Installing VMware Tools is part of the process of creating a new virtual machine, and upgrading VMware Tools is part of the process of keeping your virtual machine up to current standards.

How you install or upgrade VMware Tools depends on the operating system and the source you use for the tools.

VMware upgrades VMware Tools frequently to support new devices and to add enhancements that improve the performance of your virtual machines. When you upgrade Fusion, you should also upgrade VMware Tools.

In Windows virtual machines, you can set VMware Tools to notify you when an upgrade is available. If this notification option is enabled, the VMware Tools icon in the Windows taskbar includes a yellow caution icon (upgrade icon) when a VMware Tools upgrade is available.