This article shows you how to set up VMware vSphere Hypervisor ESXi 7.0 (7.0U2a) on a new virtual machine using VMware Workstation 16 Pro virtualization software.
Under normal circumstances, running ESXi in a virtual machine is not recommended and is unnecessary. Because ESXi is installed on physical devices like a standalone operating system and provides more performance.
We recommend using ESXi virtualization on VMware Workstation only for testing purposes. You can follow this video tutorial or the steps below to install ESXi step by step on the virtual machine.
Step 1: Run your VMware Workstation software and click Create a new virtual machine.
Step 2: When the New Virtual Machine Wizard opens, select Custom (Advanced).
Step 3: In the Hardware Compatibility window, select version 16.
Step 4: Check the “I will install the operating system later” option in the Guest Operating System Installation window.
Step 5: Check VMware ESX in the Select a Guest Operating System window, then select VMware ESXi 7 and later in the Version section.
Step 6: In the Name the Virtual Machine window, type the virtual machine name and configure the installation location.
Step 7: Configure 4 CPU numbers, with a minimum of 2 in the Processor Configuration setting.
Step 8: Configure a memory size of 4 GB or higher than your computer supports in the Memory for the Virtual Machine setting.
Step 9: Select NAT for Network Type.
Step 10: Select I/O Controller setting Paravirtualized SCSI.
Step 11: Select SCSI for Disk Type.
Step 12: Select Create a new virtual disk in the Disk setting.
Step 13: Configure the disk capacity as 180 GB and back up the disk file as a single file.
Step 14: Continue without changing the location and name of the disk file.
Step 15: Click Customize Hardware in the virtual machine summary window.
Step 16: Click on the processor device and tick all the options under Virtualization Engine.
Step 17: Click on the CD/DVD device and add the vSphere ESXi ISO file you downloaded to your computer in the Use ISO Image File section.
Step 18: Close the settings of the virtual machine and run it.
Step 19: Watch the video tutorial to install ESXi on the VMware virtual machine.