VMware Workstation Pro Setup - You must have administrator priviledges to modify or repair installaiton fix

Question

Hello everyone,

When i try to change VMware Workstation installation,  I get an error saying that I must have administrative privileges to repair the software. Any fix would be highly appreciated because i have encountering issues/problems in my VMware VMs like upgrading from Windows 95 to Windows 98 First Edition by patching it to fix most errors on it like during setup, there will be a error message saying rundll32, kernel32 performed an illegal operation, but after booting up and fixed it, i keep getting explorer.exe performed an illegal operation crash issue. And upgrading from XP to Vista but the error message appears "Windows installation encountered an error and cannot continue". This most VMware issues/problems should be fixed for good.  I am using VMware Workstation version 17.5.2 on Windows 11. Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

Dear Maru Angelo Santos!

Welcome to the Microsoft Community!

I read your question and I understand that you encountered VMware Workstation Pro Setup - You must have administrator privileges to modify or repair the installation repair, and you said that during the installation process, there was an error message saying rundll32, kernel32 performed an illegal operation. This may be caused by the lack of some runtime libraries or other runtime components.

I checked the VMware community instructions. Generally, when I encounter the problem that you must have administrator privileges to modify, install, or repair VMware Workstation Pro, their usual solution is to uninstall and reinstall the virtual machine software (do not install it in the C drive):

1. Delete vmare in Control Panel\Programs\Programs and Features
2. Delete C:\ProgramData\VMware
3. Delete C:\Program Files (x86)\VMware
4. Delete C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\VMware (if it is not possible, just use some management software to force deletion)
5. Open the registry editor

Delete

\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\vmx86

and

\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\VMware, Inc.

\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\VMware, Inc.

6. It is recommended to download CCleaner to clear the remaining registry

Disclaimer: Generally, modifying registry subkeys or work group is intended for advanced users, administrators, and IT Professionals. It can help fix some problems, however, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For further protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click How to back up and restore the registry in Windows - Microsoft Support to view the article. 

Then right-click your VMware Workstation installation package, then choose to run the package as an administrator. Then choose to install it in another drive letter and try again.

If you have other running installation errors, it is recommended that you install the runtime files in Windows:

Latest supported Visual C++ Redistributable downloads | Microsoft Learn

You can download various versions of C++ (except the ARM64 version. If your CPU is ARM architecture, please download this version instead of the x86 and x64 versions.)

Of course, for other VMware-related issues, you can go to the dedicated community to ask your questions:

vCenter - VMware Cloud Foundation

Disclaimer: Microsoft provides no assurances and/or warranties, implied or otherwise, and is not responsible for the information you receive from the third-party linked sites or any support related to technology. 

I hope above information can help you. If you have any questions, please feel free to let me know. Tell me the results. I'm looking forward to hearing from you.

Thank you for your understanding and support! 

I wish you all the best in the new year 2025~

Best regards,

Yang.Z - MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist