vboxmanage-list
List VirtualBox virtual machines and information
TLDR
List all VirtualBox virtual machines
Show DHCP servers available on the host system
Show Oracle VM VirtualBox extension packs currently installed
Show all virtual machine groups
Show virtual disk settings that are currently in use by VirtualBox
Show host-only network interfaces available on host system
Show the list of currently running virtual machines
Show host system information
SYNOPSIS
VBoxManage list object_type [options]
Where object_type specifies the category of VirtualBox entities to list, and [options] provides modifiers for the output.
PARAMETERS
object_type:
Specifies the type of VirtualBox entity to list. Common types include:
vms: All registered virtual machines.
runningvms: Only virtual machines currently running.
harddisks: Registered virtual disk images.
dvds: Registered DVD images.
floppies: Registered floppy images.
hostonlyifs: Host-only network interfaces.
bridgedifs: Bridged network interfaces.
dhcpservers: DHCP servers configured for NAT networks or host-only networks.
natrules: NAT rules for NAT networks.
usbhost: USB devices connected to the host.
usbfs: USB filters for virtual machines.
extpacks: Installed extension packs.
guestos: Supported guest operating system types.
hostinfo: Information about the host system.
hostdvds: Host DVD drives.
hostfloppies: Host floppy drives.
--details
Displays more comprehensive information for the specified object_type. This option is particularly useful for getting verbose details about VMs, hard disks, or network interfaces.
--long
Similar to --details, often providing an extensive, multi-line format of information, especially useful when listing VMs.
DESCRIPTION
VBoxManage is the powerful command-line interface for Oracle VM VirtualBox, enabling comprehensive control and management of all aspects of the virtualization platform. The VBoxManage list command is a fundamental subcommand within VBoxManage, designed to query and display detailed information about various VirtualBox entities and configurations.
It serves as a crucial tool for both administrators and automation scripts, providing a programmatic way to retrieve current states and configurations without needing to interact with the graphical user interface. Users can list virtual machines, hard disk images, network interfaces (host-only, bridged), USB devices, installed extension packs, supported guest operating systems, and host system information. The output can range from concise summaries to extensive detailed reports, depending on the specific entity queried and the options used, making it highly versatile for diagnostics, inventory management, and scripting complex VirtualBox operations.
CAVEATS
The output format of VBoxManage list can sometimes be extensive and may require piping to tools like grep, awk, or less for effective filtering and viewing. While generally stable, minor variations in output format can occur between VirtualBox versions, which might affect scripts relying on precise parsing.
Administrative privileges might be required for certain listings depending on the host operating system and VirtualBox installation.
