Is is Safe to Using VMWare to Run Windows when Online?

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Is is Safe to Using VMWare to Run Windows when Online?

I am new to VMware fusion, prior to using Virtualisation software to run Windows on my Mac I used Boot Camp. I never configured that installation of Windows to go online as I didn't want the headache of having to deal with virus protection, firewalls, security settings, etc, etc. In fact, I use to always unplug the network cable just to be absolutely certain.

Now that I am running VMware Fusion I still remove the network cable before starting it up it as I fear the vulnerability of using Windows online will open up my system to attack.

But I am unsure if it is necessary for me to be so careful. Is my Mac already protected by some insulating aspect of VMware?

Or should I continue to unplug the network cable when starting up Windows in VMware?

Thanks.

24 inch iMac 2.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, Mac OS X (10.5.5), 2 GB RAM

Posted on Nov 9, 2008 8:05 PM

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Answer 1

Camelot

Level 9

58,407 points

Nov 9, 2008 8:14 PM in response to Vintuitive

The Mac itself is pretty insulated from problems - there are no known attacks, for example, that cross the VM barrier (Windows doesn't even know it's running in a VM).

That doesn't mean that Windows isn't invulnerable - just as it would be if it were a 'real' machine.

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Answer 2

Network 23

Level 6

12,351 points

Nov 9, 2008 8:27 PM in response to Vintuitive

While I use Parallels instead of VMWare. I do have a suggestion. You may be able to "virtually" unplug the cable. What I mean by that is, in Parallels there is an option to disable the network adapter of a specific virtual machine. Since Parallels and VMWare are similar, there may be a similar option in VMWare.

The advantage of this? You don't have to give up network access to your Mac, you just deny it to Windows.

In Parallels, this option is in the settings for an individual virtual machine, so if I have two different disk images with Windows systems on them, I could go into each one's settings and set one's virtual network adapter to be enabled, and the other one to be disabled.

I came across this when I wanted to run Windows on my Mac laptop while I was connected to the Internet away from home. Looking through the settings I realized that I could leave my Mac on the network while shutting off access to the Internet within the virtual machine. If I ever want to go online with Windows, like downloading updates, I just wait until I'm home on my own firewalled network, and flip the switch to enable the network adapter on that Windows virtual machine, and disable it again when I'm done.

Hopefully VMWare has that ability for you too.

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