VMware ESXi and vSphere Cluster Management

Add a Generic SCSI Device to a VMware Workstation Player Virtual Machine

Learn how to pass through a host-connected SCSI scanner, tape drive, or other supported peripheral to a VMware Workstation Player guest.

A generic SCSI device lets a virtual machine access a physical SCSI peripheral connected to the host system. This is a form of passthrough: VMware presents the host device to the guest instead of creating an emulated device or virtual disk.

SCSI is an interface standard used by storage and peripheral devices, including tape drives and scanners. The host system is the physical computer running VMware Workstation Player. The guest operating system is the operating system installed inside the virtual machine.

When to Use a Generic SCSI Device

Use a generic SCSI device when software inside the guest must communicate with a physical SCSI peripheral attached to the host. Common examples include:

A SCSI scanner used by imaging software in the guest.
A SCSI tape drive used by a guest backup application.
Another host-connected SCSI peripheral that the guest operating system and its applications support.

This configuration differs from adding a virtual hard disk or another standard virtual hardware device. A virtual disk is represented by a file or other virtual storage object. A generic SCSI device maps a selected physical host device into the virtual machine. Suitability depends on host recognition, host permissions, guest drivers, and application support.

Prerequisites

Complete these checks before changing the virtual machine hardware:

Connect the SCSI peripheral to the host and confirm that the host recognizes it.
Select the intended virtual machine in the VMware Workstation Player library.
On a Windows host, use an account with administrative access. VMware may need that access to configure and use the mapped physical device.
On a Linux host, the account running VMware Workstation Player must have both read and write permission for the relevant SCSI device.
Confirm that the guest operating system has, or can install, a driver for the physical peripheral.
Check that no other host or guest application needs exclusive access to the device at the same time.

Host Requirements by Operating System

Host operating system	Required user access	Reason
Windows	Administrative access	Required to configure and access the mapped physical SCSI device.
Linux	Read and write permission for the relevant SCSI device	Required for the user running VMware Workstation Player to access the device.

Add the Generic SCSI Device

Select the target virtual machine in the VMware Workstation Player library.
Open Player > Manage > Virtual Machine Settings.
Open the Hardware tab.
Choose Add to start the Add Hardware workflow.
Select Generic SCSI Device, then continue.
Choose the physical SCSI device that is connected to and available on the host. Check the device identity carefully if more than one device is listed.
Review the connection settings. Enable Connect at power on if the device should be attached automatically whenever this virtual machine starts.
Complete the wizard.
Return to the Hardware tab and verify that the new generic SCSI device appears in the virtual machine hardware list.

Player > Manage > Virtual Machine Settings > Hardware > Add > Generic SCSI Device

Choose the Connection Behavior

Connect at power on tells VMware Workstation Player to attempt to attach the mapped physical device each time the virtual machine starts.

Enable it when the guest should use the scanner, tape drive, or other peripheral during every startup.
Leave it disabled when the device should be attached only for occasional tasks or when the host must use it at other times.
Connect manually after startup when you need to control which session owns the physical device.

Automatic connection can fail if the device is unplugged, powered off, busy, or blocked by host permissions when the virtual machine starts. The setting expresses the desired behavior; it cannot make an unavailable physical device attach successfully.

Guest-Side Validation

Start the virtual machine after adding the device.
Check whether the guest operating system detects new hardware.
Install or confirm the guest driver required by the physical scanner, tape drive, or other peripheral.
Install or open software that supports the device type.
Perform a device-specific test. For example, detect the scanner and perform a test scan, or query the tape drive from the guest backup application.

A successful VMware hardware entry does not guarantee successful guest use. If the guest detects the device but cannot operate it, investigate guest drivers, application compatibility, and whether the intended physical device was selected.

Example: SCSI Scanner

Verify that the host detects the scanner and that it is ready.
Add the scanner as a Generic SCSI Device to the selected virtual machine.
Enable Connect at power on if the scanner should be available at every guest startup.
Boot the guest and install or confirm the scanner driver and scanning application.
Run a test scan from the guest.

Example: SCSI Tape Drive

Confirm host-level access to the tape drive. On Linux, verify read and write permission for the relevant device.
Map the correct tape drive through the generic SCSI hardware wizard.
Start the guest and check that its backup software discovers the drive.
Run a safe device query or other appropriate backup-software test before relying on the drive for production backups.

Configuration Checklist

Check	Expected condition
Physical hardware	The target SCSI peripheral is connected to and visible on the host.
VMware hardware type	Generic SCSI Device is selected.
Device mapping	The intended physical device is selected.
Startup behavior	Connect at power on is enabled only when automatic attachment is wanted.
Guest support	The guest has compatible drivers or software.

Capacity Limit

A single virtual machine can contain up to 60 generic SCSI devices. If another device cannot be added, review the existing hardware entries and keep the total at or below this limit.

Troubleshooting

The Generic SCSI Device option cannot be configured

Confirm that the peripheral is connected correctly and recognized by the host.
On Windows, use an account with administrative privileges.
On Linux, confirm read and write permission for the relevant SCSI device.
Check whether the hardware is actually exposed as an accessible SCSI device on the host.
Reopen the virtual machine settings and select an available physical device.

The device is added but does not connect at startup

Review whether Connect at power on is enabled.
Connect and power on the physical device before starting the virtual machine.
Check whether another host or guest process has exclusive access to it.
Verify host administrative access or Linux device permissions.

The guest detects no usable peripheral

Install or update the compatible guest driver.
Confirm that the guest application supports the scanner, tape drive, or other device.
Check that the correct physical device was mapped rather than another SCSI device.
Test the device with software designed for that hardware type.

Additional generic SCSI devices cannot be added

Review the virtual machine hardware list. The supported maximum is 60 generic SCSI devices per virtual machine. Remove an unused entry if the limit has been reached.

Key Points

A generic SCSI device passes a host-connected physical SCSI peripheral through to a guest.
The host must recognize the device, and the VMware user must have the required host access.
The guest still needs compatible drivers and application support.
Use Connect at power on only when automatic attachment is appropriate.
Verify the device with a guest-side, device-specific test after adding it.