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HVTools is a free, open-source Windows desktop application by Michael Morten Sonne that inventories Microsoft Hyper-V environments: local hosts, remote standalone hosts and failover clusters, which the project says also covers Azure Local. The HVTools README calls it the equivalent of RVTools for VMware environments. It reads host hardware, VM configuration, virtual disks, checkpoints and cluster data into one tabbed interface and exports the result to JSON, CSV, XML or formatted text.
The tool is a Windows Forms application on .NET 10, downloaded from hvtools.app or the project's GitHub releases. It is MIT licensed and described as free for personal and commercial use. It is also young: the first public build, 1.0.0.0 alpha 1, appeared on 11 March 2026 and is still marked as a pre-release, and the author describes HVTools as a spare-time project that comes without support.
What HVTools is and why it was built
On the Behind the Tool page, Sonne explains that VMware administrators had RVTools for VM inventory and reporting while Hyper-V administrators lacked a similar tool. The same page sets out the development timeline: PowerShell scripts for Hyper-V inventory collection with CSV export in November 2025, a Windows Forms interface in December 2025, cluster support at the end of December 2025, and the open-source release on GitHub in March 2026.
That history explains how the tool works. The README lists the PowerShell SDK (System.Management.Automation) for Hyper-V cmdlet execution and remote management, and System.Management for WMI queries on system and hardware details. HVTools is therefore a graphical front end over the same Hyper-V and FailoverClusters PowerShell modules an administrator would otherwise script by hand, which the README lists as required on target hosts. The announcement post on the author's blog, dated 10 March 2026, describes it as bringing Hyper-V, Windows Failover Clustering and Azure Local (formerly Azure Stack HCI) into one interface.
What HVTools collects from Hyper-V hosts, VMs and clusters
The README organises the inventory into tabs. These are the data points it documents for each area.
Virtual machines
The VM Overview tab is the primary inventory view. Per VM, the README lists configuration details for CPU, memory, disk and network, the VM state (Running, Off, Paused, Saved) with colour coding, Generation 1 or 2, Integration Services status, heartbeat, uptime, checkpoint information, replication status, creation date and VM ID. Double-clicking a VM opens its full details, and column headers sort the grid.
Hyper-V hosts
The Hosts tab covers hardware (CPU, memory, model, serial number), operating system version and build, licensing status and grace period, boot time and uptime, time zone and NTP configuration, Hyper-V configuration paths, network adapters with IP addresses, SLAT and Hyper-Threading support, NUMA spanning, Live Migration settings and Enhanced Session Mode status.
Failover clusters and Azure Local
For clusters, HVTools reports node status and health, the distribution of highly available VMs, cluster networks, Cluster Shared Volume status, failover priorities and preferred owners, node weight and drain status, and fault domain configuration. It detects cluster nodes automatically and collects data from all nodes in parallel. According to the Behind the Tool page, a discovery routine probes for cluster membership first and falls back to standalone mode, and Azure Local is detected through specific registry keys and service presence.
Virtual disks and checkpoints
The Virtual Disks tab lists disk type (Dynamic, Fixed, Differencing, PassThrough), format (VHD, VHDX, physical), storage consumption, space efficiency, fragmentation, controller (SCSI or IDE), QoS minimum and maximum IOPS, and parent-child relationships for differencing disks. The Checkpoints tab shows every checkpoint across the environment, Standard and Production types, checkpoint age and storage consumption. Summary views add recommendations such as checkpoint cleanup, fragmentation alerts and VHD to VHDX migration suggestions.
HVTools requirements and permissions
The hvtools.app system requirements list Windows 10 or later (64-bit) or Windows Server 2016 or later, the .NET 10 Desktop Runtime, the Hyper-V or cluster role, and administrator privileges. The site recommends 8 GB or more of RAM and says network connectivity over VPN and Global Secure Access has been tested for remote servers. The announcement post adds Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) for remote management.
The rights you need depend on the connection type. The README breaks them down as follows.
| Connection | What the README requires |
|---|---|
| Local host | Administrator privileges or membership in Hyper-V Administrators; Hyper-V PowerShell module and Hyper-V Management Tools |
| Remote standalone host | Network connectivity, WinRM and PowerShell Remoting enabled on the target, credentials with Hyper-V Administrator rights, firewall rules for WinRM (TCP 5985/5986) |
| Failover cluster | Failover Clustering PowerShell module on cluster nodes, Cluster Administrator or equivalent permissions, network access to all nodes; CredSSP may be needed for some multi-hop scenarios |
The README also records where the tool has been tested: Windows 10 and Windows 11, systems joined to Active Directory and Microsoft Entra ID, two-node failover clusters, standalone hosts and workgroup machines, and Hyper-V Server and Windows Server 2022 and 2025. If your estate is a large cluster or an older Windows Server release, plan your own test first.
How to connect HVTools to a host or cluster
The installer runs as Administrator, and the application itself runs as Administrator for local Hyper-V access or with standard permissions for remote connections. The connection steps in the README are short:
- Local host: click Connect, leave the server as "localhost" or ".", choose Windows Authentication and click Login.
- Remote standalone host: enter the hostname or IP address, choose Windows Authentication (your current credentials) or custom credentials, optionally tick Remember credentials, then log in. HVTools resolves the hostname when you connect by IP address.
- Failover cluster: enter any cluster node name or the cluster name and provide credentials with cluster access. HVTools detects the cluster configuration and discovers and inventories all nodes.
Saved credentials are stored encrypted; the Behind the Tool page says credential handling uses Windows Credential APIs and supports both the current user context and explicit credentials. The README's own security advice is to prefer Windows Authentication where possible and to verify the code signature on first run. The website notes that you can run several instances at once to connect to different environments side by side.
Exporting Hyper-V inventory reports
Export is the part that turns HVTools into a documentation tool. In the VM Overview tab you tick the VMs you want (or select all), click Export, pick a format and a save location. The README assigns each format a purpose:
- JSON Structured data with metadata, intended for automation and scripting.
- CSV Excel-compatible, with VM Groups written to a separate file.
- XML Hierarchical data for structured data exchange.
- TXT Formatted, human-readable reports for documentation and printing.
Each export carries metadata: the export timestamp, the user who exported, the host and connection type, total VM counts and the application version. That makes repeated exports usable for comparison over time, which the README suggests doing regularly. The project changelog lists Excel/CSV export workflows across tabs under unreleased additions, so export coverage beyond the VM Overview tab is still in progress.
Typical admin use cases for HVTools
The README groups the intended uses into a few areas that map to common Hyper-V tasks:
- Inventory and documentation Complete VM inventory reports, hardware specifications and cluster documentation.
- Capacity planning Resource allocation across hosts, over-provisioned VMs and storage consumption.
- Health checks VM states, Integration Services status, heartbeats and cluster node health.
- Compliance and audits Exported VM configurations plus licensing and activation status.
- Backup and checkpoint hygiene VMs without checkpoints, checkpoint age and cleanup needs.
- Migration planning Generation 1 versus Generation 2 compatibility and exported configuration for comparison.
The README also documents VM Groups management (create, rename, delete groups and change their members), and the website says groups can be used to start, stop and manage several VMs at once or for backup jobs.
Limits to know before you rely on HVTools
HVTools is early software, and the project says so plainly. Check these points before you put it on an admin workstation:
- Alpha status. The 1.0.0.0 alpha 1 release notes call it an early preview intended for experimentation, warn that it may contain bugs or breaking changes, and say many features are incomplete.
- Unfinished tabs. The UI feature-status document marks VM overview, VM Groups, hosts, clusters and checkpoints as implemented, storage as partial, and lists virtual networking and SDN, Hyper-V Replica monitoring, performance metrics and shielded VM security as planned.
- It is not read-only. The tool can delete checkpoints and change VM Groups, so the account you connect with can change production state. Use the least privileged account the task allows.
- No support. The README says the author cannot provide support for this hobby project and asks companies wanting commercial support to contact him on LinkedIn. The security policy supports only the current version on the main branch.
- Your own testing. The Behind the Tool page states the tool is provided as is and that users must test it in their own environments before production use.
On licensing there is no catch: the MIT licence grants use, modification and redistribution free of charge, and the README describes the tool as free for personal and commercial use. Community uptake is growing; a blog post by the author reported over 300 downloads as of 13 April 2026. The HVTools profile on iThub tracks the tool, and the virtualization and VDI category lists related tools.
Bottom line
If you run Hyper-V hosts or failover clusters and want a quick, exportable inventory without writing your own PowerShell reports, HVTools is worth installing on an admin workstation today: it is free, MIT licensed, and its JSON, CSV, XML and text exports cover hosts, VMs, disks, checkpoints and cluster data. Treat it as an alpha. Start with a lab or a read-mostly account, test cluster connections over WinRM before you depend on them, and do not choose it for networking, Replica or performance reporting yet, because those tabs are still planned. If you need vendor support or a stable release cadence, wait for a beta.
Frequently asked questions
Is HVTools free for commercial use?
Yes. HVTools is released under the MIT licence, which grants permission to use, copy, modify and distribute the software free of charge. The project README also describes it as freeware that is free for personal and commercial use. The author does not offer support for the free tool, but he invites companies that want commercial support to contact him on LinkedIn, and he welcomes sponsorship.
Does HVTools work with Azure Local?
The project says it does. The README states that connecting to failover clusters means Azure Local is covered too, and the Behind the Tool page explains that HVTools detects Azure Local through specific registry keys and service presence. The author's announcement lists enhanced Azure Local integration as planned work, so check the current release notes before relying on Azure Local specific data.
What permissions does HVTools need on remote Hyper-V hosts?
For a remote standalone host, the README requires network connectivity, WinRM and PowerShell Remoting enabled on the target, credentials with Hyper-V Administrator rights and firewall rules allowing WinRM on TCP 5985 or 5986. For clusters it needs the Failover Clustering PowerShell module on the nodes, Cluster Administrator or equivalent rights and network access to every node, with CredSSP possibly needed for multi-hop scenarios.
Which export formats does HVTools support?
HVTools exports to JSON, CSV, XML and formatted text. The README positions JSON for automation and scripting, CSV for Excel and reporting, XML for structured data exchange and TXT for documentation and printing. CSV exports write VM Groups to a separate file, and every export includes metadata such as the timestamp, the exporting user, the host, the connection type and total VM counts.
Is HVTools stable enough for production environments?
The project labels its first public build, 1.0.0.0 alpha 1, as a pre-release intended for experimentation, and its release notes warn about possible bugs and breaking changes. The author states the tool is provided as is and that users are responsible for testing it in their own environments before using it in production. A lab test with a limited account is the sensible first step.
Facts link to their official sources. Product details can change after publication: report an error or read the editorial methodology.
Written by
Emanuel DE ALMEIDA
Geneva-based entrepreneur, IT consultant and creator of SuniPDF and SuniCapture. Emanuel shares practical IT, cybersecurity and software insights on iThub.
