Using the Status Monitor

The Status Monitor page contains a high-level view of the GSX Server host including a host system summary and list of all virtual machines known to the host that you have sufficient permissions to see.

The number of processors on the GSX Server host, including the average percentage of processor usage used by virtual machines, other processes on the host and the total being used by the whole system for the previous minute.

The amount of memory on the GSX Server host, including the average amount of memory used by virtual machines, other processes on the host and the total being used by the whole system for the previous minute.

Under Virtual Machines, you can view a list of all virtual machines known to the host that you have sufficient permissions to see. When a virtual machine is running, the Status Monitor page displays its ID number after the power status of the virtual machine.

Click the virtual machine menu icon (

) — the arrow to the right of the terminal icon (

) — to display a menu of options for that virtual machine. The menu includes the following commands, most of which can be performed using the buttons and other visual elements of the management interface.

Attach Console — launches the VMware Virtual Machine Console, which connects to this virtual machine. Selecting this option is the same as clicking

. You need to log in to the host. For more information, see Connecting to a Virtual Machine from a Windows Host or Client and Connecting to a Virtual Machine from a Linux Host or Client.

Note: Netscape and Mozilla users must define a MIME type for the console first; Internet Explorer is automatically configured when the console is installed. For information, see Setting a MIME Type to Launch the VMware Virtual Machine Console.

Properties — opens the Virtual Machine Overview page for this virtual machine in a new browser window. Selecting this option is the same as clicking the virtual machine name link in the Display Name column.

Configure Hardware — opens the Hardware page, where you can edit a virtual machine's hardware configuration. You can edit most configuration options only when the virtual machine is powered off. When the virtual machine is powered on, you can edit removable devices and the virtual network adapter.

Configure Options — opens the Options page, where you can edit a virtual machine's configuration, such as the guest operating system type, display name, the location of the suspended state file and the startup and shutdown options. With the exception of the display name, you can edit these options only when the virtual machine is powered off.

Shut Down Guest — runs the script associated with this power state change, then shuts down the guest operating system and powers off the virtual machine. Selecting this option is the same as clicking

in the power state popup.

Suspend after Running Script — runs the associated script then suspends a running virtual machine. Selecting this option is the same as clicking

in the power state popup.

Power On/Resume and Run Script — powers on a stopped virtual machine or resumes a suspended virtual machine, then runs the script associated with this power state change. Selecting this option is the same as clicking

in the power state popup.

Restart Guest — gracefully restarts the guest operating system and the virtual machine. Selecting this option is the same as clicking

in the power state popup.

Power Off — powers off the virtual machine immediately without running a script or shutting down the guest operating system. Selecting this option is the same as turning off the power to a physical computer.

Power On/Resume — powers on a stopped virtual machine or resumes a suspended virtual machine without running a script.

Reset — resets the virtual machine immediately without running a script or stopping the guest operating system. Selecting this option is the same as pressing the reset button on a physical computer.

Delete Virtual Machine — lets you delete a virtual machine and its files, provided the virtual machine is powered off. See Deleting a Virtual Machine Using the VMware Management Interface.

If you need to view a particular virtual machine's desktop, you can attach the VMware Virtual Machine Console and connect to the virtual machine. Click the terminal icon (

) in the row for the virtual machine to which you want to connect with the console. For information on connecting with the console, see Connecting to a Virtual Machine from a Windows Host or Client and Connecting to a Virtual Machine from a Linux Host or Client.

The terminal icon appears slightly different, depending upon the guest operating system selected for the virtual machine when it was created. This visual cue helps to identify the virtual machine (for example, the display name may not indicate the guest operating system). The variations in the terminal icon are shown here.

Under HB is a bar graph that represents the average percentage of heartbeats received by a virtual machine during the previous minute. The heartbeat represents the overall health of the guest operating system, based on whether applications running in the guest are consuming resources from other applications in the guest.

The heartbeats are sent by the VMware Tools service to the virtual machine from its guest operating system; the percentage is relative to the number of heartbeats the virtual machine expects to receive for the minute before the page was last updated. Heavily loaded guest operating systems may not send 100% of the expected heartbeats, even though the system is otherwise operating normally; in general, only when the heartbeat percentage drops to zero should the virtual machine or guest operating system be considered abnormal.

Note: If VMware Tools is not installed or is not running, the guest operating system does not send any heartbeats to its virtual machine and this meter is disabled.

The link in the Display Name column indicates the display name for the virtual machine; if one is not specified, then the path to the configuration file for the virtual machine appears here instead. This column also contains the virtual machine's power state, its process ID and its virtual machine ID (if it is running); it also notes if VMware Tools is not installed.

If the virtual machine is waiting for a response to a system message, a Waiting for input link appears here. Click the link to view the message and respond to it.

Click the virtual machine link for more details about the virtual machine. The Virtual Machine Overview page appears in a new browser window. For more information, see Configuring a Virtual Machine.

The value in the % CPU column indicates the average percentage of host operating system processor capacity the virtual machine used during the final minute before the page was last updated. More detailed processor information is available on the Virtual Machine Overview page.

The value in the RAM column indicates the average amount of memory the virtual machine used during the final minute before the page was last updated. More memory information is available on the Virtual Machine Overview page.

Refresh — This link refreshes or reloads the current page. To avoid conflicts with other users, click this button before you perform an operation in the management interface like shutting down, suspending, resuming or powering on a virtual machine — or after you perform such an operation in a console.

Help — This link connects you to the online documentation for the current page in the management interface.

Logout — This link logs you out of the management interface. You can log out from the Status Monitor and Options pages only. Click Logout to return to the Login page. See Logging Out of the VMware Management Interface.