VMware Workstation Pro v17.6.1 Build 24319023 is a critical maintenance update released by Broadcom in October 2024 to address specific bugs introduced in version 17.6.0. Key Highlights of Version 17.6.1
Windows 11 24H2 Fix: The most significant fix addresses a bug where the previous version misidentified Windows 11 24H2 ISOs as Windows Server 2025, which caused issues during the "Easy Install" process.
Stability Improvements: It resolves a critical svga Exception 0xc0000005 error that occurred when powering on virtual machines with 3D graphics disabled while hardware acceleration was globally enabled.
Installation Fixes: A fix was implemented for MSI errors that occurred during installation on non-English host systems.
New "Free" Model: While this specific build is a patch, it falls under the new licensing model where Workstation Pro is free for personal use. As of March 2025, this has been extended to include commercial and educational use at no cost. User Experience & "Interesting" Findings
Reviews and community feedback for this specific build are mixed, highlighting a transition period under Broadcom's ownership:
Релиз VMware Workstation Pro 17.6.1 и Fusion Pro 13.6.1
VMware Workstation Pro v17.6.1 (Build 24319023) generally viewed as a stable point-release primarily focused on security enhancements following the major transition under Broadcom's ownership Broadcom TechDocs Key Highlights of Version 17.6.1 Pricing Shift : A major talking point for this version is its free availability for personal use
. Users no longer need a paid license for non-commercial home lab environments, making it more accessible compared to previous years. Stability Focus
: This specific build (24319023) was released in October 2024 to address various customer-reported bugs and security vulnerabilities. Feature Completeness
: It maintains professional features not found in the "Player" version, such as snapshots, virtual network customization, and cloning. Broadcom TechDocs Common User Feedback & Issues
While established as a "pro" tool, recent community reviews highlight several polarizing points:
Need Windows XP for an old factory PLC programmer? v17.6.1 still supports ancient guest OSes (MS-DOS, Windows NT 4.0, OS/2 Warp) that modern hardware cannot boot natively.
Use VMware vTPM (Virtual Trusted Platform Module) 2.0 to encrypt VMs. Even if someone steals your .vmx and .vmdk files, they cannot boot the VM without the password.
| Aspect | Change | |-------------|--------------| | Guest Tools | Requires manual reinstallation of VMware Tools for Shared Folders to work again (known issue from 17.6.0). | | VMPA (VM Performance Analysis) | Removed in 17.6.0 – not restored in 17.6.1. | | Virtual Trusted Platform Module (vTPM) | Now requires AES-NI support on host (CPU feature). Older hosts without AES-NI fail to create vTPM 2.0. |
Automate everything. The vmrun command-line tool in this build allows TCL/TK scripts to control VMs (start, stop, clone, capture screenshots) across headless hosts.
Kernel Support
Bug Fixes
Security Updates
Deprecations
vmware-checkvm tool (replaced by VMTools’ vmtoolsd capabilities).The biggest invisible fix. Earlier versions of Workstation 17 had trouble with the latest Windows 11 24H2 update (specifically with VBS – Virtualization-Based Security). Build 24319023 includes optimized Hyper-V emulation, allowing nested virtualization to run smoother on hosts that have Core Isolation or Memory Integrity enabled.