Virtual Device Serial0 Will Start Disconnected -

Global virtual printing can only be enabled if your Fusion version includes ThinPrint (pre‑13.5). For newer versions, this solution is not applicable and the recommended approach is to remove the thinprint ‑related entries from the .vmx file.

Open the [VM_Name].vmx file using a text editor like vi or Notepad++.

This comprehensive guide explains why this warning happens, provides step-by-step methods to fix it, and outlines how to prevent it from returning. Understanding the Root Cause

If the GUI doesn't work or you are on an encrypted VM, you can manually "clean" the configuration file. virtual device serial0 will start disconnected

serial0.present = "TRUE" serial0.startConnected = "TRUE" serial0.fileType = "file" serial0.fileName = "/vmfs/volumes/datastore1/vm_folder/serial.log" Use code with caution.

If you just powered on your VMware virtual machine and were greeted by the warning "Virtual device serial0 will start disconnected,"

Developers who utilize virtual serial ports to capture low-level OS kernel debugging data across a virtual network or file output will lose their data stream. Global virtual printing can only be enabled if

: Sometimes, the virtual machine's configuration file ( .vmx ) may contain outdated or incorrect parameters for the serial port, leading to the warning on startup.

This alert is triggered by specific hardware mismatches or underlying software configuration updates within the hypervisor infrastructure:

Redirects all serial output to a standard text file on your host system. Click Browse to create or select a .txt or .log file. This comprehensive guide explains why this warning happens,

In VMware Workstation, this message is a near-ceremony of system startup, and understanding its nuances is key.

Verify that the datastore path or local directory path exists and that the ESXi host has write permissions to that directory.

This error is common in VMware Workstation, Player, and ESXi environments. It usually indicates that the virtual machine is configured to use a serial port, but that port cannot connect to the intended backend (such as a physical port on the host, a named pipe, or a file) at the time of booting.

If serial0 is configured to use a named pipe or a TCP network socket, VMware must successfully create or connect to that endpoint. If the pipe name is incorrect, the server process is not listening, the TCP port is blocked, or the firewall is interfering, the connection fails. For example, VMware Fusion users have reported: "Virtual device serial0: File … exists, but no server is listening to it" . In network configurations, ensuring the correct firewall rule set is added in ESXi is critical.