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Determining When a Virtual Machine Grabs Input

You can control how input is grabbed from virtual machines. To do so:

  1. Connect to a virtual machine with a remote console.

    Note: Since input preferences are global and apply to all virtual machines running on a management workstation, you do not need to open a configuration file before setting these preferences.

  2. Select Settings > Input Preferences.
  3. Select the options you want to enable. These options are described below.
  4. Click OK.

Option

Behavior

Grab on Mouse Click

When you click the mouse inside the virtual machine, the remote console begins grabbing the keyboard and mouse input.

Grab on Key Press

When you hit a keyboard key when the virtual machine is active, the remote console begins grabbing the keyboard and mouse input.

Grab when Cursor Enters Window

The remote console grabs the keyboard and mouse when the cursor crosses over into the virtual machine. When this option is enabled along with the Ungrab when Cursor Leaves Window option, the mouse pointer becomes the mouse pointer of your guest operating system when it crosses into the VMware ESX Server remote console window.

Raise Window to Top on Grab

The remote console sets the focus of the application when the cursor passes over the application view.

Ungrab when Cursor Leaves Window

VMware ESX Server enables you to transition seamlessly between the virtual machine and the remote console. In a windowed environment, the mouse pointer becomes the mouse pointer of your management workstation when it hits the edge of the VMware ESX Server remote console window.

Note: This option only has effect when VMware Tools is running in the virtual machine.

Hide Cursor on Ungrab

The mouse pointer of the guest operating system is hidden when the mouse is controlling the pointer of the operating system on your physical computer and vice versa. This is particularly useful when your guest operating system and the operating system on your physical computer are identical.

Note: This option only has effect when VMware Tools is running in the virtual machine.

Scroll When Cursor Approaches Window Edge

If your virtual screen is larger than the remote console can display, then the remote console only displays a part of the virtual screen. To see the rest of the screen, you need to use scroll bars to move the viewable part of the virtual screen. When this option is enabled and the virtual machine is in windowed mode, the virtual screen automatically scrolls the console window when the mouse pointer nears the edge of the viewable portion of the virtual screen.

Note: This option only has effect when VMware Tools is running in the virtual machine.

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