VMware announces 7 and 11

VMware recently announced VMware Workstation 11, the newest version of its PC virtualization solution. It also announced VMware Player 7 Pro, an updated and streamlined desktop virtualization solution that lets users run one or more operating systems on the same computer.

Celebrating 15 years of virtualization excellence and having garnered more than 50 industry awards, VMware Workstation 11 will offer Windows 10 Tech Preview readiness, state of the art performance and cloud connectivity with VMware vCloud Air integration to support the most advanced computing environments.

VMware Workstation 11

VMware Workstation 11 will deliver features and performance that technical professionals will be able to rely on every day when working with virtual machines. With support for the latest version of Windows and Linux, the latest processors and hardware, and the ability to connect to VMware vCloud Air, VMware Workstation will be the perfect tool to increase productivity, save time and leverage the cloud.

Updates will include:

· Ready for Windows 10 Tech Preview РRun more than 200 operating systems including the latest Microsoft Windows 10 Tech Preview. Technical users can also use Windows 2012 R2 for servers, Ubuntu 14.10, RHEL 7, CentOS 7, Fedora 20, Debian 7.6 and many more.

· State of the art performance РVMware Workstation will support the latest Intel 64-bit x86 processors, including the new Haswell microarchitecture for maximum performance. Taking advantage of key new Haswell extensions, the solution will also deliver up to 45 percent improvement in CPU intensive operations like multimedia, encryption/decryption, and other strenuous performance tests compared to Workstation 10.

· Powerful virtual machines and graphics РDevelopers and IT administrators will be able to create virtual machines with up to 16 vCPUs, 8 TB virtual disks and up to 64 GB of memory to run the most demanding applications. Graphics-intensive applications will be given an additional boost by allocating up to 2 GB of video memory per virtual machine.

· Connection to VMware vCloud Air РConnection to VMware vSphere or VMware vCloud Air will be available to extend and scale virtual machines on a public cloud. Developers will be able to easily connect to VMware vCloud Air and upload, run, and view virtual machines right from the Workstation interface to easily collaborate with remote team members and scale through a public cloud. Users will also be able to seamlessly drag and drop virtual machines between a PC and a private cloud running vSphere, VMware ESXi or another instance of Workstation.

VMware Player 7 Pro

VMware Player 7 Pro will be an updated streamlined desktop virtualization solution that lets users run one or more operating systems on the same computer. With added operating system compatibility, support for the latest laptops and tablets, and compatibility with VMware Fusion 7 Pro and Workstation 11, the solution will make it easier than ever for IT professionals to get employees up and running with a corporate desktop.

Key capabilities will include:

· Enhanced operating system compatibility РVMware Player 7 Pro will run on the latest release of Windows including Windows 8.1 and will support prevalent operating systems like Windows XP and Windows 7 in a virtual environment so users can continue to run legacy applications as long as they need.

¬∑ Greater hardware compatibility – VMware Player 7 Pro will be optimised to run on today’s modern hardware including the latest PC laptops and high-resolution tablets.

· Updated VMware compatibility РVMware Player 7 Pro will be able to run restricted virtual machines created by VMware Workstation 11 or VMware Fusion 7 Pro. Restricted virtual machines secure corporate desktops with encryption, runtime password protection, USB access restriction, isolation between the host and guest OS, and time limitation.

New system requirements

While 32 bit operating systems are supported inside virtual machines, VMware Workstation 11 and Player 7 Pro will require 64 bit processor and 64 bit host operating systems for advanced computing and enhanced performance.

Availability and pricing

Customers who purchase VMware Workstation 10 and VMware Player 6 Plus between October 2014 and December 2014 will receive a free electronic upgrade to VMware Workstation 11 and VMware Player 7 Pro respectively. For more details, visit the upgrade page.

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