Getting started with VMware Workstation is simple. The key steps are
Before you begin, be sure you have
Caution: Do not install VMware Workstation on a Windows NT Server 4.0 system that is configured as a primary or backup domain controller.
Note: On a Windows XP or Windows Server 2003 host computer, you must be logged in as a local administrator (that is, not logged in to the domain) in order to install VMware Workstation.
Note: Although you must be logged in as an administrator to install VMware Workstation, a user with normal user privileges can run the program after it is installed. Keep in mind that you need one license for each user.
If you are installing from a downloaded file, from the Start menu, choose Run, browse to the directory where you saved the downloaded installer file and run the installer. (The filename is similar to VMwareWorkstation-<xxxx>.exe, where <xxxx> is a series of numbers representing the version and build numbers.)
Click Next.
Caution: Do not install VMware Workstation on a network drive.
Note: Windows and the Microsoft Installer limit the length of a path to a folder on a local drive to 255 characters. For a path to a folder on a mapped or shared drive, the limit is 240 characters. If the path to the VMware Workstation program folder exceeds this limit, an error message appears. You must select or enter a shorter path.
If you want to change any settings or information you provided, now is the time to make those changes. Click Back until you reach the dialog box containing the information you want to change.
If you do not need to make any changes, click Install. The installer begins copying files to your computer.
This naming convention was introduced in VMware Workstation 3. If your virtual disk files already use the .vmdk extension, click No to skip this process. Click Yes if you want to search all local drives on the host computer and make this change.
The converter also renames the files that store the state of a suspended virtual machine, if it finds them. It changes the old .std file extension to .vmss. However, it is best to resume and shut down all suspended virtual machines before you upgrade from VMware Workstation 3 to VMware Workstation 4.
Besides renaming files, the converter updates the corresponding virtual machine configuration files so they identify the virtual disks using the new filenames.
If you store your virtual disk files or suspended state files on a Windows XP or Windows Server 2003 host - or if you may do so in the future - it is important to convert the filenames to avoid conflicts with the System Restore feature of Windows XP and Windows Server 2003.
To uninstall VMware Workstation 4, use the Add/Remove Programs control panel. Select the entry for VMware Workstation, then click Remove. Follow the on-screen instructions.
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