V4.0 Shared VM train wreck

Sharing a VM between two different MAC user IDs in V3.0 was somewhat inconvenient but it was pretty workable. (The use case I am describing here relates to me and my wife using the same VM under different Mac Login IDs)

However, V4.0 changes the way this works for the worst. It is really very disappointing and I feel as though I have taken a major step backwards.

Under V3, if tried to start up a VM that was already running under another MAC login ID, Parallels would give an error saying that the VM was already in use. (I believe there was a lock file inside the .pvs package file). Given the restriction on not being able to share it simultaneously, this was a reasonable response that protected me from doing anything bad. I knew to login to the other ID, shut down or suspend the VM and then try it again.

V4.0 removes these protections and makes it easy to get into a very hosed state.

Problem 1: Attempting to start the VM when it is already running under another login ID: Parallels goes ahead and tries to start it. No lock file protection. It then throws an error accessing the hard drives and enters a hung state. I have to force shutdown the VM. If I go back and login to the ID that has it running so I can shut it down, it aborts abnormally and cannot be restarted. It just keeps aborting and asking me to submit an error report (see report # 38508 ). I have to reboot MacOS in order to clear this condition.

Problem 2: If I DO remember to shutdown or suspend the VM before logging into the other ID to start it up, I can start it up under the second login ID so that's OK. But if I come back to the first login ID where I had shut it down, I have error boxes waiting for me saying that I can't do something on a VM that's shut down. I have no idea what it was trying to do while I went and logged in under the other ID and started it up. I have to remember to not only shut down the VM, I have to Quit Parallels altogether.

Problem 2a: Here is why it is a drag to have to also remember to quit Parallels: I thought I could use the iPhone application to remotely shut down my VM so my wife could start it up under her ID. I suppose I still CAN but when I log back into my ID later on, I have that error message and I don't really know what parallels was trying to do while my wife was logged in.


Problem 1 is obviously the most severe and I would ask that you re-instate some kind of protection and restore the behaviour that V3.0 had in this regard.

Bill Smith

 

Please check http://kb.parallels.com/en/5733

 

Thank you for the response but....

I have already been to that post and used the information to be able to share the VM at all.

However, I don't see how it addresses my issues of protecting me from accidentally trying to bring the same VM up twice from another user ID. Can you clarify how it addresses that issue?

Thanx
Bill