Natty in VMware Player

[dibl]

Like PhilT, I installed the 5 DEC daily build today. Gee, is it really only an Alpha? Everything seems to work pretty much as expected, given that I don't have to fool with video drivers when running in the VM. I see the multimedia settings panel has some new and different defaults -- I'll beat on that and see if I can break it.

[starbetrayer]

Re: Natty in VMware Player

dibl,

the only two thing I have are :
1) a nasty bug where i cannot input anything with the keyboard
2) weird windows behavior with kde

[dibl]

Re: Natty in VMware Player

So the keyboard is disabled? Is it USB or PS/2 or built-in on a laptop? Have you looked through the VMware "Hardware Settings"?

[starbetrayer]

Re: Natty in VMware Player

the keyboard is not disabled, for whatever reason, kde doesnt detect it...
it works if i do a failsafe session

[starbetrayer]

Re: Natty in VMware Player

As of today, these bugs are fixed.

I did an apt-get update and apt-get dist-upgrade

[dibl]

Re: Natty in VMware Player

A funny thing happened today. Yesterday's updates brought in a "maintainers" version of the sudoers file, and I recklessly accepted it, which promptly kicked me out/excluded me. Running in VMware, I can't seem to get a boot menu (all combinations of clicking in the VM and "Esc" didn't get me one), which means I can't get a recovery mode, which means my user lost his sudo privileges and had no way to get it back. Cool, I thought -- that's why I'm doing this with a VM!

So, I downloaded what I thought was today's daily ISO. Well, it was ...

Turns out I got the Ubuntu daily build ISO. What a shocker to see that screen come up after installation on the VM! When I was young, my first real job was as an apprentice meatcutter. I swear, the current version of the Ubuntu default wallpaper looks exactly like a whole beef liver, on the cutting block, with the fluorescent lights reflecting off of it .... :P

[GreyGeek]

Re: Natty in VMware Player



Ubuntu: "What am I? Chopped liver?"

Dibl: "Yes!"

[starbetrayer]

Re: Natty in VMware Player

dibl,

I did the same thing. I fixed it by :
- booting in safe mode (press shift during the boot) and getting a root console
- did an apt-get update and dist-upgrade.

It was fix in the next update of sudo.

starbe

[dibl]

Re: Natty in VMware Player

For some reason, it seems to be impossible to "catch" the VM at the point where it needs to be interrupted, to bring up the boot menu. I've tried clicking in the window immediately after starting the VM, then pressing Shift and/or Esc, but I can't get it to interrupt the boot. No boot menu -- no booting recovery mode. No recovery mode --- no editing system files like /etc/sudoers .... :P

[hteles]

Re: Natty in VMware Player

Hi,

what about that old method of attaching a live ISO or anything else and edit your mounted partition?

[GreyGeek]

Re: Natty in VMware Player

I was amazed to find out that mounting the ISO is pretty much how WUBI puts & runs Linux on a Windows box.

[starbetrayer]

Re: Natty in VMware Player

Hi,

what about that old method of attaching a live ISO or anything else and edit your mounted partition?

reading the issue of dibl, I agree with that solution

[dibl]

Re: Natty in VMware Player

I am not aware of any way to use a CD or ISO image, in VMware Player, to access an existing VM. It offers to install a new VM, if you want, from a CD or an ISO, but not to run it in the presence of another running VM. Possibly you could do more with full VMware Workstation -- that's beyond me.

[starbetrayer]

Re: Natty in VMware Player

dibl,

you can get to your existing installation on your virtual machine to modify /etc/sudoers

you will need to :

1) download a kubuntu cd that you will mount on your host system or use your cdrom
2) boot the virtual machine
3) modify the order of boot of the virtual machine so that it boots first on the cdrom
4) reboot
5) it will launch like a new install but you then can mount the existing hardrive
6 ) modify /etc/sudoers with vi

starbe

[dibl]

Re: Natty in VMware Player

1) download a kubuntu cd that you will mount on your host system or use your cdrom
2) boot the virtual machine
3) modify the order of boot of the virtual machine so that it boots first on the cdrom
4) reboot
5) it will launch like a new install but you then can mount the existing hardrive
6 ) modify /etc/sudoers with vi

Interesting! Well, that's a good technique to know. Having reinstalled Natty on a new VM, I don't need it at the moment, but the next time I inflict a wrong click on myself, I'll give this a try.

Thanks!