The rapid adoption of virtual infrastructure has highlighted the need for a standard, portable metadata format for the distribution of virtual systems onto and between virtualization platforms. The DMTF’s Open Virtualization Format (OVF) Working Group produces the OVF standard, which provides the industry with a standard packaging format for software solutions based on virtual systems. OVF has been adopted and published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as ISO 17203.
 
In the modern cloud computing era, OVF provides a platform independent, efficient, open and extensible packaging and distribution format that facilitates the mobility of virtual machines and gives customers platform independence. This group’s work is also utilized in the DMTF’s Cloud Management Initiative.