VMware Tools

What is VMware Tools?

VMware Tools is a suite of utilities that enhances the performance of the virtual machine’s OS and improves management of the virtual machine with optimized network, storage, and video drivers. Also it allows the systems to allocate CPU and Memory resources to VMs more reliably and efficiently. Although the guest operating system can run without VMware Tools, you lose important functionality and convenience.

Here are some of key benefits VMware Tools provide.

1. Efficient CPU/Memory Allocation

2. Optimized Network Adapter Drivers

3. Optimized Storage Drivers

4. Reliable advanced vSphere features such as High Availability, Distributed Resource Scheduler

5. Mouse & Video Acceleration on Guest OS

For more information about how to verify VMware Tools version on your VMs, refer to the following KB article Verify VMware Tools version.

VMware Knowledge Base Articles

• Overview of VMware Tools - http://kb.vmware.com/kb/340

• General VMware Tools installation instructions - http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1014294

• Installing VMware Tools in a Windows virtual machine - http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1018377

• Installing VMware Tools in an Ubuntu virtual machine - http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1022525

• Installing VMware Tools in a Linux virtual machine using RPM - http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1018392

• Installing VMware Tools in a Solaris virtual machine - http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1023956