Timing sensitivity leads to VBoxManage API errors

[Terry Ellison]

I have been debugging a build VM script on my dual core AMD 8450e running Ubuntu 8.04-64bit. I am picking up timing errors when I am calling a sequence of VBoxManage commands which first set up a VM then adds guest properties. These errors shouldn't be happening. Here is an extract from the script:

VBoxManage -nologo createvm -name $machineName -register

VBoxManage -nologo modifyvm $machineName  \
    -ostype "linux26" -memory 512 -vram 1  \
    -acpi on -ioapic off -pae off -hwvirtex on -monitorcount 1  \
    -floppy disabled -sata off -idecontroller PIIX4  \
    -hda none -hdb none -hdd none -dvd none  \
    -nic1 nat -nictype1 Am79C973 -macaddress1 auto -cableconnected1 on -natnet1 default  \
    -nic2 none -nic3 none  -nic4 none  \
    -uart1 off -uart2 off -audio none -clipboard disabled -usb off \
    -vrdp on -vrdpport 4000 -vrdpauthtype external

VBoxManage -nologo guestproperty set $machineName /Startup/Command/1Once \
    "mount -t vboxsf -o fmode=744,dmode=744,uid=1000,gid=1000 HostCache $cachePath"

The guestproperty set command generates the following errors:

[!] FAILED calling machine->SetGuestPropertyValue(Bstr(pszName), Bstr(pszValue)) at line 167!
[!] Primary RC  = E_ACCESSDENIED (0x80070005) - Access denied
[!] Full error info present: true , basic error info present: true
[!] Result Code = E_ACCESSDENIED (0x80070005) - Access denied
[!] Text        = Virtual machine is not powered up
[!] Component   = Console, Interface: IConsole, {e3c6d4a1-a935-47ca-b16d-f9e9c496e53e}
[!] Callee      = IMachine, {1e509de4-d96c-4f44-8b94-860194f710ac}

I have a workaround which is to add a sleep 10 between the modifyvm and the guestproperty set and then this "Virtual machine is not powered up" error does not occur.

[Michael Thayer]

I hope that this will be fixed in the next version of VirtualBox (currently no release data available), resp. in the development sources. Would you be able to test when it is released and re-open this ticket if necessary?