.VMX File Extension
VMware Virtual Machine Configuration File
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What is a VMX file?
A VMX file is a configuration file created by VMware virtualization software, such as VMware Workstation and VMware Fusion. It stores plain text settings for a virtual machine (.VMWAREVM package), which includes a virtual machine's memory, hard disk, and processor limit settings. VMX files are typically created and saved within the VMWAREVM package for which they store the settings.
More Information
Fusion is a high-end virtualization program that allows you to run Windows, Linux, and other operating systems in macOS. When you install an operating system (OS) with Fusion, the software creates a virtual machine (VMs) to store the OS.
As Fusion creates the VM, it also creates various data files, including VMX and .VMDK files, to configure the VM. VMX files are paired with and used to load the virtual disk saved in a VMDK file.
You can find the configuration files in a VMWAREVM package by right-clicking the VMWAREVM file and selecting . The VMX file is named after the name of the VM. For example, if the VM name is Windows 11 x64, the VMX file is named Windows 11 x64.vmx.
VMX Format
VMX files are saved in a plain text format that stores settings in the form of property = value. For example, the setting for a VM's memory limit may be memsize = "512", which means that 512MB of RAM is the maximum memory allowed for that VM.
NOTE: If you created a VM with an earlier Linux version of VMware Workstation, that machine's configuration file may be a .CFG file.
Common VMX Filenames
[VM name].vmx - The name of the VMX file is the same name as the VM. For example, the VMX file for a "Windows 8" VM is Windows 8.vmx.
How to open a VMX file
You should not attempt to open a VMX file manually. VMware Fusion automatically loads the information in the VMX file when running a virtual machine.
However, if you need to manually edit a virtual machine's settings, you can open and edit a VMX file with a text editor, such as Apple TextEdit (Mac). Remember that if you incorrectly edit the file, you may inadvertently cause the VM not to run correctly.