July 10, 2008
Information Services & Technology (IS&T) is pleased to announce Phase 1 support for VMware Workstation 6 for Windows and Linux and VMware Fusion 1 for the Mac. VMware is virtualization software that allows you create and run virtual machines. Phase 1 support includes the installation of VMware Workstation and Fusion, VMware tools, guest operating systems and network configuration.
IS&T, in collaboration with IT colleagues across campus, has tested VMware functionality (e.g., Guest OS installations and network configurations ). Based on test results, IS&T encourages the MIT community to take a cautious approach and to contact their respective IT support provider before installing VMware. For Phase II support, we are exploring the creation of pre-configured virtual machines.
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ABOUT VIRTUAL MACHINES
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A virtual machine is a tightly isolated software container that can run its own operating systems and applications as if it were a physical computer. A virtual machine behaves exactly like a physical computer and contains its own virtual (ie, software-based) CPU, RAM hard disk and network interface card (NIC).
For additional information on virtual machines, please read "Visualization basics" at:
http://www.vmware.com/technology/virtual-machine.html
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NEW FEATURES
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VMware Workstation 6.0.x for Windows and Linux provides several key new features, including:
• Support for Windows Vista
• Multiple monitor displays
• Support for USB 2.0 devices
For additional features, please read "VMware Workstation release notes":
https://www.vmware.com/support/ws6/doc/releasenotes_ws6.html#features
VMware Fusion 1.1.x for the Mac provides several key new features, including:
• Support for Mac OS X Leopard
• Support for Windows Vista 32-bit and 64-bit editions
• Support for Windows XP 64-bit editions
For additional features, please read "Getting started with VMware Fusion":
http://www.vmware.com/pdf/fusion_getting_started_11.pdf
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BEST PRACTICES
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IS&T recommends that the MIT community follow the security recommendations and best practice guidelines to ensure that backup, antivirus and anti-spyware software are installed on each virtual machine. For a more in-depth look at these recommendations and information about how to obtain, please review the page at:
http://itinfo.mit.edu/article.php?id=8903
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LICENSING
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As part of the Microsoft Campus Agreement at MIT, the licensing structure for using instances of a guest OS within a virtual environment is different than that of a standalone machine. For additional information, read:
http://web.mit.edu/ist/topics/software/msca.html#virtual
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NOT SUPPORTED
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IS&T does not provide support for the following:
• VMware Importer Tool
• VMware Player
• Preboot Execution Environment (PXE) within VMware
• VMware installations of Athena virtual machines
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KNOWN ISSUES
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For a full list of known issues visit the VMware page at:
https://wikis.mit.edu/confluence/display/vmware/VMware+Known+Issues
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HOW TO OBTAIN
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VMware Workstation and Fusion are available to faculty, staff and students and can be obtained from the Software Download page:
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GETTING HELP
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Documentation for using VMware is available at:
Mac: http://itinfo.mit.edu/product.php?vid=791
Linux: http://itinfo.mit.edu/product.php?vid=792
Windows: http://itinfo.mit.edu/product.php?vid=790
If you need assistance installing or using VMware Workstation or Fusion, contact the Computing Help Desk at computing-help@mit.edu or 617.253.1101.
Questions or comments can be sent to vmware-release@mit.edu