VMware Workstation 12 Pro Version 12.1| 8 DEC 2015 | Build 3272444

Last updated:8 DEC 2015

Check for additions and updates to these release notes.

What's in the Release Notes

The release notes cover the following topics:

About VMware Workstation Pro

VMware Workstation Pro enables technical professionals to develop, test, demonstrate, and deploy software by running multiple x86-based Windows, Linux, and other operating systems simultaneously on the same PC.

You can replicate server, desktop, and tablet environments in a virtual machine and allocate multiple processor cores, gigabytes of main memory and graphics memory to each virtual machine, whether the virtual machine resides on a personal PC or on a private enterprise cloud.

For more information, see the broader VMware Workstation Pro documentation or specifically the VMware Workstation 12 Pro Documentation Center.

What's New

VMware Workstation 12 Pro version 12.1 is a maintenance release that resolves some known issues. It is a free upgrade for all VMware Workstation 12 Pro users.

Prior Releases

Features and Known Issues from prior releases of VMware Workstation Pro are described in the release notes for each release. To view release notes for prior releases of VMware Workstation 12 Pro, click the following links:

Known Issues

The following issues might occur in this version of VMware Workstation Pro.

  • Upgrading the guest to Windows 10 version 1511 might prevent VMware Tools related features from working
    When you upgrade major Windows versions, such as Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1, to Windows 10 version 1511, VMware Tools related features, such as shared folders and Unity mode or view, do not work.
    Workaround: The following workarounds consist of the same steps, but performed at different points in relationship to the upgrade.
    • To prevent this issue from occurring, perform the following steps.
      1. Uninstall VMware Tools before you upgrade a Windows guest to Windows 10 version 1511.
      2. Reboot the virtual machine.
      3. After the upgrade, install VMware Tools again.
    • If this issue occurs after you upgrade to Windows 10 version 1511, perform the following steps to enable all VMware Tools related features to function.
      1. Uninstall VMware Tools from the guest operating system.
      2. Reboot the virtual machine.
      3. Reinstall VMware Tools.
  • The Easy Install option does not complete the installation for Windows 10 Version 1511 guests
    When you use the Easy Install option to install the Windows 10 version 1511 guest operating system, the installation process stops
    at the "Select the operating system you want to install” screen.
    Workaround: Complete the installation process manually by selecting an operating system and clicking Next.
  • On a Windows Server 2016 Technical Preview host, Help links do not appear
    When you attempt to access Help in VMware Workstation Pro or VMware Workstation Player on a Windows Server Technical Preview host, Microsoft Edge (the default browser) fails to launch, which prevents Help links from appearing. Instead, the following error message appears: The specified module cannot be found.
    Workaround: Change the default web browser from Microsoft Edge to a browser such as Internet Explorer, Chrome, or Firefox.

Resolved Issues

The following issues were resolved in this version of VMware Workstation Pro.

  • During the Easy Install process, VMware Workstation Pro misinterprets Windows 10 Version 1511 ISO images as Windows server 2012 R2 images
    When creating a new virtual machine, if you select a Windows 10 version 1511 ISO file in the New Virtual Machine Wizard, the wizard says "Windows 10 detected. The operating system will use Easy Install". But in the next step, the "Version of Windows to install" dialog box only displays options for Windows Server 2012 R2.

    This issue is resolved.
  • The Microsoft Excel application responds to input with a one-second delay
    When you run Microsoft Excel 2013 on a Windows 10 virtual machine, the application responds to your input with a one-second delay.

    This issue is resolved.
  • Resuming a virtual machine that was suspended with the vmware-kvm.exe command, causes the desktop of the virtual machine to freeze
    When you start a virtual machine that was put into a suspended state with the vmware-kvm.exe command, the virtual machine starts successfully in the background. However, the desktop of the virtual machine does not respond to mouse or keyboard operations.

    This issue is resolved.
  • When you issue the vmrun command with the nogui option on VMware Workstation 12 Player, which is bundled with Workstation 12 Pro, the command fails

    This issue is resolved.
  • On an OpenSuse 13.2 host, dragging a virtual machine to a folder in the virtual machine library fails

    This issue is resolved.
  • A UAS device connected to a USB 3.0 port on a Windows 7 or later host might fail to successfully connect to the guest
    When a UAS device is connected to a guest operating system and you turn the device off and back on, the device does not successfully reconnect to the guest. In Workstation Pro when you select VM > Removable Devices, the device is listed as connected to the guest, but the device does not appear in Windows Explorer within the guest.

    This issue is resolved.
  • A newly added network adapter uses an unintended network device type, potentially preventing the use of the network device
    When you add a network adapter on the Customize Hardware screen in the New Virtual Machine Wizard, the extra network adapter does not use the same network device type as the existing network adapter. Instead it uses the Vlance network device type, which might prevent the guest operating system from using the network device.

    This issue is resolved.
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