PowerCLI Script to Export All vDS Configuration

During a recent task where I had to upgrade the Distributed Switches (vDS) in vCenter, I wanted to make sure that I had a backup of the vDS configurations before proceeding.

I used a simple PowerCLI script to export the configuration of all vDS switches in the environment. This script is essentially the automated version of manually right-clicking each vDS in vCenter, going to Settings > Export Configuration.

Since I had multiple vDS in the environment, I figured it made more sense to write a script that could handle the exports for all of them at once, much faster and no room for human error.

Here’s the PowerCLI script I used to back up all the vDS configurations in my vCenter:

# Connect to vCenter
Connect-VIServer -Server "your-vcenter-name"

# Define the backup directory path
$backupDirectory = "C:\vDS_Backups"

# Get all vDS in the vCenter
$vdsList = Get-VDSwitch

# Loop through each vDS and export its configuration
foreach ($vds in $vdsList) {
    # Define the backup file path for each vDS with a timestamp
    $backupPath = "$backupDirectory\$($vds.Name)-Backup-$(Get-Date -Format 'yyyyMMdd-HHmmss').zip"
    
    # Export the configuration
    Export-VDSwitch -VDSwitch $vds -Destination $backupPath
    
    # Confirm export
    Write-Host "Backup of $($vds.Name) completed: $backupPath"
}

# Disconnect from vCenter
Disconnect-VIServer -Confirm:$false

Feel free to customize this script based on your specific reporting requirements and share your experiences or improvements in the comments below.

It should be noted that the script is not entirely authored by me; certain information and code snippets are sourced from various places, including blogs, GitHub repositories, and community forums.