VMware tools vmtoolsd process fails to start with error: Buffer too small
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VMware tools vmtoolsd process fails to start with error: Buffer too small

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Article ID: 343713

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Updated On:

Products

VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

This article describes a specific issue. If you experience all of the above symptoms, consult the sections below. If you experience some but not all of these symptoms, your issue is not related to this article. Search for your symptoms, review Troubleshooting failed VMware Tools upgrade in a virtual machine on an ESX/ESXi host (1003983) for similar issues, or Open a Support Request.


Symptoms:

You may experience these symptoms when you have VMware Tools installed in a Linux, BSD, or other POSIX Guest OS:

  • The installation appears to be successful but the VMware Tools service does not start.
  • The vmware-tools process is not running.
  • The VMware Tools log file contains messages similar to:

    [error] [vmsvc] /build/.../bora/lib/string/str.c:238 Buffer too small 0xb740bf9f

    Note: To confirm this issue, enable diagnostic logging for the VMware Tools and start the service again, then review the log for this error. For more information, see Enabling debug logging for VMware Tools within a guest operating system (1007873).


Environment

VMware ESXi 4.1.x Embedded
VMware ESXi 4.0.x Installable
VMware ESXi 4.0.x Embedded
VMware ESXi 4.1.x Installable
VMware ESX 4.1.x
VMware ESX 4.0.x

Resolution

This issue has been resolved in ESX/ESXi 4.1 Update 2 released 2011-10-27. Download this release from the VMware Download Center.

If you are unable to upgrade to this release, please follow the workaround below.

VMware Tools install slightly differently in various distributions of Linux, BSD or other POSIX operating systems. The installer attempts to discover the distribution and version by reviewing several resources:
  • The system name produced by the uname command.
  • The system version produced by the lsb_release -sd command.
  • The contents of a release file in the /etc/ directory.
If the lsb_release command is not available, the contents of the *release files in the /etc/ directory are read. If the release file does not contain LSB information (DISTRIB_* fields), the contents are used in their entirety.
This issue occurs when the full distribution name and version information from uname (eg, Linux 2.6.27.54-0.2) and the distribution information read from a *release file exceeds 100 bytes total.
To work around this issue, reduce the length of the *release file in the /etc/ directory in the Guest OS:
  1. Open a terminal session to the Guest OS and log in as an administrative user (eg, root).

  2. Identify the release file for this distribution. (For example, /etc/distroname-release).

  3. Make a backup of the release file using a command similar to:

    cp /etc/distroname-release /etc/distroname-release.backup

  4. Edit the original release file and remove one or more lines (such as Patchlevel).

  5. Save the changes to the release file.

  6. Attempt to start the VMware Tools daemon using a command similar to:

    /etc/init.d/vmware-tools start

If the problem persists after reducing the length of the distribution's release file, open a support request with VMware Support and note KB article ID 1034633 in the problem description. For more information, see Filing a Support Request in Customer Connect (2006985) or How to Submit a Support Request.


Additional Information

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Troubleshooting failed VMware Tools upgrade in a virtual machine on an ESX/ESXi host
Enabling debug logging for VMware Tools within a guest operating system
How to file a Support Request in Customer Connect

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