Share Windows XP Guest Internet Connection with OS X Host HOWTO

[WoodyZ]

Sometime Users may find themselves in a position that they need to share the Windows XP Guest Virtual Machine’s Internet Connection with the Mac OS X Host and this document will show one of the ways it can be accomplished.

Requirements

OS X 10.4.9 or Higher

VMware Fusion 1.0 or Higher

Microsoft Windows XP SP2 VMware Fusion Virtual Machine

Internet Connectivity from within the XP Guest Virtual Machine.

Active* Network Connection in OS X Host.

While the information presented in this document was written on Mac OS X Tiger and VMware Fusion Windows XP Pro Virtual Machine using a Belkin 54g WiFi USB Network Adapter to provide the Guest's Internet Connectivity the foundation and general directions presented should work on any Device that Internet Connection Sharing can be enabled on. It should also work with Mac OS X Leopard and or Microsoft Windows Vista as well although the graphics and explisit directions would vary.

"*" See comments in document for asterisk reference.

File Attached: Share_Windows_XP_Guest_Internet_Connection_with_OS_X_Host_HOWTO.pdf

[Gallena]

Nope... it doesn't work for me. You said that you didn't need to set a gateway. In my case, I have to set everything manually on the Intel PRO/1000 adapter and I do have to set the gateway to the hosts' IP address on the computer-to-computer network or else the adapter will show up as an unidentified network. Having it obtain the IP automatically also ends up with an unidentified network.

So if I set everything manually, the host and the guest seem to be able to connect through the computer-to-computer network, however the Internet connection isn't shared with that connection or if it is, it doesn't work for some reason.

I tried bridging the connections instead and I get this message :

and on the host, it shows as though there is an active Internet connection (for example, the Skype icon isn't blank and my IRC client tries to connect), but nothing is going through.

The firewall on Windows is down, in case you were wondering.

[WoodyZ]

Well manually assigning the IP Address for the Intel PRO/1000 MT Virtual Ethernet Adapter is probably breaking ICS enabled on the Wi-Fi USB Adapter.  Additionally ICS does not use a Gateway IP Address.

As I previously said, bottom line it this still works as advertised and you are not following the directions so there not much I can do for you.

[Gallena]

How did I not follow your instructions? I did and it did not work. It does not fail to work because I didn't follow your instructions, I followed them and it didn't work. I didn't just manually set the addresses for the Intel PRO/1000 because I just felt like it, I did it because your instructions didn't work in the first place.

Here, a screenshot of what happens.

Actually, you said "as long as it's not a 169.254.0.0/16 IP Address", well it is. I don't know why, because this is the result of following your instructions.

[Gallena]

Well, I'll be damned.

I let it sit for some time and it actually ended up working!

THANK YOU! I won't have to spend 2 bed ridden weeks without Internet

[k_reid]

Hello Woody,

I've followed your instructions but my host machine is not connecting to the net.  I suspect that the problem is with the computer-computer network on my mac; it is not picking up an IP Address from the windows ICS.  The IP address is 169.X.X.X. 

The Windows 7 guest machine has internet access and I see two network connections:

1. AGN Virtual network adapter (says 'Unidentified Network')

2. PRO/1000 MT network connection

The AGN adapter seems to have picked up the ip address and subnet mask.

Any idea what is going on?

Here is what I am working with:

VMWare Fusion 6.0.2

Windows 7 on guest machine

USB-Ethernet for internet on guest machine

OSX Mavericks (v 10.9.2)

Your assistance is much appreciated.

[Gallena]

See, k_reid is having the same issue as I was having by following your instructions. And now I'm having the same issue again of having an unidentified network that won't connect properly. This time, letting it sit isn't magically fixing it.