VMFS is VMware’s clustered file system used by ESXi hosts to store virtual machines (VMDKs, configuration files, snapshots). Windows does not natively recognize VMFS. To mount and read/write a VMFS disk on Windows, you need third‑party tools.

This is the most common and safest method. These tools are designed to read VMFS volumes without modifying the data, which is crucial for data recovery scenarios. 1. DiskInternals VMFS Recovery

If you are on a budget and only need basic read access, open-source projects can help, though they are often more technical to set up.

You can now copy VMDKs or VM folders to a local Windows path.