I very sorry if I've missed something really basic here. In the VM preferences I can clearly see that copy/paste and drag/drop operations are enabled, but they just don't work. If I drag a file from the Mac desktop onto the Windows 11 ARM desktop it doesn't work, and if I copy some text on the Mac side and then try to paste it into NotePad on the Windows 11 ARM VM nothing happens. Is there some other conflicting option that's disabling everything?
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VMware Fusion Pro 13 Now Freely Available for Personal Use
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Steam is available for Mac Intel and M-class, correct? So help me out, why run it in a VM when you can run it native?
Yes, but Steam is just a distribution service to download the games. Steam itself does not run the games. You need a VM or something like Whisky to play games made for Windows on a Mac.
Yeah, you need to close Fusion, delete the license file in “/Library/Preferences/VMware Fusion” and then it’ll be the pro version.
Agreed that the directions are entirely useless lol. 😂
Works great. When I go to "About VMWare Fusion" menu item under the "VMWare Fusion" tab, it shows VMWare Fusion Professional. But I also see a new menu item under "VMWare Fusion" tab, titled, "Buy Now or Enter License." Does this need to be filled in or should I just ignore it? Thanks.
Just ignore it (if you're using it for personal use). It's only there in case you need to enter in a key for business/commercial use.
I'm more interested in how Parallels responds to this. They have the better product but corporations tend to heavily favor VMware so I dont see this model working for Parallels.
Parallels does sell a lifetime version (without upgrades, of course). It's like $30 more than the annual subscription, but it just doesn't come with upgrades.
Just make sure you're signed in with your Microsoft account and are part of the Windows Insider program.
Stick a fork in Parallels. No reason to pay a yearly upgrade fee.
VMware has announced that its Fusion Pro and Workstation Pro virtualization software is now free for personal use. For those unfamiliar with Fusion, it is designed to allow Mac users to operate virtual machines to run non-macOS operating systems like Windows 11.
The decision to make the software free was made by Broadcom, which acquired VMware in November 2023. In a blog post announcing the change, Broadcom said the move was part of a plan to simplify how the company brings VMware apps to market:
Broadcom also said it had discontinued Workstation Player and Fusion Player, although existing customers can upgrade to the more feature-packed Pro version at no extra cost. Meanwhile, VMware Player will remain bundled with Workstation Pro.
Broadcom said that customers who use Fusion and Workstation at/for work will still require a paid commercial subscription, which can be purchased through an authorized Broadcom Advantage partner. For more information, see the VMware website.
Article Link: VMware Fusion Pro 13 Now Freely Available for Personal Use
They should rename it VMWar because it’s a battle to find a download link.
No kidding. I ended up using the mirror given a few pages back, but it must have been hammered because it took 110 minutes to download!
So, first the download links are nigh on impossible to find and then they need all sorts of personal data to... verify my age?
I already found it off-putting that I needed to register (which wasn't required for VMware Player for Windows), but this is just ridiculous.
I already found it off-putting that I needed to register (which wasn't required for VMware Player for Windows), but this is just ridiculous.
WOW, I haven't seen that one coming. What a great move on Broadcom. They will win big time as well as the Mac platform in general. Less barriers to enter Mac for sure. This is real great news and an important step for the Macintosh platform!!
sorry to break it to you buddy but you're getting this all wrongI recently evaluated Windows 10 virtualisation with both Parallels and VMWare, and VMware was way buggier. I ended up uninstalling it and buying another years license of Parallels.
Also, I don't like that it has had several security flaws, even one mentioned this month.
VMware Patches Severe Security Flaws in Workstation and Fusion Products
Researchers have uncovered a critical vulnerability in VMware's Bluetooth device, allowing code execution by malicious actors.thehackernews.com
its not that it has security flaws. its simply big enough along with VMware Workstation to be a target for both hackers and security researchers.
parallels most likely has security issues too. everything has these days. its just too small and irrelevant for anyone to bother looking for them.
being a target makes it more secure, not less secure.
Make sure that you have VMware Tools installed in the VM, but also make sure you’ve allowed accessibility access in the Privacy and Security system settings of the Mac.
Thank you - that was the issue. I did previously select "Install VMware Tools" from the menu thinking I'd get what the menu stipulated and what I asked for. I later realized that all it did was just mount a CD within the VM that contained a VMware Tools installation program that then needed to be run. If the menu said "Mount VMware Tools Installer" I'd have gotten it right away.
FIFY.
This isn't really the point.
Downloading VMware from third party sites isn't what I'm after.
The whole Broadcom-VMware migration is terrible - as can be expected with a boilerroom turd of a company.
The download problem they’re talking about is with Fusion itself, not Windows. Fusion will automatically download a windows installer as part of the process of creating a new virtual machine anyway.