# Data Object - GuestProgramSpec(vim.vm.guest.ProcessManager.ProgramSpec)

Parameter to
  StartProgramInGuest
Extended by
  GuestWindowsProgramSpec
Extends
  DynamicData
Since
  vSphere API 5.0

## Data Object Description

This describes the arguments to StartProgramInGuest.

Properties

Name | Type | Description
--- | --- | ---
arguments | xsd:string | The arguments to the program. In Linux and Solaris guest operating systems, the program will be executed by a guest shell. This allows stdio redirection, but may also require that characters which must be escaped to the shell also be escaped on the command line provided. For Windows guest operating systems, prefixing the command with "cmd /c" can provide stdio redirection.
envVariables* | xsd:string[] | An array of environment variables, specified in the guest OS notation (eg PATH=c:\bin;c:\windows\system32 or LD_LIBRARY_PATH=/usr/lib:/lib), to be set for the program being run. Note that these are not additions to the default environment variables; they define the complete set available to the program. If none are specified the values are guest dependent.
programPath | xsd:string | The absolute path to the program to start. For Linux guest operating systems, /bin/bash is used to start the program. For Solaris guest operating systems, /bin/bash is used to start the program if it exists. Otherwise /bin/sh is used. If /bin/sh is used, then the process ID returned by StartProgramInGuest will be that of the shell used to start the program, rather than the program itself, due to the differences in how /bin/sh and /bin/bash work. This PID will still be usable for watching the process with ListProcessesInGuest to find its exit code and elapsed time.
workingDirectory* | xsd:string | The absolute path of the working directory for the program to be run. VMware recommends explicitly setting the working directory for the program to be run. If this value is unset or is an empty string, the behavior depends on the guest operating system. For Linux guest operating systems, if this value is unset or is an empty string, the working directory will be the home directory of the user associated with the guest authentication. For other guest operating systems, if this value is unset, the behavior is unspecified.
Properties inherited from DynamicData
None

*Need not be set
Show WSDL type definition
<complexType xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema" xmlns:vsan="urn:vsan" name="GuestProgramSpec"> <complexContent> <extension base="vsan:DynamicData"> <sequence> <element name="programPath" type="xsd:string"/> <element name="arguments" type="xsd:string"/> <element name="workingDirectory" type="xsd:string" minOccurs="0"/> <element name="envVariables" type="xsd:string" minOccurs="0" maxOccurs="unbounded"/> </sequence> </extension> </complexContent> </complexType>