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Re: VMWare 6.02 and Linux screen saver?



 You have what I have except you are running VMWare and I am running 
Virtualbox.  I ran several tests, and I think I solved your problem. 
Take a look at test #3.  In both VMs, the default is that the mouse is 
captured in the virtual machine and you need to press a certain 
keystroke to release the mouse.  Both VMWare and Virtualbox have what 
Virtualbox called Guest Additions, and I think VMWare calls VMWare 
Tools. With this installed, then your mouse can roam at will and is not 
captured inside the guest OS windows. So, to solve your problem install 
VMWare Tools into the guest OS.  If I recall there is a pulldown 
windows in the VMWare guest OS window that allows you to download and 
install it. The guest OS must be running to install it. 

First, make sure your guest OS has its screen saver disabled. There is 
not reason to have the Windows screensaver enabled. Also turn off the 
energy saving features of the guest OS. 

Test number 1 Guest Additions installed Mouse integration set,Linux 
screen saver set to 5 mins with the Windows screen savers off. 
1. With focus on Linux, the screen saver triggered after 5 mins. 
2. With focus on the Windows VM running in a windows, the Linux screen 
saver correctly triggered. 
3. With the guest OS set to full screen (ctrl-F in Virtualbox, VMWare 
has the same option but different keys) the Linux screen saver 
triggered after 5. 

Test 2, Windows screen saver set to 2 minutes. 
1. With focus on Linux, both the Windows and Linux screen savers 
triggered successfully. 
2. With focus in the guest OS with the guestOS in a window, both the 
Windows and Linux screen savers triggered successfully. 
3. In the guest OS Full Screen more the both the Windows and Linux 
screen savers triggered successfully. 

Test number 3, turned mouse integration off. This is the default when 
guest additions are not installed, the mouse is captured in the virtual 
machine and you need to use a keystroke combination to break out 
(right-ctrl in virtualbox).   
1. With focus on Linux, both the Windows and Linux screen savers 
triggered successfully. 
2. With focus in the guest OS with the guest OS in a window and the 
mouse captured, the Windows saver triggered successfully, but not the 
Linux screen saver. 


On Thu, 31 Jan 2008 10:53:18 -0500 (EST) 
Scott Ehrlich <[hidden email]> wrote: 

> On Thu, 31 Jan 2008, Jerry Feldman wrote: 
> 
> > On Thu, 31 Jan 2008 07:18:48 -0500 (EST) 
> > Scott Ehrlich <[hidden email]> wrote: 
> > 
> >> I have a user who freshly installed Linux desktop.  They also installed 
> >> VMWare 6.02. 
> >> 
> >> When they click the mouse on their Linux desktop, the screen saver 
> >> properly activates.  But, when they click the mouse in their VMWare 
> >> session, the Linux screen saver never activates.  This has been tried for 
> >> both VMWare Player and Workstation. 
> >> 
> >> I don't know if it makes any difference, but the VMWare Guest OS is Windows XP 
> >> w/SP2. 
> > 
> > Please be more specific. What linux distro, what Desktop Manager 
> > (GNOME, KDE). 
> 
> Gnome - happens to be Ubuntu 7.10 (Gutsy Gibbon) 
> 
> > 
> > I assume you mean that when the focus is on the Linux desktop the Linux 
> > screen saver activates, but when the focus is on the Guest OS VM the 
> > Linux screen saver does not activate when it is supposed to. Is that 
> > your question. (I assume that the guest OS is running as a Window in 
> > Linux and not full screen. 
> 
> The above is all correct. 


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