what is plot merge ?
Plot merge refactors the plot files so you have less disk seeking and longer sequential reads. Your read speed will increase and hdd stress will be reduced.
im native on ubuntu x64 14.04 dunno if in vmware u will gate same performance.
how to do pool mine ?
At this point you should probably just make solo plots. New client update will most likely be released tomorrow that will allow solo plots to be used on pools a few days later.
If we already have pool plots generated can we keep those?