System requirements for System Center Virtual Machine Manager
This article provides details of the system requirements for System Center 2025 - Virtual Machine Manager (VMM).
VMM 2025 system requirements
The following sections describe the scalability information, hardware, software, and SQL Server requirements for VMM 2025, and summarize the support for the servers managed in the VMM fabric.
Capacity limits
The following table provides the scale limits that were tested for System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2025. There are various factors that affect the scale limits, such as hardware configuration, network, topology, and others.
The planning guide provides the details about how these factors can be adapted to specific requirements.
| Entity | Recommended maximum count |
|---|---|
| Physical hosts | 1000 |
| Virtual Machines | 25000 |
| Services | 1000 |
| User roles | 1000 |
| Clouds | 20 |
| Virtual networks | 2000 |
| logical networks | 20 |
| Library resources | 1000 |
| Library Objects (templates, profiles) | 100 |
Hardware
| Hardware | VMM server | VMM database | VMM library | VMM console |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Processor (minimum) | 8 core Pentium 4, 2 GHz (x64) | 8 core Pentium 4, 2.8 GHz | 4 core Pentium 4, 2.8 GHz | 2 core Pentium 4, 1 GHz CPU |
| Processor (recommended) | 16-core, 2.66 GHz CPU | 16 core 2.6 GHz CPU | 4 core 2.8 GHz CPU | 2 core 2 GHz CPU |
| RAM (minimum) | 4 GB | 8 GB | 2 GB | 4 GB |
| RAM (recommended) | 16 GB | 16 GB | 4 GB | 4 GB |
| Hard drive (minimum) | 4 GB | 50 GB | Based on size/amount of stored files | 4 GB |
| Hard drive (recommended) | 10 GB | 200 GB | Based on size/amount of stored files | 10 GB |
Server operating system
| Operating system | VMM server | Remote VMM library | Remote VMM database |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windows Server 2025 Desktop experience | Y | Y | If supported by SQL Server version |
| Windows Server 2025 Server Core | Y | Y | If supported by SQL Server version |
Note
Ensure that VMM server operating system is the same as the managed host operating system in case of deployment of Hyper Converged Infrastructure.
VMM console operating system
| Operating system | Supported |
|---|---|
| Windows 10 Enterprise | Y |
| Windows 11 Enterprise | Y |
| Windows Server 2019 (with desktop experience) | Y |
| Window Server 2019 Standard, Datacenter, Server Core with FOD | Y |
| Windows Server 2022 Standard, Datacenter | Y |
| Windows Server 2025 Standard, Datacenter | Y |
SQL Server
Note
- For the supported versions of SQL, use the service packs that are currently in support by Microsoft.
- For the below supported SQL versions, Standard, Enterprise, and Datacenter (64-bit) editions are supported based on the availability.
| SQL version | Supported |
|---|---|
| SQL Server 2019 as detailed here | Y |
| SQL Server 2022 as detailed here | Y |
| SQL Server command line utilities | Install the SQL Server 2019 Command-Line Utilities from the Microsoft® SQL Server® 2019 Feature Pack. or Install the SQL Server 2022 Command-Line Utilities from the Microsoft® SQL Server® 2022 Feature Pack. Not required for VMM installation |
Virtualization
| VM | Supported |
|---|---|
| VMM management server | The VMM management server can be installed on a VM. If you use dynamic memory, set the start RAM of the VM to at least 4096 MB. Don't install on a server running Hyper-V. You can deploy the VMM management server (physical or VM) in a highly available cluster. |
| VMM console | You can install the VMM console on a VM. |
Installation components
These components should be installed on the server before you install VMM.
| Component | VMM server | VMM console |
|---|---|---|
| Active Directory | The VMM management server must be a domain member. The computer name shouldn't exceed 15 characters. |
A computer with the VMM console installed should be a domain member. |
| Windows ADK | Download Windows ADK for Windows 11 and Windows Server 2025 and download windows PE Add-on for ADK | Not applicable |
| PowerShell | PowerShell 5.1 | PowerShell 5.0, 5.1 |
| .NET (minimum) | 4.6 | 4.5 |
Servers in the VMM fabric
| Operating system | Hyper-V host | SOFS | Update server | PXE server |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Windows Server 2019 Standard and Datacenter (With Desktop experience) | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Windows Server 2019 Standard and Datacenter (Core) | Y | Y | N | N |
| Hyper-V Server 2019 | N | N | N | N |
| Azure Stack Hyper Converged Infrastructure (HCI, version 22H2) | Y | N | N | N |
| Azure Stack Hyper Converged Infrastructure (HCI, version 23H2) | Y | N | N | N |
| Windows Server 2022 | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Windows Server 2022 | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Windows Server 2025 | Y | Y | Y | Y |
VMware servers in the VMM fabric
| VMware | Supported |
|---|---|
| ESX | ESX/ESXi 7.0, 8.0 |
| vCenter | 7.0, 8.0 |
| Supported | Features and limitations |
VMs in the VMM fabric
| Guest operating system | Supported |
|---|---|
| Hyper-V VMs | Any guest running on supported Hyper-V hosts. Learn more about support for 2025 and earlier versions. |
| VMware VM | Any VM running on supported VMware servers. Learn more. |
This article provides details of the system requirements for System Center 2022 - Virtual Machine Manager (VMM).
VMM 2022 system requirements
The following sections describe the scalability information, hardware, software, and SQL Server requirements for VMM 2022, and summarize the support for the servers managed in the VMM fabric.
Capacity limits
The following table provides the scale limits that were tested for System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2022. There are various factors that affect the scale limits, such as hardware configuration, network, topology, and others.
The planning guide provides the details about how these factors can be adapted to specific requirements.
| Entity | Recommended maximum count |
|---|---|
| Physical hosts | 1000 |
| Virtual Machines | 25000 |
| Services | 1000 |
| User roles | 1000 |
| Clouds | 20 |
| Virtual networks | 2000 |
| logical networks | 20 |
| Library resources | 1000 |
| Library Objects (templates, profiles) | 100 |
Hardware
| Hardware | VMM server | VMM database | VMM library | VMM console |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Processor (minimum) | 8 core Pentium 4, 2 GHz (x64) | 8 core Pentium 4, 2.8 GHz | 4 core Pentium 4, 2.8 GHz | 2 core Pentium 4, 1 GHz CPU |
| Processor (recommended) | 16-core, 2.66 GHz CPU | 16 core 2.6 GHz CPU | 4 core 2.8 GHz CPU | 2 core 2 GHz CPU |
| RAM (minimum) | 4 GB | 8 GB | 2 GB | 4 GB |
| RAM (recommended) | 16 GB | 16 GB | 4 GB | 4 GB |
| Hard drive (minimum) | 4 GB | 50 GB | Based on size/amount of stored files | 4 GB |
| Hard drive (recommended) | 10 GB | 200 GB | Based on size/amount of stored files | 10 GB |
Server operating system
| Operating system | VMM server | Remote VMM library | Remote VMM database |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windows Server 2022 Desktop experience | Y | Y | If supported by SQL Server version |
| Windows Server 2022 Server Core | Y | Y | If supported by SQL Server version |
Note
Ensure that VMM server operating system is the same as the managed host operating system in case of deployment of Hyper Converged Infrastructure.
VMM console operating system
| Operating system | Supported |
|---|---|
| Windows 10 Enterprise | Y |
| Windows 11 Enterprise | Y |
| Window Server 2016 Standard, Datacenter | Y |
| Windows Server 2019 (with desktop experience) | Y |
| Window Server 2019 Standard, Datacenter, Server Core with FOD | Y |
| Windows Server 2022 Standard, Datacenter | Y |
SQL Server
Note
- For the supported versions of SQL, use the service packs that are currently in support by Microsoft.
- For the below supported SQL versions, Standard, Enterprise, and Datacenter (64-bit) editions are supported based on the availability.
| SQL version | Supported |
|---|---|
| SQL Server 2016 and SPs as detailed here | Y |
| SQL Server 2017 as detailed here | Y |
| SQL Server 2019 as detailed here | Y |
| SQL Server 2022 as detailed here (Supported from VMM 2022 UR1) | Y |
| SQL Server command line utilities | Install the SQL Server 2016 Command-Line Utilities from the Microsoft® SQL Server® 2016 Feature Pack or Install the SQL Server 2017 Command-Line Utilities from the Microsoft® SQL Server® 2017 Feature Pack. or Install the SQL Server 2019 Command-Line Utilities from the Microsoft® SQL Server® 2019 Feature Pack. or Install the SQL Server 2022 Command-Line Utilities from the Microsoft® SQL Server® 2022 Feature Pack. Not required for VMM installation |
Virtualization
| VM | Supported |
|---|---|
| VMM management server | The VMM management server can be installed on a VM. If you use dynamic memory, set the start RAM of the VM to at least 4096 MB. Don't install on a server running Hyper-V. You can deploy the VMM management server (physical or VM) in a highly available cluster. |
| VMM console | You can install the VMM console on a VM. |
Installation components
These components should be installed on the server before you install VMM.
| Component | VMM server | VMM console |
|---|---|---|
| Active Directory | The VMM management server must be a domain member. The computer name shouldn't exceed 15 characters. |
A computer with the VMM console installed should be a domain member. |
| Windows ADK | Download Windows ADK for Windows 11 and Windows Server 2022 and download windows PE Add-on for ADK | Not applicable |
| PowerShell | PowerShell 5.1 | PowerShell 5.0, 5.1 |
| .NET (minimum) | 4.6 | 4.5 |
Note
If you run into ADK file path issue while installing VMM, copy the files from the amd64 folder in ADK root folder to the ADK root folder itself. The default ADK folder path is C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Kits\10\Assessment and Deployment Kit\Deployment Tools\WSIM, but it can be different based on your choice of folder path during ADK installation.
Servers in the VMM fabric
| Operating system | Hyper-V host | SOFS | Update server | PXE server |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Windows Server 2016 Standard and Datacenter (Core) | Y | Y | N | N |
| Windows Server 2016 Standard and Datacenter (With Desktop experience) | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Hyper-V Server 2016 | N | N | N | N |
| Windows Server 2019 Standard and Datacenter (With Desktop experience) | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Windows Server 2019 Standard and Datacenter (Core) | Y | Y | N | N |
| Hyper-V Server 2019 | N | N | N | N |
| Azure Stack Hyper Converged Infrastructure (HCI, version 20H2) | Y | N | N | N |
| Azure Stack Hyper Converged Infrastructure (HCI, version 21H2) | Y | N | N | N |
| Azure Stack Hyper Converged Infrastructure (HCI, version 22H2) (Supported from VMM 2022 UR1) | Y | N | N | N |
| Windows Server 2022 | Y | Y | Y | Y |
VMware servers in the VMM fabric
| VMware | Supported |
|---|---|
| ESX | ESX/ESXi 6.5, 6.7 7.0, 8.0 (supported from VMM 2022 UR1) |
| vCenter | 6.5, 6.7 7.0, 8.0 (supported from VMM 2022 UR1) |
| Supported | Features and limitations |
VMs in the VMM fabric
| Guest operating system | Supported |
|---|---|
| Hyper-V VMs | Any guest running on supported Hyper-V hosts. Learn more about support for 2022 and earlier versions. |
| VMware VM | Any VM running on supported VMware servers. Learn more. |
This article provides details of the system requirements for System Center 2019 - Virtual Machine Manager (VMM).
VMM 2019 system requirements
The following sections describe the scalability information, hardware, software, and SQL Server requirements for VMM 2019, and summarize the support for the servers managed in the VMM fabric.
Capacity limits
The following table provides the scale limits that were tested for System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2019. There are various factors that impact the scale limits, such as hardware configuration, network, topology, and others.
The planning guide provides the details about how these factors can be adapted to specific requirements.
| Entity | Recommended maximum count |
|---|---|
| Physical hosts | 1000 |
| Virtual Machines | 25000 |
| Services | 1000 |
| User roles | 1000 |
| Clouds | 20 |
| Virtual networks | 2000 |
| logical networks | 20 |
| Library resources | 1000 |
| Library Objects (templates, profiles) | 100 |
Hardware
| Hardware | VMM server | VMM database | VMM library | VMM console |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Processor (minimum) | 8 core Pentium 4, 2 GHz (x64) | 8 core Pentium 4, 2.8 GHz | 4 core Pentium 4, 2.8 GHz | 2 core Pentium 4, 1 GHz CPU |
| Processor (recommended) | 16 core, 2.66 GHz CPU | 16 core 2.6 GHz CPU | 4 core 2.8 GHz CPU | 2 core 2 GHz CPU |
| RAM (minimum) | 4 GB | 8 GB | 2 GB | 4 GB |
| RAM (recommended) | 16 GB | 16 GB | 4 GB | 4 GB |
| Hard drive (minimum) | 4 GB | 50 GB | Based on size/amount of stored files | 10 GB |
| Hard drive (recommended) | 10 GB | 200 GB | Based on size/amount of stored files | 10 GB |
Server operating system
| Operating system | VMM server | Remote VMM library | Remote VMM database |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windows Server 2012 R2 Server Core | N | Y | If supported by SQL Server version |
| Windows Server 2012 R2 with Desktop experience | N | Y | If supported by SQL Server version |
| Windows Server 2016 Server Core | Y | N | If supported by SQL Server version |
| Windows Server 2016 with desktop experience | Y | Y | If supported by SQL Server version |
| Windows Server 2019 with desktop experience | Y | Y | If supported by SQL Server version |
| Windows Server 2019 Server Core | Y | Y | If supported by SQL Server version |
Note
Ensure that VMM server operating system is the same as the managed host operating system in case of deployment of Hyper Converged Infrastructure.
VMM console operating system
| Operating system | Supported |
|---|---|
| Windows 10 Enterprise | Y |
| Window Server 2016 Standard, Datacenter | Y |
| Windows Server 2019 (with desktop experience) | Y |
| Window Server 2019 Standard, Datacenter, Server Core with FOD | Y |
SQL Server
Note
- For the supported versions of SQL, use the service packs that are currently in support by Microsoft.
- For the below supported SQL versions, Standard, Enterprise, and Datacenter (64-bit) editions are supported based on the availability.
| SQL version | Supported |
|---|---|
| SQL Server 2016 and SPs as detailed here | Y |
| SQL Server 2017 as detailed here | Y |
| SQL Server 2019 as detailed here | Y |
| SQL Server command line utilities | Install the SQL Server 2016 Command-Line Utilities from the Microsoft® SQL Server® 2016 Feature Pack or Install the SQL Server 2017 Command-Line Utilities from the Microsoft® SQL Server® 2017 Feature Pack. Not required for VMM installation. |
Virtualization
| VM | Supported |
|---|---|
| VMM management server | The VMM management server can be installed on a VM. If you use dynamic memory, set the start RAM of the VM to at least 2048 MB. Don't install on a server running Hyper-V. You can deploy the VMM management server (physical or VM) in a highly available cluster. |
| VMM console | You can install the VMM console on a VM. |
Installation components
These components should be installed on the server before you install VMM.
| Component | VMM server | VMM console |
|---|---|---|
| Active Directory | The VMM management server must be a domain member. The computer name shouldn't exceed 15 characters. |
A computer with the VMM console installed should be a domain member. |
| Windows ADK | Download Windows ADK for Windows 10 and download windows PE Add-on for ADK | Not applicable |
| PowerShell | PowerShell 5.0 | PowerShell 4.0, 5.0 |
| .NET (minimum) | 4.6 | 4.5 |
Servers in the VMM fabric
| Operating system | Hyper-V host | SOFS | Update server | PXE server |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Windows Server 2012 R2 (supported from 2019 UR2 and later) | Y | Y | N | N |
| Windows Server 2016 Standard and Datacenter (Core) | Y | Y | N | N |
| Windows Server 2016 Standard and Datacenter (With Desktop experience) | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Hyper-V Server 2016 | N | N | N | N |
| Windows Server 2019 Standard and Datacenter (With Desktop experience) | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Windows Server 2019 Standard and Datacenter (Core) | Y | Y | N | N |
| Hyper-V Server 2019 | N | N | N | N |
| Azure Stack Hyper Converged Infrastructure (HCI, version 20H2) (supported from 2019 UR3 and later) | Y | N | N | N |
| Windows Server 2022 | N | N | N | N |
VMware servers in the VMM fabric
| VMware | Supported |
|---|---|
| ESX | ESX/ESXi 5.1, 5.5, 6.0, 6.5, 6.7 (supported from 2019 UR2 and later) 7.0, 8.0 (supported from VMM 2019 UR5) |
| vCenter | 5.1, 5.5, 5.8, 6.0, 6.5, 6.7 (supported from 2019 UR2 and later) 7.0, 8.0 (supported from VMM 2019 UR5) |
| Supported | Features and limitations |
VMs in the VMM fabric
| Guest operating system | Supported |
|---|---|
| Hyper-V VMs | Any guest running on supported Hyper-V hosts. Learn more about support for 2019 and earlier versions. |
| VMware VM | Any VM running on supported VMware servers. Learn more. |
This article provides details of the system requirements for System Center 2016 - Virtual Machine Manager (VMM).
VMM 2016 system requirements
The following sections describe the scalability information, hardware, software, and SQL Server requirements for VMM 2016, and summarize the support for the servers managed in the VMM fabric.
Capacity limits
The following table provides the scale limits that were tested for System Center 2016 Virtual Machine Manager. There are various factors that impact the scale limits, such as hardware configuration, network, topology, and others.
The planning guide provides the details about how these factors can be adapted to specific requirements.
| Entity | Recommended maximum count |
|---|---|
| Physical hosts | 1000 |
| Virtual Machines | 25000 |
| Services | 1000 |
| User roles | 1000 |
| Clouds | 20 |
| Virtual networks | 2000 |
| logical networks | 20 |
| Library resources | 1000 |
| Library Objects (templates, profiles) | 100 |
Hardware
| Hardware | VMM server | VMM database | VMM library | VMM console |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Processor (minimum) | 8 core Pentium 4, 2 GHz (x64) | 8 core Pentium 4, 2.8 GHz | 4 core Pentium 4, 2.8 GHz | 2 core Pentium 4, 1 GHz CPU |
| Processor (recommended) | 16 core, 2.66 GHz CPU | 16 core 2.6 GHz CPU | 4 core 2.8 GHz CPU | 2 core 2 GHz CPU |
| RAM (minimum) | 4 GB | 8 GB | 2 GB | 4 GB |
| RAM (recommended) | 16 GB | 16 GB | 4 GB | 4 GB |
| Hard drive (minimum) | 4 GB | 50 GB | Based on size/amount of stored files | 10 GB |
| Hard drive (recommended) | 10 GB | 200 GB | Based on size/amount of stored files | 10 GB |
Server operating system
| Operating system | VMM server | Remote VMM library | Remote VMM database |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windows Server 2012 Standard/Datacenter | N | N | If supported by SQL Server version |
| Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard/Datacenter (Server Core) | N | Y | If supported by SQL Server version |
| Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard/Datacenter (with desktop experience) | N | Y | If supported by SQL Server version |
| Windows Server 2016 (Server Core) | Y | N | If supported by SQL Server version |
| Windows Server 2016 (with desktop experience) | Y | Y | If supported by SQL Server version |
| Windows Server 2016 Nano | N | N | If supported by SQL Server version |
VMM console operating system
| Operating system | Supported |
|---|---|
| Windows 7 | N |
| Windows 8 | N |
| Windows 8.1 | Y |
| Windows 10 Enterprise | Y |
| Windows Server 2008 R2 with SP1 onwards | N |
| Windows Server 2012 | Y |
| Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard, Datacenter | Y |
| Window Server 2016 Standard, Datacenter | Y |
SQL Server
Note
- For the supported versions of SQL, use the service packs that are currently in support by Microsoft.
- For the below supported SQL versions, Standard, Enterprise, and Datacenter (64-bit) editions are supported based on the availability.
| SQL version | Supported |
|---|---|
| SQL Server 2008 | N |
| SQL Server 2012 and SPs as detailed here | Y |
| SQL Server 2014 and SPs as detailed here | Y |
| SQL Server 2016 and SPs as detailed here | Y |
| SQL Server command line utilities | Install on VMM server if you want to deploy SQL Server data-tier apps in the VMM fabric. Install SQL Server 2012 Command-Line Utilities from the Microsoft® SQL Server® 2012 Feature Pack or Install the SQL Server 2014 Command-Line Utilities from the Microsoft® SQL Server® 2014 Feature Pack Not required for VMM installation. |
Virtualization
| VM | Supported |
|---|---|
| VMM management server | The VMM management server can be installed on a VM. If you use dynamic memory, set the start RAM of the VM to at least 2048 MB. Don't install on a server running Hyper-V. You can deploy the VMM management server (physical or VM) in a highly available cluster. |
| VMM console | You can install the VMM console on a VM. |
Installation components
These components should be installed on the server before you install VMM.
| Component | VMM server | VMM console |
|---|---|---|
| Active Directory | The VMM management server must be a domain member. The computer name shouldn't exceed 15 characters. |
A computer with the VMM console installed should be a domain member. |
| Windows ADK | Download Windows ADK for Windows 10 | Not applicable |
| PowerShell | PowerShell 5.0 | PowerShell 4.0, 5.0 |
| .NET | 4.6 | 4.5, 4.5.1, 4.5.2, 4.6 |
Servers in the VMM fabric
| Operating system | Hyper-V host | SOFS | Update server | PXE server |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Windows Server 2012 Standard/Datacenter | N | N | N | N |
| Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard/Datacenter | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Windows Server 2016 Standard and Datacenter (Core) | Y | Y | N | Y |
| Windows Server 2016 Standard and Datacenter (With Desktop experience) | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Windows Server 2016 Nano | Y | Y | N | Y |
| Hyper-V Server 2016 | N | N | N | N |
VMware servers in the VMM fabric
| VMware | Supported |
|---|---|
| ESX | ESX/ESXi 5.1, 5.5, 6.0 UR6 and later - ESX/ESXi 5.1, 5.5, 6.0, 6.5 |
| vCenter | 5.1, 5.5, 5.8, 6.0 UR6 and later - 5.1, 5.5, 5.8, 6.0, 6.6 |
| Supported | Features and limitations |
VMs in the VMM fabric
| Guest operating system | Supported |
|---|---|
| Hyper-V VMs | Any guest running on supported Hyper-V hosts. Learn more about support for 2016 and earlier versions. |
| VMware VM | Any VM running on supported VMware servers. Learn more. |