Are you an enthusiast who loves their Ubuntu Linux experience but still needs to use Windows programs?
With virtualization, you’ll never have to make this tradeoff.
VMware Player makes it quick and easy to install any edition of Windows in a virtual machine.
VMware Player is a free download, but requires registration.
Sign in with your VMware account, or create a new one if you don’t already have one.
You’ll need to accept the license agreement the first time you run it.
Welcome to VMware Player!
pick the Create a New Virtual Machine as above to start making a Windows virtual machine.
In this example, we’re select a Windows 7 ISO.
VMware will automatically detect the operating system on the disk or image.
Click Next to continue.
you could leave the product key field blank and enter it later.
VMware will ask if you want to continue without a product key, so just click Yes to continue.
Now enter a name for your virtual machine and select where you want to save it.
Finally, review your configs, and if everything looks good, click Finish to create the virtual machine.
VMware will take over now, and install Windows without any further input using its Easy Install.
Once you’ve downloaded them, it will use those tools anytime you install that OS.
Click Download and Install so your Easy Install will finish successfully.
VMware will then download and load the tools.
You may need to input your administrative password to complete the install.
The only thing missing was the Aero glass feature.
Other than that, Windows is fully ready to use.
This is where Unity mode comes in.
Click Virtual Machine in VMware’s menu, and select Enter Unity.
Your Windows desktop will now disappear, and you’ll see a new Windows menu underneath your Ubuntu menu.
By default, programs from Windows will have a colored border and a VMware badge in the corner.
you’re able to turn this off from the VMware tweaks pane.
Click Virtual Machine in VMware’s menu and select Virtual Machine tweaks.
Unity makes your Windows programs feel at home in Ubuntu.
Here we have Word 2010 and IE8 open beside the Ubuntu Help app.
Notice that the Windows applications show up in the taskbar on the bottom just like the Linux programs.
ConclusionVMware Player is a great way to run Windows on your Linux computer.
VMware products work great in our experience, and VMware Player on Linux was no exception.
