How to Install Kali Linux on VMware Workstation 16 in Windows 10

In our previous post, we’ve shown you the installation process of Kali Linux on Oracle VirtualBox. However, in this guide, you are going to learn how to install Kali Linux on VMware Workstation Pro 16 virtual machine in Windows with ease and effortlessly.

When it comes Linux operating system then both the Ubuntu Linux and Debian Linux are the most used and important Linux versions. However, due to some reasons, we have decided to install Kali Linux on VMware.

Kali Linux

Kali Linux is a Linux distribution built on Debian that has been developed for penetration testing and is particularly useful for security experts and enthusiasts. Kali Linux, formerly known as BackTrack Linux, provides a lot of network audit software and programs. Kali can be run as a live DVD and, like any other Linux, can be installed as a host operating system (OS) on a computer. It is not recommended, however, that you use Kali as a desktop operating system for general purposes.

The Benefits of Kali Linux Installation on VMware are:

1. By running multiple operating systems simultaneously (a host OS and a guest OS or multiple guests), you don’t need to reboot a computer when using dual boot.
2. A VM running Kali Linux is isolated from your host OS – running Kali on a VM in an isolated environment is secure.
3. You can take a snapshot and roll back to the previous VM state if something goes wrong. The risk of harm to Kali Linux on a VM is minimal as a result.
4. You can copy a configured VM on which Kali Linux is installed on other computers.
5. You can attach physical USB devices, such as external network adapters directly to a VM due to the VirtualBox USB pass-through feature.

Requirements:

• VirtualBox installed on your computer.
• At least 4-8GB of RAM installed on your computer.
• At least 20GB of free disk space on your computer.
• Internet connectivity to download Kali Linux Image File.
• Hardware virtualization VT-x/VT-d or AMD-v enabled from the BIOS of your motherboard.

Step 1. Installing VMware Workstation 16 Pro on Windows 10

VMware Workstation Pro is a host hypervisor that operates on x64 versions of Windows and Linux operating systems; it helps users to set up and use virtual machines (VMs) on a single physical computer concurrently with the host machine on x64 versions of Windows and Linux operating systems (x86-32 versions of previous releases were available). It is possible for each virtual machine to run its own operating system, including Microsoft Windows, Linux, BSD, and MS-DOS versions. VMware Workstation is being produced and distributed by VMware, Inc., a subsidiary of Dell Technology.

However, a free-of-charge version of VMware Workstation Player is available for non-commercial use. You require an operating system license to use proprietary programs such as Windows. Ready-made Linux VMs set up for various purposes are available from several outlets.

VMware Workstation facilitates the bridge of existing host network adapters and the exchange of physical disk drives and USB machines with a virtual machine. It can emulate disk drives; an ISO image file can be mounted as a virtual optical disk drive, and virtual disk drives can be mounted as .vmdk files.

VMware Workstation Pro will immediately save the status of a virtual machine (“snapshot”). These snapshots can be restored later, essentially restoring the virtual machine to the saved state[5] as it was, and free of any post-snapshot damage to the VM.

VMware Workstation provides the ability to group several virtual machines into an inventory folder. The machines in such a folder can then be turned on and off as a single object, which is helpful for evaluating dynamic client-server environments.

• Step 1. First, download the latest version of VMware Workstation Pro and click the Download Now button under the Workstation 10 Pro for Windows. The download will begin automatically.
• Step 2. Navigate the folder where you have downloaded your VirtualBox and double-click on the downloaded “VMware Workstation” file to install it.
• Step 3. Click Next.
• Step 4. Check the box next to I accept the terms in the License Agreement and click Next and Next.
• Step 5. Click Next and Next.
• Step 6. At last, click Install and click Finish.

Step 2. Download ready-to-use Virtual Image of Kali Linux

Well, there’s no need to download the Kali Linux ISO file, in order to install Kali on VirtualBox. Instead, all you need to do is to download the ready-to-use virtual image of Kali Linux. Here’s how it’s done:

Go to the Offensive Security’s download page to download the VM image for VirtualBox. Now, click on the file to download it. Select either Kali Linux VMware 64-Bit or Kali Linux VMware 32-Bit.

Once you click on the link, your browser should prompt you to download the Kali Linux image. Select Save. When downloaded, extract it with 7 Zip or WinRAR.

Step 3. Scan for Virtual Machines on VMware

Now, open VMware Workstation, click on the File tab, and then select Scan for Virtual Machines…

Click the Browse option and select the Kali Linux and click OK.

Click Next and then click Finish.

At last click Close.

Now, a Kali Linux virtual machine is added to your VMware Workstation. Click Upgrade this virtual machine.

Click Next.

From the drop-down menu next to the Hardware compatibility, select Workstation 16.x and click Next.

Select Alter this virtual machine and click Next. After that click Finish.

At last, click Close.

Step 4. Edit Virtual Machine

Click Edit virtual machine settings.

Go to the Memory settings.  Here, 2GB of memory (RAM) is selected by default. If you want to change the memory, you can either type in the amount of memory (in MB/megabyte) you want for this virtual machine in the Memory for this virtual machine section. Or, you can click and drag the slider up and down to increase or decrease the memory for the virtual machine respectively.

From the Processors settings, you can change the number of virtual processors, and the number of cores to assign to each virtual processor for this virtual machine.

Usually, the number of processors is set to 1, and the Number of cores per processor can be 1 or more depending on your need.

If you want to enable nested virtualization (virtualization inside virtual machines), then check the Virtualize Intel VT-x/EPT or AMD-v/RVI checkbox.

If you want to use performance tuning software in the virtual machine, check the Virtualize CPU performance counters checkbox. For this to work, you must have a compatible processor installed on your host computer.

Step 5. Power on Kali Linux Virtual Machine

After editing the virtual machine settings, it’s time to power on the virtual machine.

Now, simply select  I copied it.

The default username and password is kali.

Finally, Kali Linux is successfully installed.

Wrapping Up

That’s it. This is how you can install Kali Linux on VMware Workstation Pro 16 in Windows 10. the process is very easy and it might seem a bit tricky while following the above-mentioned steps but that’s not the case. If you faced any kind of problem feel free to contact us in the comment section below.

Related Posts:

• How to Create Kali Linux Bootable USB using Rufus in Windows 10

• How to Install Kali Linux on VirtualBox in Windows 10