If you’ve recently powered on a VMware Virtual Machine (VM) only to be greeted by the message you aren’t alone. While this warning might seem alarming, it’s usually a minor configuration mismatch rather than a sign of a failing system.
The VM configuration is looking for a physical serial port ( COM1 , COM2 , etc.) on your modern host computer, but modern motherboards rarely feature these legacy ports.
The “Virtual device serial0 will start disconnected” message is a common informational warning that appears in various VMware products. It is not an indication of VM corruption or permanent failure, but rather a notification that the VM’s virtual COM port was unable to establish a connection during startup.
Another application or another running virtual machine is currently using the host's physical serial port. How to Fix the Error virtual device serial0 will start disconnected
Fixing the VMware Error: "Virtual device serial0 will start disconnected"
Verify that the pipe name matches your debugging client configuration exactly and that firewall rules permit the connection. Check the Connect at power on box. Click Save and test the VM boot sequence. Method 3: Modify the VMX Configuration File Manually
However, if you are attempting to boot a specialized operating system that requires a console output on the serial port, it may hang at boot. In that case, you must ensure the port is properly connected to a file or a named pipe. If you’ve recently powered on a VMware Virtual
If you need the serial port to exist for software configuration purposes, but you don't need it connected to anything immediately, you can simply stop it from trying to connect at boot. the virtual machine. Open the VM settings. Select Serial Port 1 . Uncheck the option Connect at power on . Click OK . Solution 3: Reconfigure the Serial Port
This keeps the hardware in your configuration but prevents VMware from trying (and failing) to initialize it during startup. Method 3: Point to an Output File
If the GUI setting does not work, you can directly edit the configuration file to ensure the settings are correct. Shut down the VM and close VMware . How to Fix the Error Fixing the VMware
Resolving this warning requires aligning the virtual hardware settings with the actual resources available on your hypervisor.
The easiest way to resolve this is to remove the legacy printer device that is causing the conflict. your virtual machine completely. Open the Virtual Machine Settings . Find Printer in the list of hardware devices. Select it and click Remove . Click OK and restart the VM. Option 2: For VMware Workstation Users