X freezes running vmware (server and workstation) when using network

[Fredrik]

When running vmware my X freezes. Sometimes just aminute but often for ever. Not even the LED:s on the keyboard will work.

It seems like this happen then vmware is using the network, so my guess is there are something wrong in the kernel modules.

[Brian Murray (brian-murray)]

Thank you for taking the time to report this bug and helping to make Ubuntu better. You reported this bug a while ago and there hasn't been any activity in recently. We were wondering if this is still an issue for you? Thanks in advance.

[Elyse Grasso (emgrasso)]

I have recently been having this problem whenever I try to open a browser in my Win XP guest. I reverted to a snapshot from August, when things were working fine, and still have the problem, so I suspect it is related to recent updates to VMWare Workstation or Kubuntu, or both. When the lockups happens, the mousepointer will move, but neither clicks nor keystrokes have any effect and the display stops updating other than the mousepointer. I have to hard-cycle the system to unlock it.

When the lockups happens I can neither ping nor ssh to the system from outside it.

I am using VMWare Workstation 5.5.5 on
Kubuntu 7.10: Linux sophia 2.6.22-14-generic #1 SMP Tue Dec 18 05:28:27 UTC 2007 x86_64 GNU/Linux

xorg.conf is dated may 3 2007, well before the problems started. I am currently using the fglrx ATI driver.

I switched drivers at one time in the past because of vmware lockups. I will try switching drivers again. Please let me know if you need more information.

[Elyse Grasso (emgrasso)]

switching drivers to ati does not appear to stop the lockups, but this time I got a vmware monitor error popup before things locked up completely.

[pippo (pippowork)]

hallo.

me too I have about the same troubles (strange indeed): I run vmware 6 for linux, host system Ubuntu 7.10, guest: windows XPsp2 and windows2000 server sp4.

From time to time (I would say every 15 minutes, but it's really random) X freeze, and the keybord does not work anymore, while mouse still function.

It last about 30 seconds 1 minute, very annoying.

I had the same behaviour with fedora 8 but less often.

I have an asus laptop, with ATI video card (damned!).

...really desperate, during this short message, it happened twice...

hope to get some news...

ciao

[Elyse Grasso (emgrasso)]

It hasn't happened for a few months for me. I am at the latest version of
VMWare 6, Kubuntu 7.10.

What made the biggest difference for VMWare was downloading the latest version
of the Madwifi wireless driver. (I found that advice somewhere on the Ubuntu
forums). I need to rebuild the driver every time the kernel gets updated but
vmware is stable, so it is worth it.

Before this change VMWare would not set up Bridged networking. Now everything
works. I may have found the fix when I was trying to get Bridged working so
searches about problems with Bridged support in VMWare might be useful.

On Friday 28 March 2008, you wrote:
> hallo.
>
> me too I have about the same troubles (strange indeed): I run vmware 6
> for linux, host system Ubuntu 7.10, guest: windows XPsp2 and windows2000
> server sp4.
>
> >From time to time (I would say every 15 minutes, but it's really random)
> X freeze, and the keybord does not work anymore, while mouse still
> function.
>
> It last about 30 seconds 1 minute, very annoying.
>
> I had the same behaviour with fedora 8 but less often.
>
> I have an asus laptop, with ATI video card (damned!).
>
> ...really desperate, during this short message, it happened twice...
>
> hope to get some news...
>
> ciao
>
> --
> X freezes running vmware (server and workstation) when using network
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/117219
> You received this bug notification because you are a direct subscriber
> of the bug.
>

--
Elyse Grasso

http://www.data-raptors.com    Computers and Technology
http://www.astraltrading.com   Divination and Science Fiction
http://www.data-raptors.com/global-cgi-bin/cgiwrap/emgrasso/blosxom.cgi WebLog

[Rocko (rockorequin)]

I've been getting this problem for the last few days, since installing vmware-server 1.0.7 in Hardy 8.04.1 (kernel 2.6.24-21-generic amd64). My XP VM hangs, often when I close mysql-query-browser or mysql-admin.

Curiously, it appears that if I have a second monitor attached to the PC, the whole of X usually hangs, and I have to kill vmware via ssh from a remote machine to unlock it; if I have no external monitor, only vmware hangs.

I uninstalled vmware-server 1.0.7 and went back to 1.0.6 in case 1.0.7 was causing the problem, but it is happening also now in 1.0.6. (Previous to this, I had no locking-up problems with 1.0.x in more than a year.)

The network card I'm using is an "Intel Corporation PRO/Wireless 4965 AG or AGN Network Connection (rev 61)"; vmware-server is sharing the network via NAT.

[JimmyKang (james-king)]

I am having a similar problem. I am not sure if it is exactly the same or not. I notice that I can move my mouse around but cannot click anything or use the keyboard. However, if I watch my system monitor it still refreshes. It seems to me that vmware is locking up and has a hold of the keyboard and mouse.up completely.

[Elyse Grasso (emgrasso)]

On Friday 26 September 2008, JimmyKang wrote:
> I am having a similar problem. I am not sure if it is exactly the same
> or not. I notice that I can move my mouse around but cannot click
> anything or use the keyboard. However, if I watch my system monitor it
> still refreshes. It seems to me that vmware is locking up and has a hold
> of the keyboard and mouse.up completely.
>
> --
> X freezes running vmware (server and workstation) when using network
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/117219
> You received this bug notification because you are a direct subscriber
> of the bug.
>
That sounds familiar. If there is a different video driver available for your
system, try switching to it. Most of my problems went away when I switched
from free to proprietary driver or vice versa. I'm no longer using that laptop
or I would tell you which one worked. (I'm pretty sure my problems involved
the ATI video drivers.)

--
Elyse Grasso

http://www.data-raptors.com Computers and Technology
http://www.astraltrading.com Divination and Science Fiction
http://www.data-raptors.com/global-cgi-bin/cgiwrap/emgrasso/blosxom.cgi WebLog

[Fredrik (fredrk)]

Chaning driver is not a option for me at least. Using nvidias driver. I have stoipped using vmware since this so I don't know if it's a issue anymore.

[Mike D (sonofafool-deactivatedaccount)]

This is happening for me as well. I'm running Ubuntu Hardy Heron with the proprietary ATI drivers for a Radeon 1600 (fglrx), and XP SP3 as the guest. The entire system freezes permanently, I have never experienced a temporary freeze. When the system is frozen I cannot ping the host or the guest, and cannot SSH to the host.

This has happened with the screensaver running as well as when the display is sleeping. I am fairly sure, however, that I had the VM running every time.

Most of the time after I reset the box, the entire display is shifted to the right a few inches (a large black vertical bar on the left side, the display trailing off te monitor on the right side). A reboot after fully logging in has generally fixed this.

I'm unable to locate any record of the issue in my logs.

[Mike D (sonofafool-deactivatedaccount)]

OK, apparently vm workstation has nothing to do with it. It just locked up on me 3 times in very rapid succession running without it. Once was in Firefox/Gnome, and twice had no programs running, and it froze on the desktop (once in Gnome and once in Kubuntu).

I reverted to a completely generic xorg.conf file (sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-org)and rebooted, and am running in KDE for awhile, and will update if it still occurs.

[Pinecone (ultimate-pinecone)]

Could this have any similarity to the NVidia infinite loop problem (http://forums.nvidia.com/index.php?showtopic=4432&st=0) that many people seem to have on windows? I have this problem when i boot to xp and the problem seems to be the same judging by the description if i disregard that people mostly seem to have this problem when running vmware.

I've had this problem once while running virtualbox with xp inside it from ubuntu 8.10, the xp inside virtualbox showed the exact symptoms of the infinite loop problem which i have when it happens when i've booted to xp (on xp the screen starts to flicker slightly after a while of being frozen), while ubuntu showed the exact problems described by all the above posts. I also had the problem on ubuntu while not running virtualbox.

I have this problem regardless of if im running 32 or 64 bit versions of ubuntu, although considerably less often on 64 bit. I do not have a 64 bit version of XP although if im right in thinking this is the same problem, im guessing i would have it on that too.

Any help would be much appreciated as it seems no matter what i do i cant escape this random freezing.

Note: The fix for windows in the post i linked to above on the nvidia forum did not work for me on my xp install.

[JimmyKang (james-king)]

I can say that I stopped using VMWare and started using Virtual Box and I
have not had this issue since.

I can also say that when I encountered this problem in VMware the processor
in my windows guest never spiked.

At the time I was having the trouble, based on the symptoms I was fairly
certain it had to do with VMware grabbing the input from the keyboard and
not releasing it.

James

On Wed, May 6, 2009 at 8:50 PM, Pinecone <email address hidden>wrote:

> Could this have any similarity to the NVidia infinite loop problem
> (http://forums.nvidia.com/index.php?showtopic=4432&st=0) that many
> people seem to have on windows? I have this problem when i boot to xp
> and the problem seems to be the same judging by the description if i
> disregard that people mostly seem to have this problem when running
> vmware.
>
> I've had this problem once while running virtualbox with xp inside it
> from ubuntu 8.10, the xp inside virtualbox showed the exact symptoms of
> the infinite loop problem which i have when it happens when i've booted
> to xp (on xp the screen starts to flicker slightly after a while of
> being frozen), while ubuntu showed the exact problems described by all
> the above posts. I also had the problem on ubuntu while not running
> virtualbox.
>
> I have this problem regardless of if im running 32 or 64 bit versions of
> ubuntu, although considerably less often on 64 bit. I do not have a 64
> bit version of XP although if im right in thinking this is the same
> problem, im guessing i would have it on that too.
>
> Any help would be much appreciated as it seems no matter what i do i
> cant escape this random freezing.
>
> Note: The fix for windows in the post i linked to above on the nvidia
> forum did not work for me on my xp install.
>
> --
> X freezes running vmware (server and workstation) when using network
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/117219
> You received this bug notification because you are a direct subscriber
> of the bug.
>
> Status in “vmware-server” source package in Ubuntu: Confirmed
>
> Bug description:
> When running vmware my X freezes. Sometimes just aminute but often for
> ever. Not even the LED:s on the keyboard will work.
>
> It seems like this happen then vmware is using the network, so my guess is
> there are something wrong in the kernel modules.
>

[Arthur (artg-cs)]

My system freezes frequently too.
Running
Ubuntu 8.04.2 LTS 32-bit on
VMware Workstation 6.5.1 on
Red Hat Linux version 2.6.18 on box X, a 64-bit X86.
Xserver is XQuartz 2.3.3.1 (xorg-server 1.4.2-apple42) running on mac OS X 10.5.7 on box Y, an X 86.
(Enough versions for you?)
About once a day all the X windows used by VMware freeze -- support no I/O. the vmware processes are still running.
On one occasion I tried ctl-Cing vmware, which prompted the "do you want to shut down, system is running" warning from VMware. I selected suspend and then was able to restart.

Also, I note that VMware Workstation 6.5.2 touts support for Ubuntu 8.04, so FWIW I'll upgrade to that.

ARTHUR

[Arthur (artg-cs)]

The same problem continues to occur with VMware Workstation 6.5.2.

[Arthur (artg-cs)]

I want to post this bug on a VMware newsgroup, but they stink.
The login link on http://communities.vmware.com/community/vmtn/desktop/workstation fails, and trying to Reply to a message generates this error in Firefox:

Redirect Loop
Firefox has detected that the server is redirecting the request for this address in a way that will never complete.
The browser has stopped trying to retrieve the requested item. The site is redirecting the request in a way that will never complete.

I'd appreciate 1) any hints on how to circumvent these bugs in http://communities.vmware.com/ or 2) suggestions of other forums in which to post this "VMware freezes" bug report.

Thanks
Arthur

[firstohit (firstohit)]

I have been encountering this issue since early jan this year and still have not found solution. The problem is screen freezes. mouse moves but cannot click same symptoms as described above, hdd led is active, seems like forever case, holding down power button for 15 sec recycles the system is only way out. there is no logs before or after event (big issue for me). I am using Ubuntu 9.10 64-bit and just upgraded to vmware workstation 7.1 from 7.0.1. bug still there. I have noticed that my screen saver comes on even though actively using vmware. I suspected this might be causing issue but not confirmed. it feels like its vmware issue since I don't remember it happening without having vmware open. I will post if I find solution. please fix this bug. is this related to vmware?

[Arthur (artg-cs)]

I guess that X drops a packet and cannot recover.
A

On Jun 8, 2010, at 9:45 AM, firstohit wrote:

> I have been encountering this issue since early jan this year and
> still
> have not found solution. The problem is screen freezes. mouse moves
> but
> cannot click same symptoms as described above, hdd led is active,
> seems
> like forever case, holding down power button for 15 sec recycles the
> system is only way out. there is no logs before or after event (big
> issue for me). I am using Ubuntu 9.10 64-bit and just upgraded to
> vmware
> workstation 7.1 from 7.0.1. bug still there. I have noticed that my
> screen saver comes on even though actively using vmware. I suspected
> this might be causing issue but not confirmed. it feels like its
> vmware
> issue since I don't remember it happening without having vmware
> open. I
> will post if I find solution. please fix this bug. is this related to
> vmware?
>
> --
> X freezes running vmware (server and workstation) when using network
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/117219
> You received this bug notification because you are a direct subscriber
> of the bug.
>
> Status in “vmware-server” package in Ubuntu: Confirmed
>
> Bug description:
> When running vmware my X freezes. Sometimes just aminute but often
> for ever. Not even the LED:s on the keyboard will work.
>
> It seems like this happen then vmware is using the network, so my
> guess is there are something wrong in the kernel modules.
>
> To unsubscribe from this bug, go to:
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/vmware-server/+bug/117219/+subscribe
>

[firstohit (firstohit)]

I found a solution to my problem. Today, I switched to VirtualBox. Mouse and keyboard integration works without a problem. I simply used vmware manage tool to consolidate my vmdk into one file and directly imported it in manager to virtualbox and booted it and it worked. so far no freezes anymore.

[Phillip Susi (psusi)]

This package has been removed from Ubuntu. Closing all related bugs.