When I think about it, VMware Workstation is actually the tool that I value the most of all the tools I carry around. Just today I V2Ved 7 Windows Server 2003 servers to my laptop to create a test infrastructure for a Virtual Access Suite setup. Where would I be without VMware Workstation?

The "V2Ving" of these servers would have been an impossible task a couple of years ago. Now I run everything from my laptop, create snapshots, create custom networks, teams and this is only version 6. Version 6.5 has gone into a public beta a couple of weeks ago and it promises to have some really cool new features. I already had mentioned this earlier but recently I ran into some other interesting articles on the VMware Workstation 6.5 Beta. Since I won't be able to testdrive it myself anytime soon, why not learn from others?

Infoworld: For example, there's the new hardware-accelerated graphics support. You can now run Direct3D applications (including some games) from within a VM, eliminating a major hurdle to achieving near-local system fidelity. Workstation 6.5 also provides a mechanism for integrating applications running within the host OS. Dubbed "Unity," it allows you to, for example, run a copy of Internet Explorer 6 inside a VM and have its client window displayed seamlessly on the host OS desktop.

Another carryover is the new Easy Install feature. Designed to simplify the VM creation process, Easy Install parses the disk structure of an installation CD or ISO image, then applies a preconfigured installation script if it recognizes the guest OS media. In the case of Windows XP, Easy Install prompts you for the product key, computer name, and administrator password, then proceeds to complete the entire OS installation automatically, no user interaction required. For support professionals or developers who frequently build and tear down lots of test VMs, Easy Install could be a real time-saver.

Another article I ran into isn't about a entirely new features but a enhanced feature. This feature has been in VMware workstation 6 as well but I kind of overlooked it's brilliance: the recording feature of VMware Workstation. Enhanced Execution Record / Replay in Workstation 6.5: Execution record and replay does exactly what its name implies – it allows you to record the execution of your virtual machine, and then to play it back later. It’s not just some movie or a video recorded session – but, rather, much more then that. We are talking about literally recording the entire execution of your VM as it happens. Not just what you see, but everything that happens under the hood as well. Events, interrupts, memory, changes to disk contents, input and output… everything.

So, what’s so cool about that? Well, one advantage of execution record / replay is its interactivity. For instance, let’s say that you decided while replaying a session that you would have liked to do something different then what was done at record time. Maybe you want to alter some of your actions half-way thorough the recording, or change the settings of some software running on the VM. Well, you can “take the VM live” as we call it – essentially, stop replaying and start interacting “live” with it from exactly the point of your choice. I guess one could think of the recorded session as prolonged super-snapshot of the VM over a long period of time, which allows you access and modification of said VM at any point during this time. Of course the use of this feature to do some serious bug-hunting is probably a developers proverbial wet dream.

Now, if only VMware Workstation 6.5 would run ESX. Seriously, with all this love for VMware Workstation, these kinds of things really tick me off. If anyone that has any pull over at VMware is reading this (here goes nothing): please, PLEASE let me install ESX (3 and 3.5) on VMware Workstation 6.5. While we are at it, why don't you make it easy? I promise I won't stick my laptop in the datacenter, have all my user connect to it and then blame VMware. Really, I promise....