Guest screen size

Discussions related to using VirtualBox on Mac OS X hosts.
pyrius
Posts: 8
Joined: 27. Jan 2019, 17:58

Guest screen size

Post by pyrius »

Hello Forum.
I've recently came over an issue with guest system screen size.
Every host (tested only with linux) I create starts in very small window.
Enlarging the window does not change the screen size.
I can change the scale to 200% but in that case guest system starts lagging.
Tried to enable 2d/3d acceleraiton/ increase video memory size - no changes.
Is this a known issue?
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jfdahl
Posts: 1
Joined: 28. Jan 2019, 16:29

Re: Guest screen size

Post by jfdahl »

I have been having this same issue since upgrading to version 6.

I've tried adjusting the screen resolution in the guest and using different virtual graphics adapters, but the only thing that makes the content readable is to scale it... this makes the content fuzzy and, as previously stated, causes performance issues. This is not an issue with my mac as everything displayed fine with the 5 series. The issue is related to how VB 6 series is rendering different resolutions with the new virtual graphics emulators and drivers.

Yes, I did make sure to upgrade to the latest version of VirtualBox (6.0.2 as of this writing) and the matching guest additions.

Oracle, if you want to be serious about your share of the Virtual Machine market, please fix this ASAP!
pyrius
Posts: 8
Joined: 27. Jan 2019, 17:58

Re: Guest screen size

Post by pyrius »

I have noticed one aditional issue:

At work I use external screen.
When I start VM nd window pops up on the laptop screen - it's small.
When I move the window to the external screen - window automatically changes to a normal size.
When I move window back it's again resizes to a very small one.

If no external screens connected window remain small.

Also menu "View -> Virtual screen1" changes when window is moved.
On laptop screen menu has note "unscaled" in front of 100% value, and "autoscaled" in front of 200% value.
And on the external desktop no the notes are absent.
Stan12
Posts: 3
Joined: 29. Jan 2019, 22:55

Re: Guest screen size

Post by Stan12 »

I have the same scaling issue between screens (internal Macbook12, external FullHD Dell monitor), however I see slightly different behavior, maybe because I'm on Virtualbox 6.0.4.

* Start the VM, it shows on the laptop screen - small.
* Move it to the external screen - window stays the same size, but the content is displayed at the resolution of the external monitor. This makes it show only the top left if the VM screen.
* I can manually resize the window, or I can set it via View->Virtual screen1->pick resolution.
* I do not see any scaled notes when moving the window (either direction).

This is very annoying, and I'd suggest that the VM window needs to be autoscaled based on the screen dpi.

I'd post the link to the screenshots, but I cannot right now.

Edit:
The Guest OS is Debian 10/testing with the 6.0.4 guest packages from Debian/sid installed.
Last edited by Stan12 on 29. Jan 2019, 23:13, edited 2 times in total.
Stan12
Posts: 3
Joined: 29. Jan 2019, 22:55

Re: Guest screen size

Post by Stan12 »

I'm going to try anyway:

Here's a list of screenshots I took: imgur. com/a/1x9PYwc
(First is on laptop screen, VM window 1400x900; second is after moving VM window to external screen with the VM window being the same size as before (but not same resolution); third is after doing View->Virtual screen1->1366x768)
antoniovl
Posts: 1
Joined: 4. Feb 2019, 21:57

Re: Guest screen size

Post by antoniovl »

From what I´ve seen, it happens in Laptops with Retina Display. On my Late 2013 27" iMac I don´t have the issue.
Stan12
Posts: 3
Joined: 29. Jan 2019, 22:55

Re: Guest screen size

Post by Stan12 »

antoniovl wrote:From what I´ve seen, it happens in Laptops with Retina Display.
That seems correct, I do have a Retina MacBook12. However, only VirtualBox is exhibiting this behavior, not software from Apple, Microsoft, or any other software I use.
robin850
Posts: 1
Joined: 3. Jul 2019, 10:10

Re: Guest screen size

Post by robin850 »

For those having difficulties, it looks like VirtualBox 6 doesn't set a sufficient amount of video memory. To properly resize, a virtual machine needs at least 27 MB but by default, there is only 8.

You just need to go the settings of the virtual machine and under the "Display" section, increase the video memory.
Johnny-G
Posts: 2
Joined: 7. Jul 2019, 22:45

Re: Guest screen size

Post by Johnny-G »

No, that's not the issue. I've tried setting video memory to 128 MB with no difference.
My situation...
iMac 5K (late 2014 27-inch) with two 30-inch external dell monitors (2560x1600).
VM (in windowed mode) on Dell monitors looks good. Move to Retina monitor and content shrinks to 1/4 of window size.
I have to use the View menu and change VirtualScreen1 ScaleFactor every time I move the VM to or from Retina screen.
Worked fine prior to upgrading VirtualBox from 5.x to 6.x.
Last edited by socratis on 8. Jul 2019, 07:47, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Removed unnecessary verbatim quote of the whole previous message.
pyrius
Posts: 8
Joined: 27. Jan 2019, 17:58

Re: Guest screen size

Post by pyrius »

6.0.8 still same issue.
seems no fix is planned for Retina users
socratis
Site Moderator
Posts: 27330
Joined: 22. Oct 2010, 11:03
Primary OS: Mac OS X other
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Win(*>98), Linux*, OSX>10.5
Location: Greece

Re: Guest screen size

Post by socratis »

pyrius wrote:seems no fix is planned for Retina users
I'm on a MacBookPro Retina (MBPr) and I don't have that issue, neither do a lot of other users. I have set the VirtualBox Preferences » Display » Scale Factor » Monitor1=200%, Monitor2=100%. I have an external monitor which is 1280x1020, non-HiDPI, that's why there are two different scale factors.

The other major difference is that I'm on 10.11.6, and I've seen plenty of weird reports from systems that are running a newer OSX version.
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pyrius
Posts: 8
Joined: 27. Jan 2019, 17:58

Re: Guest screen size

Post by pyrius »

Thanks Socratis.
socratis wrote:VirtualBox Preferences » Display » Scale Factor » Monitor1=200%,
Scale factor works - once I set it to 200% - window size becomes normal, however graphical graphperformance drops down significantly. Every window move is slow and shaking.
pyrius
Posts: 8
Joined: 27. Jan 2019, 17:58

Re: Guest screen size

Post by pyrius »

Also I can see that in many guides people suggest to enable HiDPI flag on Display tab of the VM, however on my Visrtual Box - I do not have this flag, I have video controller selection instead.
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socratis
Site Moderator
Posts: 27330
Joined: 22. Oct 2010, 11:03
Primary OS: Mac OS X other
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Win(*>98), Linux*, OSX>10.5
Location: Greece

Re: Guest screen size

Post by socratis »

pyrius wrote:Also I can see that in many guides people suggest to enable HiDPI flag on Display tab of the VM
That was/is for VirtualBox < 6.0.0.
Do NOT send me Personal Messages (PMs) for troubleshooting, they are simply deleted.
Do NOT reply with the "QUOTE" button, please use the "POST REPLY", at the bottom of the form.
If you obfuscate any information requested, I will obfuscate my response. These are virtual UUIDs, not real ones.
pyrius
Posts: 8
Joined: 27. Jan 2019, 17:58

Re: Guest screen size

Post by pyrius »

I see.
So seems except scaling there are no other options.
And unfortunately scaling slows down graphical preformance even with 128mb of video memory and 3d acceleration.
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