HOWTO: Install Windows 7 x64 Beta in VMWare Fusion
I have been a satisfied customer of VMWare for quite some time now. Back when I worked at IBM I had been introduced to ESX Server, and I even remember using some trial versions back in the day. Recently at the office (Early, 2007) we switched over to using Macs primarily for its benefits with graphic design work. I purchased VMWare fusion so that I would be able to run the Windows version of QuickBooks. The fact that VMWare fusion supported 64-bit operating systems and Parallels did not made my decision for me (Especially since I only had an x64 version of vista around). I have been running Vista x64 in a VM with no problems for over a year now.
Ever since Microsoft released the 7000 build of Windows 7, I have been wanting to give it a try. I figured a VM is a perfect place to do that. In doing so, I have put together this how to and took 37 screen shots.
Remember, YMMV and I made the decisions on RAM and space because this VM is running on my Mac Pro, which has 16GB of RAM. Anyways, let's begin!
First, you are going to want to open VMWare Fusion (obviously!)...
1. Choose to create a new virtual machine.
2. Choose "Create a custom virtual machine."
3. Choose Windows Vista x64 for Operating System.
4. Verify and change any settings you might want to adjust. I changed the RAM to 2048MB since I have 16GB on the Mac Pro that I have it on.
5. Make sure to change the CDROM drive settings to point to the Windows 7 Beta ISO that you downloaded from Microsoft.
6. Start the VM!
7. Begin installation of Windows 7 x64
8. Choose "Custom Install"
9. Install on Disk0
10. Sit back and relax for a few minutes while it installs
11. Once Windows 7 x64 finishes installing, enter your username and give the installation a PC name.
12. Choose a Password.
13. Enter your 25 digit Product Key that you received from Microsoft for the Beta program.
14. Choose your initial security settings.
15. Select the correct timezone, and verify the time.
16. Select the type of network.
17. Let windows finalize your settings.
18. Welcome to the Windows 7 x64 Beta release, build 7000.
19. Next we need to install VMWare Tools. Begin by choosing Virtual Machine > Install VMWware Tools from the VMWare Fusion menu.
20. Click yes to allow VMWare Tools to make changes to the computer (User Access Controls).
21. Go through the installer and choose typical installation, and wait for it to complete the installation.
22. Restart! ( The virtual machine, not your mac
)
23. Enjoy your new Windows 7 x64 Beta installation in VMWare!
Make sure to check out the new Internet Explorer 8 Beta as well as Windows Media Player 12. So far I think it's a step in the right direction for Microsoft, and while I'm an avid user of my Mac Pro, I still tinker, build, and overclock PC's in my spare time. I am actually working on another article comparing benchmarks from Vista x64 and Windows 7 x64, from a PC in both stock speeds as well as overclocked.
Thanks for taking a look at my article on installing Windows 7 x64 Beta in VMWare Fusion. I hope the screenshots helped out where possible. If I left anything out, feel free to comment and I will see what I can answer!
February 5th, 2009 - 13:37
Hi, I ran across your blog while searching for a solution for myself. I have a mac pro (4gb ram quadcore 2.66ghz)
and have tried since tuesday to run win7 on my machine, either via VMWare or Parallels 4. I havent had luck with getting the sound to work, beyond stuttery glitch madness, and I’ve tried everything i’ve read about online.
How is your sound and did you have any trouble to get it working?
February 5th, 2009 - 15:46
I just went to check my installation again, and I noticed sound wasn’t working, but it could be because I have two VM’s open, and they don’t share hardware very well. I will check again tonight, and see what I find. It looks like it finds the drivers fine, but I couldn’t get anything to play in Windows Media Player.
February 6th, 2009 - 10:35
Let me know what you find… I’ve been poking around more. Using Parallels, I got the 32bit win7 to have audio without glitch, but can’t run Songsmith (ok ok shame on me, this is the main reason i’m installing win7), it locks up all audio. VMWare installed 32bit win7 great with full sound, but again the same Songsmith problem. Went BACK to 64bit win7 and tried in VMWare, audio working, Songsmith runs, but everything is glitchy and delayed and unusable..
February 7th, 2009 - 12:14
Well I looked at it again yesterday, and it wasn’t working…. so I went into device manager and removed the vmware audio device and rebooted. It reinstalled it automatically, and voila, it was working. I have no idea why I needed to do that, but I was able to play youtube videos so I’m assume it’s working. Hope this helps!