Specifications

CHAPTER 10 Performance Tuning for Virtual Machines
343
Improving Performance for Guest
Operating Systems
The tips in this section help you make adjustments to improve performance for
particular guest operating systems running inside a virtual machine.
The following sections describe tips to improve performance for various guest
operating systems:
• Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 Guest Operating System
Performance Tips on page 343
• Windows 95 and Windows 98 Guest Operating System Performance Tips on
page 344
• Linux Guest Operating System Performance Tips on page 346
Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 Guest
Operating System Performance Tips
This section offers advice for configuring a Windows 2000, Windows XP or Windows
Server 2003 guest operating system for better performance inside a virtual machine.
Note: This section pertains to the guest operating system that is running inside a
GSX Server virtual machine. It does not describe actions that should be taken on
Windows 2000 or Windows Server 2003 running on the host computer.
Guest Operating System Selection
Make certain you have selected the correct guest operating system in the virtual
machine settings editor. Choose VM > Settings > Options.
VMware Tools
Make certain VMware Tools is installed. VMware Tools provides an optimized SVGA
driver and sets up the VMware Tools service to run automatically when the system
starts. Among other things, VMware Tools allows you to synchronize the virtual
machine’s clock with the host computer’s clock, which can improve performance for
some functions. You can install VMware Tools by choosing VM > Install VMware
Tools.
Disconnect the Virtual CD-ROM Drive
Using the Removable Devices submenu, disconnect the virtual CD-ROM drive if you
do not need to use it. Disconnecting the CD-ROM drive reduces processor usage.