Opened 11 years ago
Last modified 10 years ago
#13564 new enhancement
Allow sorting of the VM snapshots
| Reported by: | Black_Fox | Owned by: | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Component: | GUI | Version: | VirtualBox 4.3.18 |
| Keywords: | sort snapshot | Cc: | |
| Guest type: | other | Host type: | other |
Description
As of VirtualBox 4.3.18 it is not yet possible to sort snapshots, any new sibling will simply be appended to the end of the list - seems like sorting on the date of creation. However, I'd like to be able to re-sort one VM's snapshots in different ways.
I have a VM with some (30) snapshots, where I'm testing a complex software project. Each snapshot holds a different revision of the project installed to be able to test and track down regressions quickly. Let's say that I create a snapshot each 100 revisions, so I begin with r63000, then r63100, r63200 and so on; then I suddenly have a need to expand the covered range into the history with r62000. If I create such a snapshot in VBox 4.3.18, it will be added to the end of the list, which could create confusing-to-search state quite quickly if I have to touch different ranges each time. Since I name the snapshots with the revision tested, I could just sort by name (+numerically). Or I could just drag and drop the single snapshot where I want it.
TL;DR I could very much use at least one of the { alphabetical, manual } sorting options in the snapshots list.
Attachments (3)
Change History (7)
comment:1 by , 11 years ago
by , 10 years ago
| Attachment: | snapshot_unsorted.png added |
|---|
Current state after snapshots are added as needed - unsorted
by , 10 years ago
| Attachment: | snapshot_sorted.png added |
|---|
Sorted snapshots after this feature request is implemented
comment:2 by , 10 years ago
I attached the current way I use the snapshot feature and a mockup of what problem I imagine could be solved. By the way, this is ReactOS VM, so each snapshot holds installed operating system ready for any additional testing. Somewhere above there is the "first snapshot", the pictured siblings are branched from it.
As for the conflict, there isn't one - or at least not one I can see. The snapshots still keep their parent and children. Always only the siblings would be sorted, so if there's a subtree within a snapshot, it retains its structure. In the example image above for example the "0.3.17RC" would be somewhere at the top, because '0' comes before 'r', but all the following release candidates would still be branching from the RC as on the screenshot. I think somewhere in the snapshots definitions the children are part of the parent, so keeping the subtree structure intact may not be that hard. Manual sorting could be done using drag'n'drop and/or a hotkey just like it's done in the VM list.
If there's some info missing or I'm not clear enough, please ask for more details.
comment:4 by , 10 years ago
Sorry, not for VirtualBox 5.0. No time yet but a rework of the snapshot handling is on our TODO list.
This needs some thought by our GUI folks. It's kind of a surprising request, I never thought of using snapshots in the way you do. For me snapshots form a tree (sure, many people don't use them beyond a linear sequence of snapshots), and a tree structure has the mentioned inherent structure (reflecting the parent snapshot etc., and the children are sorted chronologically), without suggesting a good way for arbitrarily sorting by the user.
I can understand your request, just wondering how in practice we can bridge the "conflict" between the tree structure and a sorting style which is helping you and others. Feel free to propose something (e.g. a mockup image), might help us understanding what you're aiming for and speed up a solution.