VMware has released a new beta of its Fusion virtualization software for Macs.
Now officially called VMware Fusion, the latest beta version of the software adds several additional features and improved performance, the Palo Alto, Calif., company announced April 6.
VMware first introduced its virtualization software for Apples Macintosh line of desktops and notebooks on Dec. 21. Then, on March 2, the company offered an updated version with support for Microsofts Windows Vista operating system.
The virtualization software works with Intel-based Macs and uses a “Cocoa-native” user interface that allows either Microsoft Windows or another x86 operating system to run side-by-side with the Mac OS X operating system. Cocoa is Apples application programming technology for Mac OS X.
In addition to Windows, the Fusion software can support other 32- and 64-bit operating systems, including Linux and Sun Microsystems Solaris OS.
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VMware is not the only company looking to offer Mac users the ability to run Windows. Parallels has launched its own Desktop for Mac software, which supports Windows and Linux operating systems.
The third version of the Fusion beta offers additional performance enhancements by allowing users to disable debugging codes in the virtualization software.
The beta also offers support for Apples Boot Camp software, which allows Windows to run on Macs. This additional feature allows Fusion to automatically detect the Boot Camp partition. However, this new addition to the software only supports Windows XP and not Vista.
In addition, the beta also allows users to better manage virtual machine bundles. This feature allows Mac users to move a virtual machine to another hard drive or another Mac by copying the file.
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The latest Fusion beta also adds new features to better manage a users virtual machine library.
The free beta of VMware Fusion is available through VMwares Web site. The company expects to release the full version of the software later this year.
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