This issue occurs when the VMware Tools vmware-config-tools.pl script parses the /etc/sysconfig/kernel file to determine how to rebuild initrd to include the VMware modules. If the /etc/sysconfig/kernel file does not have an entry for modules, the script fails to execute.
Resolution
To work around the issue, add the line INITRD_MODULES to the /etc/sysconfig/kernel file.
To add the line INITRD_MODULES to the /etc/sysconfig/kernel file:
On the SLES virtual machine, create a backup of the file /etc/sysconfig/kernel:
cp /etc/sysconfig/kernel /tmp/kernel.bkup
Open and edit the /etc/sysconfig/kernel file.
Add the entry INITRD_MODULES="" to the end of the file.