2

I access Ubuntu 20 Guest VMs that I installed from .iso on a ESXi server. I access the console via VSphere HTML Client.

Everything seems normal at first until I started doing more serious work via the web console. That is when I realize certain keys takes a ridiculous amount of retries. These keys are - . / ' [ ] \ and their corresponding shifts _ ? " { } |

Often times, nothing happens when I type those letters. Once in a while, 1 instance will be recorded but more often, it went into a endless repeat, like ..........................................

Most other keys, including all alphabet keys, seem to work fine within the virtual console. What could have caused this? I tried tuning the setting as suggested here (https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/196) and it didn't make any difference.

some user
  • 2,846

1 Answers1

1

You seem to have encountered the problem described in the VMware knowledge base article
Keystrokes typed into the vSphere Web Client console of a virtual machine do not translate correctly (2071245):

When you type special characters into the vSphere Web Client console of a virtual machine, you experience these symptoms:

  • Keystrokes for special characters typed in to the vSphere Web Client console of a virtual machine do not translate correctly.

  • The affected characters can include, but are not limited to:

    • / (slash)
    • \ (backslash)
    • . (period)
      • (dash)
    • _ (underscore)
    • & (ampersand)
    • , (comma)
    • : (semicolon)
    • $ (dollar sign)
    • (pound sign)
    • @ (at symbol)

  • This issue occurs when you use a Swedish, Turkish, German, Swiss, French, Spanish or Austrian locale on your computer or keyboard.

  • This issue does not occur when:

    • You connect via a remote desktop to the affected virtual machine.
    • You use the vSphere Client console of a virtual machine.
    • You use the vSphere Web Client on a console of a Windows guest operating system.

This is a known issue affecting vSphere vCenter Server 5.5 , 6.0 & 6.5.

The article adds some information that can help when encountering this problem :

Resolution

To resolve this issue, use the VMware Remote Console, available at VMware Downloads.

To work around this issue on a virtual machine, use one of these options:

  • Change the operating system keyboard layout to another locale on the machine opening the console.
    Note: This makes further characters available for usage but some characters may still be affected.

  • Connect to the affected virtual machine through a remote desktop.

Workaround

Use VMRC and even Web-Client works fine.

harrymc
  • 498,455