Unable to connect VM using the SRA browser client

When connecting to a running VM you may see a blank screen or the following error:

"We are unable to connect you to this VM. If this error appears again, close the browser and retry your SRA client session."

You have likely exceeded the graphics memory limit for the VM

Each VM has a fixed amount of graphics memory (GPU RAM) which is shared between all browser console sessions. If this memory is exceeded you will be unable to connect via an SRA session until it is freed. There are several potential causes for this:

• The screen resolution within the VM has been changed to a setting outside of Skytap's maximum screen resolution size of 1920 x 1080. This will cause a blank screen when you open an SRA browser session. This is the most common cause of this issue.
• High resolution graphics and backgrounds in your VM.
• Multiple SRA sessions are open to the VM, from one or more users. The GPU RAM is fixed, and it doesn't matter if the VM is being accessed from different locations or different users – each session consumes a portion of it.

Some steps that may help you resolve this issue:

1. If there are multiple sessions connected to the VM, close them.
2. Open an SRA Browser connection to the VM. It will likely be cycling between connected and disconnected and you may observe the above mentioned error message.
   • While the SRA browser is in the connecting stage of the cycle, quickly open display properties within the SRA browser toolbar and select any supported resolution. It may take multiple attempts.
   • Alternatively you could try reducing the size of the browser window, and then using the "Fit to Window" button to resize the display.
     

To avoid this issue going forward, Skytap recommends using a screen resolution of 1920x1200 or lower, and reducing the color bit-depth in your guest OS display settings if you frequently view very detailed or high resolution images in-guest. Skytap also recommends using a background with simple graphics/images, and avoid video content.

If you would prefer to keep a high resolution display and high color bit-depth, using direct RDP instead of SRA would remove Skytap's display infrastructure from the equation and open up higher resolution display options.

Reference Links

• Adjust VM screen resolution: https://help.skytap.com/accessing-vms-with-a-browser.html#supported-actions-in-the-browser-client-toolbar