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To make a VMware Workstation guest desktop gain resolution as you enlarge its console, choose View > Autosize > Autofit Guest, then resize the Workstation window. VMware Tools must be running in the guest. If you only want the existing image to look larger without changing its resolution, use Stretch Guest where that option is available.
Choose between a higher resolution and a larger-looking image
These are different adjustments. Autofit Guest changes the guest operating system’s display resolution to follow the size of the Workstation console. Stretch Guest scales the image to fill the available area while leaving the guest resolution unchanged. The Workstation Pro 15.0 guide identifies Stretch Guest as a Linux-host-only option; menu availability can differ by version.
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For a true resolution change, use Autofit Guest. For visual scaling without changing the guest’s resolution, check whether Stretch Guest is available.
Make the guest resolution follow the Workstation window
- Start the virtual machine and make sure VMware Tools is installed and running in the guest operating system.
- In the Workstation menu, select View > Autosize > Autofit Guest.
- Resize the Workstation console. The guest display resolution should adjust to match it.
- To apply the current console dimensions immediately, select View > Fit Guest Now.
VMware’s Workstation Pro 15.0 guide says VMware Tools must be running for Autofit Guest and Fit Guest Now. [VMware Workstation Pro user guide]
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What each display option changes
| Option | What changes | Use it when |
|---|---|---|
| Autofit Guest | Guest resolution follows the console size. | You want the guest desktop’s resolution to grow or shrink as you resize the window. |
| Autofit Window | The Workstation console follows the guest’s chosen resolution. | You want the window to adapt to a resolution set inside the guest. |
| Fit Guest Now | Adjusts guest resolution to the current console size once. | You want a one-time adjustment. |
| Fit Window Now | Adjusts the console to the guest’s current display size once. | You want the window to fit the existing guest resolution. |
| Stretch Guest | Scales the image to fit while keeping guest resolution unchanged. | You want a larger-looking image and the option is available. The Workstation Pro 15.0 guide identifies it as Linux-host-only. |
These menu descriptions come from the Workstation Pro 15.0 user guide; newer releases may use different wording or availability.
Troubleshoot a guest display that stays small
Verify VMware Tools first
If Autofit Guest does not change the resolution, check that the appropriate VMware Tools are installed and running in the guest. This is the documented prerequisite for Autofit Guest and Fit Guest Now. Broadcom’s overview also lists low video resolution among the issues VMware Tools can improve or eliminate. [Broadcom: Overview of VMware Tools]
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Check whether the guest has higher modes available
If the guest does not follow the window or its display settings offer no higher resolutions, the issue may be supported display modes rather than window fitting. Available resolutions can depend on the guest, host, virtual hardware, and—on Linux guests—the display system and modes defined in the guest. Broadcom’s guidance for Windows guest resolution modes recommends svga.autodetect = "TRUE" for current Fusion, Workstation, and Player versions; it enables automatic video-memory detection for large resolutions and multiple displays. Treat this as a video-memory configuration consideration, not the first step for a guest that simply is not resizing. [Broadcom: Adding video resolution modes to Windows guest operating systems]
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Do not apply old resolution caps to current Workstation versions
Broadcom documents a 2560×1920 maximum for the SVGA 3D driver bundled with VMware Tools in Workstation 11 for Windows guests. That is a version-specific legacy limit, not a general maximum for current Workstation releases. [Broadcom: Unable to increase the screen resolution in a Workstation virtual machine]
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If you need VMware Tools to stop changing Windows display modes
This is a separate case from increasing the screen size. Broadcom documents a method for Workstation 17.5x with VMTools 10.2.5 or newer that disables Tools-driven display-mode changes using guestInfo.svga.wddm.modeset="FALSE". The article notes that Group Policy changes might also be needed. Because this setting prevents automatic resolution changes, it is not a fix for a guest display that needs to grow with the window. [Broadcom: Disabling display resolution setting through VMware Tools]
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