Mac Kernel Panic while running Ubuntu Linux w/ VMWare

[sculi2000]

Hey all. I'm loving VMWare, but I'm troubled by repeated kernel panics while running Ubuntu Linux VMs. I was wondering if any of you have had something similar happen, and know any workaround for it. The panics always happen after I've left my Mac for awhile and then come back to it. The Mac isn't asleep, but it's display is, which is normal. Hitting a key doesn't bring the display back, and after holding down the power button and rebooting, the panic log looks like this:

Tue Jan 9 23:35:33 2007

panic(cpu 0 caller 0x51B3B0BB): vmmon: ASSERT bora/modules/vmmon/macos/pageHiddenMap.cpp:307

Backtrace, Format - Frame : Return Address (4 potential args on stack)

0x2542ba88 : 0x128d1f (0x3c9540 0x2542baac 0x131df4 0x0)

0x2542bac8 : 0x51b3b0bb (0x51b46170 0x51b46150 0x2542baf0 0x2542baf0)

0x2542bc08 : 0x51b3b0df (0x0 0x0 0x2542bc38 0x37e6c7)

0x2542bc38 : 0x51b3e800 (0x51b461b0 0x51b469c0 0x133 0x4f0c000)

0x2542bc98 : 0x51b3e834 (0x4f0cc 0x17024000 0x0 0x884)

0x2542bcd8 : 0x51b3db27 (0x4f0cc 0x4f0cc 0x2542bd08 0x51b3d4b1)

0x2542bd08 : 0x51b3fa6b (0x522a004 0x4f0cc 0x1ebb8000 0x221)

0x2542bd28 : 0x51b3bcd3 (0x522a004 0x4f0cc 0x1ebb8000 0x5f)

0x2542bd78 : 0x1ef2fd (0x9000000 0xc0085619 0x2542bec8 0x3)

0x2542bdb8 : 0x1e624b (0x2542bde0 0x297 0x2542be18 0x1cfbe5)

0x2542be18 : 0x1de0ef (0x5a7cdec 0xc0085619 0x2542bec8 0x3)

0x2542be68 : 0x330295 (0x68a3ad0 0xc0085619 0x2542bec8 0x6a18dac)

0x2542be98 : 0x34e562 (0x68a3ad0 0xc0085619 0x2542bec8 0x6a18dac)

0x2542bf68 : 0x378337 (0x6a18dac 0x47ee128 0x47ee16c 0x0)

0x2542bfc8 : 0x19acae (0x4da565c 0x0 0x19d0b5 0x3ae72dc) No mapping exists for frame pointer

Backtrace terminated-invalid frame pointer 0xb0203d28

Kernel loadable modules in backtrace (with dependencies):

com.vmware.kext.vmmon(1.0.0d1)@0x51b3a000

Is this a known problem? Is there any way of working around it? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Scott

[DannyD]

Thanks for the feedback Scott. Are you running Ubunto 6.10?

I have attempted to replicate this with an Ubunto Desktop 6.10 virtual machine with VMware tools installed. I changed the Mac Os X preferences so that the Mac Mini sleeps after 1 min. Upon waking the Ubunto VM is responsive and working correctly. As another test I changed the Mac Os X preferences so that the display alone sleeps after 1 min. Again after waking the virtual machine is responsive. I tried these two tests in both windowed and full screen mode.

Do you have VMware tools installed?[/b]

[alessandrobo]

Hi,

I am having the same problem (sort of, no kernel panic, but the vm become unresponsive, the screen goes white blank and needs to be powered down). What is strange is that it does happen after a system standby (closing the lid of the macbook) or after a prolonged inactivity (with the screensaver running, my macbook is configured to not go to sleep if connected to the power).

Sometimes is enough to send a ctrl-alt-del to "see" the screen, but keyboard and mouse are not working. What really seems to happen is that the mouse and keyoboard are not captured, as if in the message pipeline from the mac to the vm is interrupted.

I am running 6.10 desktop, and I have vmware tools installed.

And, cpu usage on the ubuntu client is tipically around 20%-50% with idle client (only one cpu is associated with it).

Thanks

Alessandro

[sculi2000]

Hey Danny. Thanks for the response. This is some more info. I'm running Dapper (6.06). I have it set to fullscreen, and I'm running Virtues Desktop. So I have one screen that's my Mac (it's all my Mac, but you know what I mean), and the next screen is VMWare running Ubuntu fullscreen.

I do have tools installed.

My Mac is set \*not* to sleep, but the display is set to sleep after 10 minutes. This kernel panic doesn't happen everytime...sometimes I can leave the VM running for a couple of days. But sooner or later, it will always kernel panic, and always with the same looking kernel panic log.

I'm sort of working around this by shutting down the VM when I'm not using it, but even then, yesterday I stepped away to take a phone call that lasted about 1/2 hour, and when I returned to my machine, I got the kernel panic. So my workaround doesn't always work.

Again, I love the product, and this is only problem I've been having.

Thanks,

Scott

[sculi2000]

I just re-read my last post, and I wanted to clarify the last thing I wrote. My workaround \*always* works, in that if I shutdown the VM, I don't get the kernel panic. It's just that life being the way life is, I can't predict sometimes how long I'll be away from the keyboard, so shutting down the VM everytime is not something I can always do.

[HPReg]

sculi2000,

I think I have solved this one internally, but I'm not sure. Would you like to be a guinea pig and try the fix out? It would involve me sending you a new vmmon.kext and instructions on how to install it. If you are interested, send me an email at hpreg@you_know_what_to_put_here.com and I'll give you the details.

[sculi2000]

Would love to be a guinea pig! Just sent the email.

Thanks,

Scott

[alessandrobo]

Would that fix the broken mouse/keyboard issue after standby (or prolonged inactivity) that I mentioned in my previous post?

I found out that if I suspend the VM before that the laptop goes in standby, the problem doesn't happen, but it's easy to forget.

And, rebooting the VM is not enough. I need to shutdown it, exit fusion, and start again.

I would be happy to be a guinea pig too.

Alessandro

[HPReg]

Your issue is not related to the kernel panic, so I don't think my fix would help for it.

[HPReg]

I haven't received anything yet. Would you mind retrying? Did you substitute my company's name in my email address?

[sculi2000]

I'm sending again right now. Any chance your spam filter caught my previous email?

[sculi2000]

Still haven't received anything from you, so let's take another approach. Can you send to me? You'll find me at scott_at_porchdogsoft_dot_com.

Thanks!

Scott