Reinstalling Workstation Pro When Upgrading a Windows Host Operating System

Before you upgrade the operating system on a Microsoft Windows host, VMware recommends that you uninstall VMware Workstation Pro.

The way Workstation Pro is installed and configured depends partly on the version of Windows used. As a best practice, to ensure that Workstation Pro is properly configured for a new operating system, you must remove the Workstation Pro application before you perform the operating system upgrade. Uninstalling Workstation Pro guarantees that legacy components that apply only to older versions of Windows are not left behind .

For example, if you do not uninstall Workstation Pro before upgrading the Windows operating system, some virtual network adapters might not function properly after the operating system upgrade. Before you uninstall Workstation Pro, open the virtual network editor and note the settings used. You must configure these settings again after you reinstall Workstation Pro.

When you uninstall Workstation Pro, you need only uninstall the Workstation Pro application, not the virtual machines that you have created. When the operating system upgrade is complete, reinstall Workstation Pro or, if you are also upgrading Workstation Pro, install the new version of Workstation Pro.