Hacking my way to Parallels Tools
Hello All,
I am running Kurumin Linux (a Knoppix-based brazilian distro) over Parallels Desktop 3, build 4560. I also stumbled over the "Unable to get layout name" error, and since no one seemed to get a definite answer on what is it all about, I decided to try my hand solving it myself.
I found that, when you run "sh parallels-tools.run", a temporary directory called "/tmp/selfgzXXXXXXXXX" -- where XXXXXXXXX is an arbitrary number -- is created, which contains the files used in the installation. Among them there is a script called "xserver-config.py": it is this script that fails to find the X Server layout name in the original X Server confguration file (though I don't know why; it all looks right to me), thus causing the installation to fail.
From this, I devised the following walk-around to the "Unable to get layout name" error. All these steps must be executed from a root account.
1 - Run "sh parallels-tools.run", but don't confirm the installation just yet;
2 - Open the "/tmp/selfgzXXXXXXXXX/xserver-config.py" script file on a plain text editor. Change line 273 from
layoutId = None
to
layoutId = "Default Layout"
or any other name to your liking. Don't forget to save;
3 - Confirm installation. Hopefully the script will now execute without errors;
4 - Open "/etc/X11/xorg.conf" (or the equivalent X Server configuration file on your distro) and locate the "ServerLayout" Section. You'll notice there are two "Identifier" entries, consequence of the configuration script not telling apart its elbow from its ass... I mean, telling apart the "Identifier" entry on the original config file. This situation is bound to crash your X Server upon restart, so comment the original entry off. Also, if you'd like to make sure your pointer device will work properly, locate all "InputDevice" Sections with an "Identifier" value of "Parallels Mouse" and comment them off, save for one -- which one will depend on your system settings, but the entry with an "Option" value of "Device" "/dev/input/mice" is probably your best guess, if you aren't X Server savvy;
5 - Restart your X Server, for example by hitting Ctrl + Alt + Backspace.
After executing these steps, I found pointer integration as well as dynamic resolution resizing were working -- that is, until I restarted the virtual machine, and learned I would still have to add the "prluserd" service to the list of automatically started services. (Alternatively, I could start it by hand each time, by calling "prluserd" from a root terminal window, and then restart X. But I don't like to suffer that much.)
I hope these steps work for others that are facing problems with Parallels Tools installation on Linux, though as usual I make no guarantees. Parallels Desktop is a wonderfully useful software, and with interface integration on, it enables a very pleasant virtualization experience.
--
Greetings,
Helio
