VMware Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro now also free for companies
VMware desktop products Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro used to be free for end users only, but now this applies to all users. Support will stop soon.
(Image: iX)
VMware's desktop hypervisors are now also free for companies and educational institutions: Broadcom is making Workstation Pro for Windows and Linux and Fusion Pro for macOS available to all users free of charge. Previously, this only applied to end users. A subscription license was still required for commercial use.
At the same time, Broadcom is discontinuing all sales of Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro. This means that companies can no longer book support for their desktop virtualization with VMware. Anyone with an existing license will continue to receive support until it expires. After that, only the free online resources such as the community forum will be available.
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No end in sight
In terms of features, nothing will change with this step; the free software is functionally the same as the previous commercial versions. Broadcom emphasizes in the announcement that further investments in Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro are planned – explicitly, the move is not a discontinuation of the two desktop hypervisors.
All information on the move can be found on the VMware blog. The switch from Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro for end users took place in May 2024, when Broadcom also discontinued the Player versions.
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