Creating subnets in VMware Workstation

Products

• VMware Desktop Hypervisor

Issue/Introduction

This article describes the procedure to create a separate subnet in a VMware Workstation environment. This can be used to group virtual machines (including those on separate hosts, so long as the hosts are connected) and run them on a specific subnet without providing them access to the existing domain network or LAN. The procedure entails grouping a set of virtual machines on a dedicated virtual switch (called a vmnet); each vmnet uses a different subnet for IP addressing.

 

Environment

VMware Workstation 11.x (for Linux)
VMware Workstation Pro 15.x (Windows)
VMware Workstation 6.x (Linux)
VMware Workstation 7.x (Windows)
VMware Workstation 8.x (Linux)
VMware Workstation 10.x (Linux)
VMware Workstation 10.x (Windows)
VMware Workstation 11.x (for Windows)
VMware Workstation Pro 14.x (for Linux)
VMware Workstation Pro 15.x (Linux)
VMware Workstation 9.x (Linux)
VMware Workstation Pro 14.x (for Windows)
VMware Workstation 7.x (Linux)
VMware Workstation 9.x (Windows)
VMware Workstation 8.x (Windows)
VMware Workstation 6.x (Windows)

Resolution

To create a separate subnet for all VMware Workstation virtual machines, perform these steps for each host:

1. Power off all virtual machines.
2. Add a secondary NIC to the host. This step is necessary to keep the subnet separated from the host's network.
3. Create a virtual switch on the host, by adding a vmnet to the secondary network card:
   1. Launch VMware Workstation.
   2. Go to Edit > Virtual Network Editor.
      
      Note: For a video walkthrough of using the Virtual Network Editor, see Using the Virtual Network Editor in VMware Workstation.
       
   3. Click vmnet0 and set it to Host Only.
      
      Note: This setting is temporary only.
       
   4. Select vmnet2 or any unused, un-resevered vmnet.
      
      Note: vmnet0, vmnet1, and vmnet8 are all reserved. For more information, see Understanding networking types in hosted products.
       
   5. Set vmnet2 to Bridged To and from the dropdown menu, select the secondary network card that was just added on this host.
   6. Click Apply.
   7. Click vmnet0, set it to Bridged To, and from the dropdown menu, select Automatic.
      
      Note: The secondary network card no longer shows up in this dropdown because, the secondary NIC is now dedicated to vmnet2.
       
   8. Click Apply and then click OK.
       
4. Add the chosen vmnet to the virtual machine:
    
   1. In Workstation, edit the settings for the virtual machine which you want to isolate.
   2. In the Hardware tab, click Network Adapter.
   3. In the right pane, select Custom: Specific Virtual Network and from the dropdown menu, select the vmnet adapter that is mapped to the secondary network card. In this example, it is vmnet2.
   4. Click OK.
       
5. Power on the virtual machine and assign an IP address within the IP range used for this subnet.
   
   Note: To avoid conflicts and confusions, ensure that this IP range is different from the network's existing DHCP scope.
   
   The virtual machines are now on the same subnet. To aid connectivity between the machines, assign them all to the same workgroup or join/bind them to the same domain.

Additional Information