RSSVMware Workstation 6 Supports Vista
by Nate Mook
VMware this week made available version 6.0 of its desktop virtualization product, which has set a standard for testing and development, and competes with Microsoft's now-free VirtualPC. New features in Workstation 6.0 include support for Vista, dual monitors, and USB 2.0 devices.
While the server world increasingly turns to virtualization to take advantage of the huge advances in CPU power with the advent of multi-core chips, virtual machines play a critical role in aiding IT administration, development and software testers. Users can quickly boot up a computer within a computer, as well as do cross-platform testing without multiple hardware setups.
With version 6.0, Windows Vista is now supported as both a guest or host (the physical machine running the virtual machines) operating system. VMware says this will enable businesses to upgrade while still supporting legacy applications, which can be run instead inside a virtual machine.
Separate from VMware Workstation, the company has added what it calls the ACE Option Pack, which enables administrators to create secure and centrally managed virtual machine images. They can be transferred to portable devices such as USB thumb drives for added mobility.
New experimental features include "recording" every action done inside a virtual machine such that it can be replayed exactly the same way at a later date. This ensures bugs can be reproduced and resolved, VMware says. Also experimental is support for Virtual Machine Interface (VMI).
VMware Workstation 6.0 for both Windows and Linux runs $189 USD, but a free trial download is available now.
8 Comments
Thnx
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Nice, but I don't think its worth a $99 upgrade from version 5.5.4 that I presently own.
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Very nice product upgrade. Not sure it's worthy of 6.0, more like a 5.x progression, but still nice. Now, if only it would support installing OSX as a guest vm.
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I'm still waiting for them to add CD burning support, it wouldn't matter if it wrote internally to an ISO image or whatever. It would however help debug applications that write to CD.
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[edited] That makes sense.
My personal wish would be to have greater flexibility in virtual hardware configuration. Something like a list of popular graphics cards, network cards, sound cards, etc. That would make for more realistic testing.
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I agree on the OSX... Also better graphic card that would support the requirements from some of the newer applications including Vista new look. This two things (OSX and graphic card) are IMO at the moment on the "race" for different VM developers, who will be able to have them first :)
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They have to create a virtual driver and device pair for each. VMWare does this already with SCSI controllers. It would be easier to allow VM bonding to select hardware on the host system than to emulate many types of devices virtually. Not exactly what you are looking for, but that is where most virtualization will be going.
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With VMWare 5.5.x there is CD burning support already. I used it more many times with XP SP2 virtual machines.
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