VMware

The macOS 10.15 documentation covers information on how to install the operating system in a virtual machine.

The macOS 10.15 documentation includes the following topics:

Installation Instructions for VMware ESXi 6.7 Update 3 and Later

You install OS X 10.8 in a virtual machine using the installation media, then upgrade the virtual machine to OS X 10.9 or its later version, and then upgrade the virtual machine to macOS 10.15.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, verify that the following tasks are complete:

  • Read General Installation Instructions for All VMware Products.
  • You already have Install OS X Mountain Lion.app for any version of OS X 10.8.
  • You already have Install OS X Mavericks.app for any version of OS X 10.9 or its later version.
  • Ensure your physical system is an Apple-labeled computer. This is required to install or run OS X 10.8, OS X 10.9, OS X 10.10, OS X 10.11, macOS 10.12, macOS 10.13, macOS 10.14 or macOS 10.15 in a virtual machine.
  • Ensure your physical system can support an additional virtual machine with at least 2GB of RAM.

Installation Steps

  1. Create a new virtual machine and select the Apple macOS 10.15 (64-bit) option. If Apple macOS 10.15 (64-bit) is not available, select the most recent version of macOS supported by your product.
  2. Use the virtual machine CD/DVD drive for installation.
  3. Connect the CD/DVD drive to a datastore image file, complete the following steps:
    1. Add Install OS X Mountain Lion.app to a datastore that the virtual machine can access.
    2. Set the CD/DVD drive to connect to the Install OS X Mountain Lion.app/Contents/SharedSupport/InstallESD.dmg image file.
  4. Power on the virtual machine.
  5. Select your language and click the right arrow.
  6. Select Disk Utility and click Continue.
  7. In the left hand pane, select the hard disk at the top of the list.
  8. Select the Erase tab.
  9. Click the Erase... button and click the confirming Erase button. Wait for the process to complete.
  10. Quit the Disk Utility application.
  11. Select Reinstall OS X and click Continue.
  12. Follow the prompts to complete the installation.
  13. Copy Install OS X Mavericks.app (or its later version) to the virtual machine, then execute Mavericks.app to upgrade this operating system to OS X 10.9 or its later version.
  14. Download Install macOS Catalina.app in the virtual machine using the Mac App Store, or download it onto another Mac using the Mac App Store, and copy Install macOS Catalina.app to the virtual machine.
  15. Execute Install macOS Catalina.app in the virtual machine to update the operating system to macOS 10.15.
  16. Install VMware Tools.

Installation Instructions for VMware Fusion 11.5 and Later

You can install macOS 10.15 in a virtual machine using the installation media.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, verify that the following tasks are complete:

  • Read General Installation Instructions for All VMware Products.
  • Download Install macOS Catalina.app from the Mac App Store.
  • Ensure your physical system is an Apple-labeled computer. This is required to install or run macOS 10.15 in a virtual machine.
  • Ensure your physical system can support an additional virtual machine with at least 2GB of RAM.

Installation Steps

  1. Start VMware Fusion.
  2. Select File > New.
  3. Drag Install macOS Catalina.app and drop it into the Create a Virtual Machine window.
  4. Click Continue.
  5. Follow the prompts to complete the installation.
  6. Install VMware Tools.

VMware Tools in a macOS 10.15 Guest

For information on VMware Tools, see Knowledge base article 1014294, General VMware Tools installation instructions, at http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1014294.

Knowledge Base Articles for macOS 10.15

The following link refers to knowledge base articles on operating system specific issues. See VMware Knowledge Base for a list of known issues about the operating system.

VMware Compatibility Guide

The VMware Compatibility Guide Web site lists supported guest and host operating systems and provides related support information.


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