VMware announced that VMware Fusion and VMware Workstation virtualization tools will be more accessible than ever. Effective November 11, 2024, these products are free for personal, commercial and educational use, and Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro versions will no longer be sold. All the features of the paid versions are now available in the free versions. At the same time, VMware intends to further develop Fusion and VMware.
Already paid licenses for Pro products will not go away. Customers with active support agreements still have access to standard communication channels with VMware. Once the contract ends, contacting the company to solve problems will no longer be available, although the product itself can be used. Users will still have access to online resources, including documentation, instructions and forums – this, according to VMware, is quite enough.
Image source: VMware
The company promises that the developers will maintain stability at a high level, updating the software in a timely manner and taking care of its high performance. The transition to a free distribution model should lead to a growing user base, which will allow for more feedback, optimization of product offerings and ensuring that quality levels are maintained. New versions of Fusion and Workstation are available in the VMware Desktop Hypervisor section.
In May 2024, VMware made Fusion Pro and Workstation Pro free for personal use. Against the background of other changes in licensing policy after the deal with Broadcom, this was a somewhat unexpected step. However, for corporate customers it is not so simple. The company, under the wing of Broadcom, switched exclusively to subscriptions, canceled many products (including, for example, the free version of vSphere), combined the remaining ones into VMware Cloud Foundation and VMware vSphere Foundation sets, and also eliminated the partner network.