Difference between VMware Workstation and Server

Difference between VMware Workstation and Server

February 12, 2008 — ittechtalk

Lets take a look at the main differences between Workstation and Server.

1. Run As Service – this is a biggest difference between both. Server runs as a background service and Workstation runs as a standard desktop application. Workstation provides better interactive performance but Server is better suited for multi user server consolidation scenarios. It tends to make Workstation better development platform and Server a better production platform.
2. Multiple-user Access – Only one user can access Workstation at a time while Server’s service-based implementation lets it provide simultaneous multiuser access. You can also manage Servers remotely.
3. RAM per virtual machine – Workstation supports virtual machines with up to 8GB of RAM but Server supports a maximum of only 3.6GB per VM.
4. Snapshots – It is a feature that lets you capture a point-in-time image of VM. You can use that image to roll the VM back to that captured state. The snapshot is not a complete copy of VM. It captures only the changes to the VM image. Both Workstation and Server support basic snapshots.
5. Multiple Snapshots – Server supports only a single snapshot while Workstation supports multiple snapshot as well as providing a snapshot manager that lets you easily view and manage the available snapshots.
6. VM Cloning – Its advanced feature supported by Workstation but not available in Server. It allows you quickly copy a VM. A snapshot requires the presence of the base image, but you can use the cloning feature to create a completely new and independent VM.
7. VM Teams – Another advanced feature that’s supported in Workstation but not in Server is VM Teams. It lets you manage multiple VMs as a group.
8. Host-guest drag-and-drop – It lets you drag objects from the desktop or Windows Explorer from the host to a guest VM. Workstation supports this feature while Server not.
9. VM movie capture – Workstation’s movie capture feature lets you record all of the activity in a VM and save it as an AVI file. Server doesn’t support movie capture.
10. Price - Server is free while Workstation sells for $190.