diff --git a/tools/ubuntu_vm_start.sh b/tools/ubuntu_vm_start.sh
index a9fbbcd..085fd6b 100755
--- a/tools/ubuntu_vm_start.sh
+++ b/tools/ubuntu_vm_start.sh
@@ -119,7 +119,7 @@ generate_password_hash() {
 wait_for_vm_boot() {
     local vm_name="$1"
     local expected_ip="$2"
-    local max_wait=120  # 3 minutes
+    local max_wait=180  # 3 minutes, increased from 120
     local count=0
     
     log "Waiting for VM '$vm_name' to boot with static IP $expected_ip..."
@@ -131,7 +131,7 @@ wait_for_vm_boot() {
         fi
         
         # Try to ping the expected static IP
-        if ping -c 1 -W 2 "$expected_ip" >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+        if ping -c 2 -W 3 "$expected_ip" >/dev/null 2>&1; then
             log "VM is responding at static IP address: $expected_ip"
             echo "$expected_ip"
             return 0
@@ -448,6 +448,10 @@ fi
 # Create cloud-init image for first boot
 log "Creating cloud-init configuration..."
 
+# Generate a random MAC address for the VM (used in cloud-init and hypervisor)
+VM_MAC="52:54:00:$(printf '%02x:%02x:%02x' $((RANDOM%256)) $((RANDOM%256)) $((RANDOM%256)))"
+log "Generated MAC address for VM: $VM_MAC"
+
 # Generate proper password hash for 'ubuntu'
 PASSWORD_HASH=$(generate_password_hash)
 test_step "Password hash generation" "[ -n '$PASSWORD_HASH' ]"
@@ -474,19 +478,26 @@ ssh_authorized_keys: []
 
 # Network configuration with static IP
 network:
-  version: 2
-  ethernets:
-    ens3:
-      dhcp4: false
-      addresses:
-        - $VM_STATIC_IP/24
-      routes:
-        - to: default
-          via: 192.168.100.1
-      nameservers:
-        addresses:
-          - 8.8.8.8
-          - 8.8.4.4
+  config: disabled
+
+write_files:
+  - path: /etc/netplan/50-cloud-init.yaml
+    content: |
+      network:
+        version: 2
+        ethernets:
+          ens3:
+            dhcp4: false
+            addresses:
+              - $VM_STATIC_IP/24 # Use variable for IP
+            # gateway4: 192.168.100.1 # Deprecated
+            routes: # Use modern routes syntax
+              - to: default
+                via: 192.168.100.1
+            nameservers:
+              addresses:
+                - 8.8.8.8
+                - 1.1.1.1
 
 # Package updates and installs
 package_update: true
@@ -507,12 +518,16 @@ runcmd:
   - systemctl start ssh
   - systemctl status ssh
   - netplan apply
-  - sleep 5
-  - ip addr flush dev ens3
-  - ip addr add $VM_STATIC_IP/24 dev ens3
-  - ip route add default via 192.168.100.1
+  - chmod 0600 /etc/netplan/50-cloud-init.yaml || echo "Failed to chmod /etc/netplan/50-cloud-init.yaml"
+  - sleep 2 # Allow netplan apply to settle
+  #- ip addr flush dev ens3
+  #- ip addr add $VM_STATIC_IP/24 dev ens3
+  #- ip route add default via 192.168.100.1
   - ip addr show ens3
   - ip route show
+  - ping 192.168.100.2 -c 3
+  - echo "WERE THERE"
+
 
 # Final message
 final_message: "Cloud-init setup complete. VM is ready for SSH access!"
@@ -653,9 +668,6 @@ VM_LOG_FILE="/tmp/cloud-hypervisor-vm$VM_NUMBER.log"
 # Remove existing socket and log file if they exist
 rm -f "$VM_SOCKET" "$VM_LOG_FILE"
 
-# Generate a random MAC address for the VM
-VM_MAC="52:54:00:$(printf '%02x:%02x:%02x' $((RANDOM%256)) $((RANDOM%256)) $((RANDOM%256)))"
-log "Generated MAC address for VM: $VM_MAC"
 
 # Start Cloud Hypervisor in background with error handling
 log "Launching Cloud Hypervisor..."
@@ -783,6 +795,13 @@ if test_ssh_connection "$VM_IP"; then
     log "✓ VM has IP address: $VM_IP"
     log "✓ SSH is working: ssh ubuntu@$VM_IP (password: ubuntu)"
     log "✓ VM info saved to: $VM_INFO_FILE"
+    
+    # Display relevant IP configuration lines from VM log
+    if [ -f "$VM_LOG_FILE" ]; then
+        info "Relevant IP configuration from VM log ($VM_LOG_FILE):"
+        grep -E "inet .*ens3|default via" "$VM_LOG_FILE" | tail -n 5 || true
+    fi
+    
     echo ""
     info "VM $VM_NAME is ready for use!"
     info "Connect via SSH: ssh ubuntu@$VM_IP"