VMware Player “Manage > Install VMware Tools…” is Disabled

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who come across this problem in the future. Feel free to submit your
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I am attempting to install the VMware Tools in a Windows 8.1 guest, but the Manage > Install VMware Tools... menu bar button is greyed out. I have downloaded the VMware tools for Windows (I can see it in C:\Program Files\VMware\VMware Player\windows.iso) on the host computer. How can I fix this problem?

Best Answer

Even though it seems obvious now, the issue was that the Windows 8.1 guest did not recognize a CD/DVD drive. I had to add one manually in the virtual machine settings. I also found that although the Manage > Install VMware Tools... menu button was then enabled, I still had to manually mount the windows.iso file in the CD drive for the VMware Tools to display in "This Computer". Hopefully this helps someone.

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