Virtual Machine Decommission

Applies To: System Center 2012 - Service Manager, System Center 2012 SP1 - Service Manager

Virtual machines are automatically stored in the System Center 2012 – Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) library configured for the cloud when they reach their decommission date. When a virtual machine reaches its decommission date, an automated service request is raised, which runs a runbook to decommission the virtual machine. The automated service request is created by a rule that is contained in the service request template that is shipped with the Cloud Services Process Pack. If the automated service request fails (that is, if the runbook is unable to run because of problems such as insufficient computer resources or transient network latency), then the virtual machine remains in an active state. When this occurs, the virtual machines will not be automatically decommissioned, as the automated service request will not re-attempt even when the decommissioning date has expired.

To immediately decommission a virtual machine, change the decommission date to the current date. To physically remove a virtual machine from a VMM, a System Center 2012 – Service Manager administrator will need to manually delete the virtual machine from the VMM library and from the Service Manager Decommissioned View.