Patent ID: 8732703

Claim:
A computer implemented method of verifying a virtual machine, the method comprising: obtaining ( 320 ) information ( 142 , 144 , 146 , 148 ) about one or more attributes for a virtual machine ( 152 , 154 , 156 , 158 ) from a host machine ( 120 , 130 ) that the virtual machine ( 152 , 154 , 156 , 158 ) executes on; obtaining ( 330 ) one or more actual virtual machine attributes ( 162 , 164 , 166 , 168 ) from the virtual machine ( 152 , 154 , 156 , 158 ); and determining ( 340 ): if there are discrepancies between the information ( 142 , 144 , 146 , 148 ) about the one or more attributes and the one or more actual virtual machine attributes ( 162 , 164 , 166 , 168 ) by comparing the information ( 142 , 144 , 146 , 148 ) about the one or more attributes to the one or more actual virtual machine attributes ( 162 , 164 , 166 , 168 ); if there are discrepancies between a virtual machine rule attribute ( 192 , 194 , 196 , 198 ) and the information ( 142 , 144 , 146 , 148 ) about the one or more attributes obtained from the host machine ( 120 , 130 ); and if there are discrepancies between the virtual machine rule attribute ( 192 , 194 , 196 , 198 ) and the one or more actual virtual machine attributes ( 162 , 164 , 166 , 168 ) obtained from the virtual machine ( 152 , 154 , 156 , 158 ).