#Switching Between VMs

Some modules ship with more than one VM — for example a client and server pair, or a small lab with multiple machines wired together on the same network. They all clone together when the module starts, and they all run for the duration of your attempt.

When a module has multiple VMs, a Switch VM entry appears in the menu bar. Open it to see the list of VMs in your module; click any of them to jump to that VM's console. The VM you're currently on is highlighted at the top with ▶▶.

Some things to know:

• Only one console at a time. You're driving one VM at a time, but every VM in the module is running in the background. If two machines need to talk to each other to solve the scenario, switch over, do the work, and switch back — you don't need to keep multiple tabs open.
• They share a network. VMs in the same module can reach each other by IP exactly the way real machines on the same LAN can. The module briefing will tell you the addresses you need.
• Sibling warnings. If one of the other VMs in the module isn't running (it's stopped, restarting, still provisioning), the console shows a warning. That usually means a part of the scenario is broken until that VM is back up. Switch to it and check on it, or use VM Controls → Power On.
• Inactivity counts per-VM. Each VM has its own inactivity timer. If you spend an hour on the client VM, the server VM may have shut itself down for inactivity in the meantime. Switching to it powers it back on automatically, but you'll have to wait for it to boot.