Additional information: shortly after I started having this trouble, my X server crashed. When it came back up, everything was working normally. I've seen other references to this particular problem attributed to library problems. Before looking at libraries, try restarting the X server.

This same error is now popping up in relation to a completely different problem.

On Debian unstable, the latest version of libhal (Hardware Abstraction Layer) breaks
vmware and must be downgraded from 0.5.7.1-2 to 0.5.7.1-1
Below are instructions for five steps:
downgrade, make a private copy, adjust the wrapper to use it, backup, re-upgrade.
Adjust all the /usr/lib/vmware... stuff to match your vmware install (maybe /usr/local)

Downgrade:
# apt-get install libhal1=0.5.7.1-1

Make a vmware private copy:
# ls -l
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 31352 Sep 18 14:11 libhal.so.1
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 11 Sep 18 14:12 libhal.so.1.0.0 -> libhal.so.1
(Repeat for each vmware, vmware-console, etc.)

Edit the wrapper(s) to use the private copy:
# vi /usr/lib/vmware-server-console/lib/wrapper-gtk24.sh
(find the line
vm_append_lib 'libpng12.so.0'
and add this line after it:
vm_append_lib 'libhal.so.1'
Save and exit)
(Repeat for each vmware, vmware-console, etc.)

Save off a copy of the 0.5.7.1-1 libs in case we need them later and can't downgrade
# tar zcf /root/libhal1_0.5.7.1-1.tar.gz /usr/lib/vmware-server-console/lib/libhal.so.1

Re-upgrade libhal1 for all the other applications:
# apt-get install libhal1

Hi miltieIV2,

I found an easier workaround in the Ubuntu forums:

Add to vmware/lib/wrapper-gtk24.sh in vm_run()

# Fix for pulling in libdbus-1.so.2 instead of .3
export LD_PRELOAD=/usr/lib/libdbus-1.so.3:$LD_PRELOAD

Cheers,
Bernd

Message was edited by:
aakef

Hi all.
I have same problem and try this aakef trick to run vmware in my debian unstable.

But now have a new error: If I ckick in browse button inside vmware to changes settings, vmware freezy ang give the error at console:
(vmware:10798): libgnomevfs-WARNING **: Cannot load module `/usr/lib/gnome-vfs-2.0/modules/libfile.so' (/usr/lib/vmware/lib/libgcc_s.so.1/libgcc_s.so.1: version `GCC_4.2.0' not found (required by /usr/lib/libstdc++.so.6))

Any help?

The only change I did in wrapper script was to put
# Fix for pulling in libdbus-1.so.2 instead of .3
export LD_PRELOAD=/usr/lib/libdbus-1.so.3:$LD_PRELOAD
in vm_run().
The vmware works but I can change options using browser button.
In my system I have gcc version 4.1.2 and don't have libstdc++.so.5 installed in my system.

Thanks for help.

I'm looking at this more carefully now ... turns out we had an internal e-mail discussion a while ago that relates to this problem.

Edgy ships two versions of libdbus. The version we use is the older one. There is also a libhal involved; it is linked against the newer one (by Debian). This conflicts, resulting in the "bring in a more recent libdbus" workaround. Honestly, it's an Ubuntu bug (understandable; Edgy is pre-release); they shouldn't ship a libdbus that doesn't work correctly on their system. (Our code, in fact, works fine without libdbus/libhal, and only breaks because there is a broken old version of libdbus around).

Somehow, though, a gnome-vfs dependency is leaking through, which brings a bad libstdc++ dependency, which breaks the whole mess with the crash you got. Don't know what it is. I'm suspecting libdbus and/or libhal, which means I would like to see the ldd -r output. Actually, ldd -r for any libdbus or libhal on your system.