VMware Tools installation fails when McAfee Antivirus is in Maximum Protection mode

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

Installation or upgrade of VMware Tools fails on Windows guest operating systems when McAfee Antivirus is installed and is running in Maximum Protection mode or has Access Protection enabled. The VMware Tools installation wizard fails and displays the error:

 

The wizard was interrupted before VMware Tools could be completely installed.

Resolution

This is an expected effect of Access Protection and the Maximum Protection mode. To successfully install VMware tools in a Windows guest operating system with McAfee Antivirus, select one of these options:

• Use McAfee Antivirus in Standard Mode.
• Install VMware Tools before installing McAfee Antivirus on the Windows guest operating system. McAfee Antivirus will, however, prevent further tools upgrades if run in Maximum Protection mode.
• Temporarily disable Access Protection from the McAfee Antivirus Virus Scan Console when either installing or upgrading VMware Tools.
  1. Access the Virus Scan Console by selecting Start > Programs > McAfee > Virus Scan Console.
  2. Right-click on the Access Protection icon in the Tasks window and select Disable from the pop-up menu.
  3. Be sure to re-activate Access Protection when your VMware Tools upgrade or installation is complete.

Additional Information

If your problem still exists after trying the steps in this article, open a case with Broadcom support and note this Knowledge article in the case description.