How to Install Windows Vista on macOS using VMware Fusion

This article shows you the steps to run Windows Vista on a new virtual machine using VMware Fusion 12 Pro on the macOS operating system on Mac.

After creating a new virtual machine on your system with VMware Fusion software, you can install the Windows Vista system by watching this video tutorial or following the steps below.

Step 1: After installing VMware Fusion Pro on your Mac, select Create a custom virtual machine in the virtual machine installation methods options and click Continue.

Step 2: In the Guest operating system selection window, select Windows Vista x64 and click Continue again.

Step 3: Since Vista is an old system, tick Legacy BIOS in the Firmware type selection window and continue.

Step 4: Create a new virtual disk for a clean Windows Vista installation in the virtual disk selection window.

Step 5: In the window showing the summary information of the virtual machine, click Customize Settings to configure the virtual hardware settings better.

Step 6: When the Save As window opens, select an external location where you want to save your virtual computer or click Save to confirm the default location.

Step 7: When the Windows Vista guest machine settings are opened, click Processors & Memory and add four virtual processors to your virtual system. Assign virtual memory size to your VM according to the RAM capacity of your Mac computer.

Step 8: Configure the network adapter type as Ethernet in the Network Adapter settings. You can connect to your host’s local network using Ethernet on a Windows Vista guest machine. Also, click Advanced Options in the same window and check the IOMMU feature for better memory management.

Step 9: Finally, click on the CD/DVD (SATA) device and add the Windows Vista Ultimate SP2 ISO file you downloaded to your macOS operating system to the virtual machine.

Step 10: Close the Windows Vista virtual machine’s settings, run your guest machine in the Fusion program, and start the installation.

Step 11: After installing Windows Vista on your Mac, do not click Virtual Machine / Install VMware Tools in the Fusion tool menu! If you try to install the current version, you will get an installation error. So, download the 11.0.6 version of VMware Tools from the link below and install it after adding the image file to the VM.

https://packages.vmware.com/tools/releases/11.0.6/windows/

Step 12: After completing the VMware Tools 11.0.6 installation, restart your virtual computer.

Step 13: After installing VMware Tools, you can fit the screen resolution of the Windows Vista guest machine to full screen and transfer files between the host and the VM.

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