How to install the vmware video card driver on a FreeBSD 8 guest virtual machine?

[rhyous]

How to install the vmware video card driver on a FreeBSD 8 guest virtual machine? (http://rhyous.com/2010/01/29/how-to-install-the-vmware-video-card-driver-on-a-freebsd-8-guest-virtual-machine/)

Well, I have documentation on how to create a FreeBSD 8 Desktop environment here:
How to install and configure a FreeBSD 8 Desktop with Xorg and KDE? (http://rhyous.com/2009/12/18/how-to-install-and-configure-a-freebsd-8-desktop-with-xorg-and-kde/)

However, if you install FreeBSD as a VMWare guest, you will want to install two additional pieces of software when you are finished:

1. You need to install the VMWare X11 driver (no, it will not be installed when you install the VMWare tools)
2. You need to install VMWare-tools

This guide is to walk you through resolving the first of these two issues. ...

Part 1 – Installing and Configuring the VMWare X11 Driver


Step 1 – Install the VMWare X11 driver

1. Change to the appropriate ports directory.

# cd /usr/ports/x11-drivers/xf86-video-vmware

Read more... (http://rhyous.com/2010/01/29/how-to-install-the-vmware-video-card-driver-on-a-freebsd-8-guest-virtual-machine/)

[DrJ]

This may be OT (apologies if it is), but is there a way to get the cursor control to work? Namely, is there a way to not have to select the VM host or guest through a control sequence, and simply move the cursor to the appropriate window? I've not found a way to do so with a FreeBSD guest.

[phoenix]

You have to install the vmware tools/guest additions. Not sure if they have a FreeBSD 8.x version available or not.

[DrJ]

I have, but this seems not to work. Yes, it was on 8.0.

I should mention that the vmware video driver works well -- resizing and higher resolutions are easy to do. I have it running on my tablet, where X11 can use the full 1400x1050 resolution available.

[rhyous]

Yes, sorry, I originally planned to put it in one doc, but I was to busy to finish part 2 in the same week.

I have vmware-tools installed but I need to really test what works and what doesn't.

[rhyous]

ok, so I wrote part 2 today.

How to install VMWare-tools on FreeBSD 8? (http://rhyous.com/2010/01/30/how-to-install-vmware-tools-on-freebsd-8/)

Also, I made a separate post for this here.
http://forums.freebsd.org/showthread.php?t=10824

It should help you get your mouse grabbing, clip-board synchronizing, autofit guest, etc. working.

[DrJ]

See my follow-up in that thread.