Primarily I’m using VMware Fusion for testing web applications on different operating systems and browsers. I’ve recently downloaded Ubuntu 9.04 and gave it a try. Working on guest operating system without VMware Tools installed is a real pain in the ass. The rigid constant locking/unlocking of the mouse within the window, low-res graphics… So the obvious step was clicking on the “Install VM Ware Tools” button in the menu bar. After unpacking the archive, installation and a restart, everything seemed to be working fine, except the mouse. I still had to lock/unlock it manually within the window! *ranting*
For safety’s sake I did took a snapshot before installing these tools and have managed to restore the system to its previous state. With some help of good ol’ uncle Google I have found the answer. My version of VMware Fusion (2.04) was released prior to the release of Ubuntu 9.04, so there are some issues with the installation. I stumbled upon Chrysaor.info. They’re providing VMware images for Debian, OpenBSD and Ubuntu. Check the FAQ section for: “How can I install VMware Tools in Ubuntu 9.04?“
Instructions are pretty straightforward. You need to open a terminal window, execute few commands, hit Enter as defaults are OK, reboot and you are done. :D
wget http://chrysaor.info/scripts/ubuntu904vmtools.sh
sudo bash ./ubuntu904vmtools.sh
And remember, contributions earn you karma. ;)
about 1 year ago
VMWare is all good but VirtualBox has become my VM software of choice now.
It is easier to setup than VMWare, is open-source as well as completely free (the non-OSS version). Best of all, it can use existing VMWare disks (.vmdk) for its VM.
The ose version is included in most distributions’ packages so installing is simple as installing any other package.
Lastly, version 3.0 now supports 3D acceleration and extra goodies which make booting into Windows (if you’re running Linux) unnecessary, even for games!