VMware, by default, assigns a random MAC address to a virtual machine upon creation (of the format 00:0C:29:xx:xx:xx).

Should you wish to assign a static MAC address to a VMware client, follow these steps:

Open the client's virtualmachinename.vmx file, which is located at:

/root/vmware/virtualmachinename/virtualmachinename.vmx (for VMware Workstation)

/var/lib/vmware/virtualmachinename/virtualmachinename.vmx (for VMware Server):

 

If the machine has never booted as a VMware client

Locate the following line:

ethernet0.present = "TRUE"

Add the following two lines below the ethernet0.present line:

ethernet0.addressType = "static"

ethernet0.address = "00:50:56:XX:YY:YY"

(where XX is any valid HEX number that equals less than 24 and YY:YY are any valid HEX numbers)

 

The first three couplets, 00:50:56, must be used exactly in the MAC address.

 

If the machine has been booted as a VMware client (even if it didn't boot successfully)

Comment out (place a “#” in front of) the 3 lines containing “generated” and insert the 2 lines as shown below

# Comment out the following 3 lines:

 

#ethernet0.addressType = "generated"

#ethernet0.generatedaddress = “00:29:0C:XX:YY:ZZ”

#ethernet0.generatedaddressoffset = “0”

 

# And insert the following 2 lines (and see the comment below re: XX:YY:ZZ)

 

ethernet0.addressType = "static"

ethernet0.address = "00:50:56:XX:YY:ZZ"

 

Change the last line to your static MAC address using the following rules:

The first three couplets, 00:50:56, must be used exactly in the MAC address.

The fourth couplet must be valid HEX numbers that equal less than 24

The fifth and sixth couplets can be any valid HEX numbers

Refer to your VMware documentation for additional information about assigning static MAC addresses.