This article explains how to download VMware Fusion and Workstation Free for personal use.

Overview

At the beginning of 2024, the company Broadcom purchased VMware. As a result of this purchase, VMware changed the way some of their applications are licensed.

Workstation Pro 17 and Fusion Pro 13 have become freely available for personal use to:

• Students
• Teachers
• Instructors
• Lab administrators

You can use Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro on your personal machines, as well as in educational lab and research environments.

Main changes

• Workstation Pro17 and Fusion Pro 13 do not require a license key if used for personal purposes on personal devices
• A commercial license will be required only if:
  • The Workstation or Fusion software is running in critical and/or production environments
  • Software support is required
• The current method, through VMware by Broadcom | D2L Brightspace portal,  will continue to offer Workstation and Fusion license keys for the latest (17) and previous (16) versions until the 31 / 08 / 2024. Any license keys which have been issued up to 31 / 08 / 2024, 00:00 AM, will continue to be valid for at least 12 months from the date on which you requested that key. The email notification you receive when the key is allocated will contain the expiry date for the key.
• From 31 / 08/2024, 00:01 AM (or whenever your existing keys expire after that date), if you require access to Workstation 16 / 17 or Fusion 12 / 13 software for personal / education lab you will have to download the new free-for-personal-use software which does not require any license keys.
• D2L subscription seats will continue to provide students access to: 
  • Software licensing for the VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) solution stack
  • Official VMware course content
  • VMware certification vouchers

What to do once your key license expires

Once Keys expire you should not need to delete any licenses. Your key's will simply expire and you will then have to:

1. Uninstall that version of the software
2. Download the new free-for-personal-use software
3. Install that version of the software

If you need help to remove the license key from Fusion, please read the Broadcom support page "Migrating from Player edition to Pro Edition".

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How to get Workstation PRO 17 and Fusion PRO 13

1. Go to broadcom.com

2. In the top-right corner, select Support Portal

3. If you already have an account, select the option Go To Portal and log in.

If you need to create an account, select Register for a basic Broadcom account 

To register:

1. Enter your personal or university email. Please note: if you leave the university, you might need to install the software again using another email address
2. You will receive a verification code
3. Enter your verification code to go ahead
4. Enter a password different from your university password 
5. Enter the information requested

You can opt to build your profile later - in this case you will need to log in with your email and password just created.

4. Once logged in, you should be redirected to go to the Broadcom Support web page. If you are not redirected, please open the web page "Welcome to Broadcom Support".

5. Close to your user account button, you will find a drop-down menu:

1. Open the drop-down menu to see the options available
2. Choose VMware Cloud Foundation

6. From the sidebar on the left, select My Downloads

7. Use the search field to search for either Fusion or Workstation:

8. Select the right product name for you:

• VMware Workstation Pro, or 
• VMware Fusion

9. You should now notice a version saying 'for Personal Use' option:

10. Select the latest version available

11. Agree to terms and conditions

12. Select the cloud icon to download the software:

You might be asked to accept additional verification.

13. Launch the installer to install the software

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Related content

VMware Desktop Hypervisor Pro Apps Now Available for Personal Use - VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) Blog (external source)

How to download software