Window focus issues in Unity mode

[mdawson69]

I updated to Fusion 8.1.0 while still using Yosemite (OS X 10.10) and immediately noticed an issue where windows for Windows applications would take focus when the cursor moved over them or a Windows application was performing a background operation without user interaction despite the fact that I was working in an OS X application. At the time there were other screen rendering issues and everything seemed to be resolved once I upgraded to El Capitan (OS X 10.11), as that upgrade had several enhancements for iMacs with retina displays.

Well today, in particular, I noticed that the window focus problem was back in full swing. I was working in OmniGraffle and every time I navigated my cursor over to the Color palette, the Microsoft Word window behind the Color palette would take focus and all other Windows windows would also come to the foreground ahead of any OS X windows that were in front of them. Also, anytime an e-mail popup occurs from Outlook, all of the Windows application windows come to the foreground despite the fact that I am working in an OS X window. I use Unit mode because of my workflow—I need to be able to switch between Mac and Windows applications seamlessly just as if I were working in a single OS—and this bug is disrupting my workflow.

Has anyone else come across this problem?

[vmxmr]

This bug makes the Unity feature unusable for me. This is one of my two "pet bugs" in VMware. 

(My other VMware "pet bug" is that mini windows in the VMware Library window no longer update their mini-displays as the full-screen displays on the guest OSs change.)

[ICEchad]

I wasn't sure what you meant since I thought the mini window was updating.  I looked a bit more and the mini-window in the virtual machine library is updating, but looking a bit more I assume you were talking about the Dock icon not updating when a VM is minimized.  I seldom minimize anything so I never noticed that it doesn't update when minimized until now.

[vmxmr]

I wasn't sure what you meant since I thought the mini window was updating.  I looked a bit more and the mini-window in the virtual machine library is updating, but looking a bit more I assume you were talking about the Dock icon not updating when a VM is minimized.  I seldom minimize anything so I never noticed that it doesn't update when minimized until now.

VMware Fusion has a Virtual Library Window that displays your virtual machines. You can look at the Virtual Library Window by choosing it from the Window menu in VMware Fusion. The Virtual Machine Library has two display modes: an icon view and a list view.

In the icon view, there is a mini window for each virtual machine. In the past, VMware Fusion would display a small active image of the virtual machine's display in each mini window. I normally run virtual machines in full-screen mode, but keep tabs on them from the mini windows. Very often I might start a time-consuming job on the guest virtual machine, and use the mini window in the Virtual Machine Library window to monitor progress.

For example, I might start a huge file copy in a guest virtual machine. I start the job and then go back to the main Finder window. I watch the mini window in the Virtual Machine Library for the tiny progress bar and for when the "copy" dialog box disappears after the copy is finished. After that I switch back to the full screen view of the virtual machine to start the next job, and then switch back to the Finder while peeking at the mini window again...

For me and many others, the bug is that the mini windows in the Virtual Machine Library do not update normally. They seem to work during boot, but once boot completes, they appear frozen and do not change, even as displays are updated in the virtual machine.

-> Sorry to hijack the thread, which is really about the Unity mode bugs.

[ICEchad]

Huh, I have used Fusion for several years now and I have never used the icon/grid view in the machine library before.

OK, I just tried it with grid mode.  I'm still seeing the mini window in the grid update, even when I've minimized the VM; Dock icon still isn't updating.  It shouldn't matter, but I do have my VMs split across several different folders.  The one I'm testing with only has two VMs in it: one running (the test one), and one powered off.  The guest VM is a Windows 7 Enterprise x64 VM that is still running VM Tools version 10.0.1, build 3160059.  Those are the tools from Fusion 8.0.2; Fusion itself is 8.5.6.  I don't have any Windows 8 or Windows 10 VMs so I can't see what those do.

I don't know if it's any help, but I recall seeing some slight behavior differences in the various VM Tools versions back when I was testing the Unity bug before I settled on this version.  No idea how, or if, the mini view updates were affected by the different tool versions.  I also haven't bothered testing how the current Fusion + the current tools behave with regard to Unity.

[crsd]

Just a "me too" with VMware Fusion Professional Version 8.5.8 (5824040) and Windows 10.

[ICEchad]

Has this been fixed in Fusion 10?  There's no mention of what's been fixed in the release notes, just the new features and known issues.

[kharringer]

Me, too.

guest Win 8.1 with a host MacOS 10.12.6, via VMWare Fusion 8.5.8.

The focus stealing is hurting my productivity, as entering passwords and such in one app (or so I think) results in text fields in other apps getting changed to nonsensical fragments of my passwords. Ugh. It is always catching me by surprise and deleting important data across apps. Gag!

[vmxmr]

@ICEchad said, "Has this been fixed in Fusion 10?  There's no mention of what's been fixed in the release notes, just the new features and known issues."

I can't believe that nobody has answered this question after two weeks. I have the same question: Was this critical bug fixed in Fusion 10? It is a simple yes or no question.

Mikero​??

Anyone?

[Mikero]

Hey guys.

Unfortunately the bug is currently still open.

[E07256]

Fusion 10.1.1 bug still present.

Interestingly I just migrated from Parallels, which has the very same problem, just because of this and as it drove me crazy.

[peterohalloran]

I created a login for the community just come here and say - me too.

Host is Macbook Air, Fusion 10.1.3 running Windows 10.

The only reason I have the VM is to run a tool called Casecomplete. It completely messes with my mind to have the focus jump all over the place. I have lost a lot of content when a field gets randomly selected while I'm typing, which will clear everything that was in there before. It's doing my head in. Of course it doesn't look like there is going to a fix any time soon considering how old this thread is.

[peterohalloran]

Started running an AWS WorkSpace soon after posting this. It's running like a dream. My VMs are sitting on my machine but they might stay on ice for a long while now.