Oracle VM templates are self-contained and pre-configured virtual machines with key Oracle technologies. Each Oracle VM template is packaged using Oracle best practices, which reduces installation and configuration costs, reduces risk and dramatically shortens deployment time lines.
Oracle VM templates of many key Oracle products are available for download, including Oracle Linux, Oracle Solaris, Oracle Database, Fusion Middleware, and many more.
Oracle VM template licensing includes a free download and free trial use with the option to purchase a product license. Oracle VM templates do not have time limits or feature limitations, that is, Oracle VM templates are full featured and do not have expiration dates. Oracle VM templates can be quickly transitioned from evaluation into production by purchasing Oracle technology licenses.
You can download Oracle VM templates from the Oracle Technology Network:
http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/server-storage/vm/templates-101937.html
Please read the documentation provided with any downloaded template, as it informs you of the relevant configuration steps that you must perform, as well as the default username and password for the template.
When using an Oracle VM template, be sure to change the usernames and passwords from the defaults when you clone your virtual machines. Consistently using default usernames and passwords is a security risk.
The creation of a virtual machine from template is based on cloning: the template is imported as an archive, unpacked and stored as a virtual machine configuration file with images of its disks, which are cloned to create a new instance in the form of a virtual machine. In the same way, an existing virtual machine can be cloned to create a new virtual machine, and to a new template as well.
A virtual machine template is a fully pre-installed, pre-configured virtual machine that can be repeatedly used to create new virtual machines. A typical virtual machine template contains:
An operating system.
A file which contains the basic configuration information, such as the number of virtual CPUs, the amount of memory, the size of disk, and so on.
Pre installed applications.
Assembly files can contain the one or more virtual machine templates, though in most cases, an assembly contains a single virtual machine template. An assembly file that contains multiple virtual machine templates can be deployed to create a virtual machine template for each virtual machine. Virtual machine templates are shared among users to create new virtual machines. New virtual machines inherit the same contents and configuration from the template.
You can obtain or create a virtual machine template by:
Downloading an Oracle VM template from the Oracle Technology Network, and importing it into Oracle VM Manager.
Downloading an Oracle VM template that contains a descriptor file (.ovf file) from the Oracle Technology Network, and importing it into Oracle VM Manager as an assembly, then creating a template from the assembly.
Cloning an existing virtual machine as a template in Oracle VM Manager. For information on cloning virtual machine templates, see VM Templates Item in the Oracle VM Manager User's Guide.