Your v15 license key will not work on v17. For v15.5.7, use the same perpetual key you purchased. No new keys are issued for this legacy version.
A: Yes, with conditions. You need to disable Windows Hyper-V and Memory Integrity (Core Isolation) in Windows Security, as these conflict with VMware’s virtualization engine.
For enterprise users, VMware provides a public archive index. download vmware workstation 1557 verified
VMware Workstation 15.5.7 is a specific legacy build. It is popular because it was one of the last stable releases before major UI changes in version 16, and it runs well on slightly older hardware.
Crucial Note: VMware (now owned by Broadcom) has changed their download policy. You must have a free Broadcom account to access legacy downloads. Your v15 license key will not work on v17
A: Yes. VMware allows downloading and using older versions legally. However, technical support is only provided for the latest version. For personal use, it is completely free.
A “verified” download means nothing unless you check it. After downloading VMware-workstation-full-15.5.7-*.exe (Windows) or .bundle (Linux): Compare the computed hash to the published hash
Compare the result with VMware’s official hash. If they differ, delete the file immediately.