Problems to Power ON my Virtual Maschine after Windows 11 Update 25H2

[Alexa-Brassi]

Hello, I installed the Windows 11 Update 25H2. Since then, I have been unable to turn on any virtual machines in my personal, free version of VM ware Workstation Pro. The ON button is grayed out. I have already tried versions 17.6.4 and 25H2. I have disabled all Windows Hyper-V, but nothing helps. Can someone please help me?

[RaSystemlord]

I take it that you have installed VMware again, after Win11 Upgrade

It feels like you are referring to a previous path of your particular VM.

Just delete the VM from Workstation Pro menu and Open it again with the VMware User Interface.

This is of course providing that you don't have done anything on your disk in terms of security or some 3rd Part "security software" has started acting up.

Other possibilities involve in knowing what the error message is, but since you are not even able to select Start, I don't think other possibilities are relevant.

[Alexa-Brassi]

Nothing helped. I included my log-file,maybe someone can see the error.

[James Lin]

Did you reboot your host after installing VMware Workstation?  Is the VMware Authorization Service running?

Does this happen with all virtual machines?  If you create a new virtual machine, are you unable to power it on?

[Alexa-Brassi]

To every quesitos you asked me I can say Yes

[goldeneye_007]

Try right clicking on the Workstation icon and select Run As Administrator.

Then try and open a VM.

[Alexa-Brassi]

I also tried to open the Workstation with Right Klick as Administrator- the same problem

[goldeneye_007]

Are you selecting VM's from a list or doing a File->Open operation?

[Alexa-Brassi]

I tried both

[RaSystemlord]

By the latest discussion: It seems that Uninstall of VMware might have failed.

There have been instructions how to manually remove VMware completely from your system. Not sure if they are relevant to a latest release, but I'm sure you get updated instructions from development, if relevant. Just search for manual removal.

I'm not sure where these instruction are, but typical Windows program removal includes these (at the longest case):

- run Uninstall, reboot. This is just a program, which sometimes fails
- reboot
- remove all the files under "vmware"
- removal usually partly fails, because some of the files are locked
- reboot
- try removal again, which might fail
- look for Services, remove vmware-related service (includes specific registry removal)
- reboot
- remove the files
- remove all the vmware-related entries from registry
- reboot
- clean up temp, personal and system

That should do it. Don't make mistakes and do not remove anything else than vmware-related things.

[Alexa-Brassi]

I removed now all the vmware-related entries from registry and yes this has fixed the problem. Now my machines are working - thank you very much.