In CloudShare, a virtual machine (VM) is an isolated, software-based computer that includes its own CPU, memory, operating system, networking capabilities, and installed software.
A tab appears across the top of the Participants Viewer for each VM as defined by an Instructor in the Experience Editor.
Clicking a tab shows the VM in the workspace. This is where participants can interact with the virtual machines provided in the experience’s environment.
The tab of the selected VM is highlighted. If a VM fails to load or encounters errors, a notification appears in the workspace.
As soon as the Participants Viewer launches in a browser, the virtual machine begins initializing, and a progress bar appears. During this setup phase, the environment is still being spun up and is not yet fully operational. Many Participants Viewer actions will be temporarily unavailable until the process completes. Once the VM finishes loading, it opens in the workspace and is fully ready for participant interaction.
VM Navigation Options
If there are more VM or Content tabs than can fit across the top of the Participant Viewer, navigation controls appear:
The three-dot icon () opens a dropdown menu that shows all the tabs so the participant can jump directly to one.
The left and right arrows let the participant scroll to view hidden tabs.
VM List
A VM List may appear as a tab at the top of the Participants Viewer or as an option in the side menu, as defined by the instructor in the Experience Editor.
The VM List displays all VMs available within the Experience, providing participants with quick access to specific VM details (such as OS credentials, internal IP addresses, and public FQDNs), as well as actions (such as resetting or reverting a VM).
Each VM in the list appears in its own box with the following information/options:
- Operating System Icon and Name: Represents the operating system installed on the virtual machine.
- Play
Button: Clicking this powers on the selected virtual machine and begins its initialization. A loading progress bar appears while the environment prepares. Once the VM is fully loaded, it opens in the workspace, ready for the participant to interact directly with the operating system.
- State: VM status, as one of the following states:
- Running: The VM is powered on and fully operational.
- Stopped: The VM is powered off and not in use.
- Suspended: The VM has been paused and its current state saved; it is not active but can be resumed.
- Initializing: The VM is starting up and preparing to load into the workspace.
- Error: The VM failed to load or encountered a problem; a message typically appears in the workspace.
For a description of how Virtual Machines in Shared Environments appear in the Participant Viewer, see Shared Environments: Participant Viewer.
Three-Dot Menu Icon
Clicking the three-dot menu icon on the right of the VM tabs at the top of the page displays a menu of options for managing the selected VM, as follows:
- Reset: Powers the VM off and on again to resolve issues with the VM itself. The VM retains the current state of the environment from the active session. For example, an additional application installed by the instructor during the current experience remains available.
- Revert: Restores the VM to its original default state, as defined in the Experience Editor. This is the baseline configuration the VM had when the experience was first launched.
- Deletes: Deletes this VM.
- Full Screen: Displays the selected VM or Content page in a full screen. See Full Screen for more information.
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