VMware Fusion VM Startup & Performance Troubleshooting Guide (Fusion 13.x & Apple Silicon)

Problem Statement

VMware Fusion users on macOS frequently encounter three types of issues that interrupt workflow:

• Power‑on failures – the VM does not start, showing messages like "Cannot open the disk" or "The process has no access to the file".
• Boot hangs or black screen – the VM stalls at the BIOS/UEFI screen or shows a blank display.
• Severe sluggishness or network loss – the VM runs slowly, consumes excessive host CPU, or loses network connectivity after a macOS sleep/wake cycle.

These symptoms usually stem from lock files, firmware mismatches, snapshot bloat, or host‑guest incompatibilities. The following diagnostic flow helps you pinpoint the cause and apply a targeted fix without risking data corruption.

Quick Diagnostic Table

Ordered Checks & Fixes

1. Verify Host Disk Health & Permissions

1. Open About VMware Fusion and note the version. Confirm it is compatible with your macOS (check VMware’s compatibility matrix).
2. Run df -h / to ensure the host volume has at least 10 % free space. Risk: Low space can trigger disk‑write failures.
3. Check the VM bundle folder (~/Documents/Virtual Machines.localized/YourVM.vmwarevm) for a .lck subdirectory. If present, run ps aux | grep vmware-vmx to confirm no vmware-vmx process is using the bundle. If no process is running, delete the .lck folder with rm -rf YourVM.vmwarevm/.lck. Risk: Deleting while the VM is running corrupts the disk.
4. Use xattr -l YourVM.vmwarevm to list extended attributes. If com.apple.quarantine appears, remove it with sudo xattr -d com.apple.quarantine YourVM.vmwarevm.

2. Check Firmware & GPU Settings

1. Open the VM’s Settings dialog. Under Processors & Memory, verify the Firmware option matches the guest OS (BIOS for legacy OS, UEFI for modern Windows/Linux). If mismatched, toggle and save.
2. On Apple Silicon hosts, ensure 3D Acceleration is enabled only for compatible guests. For Windows ARM guests, 3D acceleration is required; for Linux ARM guests, it’s optional.
3. If the VM still hangs at the BIOS/UEFI screen, reset the NVRAM state by deleting the *.nvram file inside the bundle.

3. Address Snapshot & Memory Issues

1. Open the Snapshots pane. If you have more than 10 snapshots or a snapshot chain longer than 5 GB, consider consolidating: choose Snapshots & Snapshots… → Consolidate.
2. In Settings → Processors & Memory, ensure Memory Allocation is less than 90 % of host RAM. If you’re overcommitting, reduce the allocation or enable Memory Ballooning (available on Fusion 13+).
3. On Apple Silicon, if running an x86_64 guest, confirm Rosetta for Linux is enabled. This introduces translation overhead; test with a lightweight workload first.

4. Resolve Network & USB Connectivity

1. Inside the guest, run ping 8.8.8.8. If ping fails but ping 10.0.2.2 (default gateway) works, the issue is DNS; otherwise, the vmnet adapter failed.
2. On the host, restart vmnet services with root privileges: sudo /Applications/VMware Fusion.app/Contents/Library/vmnet-cli --restart. This drops all active VM connections; schedule during maintenance.
3. For USB devices, open System Settings > Privacy & Security > USB Access. Ensure VMware Fusion has permission. If the device appears in the VM’s USB menu but fails to connect, re‑plug the device and grant permission again.

5. Fix Shared Folder (HGFS) Problems on Linux Guests

1. Inside the Linux guest, check lsmod | grep vmhgfs. If the module is missing, reinstall open‑vm‑tools-dkms: sudo apt-get install open-vm-tools-dkms and reboot.
2. Verify the host’s vmhgfs kernel module is loaded: kextstat | grep vmhgfs on macOS. If not, run sudo /Applications/VMware Fusion.app/Contents/Library/vmware-vmx -loadvm YourVM.vmwarevm to load it.

6. Handle Apple Silicon x86_64 Guest Restrictions

1. In VM Settings → Processors & Memory, the Enable Rosetta for Linux toggle only appears for ARM Linux guests. If you need an x86_64 Windows guest, you must use the VMware Fusion Tech Preview with Rosetta 2 translation, which is experimental and not licensed for production.
2. Verify the guest’s architecture in the VM’s .vmx file: look for isolation.virtualization.type = "x86_64". If present on Apple Silicon, the VM will fail to start.

Verification Checklist

• Open ~/Library/Logs/VMware Fusion/VMware Fusion.log and search for keywords such as Failed to open disk, VMX_FATAL, or snapshot to confirm the applied fix matches the error.
• After any change, start the VM and monitor vmware.log inside the bundle for the same error string. Absence indicates the issue is resolved.
• Run sudo /Applications/VMware Fusion.app/Contents/Library/vmnet-cli --status to confirm the vmnet service is active and the guest’s network interface is up.

Escalation Criteria

• If the VM still fails to power on after removing stale lock files, check for file system corruption on the host volume. Run diskutil verifyVolume / and consider a repair if errors appear.
• Persistent performance degradation after snapshot consolidation and memory adjustment may indicate a bug in the Fusion version. Verify you’re running the latest Fusion 13.x update and consider reinstalling Fusion.
• If the guest does not boot after firmware or NVRAM reset, the virtual disk may be corrupted. Restore from a recent snapshot or backup.
• For unresolved USB or network issues, open a support ticket with VMware, providing the VMX log and the exact macOS version.

Limitations & Cautions

• Deleting .lck folders while a VM is running will corrupt the virtual disk. Always confirm no vmware-vmx process is active.

• Enabling Rosetta for Linux on Apple Silicon exposes the guest to translation bugs; test workloads thoroughly before deploying to production.

• The vmnet-cli --restart command drops all active VM network connections; schedule during downtime.

• Time Machine backups of live VM bundles can create inconsistent snapshots. Exclude the .vmwarevm folder from backups or shut down the VM before backing up.

By following this ordered diagnostic flow, most Fusion startup and performance issues can be resolved quickly without compromising data integrity.