NetApp Shift Toolkit
Migrate and convert virtual machines between hypervisors in minutes, without copying data, at no additional cost.
The ultimate VM migration solution
With recent changes in virtualization licensing models, organizations are adopting multi-hypervisor environments to control costs. However, VM migration across platforms has traditionally been complex, slow, and expensive.
The NetApp Shift Toolkit solves this: a free tool that uses ONTAP FlexClone technology to convert virtual disks from one hypervisor to another in seconds — not hours or days — without copying data over the network.
Whether you need to migrate a single VM or hundreds, Shift Toolkit offers the flexibility, speed and reliability your business needs.
Bidirectional migration
Supports conversion between the leading hypervisors on the market:
Key benefits
Ultra-fast conversion
A 1TB VMDK disk that normally takes hours is converted in seconds. FlexClone technology clones instantly without copying data over the network.
Cost savings
Eliminates expensive consulting, third-party tools and double licensing. Shift Toolkit is completely free and reduces the resources needed for migration.
Data integrity
Data is accurately replicated and synchronized, preventing data loss and ensuring applications function correctly after migration.
Smart automation
Automated workflows from preparation to final cutover. Reduces human error and accelerates the migration process at scale.
Scalability
Migrate from a single VM to an entire datacenter. Conversions run in parallel and the time is the same regardless of quantity.
Full REST APIs
Integrate Shift Toolkit with your existing automation workflows using scriptable REST APIs for large-scale orchestration.
How it works
Discover
Connect Shift Toolkit to your source and destination hypervisors. The tool automatically discovers VMs, networks and data stores.
Group and plan
Create resource groups with the VMs to migrate, define the boot order and configure destination network and storage mappings.
Execute and monitor
Execute the migration with a single click. Shift Toolkit takes snapshots, converts disks with FlexClone and powers on VMs at the destination. Monitor from the dashboard.
Detailed conversion process
- Delete existing snapshots
- Take VM snapshots at the source
- Volume snapshot before conversion
- Clone and convert VMDK to VHDX/QCOW2/RAW
- Power on VMs at the destination
- Register networks on each VM
- Remove VMware Tools and restore IPs
- Verification and dashboard monitoring
Supported migrations
Full VM migration
Bidirectional conversion of full VMs between hypervisors:
- VMware ESXi → Microsoft Hyper-V
- Microsoft Hyper-V → VMware ESXi
- VMware ESXi → Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization
- VMware ESXi → Oracle Linux VM
- VMware ESXi → Proxmox VE
Disk conversion
Disk-level conversion to integrate with existing automation scripts:
- VMware VMDK → Microsoft VHDX
- VMware VMDK → QCOW2 (KVM compatible)
- VMware VMDK → RAW (Proxmox, OLVM)
- QCOW2 compatible with: RHEL KVM, Ubuntu, Rocky Linux, Proxmox, OpenNebula
Use cases
License cost reduction
Migrate VMs from VMware to open-source alternatives or hypervisors with lower licensing costs, optimizing your IT budget.
Multi-hypervisor strategy
Implement a diversified virtualization strategy that eliminates vendor lock-in and gives you the flexibility to choose the best platform per workload.
Data center modernization
Facilitates the transition to modern platforms like OpenShift Virtualization or Proxmox, maintaining business continuity during migration.
Prerequisites
To get the most out of Shift Toolkit, the following components are required:
NetApp ONTAP storage
VMs must reside on NFS volumes on ONTAP storage to leverage FlexClone.
Windows server
Shift Toolkit runs as a standalone application on a Windows server.
Multi-protocol SVM
The ONTAP SVM must be configured to support NFS and CIFS/SMB simultaneously.
Ready to simplify your migrations?
At Aritech we are certified NetApp partners in Chile. We help you plan and implement your VM migration with Shift Toolkit, ensuring a risk-free transition.