View the source image of a VM
You create a virtual machine (VM) instance from either an OS
image or a disk image. This document
shows you how to determine the source OS image or source disk image of a VM.
Before you begin
View the source OS image or source disk image of a VM
To view the source OS image or source disk image of a VM, use the
Trusted Cloud console, Google Cloud CLI, or Compute Engine API.
Permissions required for this task
To perform this task, you must have the following
permissions:
compute.instances.get on the instance
Console
In the Trusted Cloud console, go to the VM instances page.
Go to VM instances
Click the Name of the VM.
The name of the source OS image or source disk image is in
Storage > Boot
disk > Image.
gcloud
View the disks attached to a VM by using the following gcloud compute
instances describe
command:
gcloud compute instances describe VM_NAME
Replace VM_NAME with the name of the VM.
View the source OS image or source disk image of the disk by using the
following gcloud compute disks describe
command:
gcloud compute disks describe DISK_NAME \
--zone=ZONE \
--format="get(SOURCE)"
Replace the following:
DISK_NAME: the name of the disk to view the
source of.
ZONE: the zone that the disk is located in.
SOURCE: a value that specifies whether to
return the source OS image or the source disk image. Set to sourceDisk
or to sourceImage. No value is returned when specifying sourceDisk
or sourceImage unless there is a corresponding source OS image or a
source disk image. If no value is returned, specify the other value and
run the command again.
REST
View the disks attached to a VM by using the following instances.get
method:
GET https://compute.googleapis.com/compute/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/zones/ZONE/instances/VM_NAME
Replace the following:
PROJECT_ID: the project IDZONE: the zone containing the VMVM_NAME: the name of the VM
View the source OS image or source disk image of the disk by using the
disks.get method.
For a VM that has a source OS image, this method returns the source image
that was used to create the disk in the sourceImage field. For a VM
that has a source disk image, this method instead returns the source
image in the sourceDisk field.
GET https://compute.googleapis.com/compute/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/zones/ZONE/disks/DISK_NAME
Replace the following:
PROJECT_ID: the project IDZONE: the zone containing the diskDISK_NAME: the name of the disk
What's next
- Learn more about OS images on Compute Engine.
Except as otherwise noted, the content of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, and code samples are licensed under the Apache 2.0 License. For details, see the Google Developers Site Policies. Java is a registered trademark of Oracle and/or its affiliates.
Last updated 2025-08-26 UTC.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Missing the information I need","missingTheInformationINeed","thumb-down"],["Too complicated / too many steps","tooComplicatedTooManySteps","thumb-down"],["Out of date","outOfDate","thumb-down"],["Samples / code issue","samplesCodeIssue","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2025-08-26 UTC."],[[["\u003cp\u003eThis guide explains how to identify the source OS image or source disk image used to create a virtual machine (VM) instance.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eYou can determine the source image using the Google Cloud console, the Google Cloud CLI (gcloud), or the Compute Engine API.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eTo access and use the services, authentication is needed and the methods to authenticate are explained for the Google Cloud Console, the gcloud CLI, and REST.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eRequired permissions include \u003ccode\u003ecompute.instances.get\u003c/code\u003e on the specific VM instance.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eThe location of the required source image information can be found in the storage section under the boot disk in the Google Cloud Console and by using the gcloud command lines to view the disk and then its source.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],[],null,["# View the source image of a VM\n\nLinux Windows\n\n*** ** * ** ***\n\nYou create a virtual machine (VM) instance from either an [OS\nimage](/compute/docs/images/os-details) or a disk image. This document\nshows you how to determine the source OS image or source disk image of a VM.\n\nBefore you begin\n----------------\n\n- If you haven't already, set up [authentication](/compute/docs/authentication). Authentication verifies your identity for access to Google Cloud services and APIs. To run code or samples from a local development environment, you can authenticate to Compute Engine by selecting one of the following options:\n\n Select the tab for how you plan to use the samples on this page: \n\n ### Console\n\n\n When you use the Google Cloud console to access Google Cloud services and\n APIs, you don't need to set up authentication.\n\n ### gcloud\n\n 1.\n [Install](/sdk/docs/install) the Google Cloud CLI.\n\n After installation,\n [initialize](/sdk/docs/initializing) the Google Cloud CLI by running the following command:\n\n ```bash\n gcloud init\n ```\n\n\n If you're using an external identity provider (IdP), you must first\n [sign in to the gcloud CLI with your federated identity](/iam/docs/workforce-log-in-gcloud).\n | **Note:** If you installed the gcloud CLI previously, make sure you have the latest version by running `gcloud components update`.\n 2. [Set a default region and zone](/compute/docs/gcloud-compute#set_default_zone_and_region_in_your_local_client).\n\n ### REST\n\n\n To use the REST API samples on this page in a local development environment, you use the\n credentials you provide to the gcloud CLI.\n 1. [Install](/sdk/docs/install) the Google Cloud CLI. After installation, [initialize](/sdk/docs/initializing) the Google Cloud CLI by running the following command: \n\n ```bash\n gcloud init\n ```\n 2. If you're using an external identity provider (IdP), you must first [sign in to the gcloud CLI with your federated identity](/iam/docs/workforce-log-in-gcloud).\n\n\n For more information, see\n [Authenticate for using REST](/docs/authentication/rest)\n in the Google Cloud authentication documentation.\n\nView the source OS image or source disk image of a VM\n-----------------------------------------------------\n\nTo view the source OS image or source disk image of a VM, use the\nGoogle Cloud console, Google Cloud CLI, or Compute Engine API.\n\n#### Permissions required for this task\n\nTo perform this task, you must have the following\n[permissions](/iam/docs/overview#permissions):\n\n\n- `compute.instances.get` on the instance \n\n### Console\n\n1. In the Google Cloud console, go to the **VM instances** page.\n\n [Go to VM instances](https://console.cloud.google.com/compute/instances)\n2. Click the **Name** of the VM.\n\n3. The name of the source OS image or source disk image is in\n **Storage** \\\u003e **Boot\n disk** \\\u003e **Image**.\n\n### gcloud\n\n1. View the disks attached to a VM by using the following [`gcloud compute\n instances describe`\n command](/sdk/gcloud/reference/compute/instances/describe):\n\n ```\n gcloud compute instances describe VM_NAME\n ```\n\n Replace \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eVM_NAME\u003c/var\u003e with the name of the VM.\n2. View the source OS image or source disk image of the disk by using the\n following [`gcloud compute disks describe`\n command](/sdk/gcloud/reference/compute/disks/describe):\n\n ```\n gcloud compute disks describe DISK_NAME \\\n --zone=ZONE \\\n --format=\"get(SOURCE)\"\n ```\n\n Replace the following:\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eDISK_NAME\u003c/var\u003e: the name of the disk to view the\n source of.\n\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eZONE\u003c/var\u003e: the zone that the disk is located in.\n\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eSOURCE\u003c/var\u003e: a value that specifies whether to\n return the source OS image or the source disk image. Set to `sourceDisk`\n or to `sourceImage`. No value is returned when specifying `sourceDisk`\n or `sourceImage` unless there is a corresponding source OS image or a\n source disk image. If no value is returned, specify the other value and\n run the command again.\n\n### REST\n\n1. View the disks attached to a VM by using the following [`instances.get`\n method](/compute/docs/reference/rest/v1/instances/get):\n\n ```\n GET https://compute.googleapis.com/compute/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/zones/ZONE/instances/VM_NAME\n ```\n\n Replace the following:\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003ePROJECT_ID\u003c/var\u003e: the project ID\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eZONE\u003c/var\u003e: the zone containing the VM\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eVM_NAME\u003c/var\u003e: the name of the VM\n2. View the source OS image or source disk image of the disk by using the\n [`disks.get` method](/compute/docs/reference/rest/v1/disks/get).\n\n For a VM that has a source OS image, this method returns the source image\n that was used to create the disk in the `sourceImage` field. For a VM\n that has a source disk image, this method instead returns the source\n image in the `sourceDisk` field. \n\n ```\n GET https://compute.googleapis.com/compute/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/zones/ZONE/disks/DISK_NAME\n ```\n\n Replace the following:\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003ePROJECT_ID\u003c/var\u003e: the project ID\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eZONE\u003c/var\u003e: the zone containing the disk\n - \u003cvar translate=\"no\"\u003eDISK_NAME\u003c/var\u003e: the name of the disk\n\nWhat's next\n-----------\n\n- Learn more about [OS images](/compute/docs/images) on Compute Engine."]]
