If you think VMware Converter is an outdated product that should no longer be considered, think again. VMware Converter may not be updated every month, but its latest version, 6.4, is evidence that VMware hasn’t forgotten about the product—or at least, recognizes its utility. As a reminder, VMware Converter is used to convert a machine running in ‘some environment’ to the target VMware environment.

Furthermore, VMware Converter remains a robust tool when it comes to migrating to the VMware environment in the Public Cloud. I personally tested such a migration, and it concluded with complete success. If that’s not enough, there’s also the possibility of migrating an active virtual machine from the Amazon environment (EC2), supporting both Windows and Linux machines.

Especially at this point, I’m not providing specific source and target versions. It’s a common practice to install an older version of VMware Converter if you need to migrate an older (very old!) operating system version, such as Win2003 or Win2008. However, what you must certainly pay attention to are certain requirements and preparing the virtual machine to be migrated. I encourage you again to review the documentation, but in some environments, the most challenging aspect may be the need to disable the firewall, UAC, or antivirus software. Of course, not everything needs to be turned off 100%, as stated in the documentation (although it’s certainly more convenient for the person performing the migration). Still, I believe it’s possible to find a compromise with the security department and determine optimal settings for migration.

From documentation:

Especially at this point, I’m not providing specific source and target versions. It’s a common practice to install an older version of VMware Converter if you need to migrate an older (very old!) operating system version, such as Win2003 or Win2008. However, what you must certainly pay attention to are certain requirements and preparing the virtual machine to be migrated. I encourage you again to review the documentation, but in some environments, the most challenging aspect may be the need to disable the firewall, UAC, or antivirus software. Of course, not everything needs to be turned off 100%, as stated in the documentation (although it’s certainly more convenient for the person performing the migration). Still, I believe it’s possible to find a compromise with the security department and determine optimal settings for migration.

Network installation requirements (check again for your Converter version):

UAC configuration:

Installation issue can presented on below images:

can be fixed with the solution described: https://hyperhci.com/2019/10/25/p2v-migration-error-unable-to-complete-converter-agent-installation-error-code-1603/

Fix works fine, but require system restart (after registry change).

Personally tested migration from an on-premises environment to the AVS environment (VMware in Azure) and also to VMC (VMware in AWS) using an older version of VMware Converter. The entire operation was successful, although preparation and testing were crucial (as usual). The biggest challenge is when replication succeeds, but the failover itself does not. I encountered such a situation, unfortunately, I was unable to replicate it.

I don’t know what your experiences with Converter have been, but it’s certainly a tool worth testing in today’s hybrid world. Share your thoughts in the comments; I would greatly appreciate it.