VMware Workstation Player 17.6

VMware Player

VMware Player is the easiest way to run multiple operating systems at the same time on your computer.

With its user-friendly interface, VMware Player makes it effortless for anyone to try out Windows 10, Chrome OS or the latest Linux releases, or to create virtual "sandboxes" to test pre-release software in. VMware Player can also be used to run a virtual copy of an old PC so that you can recycle the old machines you have under your desk or stored in the closet.

Run multiple operating systems simultaneously on a single computer
Experience the benefits of preconfigured products without any installation or configuration hassles
Share data between host computer and virtual machine
Run 32- and 64-bit virtual machines
Use 3rd-party pre-configured virtual machines and images
Share data between the host computer and virtual machine
Broad host and guest operating system support
Support for USB 2.0 devices
Gain easy access to virtual machines via an intuitive home page interface

What's New in VMware Workstation Player 17.6:

New Guest Operating System Support

Windows Server 2025
Windows 11 Version 23H2
Ubuntu 24.04
Fedora 40

New Host Operating System Support

Windows Server 2025
Windows 11 Version 23H2
Ubuntu 24.04
Fedora 40

Product Support Notices

Legacy VMTools ISOs are no longer included by default but are available for download.
Bluetooth hub passthrough support has reached its end of life and has been removed from VMware Workstation.
Physical host parallel ports support has reached its end of life and has been removed from VMware Workstation for Windows.
The Enhanced Keyboard driver has reached its end of life and has been removed from VMware Workstation for Windows.

Known Issues

CentOS 9 Stream with kernel versions later than 5.14.0-432 is not supported on Workstation Player 17.6 as a host
Inline product upgrade from versions earlier than 17.6 will not be automatic for Workstation Player on Windows Host
Due to the migration from VMware services to Broadcom, Workstation Player cannot automatically apply this upgrade.
Workaround: Download and install Workstation Player 17.6 from the Broadcom support portal.
The multi-monitor feature might not work correctly in specific topologies
In specific situations, based on different hardware and topologies, the multi-monitor feature does not work as expected. You might see issues like reverting the topology to a single screen, or not cycling through monitors.

Resolved Issues

VMware KVM crashes while running the 'vmware-kvm --preferences' command
VMware KVM crashes when you try to open its Preferences dialog by using the 'vmware-kvm --preferences' command.
Virtual machines run unusually slowly on Windows hosts
Running virtual machines on Windows hosts as a non-administrator user might result in high host CPU usage and poor guest performance.
Workstation installation fails on Linux hosts with a compilation error
If you try to install Workstation on Linux hosts with kernel version 6.8, you receive a compilation error. For details, see this article.
Security Issues

Security Issues