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salan3
Contributor
Contributor

Choosing an ultrabook to run vmware workstation on

All,

I need to replace my laptop and fancy an ultrabook. But having been stung in the past that they won't allow 64 bit guests.

So how do I choose one? If I try to ask the question, sales just look blank!

Also how does (if at all) uefi affect workstation?

Has anyone a recommendation?

I have been looking at the Lenovo Ideapad U410 14" Ultrabook.

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WoodyZ
Immortal
Immortal

Well the first thing you do is check out the VMware Workstation System Requirements, specifically the Processor Requirements for Host Systems and then look at the U410 Tech Specs to see if the processor meets the requirements. You can get the processor specs from the Intel web site.  Just enter the processor in Google like i7-3537U and the top hit usually is the link to the Intel specs for that processor.  I took a quick look at each of the processors listed in the U410 Tech Specs and they all have VT-x support which is required to run 64-bit Guests.

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salan3
Contributor
Contributor

Hi yes I did that with my last laptop only to  find that the manufacturer did not support it in the bios!

So although the cpu etc did support , the bios did not. I do not know what that would be with uefi laptops etc.

alan

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WoodyZ
Immortal
Immortal

According to Lenovo IdeaPad U310/U410 User Guide V1.0 (English) it states "Note: To enter BIOS setup utility, press Fn + F2 (when HotKey Switch is set to Hotkey Mode) or F2 (when HotKey Switch is set to Legacy Mode) when the Lenovo logo appears on the screen while the computer is starting up." so it looks like it has a BIOS.  However the manual didn't have any details on what is enabled/disabled by default and what can be configured so I'd suggest you contact Lenovo as it's their product and they should be able to answer your questions.

jsa
Enthusiast
Enthusiast

I know you said altrabook, but just as a point of info i have vmware player running on a 128gig Microsoft Surface Pro, which is a a 64 bit machine.  I store my virtual machines on a 64 gig SDcard. I use it for software demos. Expensive but impressive.

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salan3
Contributor
Contributor

Do you run 64bit guests? I need to run 2008R2,2012.

Alan

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