VMware Workstation is used by almost everyone who is trying to test something on their laptop.
System Consultant DDI Lead at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
Good features and makes deploying VMs easy but could be more robust
Pros and Cons
- "The features are good."
- "They could bring in many different features from VMware vSphere to Workstation."
What is our primary use case?
How has it helped my organization?
I'm using it for my personal use, for testing. If I want to know how things are working, then I will test it using Workstation.
What is most valuable?
The features are good.
There's not much to deploying a VM, or virtual machine. It's all pretty easy.
What needs improvement?
They could bring in many different features from VMware vSphere to Workstation. This is a free version they are providing. However, it could be more robust. Therefore, if they could bring in things from the enterprise versions to the Workstation, that would be very helpful.
Buyer's Guide
VMware Workstation
October 2024
Learn what your peers think about VMware Workstation. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: October 2024.
816,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution for at least five or six years now.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We are using a free version of the solution.
What other advice do I have?
I'm not sure which version of the solution I'm on at the moment. It's likely the latest. I'm at around version 14.
I'd rate the product seven out of ten. I've been pretty happy with its capabilities overall. That said, it could be more robust and offer more features.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Key Account Sales Manager at VFM Systems And Services
Mature solution that delivers more ROI compared to similar products
Pros and Cons
- "It is much more mature compared to Nutanix or SimpliVity when it's cross-platform based."
- "The GUI interface could be improved."
What is our primary use case?
I'm an IT salesperson. I have experience selling this solution.
What is most valuable?
It is much more mature compared to Nutanix or SimpliVity when it's cross-platform based. It's much more well known compared to the other newly formed solutions.
What needs improvement?
The GUI interface could be improved. My customer says that you have to be trained to use it.
For someone who isn't a VMware expert, a simpler user interface would help.
For how long have I used the solution?
I sold my first VMware solution in 2003.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability is good.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It's scalable.
How are customer service and support?
It's good. I have used technical support once or twice for my customer. They have helped inform some technical discussions. I would rate them 5 out of 5.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Solutions like Nutanix are more user-friendly.
What was our ROI?
We have seen ROI. VMware is way cheaper if I take it as an application or a software compared to any hardware. It is cheaper compared to other products.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The cost differs depending on the customer's requirement.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate this solution 10 out of 10.
There are pros and cons to this solution, so understand your infrastructure. Utilize the technical people to understand what is required, then go for it. There are many customers who have taken what they don't need, and many customers don't have what they do need.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
Buyer's Guide
VMware Workstation
October 2024
Learn what your peers think about VMware Workstation. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: October 2024.
816,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Systems and Security Administrator at a hospitality company with 51-200 employees
I like the ability to drag a VM to an additional monitor and utilize VMs on separate windows.
What is most valuable?
The ability to drag a VM to an additional monitor and utilize VMs on separate windows, drag and drop. I like the newer network editor. Using a wireless guest network to keep my network separate from activities like downloading software and the like, this keeps the bandwidth for my users at an optimum level while allowing me to download an ISO image from MS or some other large file. I used to have to wait until after hours to perform bandwidth hogging work. But now, I can leverage our wireless guest network to accomplish these tasks and minimize late hours.
How has it helped my organization?
The ability to run Virtual machines in different networks and with different security levels. I can sandbox my windows machine when I need to use a non domain admin account for daily tasks but have another sandboxed machine to handle system admin tasks. I also have a wireless sand boxed Ubuntu machine that is in no way connected to our internal network for testing our websites, outside email etc. This has saved me a great deal of time and effort.
What needs improvement?
Performance is a needed improvement. I would like to see a faster response on my VMs. Linux support is so-so - many of the VM Tools you need are different packages downloadable from the distro you are using. Ubuntu 15.x seems to have improved the ability that plagued the product - getting the host share folder to be accessible from a Linux VM.
Pricing. When you purchase VMware workstation you get a great product but there is a cost. It is more expensive than Fusion or Player.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have used VMware workstation 10 and now 12 - I skipped 11. It is an expensive upgrade too. With the versions listed above, I have been running this for several years.
What was my experience with deployment of the solution?
Deploying using a LINUX OS - (especially CENTOS 7) seems to strip some functionality and is fraught with difficulties. Save yourself some headaches - deploy it in a Windows environment and then use Linux as a VM.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I have had a few issues prior to update1 - but I am unsure if this is due to my platform or if it is a VMware related issue. I also noticed that it uses a lot of RAM when running multiple instances of Windows VMs. Update - I have 32GB RAM now and it works flawlessly. I have been working in this newer environment for several months and I couldn't be more pleased.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
On Windows 7 - I can run 2 VMs (I have a beefy Workstation with 2 quad core Xeon procs and two NVIDIA Quadro Cards as well as 16 GB RAM) It does not play well when there are more than 2 windows VMs running on top of a Windows host environment. Update - I have a new machine with an i7 6700 processor - it is more than adequate to run the base Windows 8.1 OS, another Windows 8.1 OS a Windows 7 OS, and an Ubuntu 16.04 OS simultaneously. I do this on a daily basis at work and the performance is great. I use a SSD for the base Windows OS and the other OS's live on a larger 3 TB drive that I use for virtual machine/server work.
How are customer service and technical support?
Customer Service:
I think support is an issue for VMware - they only offer support for this product once you purchase more than 10 licenses. This is a show-stopper for smaller organizations like us. We would like to pay for support the same way we do for the Vsphere licenses and have the ability to upgrade the product under support without an additional charge. This is really a big deal for us.
Technical Support:Not much there for technical support.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have used Virtual box and Hyper-V. VMware workstation is more powerful than either of these. You can create virtual networks to test things on, you can emulate an entire network with outside, inside, DMZ, servers, clients, (use GNS3 to create a virtual firewall) then test things prior to rollouts. You can also connect to Vcenter or to esxi hosts. You can upload servers and change settings, you can even add HDD's from your SAN to a VM from VMworkstation when that VM is powered off
How was the initial setup?
Pretty simple - the network editor is the one you have to pay attention to if you are trying to setup multiple networks. The defaults really do not unleash the power of the platform.
What about the implementation team?
In house
What was our ROI?
It paid for itself multiple times. Especially when we had to pull in older Windows 2003 servers for disk manipulation. I also use this when vCenter is unavailable to manipulate machine settings.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Spendy - be prepared to buy multiple Windows OS's and to spend a couple hundred or more on the Workstation software. Look for a VMware sale if possible. I also use this at home to run my Ubuntu within Windows.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Yes, virtual box and Hyper-v (comes with Windows 8 and 10 professional for free so you really don't need to buy Hyper-V) VMware is far more powerful than either of the free ones. No Network editor, the ability to copy and paste on the fly etc. is limited on the freebies. See my comments below about network editor.
What other advice do I have?
Use this to secure your Domain admin accounts - don't setup email, surf the web, or do anything outside of your internal network using your DA account. This product can help you immensely. Using the virtual network editor can also be a benefit to you in this regard you can setup a virtual machine using wireless on a totally different network, use the vm (I use Ubuntu) to perform web tasks like testing your web site externally or to download and scan for malware prior to letting it on your production network.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
System Engineer at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
A reasonably priced, user-friendly solution that fulfills the virtualization needs of the organization
Pros and Cons
- "The product is really easy to use."
- "The product could provide the features available in Microsoft Hyper-V."
What is our primary use case?
We use the solution for virtualization.
What is most valuable?
The product is really easy to use. It is user-friendly. It satisfies our needs.
What needs improvement?
The product could provide the features available in Microsoft Hyper-V.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using the solution for five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The product is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is not scalable. The solution is not in production. We are not trying to scale it. Not more than 50 people are using the product.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We are using both VMware Workstation and Microsoft Hyper-V. Microsoft products are more scalable.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was not that difficult.
What about the implementation team?
We need four to five administrators for the solution.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The pricing is reasonable.
What other advice do I have?
We are planning to invest in Microsoft products. My recommendation would depend on the product that people are using. While researching, I could find the solution in the product’s documentation. Overall, I rate the solution a seven or eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
IT Team Leader at PIS
Has a valuable virtualization technology and good stability
Pros and Cons
- "VMware Workstation’s most valuable feature is virtualization technology."
- "The product’s virtual machine data backup feature needs upgrading."
What is our primary use case?
We use the product for testing environments and technologies before implementing business solutions.
What is most valuable?
VMware Workstation’s most valuable feature is virtualization technology. It has all the essential features and capabilities to use one computer for implementing solutions in many environments.
What needs improvement?
The product’s virtual machine data backup feature needs upgrading.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using VMware Workstation for many years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The product is very stable. I rate its stability an eight out of ten.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We used Oracle VirtualBox before. We switched to VMware Workstation for better stability.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is very easy for creating virtual machines. It does not require any prior experience. The deployment time depends on the number of machines and services to be implemented. It takes approximately ten minutes to deploy one machine.
What was our ROI?
The product generates a return on investment for us. It allows us to test the solutions in test environments before publishing them in production.
What other advice do I have?
I recommend VMware Workstation for IT technicians and rate it an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
System Engineer/ Architect at a wholesaler/distributor with 11-50 employees
Provides efficient virtual desktop infrastructure and has a good support team
Pros and Cons
- "The solution's technical support team is excellent."
- "Its networking features need improvement."
What is our primary use case?
I use the solution as a virtual desktop infrastructure.
What is most valuable?
The solution has the best licensing modules.
What needs improvement?
The solution's networking features need enhancement.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using the solution for one year.
How are customer service and support?
The solution's technical support is good.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
What other advice do I have?
I rate the solution a nine out of ten.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
ICT Manager at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
Simple to set up, user-friendly, and makes building test environments easy
Pros and Cons
- "It's really easy to build testing environments with VMware Player."
- "The tool has limited scalability."
What is our primary use case?
It's a VDI.
We have some virtual machines for testing purposes. The machines are our VMware. I don't remember the version. We use VMware Player to create a tester environment.
What is most valuable?
It's really easy to build testing environments with VMware Player. The solution is very user-friendly.
The package is similar to when you build other virtual machines. With this, you have to have everything in the package.
It’s the type of solution that is pretty simple to set up.
What needs improvement?
It’s not really lacking any features. It has everything a company would need.
For maybe the web component that you need to deploy, you do requires a web server or something like that.
The tool has limited scalability.
For how long have I used the solution?
I’ve used the solution for one year, more or less.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability has been very good. We have no real complaints in that regard. There are no bugs or glitches, and it doesn’t crash or freeze. It’s very reliable. The performance is good.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The tool is really small. The scalability is therefore limited.
We only have two or three people using the solution right now. They are administrators and software developers.
How are customer service and support?
We have local support from our providers. We do not directly deal with VMware if issues arise. Therefore, I can’t speak to their customer service capabilities.
How was the initial setup?
It’s not difficult to set up. It’s very, very straightforward.
What other advice do I have?
We’re just customers and end-users.
It's a great product that we would advise others to implement it.
I’d rate the solution nine out of ten.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Senior network engineer at GoTech
Good stability and easy-to-use solution
Pros and Cons
- "The solution's customer service is good."
- "Its price could be better."
What is our primary use case?
We use the solution as a hypervisor to deploy VM workloads for testing.
What is most valuable?
The solution's most valuable feature is the ease of use compared to other vendors.
What needs improvement?
The solution's pricing could be better.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using the solution for more than ten years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is quite a stable solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It is a scalable solution.
How are customer service and support?
The solution's customer service is good.
How was the initial setup?
We need to download the EXE file for the solution and install it. It takes five minutes to complete the process. However, time might vary depending on connectivity, operating system installations, etc.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The solution has perpetual and subscription-based licensing models. They are pretty expensive.
What other advice do I have?
I recommend the solution to others and rate it as a ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Integrator
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Updated: October 2024
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I use ESXi for virtualization in the server farm but it is nice to have the workstation product on my windows box. I have discovered that some applications (like my soft phone) work better on a physical box - also noticed that Wake On Lan works better when launched from a physical machine.
So, while using ESXi would be an option, I prefer the workstation on my machine and to use ESXi on my hosts.