Windows 7 has a default display/font size of 125% (Control Panel, Display, Medium - 125% (Default)).
With ESXi 5 and vSphere Client Version 5.1.0 Build 1064113 there is a bug that causes text and panes to be cut-off and impossible to view. Even though I can maximize the client window the panes do not auto-resize to show all the content. Some examples:
- Select a host
- Configuration
- Storage
- View = Devices
- Select a device with 7+ partitions
- Notice that partitions past 6 do not appear nor is there anyway to scroll to them
- Select a VM
- Edit Settings
- Hard disk 1
- Mode pane has text cut-off
- CD/DVD drive 1
- Device Type has options cut off making them hard to select
I ran the vSphere client on a Windows 7 laptop. A Dell E6530 with a nVidia graphics card at 1920x1080 resolution.
Workaround: Change the Windows Display setting to 100% (Small). It makes everything smaller and the GUI lines up correctly, but the fonts are smaller and harder to read for the entire system. Changing this setting requires the user to logoff and log back on. Another work around is to install VMWare Workstation or Player and run a dedicated Windows XP or Windows 7 VM just for the vSphere client so one does not have to have their entire main workstation OS use small font sizes for the buggy vSphere client.
Recommendation:
Modify the GUI client so it correctly sizes panes and provides scrollbars under the *default* setting in Windows 7. The vSphere client GUI has this problem in multiple areas everywhere.