Learn how to – Install VMware Workstation on Arch Linux / Manjaro

Learn how to – Install VMware Workstation on Arch Linux / Manjaro.

This guide will show you how to easily install VMware Workstation pro/player on Arch Linux / Manjaro Linux distribution. VMware Workstation is a hypervisor used for running multiple operating systems on a single Linux or Windows PC.

It enables developers and users to set up virtual machines on a single physical machine, and run them simultaneously along with the host operating system. There are two distinct types of VMware Workstation – Pro edition and Player edition.

Step 1: Install yay AUR helper

Start by installing a smart AUR helper called yay.

• yay – Best AUR Helper for Arch Linux / Manjaro.

Step 2: Install Dependencies

Install all required dependencies for running VMware Workstation on Arch Linux / Manjaro.

sudo pacman -S fuse2 gtkmm linux-headers pcsclite libcanberra 

The other package needed by the –console installer is ncurses5-compat-libs. This is available on AUR.

yay -S --noconfirm --needed ncurses5-compat-libs

Step 3: Install VMware Workstation Pro or Player

You have two options:

Option 1: Install from Package build for x86_64

The vmware-workstation package is available on AUR and can be installed by running the command.

yay -S --noconfirm --needed  vmware-workstation

Then, as desired, enable some of the following services:

• vmware-networks.service for guest network access
• vmware-usbarbitrator.service for connecting USB devices to guest
• vmware-hostd.service for sharing virtual machines

Example:

sudo systemctl enable vmware-networks.service  vmware-usbarbitrator.service vmware-hostd.service
sudo systemctl start vmware-networks.service  vmware-usbarbitrator.service vmware-hostd.service

Confirm services status with:

sudo systemctl status vmware-networks.service  vmware-usbarbitrator.service vmware-hostd.service

Lastly, load the VMware modules:

sudo modprobe -a vmw_vmci vmmon

To Launch VMware Workstation, run:

# Launch VMware Workstation Pro:
$  vmware

# Launch VMware Workstation Player
$ vmplayer

Option 2: Install Using VMware bundle

Download the latest VMware Workstation Pro or Player

Choose the VMware edition to go with and download it. Here are Download links.

• Download VMware Workstation Pro
• Download VMware WorkstationPlayer

After download is complete, start the installation using the bundle file downloaded.

### VMware Workstation Pro ###
wget https://download3.vmware.com/software/wkst/file/VMware-Workstation-Full-16.2.1-18811642.x86_64.bundle
chmod +x VMware-Workstation-Full-16.2.1-18811642.x86_64.bundle
sudo ./VMware-Workstation-Full-*.x86_64.bundle

### VMware Workstation Player ###
wget https://download3.vmware.com/software/player/file/VMware-Player-Full-16.2.1-18811642.x86_64.bundle
chmod +x VMware-Player-Full-16.2.1-18811642.x86_64.bundle
sudo ./VMware-Player-Full-*.x86_64.bundle

The installer UI will be launched. Accept License Agreement terms and click next.

On the next screen, choose System service scripts directory, use /etc/init.d (the default).

Select if to allow product updates check on startup.

Choose “yes” to join VMware’s Customer Experience Improvement Program(“CEIP”). Use “no” to decline.

Enter License key if you have one.

The installation should finish in a few minutes.

If successful, a success message will be shown.

Configure VMware Workstation systemd services

Add vmware.service.

cat <<EOF | sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/vmware.service
[Unit]
Description=VMware daemon
Requires=vmware-usbarbitrator.service
Before=vmware-usbarbitrator.service
After=network.target

[Service]
ExecStart=/etc/init.d/vmware start
ExecStop=/etc/init.d/vmware stop
PIDFile=/var/lock/subsys/vmware
RemainAfterExit=yes

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

Add vmware-usbarbitrator.service.

cat <<EOF | sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/vmware-usbarbitrator.service
[Unit]
Description=VMware USB Arbitrator
Requires=vmware.service
After=vmware.service

[Service]
ExecStart=/usr/bin/vmware-usbarbitrator
ExecStop=/usr/bin/vmware-usbarbitrator --kill
RemainAfterExit=yes

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

Add this service as well, if you want to connect to your VMware Workstation installation from another Workstation Server Console:

cat <<EOF | sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/vmware-workstation-server.service
[Unit]
Description=VMware Workstation Server
Requires=vmware.service
After=vmware.service

[Service]
ExecStart=/etc/init.d/vmware-workstation-server start
ExecStop=/etc/init.d/vmware-workstation-server stop
PIDFile=/var/lock/subsys/vmware-workstation-server
RemainAfterExit=yes

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

Start VMware services.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl start vmware.service vmware-usbarbitrator.service 

Recompiling VMware kernel modules

sudo  vmware-modconfig --console --install-all

Uninstalling VMware Workstation on Arch / Manjaro – bundle

To uninstall VMware you need the product name, check installed products by running the command.

$ vmware-installer -l
Product Name         Product Version     
==================== ====================
vmware-player        16.2.1-18811642 

Run uninstallation with -u option.

sudo  vmware-installer -u vmware-player --required

The --required skips the confirmation.

For installation from AUR, use:

$ yay -Rns vmware-workstation

Enjoy running VMware Workstation on Arch Linux / Manjaro.