Vmware Workstation Appliances

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VMware Workstation Player
VMware Player running Ubuntu 14.04 beta on Ubuntu 12.10
Developer(s)VMware
Stable release
Operating systemWindows, Linux
TypeHypervisor
LicenseFreemium[3]
Websitewww.vmware.com/products/workstation-player/workstation-player-evaluation.html

Looks like VMware Workstation got to version 14, and starting with this version we get a new neat feature, and that’s support for the VMware vCenter Server Appliance (VCSA).Previous to this, if we wanted to run VCSA in VMware Workstation we had to import the appliance from the.OVA template, then edit the virtual machine.VMX configuration file in order to make it work. VMware Workstation Pro works by creating fully isolated, secure virtual machines that encapsulate an operating system and its applications. The VMware virtualization layer maps the physical hardware resources to the virtual machine's resources, so each virtual machine has its own CPU, memory, disks, and I/O devices, and is the full equivalent of a standard x86 machine.

VMware Workstation Player, formerly VMware Player, is a virtualization software package for x64 computers running Microsoft Windows or Linux, supplied free of charge by VMware, Inc.,[4] a company which was formerly a division of, and whose majority shareholder remains EMC Corporation. VMware Player can run existing virtual appliances and create its own virtual machines (which require an operating system to be installed to be functional). It uses the same virtualization core as VMware Workstation, a similar program with more features, which is not free of charge. VMware Player is available for personal non-commercial use,[5] or for distribution or other use by written agreement.[6] VMware, Inc. does not formally support Player, but there is an active community website for discussing and resolving issues,[7] and a knowledge base.[8]

In summary, VMware appliances are FREE, already configured virtual servers that you can download FREE from the Internet. You can run them on your Windows XP/2003 or Linux VMware computer. A virtual appliance is a prebuilt, preconfigured, and ready-to-run software application that is packaged with the operating system in a virtual machine. VMware Docs MyLibrary. I also won’t go into installing VMware Workstation, because it is very straight-forward and just click NEXT, NEXT, NEXT until it is complete. Obviously, install VMware Workstation on the machine where you plan to run the vCenter 6.5 Appliance and make sure it has at least 16GB RAM; because you will need at least 8GB for the Appliance itself.

The free VMware Player was distinct from VMware Workstation until Player v7, Workstation v11. In 2015 the two packages were combined as VMware Workstation 12, with a free for non-commercial use Player version which, on purchase of a license code, became the higher-specification VMware Workstation Pro.[9][10]

Sometimes you can restart program but sometimes you have to restart windows. Encore has very nice user interface, can do almost anything but has a lots of bugs. Encore If you work on one DVD and then load project for second it will get stuck. Audio can disappear without reason and 'Media Cache' files which are used to sync audio can be 2/3 of original MPG file that will be transferred to DVD without re-encoding.If you are a masochist, this is a must use. I have created around 20 DVDs with custom menus and playing options.

Features[edit]

VMware claimed in 2011 that the Player offered better graphics, faster performance, and tighter integration for running Windows XP under Windows Vista or Windows 7 than Microsoft's Windows XP Mode running on Windows Virtual PC, which is free of charge for all purposes.[4]

Versions earlier than 3 of VMware Player were unable to create virtual machines (VMs), which had to be created by an application with the capability, or created manually by statements stored in a text file with extension '.vmx'; later versions can create VMs. The features of Workstation not available in Player are 'developer-centric features such as Teams, multiple Snapshots and Clones, and Virtual Rights Management features for end-point security',[11] and support by VMware. Player allows a complete virtual machine to be copied at any time by copying a directory; while not a fully featured snapshot facility, this allows a copy of a machine in a particular state to be stored, and reverted to later if desired. By default changes (including proxy settings, passwords, bookmarks, installed software and malware) made in a VM are saved when it is shut down, but the .vmx configuration file can easily be edited to autorevert on shutdown, so that all changes are discarded.[12]

VMware Player is also supplied with the VMware Workstation distribution, for use in installations where not all client users are licensed to use the full VMware Workstation. In an environment where some machines without VMware Workstation licences run VMware Player, a virtual machine created by Workstation can be distributed to computers running Player without paying for additional Workstation licenses if not used commercially.[13]

Version history[edit]

Major VersionRelease DateSignificant Changes
1.06 June 2008first released. x86 supported
2.028 August 2008
2.56 October 2008
3.027 October 2009[14]
  • GUI: Added GUI wizard for creating a new virtual machine and editing virtual machine settings[14]
  • Support for Windows 7
  • Multiple-Monitor Display
  • Drag and Drop Enhancements
  • Virtual Printing
3.125 May 2010
4.04 October 2011[15]
  • Starting with this version, an x64 (64-bit) CPU was required[15]
  • The host operating system did not need to be 64-bit
  • A 64-bit guest required a host CPU with Intel VT-x or AMD-V
  • Installation changes and enhanced keyboards
  • Virtual hardware improvements
  • Windows 8 support with 4.0.5
  • Documentation changes
5.022 August 2012
  • Windows 8 support
  • New User Interface
  • OpenGL 2.1 for Linux Virtual Machines
  • SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Support for Windows 8
  • Ability to run Restricted Virtual Machines
  • Commercial license included with Fusion 5 Professional
6.03 September 2013[16]
  • Support for Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2
  • Support for up to 16 vCPUs (up from 4)
  • Support for up to 8 TB disks (up from 2TB)
  • USB Improvements (implemented USB 3 Streams)
  • SSD Pass-through (optimized when running off SSD)
  • Virtual Machines that expire at creator-specified time
7.01 December 2014[17]
  • Support for 32-bit host operating system was discontinued[18]
  • Support for Windows 8.1 Update
  • Support for Windows Server 2012 R2
  • Support for Windows 10 Technical Preview (Experimental support)
  • Support for Ubuntu 14.10
  • Support for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
  • Support for CentOS 7
  • Support for OpenSUSE 13.2
  • Support for SUSE Linux Enterprise 12
  • VMware Hardware Version 11
  • Allocate up to 2GB video memory to a virtual machine
12.024 August 2015[19]
  • †VMware Player proper discontinued after v7; VMware Workstation Player 12 released
  • Support for Windows 10
  • Support for Ubuntu 15.04
  • Support for Fedora 22
  • Support for CentOS 7.1
  • Support for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.1
  • Support for Oracle Linux 7.1
  • Support for OpenSUSE 13.2
  • Support for VMware Project Photon
  • Performance improvements for suspending and resuming encrypted virtual machines
  • Support for 4K monitors with high resolution UI
12.18 December 2015Maintenance release that resolves some known issues.
12.513 September 2016[20]
  • Support for Windows 10 Anniversary Update
  • Support for Windows Server 2016
  • Bug fixes
  • Included security updates
  • Added more performance improvements
14.026 September 2017[21]
  • Support for Windows 10 Creators Update
  • Guest Operating System Support :
    • Ubuntu 17.04
    • Fedora 26
    • CentOS 7.4
    • RHEL 7.4
    • Debian 9.1
    • Oracle Linux 7.4
    • SLE 12 SP3
    • OpenSUSE 42.3
  • Virtual NVME Support
  • Secure Boot Support
  • Network Latency Simulation
  • Native OVF Support
14.1.221 May 2018[22]Host and Guest Operating System Support :
  • Windows 10 Spring Creators Update
  • Ubuntu 18.04


15.024 September 2018[23]
  • Guest Operating System Support
    • Windows 10 1803
    • Ubuntu 18.04
    • Fedora 28
    • RHEL 7.5
    • CentOS 7.5
    • Debian 9.5
    • OpenSuse Leap 15.0
    • FreeBSD 11.2
    • ESXi 6.7
  • DirextX 10.1
  • REST API Support
  • VCSA 6.7 Support
  • USB Auto connect to virtual machine
15.0.19 November 2018[24]Host and Guest Operating System Support :
  • Ubuntu 18.10
  • Fedora 29
  • RHEL 7.6
15.0.222 November 2018[25]Host and Guest Operating System Support :
  • Windows 10 October Update
  • Windows Server 2019
15.114 May 2019[26]Guest Operating System Support :
  • Windows 10 19H1
  • Ubuntu 19.04
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.0
  • Fedora 30
  • ESXi 6.7 Update 2
15.5.019 Sep 2019[27]Guest operating system support:
  • Windows 10 19H2
  • Debian 10.0/10.1
  • Debian 9.11
  • Oracle Linux 8.0
  • SLE 15 SP1
  • FreeBSD 12.0
  • PhotonOS 3.0
  • Updated so virtual networks can now be configured with MTU size of up to 9000 bytes.
  • Updated to make network settings save after upgrades and adds the ability to import and export network configurations
  • New shortcut to quickly adjust VMware display layout
  • Update to make PVSCSI adapters supported by Workstation, which improves the compatibility for VMs migration between Workstation and vSphere.
  • Open VM Tools is the default VMware Tools for applicable Linux virtual machines.
  • Security fixes


Resources[edit]

Screenshot showing Android 2.3.7 running on VMware Player 6.0

Many ready-made virtual machines (VMs) which run on VMware Player, Workstation, and other virtualization software are available[28][29][30][31] for specific purposes, either for purchase or free of charge. For example, a free Linux-based “browser appliance” with the Firefox browser installed[32] is available that can be used for safe Web browsing; if infected or damaged, it can be discarded and replaced by a clean copy. VMs can be configured to reset after each use without the need to recreate from the original file. Suppliers of operating systems with commercial licences usually require installations to be licensed; VMs with such operating systems installed cannot be distributed without restriction. Ready-to-use VMs with Microsoft or Apple operating systems installed, in particular, are not distributed, except for evaluation versions.

VMware Player supports free-of-charge VMware Tools, which add significant functionality. Versions of Player for different platforms have their own Tools, not necessarily compatible with other versions. Sometimes Tools are updated belatedly; for example, Player 4.0.2 was released on 24 January 2012, but the corresponding version of Tools was not available for some time after that, restricting functionality of updated Player installations.[7]

Virtual machines created by any VMware software can be used by any other. It is often possible to use VMs created by one manufacturer's virtual machine software with software from another manufacturer, either directly or via a conversion procedure. VMs that run on Microsoft Virtual Server and Virtual PC can be converted for use by VMware software by the VMware vCenter Converter. This software can also create a virtual machine from a physical PC.[33]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^'Download VMware Workstation Player'. VMWare.
  2. ^'VMware Workstation 15.5.0 Player Release Notes'. docs.vmware.com.
  3. ^'FAQs'. VMware Player home page. VMware. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
  4. ^ ab'VMware Player – The Easiest Way to Run a Virtual Machine'. 1 July 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-07-01. Archived version; the page as of 2016 is about VMware Workstation Player
  5. ^'VMware Workstation Player FAQs: Create and run virtual machines'. VMWare.
  6. ^'VMware Player 4.0 EULA'. VMware. Retrieved 27 April 2012.
  7. ^ ab'VMware Player 4.0.2 Tools - Bad Support VMware Communities'. Communities.vmware.com. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  8. ^'Knowledge Base'. Kb.vmware.com. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  9. ^'free'. My.vmware.com. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  10. ^'VMware Workstation: Multiple Operating Systems Linux, Windows 8 & More'. Vmware.com. 2015-07-29. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  11. ^'VMware Player – Frequently Asked Questions'.
  12. ^'Browser Appliance'. Browser.shell.tor.hu. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  13. ^'Virtual Machines & Multiple Operating Systems: VMware Workstation Player'. Vmware.com. 2016-08-12. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  14. ^ ab'VMware Player 3.0 Release Notes'. Vmware.com. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  15. ^ ab'VMware Player 4 Release Notes'. Vmware.com. 2011-10-04. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  16. ^'VMware Player 6 Release Notes'. Vmware.com. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  17. ^'VMware Player 7 Release Notes'. Vmware.com. 2014-12-01. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  18. ^'free'. My.vmware.com. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  19. ^'VMware Workstation 12 Player Release Notes'. Pubs.vmware.com. 2015-08-24. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  20. ^'VMware Workstation 12.5 Player Release Notes'. Pubs.vmware.com. 2016-09-13. Retrieved 2016-10-21.
  21. ^liz. 'VMware Workstation 14 Player Release Notes'. docs.vmware.com. Retrieved 2019-05-17.
  22. ^liz. 'VMware Workstation 14.1.2 Player Release Notes'. docs.vmware.com. Retrieved 2019-05-17.
  23. ^liz. 'VMware Workstation 15 Player Release Notes'. docs.vmware.com. Retrieved 2019-05-17.
  24. ^djohn. 'VMware Workstation 15.0.1 Player Release Notes'. docs.vmware.com. Retrieved 2019-05-17.
  25. ^djohn. 'VMware Workstation 15.0.2 Player Release Notes'. docs.vmware.com. Retrieved 2019-05-17.
  26. ^'VMware Workstation 15.1 Player Release Notes'. docs.vmware.com.
  27. ^'VMware Workstation 15.5.0 Player Release Notes'. docs.vmware.com.
  28. ^'Virtual Appliances Solution Exchange'. Vmware.com. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  29. ^'VM Planet Homepage'. Vmplanet.net. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  30. ^'Archived copy'. Archived from the original on 2009-02-04. Retrieved 2009-01-27.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  31. ^'Archived copy'. Archived from the original on 2008-08-28. Retrieved 2008-09-01.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  32. ^'Virtual Appliances Solution Exchange'. Solutionexchange.vmware.com. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  33. ^'VMware vCenter Converter Standalone Documentation'. Vmware.com. Retrieved 2016-08-27.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=VMware_Workstation_Player&oldid=916792696'
VMware Workstation
Screenshot showing VMware Workstation 11.1 on Windows 7
Developer(s)VMware
Initial release1999[1]
Stable release
15.5.0 Build 14665864[2] / 19 September 2019; 9 days ago
Written inC, C++
Operating systemWindows
Linux
Platformx86-64 only[3]
(version 11.x and above, previous versions were available for x86 as well)
TypeHypervisor
LicenseFreeware (Workstation Player) Trialware and commercial (Workstation Pro)
Websitewww.vmware.com/products/workstation-pro.html

VMware Workstation is a hosted hypervisor that runs on x64 versions of Windows and Linux operating systems[4] (an x86 version of earlier releases was available);[3] it enables users to set up virtual machines (VMs) on a single physical machine, and use them simultaneously along with the actual machine. Each virtual machine can execute its own operating system, including versions of Microsoft Windows, Linux, BSD, and MS-DOS. VMware Workstation is developed and sold by VMware, Inc., a division of Dell Technologies. There is a free-of-charge version, VMware Workstation Player, for non-commercial use. An operating systems license is needed to use proprietary ones such as Windows. Ready-made Linux VMs set up for different purposes are available from several sources.

VMware Workstation supports bridging existing host network adapters and sharing physical disk drives and USB devices with a virtual machine. It can simulate disk drives; an ISO image file can be mounted as a virtual optical disc drive, and virtual hard disk drives are implemented as .vmdk files.

VMware Workstation Pro can save the state of a virtual machine (a 'snapshot') at any instant. These snapshots can later be restored, effectively returning the virtual machine to the saved state,[5] as it was and free from any post-snapshot damage to the VM.

Watch the prince of persia online free

VMware Workstation includes the ability to group multiple virtual machines in an inventory folder. The machines in such a folder can then be powered on and powered off as a single object, useful for testing complex client-server environments.

  • 2Version history
  • 5Third-party resources

2016 company changes and future development[edit]

VMware Workstation versions 12.0.0, 12.0.1, and 12.1.0 were released at intervals of about two months in 2015.[6] In January 2016 the entire development team behind VMware Workstation and Fusion was disbanded and all US developers were immediately fired.[7][8][9][10] The company said that 'the restructuring activities will not impact the existence of any current product lines', that 'roles and responsibilities associated with particular businesses will be moved to other regions and office locations', and that investment would continue 'with emphasis on our growth products'. The future of Workstation and Fusion became uncertain. On 24 April 2016 maintenance release 12.1.1 was released. In September, same year, the company announced that 'we’re very much alive and well'[11]. Consequently, on September 13 Workstation 12.5 and Fusion 8.5 were released as free upgrades which added support for Windows 10 Anniversary edition and Windows Server 2016.

Version history[edit]

Legend
ColorMeaning
RedUnsupported release
GreenCurrent or still supported release
BlueFuture release
VersionRelease dateSignificant changes
1.01999First release
3.01 November 2001
3.19 April 2002
4.023 March 2003
4.55 April 2004
5.011 April 2005
5.512 September 2005
6.09 May 2007
6.523 September 2008
  • 6.5 is the last version to support CPUs without PAE[12]
  • Record Replay[13]
7.026 October 2009
  • Replay Debugging (improved Record Replay)[14]
8.014 September 2011
  • Shared Virtual Machines
  • Workstation 8 is the first version that requires an x64-compatible CPU.
  • Replay Debugging removed[15]
9.0[16]23 August 2012
  • USB 3.0 support for Linux and Windows 8 guests
  • OpenGL driver for Linux guests
  • Improved graphics subsystem
  • Restricted Virtual Machines
  • New operating system support
10.0[17]3 September 2013
  • New operating system support
  • VMware hardware version 10
    • 16 vCPUs
    • 8 TB disks
    • New virtual SATA disk controller
    • USB 3.0 streams support
    • SSD pass-through
  • Expiring Virtual Machines
  • Virtual tablet sensors
  • User interface enhancements
  • Cloud Management Tools
  • VMware KVM
  • WSX 1.1
10.0.124 October 2013
  • Improved compatibility with some AMD Piledriver CPUs
  • Easy Install support for Windows 8.1 RTM and Windows Server 2012 R2 RTM
  • Fixes for certain hangs and freezes
10.0.217 April 2014
  • The compatibility and performance of USB audio and video devices with virtual machines has been improved.
  • Resolved an issue that prevents a USB device from being connected to Linux RHEL 5 guest operating system.
  • Easy installation option supports Windows 8.1 Update 1 and Windows Server 2012 R2 as a guest operating system.
  • OpenSUSE 13.1 is now supported as a host operating system.
  • Resolved an issue causing burning CDs with Blu-ray drives to fail while connected to the virtual machine.
  • Resolved an issue that caused using Microsoft Word and Excel in unity mode causes a beep.
  • Resolved an issue causing host application windows to be blanked out in the UAC dialog on the Linux host of the Windows 8 virtual machine.
  • Resolved an issue that prevented the Sound Card from being automatically added to the VM when powering on the virtual machine on a Linux host.
  • Resolved an issue that could cause a Windows 8.1 guest operating system to display a black screen when launching Metro style applications in the launch menu.
  • Resolved a hotkey conflict in the Preference dialog of the KVM mode.
  • Resolved a compatibility issue of GL renderer with some new Nvidia drivers.
  • Resolved graphics errors with for Solidworks applications.
  • Resolved an issue causing virtual machines imported from a physical PC to crash on startup.
  • Resolved an issue about shared folder when the user read and write file using two threads.
  • Resolved an issue that caused Linux virtual machines to see stale file contents when using shared folders.
  • Resolved the virtual machine performance issues when using the E1000e adapter.
  • Resolved an issue preventing Workstation from starting on Ubuntu 14.04.
10.0.31 July 2014
  • VMware Workstation 10.0.3 has been updated to the OPENSSL library version openssl-0.9.8za where necessary to address CVE-2014-0224, CVE-2014-0198, CVE-2010-5298, and CVE-2014-3470.
10.0.430 October 2014
  • Fixes memory issue in Workstation on Microsoft Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012.
10.0.5[18]27 January 2015
  • Bug fixes
    • At power-on, a virtual machine hangs and a .dmp file is created.
    • The VideoReDo application does not display the video properly and parts of the application's screen are scrambled.
    • Copying and pasting a large file from host to guest may fail.
    • Memory leak in the HGFS server (for shared folders) causes VMware Tools to crash randomly with the error: Exception 0xc0000005 (access violation) has occurred.
    • New VMs have the same location UUID and MAC address so that the UUID and MAC address are not unique. This problem occurs with WS 9 and WS 10 VMs but not WS 7 and WS 8 VMs.
    • On RHEL 6.6, vmmon cannot be loaded due to incompatible kernel symbol versions. With gcc, kernel-headers, kernel-devel installed, vmmon module will be recompiled automatically.
    • Memory leak by the process vmtoolsd.exe when the guest NIC is disabled causes memory consumption by Workstation processes to increase over time.
    • When USB devices are autoconnected with a hub to a Renesas host controller, the devices are not redirected to the guest.
    • WS 11 license is accepted by WS 10.0.5 and future 10.0 updates.
    • When WS is installed on Linux in a non-default location, the Virtual Network Editor fails to run.
10.0.6[19]5 May 2015
  • Fixed a problem when uploading a virtual machine with Workstation 10.0.x to ESXi 6.0.
  • Updated to OpenSSL library version openssl-1.0.1m.
10.0.7[20]2 Jul 2015
  • Security fixes
11.0[21]1 Dec 2014
  • New operating system support
  • VMware hardware version 11
    • 2GB Video memory per VM
  • Connection to VMware vCloud Air
11.1[22]17 Feb 2015
  • Added support for VMware vCloud Air Virtual Private Cloud OnDemand
  • Bug Fixes
    • A Linux guest OS booted on EFI firmware sometimes failed to respond to the keyboard and mouse if any mouse motion occurred during a short window of time during OS boot.
    • Outlook 2010 would occasionally crash when running in Unity mode.
    • You could not compact or defragment a persistent disk.
    • The UI sometimes crashed when a user copied and pasted a file between two Windows guests.
    • Rendering corruption in UI elements in Fedora 20 guests with 3D enabled.
    • When creating a new virtual machine with SUSE Linux Enterprise (SLE) 12, the Easy Install path was not available.
11.1.1[23]9 Jun 2015
  • Critical security fix for CVE-2012-0897, CVE-2015-2336, CVE-2015-2337, CVE-2015-2338, CVE-2015-2339, CVE-2015-2340, CVE-2015-2341
    • VMware Workstation and Horizon Client TPView.ddl and TPInt.dll incorrectly handle memory allocation. On Workstation, this may allow a guest to execute code or perform a Denial of Service on the Windows OS that runs Workstation.
11.1.2[24]15 Jun 2015
  • Security Issues
    • VMware Workstation 11.1.2 has been updated to OpenSSL library version openssl-1.0.1m.
  • Bug Fixes
    • Two interface items on the Access Control screen used the same hot-key combination.
    • Attempting to suspend a Windows virtual machine with the Sensor Diagnostic Tool running caused the virtual machine to become unresponsive.
    • Using audio conferencing software on a Windows 8 guest operating system caused a severe echo during both video and audio calls.
    • On the Windows 95 guest operating system, the mouse cursor jumped.
    • Symbolic links created within a Windows guest operating system on a Linux host did not list files under subdirectories.
    • Workstation did not display Regions in the VMware vCloud Air Subscription node.
    • Workstation could not automatically detect the Fedora 21 ISO when creating a new Fedora 21 virtual machine.
    • Under specific conditions, when the alipaybsm.exe file was installed on the Workstation host, network service was disrupted.
    • After connecting to vCloud Air from Workstation, no virtual machines were listed in the Workstation virtual machine library.
    • Using Easy Install for the Ubuntu 15.04 guest operating system with kernel 3.19.0-15-generic prevented you from enabling folder sharing.
    • Reverting to a snapshot failed following a specific set of steps.
    • A Windows 10 guest operating system running idly caused Workstation to crash.
    • Using the Easy Install option to install the Ubuntu 14.04 or Ubuntu 15.04 guest operating system failed to install VMware Tools.
12.0.0[25]24 Aug 2015The following features have reached end of life in Workstation 12 Pro and have been removed:[26]
  • Unity mode on Linux guest and host operating systems
  • Virtual Debugger Visual Studio
  • Connection to the VMware vCloud Air subscription service

Added support for, amongst other things:

  • Later operating system versions, including Windows 10
  • DirectX 10 and OpenGL 3.3
  • IPv6 NAT
12.0.1[27]29 Oct 2015Maintenance release that resolves some issues.
12.1.0[28]8 Dec 2015Maintenance release that resolves some issues.
12.1.1[29][30]21 Apr 2016Maintenance release that resolves some issues.
12.5[31][30]13 Sep 2016
  • The announced[32] release date of 8 Sep 2016[33] was missed due to a nasty bug
  • Compatible with Windows 10 Anniversary Edition
12.5.1[34]27 Oct 2016Bug fixes, security updates for undisclosed vulnerabilities and performance improvements.
12.5.2[35]13 Nov 2016This release of VMware Workstation 12 Pro addresses an out-of-bounds memory access vulnerability related to the drag-and-drop feature. This may allow a guest to execute code on the operating system that runs VMware Workstation 12 Pro.
12.5.3[36]9 Mar 2017Bug fixes, security updates, and performance improvements.
  • Workstation Pro fails to launch on a Linux platform that uses kernel 4.9.0
  • Occasionally, the Workstation Pro user interface crashes in Workstation 12 Pro version 12.5 and displays an error
  • When you use a USB device that does not follow USB specifications in a virtual machine in USB passthrough mode, the guest becomes unusable
  • You cannot connect a parallel port to a virtual machine
  • Connecting an Active Braille device to the virtual machines fails
  • After users execute Active FTP in the guest operating system, the vmnat.exe process continues to use a TCP port of the host
  • ThinPrint technology does not work in a Windows XP guest operating system with VMware Tools 10.0.10
  • VMware Tools service is not started in Ubuntu 16.10 guest
  • You cannot use shared folders in a Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.3 virtual machine
12.5.4[37]14 Mar 2017This release addresses an out-of-bounds memory access vulnerability related to the drag-and-drop feature. This vulnerability might allow a guest to execute code on the operating system that runs VMware Workstation 12 Pro.
12.5.5[38]28 Mar 2017This release of VMware Workstation Pro addresses the following issues:
  • VMware Workstation Pro has a heap buffer overflow and uninitialized stack memory usage in SVGA. These issues might allow a guest virtual machine to execute code on the host. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the identifiers CVE-2017-4902 (heap issue) and CVE-2017-4903 (stack issue) to these issues.
  • The VMware Workstation Pro XHCI driver has uninitialized memory usage. This issue might allow a guest virtual machine to execute code on the host. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the identifier CVE-2017-4904 to this issue.
  • VMware Workstation Pro has uninitialized memory usage. This issue might lead to an information leak. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the identifier CVE-2017-4905 to this issue.
12.5.6[39]18 May 2017This release includes the following highlights:
  • Day 0 support of the Windows 10 Creators Update (version 1703)
  • Bug fixes and security updates
12.5.7[40]22 Jun 2017This release of VMware Workstation Pro includes some bug fixes and security updates.
12.5.8[41]16 Nov 2017
  • VMware Workstation 12 Pro Version 12.5.8 has been updated to OpenSSL library version openssl-1.0.2l.

Support has been added for the following operating systems:

  • RHEL 7.4
  • Oracle Linux 7.3
12.5.9[42]10 Jan 2018
  • This update of VMware Workstation Pro exposes hardware support for branch target injection mitigation to VMware guests. This hardware is used by some guest operating systems to mitigate CVE-2018-5715 (also called by the name 'Spectre').
14[43]26 Sep 2017This major version release includes the following highlights:
  • Updated to support the newest versions of MicrosoftWindows 10 (including Enterprise), and Windows Server editions, as well as various Linux distributions
  • Updated support for the latest Intel and AMD processors and limited or no support for pre-2011 CPUs
  • Improved virtual firmware support, such as UEFI, and new Secure Boot support
  • Support for Virtualization Based Security (VBS)
  • Improved Virtual Networking
  • New and improved support and controls for working with vSphere and the vCenter Server Appliance
  • Network latency simulator
  • New remote vSphere controls
14.1.0[44]21 Dec 2017
  • This release delivers improved guest support of Windows 10 Fall Creators Update (Version 1709)
  • Includes VMware Tools 10.2.0
14.1.1[45]9 Jan 2018
  • This update of VMware Workstation Pro exposes hardware support for branch target injection mitigation to VMware guests. This hardware is used by some guest operating systems to mitigate CVE-2018-5715 (also called by the name 'Spectre').
14.1.2[46]21 May 2018
  • This update delivers guest access to the SSBD feature in IA32_SPEC_CTRL.
14.1.3[47]14 Aug 2018
  • This version has been updated to OpenSSL library version openssl-1.0.2o.
15[48]24 Sep 2018This major version release includes the following highlights:
  • Updated to support the newest versions of MicrosoftWindows 10 (including Enterprise) as well as various Linux distributions
  • This version enables support for 4K resolution.
  • This version enables support for DirectX 10.1.
  • This version raises the limitation of shared graphics memory to 3GB.
  • This version adds a new RESTful API to automate common virtual machine tasks using standard JSON over HTTP/HTTPS.
  • This version adds new Hosts and Clusters view when connect to remote vSphere.
  • This version enables feature for USB devices to connect automatically to a powered on virtual machine.
  • This version enables support for SSH login to Linux virtual machine.
  • This version enables stretch guest display feature.
  • This version enables support for Wayland protocol.
  • This version improves performance for virtual NVMe storage.
15.0.1[49]9 Nov 2018
  • This version adds support for the newest versions of various Linux distributions.
  • Bug fixes and security updates.
15.0.2[50]22 Nov 2018
  • This version adds support for Windows 10 October 2018 Update (Version 1809) and Windows Server 2019.
  • Bug fixes and security updates.
15.0.3[51]14 Mar 2019
  • Bug fixes and security updates. OpenSSL library updated to version 1.0.2q. libxml2 library updated to version 2.9.9.
15.0.4[52]29 Mar 2019
  • Security fixes
15.1.0[53]14 May 2019
  • This version adds support for new guest operating systems
  • This version is updated to support stretch guest display for all guests running on Windows hosts.
  • Bug fixes and security updates.
15.5.0[54]19 Sep 2019
  • This version adds support for new guest operating systems
    • Debian 9.11 & 10
    • PhotonOS 3.0
  • Adds support for virtual networks with configurable MTU up to 9 000 bytes
  • Is able to save network settings after upgrades and to import and export network configurations.
  • Adds support for VMware Paravirtual SCSI Controllers (PVSCSI).
  • Open Virtual Machine Tools (open-vm-tools), previously known as VMWare Tools, are made default for applicable Linux guests.
  • Bug fixes and security updates.

Host OS support[edit]

Supported operating systems on host computers[55][56]
Operating system(s)Supported version(s)
Windows Server 201915.0.2 and later
Windows Server 201612.5 and later
Windows Server 2012 R210.0 and later
Windows Server 20129.0 and later
Windows Server 2008 R2 SP18.0 and later
Windows Server 2008 R27.0 and later
Windows Server 20086.0–10.0
Windows Server 2003 R26.0–10.0
Windows Server 20034.0–10.0[57]
Windows 10 May 2019 Update (Version 1903)15.1.0 and later
Windows 10 October 2018 Update (Version 1809)15.0.2 and later
Windows 10 April 2018 Update (Version 1803)15.0 and later
Windows 10 Fall Creators Update (Version 1709)14.1 and later
Windows 10 Creators Update (Version 1703)14.0 and later
Windows 10 Anniversary Update (Version 1607)12.5 and later
Windows 10 Version 1507 and November Update (Version 1511)11.0 and later
Windows 8.110.0 and later
Windows 89.0 and later
Windows 77.1 and later
Windows Vista6.0–10.0
Windows XP3.0–10.0[58]
Windows 20002.0–6.5[59][60]
Windows NT 4.01.0–4.5
Ubuntu 19.0415.1.0 and later
Ubuntu 18.0415.0 and later

Variants[edit]

There was a free VMware Player distinct from Workstation, with similar but reduced functionality, until VMware Player v7, Workstation v11. In 2015 the two packages were combined as VMware Workstation 12, with a free VMware Workstation Player version which, on purchase of a license code, became the higher specification VMware Workstation Pro.[61] VMware Workstation Player, like VMware Player[62] before it, is free of charge for non-commercial use, or for distribution or other use by written agreement.[6][63] (Workstation Pro is also available for download for a free trial period, and is easily confused with the unlimited-time restricted-functionality version.)

  • VMware Workstation Player (formerly known as Player Pro),[64] free for non-commercial use; a licence may be purchased for commercial use, also providing eligibility for paid support.[65]
  • VMware Workstation Pro,[66] available for a 30-day free trial before purchase but distinct from the permanently free version.

The features of the versions are compared on the VMware web site.[65]

VMware Tools[edit]

VMware Tools, a package with drivers and other software available for the various guest operating systems VMware products support, installs in guest operating systems to add functionality. Tools is updated from time to time, with v10.1.15 in September 2017.[67] It has several components, including the following:

  • Drivers for emulated hardware:
    • VESA-compliant graphics for the guest machine to access high screen resolutions
    • Network drivers for the vmxnet2 and vmxnet3 NIC
    • Ensoniq AudioPCI audio
    • Mouse integration
  • Support of shared folders and drag-and-drop file transfer between host and guest. This functionality is described as HGFS (Host Guest File System), and may be disabled by default for security; it may be enabled by changes to the .VMX configuration file
  • Clipboard sharing between host and guest
  • Time-synchronization capabilities (guest synchronises with host machine's clock)
  • Support for Unity, a feature that allows seamless integration of applications with the host desktop[68] by hiding virtual monitor and drawing the windows of applications running in the virtual machine on the host. Unity support was added for Windows 10 and removed for Linux in Workstation 12.[26]

Third-party resources[edit]

Ready-to-use virtual machines[edit]

Vmware Workstation Forum

Many ready-made virtual machines (VMs) which run on VMware Player, Workstation, and other virtualization software are available[69] for specific purposes, either for purchase or free of charge; for example free Linux-based 'browser appliances' with the Firefox or other browser installed[70][71] which can be used for safe Web browsing; if infected or damaged it can be discarded and replaced by a clean copy. The appliance can be configured to automatically reset itself after each use so personal information and other changes are not stored.[71] VMs distributed legally only have freely distributable operating systems, as operating systems on VMs must be licensed; ready-to-use Microsoft Windows VMs, in particular, are not distributed, except for evaluation versions.

Other tools[edit]

  • PowerWF[72] - Provides a visual representation of VMware VIX scripts, converting them into workflows, or converting workflows into Powershell cmdlets and modules. VIX is VMware's addition to Microsoft's Powershell for automation of the VMware Player.

Vmware Workstation Installation

See also[edit]

References[edit]

Vmware Workstation Appliance View

  1. ^Thiruvathukal, George K; Hinsen, Konrad; Läufer, Konstantin; Kaylor, Joe (2010). 'Virtualization for Computational Scientists'. Computing in Science & Engineering. 12 (4): 52–61. doi:10.1109/MCSE.2010.92. ISSN1521-9615.
  2. ^'VMware Workstation 15.5.0 Pro Release Notes'. September 19, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  3. ^ ab'Processor Requirements for Host Systems'. VMware Workstation 9 Documentation Center. VMware. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  4. ^https://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?language=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=2129859
  5. ^Warren, Steven (2008-11-20). 'Snapshots in VMware Workstation'. Blogs.techrepublic.com.com. Archived from the original on 2012-07-07. Retrieved 2012-09-13.
  6. ^ ab'Download VMware Workstation Player'. VMware. Retrieved 11 May 2016. Download site for VMware Player 7.x and Workstation Player 12.x
  7. ^'VMware Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2015 Results'. ir.vmware.com. 26 January 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  8. ^Cloud; Security; Australia; Vmware; Microsoft; devs, VMware axes Fusion and Workstation US; VMware says vSphere in decline, new multi-cloud plan will ensure growth; Citrix kills Sydney research lab, vows to focus on 'core products'. 'VMware axes Fusion and Workstation US devs'. Retrieved 2016-01-28.
  9. ^Miller, Ron. 'VMware Confirms Layoffs In Earnings Statement As It Prepares For Dell Acquisition'. TechCrunch. Retrieved 2016-01-28.
  10. ^chipx86. 'A Tribute to VMware Workstation, Fusion, and Hosted UI'. ChipLog. Retrieved 2016-01-28.
  11. ^Jon Brodkin (30 August 2016). 'VMware says, 'We're not dead,' updates Fusion and Workstation for free'. ARS Technica.
  12. ^'VMware Workstation 7.0 Release Notes'. www.vmware.com. Retrieved 2016-09-13.
  13. ^'Introducing Replay Debugging: the end of the heisbenbug? - VMTN Blog'. 2008-08-30. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  14. ^'Replay Debugging – Try it Today! - VMware Workstation Zealot'. 2010-01-19. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  15. ^'Better Software Development with Replay Debugging: Goodbye, Replay Debugging…'. www.replaydebugging.com. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  16. ^'VMware Workstation 9.0 Release Notes'. 23 August 2012.
  17. ^'VMware Workstation 10.0 Release Notes'. 3 September 2013.
  18. ^https://www.vmware.com/support/ws10/doc/workstation-1005-release-notes.html
  19. ^https://www.vmware.com/support/ws10/doc/workstation-1006-release-notes.html
  20. ^'VMware Workstation 10.0.7 Release Notes'. 2 July 2015.
  21. ^https://www.vmware.com/support/ws/doc/workstation-11-release-notes.html
  22. ^https://www.vmware.com/support/ws/doc/workstation-111-release-notes.html
  23. ^'VMware Workstation 11.1.1 Release Notes'. 9 June 2015.
  24. ^'VMware Workstation 11.1.2 Release Notes'. 15 June 2015.
  25. ^https://pubs.vmware.com/Release_Notes/en/workstation/12pro/workstation-12-release-notes.html
  26. ^ abWil van Antwerpen. 'VMware Workstation 12 discards unity support for Linux » PlanetVM'. Planetvm.net. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
  27. ^'VMware Workstation 12 Player Version 12.0.1 Release Notes'. VMware. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
  28. ^'VMware Workstation 12 Player Version 12.1 Release Notes'. VMware. 8 December 2015. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
  29. ^'Download VMware Workstation Player (always links to latest v12.x and previous versions and release notes)'. VMware. 2016. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
  30. ^ ab'Download VMware Workstation Pro (always links to latest v12.x and previous versions and release notes)'. VMware. 2016. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
  31. ^'VMware Workstation 12 Pro Version 12.5 Release Notes'. pubs.vmware.com. Retrieved 2016-09-13.
  32. ^Jon Brodkin (30 August 2016). 'VMware says 'we're not dead,' updates Fusion and Workstation for free'. Arstechnica.co.uk. Retrieved 8 September 2016.
  33. ^'VMware Workstation 12.5 and Fusion 8.5 - Free Upgrade - ESX Virtualization'. 2016-08-31. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  34. ^'VMware Workstation 12 Pro Version 12.5.1 Release Notes'. VMware. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  35. ^'VMware Workstation 12 Pro Version 12.5.2 Release Notes'. VMware. Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  36. ^'VMware Workstation 12 Pro Version 12.5.3 Release Notes'. VMware. Retrieved 14 Mar 2017.
  37. ^'VMware Workstation 12 Pro Version 12.5.4 Release Notes'. VMware. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
  38. ^'VMware Workstation 12 Pro Version 12.5.5 Release Notes'. VMware. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
  39. ^'VMware Workstation 12 Pro Version 12.5.6 Release Notes'. VMware.
  40. ^'VMware Workstation 12 Pro Version 12.5.7 Release Notes'. VMware.
  41. ^'VMware Workstation 12 Pro Version 12.5.8 Release Notes'. VMware.
  42. ^'VMware Workstation 12 Pro Version 12.5.9 Release Notes'. VMware.
  43. ^'VMware Workstation 14 Pro Version 14.0.0 Release Notes'. VMware.
  44. ^'VMware Workstation 14 Pro Version 14.1 Release Notes'. VMware.
  45. ^'VMware Workstation 14 Pro Version 14.1.1 Release Notes'. VMware.
  46. ^'VMware Workstation 14 Pro Version 14.1.2 Release Notes'. VMware.
  47. ^'VMware Workstation 14 Pro Version 14.1.3 Release Notes'. VMware.
  48. ^'VMware Workstation 15 Pro Release Notes'. VMware.
  49. ^'VMware Workstation 15.0.1 Pro Release Notes'. VMware.
  50. ^'VMware Workstation 15.0.2 Pro Release Notes'. VMware.
  51. ^'VMware Workstation 15.0.3 Pro Release Notes'. VMware.
  52. ^'VMware Workstation 15.0.4 Pro Release Notes'. VMware.
  53. ^'VMware Workstation 15.1 Pro Release Notes'. VMware.
  54. ^'VMware Workstation 15.5.0 Pro Release Notes'. VMware.
  55. ^'Supported host operating systems for VMware Workstation (2088579)'. VMware Knowledge Base. September 25, 2018. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  56. ^'Supported host operating systems for Workstation Pro 12.x, 14.x and 15.x (2129859)'. VMware Knowledge Base. September 24, 2018. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  57. ^'VMware Workstation 4.0'. VMware. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  58. ^'VMware Workstation 3.2'. VMware. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  59. ^William F. Katz (January 16, 2001). 'VMware Workstation 2.0'. ITProToday. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  60. ^'VMware Workstation 6.5.0 Release Notes'. VMware. October 15, 2008. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  61. ^VMware Web site, VMware Workstation Player Pro
  62. ^'VMware Player 4.0 EULA'. VMware. Retrieved 27 April 2012.
  63. ^Michael Roy (26 September 2017). 'Workstation 14 Pro and Player Now Available!'. VMware Workstation Zealot - Official blog of VMware Workstation. Retrieved 19 October 2017. VMware Workstation v14 (September 2017) continued to be free for non-commercial use.
  64. ^'VMware Workstation Player (formerly known as Player Pro)'. vmware. VMware, Inc. 2015. Retrieved 2015-08-25. VMware Workstation 12 Player is a streamlined desktop virtualization application that runs one or more operating systems on the same computer without rebooting.
  65. ^ ab'VMware Player Pro: Compare to VMware Workstation 11'. Vmware. Archived from the original on 11 October 2016. Version archived 11 October 2016 compares Workstation 12 Player to Player 7 Pro; Workstation 12 Player (Unlicensed) to Workstation 12 Player (Licensed); and Workstation 12 Player to Workstation 12 Pro. Page is updated; as of October 2017 compares Workstation Player and Workstation Pro, only
  66. ^'VMware Workstation Pro'. vmware. VMware, Inc. 2015. Retrieved 2015-08-25.
  67. ^'VMware Tools 10.1.15 Release Notes'. VMware. 26 September 2017. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
  68. ^'Use Unity Mode'. VMware Workstation 9 Documentation Center. Vmware. Retrieved 2015-08-25. In Unity mode, virtual machine applications appear on the host system desktop
  69. ^'VMware Virtual Machine Marketplace, with 3691 entries (not all still available) as of 2 June 2016'. Vmware.com. Retrieved 2 June 2016.
  70. ^'Browser Appliance'. Vmware.com. Retrieved 2014-04-05.
  71. ^ abBrowser Appliance. Includes brief documentation, including 'autoRevert on shutdown'
  72. ^'powerwf.com'. powerwf.com. Archived from the original on 2012-08-15. Retrieved 2012-09-13.

Vmware Workstation Download

External links[edit]

Vmware Workstation Pro Sale

Wikimedia Commons has media related to VMware.

Vmware Workstation Cost

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