How to speed up VMWare on Simply Mepis 6.0?
 

Hi! I've just installed Simply Mepis 6.0. I've waited long enough just to install this new and controversial version from Mepis. Well, I guess Ubuntu and Mepis can be a great job. What I like about the new version (6.0) is that I can now see the battery meter which gave me a hard time figuring out in Mepis 3.4.3. There are some features that really kicks on this version. Most of the softwares I really needed now come standard. The video detection is cool too. However, I have some problem. The VMWare runs really really slow. I know my laptop is not that speed oriented having the ff specs:

Intel Celeron 1.5 GHz
256 DDR2 Ram
40 GB HD

But the VMWare works fine on Mepis 3.4.3. At first, it runs slow but after a few minutes it is already usable. WHy is it that in Mepis 6.0 it runs slow? I really love the distro but I also need VMWare up and running. Does the new kernel has something to do with this? I know they've included the module for VMWare in 6.0 but it just run so slow. Do I need to tweak something here to make it work faster? Thanks.

First, you need more memory. Running VMWare with only 512MB can be painful - you have 256MB. I generally recommend 1GB for regular use.

Second, have you applied the latest any-any-update patch to VMWare?

I know the memory is really low on this. But believe me, it worked fine on 3.4.3. It may come slow on the first two minutes but can be usable after some time. I even do programming VB on my VMWare. Someone adviced e not to use any-any-update but I'll give it a try. Any other ideas?

It was slow initially because it was swapping memory to disk. The newer/additional software that your new OS version is running is putting an additional strain on your memory. Since 1GB laptop memory is frequently available for about $60 these days, it's hardly worth the effort.

So does it mean Simply Mepis 3.4.3 handles VMWare well than Simply Mepis 6.0? I think I should shift down to Mepis 3.4.3 instead. Do you think its a good idea?

Certainly, if VMWare is the only thing you use Mepis for, then use 3.4.3.