How to Get a VMware Free Trial
VMware, a global leader in cloud infrastructure and digital workspace technology, has several programs available to help your business with online management and IT solutions. But the question is — can you try any of those programs for free?
We’re going to answer that question for you here in this post, but first, let’s quickly go over what exactly VMware is in case you aren’t familiar.
What is VMware?
VMware is a series of programs that accelerates digital transformation for evolving IT environments. What that means is that VMware provides virtualization.
Virtualization involves the creation of a virtual version of, for example, an operating system, a server, or a storage device. If you’ve ever divided your hard drive into different partitions, then you have essentially created a virtual version of your hard drive. VM actually stands for Virtual Machines, which share common characteristics such as the aforementioned partitioning, plus isolation, encapsulation, and hardware independence.
Is there a Free Trial for VMware Products?
There is, depending what VMware product you’d like to use. Most VMware products do offer free trials, so for the sake if this blog, we will focus on VMware Workstation Player, formerly known as Player Pro. This program is a desktop virtualization application.
How Long is the Free Trial for VMware?
VMware products are available for 60-day free trials in two different formats. The Hands-on Labs option will enable you to experience VMware products in a virtual lab environment from anywhere, at anytime. There is no installation, license, or special hardware required.
There is also an Evaluation version of all products that you can download and install in your own environment. The Evaluation versions are also fully-functional for the 60-day period.
How Do I Cancel the Free Trial for VMware if I Don’t Want to Keep It?
To cancel VMware Workstation Player, you simply need to log in to your account and cancel your trial before the 60-day period ends. If you do not cancel within your 60-day trial period, your account will automatically be charged for the full price of VMware Workstation Player, which comes at a price of $149.99 plus customizable support options.
VMware Workstation Player | $149.99 full price |
All other VMware products will have their own associated pricing, which you can view here in the VMware online store.
How Do I Get the Free Trial for VMware?
In order to take advantage of the VMware Workstation Player free trial, you can download the free version here. Note that you will need to select the appropriate option to accommodate your operating system. There are two 64-bit options, including for Linux and Windows OS.
VMware Workstation Player unfortunately is also not designed to co-install with any other VMware products. If the installer detects another program such as VMware Workstation, VMware Workstation Pro, or WMware Server already on a machine, the installer will display and error message and abort the installation of VMware Workstation Player. However, it’s worth noting that if you purchase and install VMware Workstation Pro, there is a version of Workstation Player that works that is included in the package.