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DownbeatDave
Contributor
Contributor

Fusion 11.5.0 running OS X vm can't resize display or share folders

I set up a Mac OS X 10.11 virtual machine so I can run 32-bit apps like Adobe CS) (since Catalina 10.15 won't support 32-bit), but the VMware Tools don't seem to be working.

The display won't resize from the default 1024x768 and none of the shared folders appear.

Is this a known problem?

19 Replies
ColoradoMarmot
Champion
Champion

On OSX guests VMWare tool install has to be done manually - did you choose that option and run the installer?

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DownbeatDave
Contributor
Contributor

Yes. Multiple times. Even uninstall and reinstall. The "VMware Shared Folders" alias shows up on the desktop of the VM.

Changing the window size zooms in and out but no resolution change.

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ColoradoMarmot
Champion
Champion

Ok, I think this is related to the 'blurry' issue that's cropped up.  My OSX guests don't resize either, they just get bigger (and blurrier).  Changing to use 'full resolution' results in a tiny UI.  In the other thread, VMWare's said they're working on the bug.

DownbeatDave
Contributor
Contributor

Does it matter that Fusion 11.5 is running on OS X 10.14? Or does updating to 10.15 help?

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ColoradoMarmot
Champion
Champion

10.15 doesn't solve either problem...we'll have to wait for a fix.

jpregina
Contributor
Contributor

Particularly for me the issue was with OneDrive. I have OneDrive configured on mac and I was trying to pass this on to my Windows VM but I could not open files.

What I noticed is the Windows VM could only open files in OneDrive that I had a local copy.

Files in mirrored folders worked fine, for example desktop, downloads and so on

Hope this helps

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srobadelic
Contributor
Contributor

Something I noticed about Fusion after the upgrade to Catalina was that Fusion was unchecked by default on "Full Disk Access" under Security & Privacy / Privacy. Checking it does not help, but also Mac Security should be prompting to all or deny access to folders you are trying to share with the Guest OS. Just another clue until VMWare decides to fix this.

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PaulTJohnson
Contributor
Contributor

I have the same problem with a Mac OS X 10.12 virtual machine. Any sign of a fix from vmware yet?

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9pPreferred
Contributor
Contributor

Same problem on macOS 10.14.6 after upgrading from VMware Fusion Pro 11.1 to 11.5.1.

This problem has effectively rendered VMware Fusion useless.  I'm better off keeping old hardware around to remote desktop into the machines at this point.

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Stefan456
Contributor
Contributor

Hi,

I have the same issue. Upgraded from 8.5 to 11.5 and ElCapitan guest only runs in 1024x768

Host is High Sierra

- Reinstalled VM Tools several times.

- Tried sudo /Library/Application\ Support/VMware\ Tools/vmware-resolutionSet 1920 1080

   but get the error unable to find the service

- Tried several combinations in the display settings of the VM.

On the guest it shows only 3MB of video memory, although for the VM 1GB is configured.

A fast solution would be appreciated, I`m running an important application in the VM.

Thanks

Stefan

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ColoradoMarmot
Champion
Champion

11.5 or 11.5.1?

Make sure you've upgraded the virtual hardware and VMWare tools - the latter has to be done manually for OSX.

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Stefan456
Contributor
Contributor

11.5

I updated the virtual hardware and I installed the VMWare tools several times

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ColoradoMarmot
Champion
Champion

Upgrade to 11.5.1, that looks to have fixed the issue.

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Stefan456
Contributor
Contributor

I tried 11.5.1 and at first it looked like it worked.

I then updated the VMWare tools and the issue came up again.

I then installed the VMWare Tools 10.3.10 and now it is working.

So it looks like the VMWare Tools 11 is causing the issue.

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prenez
Contributor
Contributor

First case: When I installed a Catalina VM using VM Fusion 11.5.1, after I installed the Darwin.iso tools, I was able to get 1680x1050 (and a second choice, 840xsomething, but no other choices) on a new 16" MacBook Pro 2019 , and the VM machine was reasonably fast, although nowhere near as fast as a Parallels VM. (yeah, I made the memory and processor tweaks, I'm an experienced VM user).

Second Case: When I imported a Catalina HDD from Parallels, even after installing the tools, I only got 1024x768. Also, the imported VM was INCREDIBLY slow running on Fusion. And frankly, the screen looked like s***. VM Fusion did a terrible job importing this VM.

Why am I bothering? Because Parallels has a hard time running Electron based apps and I'm a heavy Visual Studio Code user. VM Fusion runs Electron apps reasonable well. On Parallels, you get fireworks and flashing lights. On VM Fusion, although it's pokey, it at least shows a coherent UI.

Unless someone has a fix for imported HDDs, I'm going to say to hell with it and start from a VM Fusion fresh VM. Shame, I spent a week getting this Parallels VM just right, all loaded with developer tools.

Looking forward to some recommendations 🙂

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wila
Immortal
Immortal

Hi,

Did you uninstall Parallels Tools from the imported VM?

--

Wil

| Author of Vimalin. The virtual machine Backup app for VMware Fusion, VMware Workstation and Player |
| More info at vimalin.com | Twitter @wilva
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joseph5140
Contributor
Contributor

I'm also having a problem after having updated to 11.5.1.  I had previously updated my machine to Catalina but i hadn't used the vm until now.  Thus, I can't say that my Windows 10 VM was having the problem before the 11.5.1 update (this is possibly caused by the update to Catalina).  Anyway the problem seems to be that my VMWare display drivers are kaput and I am limited to 23 pretty low res 'square-screen' driver that I think are the basic Microsoft display settings (i.e. 1024x768, 1152x852 etc...) .  FWIW, I have re-installed VMWare tools through the VMWare interface and running the installation in the Windows VM.  That did not help.  I'm hoping others have discovered a way to resolve this?

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ColoradoMarmot
Champion
Champion

Might be worth starting a new thread - this one is about OSX guests.

That said, make sure you also upgrade the virtual hardware.

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dickscott
Contributor
Contributor

Thanks for sharing this, I was about to downgrade back to Fusion 11.1. I found the Darwin.iso for 11.1, uninstalled the tools for 11.5.1 and installed the tools from the 11.1 Darwin.iso in my Mac OS X 10.12 VM. Problem solved.

There's absolutely an issue with the tools included in 11.5.1 as I never had any resolution issues prior to this update. As a side note, haven't noticed any resolution issues with my Win 10 VM using the 11.5.1 tools. Seems to be an issue with Mac guests.

As for your other problem, I haven't tried importing a VM. However, the other VM app I've tried is Virtual Box. Last I tried it (with a Win 10 VM) it was excruciatingly slow, but it's been at least 6 months if not longer. I know it's open source and updated rather frequently, so you might want to give it a try. I believe it can import Fusion and Parallel's virtual disks.

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