VMware is an immensely popular virtual machine which aids in using several operating systems without surging the need to remove the main operating system. But, apparently, some users of Windows 11 have faced errors while starting a virtual machine in VMware resulting in them being stuck at the error screen. Therefore, this article consists of all the fixes which will help the users to fix: failed starting virtual machine error.

Fix: Failed to start the Virtual Machine error

Now, let us check all the fixes for solving failed starting virtual machine error in detail without any further delay.

Fix 1: Updating VMware app

An outdated VMware application can also lead to issues in starting virtual machine. Now, let us check the steps to update the VMware application.

Step 1- Open VMware app.

Step 2- Next, select the Player button on the top menu.

Step 3- Further, go to Help > Software updates > Check for updates.

Updating VMware app to fix failed starting virtual machine

Step 4- Now, download and install any available updates. Subsequently, restart the PC and try starting a virtual machine.

Fix 2: Removing all other Windows Virtualization Features

VMware is highly dependent on Windows Hypervisor features which supports third-party hypervisors. These other virtualization features may lead to a conflict in running VMware virtual machine. Follow the steps given below to remove these features.

Step 1- Firstly, press Win + R and open the Run dialog box. Next, copy and paste the prompt given below and press Enter.

appwiz.cpl

Opening Programs and Features to fix failed starting virtual machine

Step 2- Now, select Turn Windows features on or off in Program and Features window.

Opening Turning windows on/off window to fix failed starting virtual machine

Step 3- Next, deselect Windows Subsystem for Linux, Hyper-V and Virtual Machine Platform from the list and select OK.

Deselecting other virtualization programs to fix failed starting virtual machine

Step 4- Lastly, press Restart now and all the changes will be applied.

Fix 3: Removing other Virtualization Based Application

Existence of other virtualization-based programs in PC can also cause glitches in VMware app. Therefore, follow the instructions below to release other virtualization-based programs.

Step 1- At first, open Programs and Features window and search for any other hypervisors and right- click the programs if any.

Uninstalling other virtualization apps to fix failed starting virtual machine

Step 2- Next, select Uninstall and follow the prompts appearing on the screen.

Fix 4: Temporary disable Memory Integrity

When the Memory Integrity is enabled, it might cause in the occurrence of glitch in the VMware application. Therefore, temporarily disable Memory Integrity are given below-

Step 1- First of all, open Windows Security.

Opening Windows Security to fix failed starting virtual machine

Step 2- Next, select Device Security > Core Isolation > Core Isolation details.

Opening device security

Opening core isolation

Step 3- Lastly, disable the feature of Memory Integrity and close the app.

Disabling Memory Integrity

Once the issue is resolved, then re-enable Memory Integrity.

Fix 5: Closing and restarting VMware

Sometimes, just closing the process of VMware and restarting it might help in fixing the issue of failed starting virtual machine. Now, check the steps for doing the same.

Step 1- Firstly, right-click the Start button and open Task Manager.

Step 2- Next, on the search bar, write VMware and press Enter.

Step 3- Now, right-click on the process of VMware and select End Task.

Ending processes of vmware

Step 4- Further, end all the other processes in a similar way and close the Task Manager.

Step 5- Again, run VMware as an administrator and try starting the virtual machine.

Fix 6: Using System Restore

Reverting to an earlier restore point may too help in solving the issue as it will allow the PC to go to a previous state when the VMware was working properly. Thus, following the steps will allow the users to use System Restore.

Step 1- Firstly, write System Restore in the search bar and select Create a restore point. The System Properties dialog box will appear.

Opening system protection box

Step 2- Next, go to System Protection > System Restore > Next.

Selecting a restore point

Step 3- Now, select a restore point to perform a system restore. Select Show more restore points to show all the available restore points.

Step 4- After selecting a restore point, select Scan for affected programs.

Running system restore

Step 5- Lastly, follow all the prompts appearing on the screen for performing the restore successfully. The PC will restart for applying all the latest changes and after the restart the issue should be solved.

Fix 7: Checking if Virtualization is activated

The deactivation of hardware virtualization can too cause hindrance in the application of VMware as without it no virtualization program can work. Therefore, the steps for checking and enabling hardware virtualization are given below-

Step 1- At first Restart the PC.

Step 2- Next, press F2 for an Intel PC and enter into BIOS mode (keys may vary depending upon the PC).

Step 3- Now, go to Advanced Options > UFFI Firmware Settings.

Opening hardware settings

Step 4- Now, enable the feature of Hardware Virtualization and save all the changes. For Intel, it is Intel VT and may vary in other PCs.

Enabling Virtualization

Step 5- Lastly, exit the BIOS mode, restart the PC and try starting the virtual machine.

Fix 8: Disabling VBS

Virtualization based security can also interfere in the proper working of the VMware application. Hence, for disabling VBS, follow the steps given below-

Step 1- At first, run Command Prompt as an administrator.

Step 2- Next, copy and paste the prompt given below and press Enter.

bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype off

Disabling VBS

Step 3- Lastly, restart the PC. This will disable the VBS.

Fix 9: Reinstalling VMware application

If all the above fixes don’t work, then the users can also reinstall the VMware application. The steps for reinstalling VMware application are as follows-

Step 1- Right-click the Start button and select Terminal (Admin).

Step 2- Now, in Command Prompt copy and paste the command given below and press Enter for uninstalling VMware.

Winget uninstall VMware.WorkstationPlayer

uninstalling vmware

Step 3- Now, after Winget uninstalls the app package, copy and paste the following prompt and reinstall VMware from Winget.

Winget install VMware.WorkstationPlayer

Reinstalling vmware

Step 4- After the installation is complete, close the Terminal window and try launching a virtual machine. It should do the fixation.

Hoping that all the fixes mentioned in this article will allow users to fix the aforementioned issue.

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