Windows 11 64-bit Arm won't start anymore

[captchrisvm]

I successfully installed Fusion Player Version 13.5.0 (22583790) and Windows 11 64-bit Arm on my Mac running Sonomo a couple of weeks ago and have been running Windows 11 off and on without any issues.

Today, I tried to run Windows and an initial window opens called Windows 11 64-bit Arm, with a big "run" arrow. When I click on the arrow or the run arrow in the upper left corner of the VMware Fusion window, the Windows screen goes dark, then the Windows 11 "logo" (blue squares) shows for a second or so, followed by this message: "Preparing Automatic Repair," and then goes back to the big start arrow.

What's going on? 

Chris

[Technogeezer]

Do you have the macOS VoiceOver feature turned on? If so, turn it off. There's a known issue with Sonoma that causes behavior similar to this.

[captchrisvm]

No sir, VoiceOver was not turned on. Anything else that could have the same behavior?

 

[ColoradoMarmot]

Did the machine crash while the VM was running?  That can cause guest corruption.

[captchrisvm]

No, it didn't. Last time I used it before attempting to use it again, it shut down normally and I hadn't opened VW since. Should I attempt to download Windows 11 again or download VMware Fusion again?

 

[Technogeezer]

What's happening is unlikely to be something that will require a re-install of Fusion.

Something obviously changed between when it worked and now when it doesn't.

You might want to zip up and post the log files vmware*.log and mksSandbox*.log files contained in the VM's bundle so we can see if there's anything funny going on there. See the topic "Work with Virtual Machine Packages" in the VMware Fusion documentation https://docs.vmware.com/en/VMware-Fusion/13/com.vmware.fusion.using.doc/GUID-F28A030E-D726-4F65-827D-D4AFD34298B0.html if you don't know how to access the logs. No guarantees though that they'll reveal anything.

You can try to boot the Windows installer ISO and attempt repairs manually from that. I'd give that a try before any re-install of either Fusion or Windows.

Additional questions:

• Which model Mac is this running on?
• what build of Windows are you using in the VM?
• Do you have the latest VMware Tools installed in the VM?
• what file system format is the VM stored on (is it formatted APFS or HFS+) 
• Is the VM stored on a folder that's under control of a cloud sync solution such as OneDrive, Google Drive, or iCloud Drive?
• Do you have any third-party antivirus installed on your Mac?

[captchrisvm]

1. Running on 2023 Mac Mini (M2 chip) Sonoma 14.1.2

2. Windows 11 64-bit Arm 22631.2715

3. Oddly, the Install Virtual Machine is not highlighted in the Virtual Machine pulldown menu

4. APFS

5. VMware syncs with iCloud Drive

6. No third-party antivirus installed.

Attached the log you requested.

 

[captchrisvm]

Sorry, it looks like I didn't attach the login earlier.

 

Attachment(s)

vmware.log   200 KB 1 version

[Technogeezer]

Very strange. The VM's log appears to end just as the boot of the guest occurs which indicates to me a crash of the virtual machine hypervisor. That's not normal.

Would you happen to be running this Mac with either SIP or AMFI disabled?  

Could you gather a quick support information bundle and post that resulting zip file? To generate the info, click Help > Collect Support Information > Quick.

Also, if you find there are files in the VM's bundle folder named vmware-0.log, vmware-1.log and/or vmware-2.log, could you attach those as well.

[captchrisvm]

Sorry, but I'm not prepared to enable/disable SIP or AMFI (I didn't  check if they are enabled or not).

I can't find VMware-0.log nor 1 nor 2.

Attached, the quick support ZIP file.

 

Attachment(s)

VMware Fusion Quick Problem Report 2024-01-04 at 17.05.45...05   766 KB 1 version

[captchrisvm]

For some reason, I don't see my earlier posting.

1. Running on 2023 Mac Mini (M2 chip) Sonoma 14.1.2

2. Windows 11 64-bit Arm 22631.2715

3. Oddly, the Install Virtual Machine is not highlighted in the Virtual Machine pulldown menu

4. APFS

5. VMware sync with iCloud Drive

6. No third-party antivirus installed.

Attached a screenshot of the Virtual Machine pulldown menu.

.

 

 

[VMware Community Member]

It seems that enabling the "macOS Accessibility -> Full Keyboard Access" will immediately stop a Windows 11 VM and put it into this same loop.  

BTW, Paul: thanks for your Unofficial Fusion Companion Guide!... very helpful!

[Technogeezer]

 That's a good point, and definitely something to check for, especially if Sonoma is involved. 

[captchrisvm]

Thank you Kenc24 and Technogeezer! I had pretty much given up hope. I disabled "macOS Accessibility -> Full Keyboard Access" and voilà; works perfectly. Running Sonoma 14.2.1 on 2023 Mac Mini. I also upgraded to Fusion 13.5.1; no issues.

Chris

[Technogeezer]

 - glad you were able to get it working and sorry that I didn't think of that sooner. I knew about VoiceOver, but keep forgetting about Full Keyboard Access.

Reportedly this an Apple problem that we hope will be fixed in the next Sonoma 14.4 update - reports are from beta testers of 14.4 are encouraging.

[Erik Sjaastad]

I'm having the same issue but Full Keyboard Access isn't on. Running Sonoma 14.6.1 and VM 13.6.2
Was really hoping I had Full Keyboard Access turned on for an easy fix

[Technogeezer]

@Erik Sjaastad This might be a different issue. There have been no reports of VoiceOver or Full Keyboard Access causing VMs not to power on since the Sonoma 14.4 update. Could you post the vmware*.log files found in the VM's bundle folder so we can get a better idea of what's going on?

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- Paul (technogeezer)
vExpert 2025
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[Erik Sjaastad]

Thanks Paul. Turns out that issue was user error. The VM is working great now. Now I just need to figure out why RoadCraft on Steam wont work. Not a very important issue.