Which action allows an administrator to restore a virtual machine to a previous state?

To restore a virtual machine to a previous state, reverting to the latest snapshot is the most effective action. When a snapshot is taken, it captures the current state of the VM at that specific point in time, including its configuration, memory, and virtual disk data. Reverting to the latest snapshot allows the administrator to undo any changes that have occurred since that snapshot was taken, effectively bringing the VM back to that prior state.

This action is particularly useful in scenarios where changes may have led to issues or data corruption, allowing administrators to recover the VM to a stable condition quickly. It is a straightforward process and a key feature in managing VMs to ensure availability and reliability.

Taking a snapshot, while useful, merely creates a point in time reference without restoring the VM. Deleting all snapshots essentially removes these restoration points, preventing any rollback to previous states. Consolidating snapshots is necessary when managing multiple snapshots for efficient storage, but it does not serve the purpose of restoring the VM to a previous condition. Thus, reverting to the latest snapshot is the action that directly achieves the restoration goal.