

How to fix problems with .VMCZ files

  1. You need to update the application that you normally use to open .VMCZ files. Only the latest version of the software supports the current .VMCZ file format
  2. You need to check the .VMCZ file for viruses. To do this, you need to scan it with a popular antivirus (Norton, Nod32, Kaspersky, Dr.Web, etc.)