Ubuntu Tutorials

I’ve written quite a bit on this blog regarding Virtualization in the past. I think I’ve covered VirtualBox as well as VMware. If you haven’t noticed, I prefer the former. Free Software vs non-free is a big win, plus the performance gain that I’ve seen in VirtualBox has been great. For testing other distributions and doing simple work (non-server) installations, I think VirtualBox works the best.

I was recently sent a copy of “VirtualBox 3.1 Beginners Guide: Deploy and manage a cost-effective virtual environment using VirtualBox” by Packt Publishing. I’ll have a full review out soon, but I wanted to share this sample chapter that they have published as a .pdf.

The sample chapter is a 42 page chapter outlining getting started with VirtualBox. This includes installation, configuration and even outlines the installation of a simple Linux distribution as a guest, DSL (Damn Small Linux). For a “sample” it is actually quite impressive, and goes into a great amount of detail.

I’ll have a full review of the book here soon, but in the meantime have a look at the sample chapter and let me know what you think.

I’ve found more and more people are switching to Virtualbox these days and I keep running into the same question.  ”How can I convert my VMware images to Virtualbox images?”  Well, breath easy because it is possible and not very difficult!

There are two methods that I am aware of that will allow you to use your VMware images on Virtualbox.  The first method I’ll outline uses the graphical Virtualbox interface and the second uses the command line. Each method should be equally as stable, it simple depends on your preference.

Method 1

Start Virtualbox
Inside the Virtualbox Menu click: File > Virtual Media Manager
Click on the “Add” button.
Locate and select the VMware .vmdk file you’d like to convert.
Click Open.
Verify your disk image has been added to the list of images and that the virtual and actual sizes appear accurate.
Click OK
Create a new virtual machine profile, selecting your imported image for the storage.
Boot your new virtual machine.

Method 2
To use the second method we’ll need an addition command-line tool called qemu.

sudo aptitude install qemu

You’ll new be able to convert a .vmdk (VMware image) to a .bin format, which can then be converted to a Virtualbox native .vdi format.

qemu-img convert /path/to/original.vmdk converted.bin

You’ll then need to use the VBoxManage utility that comes with Virtualbox to convert the .bin to a native .vdi format:

VBoxManage convertdd converted.bin converted.vdi

You can now create your new Virtualbox machine profile, using this new .vdi file as your disk image.

Two methods for converting VMware images to Virtualbox images.  Are there any other methods that you can suggest, or have you had better experience with one or the other?  Let us know!

If you’ve ever played with Virtualization products you’ve very likely tried out VMware Server.  With its good support of hardware and software platforms, plus the fact that it is a free download from the VMware website, it is a very commonly used application.  What if you’ve decided to move on to other Virtualization products, such as VirtualBox or KVM?  How do you go about uninstalling VMware Server from your machine?

Uninstall VMware Server

Assuming you’ve followed the tutorials here for installing and configuring VMware Server on Ubuntu your installation is not managed by a debian package.  This means you’re not able to simply use the package management system to remove the installed files and folders.  Luckily, VMware distributed an uninstall utility for completely removing your VMware installation.  To remove VMware Server from your machine simply run:

sudo vmware-uninstall.pl

This should completely remove any installed files, folders or modules installed by the VMware installation scripts. I have found this to work on any Linux distribution I’ve tried so far.

If you’ve tried VMware and you’re ready to try something new, I very much suggest checking out VirtualBox.

UPDATE: These instructions should work for VMware Server 1.0.8 an the 2.6.27-8 kernel as well.

Based on a request in the Ubuntu Tutorials Forum I spent some time this morning researching VMware Server on the new Ubuntu 8.10 release.  Google was quickly helpful, and I was able to get VMware Server 1.0.7 running on a fresh install of Ubuntu 8.10 “Intrepid”.  Here are the steps I took toward getting this installed and working.

Download the dependencies and components

You’ll need to, of course, download the VMware Server .tar.gz file.  This can be done using this command:

wget -c http://download3.vmware.com/software/vmserver/VMware-server-1.0.7-108231.tar.gz

There is also a patch to get this to compile properly.  VMware has regularly been guilty of not keeping up with the latest kernels.  This patch will help correct this problem:

wget -c http://www.insecure.ws/warehouse/vmware-update-2.6.27-5.5.7-2.tar.gz

And the one last thing we’ll need are the compiler tools, which can be installed using this command (or click the package name to use aptURL):

sudo aptitude install build-essential linux-kernel-headers xinetd

Now that we have all of the dependencies and archives downloaded we can unpack them.  In the same location where you downloaded the .tar.gz files (likely your home folder or Desktop), run the following command:

tar xf vmware-update*.tar.gz
tar xf VMware-server*.tar.gz

Installing VMware Server 1.0.7 + patch

We’ll now start the installation.  First we need to install the core vmware application.  We’ll then patch the configuration script, and configure the system.

cd vmware-server-distrib/
sudo ./vmware-install.pl

On my installation I used the defaults until it asked me if I’d like to run the vmware-config.pl configuration script.  At this point select [no].

Once this has finished and you’ve quit at the configuration option, use these commands to patch the config:

cd ../vmware-update*/
sudo ./runme.pl

This script will patch the configuration and then again ask you to run the vmware-config.pl configuration script.  This time around select [yes].  On my installation I selected the defaults for the remaining questions and my installation works fine.

Good luck.  Any issues, give the Ubuntu Tutorials Forum a try.

You’ve been seeing a lot of virtualization specific posts recently here at Ubuntu Tutorials.  I’ve been tinkering with a number of virtualization options, namely VMware Server, Virtualbox and now KVM with Virt-Manager.

I’m not going to go into comparing the three in this post, but I will say that KVM is the only solution that will let me run 64bit guests on my 64bit host.  It also cleanly manages networking, whereas VirtualBox still has issues there.  KVM is still fairly new however so the UI features are not as nice as the other two.

Installing The Packages

Assuming your machine will support KVM (generally, core 2 duo and later) lets get the right packages installed.

sudo aptitude install kvm virt-manager libvirt-bin

This will install the Virt-Manager graphical interface for creating and managing your virtual installations.  It’ll also install the kernel module to make use of the KVM instruction set and the libvirt library.

Initial Setup

Once you’ve got the right packages installed you’ll need to give yourself access to the KVM device.  This is done simply enough using:

sudo gpasswd -a username libvirtd

This will require you to logout and login again.  When you get back we’ll get Virt-Manager launched and some virtual machines built.  Go ahead, relogin.  I’ll wait…

Running Virt-Manager

Virt-Manager is a nice kvm/qemu/xen management interface developed by the good folks at RedHat.  This utility makes it really easy to create, manage and delete virtual installations.  You can launch Virt-Manager via the command line, or the Applications menu.

virt-manager

Troubleshooting

If you have VirtualBox installed you may run into conflicts between the kernel modules.  Make sure to remember to remove the conflicting module before you run either of the virtualization solutions.  You can do this by using these commands.

To remove the VirtualBox module:

sudo modprobe -r vboxdrv

To remove the KVM module:

sudo modprobe -r kvm-intel

Enjoy.

Updated: added user to libvirtd group instead of kvm group. Removed launching with sudo.

Installing VMware Tools on virtualized guests gives you a much more enjoyable experience within your virtual environment.  Screen resolution, mouse behaviour, etc will be improved for your virtual sessions after installing these additional tools.  Installing these tools within Ubuntu 8.04 virtualized guests is fairly simple, just follow along below.

Installing VMware Tools

The first requirement, of course, is that you have Ubuntu 8.04 installed within VMware Server and that Ubuntu 8.04 is running.

Once you’ve got your Ubuntu 8.04 guest logged in, navigate to the “VM” menu option (File, Edit, View… VM) and select “Install VMware Tools”.  This will notify you once again that your guest must be logged in.  If that is the case, click “Install”.

note: The next step in the process may be simpler if you make sure any other CD images are unmounted before continuing.

This part of the process mounts a virtual CD image with the VMware Tools contained on it.  To find these tools for installation navigate to Places > Computer > CD Drive.  You should find these two files listed there:

VMwareTools-*.rpm
VMwareTools-.tar.gz


For Ubuntu guest installations we’ll want to use the .tar.gz file.  Now we have access to the needed file, the next part of the process is opening the archive and installing the tools.

Below I’ve put together a copy-paste list of commands you should be able to use to unpack and setup VMware Tools on your Ubuntu 8.04 guest.  All of these commands happen within the Ubuntu 8.04 Guest machine:

sudo aptitude install build-essential linux-headers-generic
cp /media/cdrom/VMwareTools-*.tar.gz /tmp/
cd /tmp/
tar xf VMwareTools-*.tar.gz
cd vmware-tools-distrib/
sudo ./vmware-install.pl


You should be able to safely select the defaults for most of the questions.  You might want to pay attention at the step where it asks for your preferred available resolution and set that properly.  For the new VMware Tools to be available once this process is done you’ll need to reboot your Ubuntu 8.04 guest.  Enjoy.

UPDATE: This tutorial has been updated for VMware Server 1.0.6.  See the updated instructions here, at How To Install VMware Server 1.0.6 on Ubuntu 8.04.

Now that most of the modern world has upgraded to Ubuntu 8.04 I’ve begun to see comments regarding VMware Server no longer working.  You may have used my previous article, Installing VMware Server on Ubuntu 7.10, which has worked great.  Now that 8.04 “Hardy” is installed things have become a bit more complicated unfortunately.

The problem is that VMware has not updated their latest versions to make use of the latest kernel, GCC or gnome libraries.  So, we’ve got two options.

1. Wait for a new VMware release and hope they patch everything.
2. Follow the rest of this tutorial and get your hands dirty on the terminal.  We can make it work, but we have to hammer it into submission.

So, I’ll assume because you’re still reading that you’ve opted for the hammer into submission option.  Let’s get started.

Downloading the Requirements

The first step, of course, is to download VMware Server 1.0.5.  You’ll have to agree to the EULA (actually twice.  Once before download and once during installation.  Remember, VMware is free-as-in-beer but not free-as-in-speech.)

The second step is to install some development tools that we’ll need to get things running.  Use the following command or click the package names to install the requirements:

sudo aptitude install build-essential linux-kernel-devel linux-headers-generic xinetd


The third step is to download one more tool to help in the manual build process for VMware Server 1.0.5.  What we need is a script which will help in the custom config hosted at Google Code.  Download the vmware-any-any-update-116.tgz.

You will also need to generate a serial number to run VMware Server.  Visit this link to register and generate the number of codes you might want. Remember to print the codes or write them down because in my experience they are not emailed to you.

OK, at this point we should have all of the requirements, now we can get to work…

Installation and Configuration

Let’s unpack the VMware archive that we downloaded and run the VMware installer.  NOTE: After some basic configuration it will ask you to run vmware-config.pl.  DO NOT RUN vmware-config.pl, WE ARE NOT READY YET.

tar xf VMware-server-1.0.5
cd vmware-server-distrib
sudo ./vmware-install.pl


When it asks you to run vmware-config.pl you want to answer “no” and this is where the vmware-any-any-116.tgz patch comes in.

cd ..
tar xf vmware-any-any-update-116.tgz
cd vmware-any-any-update116
sudo ./runme.pl

After this runs it will ask you again if you want to run vmware-config.pl.  At this point select “yes”.

The Last Step

If you attempt to run vmware at this point you might notice that it spits out some nasty errors and complains at you.  There is one more thing we need to setup. (Hey, VMware, if you’re reading this will you please incorporate these fixes into your official download already!)

Basically VMware is missing and complaining about some cairo libraries and gcc.  So, the simple fix for this is to point to them by using a symbolic link:

sudo ln -sf /usr/lib/gcc/i486-linux-gnu/4.2.3/libgcc_s.so /usr/lib/vmware/lib/libgcc_s.so.1/libgcc_s.so.1
sudo ln -sf /usr/lib/libpng12.so.0 /usr/lib/vmware/lib/libpng12.so.0/libpng12.so.0

At this point you should be able to launch vmware and enjoy some virtualization goodness.  Please stay tuned for virtualization updates regarding virtualbox and the new KVM!

sources: I want to throw a big thanks to my buddy Igor for helping figure out these tweaks.  Check out his blog, with these and other instructions, here.

UPDATE: based on some of the comments below I’ve added the “-f” to the symbolik link options.

UPDATE: This post has been updated for VMware Server 1.0.5 on Ubuntu 8.04.  If you are running Ubuntu 8.04 you’ll need to follow those instructions.

My previous tutorial on installing VMware Server on Ubuntu 7.10 has been wildly successful but I also realize now that it has become a bit out of date. This tutorial is an update with a few simplified steps. It will be nice when VMware Server makes it into canonicals partner repository (as is available on Ubuntu 7.04), but until then these few steps should work for most of us.

As an update from the previous post, for those that are curious, here is an explanation. At the time of that writing there was a slight issue with the current kernel that required the suggested patch. Since that post was published the kernel has been updated and the patch no longer needed. It doesn’t appear to conflict with anything if it is run with the patch, but I felt that this warranted an updated tutorial.

Installing VMware Server on Ubuntu 7.10 “Gutsy Gibbon”

1. Download VMware Server from the VMware website.
2. Unpack the contents of the archive to your system (perhaps /tmp)
3. sudo aptitude install build-essential xinetd linux-headers-$(uname -r)
   
4. Open a terminal (Applications > Accessories > Terminal), cd /tmp/vmware-server (or wherever you unpacked the archive)
5. sudo ./vmware-install.pl

Answer all of the questions presented to you. The defaults should be fine if you are unsure about any. When everything has finished you should be able to launch VMware Server from your desktop menu under Applications > System Tools.

The last step in the installer should ask you for your VMware Server serial number. While VMware Server is free (free as in beer) it does require a serial number to use and is not free software (free as in freedom). If you need a serial number generated you can register for your VMware Server serial number(s) here.

UPDATE: This tutorial has been updated to half as many steps.  Please use the updated tutorial available:  Installing VMware Server on Ubuntu 7.10 “Gutsy Gibbon” : Updated.

UPDATE: For those running VMware Server 1.0.3 there is an updated version available.

As I mentioned a few posts ago (How to Install VMware Server on Ubuntu 7.04) I would be outlining how to install VMware Server on Ubuntu 7.10. These steps are a bit different from Ubuntu 7.04, as the canonical commercial repository is not up to date with the alpha releases of Ubuntu 7.10. There is a workaround however that can help you get VMware Sever installed.

Installing VMWare Server on Ubuntu 7.10

1. Download VMware Server source from the VMware website.
2. Download this installer patch. (source reference)
3. Extract all the archives to some location on your system (tar -zxvf VMware-server* ; tar -zxvf vmware*)
4. Ensure that you have build-essential installed in order to compile these sources (sudo aptitude install build-essential)
5. Install the xinetd server (sudo aptitude install xinetd)
6. Run sudo ./vmware-install.pl located within the vmware-server-* unpacked archive.
7. Select all the default options *EXCEPT* do not compile the modules at this point. (Do you want this program to try to build the vmmon module for your system? NO)
8. Run sudo ./runme.pl located within the vmware-any* archive. This will launch step 8.
9. Select the default options and this time answer YES to compile the proper modules.
10. Run vmware-server using the command vmware or via your Applications Menu.

Basically, at this point, VMware Server needs to be installed manually from source until the canonical commercial repository catches up and Ubuntu 7.10 is final. Until then this should work for manually installing.

note: if you update your kernel you will need to re-run the scripts to regenerate and recompile VMware Server for your updated kernel. I’m guessing this close to beta and final releases that we wont have any more kernel updates.. but I’m sure that will soon prove me wrong. Just be aware.

UPDATE: This tutorial has been updated to half as many steps.  Please use the updated tutorial available:  Installing VMware Server on Ubuntu 7.10 “Gutsy Gibbon” : Updated.