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How to install Ubuntu 7.04 using VMware Fusion in Mac OS X
Parallels Desktop has not proven to be the perfect solution for running Linux on my MacBook as I thought from the beginning. I have the same experience as described here, plus I was never able to mount an usb stick. It seems to me that Parallels has concentrated on getting the Windows application to run smoothly and left us Linux users out in the cold. What to do? Let's try VMware Fusion instead.
About VMware
VMware is the leader in virtual infrastructure technology. Until just recently they didn't have a solution for us Mac users but when Apple moved to Intel X86 processors that changed everything.
VMware Fusion for Mac
VMware Fusion enables you to run any PC application on your Intel-based Mac. Using VMware Fusion, you can run Windows, Linux, Solaris and other PC operating systems right alongside Mac OS X, safely and easily, without the need to reboot your computer.
Download and install VMware Fusion 1.0
The first official release of VMware Fusion is now available. We will download build 51348 from here and install it on our MacBook.
Download Ubuntu 7.04
Here is the download page for Ubuntu 7.04.
Creating a virtual machine using VMware Fusion
Start VMware Fusion.
Click the New button.
 Click Continue We choose the operating system and click Continue. Select name and location. Specify disk size.
Select the disc image file and click Finish. The Ubuntu installation will start.
We go through a normal Ubuntu installation and answer a few questions before the installation starts. It takes less than 20 minutes to finish.
When the installation has finished we will shut down the system and before we reboot we will make sure that we have the CD ROM set to cdrom0.
Now we are ready to boot Ubuntu.
 Ubuntu login screen.
VMware ToolsWhen VMware Fusion really starts to shine is after we have installed the VMware tools package. To install the package the Linux OS must be up and running and we have to be logged in. We also have to make sure we have the gcc compiler installed. To install gcc use the following command: sudo apt-get install build-essential
VMware Tools installation
Follow these steps to install the VMware Tools package.
- Select from the VMware menu: Virtual Machine->Install VMware Tools
- The following files will be downloaded
 You must use the tar installer to install VMware Tools in Ubuntu Linux.- Copy VMwareTools-e.x.p-51348.tar.gz to a temporary directory
- Open a terminal window
- Unpack the file using the command tar zxfv VMwareTools-e.x.p-51348.tar.gz
- Move to the directory vmware-tools-distrib: cd vmware-tools-distrib
- Execute the perl script as root: sudo ./vmware-install.pl
Printout from installationsvenand@svenand-desktop:~/temp/vmware-tools-distrib$ sudo ./vmware-install.pl
Installing VMware Tools. This may take from several minutes to over an hour
depending upon its size.
In which directory do you want to install the binary files?
[/usr/bin]
What is the directory that contains the init directories (rc0.d/ to rc6.d/)?
[/etc]
What is the directory that contains the init scripts?
[/etc/init.d]
In which directory do you want to install the daemon files?
[/usr/sbin]
In which directory do you want to install the library files?
[/usr/lib/vmware-tools]
The path "/usr/lib/vmware-tools" does not exist currently. This program is
going to create it, including needed parent directories. Is this what you want?
[yes]
In which directory do you want to install the documentation files?
[/usr/share/doc/vmware-tools]
The path "/usr/share/doc/vmware-tools" does not exist currently. This program
is going to create it, including needed parent directories. Is this what you
want? [yes]
The installation of VMware Tools e.x.p build-51348 for Linux completed
successfully. You can decide to remove this software from your system at any
time by invoking the following command: "/usr/bin/vmware-uninstall-tools.pl".
Before running VMware Tools for the first time, you need to configure it by
invoking the following command: "/usr/bin/vmware-config-tools.pl". Do you want
this program to invoke the command for you now? [yes]
Stopping VMware Tools services in the virtual machine:
Guest operating system daemon: done
Trying to find a suitable vmmemctl module for your running kernel.
None of the pre-built vmmemctl modules for VMware Tools is suitable for your
running kernel. Do you want this program to try to build the vmmemctl module
for your system (you need to have a C compiler installed on your system)?
[no] yes
Using compiler "/usr/bin/gcc". Use environment variable CC to override.
What is the location of the directory of C header files that match your running
kernel? [/lib/modules/2.6.20-15-generic/build/include]
Extracting the sources of the vmmemctl module.
Building the vmmemctl module.The vmemctl module will now be built
The configuration of VMware Tools e.x.p build-51348 for Linux for this running
kernel completed successfully.
You must restart your X session before any mouse or graphics changes take
effect.
You can now run VMware Tools by invoking the following command:
"/usr/bin/vmware-toolbox" during an X server session.
To use the vmxnet driver, restart networking using the following commands:
/etc/init.d/networking stop
rmmod pcnet32
rmmod vmxnet
depmod -a
modprobe vmxnet
/etc/init.d/networking start
If you wish to configure any experimental features, please run the following
command: "vmware-config-tools.pl --experimental".
Enjoy,
--the VMware team
After restarting our system we can start enjoying all the nice features of VMware Fusion. The network connection was disabled during VMware Tools installation but will be reconnected after a reboot of the system. Every time there is a Linux kernel update we have to rerun this process.
Comparing Parallels Desktop and VMware Fusion when running Ubuntu Linux
Here is a comparison between Parallels Desktop 3.0 and VMware Fusion 1.0 and the winner is VMware Fusion. After Parallels release of Parallels tools for Linux Parallels Desktop now have almost the same features as VMware Fusion.
| Feature | Parallels Desktop
| VMware Fusion
| Drag and drop files between Mac OS X and the virtual machine
| No | Yes
| Displaying progress bar during bootup and shutdown
| No | Yes | Copying and pasting text between Mac OS X and the virtual machine
| No | Yes | Moving the cursor between Mac OS X and the virtual machine
| Yes
| Yes
| | Support for Airport Wireless network | Yes | Yes | Mounting usb devices
| Yes (Not working in Ubuntu)
| Yes | Coherence mode
| No
| No
| Taking snapshots
| Yes
| Yes
| Snapshot manager
| Yes
| No
| Resizing the virtual machine window
| Yes
| Yes
| Price
| $79.99
| $59.99
|
Useful tips
- If you are using a bluetooth keyboard and/or mouse make sure you have disconnected the Apple Bluetooth Adapter in the VMware Settings otherwise you can not use the bluetooth keyboard or mouse.
File sharing between Ubuntu and Mac OS X
You can setup a shared folder in VMware Fusion or you can just drag and drop files.
The shared folder will show up in Ubuntu under: /mnt/hgfs/...
Network connection
I am sharing the host's internet connection (NAT). I works fine for me.
Problem log
I will report all problems found in this problem log. There can be many causes to a problem and sometimes VMware is not to blame.
| Slogan | Note
| Release | Date | Fixed | Printing to an usb printer connected to an Airport Express
| 1
| 1.0b3
| 2007-05-21 | Fixed in RC1
| Unmounting a Western Digital usb disk
| 2
| 1.0b3
| 2007-05-21 | This is an Ubuntu 7.04 problem.
| | |
| | | | | |
| | | |
Note 1. I can't see the usb printer connected to my Airport Express when trying to setup a new printer from the System->Administration->Printing setup window. See Customizing Ubuntu Linux for more information.
Running nmap shows the following ports and their usage:
==> nmap -P0 10.0.1.200
Starting Nmap 4.20 ( http://insecure.org ) at 2007-07-21 22:16 CEST
Interesting ports on 10.0.1.200:
Not shown: 1693 filtered ports
PORT STATE SERVICE
53/tcp open domain
5000/tcp open UPnP
9100/tcp open jetdirect
10000/tcp open snet-sensor-mgmt
Nmap finished: 1 IP address (1 host up) scanned in 33.455 seconds
Note 2. When trying to unmount (eject) my Western Digital usb disk I get the follwing message and the disk will not unmount. The disk is formatted as a MacOS Extended disk.
We can use the command lsusb to list all usb device that are connected.
==> lsusb
Bus 002 Device 003: ID 1058:0901 Western Digital Technologies, Inc.
Bus 002 Device 002: ID 05ac:8501 Apple Computer, Inc.
Bus 002 Device 001: ID 0000:0000
Bus 001 Device 001: ID 0000:0000
We can also look at the end of the /var/log/messages file using the command dmesg.
==> dmesg | grep usb
[16586.068162] usbcore: registered new interface driver usbfs
[16586.068179] usbcore: registered new interface driver hub
[16586.068203] usbcore: registered new device driver usb
[16586.069444] usb usb1: configuration #1 chosen from 1 choice
[16587.619562] usb usb2: configuration #1 chosen from 1 choice
[16587.938243] usb 2-1: new high speed USB device using ehci_hcd and address 2
[16588.075327] usb 2-1: configuration #1 chosen from 1 choice
[20057.730075] usb 2-2: new high speed USB device using ehci_hcd and address 3
[20057.881311] usb 2-2: configuration #1 chosen from 1 choice
[20058.015269] usbcore: registered new interface driver libusual
[20058.097910] usbcore: registered new interface driver usb-storage
[20058.098520] usb-storage: device found at 3
[20058.098523] usb-storage: waiting for device to settle before scanning
[20062.516934] usb-storage: device scan complete
Manually unmounting
The usb-disk can be unmounted using the following command: sudo umount "/media/My Book"
Discussion forums
Here you can discuss everything around VMware Fusion. You must register as a user before posting.
Frequently asked questions
The FAQ is found here.
More information
YouTube Videos
Top
Posted at 08:31 pm by svenand
 | | | Name
September 15, 2008 08:30 AM PDT
Iv followed your tutorial step for step, but i cant get vmware tools installed, could you please help me?
fish.x.eye@gmail.com | |
| | | Mishi
July 30, 2008 03:03 AM PDT
Thanks alot for this guide. i've been really nervous about switching to virtual machines and leaving bootcamp behind. I'm completely new to linux, thanks to your guide i'm ready to take the plunge. | |
| | | John B
May 2, 2008 02:41 PM PDT
Brilliant and well written - thanks for saving me hours | |
| | | Ron
October 28, 2007 04:54 AM PDT
This is a great reference site. Question - can the steps for 7.04 be used with 7.10? Also, can Tools be reinstalled? I used your steps to get 7.04 up and running. Then just upgraded to 7.10. However, it seems that Tools has caused me some problems under my Fusion VM with Leopard. So any suggestions would be most welcomed. Again great reference site - it is really appreciated. Thanks. | |
| | | Matt K
October 13, 2007 06:35 PM PDT
Thank you! This saved me soo much time! | |
| | | Alex
August 30, 2007 07:49 PM PDT
Yes, fantastic, but what about no more working trackpad scroll with two fingers, after vmware tools installation? | |
| | | poenn
August 24, 2007 07:29 PM PDT
I found it!
The problem was not with the VM. I was just about reinstalling Ubuntu when I noticed that even the booted CD had no internet connection. I aborted, uninstalled Fusion an reinstalled it. Then my old VM's networking suddenly worked again! I remember that Fusion once crashed on me and it might be related to that, but I can't be sure. Well, at least it's working now (again). :-) | |
| | | poenn
August 24, 2007 05:05 PM PDT
I did that, but couldn't find anything helpful about it. So I thought I'd just try and ask you. Well, I'll keep on trying and searching.
Thanks anyway for responding! | |
| | | svenand
August 24, 2007 04:47 PM PDT
Have you checked the VMware Fusion forum. It seems like you are not the only having network problems. | |
| | | poenn
August 24, 2007 04:02 PM PDT
Hi,
I'm also using NAT and nothing has changed on the host side. Ubuntu just won't receive an IP. I tried to switch to Bridged for testing, but I can't do so. If I select it I get this message:
---
The network bridge on device /dev/vmnet0 is not running.
The virtual machine will not be able to communicate with the host or with other machines on your network.
Failed to connect virtual device Ethernet0.
---
Afterwards "Connected" is deselected in Network prefs. I can reenable it by switching back to NAT, but the problem of not getting an IP is still there.
Any ideas what I could try before reinstalling Ubuntu? :-( | |
| | | svenand
August 24, 2007 03:09 PM PDT
How is your network connection done. I am using NAT and it works fine for me. | |
| | | poenn
August 23, 2007 02:01 PM PDT
Hi and thank your for the excellent walkthrough. Do you have any idea why my networking suddenly stopped working? I installed the VMWare Tools by your instructions, did a reboot and alls was fine. A few days later it stopped working. Ubuntu only gets a self assigned 169.254.x.y IP address. I did all of the steps again and rebooted but it's still not working anymore.
Any help is greatly appreciated! | |
| | | PoorLilRichBoy
August 10, 2007 02:16 PM PDT
Thanks for tips! Str8 ahead and worked like a charm. The VMWare Tools really make the whole virtualization experience much more livable. | |
| | | Dave
July 23, 2007 06:43 PM PDT
Excellent Info. Thanks! Got my Ubuntu 7.04 running on MacBook under Fusion 1.0 (I purchased using the pre-release pricing).
| |
| | | Name
July 22, 2007 06:59 AM PDT
wow, that's the tutorial i was looking for! Thanks!
Here's one issue that i ran into that may be worth mentioning... When i finished the install, I had the ubuntu image still attached for some reason... with that in place, the VMWare tools image would not mount, but did crazy things to /cdrom. Thinking it was all virtual, it took me a little bit to figure out what was going on. Ejecting Ubuntu, rebooting, and trying the Tools install again did the trick. | |
| | | Ben P
July 8, 2007 08:22 AM PDT
Very nice walkthrough, but not very user friendly to the person who is 100% new to Linux. Maybe (probably) I'm the idiot who couldn't untar the vmware tools file. For those newbies like me, do this:
on the folder, that opens up with the "cd" stuff, on the sidebar, click "places" and switch to "tree." Then click the triangle by "file system" and you should see a bunch of folders, one of them being "tmp." Click and drag the tar file into "tmp" then when you type the tar command in the terminal, do "tar zxfv /tmp/VMwareTools-e.x.p-xxxxx.tar.gz"
Then everthing should work as the guide says. Just press enter when all thos questions come up in the terminal.
This worked fine on my newer beta version, build 50460. | |
| | | Mando Gooden
June 29, 2007 12:16 AM PDT
Hi,
You did an excelent job with this article. I have the same setup on OSX (Mac Book Pro) and Fusion. Actually I have about six Linux distrubitions testing out in Vmware Fusion, including Fedora and Mandriva Linux 2007 Spring. But I am am not able to get the VMware tools installed. In Mandriva and Fedora, I used the RPM package of VMware tools but to no avail. I noticed some detailed steps in your article that I will follow tonight and see if I can get it going. So far, the Distrubitions I like are Fedora, Mandriva, and Ubuntu. I just like the look and feel of Mandriva and Fedora. As for Parallels, I have been using it for a while and its performance comes and go. When I tried to install the latest versions of the Linux destrubitions mentioned above, the installation freezes, and the guest OS does not install. On the other hand, Vmware Fusion installed without any problem; network get connected, got full screen set correctly, etc. The only problem is getting the Vmware tools to work. Last night I did the "Pre Order" for Fusion. No more Parallels for me..... | |
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