You can change the hardware compatibility setting that the New Virtual Machine wizard uses when it creates a typical virtual machine. The hardware compatibility setting determines the hardware features that are supported in the virtual machine.
To change the default hardware compatibility setting, select . The default hardware compatibility setting appears in the Default hardware compatibility menu.
By default, the default hardware compatibility setting is the Workstation Pro version that is installed on the host system.
If you plan to create virtual machines and deploy them in environments that use other VMware products, you might need to change the default hardware compatibility setting to an earlier Workstation version. Some products do not support all of the hardware features in the installed Workstation Pro version. If the virtual machine must be ESX server compatible, you can select the check box for ESX server compatibility on the Workspace preferences dialog box.
The check box for ESX server compatibility is not available when you create a virtual machine on a remote ESX host. Virtual machines created on remote ESX hosts are always ESX compatible.
See the Virtual Machine Mobility Planning Guide for information about virtual hardware versions. This guide lists compatibility problems to consider when you move virtual machines into different environments.
If you create a custom virtual machine in the New Virtual Machine wizard, you can override the default hardware compatibility setting.
