Isolate corporate desktops to user-owned devices by running secure virtual containers on nearly any Windows or Linux PC, with management capabilities compatible with services like Workspace ONE.

Run a second desktop in a secure and isolated environment with different privacy settings, tools and networking configurations to keep your host system safe while browsing online.

VMware Workstation runs on standard x86-based hardware with 64-bit Intel and AMD processors, and on 64-bit Windows or Linux host operating systems. For more detail, see our System Requirements documentation.

System Requirements

• A compatible 64-bit x86/AMD64 CPU launched in 2011 or later *
• 1.3GHz or faster core speed
• 2GB RAM minimum/ 4GB RAM or more recommended

General Host OS Requirements

VMware Workstation Pro and Player run on most 64-bit Windows or Linux host operating systems:

• Windows 10
• Windows Server 2019
• Windows Server 2016
• Windows Server 2012
• Windows 8
• Ubuntu
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux
• CentOS
• Oracle Linux
• openSUSE
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server

Note that Windows 7 hosts are no longer supported, Workstation 16 will not function on them.

Workstation Pro installation:

• 1.2 GB of available disk space for the application.
• Additional hard disk space required for each virtual machine
• Please refer to vendor’s recommended disk space for specific guest operating systems

VMware Workstation 16 supports hundreds of 32-bit and 64-bit guest operating systems.

Here is a list of the most popular:

• Windows 10
• Windows 8
• Windows 7
• Windows XP
• Ubuntu
• RedHat
• SUSE
• Oracle Linux
• Debian
• Fedora
• openSUSE
• Mint
• Solaris, FreeBSD, and various other Linux Distros

See the VMware Compatibility Guide for a complete list of supported host and guest operating systems.

CPU Requirements:

• Intel Sandy Bridge or a newer CPU 
• AMD Bulldozer or a newer CPU

Host Operating Systems:

• Windows 10 2004

Minimum Requirements to Run Container Runtime on workstation Windows Host Operating Systems:

• Windows 10 1809 or higher

Minimum Requirements to Dark Theme support on Workstation Windows Host Operating Systems:

•  Windows 10 1809 or higher

For 3D Hardware Accelerated Graphics Support:

Hardware Requirements:

• For Windows hosts, a GPU that supports DirectX 11 is required. 
• For Linux hosts, the latest NVIDIA proprietary drivers are required. 
• For Linux hosts, AMD devices are not supported

Software Requirements:

64-bit Host Operating System:

• Windows 8 or higher
• GNU/Linux with NVIDIA drivers that support OpenGL 4.5 and above

Guest Operating System

• Windows 7 or higher
• GNU/Linux with vmwgfx 

*With exception, the following CPUs are not supported: 

• Intel Atom processors based on the 2011 “Bonnell” micro-architecture (e.g. Atom Z670/Z650; Atom N570)
• Systems using Intel Atom processors based on the 2012 “Saltwell” micro-architecture (e.g. Atom S1200, Atom D2700/D2500, Atom N2800/N2600.
• Systems using AMD processors based on the “Llano” and “Bobcat” micro-architectures (e.g. code-named “Hondo”, “Ontario”, “Zacate”, “Llano”)

In addition, the following CPUs are supported:

• Intel processors based on the 2010 “Westmere” micro-architecture (e.g. Xeon 5600, Xeon 3600, Core i7-970, Core i7-980, Core i7-990)

For a complete list of supported host and guest the operating systems visit the VMware Compatibility Guide.