When you run ESXi hypervisor on Nutanix you may get a question: should I install VMware tools or Nutanix Guest Tools (NGT) or both? Are NGT and VMware tools compatible between each other?
The answer is yes, they are compatible and can be both safely installed on the same virtual machine.
If you install NGT in guest VMs, you can use the following advanced features (NGT applications):
File Level Restore CLI
Nutanix VM Mobility
VSS requestor and hardware provider for Windows VMs
Application-consistent snapshot for Linux VMs
You can read in more details about the NGT here.
VMware tools in turn has different features and a different purpose. Installing VMware Tools eliminates or improves these issues:
- Low video resolution
- Inadequate color depth
- Incorrect display of network speed
- Restricted movement of the mouse
- Inability to copy and paste and drag-and-drop files
- Missing sound
- Provides the ability to take quiesced snapshots of the guest OS
- Synchronizes the time in the guest operating system with the time on the host
You can read more about the VMware tools here.