Is it possible to run nested VMs with in VMWare Workstation without Intel VT-x?

Question

I need to fiddle with ESXi inside a VMware workstation 9 Virtual machine but my old Intel Core 2 Duo T6400 does not have Intel VT-x hardware assist technology!

Is there any mean to run a bare-metal hypervisor in a virtual machine without Intel VT-x (with older versions of VMware Workstation or ESXi hypervisor for exemple)?

Have you tried it? For the sake of a small ISO, it's got to be worth a shot. — Dan, Sep 23 '13 at 12:43
Yes I tried with ESXi 5 in VMWare Workstation 9 : doesn't work — Chedy2149, Sep 23 '13 at 13:35

dsmsk80 · Accepted Answer · 2013-09-23T14:53:10.490

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No, it is not possible. For running 32-bit virtual machines you need to have Intel VT-x / AMD-V support at least. For 64-bit machines, you need SLAT/EPT (Intel) or RVI/NPT (AMD) as well. Nested ESXi hypervisor should be working since VMware Workstation 7. For more details, I would recommend you to check Installing ESXi 5.x in VMware Workstation knowledge-base article.

edited Sep 23 '13 at 14:53

answered Sep 23 '13 at 13:04

dsmsk80

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For clarification I run VMWare workstation 9 and nesting virtual machines requires Intel-VT-x. – Chedy2149 Sep 23 '13 at 13:05
Sorry, my answer was confusing a bit. Rewritten ... – dsmsk80 Sep 23 '13 at 13:15

score -2 · Answer 2 · answered Sep 23 '13 at 12:45

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You can't run ESXi inside VM. But you can run VM inside OS inside VM on the ESXi.

answered Sep 23 '13 at 12:45

Kondybas

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It is actually possible : [link](http://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?language=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=2034803) – Chedy2149 Sep 23 '13 at 12:50
@jscott It is, and it's perfectly possible from within VMware Workstation, too. – Dan Sep 23 '13 at 12:53

Is it possible to run nested VMs with in VMWare Workstation without Intel VT-x?

2 Answers2