Scaled mode with no host key

[jbihrle]

Sorry if this has been asked before. I can't believe I'm the first one to do this, but none of my searches turned up an answer.

1. I turned off my host key a while back, because it interfered with some app. I didn't know about scaled mode at the time, and expected I could always use the menus.
2. I'm in scaled mode and have no menus.

I'm running VBox under Windows 8.1 with a Centos 7 VM.

Anyone know a way out?

Thanks!

[socratis]

1. I turned off my host key a while back, because it interfered with some app.

Change it back then. This is not set from within the VM, this is set from the VirtualBox preferences.

2. I'm in scaled mode and have no menus.

Do you actually mean "seamless mode"? Scaled is a window in the host, you can always resize it to see the borders, menus and status bar of the VM.

[jbihrle]

It was definitely scaled mode, and I had no menus or tool bar with any size window.

I did find the VBox preferences, though, and was able to reset my host key. I'm embarrassed to to say I've been stuck in that mode for days. Thanks for the help!

[socratis]

It was definitely scaled mode, and I had no menus or tool bar with any size window.

I'm sorry, but that doesn't make too much sense. Any change of attaching a screen shot of your host with the VM running? Not the whole 4K display, a miniaturized version would suffice.

[Perryg]

If I understand what you really want/need, the host+c toggle should get you out of scaled mode and if I am not mistaken you can still use the host+home toggle to get the menu as well.

[jbihrle]

It was definitely scaled mode, and I had no menus or tool bar with any size window.

I'm sorry, but that doesn't make too much sense. Any change of attaching a screen shot of your host with the VM running? Not the whole 4K display, a miniaturized version would suffice.

Looks like the forum wants me to wait 24 hours before I can post a link or upload a file. I will post them when it lets me, though.

[jbihrle]

Ha, I guess it let me upload a file after all. That first was before switching to scaled mode. I just wanted to show what menu item I clicked. Here is the result:

[mpack]

I've been using scaled mode recently for a DOS VM (otherwise the DOS font is too small to read on my huge monitor), and I can confirm that no VBox VM menu is displayed - and I was never entirely sure why the devs took that decision.

Anyway, <host>+Home displays the menu as a popup, so you'll have to reinstate the home key as Socratis already mentioned.

[socratis]

I just wanted to show what menu item I clicked.

Excellent!!! Thank you very much for that, it clears things out.
Or it makes them hazier actually...

Scaled mode, indeed.

Now, in the 2nd picture, top part, where it says "centos [Running] - Ora"? That's your Windows hosts' window toolbar. You have a window, no matter how big. It has a toolbar. That was the toolbar. You could resize that window from the top-left handle, no? And it did have the Windows-native Minimize|Maximize|Close widgets, no?

Now, the next question would be, why no menu bar, why no status bar? That I'm afraid I have no answer. In theory, you should. In practice, I don't see one and I can't reproduce it here. was able to reproduce it on my Windows host, but not on my OSX host (my main host). Damn, I thought that the window would keep its menu bar and its status bars!!! To me Scaled mode was always a "resize at will" kind of option. I guess not...

EDIT/UPDATE
The problem in my big misunderstanding. I guess I was "spoiled" by the permanent presence of my OSX's menubar. I also just noticed, it's right there in the dialog just before you enter Scaled mode:

Note that the main menu bar is hidden in scaled mode. You can access it by pressing Host+Home.

What about that and Perryg's suggestion? I didn't null my HostKey, so I don't expect that to work. I mean, what would you replace the HostKey with in that combination?

[jbihrle]

I just wanted to show what menu item I clicked.

Excellent!!! Thank you very much for that, it clears things out.
Or it makes them hazier actually...

Scaled mode, indeed.

Now, in the 2nd picture, top part, where it says "centos [Running] - Ora"? That's your Windows hosts' window toolbar. You have a window, no matter how big. It has a toolbar. That was the toolbar. You could resize that window from the top-left handle, no? And it did have the Windows-native Minimize|Maximize|Close widgets, no?

Yes, it does.

Now, the next question would be, why no menu bar, why no status bar? That I'm afraid I have no answer. In theory, you should. In practice, I don't see one and I can't reproduce it here. was able to reproduce it on my Windows host, but not on my OSX host (my main host). Damn, I thought that the window would keep its menu bar and its status bars!!! To me Scaled mode was always a "resize at will" kind of option. I guess not...

It appears teh different styles of window frames are actually completely different windows. I was unable to find the handle (HWND) to the menu in scaled mode. The scaled mode window is a QTWidget of some kind which lacks any sort of menu bar. The Host + Home combo just produces a pop up menu. Most likely these are standard behaviors for QT windows types, and the VBox developers just used what was there. There are quite a few "minor" differences when QT is compiled for the different OS's.

EDIT/UPDATE
The problem in my big misunderstanding. I guess I was "spoiled" by the permanent presence of my OSX's menubar. I also just noticed, it's right there in the dialog just before you enter Scaled mode:

Note that the main menu bar is hidden in scaled mode. You can access it by pressing Host+Home.

What about that and Perryg's suggestion? I didn't null my HostKey, so I don't expect that to work. I mean, what would you replace the HostKey with in that combination?

Perryg's suggestion didn't work for me, because I had deleted my host key completely, left the entry blank. Sometimes in the rush to meet a delivery date I lose perspective and make poor decisions : )

[Perryg]

Open your preference and add it back. Look under input.

preferences_input.png (43.39 KiB) Viewed 4087 times

[jbihrle]

Open your preference and add it back. Look under input.

I did get it back, thanks!