System Clocks Running at a Slower Speed in the Guest Operating System

The Linux kernel has a feature that can put the host CPU into a low-power idle state, using a feature of the host's APM BIOS. On a Pentium III processor, doing this also slows down or stops the processor's internal Time Stamp Counter (TSC). VMware products use the TSC to keep time, so varying its speed causes the clocks in virtual machines to run irregularly.

To work around this problem, disable the Linux APM idling feature.

Follow these steps if you use LILO to boot Linux:

1. Log in as root.
2. Add the following line to the file /etc/lilo.conf:

   append="apm=idle_threshold=100"

   Note: You can add this line either in the top section of your lilo.conf file (where it will apply globally), or in the section for each boot configuration with which you use VMware products.

3. Run /sbin/lilo.
4. Reboot your host operating system.

If you use GRUB to boot your Linux system, follow these steps:

1. Add the following string to the end of the kernel= line for each boot configuration with which you use VMware products:

   apm=idle_threshold=100

2. Reboot your host operating system.