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HowTo Install VMware Tools On Ubuntu Guests

michaelf — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 09:43:43 +0000

On the account I don’t do the process often, I thought it might be a good idea to document the process of what packages I need to install into Ubuntu Linux Guests so that VMware Tools will compile without error.

Follow the steps below and you’ll be able to copy the VMware Tools tar/gzip archive to your host, extract it and then run the vmware-install.pl

Determine the linux kernel version, using uname -a. Make note of the release.

Then install the following packages; (assuming the kernel version from the uname -a is 2.6.27-7-generic)

apt-get install linux-headers-2.6.27=7-generic linux-source-2.6.27 gcc make psmisc

VMware Fusion 2.0 – wow

michaelf — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 23:34:32 +0000

Finally got around to installing the latest VMware Fusion 2.0 build. All I can say is wow. The changes from the last beta in the UI are good, not to mention other little things.

I was really surprised to have the following dialog spring up after installing VMware Tools onto a Windows XP guest.

I’ll continue to put it through it’s paces, but so far so good. Quite like the changes to the UI.

VMware Fusion 2.0 RC1

michaelf — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 07:01:57 +0000

It would appear I must of been sleeping, no maybe I just been really busy with work. It appears that VMware Fusion 2.0 RC1 was released about 6 or so days ago.

So if anyone else missed this, then it might be a good to go download it from the VMware website.

VMware Fusion annoyances

michaelf — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 09:59:59 +0000

I’ve been using the latest beta now for a while, and I posted about a issue on the VMware Fusion Beta forums and to this date I still have no solution provided, and it appears no one is really interested.

The issue is, if I install a Debian 4.0 guest, then shut it down and make a copy of it. Then boot the copy, it then prompts you the usual question. I say I copied the guest, it should then regenerate various things in the vmx file. ie. mac addresses etc.

Unfortunately, the copied guest when booted looses networking completely. It was suggested that certain linux operating systems hold the mac address of network interfaces in a file inside the /etc directory structure. Of course said file doesn’t exist in Debian 4.0. Ie. Debian 4.0 doesn’t appear to hold the mac address in a file. So of course the suggestion of the file is not applicable in this situation.

Thus my problem, I am no longer able to copy an existing guest and use it a number of times. Very fustrating to say the least.

Anyone hit this same wall and find a solution? As I have tried editing the vmx config file of the copied guest, only for the system to prompt at the next boot of the guest did I copy or move the guest. So it appears the system still knows it was copied from the original guest system.

VMware Fusion Beta 2 now available

michaelf — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 10:10:06 +0000

It would appear VMware just pushed out another Beta, this time it’s Fusion Beta 2 build 107508. Grab it from here, while it’s hot. I’ll install it, soon as it finishes downloading. Wonder if it fixes a few little issues … Continue reading →

HowTo Install VMWare Tools On Debian Linux Guests

michaelf — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 06:56:43 +0000

This post was inspired by Sonia Hamilton.

I too always find myself installing a Debian Guest into VMware, in my case it’s usually VMware Fusion. Although the VMware Tools package between all products is the same anyways. Of course each time I install a new Guest I always forget the packages I need to installed to make VMware Tools work without a hitch.

Eventually I wrote it down. Process below is what I typically use on my Debian Linux Guests.

Determine the linux kernel version, using uname -a. Make note of the release.

Then install the following packages; (assuming the kernel version from the uname -a is 2.6.18-4-686)

apt-get install linux-headers-2.6.18-4-686 linux-source-2.6.18 gcc make psmisc

Once installed you need to uncompress the kernel source in /usr/src and then symlink a directory /usr/src/linux to kernel source directory, which you uncompressed into /usr/src after the apt-get install above.

Now grab the VMware Tools tar.gz package, uncompress it and then run the install script. It should detect the kernel headers/kernel source and build everything without error.