Installation of windows 7 on vmware

Installation of windows 7 on vmware

Let’s begin by opening VMware Workstation from the Start menu. Alternatively, you can type, “VMware” in the instant search field and select VMware Workstation from the list of programs (Figure 1).

Figure 1: VMware Workstation Main Window

Next, click File | New | Virtual Machine. A wizard appears to create a new virtual machine as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2: New Virtual Machine Wizard

Click “Next” and choose how you want to load Windows 7. You can load it from installation media (DVD) or you can use an ISO image. For the purposes of this article, we will use an ISO image (Figure 3).

Figure 3: Loading Windows 7 from an ISO Image.

Next, select “Installer disc image file (ISO)” and browse to where your Windows 7 ISO image resides. Click “Next” and enter the Windows 7 product key (Figure 4).

Note: You can optionally personalize Windows 7 with a user and password.

Figure 4: Entering a Windows 7 Product Key

Click “Next”, and enter a virtual machine name and choose a location for your virtual machine to reside. You can simply accept the defaults and move forward in the installation (Figure 5).

Figure 5: Entering a Virtual Machine Name and Location

Click “Next” and accept (Figure 6) the default disk size of 40 GB. You can increase or decrease this size as you see fit.

Experimenting with different sizes will help you obtain your sweet spot for all Windows 7 virtual machines. Additionally, you have the option of splitting the virtual machine in 2 GB files; this will help when moving your virtual machines between computers.

Figure 6: Specify the Disk Capacity

Click “Next” and you can customize your virtual machine hardware prior to beginning the Windows 7 virtual machine Operating System (OS) load (Figure 7).

For example, you can add disks, serial ports, and printers. You can also remove unnecessary hardware such as floppy drives and sound cards (Figure 8).

Figure 7: Customizing Virtual Machine Hardware

Figure 8: Add/Remove Hardware

Click OK and Finish and Windows 7 begins to load (Figure 9). Since you entered the product key, VMware Workstation enters an “Easy Install” mode. Just sit back, relax, and a Windows 7 virtual machine is installed.

Figure 9: Windows 7 “Easy Install”

Working with a Virtual Machine

Now that your virtual machine (Figure 10) is ready, you can use it like it was a physical computer. If you choose View | Full Screen, you can work with your virtual machine a full-screen mode. Other options you have when working with virtual machines is the following:

• Power On a Virtual Machine
• Power Off a Virtual Machine
• Suspend a Virtual Machine into Memory
• Snapshot a Virtual Machine

Figure 10: Windows 7 Virtual Machine

Now that you are familiar with VMware Workstation, experiment with the different settings, test new drivers and software on Windows 7. Additionally, you can use VMware Workstation to prepare for any certification programs you wish to achieve.