Working with Catalogs

A catalog is a container for vApp templates and media files in an organization. Organization administrators and catalog authors can create catalogs in an organization. Catalog contents can be shared with other users in the organization.

  • Add a New Catalog
  • Access a Catalog
  • Share Your Catalog
  • Change the Owner of a Catalog
  • Delete a Catalog
  • Modify the Properties of Your Catalog
  • Understanding Catalogs and Their Contents
  • Working with the Public Catalog

    Add a New Catalog

    You can create catalogs to group your vApp templates and media files.

    You are at least a catalog author.

    Procedure

    1. Click Catalogs.
    2. On the Catalogs tab, click the New button.
    3. Type a catalog name and click Next.
    4. In Share this Catalog, click Add Members.
    5. Click Next.
    6. Review the summary and click Finish.

    Access a Catalog

    You can access a catalog in your organization or the public catalog and display its contents.

    • To access the public catalog, you must be an organization administrator.
    • To access a catalog in your organization, you are at least a vApp author.

    Procedure

    1. Click Catalogs.
    2. In the left pane, click on a catalog option.
      • My Organization's Catalogs
      • Public Catalogs
    3. In the right pane, select a catalog, right-click, and select Open.

    Share Your Catalog

    When you share your catalog, the contents are available to all users in your organization. You are at least a catalog author.

    Procedure

    1. Click Catalogs.
    2. Select a catalog, right-click, and select Share.
    3. Click Add Members.
    4. Determine with whom you want to share the catalog.
    5. Add the appropriate users and groups.
    6. Select an access level for each user or group.
      • Full control
        This user can open, modify, and change the sharing of a catalog.
      • Read/write
        This user can only open, change the catalog name, and publish the catalog.
        This user can delete vApp templates and media files in a catalog.
      • Read only
        The user only has read access to a catalog.
    7. Click OK and OK again.

    Your catalog is shared with other users or groups in your organization.

    Change the Owner of a Catalog

    You can change the ownership of a catalog. You cannot delete a user who owns a catalog. You are an organization administrator.

    Procedure

    1. Click Catalogs.
    2. In the left pane, double-click My Organization's Catalogs.
    3. Select a catalog, right-click, and select Change Owner.
    4. Select a user from the list or search for one.
      You can search for a user by full name or their user name.
    5. Click OK.

    Your catalog has a new owner.

    Delete a Catalog

    You can delete a catalog from your organization.

    You are at least a catalog author.

    Prerequisites

    You have moved the objects in your catalog to another catalog.

    Procedure

    1. Click Catalogs.
    2. In the left pane, click My Organization's Catalogs.
    3. Select a catalog, right-click, and select Delete.
    4. Click OK.

    The empty catalog is deleted from your organization.

    Modify the Properties of Your Catalog

    You can review and modify your catalog properties.

    You are at least a catalog author.

    Procedure

    1. Click Catalogs.
    2. In the left pane, click My Organization's Catalogs.
    3. Select a catalog, right-click, and select Properties.
    4. Review the properties in the General, Sharing, and Publishing tabs.
    5. Modify the relevant properties and click OK.

    Your catalog properties are updated.

    Understanding Catalogs and Their Contents

    A catalog consists of a list of catalogs, vApp templates, and media files in your organization.

    When you click the Catalogs button in the menu bar, these tabs appear.

    • Catalogs
    • vApp Templates
    • Media

    If you are an organization administrator, you can access the public in the left pane.

    Using vApp Templates in a Catalog

    You can access vApp templates in a catalog in your organization or, if you are an organization administrator, from the public catalog.

    To access a vApp template in a catalog in your organization, in the left pane, click My Organization's Catalogs and click on the vApp Templates tab. Select a vApp template and right-click to see the operations you can complete.

    Using Media Files in a Catalog

    You can access media files in a catalog in your organization or, if you are a organization administrator, the public catalog.

    To access a media file in a catalog in your organization, in the left pane, click My Organization's Catalogs and click on the Media tab. Select a media file and right-click to see the operations you can complete.

    Working with the Public Catalog

    If you have sufficient rights, you can access the public catalog.

    You can access catalogs, vApp templates, and media files from the public catalog and copy them to your catalog.

    Accessing vApp Templates from a Public Catalog

    You can access vApp templates from the public catalog and copy them to your catalog.

    You are an organization administrator.

    Procedure

    1. Click Catalogs.
    2. In the left pane, click Public Catalogs.
    3. On the vApp Templates tab, select a vApp template, right-click and select an operation.
      • Open
      • Add to My Cloud
      • Download
      • Copy to Catalog
      • Properties
        You cannot modify properties until you copy the vApp template to your catalog. If you select Add to My Cloud, the vApp template is saved and added as a vApp.
    4. Click OK.

    The vApp template you selected is added to the specified catalog your organization.

    Accessing a Media File from the Public Catalog

    You can access a media file from the public catalog and add it to your organization.

    You are an organization administrator.

    Procedure

    1. Click Catalogs.
    2. In the left pane, click Public Catalogs.
      Media files are available for use if they reside in the same vDC as your vApp.
    3. On the Media tab, select a media file, right-click and select Copy to Catalog.
    4. Click OK.

    The media file is copied to your catalog.

    What to do next

    You can select the media file and complete a variety of operations on it, such as move it to another catalog in your organization, delete it, or modify its properties.