VMware workstation recover VMX file after moving Virtual Machine

[Mamakiks]

I hope you guys can help me, I spent alot of time installing some Windows Servers. But after my disk ran full, I had to move the Virtual Machines to another drive. After I did, I began getting this error message: Error while powering on: Unable to find the VMX binary 'E:\WMware\vmware-vmx.exe'

How can I change the path to the VMX file?

[gimmely]

Did you install VMware at E:\VMware?  My vmware-vmx.exe is at C:\Program Files (x86)\VMware\VMware Workstation\x64.  Is your VMware product Workstation and what is its version?  Can you post a screenshot of the error message because I'm afraid you made a typo in saying E:\WMware?

[Mamakiks]

Hello Gimmely

Thank you for your answer. I installed WMware at my E drive. But i moved the installation with the Vitual Machines.

Product: VMware® Workstation 12 Player

Version: 12.5.7 build-5813279

[gimmely]

I'd not/never do what you did in moving the installation, if you simply and literally moved your E:\WMware folder - BTW, you made a typo during your installation - to the new location.  But, I have to say that I'm not very sure that's what you did.

Did you copy all the VMware-related content from the original E: drive to another USB, then call the new USB as E:\?  So, please confirm and/or elaborate it.  Otherwise, it's a lot of guessing and questions.

If you want to change the location of the installation, you should uninstall it when it was still in E:\WMware and this E: drive is available.  Then, with the new drive/location is available, install VMware to the new location, e.g. F:\VMware - I'd correct that typo at this moment.

[Mamakiks]

No I just moved it from my E drive to my D drive, without making any changes. I corrected the typo now, thank you.

So if I re-install VM Workstation, would that fix the problem?

[gimmely · Accepted solution]

What you described in your original post indicated more than one problem - one as not being able to locate or run an executable.

If you (re-)installed VMware successfully at the new/any location, then you should be able to run the executable, which is easy to try and confirm.  In fact, you should've tried to validate running executable at different locations, before and after you moved the installation.  In doing that, you'd separate one issue from any other possible one(s).

This one problem may very well be the only issue for you.  But, nobody would know until you had tried.

[Mamakiks]

Thank you for your help! Repairing the VM installation worked. I was certain that it was the Virtual Machine itself that was failing.