VMWare by Broadcom (broadcom.com) is a service through which McCombs School of Business faculty and students can run a Windows virtual machine on a Macintosh computer. There is no cost to download and use the software for personal use, but faculty and researchers who are using it for commercial use must request a license. You may not use this software for commercial activity without a license. 

This article will cover the installation of VMWare on both Intel and Apple Silicon Macs. The first section is on downloading and installing VMWare, and the second section is on adding a Windows VM to your newly-installed app. There is a separate page covering the installation of DecisionTools onto your computer: Palisade Decision Tools (@Risk).

Please note: If you had VMWare before August 2024, you were part of a different licensing system. To update, please uninstall the application, delete your license (instructions here), and then follow the instructions on this wiki page.

Prior to installing, make sure you:

• Have ~30 GB of free space
• Have ~45 minutes for complete installation

Downloading and Installing VMWare:

1. Go to access.broadcom.com.
   On the upper right, click on "Login" and select "Register".
   
   
   1. NOTE: Your screen may look different or say there is an error, but you can ignore that. 
      
      On the upper right, click on "Login" and select "Register".
2. Register with the email address you would like to use for your Broadcom account. This can be any email address that you can access.
3. Enter the verification code that you receive at that email.
4. Please complete registration with your full name, country, and password (you can put whatever you would like for "job title"). Please note that we do not have access to reset your password.
5. On the "Build my Profile" page, click "I'll do it later".
   
   
   
6. Please visit this link to download VMWare: https://support.broadcom.com/group/ecx/productdownloads?subfamily=VMware+Fusion. It should say that you will be redirected. Click "Next". 
7. Enter the email you used to register, click "Remember me", and click "Next". Now, enter the password you created.
    
   
   
8. You should be taken to your dashboard (below). If you are not, try going to the link again: https://support.broadcom.com/group/ecx/productdownloads?subfamily=VMware+Fusion.
   
   
   
9. Select "VMWare Fusion 13 Pro for Personal Use" and click the link to download the latest version.
   
   
   
10. You must check "I agree to the terms and conditions" before you will be able to click the cloud icon. Click the cloud to download the installer.
    
    
    
11. A pop-up will appear, asking for additional verification. Click "yes". It will take you to a page where it asks you for some more information. You may enter your own address, or McCombs' address (below). 
    
    
    
    
12. Click on the cloud icon to download the installer.
    
    
    
13. Open Finder, navigate to your "Downloads" folder, and double-click the ".dmg" file that just installed.
14. Double-click the VMWare icon that pops up. You may see a warning. Click "Open". 
    
    
    
15. Click through the installation. You may be presented with an Accessibility Error. If you are:
    1. Click "OK" then click "Open System Preferences". Your Security and Privacy Settings will pop up.
       

       

       
       
       

16. Click the lock icon in the bottom left. Enter your credentials, and toggle or check "VMWare Fusion". Once done, you can close this window.
    
    
    
17. Click through the rest of this installer. If you get a pop-up about updating VMWare Fusion, click "Skip this version".
18. You now have the VMWare Fusion application! The next step is to load Windows into the app.

Adding your Windows VM:

First, check if your Mac has an Intel or Apple Silicon chip. To find out:

1. Go to the menu bar and select the Apple icon
2. Select “About this Mac” from the drop-down menu
3. On older MacOS, you'll need to click “More info…”
4. The page should say whether your "Processor" is Intel, or an Apple (M1, M2, etc.) chip.

Windows Download for Apple Silicon Macs:

1. Open the VMWare Fusion app.
2. Click "Get Windows from Microsoft".
   
   
   
3. Choose "Professional" and "English (en-us)" from the drop-downs. Then, click "Download Windows".
   
   
   
4. Once the loading bar has indicated that Windows is done downloading, click "Continue".
   
   
   
5. Select "UEFI" and click "Continue".
   
   
   
6. Select "Only the files needed... are encrypted." Enter a simple password that you will remember (it does not need to be secure since this can only be run from inside your Mac). Click continue.
   
   
   
7. Choose "Create a new virtual disk". Click "Continue".
   
   
   
8. On the next screen, click "Finish". You will be prompted to store the VM somewhere and name it something. The defaults are fine. Once this is set, click "Finish".
9. You will now see a black screen with a large play button. Click the play button. Immediately after clicking this, you will see a prompt that says "Press any key to boot from a CD or DVD". 
   Press any key to continue. You may need to click into the black screen to press a key. When it works, the Windows logo will appear. 
   
   
   NOTE: This prompt is fast. If you miss it and are taken to a different blue screen, click "Virtual Machine" at the top of your screen and select "Restart".
   Be ready to press any key when the screen comes back.
   
   
   
10. On this page, click "Next" (the default settings are fine) and then "Install".
    
    
    
11. You will be prompted for a Windows license key. Click "I don't have a product key".
    
    
    
12. Select "Windows 11 Pro" and click "Next".
    
    
    
13. Click the checkbox to accept the Microsoft Software License Terms. Click "Next".
    
    
    
14. Select "Custom" under the install options.
    
    
    
15. Click "Next".
    
    
    
16. Windows will now install. This step may take a bit of time.
    
    
    
17. On this screen, you can begin clicking through Windows' setup questions. The default settings are fine. You can skip the second keyboard layout unless you have one that is not a US layout.
    
    Once done with these settings, Windows will install updates. 
    
    
18. On the page asking you to name your device, you can click "Skip for now". 
    
    
    
19. Click "Set up for work or school" and click "Next".
    
    
    
20. On this page, ignore the sign-in and click "sign-in options". 
    
    
    
21. Click "Domain join instead". 
    
    
    
22. Type any name (ex.: your first name) and click "Next".
    
    
    
23. At the password screen, you can click "Next" without entering a password.
24. At the screen to choose privacy settings, we recommend changing them all to "No".
    
    
    
25. Now, Windows will say it is installing more features. This will also take a minute.
    
    
    
26. You're all set! You can use this VM as you would use a regular Windows computer, and you can install and run apps. 
    
    
    Reminders:
    
    1. Any files saved on the Windows side can only be accessed from inside the VM, and you cannot access files from your Mac from inside your VM.
       We recommend uploading/downloading all files that you will need in your VM from inside the VM, or using a file-sharing service.
    2. The Windows VM does not come with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, etc.). To add Office, use a browser in the VM and go to office365.austin.utexas.edu → "Office 365 Portal". The university's license to MS Office gives you five free device installations. This counts as one of them.
    3. Any time you are not using the VM, we recommend shutting it down, or your Mac will be slow as it is running two computers at once. To shut down the VM, go to the Start Menu and click the power button and "Shut down". You can then close out of the VMWare application.
    4. If you need to install DecisionTools, check these instructions: Palisade Decision Tools (@Risk).

Windows Download for Intel Macs

1. In a new tab, go to https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10ISO.
2. Scroll down until you see a drop-down menu that says "Select edition".
3. Select "Windows 10 (Multi-edition ISO)".
   
   
   
4. You will be presented with a drop-down for choosing the language. Choose "English (United States)".
5. You will then be given the choice between a 64-bit Download and a 32-bit Download. Choose 64-bit.
   
   
   
6. Open the VMWare Fusion app, and you should see this window:
   
   
   
7. Click "Continue" and then "Use another disc or disc image".
   
   
   
8. Navigate to your downloads and select the Windows 10 ISO file you downloaded earlier. Click continue.
   
   
   
9. This window will ask you to enter information. All that is required is your account name (set to anything you would like) and Windows version in the drop-down menu. For the Windows version, select "Windows 10 Pro". You do not need a password. Click "Continue". You may be asked about a license key, but you can click "continue without a license key".
   
   
   
10. This window asks you about integration. Select "More isolated" and click "Finish"/"Continue".
    
    
    
11. The final screen will ask you to name the VM and to save it. The defaults are fine.
12. A black window with a play button will appear. Click the play button to start the VM.
13. Windows will begin setting up. This may take some time, once it is completed you are all set!
    You can use this VM as you would use a regular Windows computer, and you can install and run apps. 
    
    Reminders:
    
    1. Any files saved on the Windows side can only be accessed from inside the VM, and you cannot access files from your Mac from inside your VM.
       We recommend uploading/downloading all files that you will need in your VM from inside the VM, or using a file-sharing service.
    2. The Windows VM does not come with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, etc.). To add Office, use a browser in the VM and go to office365.austin.utexas.edu → "Office 365 Portal". The university's license to MS Office gives you five free device installations. This counts as one of them.
    3. Any time you are not using the VM, we recommend shutting it down, or your Mac will be slow as it is running two computers at once. To shut down the VM, go to the Start Menu and click the power button and "Shut down". You can then close out of the VMWare application.
    4. If you need to install DecisionTools, check these instructions: Palisade Decision Tools (@Risk).