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DaveP
Commander
Commander

Scripts to manage Fusion network settings

VM@Work Tokamak 1.0.0

Well I have finally found time to finish the scripts to manage the virtual network settings for VMware Fusion. Real world work got in the way of me finishing it for a few weeks. I have been using this for about a month now, and have not seen any ill effects from it. There is a preliminary document describing the functionality of the script, called VM@Work Tokamak. (Yes cheesy pun on Fusion!). The scripts bring the functionality of the VMware Workstation 6 for Linux product to Mac OS X. It allows you to define new networks, modify existing settings, change bridged etc. In this version I have limited the number of configurable vmnets to 10, but if more is needed it can be quickly altered.

The work has been released after VMware gave me permission to re-distribute their code. I would ask that you respect this and don't repost. It will be available here using the new document feature and at my web site, once I have had time to update it. In the meantime, please feel free to post comments here, PM me or use my private email address. All feedback gladly accepted.

My thanks to Pat Lee, Product Manger for VMware Fusion for helping get permission to modify the code and re-distribute.

Dave

Message was edited by: DaveP

There is an issue with the scripts when adding new vmnets. Unfortunately as I am on vacation I can't fix it as no access to Mac. Will fix and upload next week.

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DaveP
Commander
Commander

I know! Work has been a roller-coaster for the last 3 years my company ALG Software bought by Business Objects, then Business Objects bought by SAP. Each time new challenges to manage the office I am responsible for, and not enough time to hack code or be in the forums. I am using this vacation to make sure I get this ready, but there has to be time for food, drink, swimming and sun. I will definitely try an be more active once I get this done.

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mgartner
Contributor
Contributor

Hello Dave,

could you please give me a hint how to configure the vmnet adapters without your script in Fusion 3? The problem is the vmware-config-net.pl script (and other files) is missing in the new VMWare version and I need the reconfiguration urgently.

Thanks in advance,

Martin Gartner

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MacUnixGuy
Contributor
Contributor

Dave, I have the same question as mgartner.

I have recently upgraded from VMware Fusion 2.x to 3.x to get Snow Leopard support.

I need to configure vmnet1 and vmnet8 to have specific ip addresses. I don't need a script for this, just instructions to do it manually.

I followed your excellent document (VMware Fusion Network Settings – Part 1) to get 2.x working, but I can't do that for the 3.x release, since the 3.x release no longer contains the vmware-config-net.pl script, from what I can see.

To answer your question, the 3.x documentation (even without scripts) is much more important for me, since there is already documentation to get 2.x configured manually, but nothing for 3.x yet. There are several other guys who I work with who have upgraded or are in the process of upgrading to the 3.x release who will have exactly the same problem as me in the next few days if there is not a workaround (even a manual one) for this. So put our votes down for this.

Thanks for your efforts on this product. It's obvious that you have put a lot of work into this.

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DonovanBrooke
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I have recently upgraded from VMware Fusion 2.x to 3.x to get Snow Leopard support.

Hello, MacUnixGuy,

just for clarification..

if you upgraded for SL support, what support do you get for Snow Leopard that isn't in 2.0.6?

Donovan

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MacUnixGuy
Contributor
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<span class="jive-thread-reply-body-container">if you upgraded for SL support, what support do you get for Snow Leopard that isn't in 2.0.6?

I was using the 2.0.6 beta version (build 196839) previously, but I haven't seen an announcement that an official 2.0.6 version was released. I may have missed it.

Here is a link to the list of 50+ new features that VMware advertises as new to version 3.x:

http://communities.vmware.com/docs/DOC-10957

Of these features, the main ones that I was upgrading for were:

  • Official Snow Leopard support (non-beta)

  • Full 64-bit support (better performance, full 64-bit host and client support)

  • Full Windows 7 support

  • DirectX 9.0c support

Since using the 3.x version I have also discovered several handy configuration settings and features that I wasn't expecting:

  • Much better handling of full-screen mode, with several new features for this mode, which I am now using daily

  • Much better support for multiple displays

  • Significantly cleaned up UI

  • Copy/paste improvements

  • Built-in software updater (goodby to the 2.x method of downloading/installing a full product image for every single minor point release)

  • Remote VNC control of clients without installing any software in the client - VERY COOL !

This is a great product, and VMware should be very proud of it. The only problem that I have found so far is that it shipped (at least as far as I can tell) without the network configuration script that was included in the 2.x version.

I'll hold out for another few days, hoping to find some instructions for manual configuration of vmnet1 and vmnet8, and revert back to the 2.0.6 beta release if can't find instructions.

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DonovanBrooke
Contributor
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Thanks,

Yes, I've read the virtues of 3x.

|<span class="jive-thread-reply-body-container"> |

I was using the 2.0.6 beta version (build 196839) previously, but I haven't seen an announcement that an official 2.0.6 version was released. I may have missed it.

No you didn't miss it. That's the build number, but it's not a beta build and it works fine on SL (though yes, 3 has more fixes/features).

http://downloads.vmware.com/d/details/fusion_2_0_6/JUBiZCVkamJAQGU=

Donovan

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mgartner
Contributor
Contributor

As an additional information:

I had contact with the official VMWare support and the guy there told me I still could use the vmware-config-net.pl script to manually configure the network settings in VMWare Fusion 3! So I copied over the file to the new location (Library/Application Support/VMWare) only to find out there are also other necessary files missing to configure the vmnet adapters!

I reported this back to VMWare support and the guy told me he will pass this information to the development team.

So still no solution!

Seems that I have to go back to V2.06 Smiley Sad(

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DaveP
Commander
Commander

Guys I as I stated I am currently on vacation and was trying not to get distracted. The VMware support staff unfortunately are wrong to a certain extent, the Perl script has gone but has been replaced with a command line program. Firstly try renaming "locations" file to "networking" then run vmnet-apps.sh --stop and then --start. Need sudo or root. As a one off until I return next week, if Martin posts his locations file I will modify it to the new style.

Attached is a beta of the scripts for Fusion 3 only. Unzip and run tokamak.sh to see the options. There is no documentation yet and I will be off the net more than on it. Note it is also not tested with release of Fusion 3 due to bandwidth limits oin 3G card, so could not download. You will need to reapply settings as I haven't built any migration options.

Dave

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mgartner
Contributor
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Hello Dave,

thank you very much for your effort! Don't know exactly which locations file you need: the original one which is created from installation routine of VMWare Fusion 3 or my modified one with the needed IP addresses. So i have attached both: locations.modified and locations.original

Martin G.

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mgartner
Contributor
Contributor

Additional information: coudn't rename locations file to networking as there is allready an executable file called networking...

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mgartner
Contributor
Contributor

Hey cool this worked like Dave told:

- sudo ./vmnet-apps.sh --stop

- change the IP values to the needed ones in file "locations"

- sudo ./vmnet-apps.sh --start

- check if IP values are correctly set: ifconfig -a

Thanks alot Dave! You made my day and saved my life!

Martin

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DaveP
Commander
Commander

Great. There is way more you can now do but as I said on holiday in Portugal and need the break. The sun is out and the sea looks good, so I'm outta here for awhile.

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mgartner
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Contributor

Don't understand why even the official support doesn't know this simple solution?

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MacUnixGuy
Contributor
Contributor

Dave, thanks for your help providing the manual configuration info. This is EXACTLY what I needed to know for now, but I will look forward to the other features in your script in the future.

Martin, thanks for your observation about NOT renaming the locations file.

For others who haven't been following this thread and need to hard-code the vmnet1 and vmnet8 virtual network IP address ranges for VMware Fusion 3.x, I documented the steps that I took based on previous posts in this thread.

See the attached file, "VMware 3.x Virtual Network Configuration Instructions.pdf".

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rdgadget
Contributor
Contributor

I did some messing around with this and found there are some other files that will have to be manually edited if you're using DHCP and/or NAT. In the vmnet1 and vmnet8 directories are the dhcpd.conf files. These will have to be modified to hand out the correct range of addresses, gateway, etc. Also in vmnet8 there is a nat.conf file that will need to be edited to point to the NAT gateway. I made these changes and all appears to be working correctly. I would advise backing up the locations file as well as the dhcpd.conf and nat.con files just in case.

Now all I still need is the ability to add additional network interfaces to Fusion. I have a few images that require two different host only interfaces/subnets. Waiting patiently for Dave's scripts.

Thanks for all your work Dave!!

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MacUnixGuy
Contributor
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Don't understand why even the official support doesn't know this simple solution?

Agreed. It should have been documented as part of the new release (it may have been, but I sure couldn't find it). I thought about calling support also, but figured it was not one of the common questions that they would have the answer to.

Dave, thanks again for your quick response and help with this. Enjoy your vacation !

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MacUnixGuy
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I did some messing around with this and found there are some other files that will have to be manually edited if you're using DHCP and/or NAT. In the vmnet1 and vmnet8 directories are the dhcpd.conf files. These will have to be modified to hand out the correct range of addresses, gateway, etc. Also in vmnet8 there is a nat.conf file that will need to be edited to point to the NAT gateway. I made these changes and all appears to be working correctly. I would advise backing up the locations file as well as the dhcpd.conf and nat.con files just in case.

That's interesting. All that I had to do was shutdown the virtual networks, modify the locations file, and start the virtual networks back up. VMware automatically modified all the necessary files in the vmnet1 and vmnet8 directories when I did this. I will be running through the steps on a clean install shortly and will post the results and modify the instructions if necessary.

Now all I still need is the ability to add additional network interfaces to Fusion. I have a few images that require two different host only interfaces/subnets. Waiting patiently for Dave's scripts.

You don't have to wait, if you are willing to use a beta version. Dave attached a beta version of the scripts to a post earlier this morning (see previous page in thread).

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mgartner
Contributor
Contributor

I also only had to modify the locations file and restart the virtual

networks!

Am 29.10.2009 um 21:16 schrieb MacUnixGuy <communities-emailer@vmware.com

>:

Martin Gartner,

A new message was posted in the thread "Scripts to manage Fusion

network settings":

http://communities.vmware.com/message/1403409#1403409

Author : MacUnixGuy

Profile : http://communities.vmware.com/people/MacUnixGuy

Message:

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rdgadget
Contributor
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mgartner/MacUnixGuy,

I apologize for misleading anyone on modifying the dhcpd files. I originally worked on this based on an older thread regarding Fusion 2.0.x. It listed the necessary files that supposedly needed editing and included the files I mentioned earlier. I never tried just doing the locations file and seeing if it automatically made the other changes. This is great information! Thanks for setting me straight on this guys.

Rick

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MacUnixGuy
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mgartner/MacUnixGuy,

I apologize for misleading anyone on modifying the dhcpd files. I originally worked on this based on an older thread regarding Fusion 2.0.x. It listed the necessary files that supposedly needed editing and included the files I mentioned earlier. I never tried just doing the locations file and seeing if it automatically made the other changes. This is great information! Thanks for setting me straight on this guys.

Rick

Rick, thanks for the info. That's good news. I won't worry about testing the instructions on a clean install then.

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