If you are using Ubuntu as your guest computer, then you will want to create folders on your host computer for each of the different applications that you use on your Ubuntu virtual machine. This will make it easier to access the applications when you want to run them, and it will also make it easier to share the folders between your guests. To create a folder on your host computer for each application, open a command prompt and type: mkdir -p /usr/share/applications/{application name} For example, if you are using Firefox, then the command would be: mkdir -p /usr/share/firefox
For this to work, you will need to make sure that you have the vmware tools installed and running.
You can check to see if the vmware shared folders module is running by running this command:
If you get nothing then the mdoule is not loaded. You will need to load it with this command:
If that gives you another error, then you don’t have the vmware tools installed, and you will want to make sure to install them before proceeding.
In VMware Workstation, go to the VM \ Settings window and then click on the Options tab. From here you can modify the shared folders.
Click the Add button, and you will be presented with a wizard. Click next, and you should see this screen:
The name field will become part of the mounted path in Ubuntu, so name it something short and to the point. For instance, this shared folder will be mounted on /mnt/hgfs/mydrive/
Select the host folder that you want to share and then click the Next button
If you are worried about the guest operating system messing with your files, you can select the read-only checkbox. I personally did so simply because I was worried about accessing in-use files.
You shouldn’t even have to restart your virtual machine. The folders should immediately show up under /mnt/hgfs
That’s all there is to it. Remember, if you have problems it’s probably because your vmware tools are not installed.
Tested on: Ubuntu Dapper, Ubuntu Edgy Eft
Update: If you have problems you might also want to check your firewall settings, which could be disabling communications between the virtual machine and your host computer. Thanks to burkhard in the comments for noticing this.
