Introducing Workstation 12 Pro
VMware Workstation 12 Pro continues VMware’s tradition of delivering leading edge features and performance that technical professionals 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 vSphere and vCloud Air, it's the perfect tool to increase productivity, save time and conquer the cloud.

Built for Microsoft Windows 10 and More
Workstation 12 Pro is the best way to evaluate and test Windows 10 with your existing Windows or Linux PC. In a few simple steps you can easily install Windows 10 in a virtual machines from a disc or ISO image using the Workstation Virtual Machines Wizard. With Workstation 12 Pro you can start taking advantage of Windows 10 latest features like Cortana the personal digital assistant, inking capabilities in the new Edge web browser, or even start building Universal Apps for Windows 10 devices. You can even ask Cortana to launch VMware Workstation right from Windows 10.

For organizations and technical users that run the latest Linux distributions, Workstation 12 Pro supports Ubuntu 15.04, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.1, Fedora 22, and many more. You can even create nested hypervisors to run Hyper-V or VMware ESXi and vSphere to build up the ultimate vSphere lab for training, show demos, and testing. Workstation 12 Pro has added support for VMware Photon so you can start building and experimenting with containerized application running in a virtualized environment.

Display Powerful 3D Graphics
Workstation 12 Pro now supports DirectX 10 and OpenGL 3.3 delivering a more fluid and responsive experience when running 3D applications. With these added capabilities you now have access to all the applications that require Direct X10 such as Microsoft’s Power Map tool for Excel, allowing you to visualize data in a whole new dimension. In addition, Workstation makes running highly demanding 3D applications like AutoCAD or SOLIDWORKS a snap in a virtual machine.

Ready for High Resolution Displays
Workstation 12 Pro has been optimized to support high resolution 4K UHD (3840 x 2160) displays for Desktops and QHD+ (3200x1800) displays used in laptops and x86 tablets providing you with a crisp and detailed experience. Workstation 12 Pro now supports multiple monitors on the host with different DPI settings so you can run your brand new 4K UHD display along with your existing 1080P HD display.

Create Powerful Virtual Machines
With Workstation 12 Pro, you can create virtual machines with up to 16 vCPUs, 8 TB virtual disks, and 64 GB of memory to run the most demanding desktop and server applications in a virtualized environment. You can give graphics-intensive applications an additional boost by allocating up to 2GB of video memory to a virtual machine.

Ready for the Latest Hardware
Take advantage of the latest Intel based tablets with Workstation virtual tablets sensors. Leverage the latest Microsoft Surface tablets with Workstation’s virtual accelerometer, gyroscope, compass, and ambient light sensor to enable applications running in the virtual machines to respond when a user moves, rotates, and shakes their tablet. Whether you are running on a laptop, tablet, or desktop, Workstation 12 Pro supports the latest Intel 64-bit x86 processors, including the Broadwell and Haswell microarchitecture for maximum performance.

Enhanced Connectivity
Workstation 12 Pro takes advantage of the latest hardware supporting HD audio with 7.1 surround sound, USB 3.0, and Bluetooth devices making it easy to get your new webcam, headset, or printer connected in a virtual machine. Workstation 12 Pro now supports USB 3.0 in Windows 7 besides Windows 8 for ultra-fast file transfers with external storage devices. In addition Workstation 12 Pro improves performance of Skype or Lync conference calls within guest virtual machines so you can conduct crystal clear conference calls from your virtual machines.

Build Virtual Networks
With improved IPv6 support, including IPv6-to-IPv4 Network Address Translation (6to4 and 4to6), users can create more complex networking topologies than ever before. Use the Workstation 12 Pro virtual network editor to add and remove virtual IPv4 or IPv6 networks and create custom virtual networking configurations, ideal for testing and demonstration environments without impacting the PCs network configuration.

Leverage the Power of vSphere and vCloud Air
Workstation 12 Pro provides connections to VMware vSphere and vCloud Air service allowing you to extend and scale your virtual machines in the cloud. This allows technical professionals to work with local and server-hosted virtual machines side by side for optimal flexibility, and leverage resources beyond the power of a single PC. With Workstation 12 Pro, seamlessly drag and drop virtual machines between your PC and your internal cloud running vSphere, ESXi or another instance of Workstation. In addition, easily connect to vCloud Air and upload, run, and view virtual machines right from the Workstation 12 Pro interface.

User Interface
Workstation 12 Pro gives technical professionals powerful control over how to set up and interact with virtual machines whether running them locally on your PC or in the cloud. The Workstation 12 Pro interface includes simplified menus, live thumbnails, tabs, preferences screens, and a virtual machine library with search capability allowing you to quickly view and access you virtual machines saving valuable time.

Protect Your Work and Save Time
With Workstation 12 Pro, you can safeguard and protect your virtual machines and save valuable time when using the Snapshot and Clone features. The Snapshot feature preserves the state of a virtual machine so you can return to it at any time. Duplicating Workstation virtual machines is easy using the clone feature, which allows you to make unlimited copies of a virtual machine right from the baseline installation and configuration. Linked clones are an even quicker, easier and more efficient way to duplicate complex setups for testing and custom demos. Linked clones make a copy of a virtual machine that shares virtual disks with the parent virtual machine and have the benefit of taking significantly less disk space than a full clone.

Run Restricted Virtual Machines
Create and control policies around your virtual machines and deliver applications to end-users in a Workstation 12 restricted virtual machine container. Protect corporate content by restricting access to Workstation virtual machine settings like drag and drop, copy and paste, and connecting USB devices. Additionally virtual machines can be encrypted and password-protected to ensure that unauthorized users are unable to tamper with the corporate virtual machines settings.

Expiring Virtual Machines
For workers assigned to short-term projects, temporary employees, or just delivering a software evaluation, Workstation allows you to create restricted virtual machines that can expire at a predefined date and time. When powered on, the virtual machine will query the server at specified time intervals, storing the current system time in the restricted virtual machine's policy file as the last trusted timestamp. An expired virtual machine will automatically suspend and will not restart without administrator intervention.

Virtual Machine Cross Compatibility
Workstation 12 Pro provides compatibility across the VMware product portfolio and across different platforms. With Workstation 12 Pro you can create virtual machines that can run across the VMware product portfolio or create restricted virtual machines that can be used in Horizon FLEX, Fusion Pro, and Workstation Player.