May 14, 2024 at 03:38PM
VMWare has made Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro free for personal use, following Broadcom’s acquisition. Users need to select free personal use when installing. VMs from Player products are compatible with Pro versions, allowing for easy upgrade. A new commercial model simplifies licensing offerings and purchasing. Workstation Player and Fusion Player are discontinued.
From the meeting notes, the key takeaways are:
– VMWare has made both Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro available for free for personal use, giving home users and students the opportunity to set up virtualized test labs and experiment with other operating systems.
– Following Broadcom’s acquisition of VMware, the company has experienced adjustments, including divestiture of its End-User Computing Division, the end of perpetual licensing, and discontinuation of the free vSphere Hypervisor offering.
– Now, with the announcement that Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro are free for personal use, users have the option to choose between the Free Personal Use or Paid Commercial Use subscription models.
– To access the full features of the products for personal use, users can simply select the personal use option during installation without the need for a purchased license key.
– VMware is discontinuing Workstation Player and Fusion Player, with instructions provided for existing users to upgrade to the full-featured versions.
– The company is simplifying its product offerings with a new commercial model, reducing the number of SKUs and making it easier for users who require commercial use licensing to quote and purchase VMware Desktop Hypervisor apps.
– Users currently using Fusion Player 13 or Workstation Player 17 with commercial licenses will continue to be supported, but it is recommended to upgrade to the Pro products for continued support and product enhancements.