VMware Tools Installation Guide

Operating System Specific Packages

ESX 4.0 and ESX/ESXi 3.5 Update 4 and later
VMware Tools

EN-000329-02
VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages

You can find the most up-to-date technical documentation on the VMware Web site at:
http://www.vmware.com/support/
The VMware Web site also provides the latest product updates.
If you have comments about this documentation, submit your feedback to:
[email protected]

Copyright © 2008, 2009, 2010 VMware, Inc. All rights reserved. This product is protected by U.S. and international copyright
and intellectual property laws. VMware products are covered by one or more patents listed at
http://www.vmware.com/go/patents.
VMware is a registered trademark or trademark of VMware, Inc. in the United States and/or other jurisdictions. All other marks
and names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective companies.

VMware, Inc.
3401 Hillview Ave.
Palo Alto, CA 94304
www.vmware.com

2 VMware, Inc.
Contents

About This Book 5

1 Introduction to Operating System Specific Packages for VMware Tools 7

Supported Guest Operating Systems 7

2 Prepare for Installation 9

Locate the OSPs on the VMware Web Site 9
Identify the Packages to Install 9
Prepare the Virtual Machine 10
Uninstall VMware Tools 11
Uninstall Existing OSPs 11
Prepare the Guest Operating System to Install VMware Tools OSPs 11
Configure the Guest Operating System 11
Select the VMware Tools OSPs to Download 12

3 VMware Tools Installation 13

Operating System Supplied Packages Take Precedence 13
Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a RHEL 5 Virtual Machine 13
Disable Signature Check 14
Download OSPs for the RHEL 5 Guest Operating System 14
Install VMware Tools for the RHEL 5 Guest Operating System 15
Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a RHEL 4 or RHEL 3
Virtual Machine 15
Download OSPs for the RHEL 4 or RHEL 3 Guest Operating System 16
Install VMware Tools for the RHEL 4 or RHEL 3 Guest Operating Systems 17
Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a SLES 11 or SLED 11
Virtual Machine 18
Download OSPs for SLES 11 or SLED 11 Guest Operating System 18
Install VMware Tools for SLES 11 or SLED 11 Guest Operating System 19
Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a SLES 10 Virtual Machine 19
Download OSPs for the SLES 10 Guest Operating System 19
Install VMware Tools for the SLES 10 Guest Operating System 20
Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a SLES 9 Virtual Machine 20
Download OSPs for the SLES 9 Guest Operating System 20
Install VMware Tools for the SLES 9 Guest Operating System 22
Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on an Ubuntu Virtual Machine 23
Download OSPs for the Ubuntu Guest Operating System 23
Ubuntu 8.10 OSP Installation Exception 24
Uninstall Existing Ubuntu open‐vm‐tools Packages 24
Disable Ubuntu Package Management System 25
Silence the Update Manager Warnings 25
Use the VMware Tools tar Installation 25
Install VMware Tools for the Ubuntu Guests 26
Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a CentOS 5 and OEL 5
Virtual Machine 26
Download OSPs for the CentOS 5 and OEL 5 Guest Operating Systems 27
Install VMware Tools for the CentOS 5 or OEL 5 Guest Operating System 28

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VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages

Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a CentOS 4 or OEL 4

Virtual Machine 28
Download OSPs for the CentOS 4 or OEL 4 Guest Operating System 28
Install VMware Tools for the CentOS 4 or OEL 4 Guest Operating System 29
Verify Installation 30
Unmanaged VMware Tools 30

4 Post Installation OSP Tasks 31

Check Updates for Operating System Specific Packages 31
Manually Check for OSP Updates 31
Use Package Managers to Check for OSP Package Updates 31
Uninstall Operating System Specific Packages 32
Uninstall VMware Tools on RHEL 5, CentOS 5, and OEL 5 32
Uninstall VMware Tools on SLES 11 or SLED 11 32
Uninstall VMware Tools on SLES 10 32
Uninstall VMware Tools on Ubuntu 32
Uninstall VMware Tools on RHEL 4, RHEL 3, or SLES 9 32
Install Customized Kernel Module Packages 33
Customized Kernels for RHEL 3, RHEL 4, RHEL 5, SLES 9, SLES 10, SLES 11, and SLED 11 33
Build Customized Kernels for Ubuntu 37

4 VMware, Inc.
About This Book

The VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages provides information about how to use
the operating system specific packages (OSP) to install VMware Tools in virtual machines. OSPs are separate
downloadable VMware Tools packages. These packages are specific to each operating system. OSPs enable
individual, and operating system (OS) specific, download, installation, and upgrade of VMware Tools.

NOTE Use either the VMware Tools automatic installation and update through the VI Client, vSphere Client
or use the OSPs for individual manual installation and update. You cannot mix the two methods.

The OSPs support a specific list of Linux guest operating systems. For a current list of the guests supported by
VMware Tools OSPs, go to the online VMware Compatibility Guide:
http://www.vmware.com/resources/compatibility/search.php?action=base&deviceCategory=software

From the VMware Web site select Support and Downloads > Compatibility Guides, and click the View the
Guest/Host OS tab on the VMware Compatibility Guide Web site link

Intended Audience
This book is intended for administrators who wants to install, upgrade, or use Operating System Specific
Packages for VMware Tools. This book is for experienced Linux system administrators who are familiar with
virtual machine technology. The administrator should also be familiar with datacenter operations and
proficient with packaging and updating systems of their specific guest OS Linux distribution.

Document Feedback
VMware welcomes your suggestions for improving our documentation. If you have comments, send your
feedback to [email protected].

Technical Support and Education Resources

The following sections describe the technical support resources available to you. To access the current version
of this book and other books, go to http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs.

Online and Telephone Support

To use online support to submit technical support requests, view your product and contract information, and
register your products, go to http://www.vmware.com/support.

Customers with appropriate support contracts should use telephone support for the fastest response on
priority 1 issues. Go to http://www.vmware.com/support/phone_support.

Support Offerings
To find out how VMware support offerings can help meet your business needs, go to
http://www.vmware.com/support/services.

VMware, Inc. 5
VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages

VMware Professional Services

VMware Education Services courses offer extensive hands‐on labs, case study examples, and course materials
designed to serve as on‐the‐job reference tools. Courses are available onsite, in the classroom, and live online.
For onsite pilot programs and implementation best practices, VMware Consulting Services provides offerings
to help you assess, plan, build, and manage your virtual environment. To access information about education
classes, certification programs, and consulting services, go to http://www.vmware.com/services.

6 VMware, Inc.
1

Introduction to Operating System

Specific Packages for VMware Tools 1
Operating system specific packages (OSPs) for VMware ® Tools is a packaging and distribution mechanism
for VMware Tools. These VMware Tools OSPs use the native package formats and standards of the supported
guest operating systems.

OSPs are an alternative to the existing mechanism used to install VMware Tools through the VI Client or
vSphere™ Client. With VMware Tools OSPs you can use the native update mechanisms of your operating
system to download, install, and manage VMware Tools. OSPs enable you to manage VMware Tools from
within the guest as you would other standard software.

Benefits to installing VMware Tools OSPs

 Decoupling: VMware Tools OSP updates are decoupled from the VMware platform. This allows you to
update to the latest version of VMware Tools without having to update to the latest version of the VMware
product. Keeping OSPs as separate downloadable packages allows for more flexibility in managing your
VMware products updates and installations. OSPs provide the option to configure the update managers
on your Linux distributions to check for updates to VMware Tools and upgrades as needed.

 Standards‐compliant: VMware Tools OSPs are packaged in the native package format and follow the best
practices and standards of the supported operating systems. For example, Red Hat Enterprise Linux uses
the rpm package manager and Debian‐based distributions use the deb package standard. OSPs use the
standard mechanisms for expressing dependencies among packages, and the tools are broken in to
separate components for kernel and user space.

 Availability: Because the OSPs are standards‐compliant, you can use the standard guest operating system
packaging tools to examine the OSPs. Standards‐compliant also allows you to more easily understand
how the OSPs behave while installing, upgrading, or uninstalling VMware Tools. This allows you to
determine which components you want to install and the validity of the packaging.

Go to the OSP Web site for general information and for links to downloads and support information:
http://www.vmware.com/download/packages.html

Supported Guest Operating Systems

VMware Tools OSPs are available for 32‐bit and 64‐bit versions of the supported guest operating system. OSPs
are also available for the most popular kernel variants (bigsmp, hugemem, pae, and so on.). The kernel module
source packages provide limited support for customized or otherwise nonstandard kernels.

For a current list of the guests supported by VMware Tools OSPs, go to the online VMware Compatibility
Guide: http://www.vmware.com/resources/compatibility/search.php?action=base&deviceCategory=software

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VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages

8 VMware, Inc.
2

Prepare for Installation 2

This chapter describes the tasks you must complete before you install the VMware Tools OSPs. This section
includes the following topics:

 “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9

 “Prepare the Virtual Machine” on page 10

 “Prepare the Guest Operating System to Install VMware Tools OSPs” on page 11

Locate the OSPs on the VMware Web Site

The OSPs are located on the VMware Web site at :http://packages.vmware.com/tools. Locate the directory that
corresponds to your ESX installation and the operating system where you want to install OSPs.

Identify the Packages to Install

You install VMware Tools in a virtual machine running a supported guest operating system. The host on which
the virtual machine is running determines which packages to install. The type of guest operating system
determines how to install the packages.

The following system environment conditions determine which VMware Tools OSPs you install:

 Desktop – does include X Window components (GUI)

 Server – does not include X Window components

The packages in Table 2‐1 are listed in the order in which you must install the packages. The sequence of
package installation remains the same irrespective of the environment on which the virtual machine is
running.

NOTE The VMware open-vm-tools packages are not built based on source code from the open VMware
Tools project on sourceforge.net.

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VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages

Table 2-1. VMware Tools OSP Installation Packages

Package Description Desktop Server

ESX/ESXi 3.5 ESX/ESXi 4.0

open-vm-tools-kmod vmware-open-vm-tools Provides kernel modules. install install

-kmod

open-vm-tools-common vmware-open-vm-tools Provides all other modules not install install

-common listed with other packages, such as,
system daemons, command line
tools, and other basic files.

open-vm-tools-nox vmware-open-vm-tools Provides meta packages for server install install

-nox systems. Depends upon other
packages, common files, and kernel.

open-vm-tools-xorg- vmware-open-vm-tools Provides mouse driver. install

drv-mouse -xorg-drv-mous
REHL 3 and SLES 9
vmware-open-vm-tools
-xfree86-drv-mouse

open-vm-tools-xorg- vmware-open-vm-tools Provides display driver. install

drv-display -xorg-drv-display
REHL 3 and SLES 9
vmware-open-vm-tools
-xfree86-drv-display

open-vm-tools-xorg- vmware-open-vm-tools Provides graphical elements, install

utilities -xorg-utilities VMware user and VMware toolbox.
REHL 3 and SLES 9
vmware-open-vm-tools
-xfree86-utilities
open-vm-tools vmware-open-vm-tools Provides meta packages for systems install
with X Windows. Depends upon
other packages, common files, and
kernel.

vmware-tools-kmod vmware‐tools‐kmod package Provides VMware proprietary install install

no longer applies kernel modules.

vmware-tools-common vmware-tools-common Provides VMware proprietary install install

modules not listed with other
packages, such as, system daemons,
command line tools, and other basic
files.

vmware-tools-nox vmware-tools-nox Provides VMware proprietary meta install install

package files for systems without X
Windows. Depends upon other
packages, common files, and kernel.

vmware-tools vmware-tools Provides VMware proprietary meta install

package files for systems with X
Windows. Depends upon other
packages, common files, and kernel.

Prepare the Virtual Machine

The processes described here apply to all supported guest operating systems.

To use VMware Tools Operating System Specific Packages, uninstall the existing VMware Tools through the
vSphere Client. You must uninstall the existing VMware Tools to prevent package conflicts and incorrect
operation of VMware Tools.

10 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 2 Prepare for Installation

The messages provided in sample commands indicate the following requirements:

 # root permission is required

 $ root permission is not required

Uninstall VMware Tools

From the virtual machine command line, run the listed command.

1 Log on as root.

2 Run the listed command:

 If the tar installer was used to install VMware Tools, run:
# vmware-uninstall-tools.pl

 If the rpm installer was used to install VMware Tools, run:

# rpm -e VMwareTools

Uninstall Existing OSPs

If you have an earlier version of OSPs installed, you must uninstall them with the system package manager
before installing a more current version. For example, for a Red Hat guest, use the rpm application to remove
previously installed OSP packages. Upgrading VMware OSPs is not supported.

Prepare the Guest Operating System to Install VMware Tools OSPs

To prepare the guest operating system to install OSPs, you need to know which method to use and which OSPS
you should download.

Configure the Guest Operating System

The guest operating system determines which of the following methods to use for making configurations
required to install OSPs:

 Using a package manager – A tool provided with the operating system that performs global tasks.

 Manually – Requires that you run each command individually.

The method used is specific to each supported guest operating system.

The following guest operating system package managers are supported:

 yum – Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5, CentOS 5, OEL 5

 apt – Ubuntu 8.04, 8.10, 9.04, and 9.10

 rug – SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10

 zypper – SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 and SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 11

The following guest operating systems require a manual configuration:

 Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3

 SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 9

 CentOS 4

 OEL 4

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VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages

Select the VMware Tools OSPs to Download

Installing the VMware Tools requires that you run an operating system specific installation command in the
virtual machine. If the operating system has a package manager, the command you use installs all the required
packages in a single command. If you install the VMware Tools packages manually, different commands are
required and you might have to install each package individually.

Some of the packages are dependent on other packages either provided in the normal package repositories by
Red Hat, SUSE or by packages provided in the VMware repository. If dependencies are not met, you must
identify the missing packages and install them.

When installing the VMware Tools, the packages must be installed in the appropriate order for each
installation type. This order applies for all guest operating systems.

If you are using a package management tool, such as yum, apt, rug, or zypper select the configuration
appropriate for the environment and install the top level package as listed.

 VMware Tools with desktop components

vmware-tools

 VMware Tools with server components

vmware-tools-nox

12 VMware, Inc.
3

VMware Tools Installation 3

The guest operating system that you are using determines the VMware Tools installation processes that you
perform. This chapter includes the following topics:

 “Operating System Supplied Packages Take Precedence” on page 13

 “Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a RHEL 5 Virtual Machine” on page 13

 “Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a RHEL 4 or RHEL 3 Virtual Machine” on page 15

 “Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a SLES 11 or SLED 11 Virtual Machine” on page 18

 “Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a SLES 10 Virtual Machine” on page 19

 “Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a SLES 9 Virtual Machine” on page 20

 “Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on an Ubuntu Virtual Machine” on page 23

 “Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a CentOS 5 and OEL 5 Virtual Machine” on page 26

 “Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a CentOS 4 or OEL 4 Virtual Machine” on page 28

 “Verify Installation” on page 30

Operating System Supplied Packages Take Precedence

VMware Tools OSPs contain meta packages that manage the installation of the driver packages that provide
the mouse and display drivers for ESX and ESXi.

Operating system supplied packages that provide mouse and display drivers for ESX and ESXi take
precedence over the same drivers supplied by the OSP packages. This assumes that the packages provided by
the operating system function as expected, and that the drivers were configured properly to manage the
display and mouse.

Sometimes the mouse and display drivers provided by the operating system do not function properly or are
not fully configured. Should this occur, download the vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-display and
vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-mouse driver packages and install them directly. You might must use a ‐
‐force option if they conflict with the packages provided by the operating system.

Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a RHEL 5 Virtual Machine

Generally, you would follow these steps to configure a guest operating system with a package manager:

1 Import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key.

2 (Optional) Edit the proxy.

3 Configure the package software.

4 Install VMware Tools.

VMware, Inc. 13
VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages

Disable Signature Check

If you are using RHEL 5.3, the rpm -- import command does not properly install the public key that VMware
uses to sign the OSPs. This, in turn, might cause OSP installation attempts to fail because the RHEL package
management system cannot verify the validity of VMware package signatures.

NOTE If you previously installed the most recent VMware public key, and upgraded to RHEL 5.3, this error
does not occur.

If you are experiencing this error, disable the signature check during OSP installation.

To disable the signature check during OSP installation

Follow the instructions for installing OSPs as outlined in the section, “Install VMware Tools for the RHEL 5
Guest Operating System” on page 15, with the following exceptions:

 Skip the installation of the VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub file.

 Add the --nogpgcheck option to every invocation of the yum install command.

Download OSPs for the RHEL 5 Guest Operating System

Download all the packages for a given distribution and architecture. Download the OSPs locally to the virtual
machine where you plan to install VMware Tools. The OSPs are located on the VMware Web site at
:http://packages.vmware.com/tools. Locate the directory that corresponds to your ESX installation and the
operating system where you want to install the OSPs.

For the complete list of packages to install, see “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

If you have not already registered RHEL 5 on the virtual machine where you plan to install VMware Tools,
configure and register RHN (Red Hat Network).

a (Optional) If necessary, run the following command to register RHEL 5.

# rhn_register

or if you have a proxy server, run

# rhn_register - -proxy=http://squid.example.com:3128

b Accept Red Hat Network configuration and registration defaults.

c Log in to the operating system using your existing license credentials.

5 Obtain and import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key.

a If it does not exist, create the directory on the virtual machine to store the key:
/<key-path>/

b Using a Web browser, copy the file from:

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

c Save the file to the directory you created:

/<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

d Import the key. Run the following command:

# rpm --import /<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

6 Set up the proxy server information in /etc/yum.conf. For example:

proxy=http://proxy.proxyprovider.com:3128
proxy_username=proxyuser
proxy_password=proxypass

14 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 3 VMware Tools Installation

7 Create and edit the VMware repository directory and file.

If it does not exist, create the directory and repository file on the virtual machine. You can choose any
name for this file, but it must use the .repo file extension. For example:
/etc/yum.repos.d/vmware-tools.repo

a Open the repository file to edit.

b Add the following contents to the file and save the file.
[vmware-tools]
name=VMware Tools for Red Hat Enterprise Linux $releasever - $basearch
baseurl=http://packages.vmware.com/tools/esx/<esx-version>/rhel5/<arch>
enabled=1
gpgcheck=1
gpgkey=file:///<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

<arch> is the architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i686. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

<esx-version> is replaced with either 3.5u2, 3.5u3, 3.5u4, 3.5u5, 4.0, or 4.0u1 depending upon the
ESX/ESXi version.

<key-path> is the path and directory you created when you obtained and imported the VMware
Packaging Public GPG Key in Step 5.

Install VMware Tools for the RHEL 5 Guest Operating System

Installing VMware Tools on a RHEL 5 virtual machine uses the yum package management tool. Specify the
package and yum installs the additional required VMware Tools packages. For a list of packages to install, see
“Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

IMPORTANT ESX 3.5 Update 5 OSPs fail to install on a RHEL 5.4 guest with PAE.

Before you install VMware Tools, complete “Prepare the Guest Operating System to Install VMware Tools
OSPs” on page 11.

To Install VMware Tools in RHEL 5

1 Run the yum command from the command line of the guest operating system:
# yum install vmware-tools

When you run this command, all the other packages are installed in the correct order.

2 (Optional) Install the VMware provided SVGA and, if needed, the mouse driver replacing the Red Hat
provided versions. The installation skips these packages if they are older than the versions included with
the Red Hat installation.
# yum install vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-display
# yum install vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-mouse

If you later uninstall VMware OSPs and want to use the Red Hat provided drivers, you must reinstall
them.

Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a RHEL 4 or RHEL 3

Virtual Machine
This section applies to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3. Higher level management,
such as yum, is not currently supported for RHEL 4 or RHEL 3.

VMware, Inc. 15
VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages

Download OSPs for the RHEL 4 or RHEL 3 Guest Operating System

Download all the packages for a given distribution and architecture. Download the OSPs locally to the virtual
machine where you plan to install VMware Tools. The OSPs are located on the VMware Web site at
:http://packages.vmware.com/tools. Locate the directory that corresponds to your ESX installation and the
operating system where you want to install the OSPs.

For the complete list of packages to install, see “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

To manually configure the guest operating system

1 Find the VMware Tools required packages.

2 Obtain and import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key from the guest operating system installed on
the virtual machine where you plan to install the OSP Tools

3 Download the OSP packages to the virtual machine where you plan to install them.

To obtain and import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key for RHEL 4 or RHEL 3

1 If a directory does not exist, create a directory on the virtual machine to store the key:
/<key-path>/

2 Use a Web browser to copy the packages from

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

3 Save the file to the directory you created.

4 To import the key, run the following command:

# rpm --import /<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

<key-path> is the path you created to the directory on the virtual machine to store the key.

To download OSPs for VMware Tools RHEL 4 or RHEL 3

1 Browse the following repository:

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/esx/<esx-version>

<esx-version> is replaced with either 3.5u2, 3.5u3, 3.5u4, 3.5u5, 4.0, or 4.0u1 depending upon the
ESX/ESXi version.

2 Find the subdirectory:

Go to /rhel4 or /rhel3
3 Identify the rpms required for VMware Tools installation. For example:
vmware-open-vm-tools-kmod-7.4.6-110268.130320.el4.i686.rpm

Packages use the following naming conventions:

ESX 4.0 and earlier

<package-name>-<version>-<tools-build>.<package-build>.<dist>.<arch>.rpm

ESX 4.0 Update 1and later

<package-name>-<version>-<package-build>.<dist>.<arch>.rpm

<package-name> is the package name for each required file.

<version> is the version for the package.

ESX 4.0 and earlier

<tools-build>.<package-build> is the release build for the tools and the package. Multiple versions
might exist in the repository. Select the most recent (higher numbered)
<tools-build>.<package-build>.

16 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 3 VMware Tools Installation

ESX 4.0 Update 1and later

<package-build> is the release build for the package. Multiple versions might exist in the repository.
Select the most recent (higher numbered) <package-build>.

<dist> is Linux distribution version. Use rhel4 or rhel3.

<arch> is the architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i686. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

4 Create a directory for the RPMS on the virtual machine where you plan to install VMware Tools.
/<vmware-tools-path>/

5 Download RPMs in to the directory you created.

Install VMware Tools for the RHEL 4 or RHEL 3 Guest Operating Systems
Installing VMware Tools on a RHEL 4 or RHEL 3 virtual machine requires manually running rpm commands.
Specify the package and rug installs the required additional VMware Tools packages. For a list of packages to
install, see “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

Before completing these steps, complete all steps in “Prepare the Guest Operating System to Install VMware
Tools OSPs” on page 11.

To Install VMware Tools in RHEL 4 or RHEL 3

1 (Optional) Back up Red Hat provided SVGA driver from the command line of the guest operating system
virtual machine:

For 64‐bit, type:

# cp /usr/X11R6/lib64/modules/drivers/vmware_drv.o
/usr/X11R6/lib64/modules/drivers/vmware_drv.o.backup

For 32‐bit, type:

# cp /usr/X11R6/lib/modules/drivers/vmware_drv.o
/usr/X11R6/lib/modules/drivers/vmware_drv.o.backup

2 Install the VMware Tools packages, type:

# rpm -ivh --force vmware-open-vm-tools-*.rpm vmware-tools-*.rpm

When this command runs, all the other packages are installed in the correct order.

CAUTION When you install the VMware Tools packages for RHEL 4 or RHEL 3, the following message
appears: Warning vmware-open-vm-tools-8.3.0-206098.el4.i686.rpm: V3 RSA/MD5 signature:
NOKEY, key ID 66fd4949.The message will vary depending upon which version of VMware Tools you have
installed. You can safely ignore this message. It has no bearing on the success of the installation.

3 (Optional) Install VMware provided SVGA and, if needed, mouse drivers replacing the Red Hat provided
versions. The installation skips these packages if they are older than the versions included with the Red
Hat installation.

If you uninstall VMware OSPs and want to use the Red Hat provided drivers, you must reinstall them.

For RHEL 4
# rpm -ivh --force
vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-display-<version>-<tools-build>.<package-build>.
<dist>.<arch>.rpm

For RHEL 3
# rpm -ivh --force
vmware-open-vm-tools-xfree86-drv-display-<version>-<tools-build>.<package-buil
d>.<dist>.<arch>.rpm

<version> is the version for the package.

VMware, Inc. 17
VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages

<tools-build>.<package-build> is the release build for the tools and the package.

<dist> is Linux distribution version. Use rhel4 or rhel3.

<arch> is the architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i686. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a SLES 11 or SLED 11

Virtual Machine
Generally, you would follow these steps to configure a guest operating system with a package manager:

1 Import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key.

2 (Optional) Edit the proxy.

3 Create the VMware repository.

Download OSPs for SLES 11 or SLED 11 Guest Operating System

Download all the packages for a given distribution and architecture. Download the OSPs locally to the virtual
machine where you plan to install VMware Tools. The OSPs are located on the VMware Web site at
:http://packages.vmware.com/tools. Locate the directory that corresponds to your ESX installation and the
operating system where you want to install the OSPs.

For the complete list of packages to install, see “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

To download SLES 11 or SLED 11 for VMware Tools

1 Obtain and import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key from the guest operating system of the virtual
machine where you plan to install VMware Tools.

a If it does not exist, create the directory on the virtual machine to store the key. At the command line
type:
/<key-path>/

b Using a Web browser, copy the file from:

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

c Save the file to the directory you created:

/<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

d Import the key. Run the command appropriate for the guest operating system. For example:
# rpm --import /<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

<key-path> is the path you created to the directory on the virtual machine to store the key.

2 Configure the proxy, as needed.

# export http_proxy=http://squid.example.com::3128

3 Create and edit the VMware zypper repository.

a Add the yum repository as a zypper service.

# zypper addservice --type=YUM
http://packages.vmware.com/tools/esx/<esx-version>/<dist>/<arch>
vmware-tools-collection

All three of the preceding lines constitute the entire command needed.

<dist> is Linux distribution version. Use sles11 for both SLES11 and SLED11.

<arch> is the architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i586. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

<esx-version> is replaced with either 3.5u2, 3.5u3, 3.5u4, 3.5u5, 4.0, or 4.0u1 depending upon the
ESX/ESXi version.

18 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 3 VMware Tools Installation

b Verify the repository configuration:

# zypper packages vmware-tools-collection

Install VMware Tools for SLES 11 or SLED 11 Guest Operating System

Installing VMware Tools on a SLES 11 or SLED 11 virtual machine uses the package management tool, zypper.
Specify the package and zypper installs the additional required VMware Tools packages. For a list of packages
to install, see “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

Before you install VMware Tools, complete the task “Prepare the Guest Operating System to Install VMware
Tools OSPs” on page 11.

To Install VMware Tools in SLES 11 or SLED 11

Install the top level VMware Tools package, from the command line of the guest operating system virtual
machine type:
# zypper install -c vmware-tools-collection vmware-tools

When you run this command, all the other packages are automatically installed in the correct order.

CAUTION When you install the VMware Tools packages for SLES 11, the following message appears: The
following packages are not supported by their vendor: vmware-open-vm-tools
vmware-open-vm-tools-common vmware-open-vm-tools-kmod vmware-open-vm-tools-nox
vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-utilities vmware-tools vmware-tools-common vmware-tools-nox.
The message will vary depending upon which version of VMware Tools you have installed. You can safely
ignore this message. It has not bearing on the success of the installation.

Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a SLES 10 Virtual Machine

Generally, you would follow these steps to configure a guest operating system with a package manager:

1 Import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key.

2 (Optional) Edit the proxy.

3 Create the VMware repository.

Download OSPs for the SLES 10 Guest Operating System

Download all the packages for a given distribution and architecture. Download the OSPs locally to the virtual
machine where you plan to install VMware Tools. The OSPs are located on the VMware Web site at
:http://packages.vmware.com/tools. Locate the directory that corresponds to your ESX installation and the
operating system where you want to install the OSPs.

For the complete list of packages to install, see “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

To download SLES 10 for VMware Tools

1 Obtain and import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key, from the guest operating system of the virtual
machine where you plan to install VMware Tools, at the command line type.

a If it does not exist, create the directory on the virtual machine to store the key:
/<key-path>/

b Using a Web browser, copy the file from this location:

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

c Save the file to the directory you created:

/<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

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VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages

d Import the key, using the rpm command:

# rpm --import /<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

<key-path> is the path you created to the directory on the virtual machine to store the key.

2 Configure the proxy, as needed, using rug:

# rug set-prefs proxy-url http://squid.example.com:3128

3 Create and edit the VMware rug repository:

a Add the yum repository as a rug service.

# rug service-add --type=YUM http://packages.vmware.com/tools/esx/<esx-version>/<dist>/<arch>
vmware-tools-collection

<dist> is Linux distribution version. Use sles10.

<arch> is the architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i586. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

<esx-version> is replaced with either 3.5u2, 3.5u3, 3.5u4, 3.5u5, 4.0, or 4.0u1 depending upon the
ESX/ESXi version.

b Verify the repository configuration:

# rug packages vmware-tools-collection

4 Subscribe to the rug catalog:

# rug subscribe -a

Install VMware Tools for the SLES 10 Guest Operating System

Installing VMware Tools on a SLES 10 virtual machine uses the package management tool, rug. Specify the
package and rug installs the required additional VMware Tools packages. For a list of packages to install, see
“Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

Before you install VMware Tools, complete the task “Prepare the Guest Operating System to Install VMware
Tools OSPs” on page 11.

To Install VMware Tools in SLES 10

Install the top level VMware Tools package, from the command line of the guest operating system virtual
machine type:
# rug install -c -u vmware-tools-collection vmware-tools
# rug install -c -u vmware-tools-collection vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-display
vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-mouse

For ESX/ESXi 3.5, replace vmware-open-vm-tools-drv-display and

vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-mouse with open-vm-tools-drv-display and
open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-mouse.

When you run this command, all the other packages are automatically installed in the correct order.

Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a SLES 9 Virtual Machine

This section applies to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 9. Higher level management, such as rug, is not currently
supported for SLES 9.

Download OSPs for the SLES 9 Guest Operating System

Download all the packages for a given distribution and architecture. Download the OSPs locally to the virtual
machine where you plan to install VMware Tools. The OSPs are located on the VMware Web site at
:http://packages.vmware.com/tools. Locate the directory that corresponds to your ESX installation and the
operating system where you want to install the OSPs.

For the complete list of packages to install, see “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

20 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 3 VMware Tools Installation

To manually configure the guest operating system

1 Find the VMware Tools required packages.

2 Obtain and import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key from the guest operating system installed on
the virtual machine where you plan to install the OSP Tools.

3 Download the packages to the virtual machine where you plan to install them.

To obtain and import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key for SLES 9

1 If a directory does not exist, create a directory on the virtual machine to store the key:
/<key-path>/

2 Use a Web browser to copy the packages from

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

3 Save the file to the directory you created.

4 To import the key, run the following command:

# rpm --import /<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

<key-path> is the path you created to the directory on the virtual machine to store the key.

To download OSPs for VMware Tools SLES 9

1 Browse the repository at:

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/esx/<esx-version>
<esx-version> is either 3.5u2, 3.5u3, 3.5u4, 3.5u5, 4.0, or 4.0u1 depending upon the ESX/ESXi version.

2 Find the subdirectory on the guest operating system of the virtual machine where you plan to install
VMware Tools. At the command line, type:

Go to /sles9
3 Identify the rpms required for VMware Tools installation. For example:
open-vmtools-7.7.2-11588.el4.i586.rpm

Packages use the following naming conventions:

ESX 4.0 and earlier

<package-name>-<version>-<tools-build>.<package-build>.<dist>.<arch>.rpm

ESX 4.0 Update 1and later

<package-name>-<version>-<package-build>.<dist>.<arch>.rpm
<package-name> is the package name for each required file.
<version> is the version for the package.

ESX 4.0 and earlier

<tools-build>.<package-build> is the release build for the tools and the package. Multiple versions
might exist in the repository. Select the most recent (higher numbered)
<tools-build>.<package-build>.

ESX 4.0 Update 1and later

<package-build> is the release build for the package. Multiple versions might exist in the repository.
Select the most recent (higher numbered) <package-build>.

<dist> is Linux distribution version. Use sles9.

<arch> is the architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i586. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

4 Create a directory for the RPMS on the virtual machine where you plan to install VMware Tools.

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VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages

/<vmware-tools-path>/

5 Download RPMs in to the directory you created.

Install VMware Tools for the SLES 9 Guest Operating System

Installing VMware Tools on a SLES 9 virtual machine requires manually running rpm commands. Specify the
package and rug installs the required additional VMware Tools packages. For a list of packages to install, see
“Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

IMPORTANT After installing the ESX 3.5 Update 5 OSP tools, the vmware mouse driver does not load on SLES
9 through SLES 9 SP4. The mouse can leave the window, but you need to click on the guest before you can start
using the mouse in the virtual machine.

Before you install VMware Tools, complete the task “Prepare the Guest Operating System to Install VMware
Tools OSPs” on page 11.

To Install VMware Tools in SLES 9

1 (Optional) Back up the SLES provided SVGA driver.

For 64‐bit, type:
# cp /usr/X11R6/lib64/modules/drivers/vmware_drv.o
/usr/X11R6/lib64/modules/drivers/vmware_drv.o.backup

For 32‐bit, type:

# cp /usr/X11R6/lib/modules/drivers/vmware_drv.o
/usr/X11R6/lib/modules/drivers/vmware_drv.o.backup

2 (Optional) Install VMware provided SVGA and, if needed, mouse driver replacing the SUSE provided
versions. The installation skips these packages if they are older than the versions included with the Red
Hat installation.

If you uninstall VMware OSPs and want to use the SUSE provided drivers, you must reinstall them.

For SLES 9 on ESX 4.0 and earlier:

# rpm -ivh --force
vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-display-<version>-<tools-build>.<package-build>
.sles9.<arch>.rpm
# rpm -ivh --force
vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-mouse-<version>-<tools-build>.<package-build>
.sles9.<arch>.rpm

For SLES 9 on ESX 4.0 Update 1 and later:

# rpm -ivh --force
vmware-open-vm-tools-xfree86-drv-display-<version>-<tools-build>.<package-buil
d>
.sles9.<arch>.rpm
# rpm -ivh --force
vmware-open-vm-tools-xfree86-drv-mouse-<version>-<tools-build>.<package-build>
.sles9.<arch>.rpm

<version> is the version for the package.

<tools-build>.<package-build> is the release build for the tools and the package.

<arch> is the architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i586. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

3 Install the VMware Tools packages. At the command line type:

# rpm -ivh vmware-open-vm-tools-*.rpm vmware-tools-*.rpm

When you run this command, all the other packages are installed in the correct order.

22 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 3 VMware Tools Installation

CAUTION When you install the VMware Tools packages for SLES 9, the following message appears: Warning
“vmware-open-vm-tools-8.3.0-206098.el4.i686.rpm: V3 RSA/MD5 signature: NOKEY, key ID
66fd4949.” You can safely ignore this message. It has not bearing on the success of the installation.

Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on an Ubuntu Virtual Machine

The implementation is specific to each supported guest operating system, but the steps are similar for each
method.

Generally, to configure a guest operating system with a package manager involves:

1 Import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key.

2 (Optional) Edit the proxy.

3 Create the VMware repository.

Download OSPs for the Ubuntu Guest Operating System

Download all the packages for a given distribution and architecture. Download the OSPs locally to the virtual
machine where you plan to install VMware Tools. The OSPs are located on the VMware Web site at
:http://packages.vmware.com/tools. Locate the directory that corresponds to your ESX installation and the
operating system where you want to install the OSPs.

For the complete list of packages to install, see “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

To download Ubuntu for VMware Tools

1 Obtain and import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key.

a If it does not exist, create the directory on the virtual machine to store the key:
/<key-path>/

b Using a Web browser, copy the file from:

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

c Save the file to the directory you created:

/<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

d Import the key. Run the command appropriate for the guest operating system. For example:
$ sudo apt-key add /<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

<key-path> is the path you created to the directory on the virtual machine to store the key.

2 Configure the proxy, as needed from the guest operating system on the virtual machine where you plan
to install VMware Tools.

Add the following contents to /etc/apt/apt-get conf. Create the file if needed.
ACQUIRE {http::proxy "http://[[user][:pass]@]host[:port]/"
}

For example
ACQUIRE {http::proxy "http://proxyuser:[email protected]:3128"
}

3 Create and edit the VMware repository directory and file.

a If it does not exist, create the directory and repository file on the virtual machine. You can choose any
name for this file, but it must use the .list file extension. For example:
/etc/apt/sources.list.d/vmware-tools.list

b Open the repository file to edit.

c Add the following contents to the file and save the file.

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VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages

deb http://packages.vmware.com/tools/esx/<esx-version>/ubuntu hardy main restricted

The configuration syntax is specific to each operating system version. For example, replace hardy
with karmic for Ubuntu 9.10, jaunty for Ubuntu 9.04, and intrepid for Ubuntu 8.10.

<esx-version> is replaced with either 3.5u2, 3.5u3, 3.5u4, 3.5u5, 4.0, or 4.0u1 depending upon the
ESX/ESXi version.

d Update the local repository cache.

$ sudo apt-get update

This command lists the packages available for downloading and updates that are listed on this Web
site: http://packages.vmware.com.

Ubuntu 8.10 OSP Installation Exception

Starting with Ubuntu 8.10, open-vm-tools is packaged with the multiverse repository. VMware does not
support the use of these packages in VMware virtual machines. The version of tools available in the Ubuntu
8.10 multiverse repository is based on a development snapshot of the open‐vm‐tools project hosted on
http://sourceforge.net. These packages are not official VMware Tools releases. VMware Global Support
Services might require customers using the Ubuntu packages to remove these packages and install the official
VMware Tools release as part of a support request related to Ubuntu 8.10.

If you install unsupported tools kernel modules in a virtual machine that already contains an official VMware
Tools release, the unsupported tools kernel modules overwrite the VMware modules. The Ubuntu packages
have the same name as one of the VMware Tools OSPs, and this results in a package‐name collision. The name
collision might cause issues with the Ubuntu packaging system when it attempts to install the supported
VMware Tools OSP. The Ubuntu packaging system installs the incompatible Ubuntu‐provided package
instead of the appropriate VMware Tools OSP.

Because of this collision you might be unable to install the OSPs on Ubuntu 8.10 from the repositories if the
multiverse repository is enabled. You must also avoid installing these packages if they were originally
installed using the tar installation method.

This issue affects you under these circumstances:

 You have the multiverse repository enabled for software updates.

 You have the open-vm-tools package from the Ubuntu multiverse repository installed on the system.

If you suspect you might have this conflict, do the following tasks as needed, to replace the conflicting
open-vm-tool package with supported versions of VMware Tools.

 “Uninstall Existing Ubuntu open‐vm‐tools Packages” on page 24

 “Disable Ubuntu Package Management System” on page 25

 “Silence the Update Manager Warnings” on page 25

 “Use the VMware Tools tar Installation” on page 25

Uninstall Existing Ubuntu open-vm-tools Packages

Remove Ubuntu open‐vm‐tools packages if they are installed, and then verify that you have uninstalled them.

To uninstall Conflicting Versions of Ubuntu

1 Determine whether you have the Ubuntu open-vm-tools package installed, by running the following
command.
# dpkg -s open-vm-tools | grep ^Maint

If the result states that the open-vm-tools package is not installed, or if the maintainer field, in the results
output, lists the VMware Build Team, you do not have the Ubuntu open-vm-tools package installed. You
can safely install or upgrade the OSPs.

24 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 3 VMware Tools Installation

If the maintainer field, in the results output, lists Ubuntu MOTU Develop, you have the Ubuntu package
installed and must remove it before you update the OSPs.

2 Remove the Ubuntu package, by running the following command:

$ sudo apt-get remove open-vm-tools

3 Verify that you do not have open-vm-tools installed on the system, by running the following command:
$ sudo dpkg-query -s open-vm-tools

The confirming response indicates that the package open-vm-tools is not installed and no information
is available.

Disable Ubuntu Package Management System

To successfully install VMware OSPs with the apt‐get program, you must disable the multiverse repository on
the Ubuntu system. You must do this, so the program does not see the Ubuntu‐provided package that conflicts
with the VMware packages.

NOTE This procedure is not necessary for Ubuntu 8.10 on ESX 4.0 Update 1.

To disable the multiverse repository, from the Ubuntu virtual machine

1 Open System > Administration > Software Sources application.

2 In the Ubuntu Software tab, deselect the box Software restricted by copyright or legal issues
(multiverse).

3 Click Close.

4 When prompted to update software information, click Reload.

When you successfully disable multiverse, proceed by installing OSPs, using apt-get.

If you enable the multiverse repository in the future, you run the risk of the original problem where
open-vm-tools packages are available from two different sources. Using the multiverse repository prevents
you from updating the OSPs when newer versions are available and causes Update Manager to warn that not
all packages could be installed, each time you open Update Manager.

Silence the Update Manager Warnings

If you must have the multiverse repository enabled, you can silence the Update Manager warning, by running
the following command:
$ echo 'open-vm-tools hold' | sudo dpkg --set-selections

This command instructs the package manager to never upgrade the open-vm-tools package.

To upgrade the open-vm-tools package when newer versions of the OSPs are available, perform the
following:

1 Re‐enable updates, by running the following command:

$ echo 'open-vm-tools install' | sudo dpkg --set-selection

2 Disable the multiverse repository. For more information, see the section, “Disable Ubuntu Package
Management System” on page 25.

3 Upgrade the open-vm-tools package with the apt-get program.

Use the VMware Tools tar Installation

You can use the tar installation method described in the VMware product manual. Check the knowledge base
article 340, Installing VMware Tools, for an overview of VMware Tools and for a list of product documentation
that includes instructions for installing VMware Tools on the VMware product.

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VMware Tools Installation Guide Operating System Specific Packages

The advantage of using the regular VMware Tools installer is that it avoids the Ubuntu package management
system entirely. This avoids the problem introduced by an unsupported Ubuntu package and a
VMware‐supported OSP that have the same package name.

The disadvantage is that the package management system does not see the installed files. It cannot prevent
unsupported packages from being installed. This might cause an overwrite of important files by the VMware
Tools installation.

To use the tar installation method

1 Make sure that the Ubuntu open-vm-tools package does not install. For more information, see the
section, “Uninstall Existing Ubuntu open‐vm‐tools Packages” on page 24.

2 Follow the VMware Tools installation instructions from your product manual.

3 Manually ensure that you do not later install the Ubuntu open-vm-tools package.

The package manager cannot prevent overwriting VMware Tools files with additional installations. A method
does not exist to prevent accidental installation of the unsupported Ubuntu packages. Disabling the multiverse
repository helps.

Install VMware Tools for the Ubuntu Guests

Installing VMware Tools on a Ubuntu virtual machine uses the package management tool, apt-get. Specify
the package and apt‐get installs the required additional VMware Tools packages. For a list of packages to
install, see “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

Before you install VMware Tools, complete “Prepare the Guest Operating System to Install VMware Tools
OSPs” on page 11.

To Install VMware Tools in Ubuntu

1 Identify the kernel module for the Ubuntu operating system. For example, from the command line, type:
$ uname -r

The command returns kernel type and version. Following are the type options:

 generic

 server

 virtual

2 Install the kernel modules for the kernel type and version. For example:
 For ESX/ESXi 3.5
$ sudo apt-get install open-vm-tools-kmod-<type> vmware-tools-kmod-<type>
<type> = the value returned in Step 1.

 For ESX/ESXi 4.0

Installing the kernel modules separately is no longer needed.

3 Install the remaining components:

$ sudo apt-get install vmware-tools

When you run this command, all the other packages are automatically installed in the correct order.

Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a CentOS 5 and OEL 5

Virtual Machine
Generally, you would follow these steps to configure a guest operating system with a package manager:

1 Import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key.

2 (Optional) Edit the proxy.

26 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 3 VMware Tools Installation

3 Configure the package software.

4 Install VMware Tools.

Download OSPs for the CentOS 5 and OEL 5 Guest Operating Systems
Download all the packages for a given distribution and architecture. Download the OSPs locally to the virtual
machine where you plan to install VMware Tools. The OSPs are located on the VMware Web site at
:http://packages.vmware.com/tools. Locate the directory that corresponds to your ESX installation and the
operating system where you want to install the OSPs.

For the complete list of packages to install, see “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

To download CentOS 5 or OEL 5 for VMware Tools

1 Obtain and import the VMware Packaging Public GPG Key.

a If it does not exist, create the directory on the virtual machine to store the key:
/<key-path>/

b Using a Web browser, copy the file from:

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

c Save the file to the directory you created:

/<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

d Import the key. Run the rpm command:

# rpm --import /<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

2 Set up proxy server information in /etc/yum.conf. For example

proxy=http://proxy.proxyprovider.com:3128
proxy_username=proxyuser
proxy_password=proxypass

3 Create and edit the VMware repository directory and file.

a If it does not exist, create the directory and repository file on the virtual machine. You can choose any
name for this file, but it must use the .repo file extension. For example:
/etc/yum.repos.d/vmware-tools.repo

b Open the repository file to edit.

c Add the following contents to the file and save the file.
[vmware-tools]
name=VMware Tools for CentOS (or OEL) $releasever - $basearch
baseurl=http://packages.vmware.com/tools/esx/<esx-version>/<dist>/<arch>
enabled=1
gpgcheck=1
gpgkey=file:///<key-path>/VMWARE-PACKAGING-GPG-KEY.pub

<dist> is Linux distribution version. Use rhel5.CentOS 5 and OEL 5 use the RHEL 5 base.

<arch> is the architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i686. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

<esx-version> is replaced with either 3.5u2, 3.5u3, 3.5u4, 3.5u5, 4.0, or 4.0u1 depending upon the
ESX/ESXi version.

<key-path> is the path and directory you created when you obtained and imported the VMware
Packaging Public GPG Key in Step 5.

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Install VMware Tools for the CentOS 5 or OEL 5 Guest Operating System
Installing VMware Tools on a CentOS 5 or OEL 5 virtual machine uses the package management tool, yum.
Specify the package and yum installs the required additional VMware Tools packages. For a list of packages
to install, see “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

Before you install VMware Tools, complete “Prepare the Guest Operating System to Install VMware Tools
OSPs” on page 11.

To Install VMware Tools in CentOS 5 or OEL 5

1 Install the top level VMware Tools package, from the command line of the guest operating system virtual
machine, type:
# yum install vmware-tools

When you run this command, all the other packages are installed in the correct order.

2 (Optional) Install VMware provided SVGA and , if needed, mouse driver replacing the CentOS provided
versions. The installation skips these packages if they are older than the versions included with the
CentOS installation.
# yum install vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-display
# yum install vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-mouse

If you later uninstall VMware OSPs and want to use the CentOS or OEL 5 provided drivers, you must
reinstall them.

Installing VMware Tools Using OSPs on a CentOS 4 or OEL 4

Virtual Machine
This section applies to CentOS 4 and OEL 4. Higher level package management, such as yum, is not currently
supported for CentOS 4 or OEL 4.

Download OSPs for the CentOS 4 or OEL 4 Guest Operating System

Download all the packages for a given distribution and architecture. Download the OSPs locally to the virtual
machine where you plan to install VMware Tools. The OSPs are located on the VMware Web site at
:http://packages.vmware.com/tools. Locate the directory that corresponds to your ESX installation and the
operating system where you want to install the OSPs.

For the complete list of packages to install, see “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

To manually configure the guest operating system

1 Find the VMware Tools required packages.

2 Download the packages to the virtual machine where you plan to install them.

To download OSPs for VMware Tools CentOS 4 or OEL 4

1 Browse the repository at:

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/esx/<esx-version>

<esx-version> is replaced with either 3.5u2, 3.5u3, 3.5u4, 3.5u5, 4.0, or 4.0u1 depending upon the
ESX/ESXi version.

2 Find the subdirectory:

Go to /rhel4

CentOS 4 and OEL 4 uses the RHEL 4 base, and are in the rhel4 directory.

3 Identify the rpms required for VMware Tools installation. For example:
vmware-open-vm-tools-kmod-7.4.6-110268.130320.el4.i686.rpm

28 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 3 VMware Tools Installation

The packages use the following naming conventions:

<package-name>-<version>-<tools-build>.<package-build>.<dist>.<arch>.rpm

<package-name> package name for each required file.

<version> version for the package.

<tools-build>.<package-build> is the release build for the tools and the package. Multiple versions
might exist in the repository. Select the most recent (higher numbered)
<tools-build><package-build>.

<dist> Linux distribution version. Use CentOS4 or OEL4.

<arch> architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i686. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

4 Create a directory for the RPMS on the virtual machine where you plan to install VMware Tools.
/<vmware-tools-path>/

5 Download RPMs in to the directory you created.

Install VMware Tools for the CentOS 4 or OEL 4 Guest Operating System
Installing VMware Tools on a CentOS 4 or OEL 4 virtual machine requires that you manually run the rpm
commands. Specify the package, and rug installs the required additional VMware Tools packages. For a list of
packages to install, see “Identify the Packages to Install” on page 9.

Before completing these steps, finish all steps in “Prepare the Guest Operating System to Install VMware Tools
OSPs” on page 11.

To Install VMware Tools in CentOS 4 or OEL 4

1 (Optional) Back up the CentOS or OEL provided SVGA driver from the command line of the guest
operating system virtual machine:

For 64‐bit, type:

# cp /usr/X11R6/lib64/modules/drivers/vmware_drv.o
/usr/X11R6/lib64/modules/drivers/vmware_drv.o.backup

For 32‐bit, type:

# cp /usr/X11R6/lib/modules/drivers/vmware_drv.o
/usr/X11R6/lib/modules/drivers/vmware_drv.o.backup

2 Install the VMware Tools packages, type:

# rpm -ivh vmware-open-vm-tools-*.rpm vmware-tools-*.rpm

When you run this command, all the other packages are installed in the correct order.

3 (Optional) Install VMware provided SVGA and , if needed, mouse driver replacing the CentOS or OEL
provided versions. The automatic installation skips these packages if they are older than the versions
included with the CentOS or OEL installation.

If you uninstall OSPs and want to use the CentOS or OEL provided drivers, you must reinstall them.
# rpm -ivh --force
vmware-open-vm-tools-xorg-drv-display-<version>-<tools-build>.<package-build>.
<dist>.<arch>.rpm

<version> version for the package.

<tools-build>.<package-build> release build for the tools and the package.

<dist> Linux distribution version. Use CentOS4 or OEL4.

<arch> architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i686. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

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Verify Installation
After installation is complete, verify that VMware Tools is installed and functioning properly.

To verify the VMware Tools installation

1 Reboot the virtual machine and run the following command in the guest operating system

This enables 32‐bit machines to use vmxnet.

2 To verify that guestd is running, type the following command:

/etc/init.d/vmware-tools status

vmtoolsd are running

ps aux |grep vm

vmware-user and vmtoolsd are running

3 If installed packages include desktop components, verify that vmware-user is running.

View the VMware Tools icon on the virtual machine toolbar.

4 Search for a specific kernel module.

$ /sbin/lsmod | grep vm

vmmemctl, vmci, vmmemctl, and vmxnet kernel modules are loaded in the system.

 For ESX 4.0 hardware version 7 RHEL 5, SLES 10, Ubuntu 8.x, Ubuntu 9.x virtual machines

vmxnet3 is loaded in the system

 For ESX 4.0, hardware version 7, RHEL 5 virtual machines

The pvscsi is mounted under /pvscsi. The marker file is under /pvscsi .

5 If you installed VMware Tools on a GUI system, restart the virtual machine GUI.

This action verifies that the new SVGA and mouse drivers or configurations are functioning.

6 To verify that the mouse drivers are working:

a Click the virtual machine and complete a task.

b Click outside the virtual machine in the Windows screen and perform a task.

If the mouse driver is working correctly, you should be able to complete these tasks without using
Ctrl‐Alt to shift the mouse from one window to the next.

7 To verify the SVGA drivers, verify that you can change resolutions using one of the following methods:
 System > Preferences > Screen Resolution. (Depending upon the guest.)

 Command line as the logged in user.

$ xrandr --size 1024x768
$ xrandr --size 800x600

Unmanaged VMware Tools

After installing a VMware Tools OSP on a guest, the vSphere client reports the status of VMware Tools as
unmanaged for that guest. As a result, this indicates that OSPs are installed and you should not attempt to
install the standard VMware Tools through the vShpere client.

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4

Post Installation OSP Tasks 4

This section describes tasks that you do after the VMware Tools installation. Topics in this section include:

 “Check Updates for Operating System Specific Packages” on page 31

 “Uninstall Operating System Specific Packages” on page 32

 “Install Customized Kernel Module Packages” on page 33

Check Updates for Operating System Specific Packages

Updates for operating system specific packages are placed in the repository at: http://packages.vmware.com

Using your guest operating system package manager, search this repository for updates to each distribution.
Most package managers search for and apply the updates.

Manually Check for OSP Updates

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 9 do not have a package manager installed and
configured.

To check for package updates with RHEL 4 and SLES 9

1 Go to the repository at http://packages.vmware.com for updates.

2 Review the packages for RHEL 4 and SLES 9 and check for
<version>-<tools-build>.<package-build> updates.

<version> is the version for the package.

<tools-build>.<package-build> is the release build for the tools and the package.

3 If you identify updates, see Chapter 3, “VMware Tools Installation,” on page 13.

Use Package Managers to Check for OSP Package Updates

Each guest operating system package manager has a feature for checking for updates. From the command line
of the guest operating system, run the following commands.

To use the package manager to check for updates to OSP packages

Check for updated packages. For the appropriate guest operating system, run the command listed:

 Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5, CentOS 5, and OEL 5

# yum update

 Ubuntu 8.04, 8.10, 9.04, and 9.10

$ sudo apt-get update
$ sudo apt-get upgrade

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 SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 and 11

# rug update -c vmware-tools-collection

Uninstall Operating System Specific Packages

To uninstall the VMware Tools OSP packages, remove the packages. From the command line of the guest
operating system, use the commands for each guest operating system.

Uninstall VMware Tools on RHEL 5, CentOS 5, and OEL 5

To remove all the VMware Tools packages in a single command, type:
# yum remove 'vmware-tools-*' 'open-vm-tools-*'

Uninstall VMware Tools on SLES 11 or SLED 11

To remove all the VMware Tools packages in a single command, type:
# zypper remove vmware-tools-* open-vm-tools-*

Uninstall VMware Tools on SLES 10

To remove all the VMware Tools packages in a single command, type:
# rug remove vmware-tools-* open-vm-tools-*

Uninstall VMware Tools on Ubuntu

To remove all the VMware Tools packages in a single command, type:
$ sudo apt-get remove --purge vmware-tools-* open-vm-tools-*

Uninstall VMware Tools on RHEL 4, RHEL 3, or SLES 9

RHEL 4 and SLES 9, both use rpm distributions. On rpm based distributions, you must remove the OSP
installations in a specific order because of package dependencies. The uninstallation order is the reverse of the
package installation order.

To uninstall OSPs

1 Remove the OSP installations in the order listed for each package type:
# rpm -e <packagename>

If a package is not installed, the command skips the action and returns the prompt.

For ESX/ESXi 4.0 use the following package order:

 vmware‐tools

 vmware‐tools‐nox

 vmware‐tools‐common

 vmware‐open‐vm‐tools

 vmware‐open‐vm‐tools‐xorg‐utilities

 vmware‐open‐vm‐tools‐xorg‐drv‐display (if installed)

 vmware‐open‐vm‐tools‐xorg‐drv‐mouse (if installed)

 vmware‐open‐vm‐tools‐nox

 vmware‐open‐vm‐tools‐common

 vmware‐open‐vm‐tools‐kmod

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For ESX/ESXi 3.5 use the following package order:

 vmware‐tools

 vmware‐tools‐nox

 vmware‐tools‐common

 vmware‐tools‐kmod
 open‐vm‐tools

 open‐vm‐tools‐xorg‐utilities

 open‐vm‐tools‐xorg‐drv‐display (if installed)

 open‐vm‐tools‐xorg‐drv‐mouse (if installed)

 open‐vm‐tools‐nox

 open‐vm‐tools‐common

 open‐vm‐tools‐kmod

2 Reinstall distribution‐provided xorg display and mouse drivers.

As a part of the deinsallation, the default display and mouse drivers are reset to VESA and the system
mouse. To use a different display and mouse driver, edit your xorg configuration file.

Install Customized Kernel Module Packages

VMware OSPs work with unmodified kernels from your operating system distributor. This enables the use of
customized kernels. When customized kernels are similar enough to the distributor kernel, OSPs function by
using kernel module source packages. Kernel module source packages are packages in standard distributor
format (source rpm files and kernel source deb files).

To install customized kernel module packages

1 Ensure that your environment meets the build dependencies, such as gcc and
kernel-source/headers/devel packages.

2 Unpack and recompile the source packages (rpm or deb) with your own kernel in to usable binary
packages.

If you do not want to install these dependencies on the target guest, use a staging host for compilation.

3 Distribute the resulting binary packages to the target guest.

Customized Kernels for RHEL 3, RHEL 4, RHEL 5, SLES 9, SLES 10, SLES 11,
and SLED 11
The rpm based distributions include RHEL 4, RHEL 5, SLES 9, and SLES 10. This section describes how to
build a customized binary kernel module packages and how to install VMware Tools OSPs. This process
includes the following tasks:

 Build the binary kernel module packages

 Install custom built binary kernel module packages

To build the binary kernel module packages for RHEL 5

1 Download from the http://packages.vmware.com repository.

ESX and ESXi 3.5 have kmod source packages. ESX/ESXi 4.0 does not require these kmod source packages.
open-vm-tools-kmod-<version>-<release>.src.rpm
vmware-tools-kmod-<version>-<release>.src.rpm

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Find the packages at:

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/esx/<esx-version>/rhel5/SRPMS

<esx-version> is replaced with either 3.5u2, 3.5u3, 3.5u4, 3.5u5, 4.0, or 4.0u1 depending upon your
ESX/ESXi version.

2 Install yum-utils. This provides yum-builddep.

# yum install yum-utils

3 Use yum-builddep to satisfy build dependencies.

# yum-builddep /<key-path>/open-vm-tools-kmod-<version>-<tools-build>.<package-build.src.rpm

<key-path> is the path and directory you created for the key.

<version> is the version for the package.

<tools-build>.<package-build> is the release build for the tools and the package.

4 Compile the source packages in to binary packages.

# rpmbuild --rebuild /<key-path>/open-vm-tools-kmod-<version>-<release>.src.rpm

<key-path> is the path and directory you created for the key.

<version> is the version for the package.

<tools-build>.<package-build> is the release build for the tools and the package.

This step builds a binary kmod package suitable for use with the running kernel.

5 To build a binary kmod package from another kernel, pass the additional parameter to rpmbuild:
'--define "kversion 2.6.myversion"'

The new installable binary package is placed in /usr/src/redhat/RPMS/<arch>.

<arch> is the architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i686. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

As with all other packages, the accompanying -debuginfo package containing debugging symbols can
be useful. The -debuginfo package is not typically installed, but it is available for installation.

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To build the binary kernel module packages for RHEL 4, CentOS 4, and OEL 4

1 Download from the http://packages.vmware.com repository.

For ESX/ESXi 3.5 download the two kmod source packages. ESX/ESXi 4.0 does not require the kmod source
packages.
open-vm-tools-kmod-<version>-<release>.src.rpm
vmware-tools-kmod-<version>-<release>.src.rpm

Find the packages at:

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/esx/<esx-version>/rhel5/SRPMS

<esx-version> is replaced with either 3.5u2, 3.5u3, 3.5u4, 3.5u5, 4.0, or 4.0u1 depending upon your
ESX/ESXi version.

2 Install the kernel headers for the kernel for which you building the kernel module packages.

3 Install gcc and rpmbuild.

4 Compile the source packages in to binary packages.

# rpmbuild --rebuild /<key-path>/open-vm-tools-kmod-<version>-<release>.src.rpm

<key-path> is the path and directory you created for the key.

<version> is the version for the package.

<tools-build>.<package-build> is the release build for the tools and the package.

This step builds a binary kmod package suitable for use with the running kernel.

5 To build a binary kmod package from another kernel, pass the additional parameter to rpmbuild:
'--define "kversion 2.6.myversion"'

The new installable binary package is placed in /usr/src/redhat/RPMS/<arch>.

<arch> is the architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i686. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

As with all other packages, the accompanying -debuginfo package containing debugging symbols can be
useful. The -debuginfo package is not typically installed, but it is available for installation.

To build the binary kernel module packages for SLES 10, SLES 11, and SLED 11

1 Download from the http://packages.vmware.com repository.

For ESX/ESXi 3.5 download the two kmod source packages. ESX/ESXi 4.0 does not require the kmod source
packages.
open-vm-tools-kmod-<version>-<release>.src.rpm
vmware-tools-kmod-<version>-<release>.src.rpm

Find the packages at:

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/esx/<esx-version>/rhel5/SRPMS

<esx-version> is replaced with either 3.5u2, 3.5u3, 3.5u4, 3.5u5, 4.0, or 4.0u1 depending upon your
ESX/ESXi version.

2 Install the kernel headers for the kernel module packages you plan to build.

3 Install gcc and rpmbuild.

4 Compile the source packages in to binary packages.

# rpmbuild --rebuild /<key-path>/open-vm-tools-kmod-<version>-<release>.src.rpm

<key-path> is the path and directory you created for the key.

<version> is the version for the package.

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<tools-build>.<package-build> is the release build for the tools and the package.

This step builds a binary kmod package suitable for use with the running kernel.

5 To build a binary kmod package from another kernel, pass the additional parameter to rpmbuild:
'--define "kversion 2.6.myversion"'

The new installable binary package is placed in /usr/src/redhat/RPMS/<arch>.

<arch> is the architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i686. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

As with all other packages, the accompanying -debuginfo package containing debugging symbols can
be useful. The -debuginfo package is not typically installed, but it is available for installation.

To build the binary kernel module packages for SLES 9

1 Download from the http://packages.vmware.com repository.

For ESX/ESXi 3.5 download the two kmod source packages. ESX/ESXi 4.0 does not require the kmod source
packages.
open-vm-tools-kmod-<version>-<release>.src.rpm
vmware-tools-kmod-<version>-<release>.src.rpm

Find the packages at:

http://packages.vmware.com/tools/esx/<esx-version>/rhel5/SRPMS

<esx-version> is replaced with either 3.5u2, 3.5u3, 3.5u4, 3.5u5, 4.0, or 4.0u1 depending upon your
ESX/ESXi version.

2 Install the kernel headers for the kernel for which you building the kernel module packages.

3 Install gcc and rpmbuild.

4 Compile the source packages in to binary packages.

# rpmbuild --rebuild /<key-path>/open-vm-tools-kmod-<version>-<release>.src.rpm

<key-path> is the path and directory you created for the key.

<version> is the version for the package.

<tools-build>.<package-build> is the release build for the tools and the package.

This step builds a binary kmod package suitable for use with the running kernel.

5 To build a binary kmod package from another kernel, pass the additional parameter to rpmbuild:
'--define "kversion 2.6.myversion"'

The new installable binary package is placed in /usr/src/redhat/RPMS/<arch>.

<arch> is the architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i686. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

As with all other packages, the accompanying -debuginfo package contains useful debugging symbols.
The -debuginfo package is not typically installed, but it is available for installation.

To install custom built binary kernel module packages

1 Install your custom binary package using rpm:

# rpm -ivh /path/to/open-vm-tools-kmod-<kernelversion>-<version>-<release>.<arch>.rpm

<arch> is the architecture option. For 32‐bit, this is i686. For 64‐bit, this is x86_64.

2 Complete the installation using yum:

# yum install vmware-tools

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Chapter 4 Post Installation OSP Tasks

Build Customized Kernels for Ubuntu

This section describes how to build a customized Ubuntu binary kernel and how to install VMware Tools OSPs.

To build customized kernels for Ubuntu

1 Install the kernel source packages, type:

$ sudo apt-get install open-vm-tools-kmod-source vmware-tools-kmod-source

2 Prepare for the build, type:

# module-assistant prepare

3 Build the kernel modules for each package, type:

# module-assistant build open-vm-tools-kmod vmware-tools-kmod

This step produces two .deb files in /usr/src by default.

4 Install the produced binary packages, type:

# module-assistant install open-vm-tools-kmod vmware-tools-kmod

See the module-assistant manpage for more information.

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38 VMware, Inc.