VMware Player overview

VMware Player is a free desktop application from a company called VMware that runs on Windows and Linux. This application enables you to create, configure, and run virtual machines. A virtual machine allows you to run one operating system emulated within another operating system. For example, you can run a Linux operating system within your Windows OS.

You can create a virtual machine using VMware Player or you can run preconfigured virtual machines created with VMware Workstation, GSX Server, and ESX Server. On Windows hosts, you can even run Microsoft Virtual PC virtual machines and Symantec LiveState Recovery system images.

VMware Player features

VMware Player offers the following features:

• Virtual machine isolation – you can isolate a virtual machine from the host PC. This way, you can safely run programs from untrusted sources, without worrying that a virus will hurt your host computer.
• Copy and paste features – you can copy and paste text and files between the virtual machine and the host PC.
• DHCP server – VMware Player offers a built-in DHCP server.
• Adjustable memory – virtual machine memory can be optimized for better performance.
• Support for USB 3.0.
• Different types of network connection for the virtual machine: bridged, host-only, or NAT.
• Drag & drop support – you can drag files between a Windows host and a Windows virtual machine,