Booting a WinOS-ISO in Linux guestOS NOT possible? Generic vmx network parameters?

[mattad]

As I found out I can NOT boot a (bootable) winOS DVD in a VM with Linux guestOS.

More precisely: I can boot but cannot use network resp. Internet connection.

When I boot the same WinOS-DVD in a VM with WinOS guestVM everything is fine and I can use Internet.

It seems to me that the network related parameters in the underlying *.vmx file are guestOS specific and cannot be used
by booted DVD from another OS world. This is surprising.

I thought a booting DVD OS is completely independent from the environment (as in real world).
But this is not the case.

Are there any generic, OS-independent network vmx parameters which let me boot (and use Internet) ALL DVDs regardless which OS world they come from?

Matt

[wila]

Hi,

I guess it depends on what you selected for "Linux guesOS" there's quite a lot of choice there.

If you want to use a Windows inbox network driver then you probably are best of with VMware presenting a standard NIC.

Roughly you can just stick a "intel e1000" or "intel e1000e" in the vmx and it should work just fine on both linux as well as Windows.

eg:

ethernet0.addressType = "generated"
ethernet0.present = "true"
ethernet0.startConnected = "TRUE"
ethernet0.virtualDev = "e1000e"

--

Wil

[mattad]

Hello wila,

thank you for reply but it doesn't work.

To be more precise my initial question was only the first step towards a more generic solution to boot an ISO independently from underlying minimalistic VM.

This approach is described here (see 3rd chapter):

https://www.raymond.cc/blog/how-to-run-livecd-iso-image-file-directly-in-windows/

When I load an WinPE-based ISO everything works fine except the unfound ethernet connection.

For the used, current VMX file see bottom of this posting.

When I replace there all 3 "ethernet" lines by your 4 "ethernet" lines above and start the VM I always got a "corrupt VMX file" popup.

So my question is still unanswered:

How can I setup an empty guestVM with generic VMX parameter so that I can boot Linux or WIndows guestOS ISO medias?

Matt

.encoding = "windows-1252"

config.version = "8"

virtualHW.version = "12"

scsi0.present = "TRUE"

memsize = "4096"

ide0:0.present = "TRUE"

ide0:0.fileName = "ISOBoot.vmdk"

ide1:0.present = "TRUE"

ide1:0.autodetect = "TRUE"

ethernet0.present = "TRUE"

ethernet0.connectionType = "nat"

ethernet0.wakeOnPcktRcv = "FALSE"

ethernet0.addressType = "generated"

sound.present = "TRUE"

sound.fileName = "-1"

sound.autodetect = "TRUE"

pciBridge0.present = "TRUE"

pciBridge4.present = "TRUE"

pciBridge4.virtualDev = "pcieRootPort"

pciBridge4.functions = "8"

pciBridge5.present = "TRUE"

pciBridge5.virtualDev = "pcieRootPort"

pciBridge5.functions = "8"

pciBridge6.present = "TRUE"

pciBridge6.virtualDev = "pcieRootPort"

pciBridge6.functions = "8"

pciBridge7.present = "TRUE"

pciBridge7.virtualDev = "pcieRootPort"

pciBridge7.functions = "8"

vmci0.present = "TRUE"

hpet0.present = "TRUE"

displayName = "ISOBoot"

guestOS = "other"

nvram = "ISOBoot.nvram"

virtualHW.productCompatibility = "hosted"

gui.exitOnCLIHLT = "TRUE"

powerType.powerOff = "soft"

powerType.powerOn = "soft"

powerType.suspend = "soft"

powerType.reset = "soft"

extendedConfigFile = "ISOBoot.vmxf"

numa.autosize.vcpu.maxPerVirtualNode = "2"

numa.autosize.cookie = "20001"

uuid.bios = "56 4d 22 71 25 49 e9 ad-0b 17 4d ad 9d 5f 5f ed"

uuid.location = "56 4d 22 71 25 49 e9 ad-0b 17 4d ad 9d 5f 5f ed"

migrate.hostlog = ".\ISOBoot-0b199845.hlog"

ide0:0.redo = ""

pciBridge0.pciSlotNumber = "17"

pciBridge4.pciSlotNumber = "21"

pciBridge5.pciSlotNumber = "22"

pciBridge6.pciSlotNumber = "23"

pciBridge7.pciSlotNumber = "24"

scsi0.pciSlotNumber = "16"

sound.pciSlotNumber = "33"

vmci0.pciSlotNumber = "34"

thernet0.pciSlotNumber = "32"

ethernet0.generatedAddress = "00:0C:29:5F:5F:ED"

ethernet0.generatedAddressOffset = "0"

vmci0.id = "-1654693907"

monitor.phys_bits_used = "42"

vmotion.checkpointFBSize = "4194304"

vmotion.checkpointSVGAPrimarySize = "8323072"

cleanShutdown = "TRUE"

softPowerOff = "TRUE"

svga.guestBackedPrimaryAware = "TRUE"

tools.syncTime = "FALSE"

toolsInstallManager.updateCounter = "1"

numvcpus = "2"

svga.autodetect = "FALSE"

svga.maxWidth = "1920"

svga.maxHeight = "1080"

svga.vramSize = "8323072"

floppy0.present = "FALSE"

ide1:0.deviceType = "cdrom-image"

ide1:0.fileName = D:\tools\ISOtotest_x86.ISO

[wila]

Hi,

I see 6 ethernet0 lines in your vmx.

Anyways.. not sure what you are using to edit the vmx?

It is best to type it in by hand, copying might copy over fancy " characters which look the same here, but are not understood by vmware.

Do this with the VM shut down.

Use notepad or any other plain text editor.

You only have to add this line for your vmx:

ethernet0.virtualDev = "e1000e" 

you can just add it at the bottom.

--

Wil

[dariusd · Accepted solution]

The network parameters themselves are not guestOS specific.

With the configuration file you posted, your virtual machine will use an emulated AMD Lance network controller.  Most Linux distributions will support this by default, but I guess your WinPE image does not include a driver for the AMD Lance network adapter (PCI VID=0x1022, DID=0x2000).  You might need to either slipstream a suitable AMD Lance driver into the image (if a driver for that old network adapter is even available), or, as Wil suggested, select a more modern virtual network adapter with better support across modern OSes by setting the ethernet0.virtualDev option.

Cheers,

--

Darius

[mattad]

Great! It works with additional:

ethernet0.virtualDev = "e1000e"

Thank you